aiorttell Ittioeraitg Hthrarij FROM THE BENNO LOEWY LIBRARY COLLECTED BY BENNO LOEWY 1854-1919 BEQUEATHED TO CORNELL UNIVERSITY Cornell University Library BT1210 .S35 1853 HIstorc doubts respecting Shakspeare; 3 1924 029 323 031 oHn Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029323031 HISTORIC DOUBTS RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE; ILHISTBATING INFIDEL OBJECTIf?NS AGAINST ^E" BIBLE. PHILADELPHIA: 1853. PREFACE. The subject of Modern Infidelity may be discussed in one of two ways ; either by taking a survey of the differ- ent schools according to their national distinctions, such as the German and the French Infidelity ; or by choosing out from all these various systems the most important points which they may have defended, and endeavor thus singly to refute them. The objection to the first method, when taken separately, would be, that, in examining the different schools in their order, inasmuch as some of their dogmas are similar, there would be danger of repeating the same discussions. The objection to the second method, when separately taken, would be the danger of overlook- ing some interesting historical developments which have occurred during the progress of these respective schools. An attempt has therefore been made in these pages, to combine these two methods. The reader will find, in one of the chapters, a survey of the peculiar doctrines of each of the separate schools of Modern Infidelity, sufficient, it is hoped, to give some idea of the nature, as well as the error, of each system. On the other hand, the most im- portant doctrines which have been defended by Modern In- fidels of any school, are selected and discussed thrpilghout the book. Thus, the main position of German Infidels has been, that no divine revelation should contain anything 1« VI PREFACE. above the grasp of reason ; and when giving a Critique of all Revelations, they have usually maintained that ground. This point has, therefore, been discussed in one of the chap- ters. So the main objections of French Infidels against the Scriptures, from Voltaire downveards, have been based upon the peculiar character of the men and the means first employed to propagate Christianity. An attempt is there- fore made to investigate that point in another chapter. Thus, all the most important individual objections which have been urged by the abettors of Modern Infidelity, of any grade or school, against the Bible, have here been made the subject of discussion ; so that we hope no one point' has been passed by, which has any very serious bearing on the truthfulness and the divinity of a Religion which can so powerfully promote both the present and the future welfare of mankind. NOTEMBEB, 1847. CONTENTS, INTRODUCTION. Object of tlie present work — ^Historic doubts respecting Christ equally applicable to Shakspeare — Peculiar nature and tendency of modern infidelity; illustrated by the renowned Work of Strauss on the Life of Jesus — His imitators in this country — Their inferiority and im- perfections — Order of points discussed — Reasons for selecting these points ...----13 CHAPTER 1. llftrDEl OB;r£CTIOirs AOAIHST CBHIST ILltrSTnATIB at DOtTBTS REBPECTIITG SEAKSPEABE. Mankind naturally prone to the marvelous— Hence the legend of Her- cules ; the siege of Troy ; the golden fleece ; superstitious miracles —Shakspeare a miracle of genius — -Necessary proofs of such a miracle— Want of such proofs— Doubts about his parentage — His birth — ^Hls early history — His occupations — His professional career -—Strange contradictions — His supposed writings — Disputes as to which are false, which genuine — Sketch of other literary impostors — Ossian — Thomas Chatterton's impostures — False decretals — Motives for Imposture in Shakspeare's case — Great variety of these —Other suspicious circumstances in Shakspeare's history— His in- diiference to fame — Amount of his writings—Their contradictions ^-How to account for these writings — How to account for his existing histories-^Liability to deception — The force of circum- stances — Probable testimony — ^Bishop Butler — Mathematical evi- dence—Popular delusions — Important inferences - 21 VUl CONTENTS. CHAPTER n. PEIISONAI CHABACTEnS OF THE SACIIES WHITEH3 BEFESDED. Importance of this question — General fitness of these men for their work as penmen of the Bible— Worthy of all confidenGe and credit — Moses — His history and character — Isaiah — Jeremiah — David — ^Writers of the New Testament — Their chief — Paul — Peter — John — Their general practical sense — Their disinterested- ness — They employ only honorable means — No secret societies as some have supposed — Acquaintance with the truths they were to teach — Extraordinary faith and energy— -Their spirituality — Their fearlessness — Harmony of sentiment and action — Dependence on God— Their devotion even till death — Great ideas represented by particular men among them — Their exalted merits - 99 CHAPTER III. THE ADMIRABLE DESIGN OF THE SACBED VOLCME. The merits of the Bible an inexhaustible theme — Should therefore be studied — Main design to reveal the will of God to man — ^De- signed to proclaim his character and claims — ^To answer the natu- ral expectations of men — To resist the power and influence of error — To proclaim the great plan of redemption — To teach cer- tain great principles and events in human history — The immor- taUty of the soul — The only true object of worship — Supply the deficiencies of the Book of Nature — To give a general revelation adapted to each individual case — To preserve the instructions of Christ — A standard of authority in rehgious inquiries — ^Danger of forsaking such a guide — Modern Infidelity has ventured to do so 133 CHAPTER IV. THE PLEJfABT INSPIBATlOIf OF THE BIBLE. Not only is the design of the Bible good, but its actual character ex- cellent — The nature and degree of inspiration — Internal evidences — Sublime truths of the Bible — Their extraordinary power on the heart — Their extraordinary harmony — The analogy between these truths and the constitution and course of nature — The extra- ordinary insight into the human heart which they display — CONTENTS. IX External evidences — Its miracles never yet disproved — The pro- phecies — Nature of prophecy — Their fullness and distinctness — Progressive evidences — Extraordinary preservation of the pure Scriptures — Greater credulity dememded from those who disbe- lieve — Wonderful preservation of the religion of the Bible — The concessions of the enemies of the Bible — Pliny — Julian — Porphyry — ^Rousseau — ^Byron ..... 157 CHAPTER V. THE LOGICAL WECISSITT OF FAITH IK A DITIlfE RETILATIOlf. Objections of Modern Infidels on this score — This necessity proved by the analogy between the works of Nature and Revelation — Proved by the inherent nature of God — By the weakness and finiteness of the human mind — By the very idea implied in a Divine Revelation — Proved by the nature of the subjects dis- cussed — Proved by the progressive nature of humem knowledge and power — The works of Nature prove God to be reasonable — Benevolent — Just — True — Hence deserve our faith when He speaks in Revelation — ^Absurdities of the contrary opinion 191 CHAPTER VI. CONTBAST BETWEEK THE nELISIOir OF THE BIBLE AUD IITFIDELITT. Practical considerations — Bold assumptions of the friends of unbelief — ^Various kinds of Modern Infidelity — ^Doctrinal difierences be- tween Infidelity and the religion of the Bible — The existence of a God — Of Providence — ^The immortality of the soul — The authority and inspiration of the Bible — The Divine mission and atonement of Christ — Future rewards and punishments — Results produced by the two systems — On morality — On culture and holiness — On social security and comfort — Stability of governments — Selfishness and ferocity — Support of the soul in death — Its destiny throughout futurity - - ... 221 CHAPTER VII. ENDLESS COHTIlArlCTIOItS AITD VAHIATIOITS OF MODEBlr IlfFIDELITT. Unity and consistency a test of truth — Progress in religious knowledge does not imply contradictions — Infidelity of Hobbes — Of Spinoza — X CONTENTS. Shaftesbury, Wollaston, Morgan, Tindal, Hume, Gibbon, Paine — French infidelity — Voltaire — Diderot — D'Alembert — Robespierre — ^Volney — Conflicting dogmas of German infidelity — Nicholai — Wolf — Bahrdt — Eiohhorn — Paulus — Kant — Fichte — Sohelling — Hegel — ^Modern French infidelity — Cousin — Joufiroy — ^Damiron — Unitarian infidelity — Dr. Priestley — R. W. Emerson — Popular infi- delity — Universalism — Endless contradictions of these systems- Latest infidelity — Vestiges of Creation — Socialism — Owenism — Fourierism — Importemt inferences ... 259 CHAPTER Vin. THE EXCELLENCE AND HABMOlTr OF THE DOCTRINAL STSTEM OF THE BIBLE. Though the doctrines of the Bible are not arranged in a compact body, there is a system — It possesses unity — The Bible first proclaims its own character and pretensions — Reveals harmoniously the Divine existence — Harmonious respecting the Divine Nature — The works of God — The doctrine of the Trinity — Doctrines con- cerning man — His primitive state — His fall — Its teachings respect- ing Christ — His divinity — His humanity — His threefold functions — Christ's labors, sufferings, and atonement — The Holy Spirit — The order of salvation — Repentance — Justification — Sanctifioation — Tlie means of grace — The Christian church — Attributes of the church — ^Design of the church — The Sacraments of the church — Baptism — Lord's Supper — The necessity and import of death — The resurrection — The judgment — The punishment of the wicked — The felicity of the righteous — The unbroken unity and harmony of the Bible on all these fundamental points - - 304 CHAPTER IX. THE ADAPTATION OF THE IlELIGION OF THE BIBLE TO UNIVEBSAL DIFFUSION. Objection of Modern Infidelity against the slow development of Christianity — The religion of the Bible is adapted to every grade of society — Adapted to any climate — To every order of intellect — To every degree of moral culture — Its doctrinal system is adapted to universal reception — The same of its moral system^ CONTENTS. XI Its ritual observances everywhere practicable — The operation of the Gospel ministry — The active co-operation of private Christians — The attractions of tlie cross — The support of the Omnipotent is its— No union of church and state — Carried forward even by its disasters— The aid of science and the arts — Commerce — ^War — Magnificence of the plans of the Bible — The co-operation of Pro- vidence — The aid of the Holy Spirit - - - 351 CHAPTER X. SBNEBAI COKSISTEirCT OF THE BIBLE VIKDICiTES. Infidel charges against the consistency of the Bible — Causes of the various conflicting interpretations drawn from it — The Bible re- sponsible for none of the effects of these causes — The case of the Bible illustrated by a painting as exhibited for inspection — Direct arguments for the consistency of the Bible — It is consistent in all its historical relations — Particular instances — Consistence in its doc- trinal discussions — ^Prophecies — Moral system and duties — Con- sistency between Old and New Testament — Nature and degree of Christian union — Truth clearly understood only in Heaven 384 CHAPTER XI. SCBIPTUBAL ACCOUNT OP THE OBIGIN OP EVIL. A vexed and difficult subject — ^What is evil? — Infidel objections against the Biblical account — Exposition of Thomas Aquinas — Is the existing universe the best possible ? — Free agents in that uni- verse — Finite agents—Nature of good as opposed to evil — The relation which God does bear to the origin of evil — The <} priori argument — The rf posteriori argument — Force of this argument — Vsirious advantages of the fall— A new creation — Divine benevo- lence — The power of prayer — Folly and futility of objections against the Scriptural account .... 411 CHAPTER XII. THE TBAirSFIGtTBATIOlr OF CHRIST VIITIIICATED. The labored and learned objections of Strauss — The extraordinary light — The bodies of Moses and Elias — The supernatural voice — XU CONTENTS. Interpretations of Eiohhorn — Paulus — Forced and false nature of their expositions — Other modes of interpretation — Important pur. poses accomplished by the literal occurrence of the Transfiguration — The place of the Transfiguration — Why were Peter, James and John chosen as witnesses? — Peter's proposition to make three tabernacles — Sublimity and appropriateness of the whole event 426 CHAPTER XIII. THE CUILT Airs rVSISHMSST OF JUDAS EXATHINXD. Infidel objections on this subject — Prophecies respecting Christ's death — Mode of his death foretold — Perfect freedom of Judas — His extraordinary guilt — The relation of the prophecies and pur-' poses of God to his crime — Do the plans of God depend on the free acts of men? — Statement in Acts i. 25 — Mode of the death of Judas — ^His hanging — The bursting of his bowels — Both statements reconciled — The repentance of Judas — Its inconrpleteness — Solemn instructions and warnings presented by the history of Judas 443 CHAPTER XIV. la^TEBfiiETATioir OF Christ's sescehi to hades. Infidel objections — Romanist interpretation — Ultra-Protestant opinions — Passage in 1st Peter iii. 18, 21 — Interpretations of the fathers — Irenaeus — Clemens Alexandrinus — Athanasius — Basil — Chry- sostom — Augustine — Opinions of the Reformers — Two distinct inquiries on this subject — " Quickened by the Spirit" — Preaching to the spirits in prison — Who were these persons ? — ^Where was their prison? — What was the substance of his preaching? — What was the result of his preaching? — No just grounds for infidel censures or objections to this interpretation — Symbolical truths taught by it — The conclusion .... 453 MODERN INFIDELITY. INTRODUCTION. In the following pages, the author has endeavored to render a small contribution to the Evidences of Christianity. In the first part, he has labored to show that the former existence of a distinguished man in the literary world, may be as easily disproved, as infidels have labored to disprove the existence of an eminent person in the religious world. The principal argu- ments which have been employed to overturn the former actual existence of Christ, as a great teacher and historical actor, have been interwoven into this discussion and applied to Shakspeare. It will be seen, we think, that if those arguments and sophisms have any weight when applied to Christ, they possess equal conclusiveness mutatis mutandis, when applied to Shakspeare ; hence, if any one is willing to doubt on their authority, the history and existence of Christ, he must, in order to be consistent, be willing to doubt on the same grounds, the history and existence of Shaks- peare. The reasoning which is conclusive in one case, is so in both, and applies indeed to any similar instance, which might be selected as the basis of the discussion. 3 14 INTRODUCTION. Whoever has observed the progress of Religion and Theology during the last few years, will easily see, that no one method of opposing Christianity, has proved more successful, and been more injurious to the inte- rests of truth, than that of denying the former existence of Christ in the world, as the real teacher and savior of men, as revealed in the New Testament. Most other forms of doubt and infidelity have passed away, having crumbled into dust from their own inherent shallowness and emptiness. But philosophical doubt has of late years assumed another form, and assaulted the citadel of truth, from another point of attack. It had been discovered, that as long as the unbeliever granted some general principles and fundamental posi- tions to his opponent, so long a foothold had been given, which could never afterward be overcome ; that, planting himself firmly on these primitive and immov- able supports, the advocate of the Gospel inevitably gained upon his foe, and eventually overpowered and exploded him. It became apparent, that it was neces- sary to dispute the first positions, to begin at the very borders of the contested territory, and make a thorough and complete conquest from the beginning. This ex- ploit has been attempted by different champions of In- fidelity ; but by none with greater labor, learning and ingenuity than Dr. B. F. Strauss, in his " Life of Jesus." He labors to prove, that the writings and narratives of the Evangelists are myths; not i-ecordiyg truly what actually occurred, but what the fancy of later dreamers would have desired and approved. He disputes those different narratives, and endeavors to show how inconsistent, improbable and incredible they are at every point. In a word, while he admits that INTRODUCTION. 15 sudi a man as Jesus may have lived, he contendsi that his recorded history, teachings, doings and sufferings, are false, and therefore wholly unworthy of credit. Aware of the great importance of this point in a sys- tem of Apologetics, every resource which could possibly aid in rendering their position impregnable, has been employed by those who have engaged in this contest. The work of Strauss has been translated in England, and is now also for sale in this country. The spirit which animates him has been imbibed to some extent, by some in our own midst. For instance, the translation of De Wette's Introduction to the Old Testament, which has been made at Boston, is a bold advance accomplished in the same direction. Though not as irreverent an infidel as Strauss, though not as daring in his assaults, nor as successful in his attempts, as he ; the effect pro- duced by De Wette's work, will be highly injurious. Thus the spirit of learned doubt gains among us, and one after another of the venerable strongholds of the truth will be deserted, as unreasonable, antiquated, superstitious, and behind the requirements of the culti- vated age in which we live. We expect soon to hear of the establishment of an association of Illuminati, similar to those of Germany in a former day, who will resist and deride the simple Christianity which has prevailed here, ever since the Pilgrim fathers hallowed these Western climes with their presence and theii principles. We expect soon to hear of the organiza tion of a."Young America" among us, in imitation of similar youthful and sapient associations in the old world; who will oppose the truth, not with the coolness, the experience and the power of age, but with the im- petuosity, the arrogance and the absurdity of youth. 16 INTRODUCTION. That such associations may here arise and run their course, can scarcely be doubted.* But it is comfortable to remember, that all such maturer associations will here, as elsewhere, soon become enfeebled with ap- proaching age and decay, and all such "young" asso- ciations will gradually become old. They will thus learn the wisdom and repentance which increasing years bestow, or else suffer the contempt which an un- improved and childish old age deserves. But it is the duty of every lover of the truth to lend his aid in re- sisting such errors, and contributing to their overthrow. That the great questions connected with the evi- dences of Christianity will be abundantly discussed in the progress of future years, in our own land, cannot be denied. The native activity of the national mind, and the countless classes, systems and schools, which are thrown together here, give us the surest evidence, that such commotions will hereafter occur. But in these as in all other cases, we fear not the issue of the struggle ; for the truth of God, inured to triumph, will assert as of old, its divine and unapproachable supremacy. Even though the simulated argument in the first chapter respecting Shakspeare, might not approve itself to discerning readers, as conclusive, when viewed as an argument, it will still accomplish the purpose of the author by showing how much may be said, and with what imposing pretence to plausibility, against any person whose history may be assaulted. And the in- * We have indeed seen the advertisement of a periodical pub- lished at Boston, entitled " The Young America's Magazine;" but what its peculiar sentiments may be, we have no means of knowing. INTRODUCTION. 17 ference is plain, that if so much may be contrived and urged, to mystify the existing records concerning a person who is dead but several centuries, how much more may be contrived by a perverse ingenuity against the existing records respecting an individual who lived and acted in the world nearly two thousand years ago. So that when all the late ingenious sophisms which have been propounded by infidels of a learned sort, are duly considered, we- may still with great justice charge them with stupidity, that they have not been able to adduce more acute suggestions than they have done. And this stigma may indeed be stamped upon them, that the*ir acuteness and ability have always fallen far short of their presumption and malignity. Hence every new mode of attack which' they adopt, has ever been repulsed by a superior and overwhelming amount of argument and evidence. The author of these pages does not vainly suppose that they can accomplish much in the work of estab- lishing Christianity, in the convictions of men. A subject so vast and varied as that of the Christian evi- dences cannot be condensed into so small a compass. But as every individual point connected with this sub- ject, has its own importance as related to the whole ; as every objection which is answered,, every doubt which is removed, and every single position which is gained, adds to the power and completeness of the final triumph ; a discussion like the present one will not be without its value. He has not endeavored to say aU which might have been said, or to expand his work as much as possible; but, on the contrary, has condensed his remarks as much as the subject would permit, that the main points under discussion may be presented in 2* 18 INTRODUCTION. clearer light, unimpeded by unnecessary digressions, and unobscured by useless words. The order and connection of the subjects discussed are as follows : — The narratives of the Evangelists con- cerning Christ, the principal personage in the history of Christianity, are illustrated by the argument respect- ing Shakspeare. The merits of his immediate succes- sors and apostles are discussed in the chapter on the personal characters of the Sacred Writers. The high purposes which actuated thefci are set forth in the chapter on the Design of the Bible. The value of their productions when written, is exhibited in the chapter on the Inspiration of the Bible. The pro- priety of receiving revealed truth, in a theoretical point of view, is maintained in the chapter on the Logical Necessity of Faith in any Divine Revelation. The practical claims of revelation to the acceptance of men are urged''in the contrast between the religion of the Bible and Infidelity, as developed in the progress of ages. The endless contradictions and changes of In- fidelity are then exhibited, to show that it does not possess that unity which is a mark of truth. In op- position to these contradictions, a condensed view of the Supreme Excellence and Harmony of the doctrines taught by the Bible is then presented. This is foi- l-owed by an argument, to show that the religion of the Bible is adapted to secure and retain a universal diffu- sion, and a vindication of the general consistency of the Bible in opposition to the conflicting intei^reta- tions which are often put upon it. For the purpose of confirming these proofs, several of the most im- portant modern objections of Infidelity against the Bible are examined, and an attempt is made to show INTRODUCTION. 19 the reasonableness and .truthfulness of the sacred re- cord. The points selected, are the Scriptural account of the origin of Sin ; the Scriptural fact of the Trans- figuration of Christ ; the guilt of Judas ; and the affirmed descent of Christ to the place of departed Spirits. Some other of the doctrines and facts re- corded in Scriptures, which have been especially ridi- culed and opposed by Modern Infidelity, might have been thus examined and defended; but these were thought sufficient to illustrate the reasonableness and truthfulness of the whole. It is hoped that these discussions will serve to show, that Modern Infidels of every grade and shade of opinion, deserve the stigma cast upon their predecessors, by an eminent light of the primitive church: Juste cadent in sublatentem ig- norantiae foveam, semper quaerentes, et nunquam ve- rum invenientes. Irenaeus, adv. Haeres, lib. v. c. 2. CHAPTER I. HISTORIC DOUBTS RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE, TO ILLUSTRATE INFIDEL OBJECTIONS AGAINST CHRIST.* SECTION I. The history of mankind clearly proves, that they have ever been prone to the contemplation of the marvelous. Whatever presents to their intense curi- osity, the merit of singularity ; whatever seems to be without a precedent and a parallel ; or whatever in- volves in itself the elements of the wondrous and the mysterious, these are the subjects which will secure from men their most absorbed attention. Hence it happens, that the most valuable and serviceable prin- ciples are often neglected, simply because they have long been familiar to every one, and because their wise adaptation to the wants of mankind, have long since revealed their inherent worth. This tendency to contemplate the marveloas among men, has naturally and almost inevitably led to the constant fabrication of it. When proper materials have not been at hand to gratify this deeply seated principle of our nature, they can easily be contrived * For a similar mode of argument, see Dr. Whately's Histotio Doubts relative to Napoleon Bonaparte, and Das Lebm Litthers Kriiisch iearbdtet von Dr. Casuar, Tubingen, 1836. 22 HISTORIC DOUBTS and constructed. Accordingly we find innumerable instances everywhere, among the exploits of literature and the fabulous legends of mythology, which clearly show, that men will gratify this weakness of their nature, in despite of every obstacle, and at every risk. It is to this fact, that we must attribute the various sys- tems of heathen theology which have existed ; those innumerable clusters of Gods and Goddesses, with all their miracles, their interpositions and their exploits, which now stand recorded for our astonishment and amusement, upon the classic page. In their lamentable want of all genuine knowledge in regard to the Divine nature, and the principles of an overruling Providence, the ancient Greeks and Romans crowded the summit of high Olympus with their deities ; whose contending and discordant jurisdictions were supposed to be ex- hibited in the vicissitudes of battles, in the motions of slaughtered victims, in the revolutions of empires, and in the events of individual life. But this disposition to fabricate the marvelous,- has not always been confined to the mysterious character and actions of Gods and invisible beings ; it has ex- hibited itself on many occasions in reference to the lives and characters of men. The histories of the heroes of former ages which have been recorded, pre- sent many instances, which unanswerably show, that men have been supposed to exist, and to have per- formed certain deeds, which have been confidently be- lieved and admired for ages, and that too by the most refined and enlightened nations then existing; which men and deeds, in all human probability, have never been in being. Who has figured more largely in the history of all RESPECTING SIIAKSPEARE. 23 antiquity than Hercules ? His origin, his appearance, his strange sufferings, his wonderful feats of strength and prowess, his vices, his travels, and his death, have all been unblushingly fabricated, confidently believed, ardently admired, and carefully recorded. No exploits were more illustrious than his in the heroic ages of Greece and' Rome. No name was more familiar than his as a household word in the lands where the pro- found Aristotle and the eloquent Cicero lived. And yet the plainest testimony of enlightened reason de- clares that no such man ever existed upon earth, and that all which is said concerning him, is the sheer fabrication of those same enlightened nations. Thus too, we read of the exploits of the Grecian host around the walls of ancient Troy. Their doings are recorded on the pages of the blind old man of Scio's isle, with an air of sincerity and truthfulness which would seem to disprove all deceit and imposture. Homer describes the characters of Agamemnon, the leader of the host, of the brave Achilles, of the crafty Ulysses, of the stupid Ajax, of Menelaus the betrayed spouse, too ready to forgive ; and on the part of the Trojans, the persons of the aged Priam, the heroic Hector, the graceful Paris, the pious jEneas,and many others. But though these men and exploits have been talked of for four thousand years, and their marvelous histories have long been pondered, and even imitated, what enlightened person now believes that any such men ever lived, or that any such city was ever be- sieged ? He must indeed be exceedingly slow of per- ception, who cannot penetrate the venerated absurdity of any such records ! The historians of ancient Rome tell us, that the 24 HISTORIC DOUBTS foundations of the " Eternal City" were laid by Romu- lus. They soberly record the circumstances of his birth, his wondrous preservation, his achievements, and his supernatural departure from the world. What sensible person now believes any of those myths which have so long been recorded and preserved in reference to him ? Certainly not one. And yet does not this great city itself still remain, grown gray with venerable antiquity, reposing in queenly dignity upon her seven hills, as an apparent proof of the truth of that childish legend ? No one will deny that this city is the remains of the activity of some one ; but of course it furnishes no evidence of the existence of that one, to whom the building of it is usually ascribed. This furnishes an illustration of the fact, that the supposed remains, archi- tectural or otherwise, of any one whose former exist- ence is affirmed, is no conclusive proof of the truth of such affirmation. The vulgar crowd may give credit to such legends, but the philosophical and educated should independently think, and widely differ from them. Thus also the ancient story of the Golden Fleece, to secure which so many heroes and demi-gods are said to have embarked on board the ship Argo, and traveled to ancient Colchis, working as they passed along all manner of wonders on men and monsters, until at last they carried off the brilliant prize: — this story has been soberly recorded by the most famous writers of ancient Greece, whose superior talents and splendid abilities have for many ages, rendered them illustrious. How many generations of Athenians, which produced such men as Demosthenes, Plato and Sophocles, lived and died in the belief of this absurd fabrication ? And RESPECTING SHAKSFEARE. 25 .yet no enlightened person believes it now, while it furnishes a memorable instance how the most cultivated communities may be imposed upon, simply by ad- dressing the principle of the marvelous, which is so prominent in human nature. It is to this same principle that we are to ascribe those various religious miracles, at the graves of the pious dead, by other persons, which are so current in Italy and other portions of Europe. Thousands sincerely believe in the reality of these cures and won- ders ; they will make great sacrifices to witness, or to experience them ; but every person who is intelligently free from superstition, will most certainly believe, that if these cures occurred at all, they can be accounted for, on ordinary principles which involve nothing of the miraculous whatever, or else that the whole affair is an imposture. Many similar cases might be adduced to fortify our present position ; but we cannot speak further of such instances of deceit, though thousands are at hand ; lest the one which we have now especially to consider, should be lost sight of in the multitude. But after the occurrence of so many, and such glaring cases of im- posture, it becomes men to guard against the operation of this delusive principle of human nature, wherever it may appear. The case which we have selected for discussion here, is a very appropriate one, inasmuch as the person in question is very celebrated, and the be- lief in his existence and labors is almost universal among good-natured and credulous people, and because his supposed history is particularly appropriate for illustrating our present purpose. 26 HISTORIC DOUBTS SECTION n. That such a man as William Shakspeare, who helped to steal sheep, and lay intoxicated over night with his companions under a crab-tree near Stratford on Avon, and performed other very ordinary achieve- ments; that such a man may have lived, we do not pretend to deny. His existence has been affirmed by some, and no one has ever taken the pains to deny the affirmation ; just as Defoe has boldly asserted the ex- istence of Robinson Crusoe, on the island of Juan, which assertion no one has ever taken the pains to contradict. Either of these assertions may be true, or may not be true ; and it does not devolve on us here to go into any investigation to prove that such a man as Shakspeare did not live. There may have lived a score of Shakspeares, and that fact have nothing to do with the present discussion. Our business is now, to prove that such a great writer, dramatist, universal genius, poet, and doctor of human nature, as Shak- speare is supposed to have been, did not exist ; and that he has had no existence as that man William Shakspeare, who may, or may not have existed, as is perfectly immaterial now to us. In other words, we are to combat and disprove, if we can, the Shakspeare of history and literature ; that great intellectual pheno- menon who is supposed once to have lived ; and to show that the civilized world has been amazingly, (but yet not unaccountably,) imposed upon in regard to his character, his history, and his very being. Now, whoever affirms the real existence of Shak- speare, must admit that he was a most extraordinary RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 27 personage, and that in fact he was almost a miracle of genius. The writings which are attributed to him, are wonderful in their character ; they are illustrious all over the civilized world; they are as familiar almost as the names of countries, oceans, and planets ; and are known as extraordinary productions throughout the habitable globe. Their amount, their originality, their power, their inexhaustible richness seem almost be- yond the reach of mortal beings ; and it is almost too great a stretch for human credulity, as well as an in- sult to human reason, to demand of us to believe, that all these writings are the production of one mind, and that too under very unfavorable circumstances, and de- ficiencies of training and education. All these things should be kept in view by any one who would main- tain the existence of Shakspeare. It devolves upon him to prove that the evidence for the existence of this person, drawn from the testimony of supposed cotem- poraries, or of others, is so great, as to overbalance the evidence against such a wonder, drawn from the ordi- nary experience 'and observation of all mankind. A miracle of genius, may be defined to be a departure from the ordinary laws of the intellectual universe, in- volving in fact a full suspension of the operation of those usual laws, and the introductionof alawunparalleled and extraordinary, and its operation in this particular case. That Shakspeare, if he existed, ivas such a miracle of genius, no one will deny.* All the ordinary laws of nature have failed to produce an equal to him. If he was produced by the operation of ordinary laws, those same laws would have produced similar results again; for * " Nothing is esteemed a miracle, if it ever happens in the common course of nature." — Hume's Phil. Works, vol. iv., p. 133. 28 HISTORIC DOUBTS like causes under similar circumstances always produce like effects. If then these ordinary laws of the intel- lectual universe have never produced another Shak- speare, (which none will affirm,) he must have been produced by extraordinary laws.* Hence he was a miracle ; and as such, his existence must be established only by proving the possibility and the reality of a de- parture from the usual laws of the world of mind and matter, in his particular case. But that such a departure from these ordinary laws was made in this case, we cannot believe; because, though some might be found bold enough to affirm it, yet we know that all human testimony is liable to error and mistake ; while every one is aware, that the testi- mony of experience to the contrary is changeless and infallible. We must have something more than this insecure testimony of short-sighted persons, in order to rebut the power of such overwhelming experience. In fact, nothing will be sufficient to overturn the opposing force of such universal experience, excepting something fully equal to it, that is to say, a cotinter experience itself. In other words, before we can rationally admit the existence of this miraculous personage, we must have the evidence of our own experience, of our own senses, to that effect. Then, and not till then, can we be expected to believe so wonderful an event, that such a miracle of genius has ever existed.t * "It is strange, (a judicious reader is apt to say,) upon the perusal of these wonderful historians, that such prodigious events never happen in our own days. But it is nothing strange that men should he in all agos."—Hwme's Phil. Works,ya\. iv., p. 139. f " When any one tells me that be saw a dead man restored to life, I immediately consider with myself, whether it be more proba- RESPECTINO SHAKSFEARE. 29 Every one knows that we have not this necessary means of judging in this case by the proof from ex- perience. If such a man as Shakspeare ever lived, it was in former times. Men can only be witnesses of those events which occur in their own day; and if a miracle then occurs, and if they have the evidence of their experience in its favor, they may believe it. But if they should happen to live in an after age, to the sup- posed miracle, they dare nof believe in its occurrence; because their only proof of it must be drawn from tes- timony, and that testimony is liable to error ; and when opposed to our own experience to the contrary, must of course be of inferior authority. . Hence we are re- lieved from the necessity of believing any miraculous event, except it happen in our own age, and we are per- mitted to behoid it. And we are also excused from re- ceiving any important consequences which might fol- low, from the supposed existence of some miracles in a former age, which we could not have witnessed.* ble that this person should either deceive, or be deceived, or that tile fact which he relates should really have happened. I weigh the one miracle against the other." — Hume's Essay on Miracles, p. 177,.12mo. * The reader will easily perceive that we are endeavoring to reduce the argument of Hume against miracles, fully to its ab- surd, yet logical consequences ; for it may be resolved into the doctrine, that he could not believe a miracle until he sees it. " Whoever is moved by faith to assent to it, (such a miracle,) is conscious of a continued miracle in his own person, which subverts all the principles of his understanding, and gives him a determination to believe what is most contrary to custom and experience." Shortly before this passage, Hume declares that the testimony o£ " experience" is undeniable, ir against a miracle; but here he believes against experience, if in favor of a miracle. — See his Phil. Works, vol. iv., p. 154. 3* 30 HISTORIC DOUBTS But besides this, it is to be remembered, without any reference to the miraculous features of this case, that an extraordinary man, such as Shakspeare is said to have been, should have greater historical evidence of his existence than ordinary men, in proportion as he is greater than they. If in the case of ordinary men, we justly demand the evidence of indisputable and satisfactory biography; in the case of greater men, we naturally expect still more complete and enlarged his- tories. The reason of this is, that great men, when they exist, will necessarily fill up a larger space in public attention, they will be spoken and written about, much more by their cotemporaries, than ordinary men will. Thus, no one doubts that such a man as Bona- parte existed, because the papers and books of his day are full of his exploits, and the evidences of his exist- ence. The records of his life are great and abundant, in proportion as he was greater than the most of his fellows. Had this not been the case, had the records of him among his cotemporaries been few and obscure, we would naturally deny the assertion of any one who would affirm that he was the greatest military man of these last eight centuries. The thing would be con- tradictory in its nature. Let us apply this test to Shakspeare. According to the general opinion he is as great a man in the literary world, as Bonaparte was in the political. We may therefore expect that the records of him among his cotemporaries would be as numerous, as conclusive and as complete, as they are in reference to Bonaparte. In fact, we have a right to expect that this would be so. To imagine that this great writer, so universally admired and idolized, the honor of his country, the RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 31 light of his age, and the pride of his race, should have lived through life without exciting universal attention, without being "the observed of all observers," and without leaving the traces of his career behind him in cotemporary history, is absurd. Now what is the fact in reference to Shakspeare ? How large a space does he occupy in the records of his own day ? How much was then said of him ? How much was then written concerning him ? Those familiar with the facts in this case know, that he was to a great extent unknown, (supposing that the histories of him are true, though this very point is a proof against their truthfulness,) in his own day, and that very little was said of him for one hundred years after he is supposed to have died. So great a man must surely have been more talked about. Such a wonder of wit and genius should have not only been heralded with rapture by his'own com- panions and associates, but also in the writings of others, in the critiques of his foes, in the general his- tories of the times, we might justly expect that much would be recorded concerning him, one way or the other. Now this person must then have either been the great man he is represented to have been, or he was not. If he was, he would have been recorded as such, in cotemporary history, supposing that those histories were authentic ; and thus his greatness would have been real. If he was not thus truly great, he would not have been represented as such, by those who knew him best. This we find to be mainly the case in this instance ; that he did not obtain that universal homage which a truly great man would have secured. Hence, all the high reputation which has gathered around 32 HISTORIC DOUBTS Shakspeare, is of a subsequent date ; it does not trace its origin to his cotemporaries. It is not based then upon the evidence of the direct experience of those who lived with him ; but depends solely upon the evi- dence of the testimony of others. But this testimony is opposed to all our own experience, in regard to the manner in which other great men are treated by their own age, and hence, we are compelled to disbelieve the mere testimony of others to the contrary. If then, all these tributes to Shakspeare's greatness were not original with his own age, but arose subsequently, with- out any chain of history to connect them with the first authentic records of his life, they must be mere fabri- cations ; not traceable to the original sources, hence without proper parentage, and hence spurious. Let any one peruse the lives of this supposed Shakspeare which exi^, and the barrenness of their materials con- cerning so great a man, will excite the astonishnlent and provoke the incredulity of every unbiased reader. But this leads us to consider the contradictory na- ture of those scanty notices of this great man, which actually do exist, and see how much confidence is to be reposed in them. In regard to the ancestry of this Shakspeare, Malone, an able critic in questions of this sort, after making the most thorough researches in reference to the subject, admits, that he was unable to trace Shakspeare's family beyond his immediate ancestor. Now, though this fact proves nothing against the existence of the, man Shakspeare, it is a proof against the position, that such an obscure and untraceable person, was such a great and world renowned author. It is scarcely reasonable to suppose that so great a man would not have made RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 33 his own family illustrious among his ootemporaries ; rather than leaving them in such unusual obscurity^ Almost any shop-keeper in Stratford, could trace his pedigree further back than he. And even in reference to Shakspeare's father, and his occupation, the accounts which exist are contra- dictory. Some affirm that he was a butcher, others declare that he was a dealer in wool ; while some have asserted that he was a glover. In regard to the sup- posed poet himself, it is contended with equal uncer- tainty, whether he was a classical scholar, or whether he was not. It is disputed whether he was lame, or not lame ; each supposition having its supporters.* It is disputed whether he actgd on the stage himself, or did not ; whether he commenced his supposed career as a theatrical character, by holding gentlemen's horses, who had ridden to the theatre ; or whether his first occupation in the scene of his future glory, was that of call-boy, or the prompter's attendant. His biographers admit that many of the anecdotes which are in circula- tion about his life and career are *' few, trivial and very probably unfounded in fact." Even the circumstances of his death, are involved in obscurity, and the disease with which he died has never been determined. Who does not know how Caesar, or Pompey, or Bonaparte expired ? The circumstances of their deaths are familiar to all ; and they were not greater men in their walk of life, than Shakspeare is supposed to have been in his own. How strange the contrast. • For similar objections against the birth and life of Christ, and of about equal consequence, see Strauss, " Life of Jesus," vol. i p. 145. Loudon ed., 1846. 34 HISTORIC DOUBTS Even his biographers, interested as they are, in pre- serving the record of their hero as well as they can, have candidly admitted, that the uncertainty and tha paucity of the details respecting this supposed person are wonderful. To us, it is not wonderful; we can easily account for the fact. In his own day, if he ever lived, he was not what he is now represented to be. Instead of being such a great man, the fact was differ- ent. Hence the records then made concerning him are just such as would be made in reference to any ordi- nary personage. The truth was then told, and now, when after generations wish, for various reasons (after- wards to be considered) to elevate this person to the highest pinnacle which towers above the temple of fame, and they turn to the proper sources of history concerning him, they find a porientous deficiency. They discover, that if they are to write a life of him, such as befits so great a man, they cannot draw it from authentic and original sources ; they must fabricate it. By this very act they grant that the exalted character and career, which they wish to appropriate to this person- age, have no foundation in sober truth. No complete and harmonious history of Shakspeare then existed in his own day ; though we have every right to demand an unusually clear, and distinct and full one. How, and whence do the histories and the records of his life and greatness now come? Who has produced them ? This question it does not devolve upon us to answer; let those who pretend to the honor of biographers in this case, vindicate their own honor and veracity. But this we do know, that if no such authentic records of Shakspeare were written in his own day, all subsequent histories of him must be with- RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 35 out any historical truth or authority. They are. founded on supposition. And as men will conjecture differently, they will contradict each other, and this is just what, as we have seen, they have done. As for those who profess personally to have seen and known Shakspeare, it may be asked, whether their declarations must not be regarded as conclusive ? But here two things are to be considered. Where are those declarations? We have seen that they are singularly scanty. If such a man actually lived, we might expect an abundance of such personal narratives. But there are few such records. His personal friends, if he had any, seem strangely to have hesitated to record their thoughts and their admiration. We cannot deny the existence of Washington, without blotting out the literature of half a century. But the case is very different with this other and equally great personage. If then, these per- sonal friends were so timid and backward in penning their histories, it is a very suspicious circumstance, and We are to examine what are the merits of these few his- tories which we do possess. They were written by his professed friends. Are they to be regarded as wholly impartial ? Have they, inasmuch as no enemy has thought it worth while to oppose or contradict; have they not ventured to color and exaggerate a pic- ture to which they were so partial (for various reasons), and in which they felt themselves so secure and uncon- tradicted ? When in opposition to all this, we recol- lect the extraordinary nature of this story, we fear, that the authority of these partial and interested friends, is not equal in weight, to the moral improbabilities which weigh on the other side. Now, if one portion of a narrative is contradictory 36 HISTORIC DOUBTS with itself, then another portion may be. We may justly expect, that all other parts of it are liable to the same imperfection. Who is to decide, in the strange absence of proper original records, what parts of an existing and conflicting narrative are true, and what are not true? No one can do it; our confidence in the authority of the whole is justly destroyed. The parts which remain apparently true, may any day also be ex- ploded and exposed. The narrator who can deceive in one part of a record is base enough to deceive in another part. If he is base enough to deceive at all, he will be base enough to conceal^ his deceptions ; and we have reason to suspect, that the cause why he now appears to be truthful in one part of his narrative is simply because he has not there been exposed, as he has already been in other parts. The least contradic- tion or falsehood in any part of such narrative, does it not jusdy invalidate the whole? Now we contend, that when the history of so great a man, as Shakspeare is pretended to have been, is obscured by so much doubt, ignorance, and contradic- tion, it is not reasonable to suppose, that such record is deserving of our full credence. It becomes us to hesitate and examine ; and not blindly concede the truth of a history, which is so wonderful ia itself, so unparalleled in all other human history, which calls for such unanswerable evidence; but in support of which, only such unworthy and inconclusive proof is urged, as that to which we have just alluded. RESPECTING SHAKSPBARE. 37 SECTION III. Discit enim citius, meminitquo libentius illud, Quod (juis deridet, quam quod probat et veneratur. , HoBACs, Epist., Lib. II. 1. However questionable the records of the life of- Shak- speare may be when properly examined, there are some circumstances connected even with his supposed writ- ings, which afford just ground for greater suspicion. We would naturally suppose that no uncertainty would exist concerning the genuineness of such illustrious pro- ductions ; and that inasmuch as they are so extra- ordinary and unrivalled, we could at once pronounce upon every one of them, and decide which were his, and which were not. If they are the productions of such an unusual man, they would bear upon their very face the clear impress of his splendid abilities, and so far excel all other writings, as his genius was superior to that of all others. If this was not the case ; if the inspiration of exalted genius did not clearly identify all of these professed writings ; and if any doubt existed in regard to what were really his productions, it would be a clear evidence, that the supposed inspiration of genius was not there, and that the whole of his writ- ings were claimed for him on quesnonable pretences, and therefore, that such claims were false. We proceed to examine then, whether the merits, the superiority, and hence the authorship of these writ- ings, thus attributed to Shakspeare, can be, and have been seriously called in question. And in making this inquiry, we are met at the outset with the extraordinary 4 38 HISTORIC DOUBTS fact, that while the admirers of this supposed person have been lauding him and his writings to the skies, they ■were disputing fiercely at that very time, as to which of these writings were his own, and which were not. They have contended, some for one play, and some for another as genuine. While one critic set up, an- other pulled down. What one affirmed, another denied. What one condemned as spurious, another has derided as an imposture ; and thus we find that the principal portions of these supposed wonderful writings have failed to force conviction on the minds of all, as such superior writings might be expected naturally to do; as is proven by the conflicting opinions which exist in reference to them. The excuse which is given for this is, that these writings, when first published, were obscure, unappreciated, and left to moulder away in obscurity. But does not this very concession pfove two things; first, that they are not the productions of the man and age to whom they are ascribed, else their great merit would have made them and him renowned and notorious with all ; and second, that this very ob- scurity and uncertainty, thus granted to have existed at the start, make it impossible now, to afiirm anything certainly in reference to the subject ? Those who make this palliation, only thereby condemn themselves in the very thing wBich they allow. Where, then, is the proof that such strange uncertainty exists in reference to these writings ? This evidence is found by examining their history, and the criticisms ■which have been called forth in reference to them. Since they have come to be so illustrious, shrewd and penetrating men have taken the pains to examine them more closely, and the result of their labors, and the RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 39 doubts which they entertain, we will now cite in illus- tration of the point in hand. Of three parts which compose the long play of IS,ng Henry VI., each of which forms a regular tragedy, it is admitted, on all hands, that the first part or play is entirely spurious, and does not contain probably more than ten or twelve lines which are confessedly ascribed to Shakspeare. Of the two last parts of this renowned production, it is granted even by the defenders of Shak- speare, that he is not their author, but merely their im- prover and enlarger ; and that of the six thousand and forty-three lines which are in these two parts, Shak- speare wrote only about one thousand and nine hundred, not two-sixths of the whole. And yet this production is constantly printed among the regular works of Shak- speare, and thereby represented as being his own, even while his most intelligent critics are compelled to grant that they are not his. It may be answered with truth, that they were printed in the first editions of his works, and hence must necessarily appear in every subsequent reprint. But does not this admission prove that there was imposture from the beginning; that no such real writer as he really existed, for him or his friends to defend himself, and that thus from the commencement till now the imposition has been kept up ? The play T^tus ^ndronicus is printed in the works of this writer ; yet Malone and Dr. Drake deny that it belongs to him. They affirm, (and their admission here is of very great significance,) that it was brought by a private author to be acted, and that Shakspeare gavesome finishing touches to it. Thus Pericles, Prince of Tyre, is of doubtful authority. Rowe, in his first edition of Shakspeare, says, that only the last act of it 40 HISTORIC DOUBTS was written by this author ; and Farmer concnrs in the same opinion. So that, in regard to this distinguished production, so long and so constantly ascribed to this person, but a small portion is confessedly admitted to be his. In the first edition of Hamlet printed in 1603, it is admitted that there is scarcely a trace of Shakspeare's hand ; that it is full of the blundering corrections of transcribers, of the alterations of presumptuous actors and frivolous actresses, and of the errors of the printers. The Two Gentlemen of Verona is condemned as spu- rious by Hamner and Upton, persons well qualified to judge in the case. Dr. Warburton and Farmer have denied that the Taming of the Shrew was written by our author ; and they confirm their position with ar- guments of very considerable force. Bat beside these and other portions of Shakspeare's supposed writings, which have been objected to on good grounds, it is to be observed that there are some productions, which are not admitted to a place among his works, for the genuineness of which, some contend with great earnestness and power. And when we come to examine them, we cannot see where their in- feriority to the others which are admitted, is to be found. Among the plays ascribed by some critics to Shakspeare, are Sir John Old Castle, Lord Crom- well, The London Prodigal, The Puritan, The York- shire Tragedy, and others. Some contend that these have as good and just a claim to be numbered with those works, which the inspiration of Shakspeare's genius produced, as any others. And to increase the difficulty of deciding what are genuine, and what are not, (supposing that any are such,) we may add that RESPECTING SHAKSFEARE. 41 the following plays are also ascribed positively by some to Sliakspeare: The Arraignment of Paris, The Birth of Merlin, Edward the Third, Fair Em- ma, The Merry Devil of Edmonton, Mucedorus, Sejanus, and The Two Noble Kinsmen. In behalf of some of these pieces, or of particular portions of them, able and learned critics have declared, that the hand of Shakspeare is clearly traceable in them. They afErm that historical incidents and facts prove, that he is their indisputable author. They contend that the same evidence which places some of his acknow- ledged writings in their present doubtful authority, if applied to these works, would place them there also, and that if these works, notwithstanding such proof, are excluded, there with equal justice should- many be excluded whose genuineness is now fully admitted. If the editors and publishers of these works had, then, been guided by consistent laws of criticism and literary procedure, they would have dealt fairly with all alike. They would not have admitted among his works, (seeing that Shakspeare never had anything to do with collecting and preserving them,), so many which are assailable. They would never have excluded, on the contrary, so many which are so defensible ; thus rais- ing for themselves on both sides, a formidable array of hostile critics, with neither of whom it is now ever possible for them to compound a treaty of peace. Now there is an important inference to be drawn from these facts, in regard to the writings of Shak- speare. They furnish a powerful argument against his claims, as the great writer which he is usually re- presented to be, and in fact, to his whole character and history. Yox first, if these writings are the production 4* 42 HISTORIC DOUBTS of such an extraordrnary genius, why do they not bear the indisputable impress of tlieir superiority ? Why do they not silence all opposers to their claims ? Why are so many and such learned judges, in doubt in re- ference to their genuineness ? And why, on the con- trary, are there so many productions which boldly claim the high honor of his authorship, which is now denied them ? And why are the merits of these writings so great, and the contrast between them and their rivals so small, that many suppose that the claims of both are equal ? But if the acknowledged writings of Shakspeare are so little superior to the writings of others, so that they maintain their supremacy over them with diffi- culty, why do they deserve to be so highly extolled ? In other words, if one portion o'f his confessed produc- tions can be successfully rivalled and called in ques- tion, other portions of them may with equal ease.* There will then be no end to the erasures and' suspi- cions. One portion after another, one play, one act, one scene after another will be, on some pretence or other (good or false), excluded, and condemned as im- posture and deceit. One critic will affirm that'here an act should commence, and there a scene should have been shifted; here v/as an interpolation, and there an ei-asure. Here is a change of style, aad there a break * It cannot Be said of him, as is said of the valiant Dioraedo, by this supposed writer; 'Tis he, I ken the manner of his gait; He rises on the toe : that spirit of his In aspiration, lifts him from the Earth. TnoiLus. AHD CnEs&iDA, Act IV. Seene V. RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 43 in the reasoning, the narrative, or the acting. Thus we would have endless suggestions, ameliorations, changes and improvements. Every writer or critic would bring the whole of these productions down to the standard of his own taste, irrespective of the times and custom's of the professed author, and often without a clear idea of his purpose ; sometimes imagining him in error, and blundering in grammar, chronology or geography, when the writer is only personifying the speech of some Welsh parson Evans, or French phy- sician Cuius. The natural and necessary consequence of all this is, that the whole of his writings will be subjected to the rudest, the roughest and the most murderous treatment. One passage after another, one act after another, and one play after another, will be boldly arraigned, tried and condemned, banged, drawn, quartered sind scattered to the four winds of heaven ; while the ears of every literary tribunal will be deaf to the voice of truth, and permit the base partners in all this guilt, to go unwhipped of justice.* And it is to be especially observed that all this results from the fact, that the first doubts wore started, and the first disputes permitted in reference to the merits and the genuineness of these writings. They should have been crushed at once ; or if permitted at all, they should ever after be tolerated. And unless these writings bore with them such a clear impress of the inspiration of • The allusion is here made, as is easily seen, to the treatment which the New Testament hooks have received from various infidel and semi-infidel writers, of late years, in England and Germany, and even from some of oar soi-disant savans in this country ; who have ventured to exclude from the Bible whole chapters and paragraphs, on the most capricious pretences. 4'4 HISTORIC DOrBTS genius as to force conviction on every mind, and at the same time show by contrast, the inferiority of, every imposture, then all these doubts and changes were just, and must be permitted^ But we see that these writings have not forced such conviction on the minds of men ; their superiority over all others has not been so apparent and so indisputable ; they have not silenced every opposer, and made all cavils per- fectly impotent and despicable ; therefore they are not what they profess to be, they are not so supremely ex- cellent; they are impostures, and we are justifiable in denying that claim to extraordinary merit, which is now made for these writings themselves, or for their supposed authors.. But is itnot very suspicious, that in reference to such an illustrious writer, and such renowned productions, there should be so much uncertainty, and so many fierce and fundamental disputes? Does it not argue, that there is something radically wrong in the whole mat- ter, and that these things present a spectacle very differ- ent, indeed, from what we might naturally expect under the circumstances of the case? SECTION rv. But still the most difficult part of our task remains to be performed. The onus probandi still bearis heavily upon us. We have yet to answer the inquiry : How are we then to account for the existence of these writ- ings ? They must have been produced by some person or persons. They have not emerged from nothing; but have been fabricated by the intellectual toil of some mind, and hence, as there is no other claimant to RKSPECTING SHAESFEARE. 45 their paternity, or none as strong as Shakspeare, how are we to evade the necessity of ascribing them to the person, who is most usually regarded as their author? If William Shakspeare has not originated them, some other Shakspeare has done it. We thus shift the burden in question, as it were, from one shoulder to the other, without alleviating our position. It does not devolve npon us, if we can prove that William Shakspeare is not the real author, to make researches, and show who is their true author. Our only duty now is to establish the former point; to show that our historic doubts in reference to it are well founded ; and to fortify our doubts with such buttresses of defence as we can best construct. This is an achievement which may not be as difficult or formidable as those might at first sight suppose, who have so long and so unsuspiciously reposed in the position, that all was setded in regard to this subject. During the progress of time more than one crack may have crumbled into their fortress, which, when properly probed, may, like the ham stringing of Cassio, and probably with much more reality, bring the whole superstructure to the ground.* The literary world has been astounded from time to time at the discovery of certain wonderful literary impostures, which have been perpetrated. Productions which had long been attributed to particular authors, without ever suspecting that there was, or could be any deceit in the matter, men have eventually discovered to have belonged entirely to other persons. These events should teach us caution. They should prove • Koraeo and Juliet, Act V. Scene I, 46 HISTORIC DOUBTS that there is a possibility of delusion in such cases, and that what has once occurred, may, under similar and perhaps even more favorable, circumstances, trans- pire again. We will now examine whether any im- postures , have ever occurred, which, when detected; are fully as wonderful and as extraordinary, in their circumstances, as an imposture in the case of Shak- speare would be, if it was proven, that what was possi- ble in his case had actually been real. In searching about us for snch a parrallel, the writ- tings and the history of, Ossian will readily suggest themselves to the recollection of every one. This was a case of extraordinary imposture, which baffled the acuteness and evaded the researches of the most pene- trating critics then existing. The poems of Ossian were published to the world, as the genuine, authentic productions of an ancient bard, professedly translated by J. Macpherson, and explained by Hugh Campbell, and defended by him in an edition as late- as- 1823. These are extraordinary writings. They have scarcely ever been exceeded in boldness- and sublimity of thought, and in rugged grandeur of conception. They were apparently the fit productions of some ancient heroic minstrel, of gigantic powers^ surrounded by scenery and circumstances calculated to call them into imposing action. They would be exceedingly difficult to be counterfeit. Very few men would possess the rare genius necessary to their production. Hence, as their style, spirit and power all seemed to point successfully to the ancient bard as their real'author, men were for a long time unsuspicious- of any imposture, and admired without doubting. They enjoyed unsuspectingly the unrivalled effusions of the hero and poet without RESPECTING SUAESPEARE. 47 imagining that for all their intellectual delight they were under oblig;ation to another. Gradually doubts were started on the subject. The genuineness of these writings was called in question. Men were at first astonished at the boldness which could venture upon such a step. Gradually a powerful party was accumulated against these writings ; while their authorship, their date, their purport, and even their power, were called in question and fiercely dis- puted. So uncertain was the conflict, that on one side of the hostile forces, in favor of the received opinions concerning these poems, were arrayed Dr. Hugh Blair, Graham, Sinclair, Smith, Macdonald, Clark, and Home ; while on the other side warred and contended Samuel Johnson, Shaw, Waller, Malcolm, Laing, and others. After a protracted struggle, and after a thorough ex- amination of the whole subject, so well had the im- posture been achieved, that though it was clearly proved that Ossian never wrote or could have written the works attributed to him, yet their true authorship could not be discovered. Some contended that Macpherson him- self was their author ; while others opposed the sup- position. Various hypotheses were suggested. While some would conjecture one way, another would destroy his labor by a conjecture another way. Thus the matter rests until this hour. It seems involved in hopeless obscurity ; but while it is impossible to prove who is the real author of these productions, no one on that account doubts that they are not Ossian's. The two things are entirely independent, nor have they any con- nection together whatever. It is easy to show, that a particular jewel is not the one which we may have lost, 48 HISTORIC DOUBTS and are seeking ; but it is not so easyto point out where the wanted treasure is to be obtained. Now an objector may say, this is an extraordinary case, and one which is unparalleled, we should not there- fore judge by such instances, as they lie beyond the play of ordinary cases. But if such an extraordinary imposture can be effected, certainly a less one may be achieved. By contending that the imposition of Shak- speare is a minor one, we admit thereby its greater probability, and its easier possibility under the circum- stances, under which it is supposed to have occurred. If we contend that the imposture of Ossian is a less one than that of Shakspeare, we grant thereby that less favorable circumstances can produce an imposition of less magnitude, and thus by parity of reasoning, that more favorable circumstances will conduce to a greater imposture, as in the instance before us. But lest it might be supposed that Ossian is the only instance of literary imposition, which has occurred of any consequence, we shall adduce an instance to prove, that more favorable circumstances have actually pro- duced an imposition, equal in difficulty and similar in result in many respects, to the imposture which has been perpetrated under the broad shield of Shakspeare ; showing that, as the circumstances and incentives are more favorable, the imposture will be more astonishing and complete. About the year 1764, an individual of the name of Burgum, resident in Bristol, England, was informed that an ancient manuscript had been discovered, bear- ing upon it unanswerable evidences of antiquity and genuineness, which contained his pedigree for many generations back. This document bore record that this RESFECTINO SHAKSPEARE. 49 said Burgum was descended from a noble family, and had an alliance with a distinguished poet. To confirm this declaration, another manuscript, of similar antique style and appearance, was produced, which contained a poem said to have been written by that poet, John de Bergham, and called " The Romaunte of the Knyght," claiming to have been written about 1320. This poem was so written upon ancient parchment, and in such genuine Gothic style and characters, that no one for a moment doubted that it possessed the actual character to which it thus laid claim. About the year 1768, when a new bridge was com- pleted at Bristol, there appeared " A description of the Mayor's first passing over the old bridge, taken from an ancient manuscript." This account was published •in a Journal then issued at Bristol. The novelty and interest of this production excited universal interest, and the question oh all hands was propounded, as to whence it could have come. The inquirers were pointed to a collection of old manuscripts which had been preserved in the church of St. Mary Redcliffe in Bristol, from the reign of Edward IV. The original antique writing was produced, and shown as an evi- dence, that the published piece was accurately trans- ferred from the old stained and faded parchment. Their curiftsity and credulity were at once satisfied. From time to time similar old poems and produc- tions were produced from this same chest. Various writings were published, such as the " Bristowe Trage- dy," "Rowley's Epitaph upon Canynge's Ancestor," and other smaller pieces. Afterward was produced the " Yellow Roll," and as a history of Bristol was in preparation at that time by a gentleman of that place, 5 60 HISTORIC DOUBTS he applied to the person having possession of these ancient documents for anything which might serve his purpose and enrich his history. The vsrriter of the history was favored from time to time with important records of events and personages connected with the history of Bristol. These records refer to subjects of great consequence ; and even pretended to give a history of the ancient churches of Bristol, which ex- isted before those then standing had been built. This history of Bristol was published, and the originality and novelty of many of its materials naturally excited universal interest, and much enhanced, for a time, the value and importance of the work. In the year 1769, Horace Walpole was informed that certain poems, written by one Rowley, a priest of Bristol, who lived in the reign of Henry VI. and Ed- ward IV., had been discovered, as well as other curious manuscripts. These manuscripts contained, as he was informed. Anecdotes of Painting, a History of Painting in Great Britain, going back to its alleged introduc- tion in the days of Hengist ; and also some notes, with a poem by a certain priest " who was inducted in 1486." These celebrated Rowley poems consist of productions in all the various classes of poetical com- position. There are Lyric, Tragic and Heroic poems, epistles, ballads, and pastorals. Many of tfiem exhibit extraordinary talent, and are marked by unusual beauty and sublimity. They exhibit splendid powers of ima- gination, and wonderful facility of composition. The spelling is antique and uncouth, as might be supposed, in old productions, since the writing of which, ortho- graphy, and style, and manner have necessarily changed. -The characters, the customs, all the pecu- RESPECTING SHAKSFEARE. 61 liarities of the fifteenth century, to which such frequent allusions are made in these poems, are perfect in their resemblance, and strikingly exact. We are carried back in spirit to that remote period, and seem to live in the days of feudal anarchy and gloomy superstition. The manuscripts themselves are said to have been perfect in their way ; while the drawings, illumina- tions, colorings and all, seemed inevitably to have been written and produced by hands, which for two centuries at least, had crumbled to their native dust. These Rowley poems were re-produced and published in 1777, under the following title: "Poems supposed to have been written at Bristol, by Thomas Rowley and others in the fifteenth century ; the greatest part now first published from the most authentic copies, with an engraved specimen of one of the MSS., to which are added a preface, an Introductory Account of the several pieces, and a glossary." Now the important question arises, who was the author of these extraordinary productions ? Whence did they come ? Were they genuine ? Or if not genuine, who could possibly have been their real anthor ? It might be supposed that imposition in such a case was impossible. There were first, the old parchment to be counterfeited. Then the ancient Jiandwriting was to be forged. Then the antiquated phraseology .was to be used. Then the allusions to cotemporary per- sons, events, manners, and customs, were all to be fabricated, and every little circumstance which might accidentally afford ground for suspicion, must be evaded. And lasdy, more difficult than all, the mental powers must be at hand, which, in case of imposition, could -52 HISTORIC DOUBTS furnish such splendid effusions, and actually rival the most celebrated productions of the English classics. The difficulty of all these circumstances might justly seem to preclude the possibility of imposition, and con- strain every one to settle down in the conviction that these vs^ritings were real antique wonders. But what are the facts in the case ? It has finally appeared that the whole affair, from beginning to end, is a pure and unmitigated imposture ; that no such man or priest as Rowley ever lived ; that no such poems and events had been in the fifteenth century ; and that these talented writings are the real productions of their editor, who brought them first before the public. And, the question next arises, who was this strange personage, who was able to palm such extraordinary poems so successfully upon an intelligent and suspicious public? We answer, a boy, of seventeen years of age, Thomas Chatterton, born at Bristol, November 30th, 1752 ! While other children are taking in the rudiments of knowledge ; while they are usually perplexed and con- founded by the difiiculty of mastering the ordinary routine of study and of science, this youth was tread- ing with majestic ease the highest and noblest walks of literature, and actually composing, under a feigned name, and successfully imposing upon the- public, as the pro- ductions of another, writings of the first order of talent and power. After such an imposture so long concealed, and with such difiiculty discovered and exposed, we are prepared to hear of any other imposture, however great and difficult it may appear. Now let us examine, whether this literary forgery • was greater, in any sense, than that of Shakspeare would be, if an imposture could be proved in his case. RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 53 In the Rowley imposture the degree of talent ex- hibited was equal, in many respects, to that displayed by Shakspeare. This is a point on which all critics, we believe, are agreed. So that if an imposition of such magnitude and difficulty, in a mental point of view, could be performed in one case, it could of course, occur again. But in the Rowley poems, additional difficulties were to be surmounted. The old and faded manuscripts were to be counterfeited. The ancient style and phraseology were to be forged. This would naturally require an additional amount of ingenuity and mental power, to carry forward all these impostures at once. But there is one circumstance which here demands especial attention. This imposition was not effected, as the facts show, by a completed and developed intel- lect ; by a man in the full strength of all his powers. But it was achieved by a youth, still in his teens, still verging on the domains of childhood, and still separated by a wide and long remove, from the regions of man- hood. Now if Shakspeare be an imposition, we will only contend, that it has been effected by fully developed minds, who have attained their maturity. By so doing we will maintain a case far less difficult in supposition than the very one which here presents itself in reality. If the more wonderful imposture has actually been achieved, we may well suppose that the less wonderful one is reasonable and possible. There were peculiar circumstances which led to sus- picion and detection in the Rowley imposture. Who dare affirm, that if similar circumstances had chanced to occur in the case of Shakspeare, his imposture had not long since been exposed ? After the Rowley poems were published, a protracted controversy took place 5* 54 HISTORIC DOUBTS between critics and antiquarians in reference to them. Some contended that they were genuine, and argued with great force of reasoning, from the peculiar circum- stances of the case, that an imposture such as was con- tended for by some, was next thing to impossible. Others as stoutly maintained, and with truth on their side, that their opponents were defending a palpable absurdity. Warton, in the third volume of his history of English poetry, contended'that they were not genuine. On the other hand, Jacob Bryant published his " Ob- servations" in 1781, to prove that they were evidently written by Rowley. The same absurdity was main- tained with wonderful earnestness by Jeremiah Mills, D. D., in a commentary on the books, set forth in 1782. Thus, for a long time, the question was agitated with conflicting prospects ; till at last the thorough researches of critics have settled it, and made the imposture un- deniable. In answering the question which is proposed at the beginning of this section, how we are to account for the existence of those writings which are now ascribed to Shakspeare, we have arrived at this point: We • have shown by the examples adduced that an impos- ture in such a case is possible. We have shown that a similar imposture has actually been real; that the difficulties in the case" which did occur are not greater than those of the case of Shakspeare; and hence the inference is perfectly logical, that a similar instance may occur again. We have then, reached the possi- bility and the reality of one such imposture; and it remains for us to show that the circumstances in the case of Shakspeare are similar to those in the case of the Rowley poems, in so far as they go to prove the RESPECTING SHAKSPEARE. 55 reality of the imposhion in both cases. A portion of this evidence we have already produced, in what we have already said in reference to the life and writings of this supposed poet. Other evidence of importance still remains to be^ adduced; and it shall now be our endeavor further to prove, that we may justly doubt that this supposed great poet and author ever lived an4 wrote, as his historians have recorded concerning hira ; and that we can also account for the existence of those writings by tracing them to the ultimate causes which produced them, even if we cannot designate the indi- vidual men engaged in their fabrication. SECTION V. In joyous youth, what soul hath never known Thought, feeling, taste, harmonious with its own? Who hath not felt with rapture-smitten frame, The power of grace, the magic of a name! PiEAS. OF Hops, Part II. Motives for imposture exist in all the various de- partments of human thought and action, in the greatest abundance and power. Hence the world is full of them. They are to be found in the department of Religion ; for almost every deceit has there been prac- ticed, which could possibly have been devised. Ira- postures have existed in Medicine ; for all manner of quacks and quackery have started into being, and de- luded for a time both the learned and the ignorant. Thus in the trades and arts of life, there is frequently more imposition than reality ; while every device, which could blind the intelligent into doubt and won- 56 HISTORIC DOUBTS der, and delude iXsii)irou;, and Peter was i}>iXo;)fpitrTos; that the simplicity and affection of John's disposition were developed toward the person of Christ, and his individual cha- racter, while the strong and active tendencies of Peter were enlisted in behalf of the office, doctrines and destiny of Christ. See Com. on New Test., vol. ii. p. 5. For a graphic description of Peter's disposition and tendencies, see Neander's Planting and Training of the Church, p. 209. For ari able exposition of John's characiteristios, see TiUman's MeUt. Sacra, p. 5. OF THE SACRED WRITERS. Ill prises were conducted ; thus not merely influencing the hearts, but attaining complete supremacy over the reasons of men. But it is time to advert to those characteristics which marked the sacred penmen collectively, and which seem to give a certain cast, as well as an exalted merit to all their writings. These features of their characters may be drawn from their personal history, as well as from their literary remains. They were all men of great practical intelligence. — What matter is it, whether they were profound philoso- phers or acute metaphysicians ? They were commissioned to proclaim practical truths, in an intelligible way. They were to address practical men in relation to the most im- portant considerations in such terms as were adapted to their capacities, and calculated to attract their attention. For this purpose they were admirably adapted. They were chosen generally from the lower ranks of the popu- lace, conversant with their habits and acquainted with their peculiarities. They were to teach soul-redeeming truths to a world composed of men of selfish feelings and pursuits, and at the same time living beneath the frown of a God who was no partial respecter of persons. So far, therefore, as they were versed in the practical, every day engagements of men, united with that divine illumination in relation to infinitely higher truths, which the Great Teacher had imparted to them, they were admirably adapted -to reach the hearts of their hearers. They were chosen as practical men, in order that the truth might strike their minds in the same light in which it was de- signed to meet the view of others. They would thus know how test to shape the course of their instructions. Had they been men of abstract and scholastic tendencies, they would not have been as well adapted to fulfil the 112 PERSONAL CHARACTERS boast of the Bible itself, — to the poor the Gospel is preached. They were all men of remarkable disinterestedness, Christianity, as well as a divine commission under the Old Testament, presented an ample field to the ambitious and aspiring; and afforded a most prolific and profitable the- atre for stirring adventure. Had the momentous powers with which these men were invested, fallen into the hands of improper and selfish men, sad indeed would have been the consequences. But here remarkable caution was exhibited by Divine Providence, in the selections whiclr were made. The disinterestedness of the sacred writers during the whole of their career, was truly singular as well in their actions, as in their recorded principles. They first forsoojt the world, and bade an eternal adieu to its inviting snares. They said farewell to father and mother, sisters and bro- thers, houses and lands. They turned their backs on every inducement, and tore asunder every lender tie which bound them to the world. They swore allegiance to a religion, which, at its commencement, was destined to en- dure the bitter hatred and persecution of men. Their motives, therefore, were pure, when they connected them- selves with their religion, and especially in their adhesion to its interests, when they had been plainly informed, that the kingdom of God was not of this world. They might of course have used their miraculous pow- ers for their self-aggrandizement. Or if God, from whom those powers were derived, would have prevented this, they would have made the attempt at least, and thus ex- posed their true disposition in seeking forbidden advan- tages. But they condemned a worldly spirit, and taught the race of men, to restrain their impetuous pursuit of present joys, at the expense of nobler ones yet to come. OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 113 Hence we may rely with unwavering confidence on their instructions, for they, by their examples, led the way. Such men would record with scrupulous care, the instruc- tions of the Spirit of God. They would neither exagge- rate nor extenuate. They would record nothing, as coming with Divine authority, merely to construct for themselves an illegitimate breastwork of authority, behind which to enact illegal deeds of oppression or deceit. Constituting as they did, the founders of a sacred order of men, destined to remain, in another form, during all coming time, they might have so represented the will of God, and their own importance, as to leave on record many things which would justify subsequent improprie- ties among their successors. They did nothing of all this. They proclaimed in plain terms that such venality was hateful to God ; anathematized those who should ever be guilty of it, and themselves set such an example of exalted virtue, that of them it may truly be said, the world was not worthy. The history of these men further proves that they never attempted to propagate their religion by any but the fair- est means. It has indeed been asserted that there was in operation among the Apostles, a secret society, whose aims were to disseminate Christianity by the use of un- known agents and hidden springs: that this associations was designed to endure from age to age, and enlarge its influence and ramifications with the extending progress of Christianity. This idea has been prominently urged by the notorious German infidel, Bahrdt. Although a secret society might have existed, governed by the most harmless principles ; yet if it had been secret, the objector could not have known that they were any- thing else ; but it would not have harmonized with the professed frankness and Sincerity of our holy religion to 10* 114 PERSONAL CHARACTERS have employed any such agency. Hence we can easily show that the charge is utterly false, and that no such unfair means were ever employed by the Apostles to pro- pagate their faith. The grounds on which this strange supposition has been based, are a few passages found in the writings of Clemens Alexandrinus and Origen, who assert that there were secrets existing in the Christian Church, which origi- nated with Jesus, and which he imparted to his favorite disciples and frieiids. It is urged by others, that Clement, a Roman patrician, after the death of Peter and Paul, who were his spiritual instructors, devised a scheme of extend- ing Christianity by a secret confederacy ; that before the death of Clement, this society numbered among its mem- bers one million of adherents, and that by its means the aged Nerva was elevated to the imperial purple. This last supposition has been drawn entirely from ex- ceptionable sources ; from the " Recognitions" of Clement, which has been proved to be a Christian Romance; from the First of Isidore's Decretals, which has been rejected as plainly not genuine by all intelligent and impartial critics, both Protestant and Catholic ; and from the fragment of a commentary upon the Revelation of St. John, professed to have been written by Coecilius, a pupil of St. James, but clearly shown to have originated in the sixteenth century. The disputed and doubtful character of all these authorities, makes any supposition based upon them alone, doubtful , and unsafe. The declarations of Origen in reference to the secrets which existed in the Church, will be readily understood by those who are acquainted with the allegorical and , figurative mode of interpretation adopted by that writer. They will easily understand his remarks to apply to those hidden and deeper interpretations of the Word of God, and OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 115 of its doctrinal teachings ; to that recondite and esoteric meaning which he sometimes affixed to them, which can be understood only by the initiated, who penetrate beyond the mere letter ; and to the doctrinal mysteries of the Chris- tian religion, which cannot be fathomed by human reason. Many of these references to secret things, were applied to the retired and secret worship of Christians to which they were compelled to resort, when surrounded by persecutibn and danger. These arcani were both disciplinary, cere- monial and devotional. The rites and doctrines of Chris- tians would have subjected them to the ridicule and per- secution of idolaters, and hence were frequently observed and preached in the secret assemblages of the saints. But it is well known, that after the Emperor Constantine had elevated Christianity to honor and security by making it the religion of the state, those secret meetings were all abolished, together with the necessity which had called them into existence. The whole supposition in reference to a secret society being organized in the early church, re- sults from the perversion of some passages which refer among the fathers, to the 'Aydjtat,, or love-feasts, of the primitive Christians. Besides, the plain declarations of Christ which refer to this point, forever put to rest this question. He enjoins upon his disciples never to evade public attention, when engaged in the discharge of their duty. He commands them to proclaim that upon the house top, what they had heard in the ear. He declares that they should be as a city set upon a hill, — known and read of all men ; that they should be as a light, not set under a bushel, but giv- ing light to all around them ; and that they should keep nothing secret. Matt. v. 15, 16. He informs them that their doctrines would excite the opposition of wicked men, and cautions them not to evade this, by worldly wis- 116 PERSONAL CHARACTERS dom or shrewdness ; that he, the master, had been misre- presented and persecuted, nor should the servant be above his lord. Johnxv. 18. Christ declared to Annas the high- priest, that he never taught anything in secret, that he had boldly proclaimed all his principles, and that every one vras familiar with them. John xviii. 20. There is not one solitary passage in the New Testament which justifies the supposition in question. There is not even an allusion of that nature there. There is no refer- ence to the union of Christians with any other pre-exist- ent secret society, which was thus enlisted to spread the faith of Christ. There was nothing secret in the nature of Judaism, which might have been transferred to it. The whole private life of Christ was a constant reproof to this assertion. The private lives of the Apostles are equally guiltless in this respect. Their arrangements and operations were all made and executed in the face of day. Had it occurred that at a later era, centuries after Christ, such a secret association had been established, of which, indeed, there is no clear proof, this fact would have no bearing upon the merits of Christ and his Apostles. These men went forth from Jerusalem, with all the nations and empires of the world before them, to be subjugated to the power of their risen Saviour ; and full of hope and zeal, with weapons which were not carnal, but spiritual, in reliance only on that truth which was mighty in pulling down the strong holds of sin, and that sword of the Spirit, which was able to cut in sunder joint and marrow, and discern the thoughts and intents of the heart, they entered on their mighty task. We assert, therefore, that these men employed none but appropriate means in the accomplishment of their enter- prise. These were all moral means. Mohammed may make the plains of Arabia echo with the startling cry of OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 117 "the Koran, tribute or death," proelaimed at the head of his infuriate hosts, and enforced by the sack of cities, the massacre of their inhabitants, flowing torrents of human blood, and the extermination of human joy. Or the be- sotted priests of a perverted religion may construct the fabric of their power by every act of fraud, imposture and cruelty ; by addressing the passions, flattering the weak- nesses, or imposing on the superstitions of men. Hea- thenism and formalism may shield themselves under the spreading wings of power ; or demand submission when supported by wealth and splendor ; or proclaim their su- premacy from the high bulwarks of worldly greatness, whence they may challenge the attacks of every foe. But the religion of Christ has ever relied upon the inherent energy of the truth, and the overruling Providence of God. Its emissaries employed the influences of the Holy Spirit in their perilous labors. This was the mighty incantation by which they worked such miraculous changes in the hearts and destinies of men. Their own writings, as well as the accusations of their foes, testify that these were the only means employed by them. They taught, they preached, they prayed. They were daunted by no peril, disheartened by no opposition. ' The truth mightily prevailed, as the result of such appropriate labors. They possessed a perfect knowledge of all the truths which they taught, and the events which they narrated. It had been unwarrantable presumption in them, to lay unauthorized hands on sacred things, -like Nadab and Abihu of old; and this would have been chargeable upon them, had they not been properly indoctrinated in those principles which they professed to proclaim. It was their duty to treat of the most elevated and mysterious truths which the human mind can contemplate; and well were they prepared for their task. He who reads their writings 118 PERSONAL CHARACTERS will discover that they were at home in their work. They handled doctrines, with the ease of giants, which other men could not grasp. This might naturally be anticipated, when we remember the wisdom of that great Teacher, upon whose inspired lips they hung in rapt attention, and to whose sublime instructions they were permitted to listen from day to day. The seers of the Old Testament, by their keen prophetic vision, traveled down the waste of future centuries, saw clearly what was hidden from the view of ordinary -men, and depicted the marvelous scene upon their pages, in let- ters of living light. The Apostles of the New Testament had followed Christ assiduously from year to year. They had listened with delight, by the way-side, in the private dwelling, amid the crowded throng, on the sea-shore and on the mountain top, as he spake to them as no other man had ever spoken, of great and stirring themes. Before him passed in review the profoundest truths, touching the nature of that august being at whose creative fiat all things had been spoken into life, the mysterious principles of his nature, his providence and his works. He had thrown open the portals of the human soul, and depicted the hid- den secrets lurking there in its inmost chambers. He had invaded the gloomy regions of lost spirits, and revealed the retributive vengeance of God as it fearfully and in- tensely operated there. He had ascended to the abodes of glory, and drawing aside the curtains which hid celestial scenes from mortal eyes, had permitted them to catch a glimpse of the splendor of that upper sanctuary — to hear a murmur of that song of praise which echoes from age to age around the eternal throne, in honor of Him who sits in majesty upon it. He had led them through all the delightful avenues of divine truth. He had thoroughly prepared them for the great moral and intellectual conflicts OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 119 ■which awaited them in their career. He had pointed out every hidden rock which lurked, and every breaker which frowned around them. He had equipped them with the whole armor of God. He finally promised that his holy spirit would bring everything to their clear remembrance, in the hour of their need, which it was necessary for them to know. Some he permitted to witness his glorious transfigura- tion on the mount and his exalted converse with heaven's sainted inhabitants. Another of them he caught up to the third heaven, and permitted him there to hear and see things which it was unlawful to reveal. All of his disciples en- joyed his most private and unrestrained instructions, as well as continually beheld his immaculate example. Thus prepared, they went forth to preach and sat down to write. We may therefore presume that they were no tyros in their work, or unprepared for any emergency which might oc- cur. Hence in reading their writings we find such clear- ness, force and power." Keeping in view the main end of their writing, they traveled along the path of truth with unerring certainty. These men possessed extraordinary faith and energy. This is specially illustrated in the case of the apostles, the messengers of the new dispensation. The prospect which opened before their extending vision, when they entered on their enterprise, was vast and. illimitable. There was something sublime in their position. " Go," said the great Redeemer, when standing but one step from his glorious throne, ready to seat himself triumphantly upon it, and pointing to a world prostrate beneath the power of the Prince of Darkness — "Go," said he, "into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." And as he sent them forth on their great commission, he encouraged them with the gracious promise, " Lo ! I am with you always, 120 PERSONAL CHARACTERS even to the end of the world." Thus protected by the impenetrable shield of omnipotence, with the banner of the Cross waving invincibly over them in every breeze, they advanced in fearless array to achieve their great destiny. Their faith in the justice of their cause, in the ability of Christ to aid them, and in the eventual certainty of success which would attend their endeavors, was unbounded. Their ardent imaginations anticipated coming triumphs. They consecrated all their powers to the work, and pur- sued their object with a determined resolution to succeed. Behold, as an illustration of this position, the active and undaunted career of Paul. After his conversion and entire consecration to the service of Jesus, how constant and unwearied were his missionary toils ! Follow the thread of his journey, first to Arabia, then to Damascus, thence to Jerusalem, back to Antioch, to Cyprus, to Perga, to Antioch in Pisidia, to Lystra, to the Council at Jerusalem, and lastly to Rome. During these various journeys, what did he not endure? In how many conflicts for the truth did he not show unexampled fortitude? Thrice he was beaten with rods, once was he stoned, thrice he suffered shipwreck, a night and a day was he in the deep, in jour- neys often, in perils of water, in perils of robbers, in perils by his own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren. In weariness and painful- ness, in watchings often, iu hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and in nakedness : — such is the picture which his own graphic pen has given of his manifold adventures. Now what supported this extraordinary man, under all these enumerated circumstances ? The answer is, that he possessed an undying faith in the Redeemer for whom he labored. He felt that his labors would be crowned with eventual success, and that his own services would be OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 121 abundantly requited. Nor are his merits fully told, till we remember the indomitable energy with which he exe- cuted the promptings of his faith. He entered on his work and continued to perform it, resolved to conquer or die in the attempt. The same spirit characterized all his- associates. The field before them was so vast and exten- sive, that, had they relied upon their own exertions, they would doubtless have despaired. But they knew that their Redeemer lived; that he had ascended to his Father's throne; that his sleepless eye constantly surveyed the progress of his cause; that though wicked men and the. powers of Darkness should combine against them, they must still be victors through the power of the Lamb, and that the period must at length arrive when all should be- come tributary to his praise and submissive to his sway Their circumstances and dangers were such as to discou- rage the stoutest heart which was not stayed on God. They possessed spiritual religion, and enjoyed its deep and lasting consolations. The Saviour had proclaimed it as one of the cardinal features of his religion, that men must be born again. Nor is it strange that the inquiring Nicodemus, accustomed to the formalism of Judaism, re- garded the declarations of Christ on this subject as unac- countable sayings. The Great Teacher, himself deeply impressed with such views, imparted them abundanlly to the hearts of his immediate disciples. It is true, that at first their notions on this subject were considerably per- verted. They firmly supposed that Christ was about to establish a temporal kingdom, and they to secure appoint- ments of the highest dignity in it. But soon the film was swept from their eyes; they soon beheld and admired the greater beauty and magnificence of that spiritual empire of which he w-as then laying the foundations, whose far- 132 PERSONAL CHARACTEK8 reaching ramifications were about to encompass the earth, and bind it together in one harmonious whole. The same may be said of the writers of the Old Testa- ment. Nowhere does greater and deeper spirituality stand forth to view, than in the writings of David, or in the writings of the Jewish prqphets. When they depict the coming events so closely connected with the history and prosperity of the Church of God, the spiritual, the moral features of the scene stand forth most prominently in their pages. Their writings are filled with moving lamentations of Israel's miseries, and of their own. They show that they deeply felt the odiousness of sin, as it appears to the pure eye of God; and they most earnestly labored to de- liver the world from its degrading power. We cannot doubt, both from their recorded teachings and the whole tenor of their lives, that they practised what they preached. They had been transformed in the renewing of their minds. They did not, " As some ungracious pastors do, Show us the steep and thorny way to heaven, Whilst, like a puffed and reckless Ubertine, Himself the primrose path of dalliance treads, And recks not his own read." They were also fearless and determined men, notwith- standing all their modesty and humility. Though this trait has but little to do with their capacity for penning the sacred pages, yet it imparts a merit to their general cha- racter. Men 'ijifho, like these, proclaimed to the world the aggravated nature of their innumerable transgressions ; who boldly denounced voluptuous cities, and uttered condemna- tory prophecies, full of God's threatened vengeance, against apostate kings ; who were regardless of torture, of disgrace, or even of an ignominious death, resolutely persisting in the proclamation of their message and the execution of OF THE SACUED WRITERS. 128 their trust; — such men, when writing the Scriptures for the perusal and instruction of all succeeding ages, would do it with fearless freedom and inflexible integrity. Their history and achievements prove that they were unterrified by any danger, undaunted by any opposition. They became the more resolute, in proportion as dangers and foes thickened around them. No men ever encoun- tered more that was calculated to discourage than they did ; and yet no men ever exhibited more heroic fortitude in the face of danger and death. Sinners against God, whether in opulent cities, whether invested by the insignia of power, whether clad in the robes of assumed sanctity, whether surrounded with the odor of hypocritical holiness, or whether, on the contrary, among the humbler populace, swayed by fiercer passions, or debased by ruder crimes ; — under all circumstances their message was the same, and they uttered the same denunciations of fearless rebuke and warning. Right onward was their motto in the discharge of every duty ; not conferring, in any case, with flesh and blood. And yet these were men of singular prudence and dis- cretion.- Attributes which are apparently incongruous, were in their case admirably blended together. They possessed the shrewdness of serpents, the boldness of lions, yet the harmlessness of doves. They well knew how to adapt their instructions to their hearers ; th^y were skilled in approaching the portals of the heart and eflfect- -ing an entrance. They never needlessly rushed upon danger; they never put their lives and their influence and their security in useless peril. So far as was consistent with truth and their own self-respect, they adapted their modes of address to the prejudices and weaknesses of their hearers. The circumstances in which they were placed, taught them to temper their natural impetuosity of feeling 124 PERSONAL CHARACTERS and cordiality of speech, with greater calmness and re- serve. Not only does the history of their labors teach us this, but the tenor and contents of their writings inculcate the same thing. They became all lawful things to all men. With what wise circumspection, with what thoughtful pru- dence, with what careful regard to human wants, with what just appreciation of human weakness, and with what skill- ful adaptation to every individual case, do they select from the vast variety of events which occurred and the truths which were proclaimed during Christ's abode with them, precisely those which, in each particular case, were best adapted to do the greatest good. With equal wisdom one writer fills up the hiatus which circumstances induced another to make ; or enlarges more minutely upon a point upon which another had but slightly touched. Thus as a whole, they present the clearest and fullest exposition of the teachings and actions -of Christ, which are so valuable to men, and have so important an influence on their sal- vation. In connection with this it is to be observed that perfect harmony of sentiment and action existed among them. While they preached and wrote alike, they thought alike. That minor differences should occur in an assemblage of men who were often called by difficult circumstances to think for themselves, and that too when so many princi- ples and events passed in review before them, was to be expected. Yet if such discrepancies existed, it was only on minor points of secondary importance. So great was the general harmony of the sacred writers, in all their re- corded views and teachings, that it has become an estab- lished canon of the interpretation of any one of them, that the best way to ascertain their meaning is to compare them together, to make them interpret each other, and thus to make the one illustrate and confirm the other. OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 125 The harmony of action among them was as great as their harmony of sentiment ; which is proved by their ar- rangements for personal labor, for personal travel and meeting. To each was given his own appropriate field, and the limits of their ecclesiastical jurisdiction never in- terfered. The principles on which they conducted their missionary labors were harmonious and consistent. There is but one instance on record, in which this was violated ; and there the reproof which was administered by one Apostle lo the other, was done publicly; and the minute- ness with which this transaction is recorded, shows that it was an unusual event. Their harmony of doctrine forcibly strikes the reader of their writings. Apparent differences, we admit, are to be found. Two writers, for instance, give different genea- logies of Christ. Two others may vary in their accounts of the resurrection. Two more may seem to inculcate different views in reference to works and faith. Yet all these and a few other apparent differences, have long ago been perfectly harmonized; and every contradiction which may seem to deform the sacred pages, may be easily re- moved by a glance into the standard works which Chris- tian piety and learning have produced in the department of biblical and apologetical interpretation. So that the writings of these holy men now form one grand inimi- table whole ; a moral structure of surpassing harmony and beauty, deserving the admiration of all men. Nor can we fail to observe the entire dependence ex- hibited by these holy men on God's aid, in order to se- cure success. This is particularly the case with the Apostles of the New Dispensation, who were in an espe- cial degree commissioned to a life of activity and adven- ture. Notwithstanding all their self-consecrating efforts, they relied on the arm of a greater than themselves, for a 11« 126 PERSONAL CHARACTERS happy and successful issue to their labors. They constantly implored the Divine assistance, and it was granted. Thie mighty miracles which they wrought, proved that God was with them. The testimony of Paul, their greatest, was decisive on this point ; that the weapons of their war- fare were not carnal, but spiritual ; that all their eloquence, their toils, their conflicts, their sufferings, and even their blood, were sacrifices and means of a secondary nature. On these they did not repose their trust; but on the great Head of the Church, the God of their salvation. In every emergency and trial, in every conquest and success, their confiding eyes were turned upward to him whose direction they invoked. This spirit is illustrated by their conduct when vacancies were to be supplied in the Apostolic College, and their own important functions were to be entrusted to new and inexperienced hands. Having asked God's blessing, they made a choice of a fellow-laborer by lot, whom the divine will, and not party zeal or personal ambition, thus elevated to that important eminence. When successes crowned their toils, they de- lighted to ascribe the praise and glory of them to Him through whose aid they had been attained. It is further worthy of remark, in contemplating the whole character and merits of the Aposdes, that they all were called upon to seal their doctrines with their blood, and every one of them nobly bore the trial. This fate, indeed, overtook several of the Old Testament writers; but of the circumstances which accompanied their death, we are mainly ignorant. In relation to the New Testament writers the case is different. We cannot but admire that moral courage, that profound submission to the will of God, and that entire devotion to his glory, which they all displayed, as, one after the other, they saw their brethren gain the crown of martyrdom, and their own appointed or THE SACRED WRITEHS. 127 hour approach. Wiih what heroic fortitude they toiled through their destined career of militant service, until the hour of their deliverance canae? One after the other met his destiny, and as the solemn fact was conveyed to one and another of the sacred throng, instead of forsaking so desperate and fatal a cause, they persisted, and were will- ing, in the language of Paul, " to be offered up," as sacri- fices on the altar of God and the truth. They met their fate with cheerful submii^sion, and even one of them re- fused to suffer martyrdom in the same position in which his Lord had expired, considering himself unworthy of so high an honor. Thus St. Matthew suffered martyrdom by being slain with the sword at a distant city of Ethio- pia. St. Mark expired at Alexandria, after having been cruelly dragged through the streets of that city. St. Luke was hanged upon an olive tree in the classic land of Greece. St. John was put into a caldron of boiling oil, but escaped death in a miraculous manner, and was after- ward banished to Patmos. St. Peter was crucified at Rome with his head downward. St. James the Greater was beheaded at Jerusalem. St. James the Less was thrown from a lofty pinnacle of the temple, and then beaten to death with a fuller's club. St. Philip was hanged up against a pillar at Hieropolis in Phrygia. St. Bartholo- mew was flayed alive. St. Andrew was bound to a cross, whence he preached to his persecutors, until he died. St. Thomas was run through the body with a lance at Coro- mandel in the East Indies. St. Jude was shot to death with arrows. St. Matthias was first stoned, then behead- ed. St. Barnabas of the Gentiles was stoned to death by the Jews at Salonica. St. Paul, after various tortures and persecutions, was at length beheaded at Rome by the Em- peror Nero. Now this willingness to seal their convictions with their 138 PERSONAL CHARACTERS blood, has always been regarded as the surest test of the sincerity of men, in any convictions which they professed. It implies not only that such men have deep devotion to their principles, but that they understand them ; that they regard these truths as of more consequence than their lives ; that they estimated the disgrace and the curse of unfaithfulness as worse than death, and that they considered the author of their principles as abundantly able to reward their faithfulness. Now the writings of such men deserve our confidence ; and it is reasonable to suppose, that they would be as faithful in their writings as they were in their sufferings. They would make use of every effort to place in a clear and true light, those doctrines which they them- selves so highly prized. They deserve to be credited ; and every merit which a divine revelation can possess drawn from the faithfulness of those who were commis- sioned to record it, the Scriptures do draw from the per- sonal merits, the individual qualifications and the general excellence of those who were chosen to pen them. Such were the men who were selected as the agents in preserving through all generations an equally remarkable revelation. We have endeavored to give some idea of their singular merits. We behold in them but a small propor- tion of those weaknesses which mark other men, and an unusually large proportion of the excellences which adorn the noblest of our race. They come forth honorably from every examination of their characters and history, proving themselves to have been devoted to their great commission, sanctified in heart, mourning over the moral wreck which sin had made in the world, and rejoicing in the glorious plan of redemption which God had devised to restore our race ; and bravely bracing themselves up to the task of pro- claiming this wonderful plan throughout the world, in the face of danger, disgrace, and death. OF THE SACKED WRITERS. 129 Behold then, in imagination, yonder group of eminent men, who penned the Sacred pages. They demand our admiration for a variety of excellences. Prominent in the striking throng is Moses ; he is thoughtful, humble, and possesses an air of venerable antiquity. There, too, is pious David, whose voice is attuned to praise, and whose fingers sweep with graceful ease the sounding harp of Judah. Solomon is there, in whose intelligent and pene- trating eye we see an index of the character which he bears as the wisest of men. Behold those enraptured prophets, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel ; a glow of holy fer- vor pervades their countenances, as with upturned glance their minds are absorbed in some sublime and magnificent survey of the future. That man whose humble form is bent in sorrow, and whose burning tears fall rapidly upon the earth, is mourning Jeremiah. Near these stand a clus- ter of more youthful men ; they are the apostles of the New dispensation. There is the learned and scholastic Luke; he is recording the events of Christ's career, " having a perfect understanding of all things from the very first." Beside him is one who has just wiped from his eye the penitential tear, and has turned with eagerness to reprove a seducing world, which has succeeded in lead- ing him astray ; it is Peter. See that other disciple, whose parted hair, smooth brow, and sweet bewitching smile, which gently plays upon his classic features, prove him to be the beloved disciple. His looks are all benevolence and peace. He seems to be the reflected image of his great master, for all about him is gentleness and love. He appears to say to those around him, " Brethren let us love one another!" There, too, is Matthew, whose reflective mind seems to be turned on the spiritual world within. He is contemplating the wonderful career of Christ which he has just recorded. There, also, is Bartholomew, an old 130 PERSONAL CHARA.CTSRS man, the Nestor of the throng, whose sunken eye, bent form, gray locks, and feeble knees attest that he has travelled far in the journey of life; and his solemn thoughtful countenance tells that he has learned to appre- ciate its ills. While one of nobler form is attracting the attention of the whole company, as he reproves the hesi- tating Thomas for his unbelief, and eloquently defends the faith of Jesus ; his tall and slender figure seems to soar to- wards heaven; and his restless eye shows that mighty thoughts are struggling for utterance in his heaving breast. His moving lips are uttering the sentiments which so much animate him, while his outstretched arm gives impressive energy to his words. He is declaring to an unbelieving world, " I know in whom I have believed, and am per- suaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him, until that day." It is the great apostle to the Gentiles. Now if we separate this assemblage of men, and make each one the subject of a careful analysis, we will find the history and traits of each rich in instruction as well as peculiar in character and vocation. For instance, in the personal character of John we see the counterpart of Jeremiah, in the Old Testament. As Jeremiah was that prophet of the Jewish dispensation, who recorded the fu- ture calamitous doom of his country, as clearly revealed to him by prophetic view; so John, the prophetic seer of the new dispensation, recorded the visions of the future triumphant destiny of the Christian kingdom. The writings of these two men singularly and instructively shadow forth the career of the two dispensations. While Jeremiah, in accordance with truth, sings in mournful strains a re- quiem over his country's misfortunes; so the harp of John is attuned to exulting melodies, chanting the future pro- gressive glory of the Christian church. The Jewish was OF THE SACRED WRITERS. 131 destined to decay, and so Jeremiah plaintively records. The Christian was to go forth like the rising sun from the glowing chambers of the East, progressing on its way, till its car should ride in triumph through all lands. This great theme gives a peculiar tinge to the writings of John, especially to the book of Revelation. So sublime a trea-. sury of thought as it has never been penned by human hands. The splendid machinery and imagery of a Milton, a Tasso, and a Homer, if combined in one transcendent epic, would be unequal to it. Exceed it in bulk they would ; but to soar on the same ethereal pinion they could not. John may therefore be regarded as a writer of splendid natural gifts. Nor is it strange that he should have been the favorite disciple of Christ, inasmuch as their dispositions and intellects seem to have singularly harmo- nized. Probably many of John's most sublime concep- tions he owed to his more intimate acquaintance with Christ. Their full splendor will be more clearly seen, as advancing events turn his prophecies into actual scenes, marked by those grand features with which he has in fancy and prophecy invested them. Voltaire, that frivolous and grimacing reviler of all that is good and true, boasted that the religion which twelve ignorant fishermen had established, would be overturned by one greater than they, meaning himself. A religion established by twelve such men, with such authority, could never be overthrown : it was founded upon a rock, and the confirmed issue of the struggle proves the absurdity of his boast. One opponent such as he, was harmless ; a thousand more would but serve to swell the accumulating tide of victory, and show the omnipotence of that efficacy which could achieve triumphs over so many and such em- bittered foes. In vain did he and his confederate scoffers adopt, as their constant and blasphemous motto, Ecrasez 132 PERSONAL CHARACTERS OF THE SACRED WRITERS. Vinfame, " crush the wretch !" thus execrating the Savioui' of men. There was a secret in His religion, and in the toils and labors of those humble men which he had never learned. They were the propagators of a religion whose power he had never felt, and hence he waged a bootless warfare against it. They were the last survivors of an illustrious race of men, on whose shoulders the mantle of inspiration had fallen ; and who steadily pursued their lofty commission, until the providence of God had worked through them great moral achievements, which the infidel has neither the desire nor the grace to appreciate. Happy men ! Chosen of God to fulfil a glorious destiny : per- mitted to feel the importance and value of eternal things, and communicate them to others. Their names and vir- tues have become identified with the religion of love, and associated with the inimitable excellences of the Son of God. Countless generations who have reaped the fruits of their toils will bless their memory. Wherever this re- ligion is proclaimed, the recollection of their sainted lives, the sweet odor of their holy example, and the unction of their earnest exhortations, will attend it. Their influence and their usefulness shall never cease, until the conflicts of time are merged into the triumphs of eternity. The traces of their earthly days and earthly labors cannot be lost in the depths of ages. las CHAPTER III. THE DESIGN OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED. No book has ever existed in the world, respecting which so much has been written and said, in its censure and iu its praise, as the Bible. Even among those who endeavor, as modern infidels have done, to depreciate its value, its great merits give them much trouble and uneasiness. It requires their constant endeavors, to underrate and calumni- ate it, in order to still their own consciences, and rebut the constandy increasing reverence which the rational portion of mankind are bestowing on this book. They, on the contrary, who believe in its merits and authority, find ample inducement and profit in dwelling upon them ; and they find abundant iiLaterials in this inexhaustible theme, to employ all their researches and discussions. Yet this volume, upon which so many men in so many ages have delighted to dwell in admiration and exposition, is a glorious and inexhaustible topic ; and he who succeeds in throwing one solitary ray of light upon it, that its value and merits may appear to men in fairer and clearer vision than before, deserves to be regarded with favor. Among the many admirable features of the Bible, its design dientands our attention and defence. This service we will attempt to render to the cause of truth in these pages. We shall endeavor to point out some of the merits of this glorious moral edifice, erected by the hands of the eternal Arclii- 12 134 THE DESIGN tect, whose unrivaled splendor no tongue of man or angel can ever adequately describe. The Scriptures have deservedly received, by way of eminence, the honorable epithet of The Book. This volume professes to derive its origin from God ; and por- tions of it had descended to us from the remotest antiquity, where all other sources of instruction are lost in the gray twilight of fable. It professes to treat of the most import- ant and intricate subjects which can occupy the attention of men. During its long career in the world, it has secured more or less reverence among mankind, and exerted a com- manding influence in moulding their destinies and charac- ters, both in the present and in the future. Such a volume cannot be studied with too much atten- tion. Aside from its high moral attributes and claims, there is so much of literary and historical interest connected with it, so much that addresses itself to what is highest and noblest in our natures, that every one who possesses a mind capable of appreciating the beautiful, the wonderful, and the good, will be interested in the discussion of its merits, and the examination of its design. It is true, that many gifted minds have expended their powers upon it; yet its inexhaustible merits have not been fully revealed. Though many strong intellects have made its discussions the subject of their deepest investigations ; yet its intricacies are not yet all unraveled. Yet it is worthy of remark, that in spite of the vastness and elevation of their themes, the Scriptures adapt their discussions to the capaci- ties of those whom they address, as far as the nature of the case permits. They are like a tree filled with luscious fruit, whose branches tend invitingly downward to the earth; in order that those who are are of shortest stature may be able to obtain and enjoy their contents. The Great Teacher of the universe seems to leave his high abode, to OF THE BIBLE. 135 dwell with men, to assume their form, to employ their language, to adapt himself to their wants, and to their finite capacities. W hile the modern infidel has employed this circumstance to the prejudice of the Bible, instead of de- creasing our esteem for that sacred book, it should augment it. For we see in this instance another proof of that wise adaptation of the means to the end which so strikingly characterizes all the purposes and works of God. While we contend for the high and dignified design of the Bible, modern infidelity has labored to abase that design. It has attempted to show on the one hand, that this book has been huddled together by the unskillful labors of different ad- venturers in the field of literature; that it possesses no unity, no harmonious purpose or connection. While others have labored to show that the Bible is the product of good men's fancies, of their own intellectual conceptions, and that though its moral and mental traits are commendable, it can lay no claim to a design which can prove its divine origin.* No act or purpose of God has ever been called into be- ing, without having as its basis, an adequate and appro- priate design. The Scriptures, as being one of the most wonderful productions of his creative power and wisdom, likewise possess an equally important purpose, which they are intended to acomplish. The dignity and importance of the design of the Bible, are one of its most striking excellences. Its chief and * " The Pentateueli was not written in the time of Moses, nor till several hundred years afterwards ; they arc no other than the n ttempted history of the life of .Moses, and of the times in \vhich he is said to have lived, and also of times prior tliereto, written by some very ignorant and stupid pretender to authorship, several hundred years after the death of Moses." — Paine. 136 THE DESIGN primary purpose doubtless was, to serve as a medium for revealing to men, the whole will of God, as far as infinite wisdom should regard that revelation as necessary. The existence of such a will on the part of God towards men, is necessarily implied, in the very nature of the relations which he entertains toward us. He is the Universal Sove- reign; shall he have no laws to promulgate throughout his vast dominions ? We are Iiis dependent, helpless creatures ; shall he not provide for onr necessities, and make known to us the benevolent counsels of his will ? Though God dwells on high and we are the inhabitants of the earth, yet there is a sympathy between us. He is deeply inte- rested in our welfare. We are the constant recipients of his blessings. To know the purposes of God and to ac- complish them, is our highest privilege and happiness. Only so far as we accord with his plans can we be truly blest. Only so far as we diverge from what is acceptable to him, will we inflict injury and misery upon ourselves. Now God is benevolent ; and if a knowledge of his laws and purposes would so highly contribute to our welfare, he would undoubtedly make that revelation. It is unrea- sonable to the last degree to suppose, that after men had been placed upon earth, and had been gifted with powers capable of understanding, of appreciating, and of fulfil- ling the volitions of God, that he would conceal these from them, so far as, in the nature of the case, they would have a bearing upon themselves. Therefore, in the sacred volume, we have a clear and full exposition of the princi- ples which govern the actions of God throughout the wide extended realms of his universe ; we learn the principles on which he controls the human heart, the principles by which he wishes their actions to be governed, and the great aims for which their existence, as well as of all his rational OF THE BIBLE. 137 creation, is supported and continued. These writings have thus been accumulated as the wants of our race demanded. To prove that this js the will of God as revealed in the Scriptures, we need but open its pages, and peruse the divine words which shine forth in unveiled lustre from if. They describe the origin, the present state, the future destiny of our race with amazing and graphic power. There He speaks as doth a benevolent father to his erring children : Hearken to me and live, listen to my words, and I will point out to you the only path of true blessed- ness. My ways are ways of pleasantness and all my paths are peace. Nowhere else do we find the wisdom which we need. In a case like this, uninspired guidance is of no avail. Elsewhere we will look in vain for the unction of inspiration. If we wish to know the will of the Divine mind, on any and every point of inquiry, how- ever intricate and profound, so it but bear on the great scheme of human redemption, in the Bible and in that treasury alone, will we find this valuable and indispensable instruction. God has himself selected this avenue of in- struction, and therefore adapted it to accomplish the intended . purpose. If the will of God concerning man is there in general revealed, we may descend to particulars, and say, that there also are made known his character and claims. No in- quiry is more interesting to subjects, than to know the character of their sovereign, and the laws by which he or- dains to rule them. Especially is this true in reference to the King of kings. How glorious is the privilege to . look into the attributes which constitute the noblest nature which exists ! Our reverence and curiosity are excited to the highest pitch by the developments of that character, which we see in the universe around us. Yet ia this book 12* 138 THE DESIGN there is a professed delineation of that nature. He is made known as the all-wise, all-just, all-good, all-powerful being, whom rational and immortal spirits should alone adore. And indeed, so far aa an infinite personage could be described fo those whose capacities are finite, so far has the character of the Judge of quick and dead been made known to us in the Scriptures. Nor is it merely by abstract description that we have this great truth 'promulgated. We have the personal mani- festation of him in Jesus Christ his Son f and while the Bible exhibits to us the merits and characteristics of Christ so distinctly and strikingly, it is revealing to us the cha- racter of the Godhead. This description is recorded only in the Bible. Though there had been cotemporary writ- ings which treated of this same exalted theme, they would be inadequate to the task. But none such remain. Yet in this Volume, we may possess from age to age, the words, the looks, the actions, the thoughts, the emotions, and the purposes of him who was the fullness ofj^he Godhead bodily. Here also the claims of God are revealed. On the pro- per understanding and fulfillment of these, our present and future well-being depend. These claims of God's pro- mulgated law resi^lt from his very nature. He is God, and therefore He is supreme. All creatures should bow in reverence before him. In proportion as this is done, his declarative glory is augmented. Yet in order to fulfill a law, it is plainly necessary to know it. The laws and claims of God have found a worthy medium of communi- cation in the Sacred Book. He is there represented as the Great King, the only wise God, who alone hath immor- tality ; as that Judge who demands the reverence of the heart and the obedience of the life, and not the mere pro- OF THE BIBLE. 139 fession of the lips. Jesus Christ is there revealed as the only mediator for ^ dying world ; that all who cordially accept his offers, shall share in the inheritance of the saints in glory; that all who trample on his blood, shall eventu- ally reap the reward of their wickedness, the worm of anguish which never dies, and the fire of divine wrath, which is never quenched. So clearly are these and all other fundamental truths made known, that the wayfaring man, though a fool, may read, and need not err therein. The passages which treat of these cardinal points, are justly termed by theologians the loca primaria, vel prse- stantissima of the Bible. We may add, that the Scriptures were designed to ansioer the natural expectations of mankind, as well as to supply their necessities. Some ardent aspirations after greater light have ever existed among men, when deprived of the light of revelation. They have ever been convinced by the testimonies of conscience as well as experience, that they needed something higher and better than earth affords, in order to satisfy the longing of their natures. Reason testifies, that we may naturally expect some com- munications of His will to us, which will conduce to our well-being, and that God's benevolence will prompt him to such communications. Reason teaches, that divine in- struction is absolutely indispensable for us, in order that we may avoid the spiritual perils which surround us on every hand, and at every step of our progress. We feel, that if left to ourselves, the past, the present, and the future, present naught but profound enigmas which we cannot penetrate. When surveying the universe around us, we behold the wreck of former and original purity. We see to a great extent, only the remains of a former spiritual world whose 140 THE DESIGN harmony and gloiy have passed away. Moral gloom and sadness have settled down upon a creation which origin- ally bore the impress of celestial loveliness. We are re- minded of what we once were, and of what we might have been. The question arises in the soul, can we never regain that blissful state from which our first parents by transgres- sion fell ? Surely it is possible for " some greater man" to suggest the pathway of deliverance ! No question possesses greater elements of moral sub- limity and deathless interest, than that propounded by Pi- late, when investigating the case of his illustrious prisoner : What is truth ? This inquiry, profound philosophers and moralists of every land and age, have asked ; to the attain- ment of a satisfactory reply, they have consecrated all their energies and talents ; yetonly to be impressed with their own inability to resolve the momentous problem. But one in- structor is adequate to the task. Like the chimes of a dis- tant convent bell, that reach us from the summit of a hill, covered with venerable forests, while unbroken solitude reigns around, and nothing is seen but the chapel from which the impressive sounds issue, and nothing is heard but their mournful echo ; so the voice of God above pro- claims the truth to a desolate world, through" the instructions of the Bible, while all other sounds are hushed to stillness, and no other cheering object is to be seen. This volume supplies an infallible answer to all the great inquiries which we may propose. It lays down two great truths as the foundation of every other; " God is, and he is the merciful rewarder of all who diligently seek him ;" thus teaching us the constitution and relation of all things, and laying a foundation as broad and deep as it is funda- mentally necessary. Around these great truths all others radiate and cluster. From them they derive their light and consistency. If you remove them from the moral OF THE BIBLE. 141 and intellectual world, a chaotic confusion and an eternal war of conflicting elements will ensue. A dark moral and intellectual night will brood over the mighty void, and tumultuous discord, grasping the sceptre of universal dominion, with ten thousand jarring tongues will rule the world. But no such anarchy was ever intended by the author of our being. No such anarchy is accordant with the better tendencies of our natures. Accordingly we feel a natural impulse to nobler and better things. We look around for a deliverance from these terrific ills. The Bible alone most amply satisfies our expectations in this emergency. It is a lamp which truly shines in a dark place. The Scriptures were designed to be fie the aggressive antagonists 1o the encroachments of' error. Direct agencies of this sort are indispensably necessary. Error is hydra-headed and protean-shaped. It assails the heart in a thousand varied forms. It awaits at every avenue of the soul, and enters and obtains a lodgment in its most secret chambers. How many are the hapless victims who yield to its seductions 1 The Bible is the strongest anti- dote to all error. It is the fountain of all truth. It is the salt of the nations ; the great sign-board which points out the path to heaven. It detects error with inevitable certainty. It exposes it as the offspring of the father of lies, who often assumes the garb of an angel of light, and thus fatally deludes his unsuspecting victims. It points out the most fruitful soil of sin — the human heart. It shows the processes of its nutrition, the effects of its pestilential growth,"and the potent sanative by which its results are to be remedied. The great purpose, the culminating point in this grand moral edifice, is, however, to be yet mentioned. The Bible was especially employed to make the authoritative and 142 THE DESIGN official announcement to men of the great plan of redeem- ing love, achieved through Jesus Christ. To narrate and develop this extraordinary scheme, to band it down from age to age, to make it known to one fleeting generation after another, and to teach them how appropriately to im- prove it, is the pre-eminent purpose of that sacred book. To be the medium of communicating so great a truth is surely no unimportant design. If there be a process whereby human life may become a paradise ; or if it be possible for an at-one-ment to be effected between God and his creatures, and the darkness of the future be arrayed to them with brilliant hope ; all this is recorded in His revealed will. We are there taught how the Son of God completed his wondrous acts of mediatorial love, his divine teachings, his unremitting toils and his unparalleled sacrifices, for human redemption, by his last triumphant exclamation on the cross, " It is finished." No other volume bears such a message. No other his- tory, however moving and affecting, records such an event. Other books may speak of battles fought and victories won ; of conquests made, and thrones erected ; but here is a victory over the powers of darkness ; a battle fought against the gates of hell ; a throne erected where eternal mercy is dispensed. Other books may speak of novel schemes for elevating the race of men to intelligence and virtue. This one teaches the magic power, by which the obscure and lowly even of the earth, are made kings and priests to God. They may proclaim some powerful anti- dote to the approach of physical death, and retard the advent of a dying hour. Here is revealed the elixir of immortality, which can make the dying live; and can adorn with an imperishable and ever brilliant crown of life, the brows of those who had once been doomed to die. Doubtless if there be a truth into which angels would OF THE BIBLE. 143 desire to look, as bending from their bright abode they contemplate human things, it is this one. Here they be- hold a great moral mystery revealed ; how God can main- tain the justice of his throne, and yet forgive the guilty. The wisdom of a God was necessary to achieve this scheme, and they doubtless love to contemplate this re- markable development of the divine attributes. After this truth is revealed, we are further taught how we are to act to improve the benefits of this accommodation which has been, made with God, showing what course of conduct will be most acceptable to him and profitable to us. But besides these great truths which are indispensably necessary to human salvation, there are other questions of great interest to us, which are only explained in the Scrip- tures ; such as the origin and nature of evil; the creation of the world; the immortality of the sovl ; the destiny of events in future ages; and the important relation of the present to the future. No question has more severely puzzled human reason than the origin and nature of evil. Many hypotheses have been proposed to account for its existence, both by heathen philosophers, and by those who retained, when within the Christian church, their preconceived philosophical notions. Of this sort were the Gnostics of the early ages of the Christian era. Some ascribed the existence of evil to the necessity produced by the nature of things, forgetting that one ingredient in that very nature is the evil, which they thus propose to account for. Others referred it to the dis- cord produced between the two great principles of light and darkness in the world ; not observing that these prin- ciples are already the representatives of evil and its oppo- site. Some supposed that man was created with the seeds of undeveloped depravity within him ; thus making the creator the author of it. Others, that its existence was an 144 THE DESIGN accidental occurrence ; thus removing the efficacy of God's providence. Some maintained that it was an inherent in- gredient in matter, not accounting for its first existence there ; and the opinion vyas set forth by another class, that there was no difference between good and evil, but merely an arbitrary relation not based on any abstract or immuta- ble principles. To one and to all, this question was a mystery. If they admitted the existence and superintend- ence of God, they could not account for his permitting the existence of evil. If they denied that it had any rela- tion to him whatever, they virtually impugned his existence and control over sublunary affairs. All their hypotheses were alike unsatisfactory, contradictory and absurd. The Bible plainly and simply answers this great inquiry. " The Lord God commandeth the man saying, of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat, for in the day thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die. The woman took of the fruit thereof and did eat, and gave also to her husband with her, and he did eat. — By one man sin entered into the world and death by sin. — Through the offence of one many be dead. By one man's disobedience, many were made sinners." We are thus carried back to events of the remotest times, to scenes connected with the dawn of creation, when humanity was in its prime, when it had just stepped forth, blooming with primeval beauty and freshness, from the hand of its Creator.* A distinction is thus drawn between good and evil, at * The importance of the subject here referred to, and the earnest- ness with which infidels condemn and deride the account of the sacred volume respecting it, has induced us to make it the subject of a separate chapter. It is hoped that some suggestions may be found there, which will throw some light upon the truthfulness and reasona- bleness of the Scripture account concerning it. — See Chapter XI. OF THE BIBLE. 145 the very commencement of God's moral economy; and the readers of the Bible are plainly taught, that the good derives its character and merit from the fact, that it com- poses the ingredients of God's nature; while the bad derives its distinctive attribute from its opposition to what God is and does. The readers of the Bible clearly learn that man is accountable for the introduction of this evil element into the world ; that man the most fortunate and favored of creatures, has been the voluntary agent in pro- ducing this wretchedness and woe, where all before had been harmony and bliss, and might have so continued, but but for him, through endless ages. In this volume again we learn the orfgin of the world itself, whence all created things have come. It was not by chance, nor by the fortuitous concourse of atoms, nor by gyratory condensation, nor by the agency of Ormuzd and Ahriman, nor by the labors of Aeons and Demiurgi, nor by Emanistic or Panthestic processes ; but by the cre- ative fiat of God. " In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." How simple and sublime is this description of a great event ! • How worthy is such a sen- tence to open a revelation from God to man ! We have here a description of the work of creation, which has maintained its supremacy for truth, after the assaults and cavils of six thousand years have been expended in vain attempts to overturn it. An inquiry of similar character and difficulty with those to which we have just alluded, is the immortalily of the soul, and the events connected with futurity. How great must be, the darkness of the natural man, on these sub- jects, when the great and good Socrates, " with orbs that rolled in vain to see the light," was constrained to say, to his judges, on leaving the earth, I go to die, you to live, 13 146 THE DESIGN but which is preferable the immortal gods alone can tell.* Noble Socrates ! who didst so earnestly seek, through the dim twilight of nature and reason, an answer to the inquiries of thy sincere soul ; if thou hadst heard of Jesus, or but known the book of God, thy doubts which surrounded thee, when thou didst plunge into the dark sea of death, had all been removed, and thou wouldst have seen beyond the tomb a glorious world, formed for the good alone ! The humblest Christian is taught and convinced by the Bible, that life and immortality have been revealed through Jesus Christ. He knows, " that this mortal shall put on immortality; that God hath appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness through Jesus Christ. That to the godly an entrance will be administered abund- antly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour. That the indignation of the Lord is against his enemies ; the men that transgressed against him, their worm shall not die and their fire shall not be quenched." These and other passages depict with graphic clearness, the future doom of earth's unnumbered millions, and trace to their utmost verge the mysterious career which they are destined to fulfill. They reveal to the light of day the dark recesses of distant ages, as far as such revelations advance the object of the great Instructor, and comport with his wise design. Again, the Bible was intended to teach men the true ob- ject of worship. It seems natural for all men to worship * See Plato's jSpohgiaSocratis, Cap. 33, ad finem. Even Cicero, who probably possessed greater light, could only say : Maximum vero argu- mentum est naturam ipsam de immortalitate animorum tacitam judi- care, quod omnibus curae sunt et maxitne quidem, quse post mortem futura sint. Serit arbores, qus alteri saeculo prosient? Vir raagnus leges, instituta, rem publicam non seret? — Tusc, Disputat. Lib. I. Cap. 14. OF THE BIBLE. 147 something. Travelers and historians tell us, that no nation has ever yet been known which had not some object of religious veneration. These deities vary in their character, according to the moral and intellectual culture of their respective devotees. The heathen world has teemed with gods many and lords many, from the sacred serpents and diminutive images of the South Sea islanders, to the majestic Jupiter Olympus of classic Greece, or the gigantic Jugger- naut of benighted India. While engaged in these profitless devotions, the voice of God speaking through his revela- tion, has arrested the attention of men, and pointed them with the unerring finger of truth to the only true and living God, whom to know aright is life eternal. The instruction which the Bible gives on this subject is inestimable. It enjoins an ennobling and exalted worship. No one can engage in it, without having his soul expanded, his views enlarged, his feelings elevated, and his principles improved by spiritual communion with one so exalted and so good. Though that worship has been debased by many absurd perversions, yet when observed in its purity and simplicity, earth presents no nobler sight than immortal beings in communion with their Father in heaven. While the Bible corroborates the instructions of the Book of Nature, it supplies its manifold deficiencies. Paul tells us that those who are without the guidance of revelation, "have a law written in their hearts, their con- sciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing them." We know that naturejs works are full of instruction. An intelligent heathen, standing on some eminence and beholding the beauties of the variegated landscape spread out like a carpet beneath his feet, with its golden harvests, and hanging fruit and verdant lawns, and flowing streams, must feel that the Creator of all is truly good. When he contemplates the 148 THE DESIGN adaptation of the seasons to produce their appropriate fruits ; how these seasons have come and gone from age to age with unvarying regularity, always ladened with their attendant blessings; he must infer that the grand controller of all this is unchangeable. When he looks at himself he beholds a microcosm, which proves that the author of it must have exhausted every resource to make him happy. He hence infers that he is good. The experience of the man teaches him, that vicious indulgence maTs the beauty and harmony of his mechanism, while it inflicts misery on himself. So also he finds that virtuous pursuits and enjoyments are adapted to the nature of his own construc- tion, produce no evil consequences, but constant fruition. This may teach him that the Creator approves of what men call virtue, has adapted us to its observance, and for- bidden the contrary, or vicious pursuits. But here this interesting volume ceases to instruct. If the inquirer asks, Who is this being to whom I am in- debted for all these blessings, and where is his abode, and how shall I render him most acceptable praise ? the voice of nature and reason is dumb. Her guidance is bewilder- ing, her teachings unsatisfactory. The Bible commences where the last link of nature's instructions breaks off. It reveals what reason cannot ; for it contains a positive body of instruction. It teaches that God is holy, and de- signs his universe to be so. It defines the nature of that holiness ; how it was lost ; how it may be attained ; the necessity of its attainment, and the advantages which re- sult from its possession. If nature proclaims a desire within us after immortality, the Bible teaches how to sa- tisfy that desire. If we feel an instinctive tendency after the development of our nobler nature, and higher faculties, the Bible shows that such was God's purpose, and points the path which conducts to true wisdom and Urae culture, OF THE BIBLE. 149 — lo that glorious temple of light where the spirit of the Most High will condescend to instruct us. An additional purpose of God in giving the Bible, was to impart a xevelation adapted to all men in general, ra- ther than to each one in particular. It has sometimes been urged against the Scriptures, that they do not supply the minute necessities of all men, inasmuch as the infinite variety of cases precludes the possibility of any such ge- neral revelatioli answering the purpose. Yet how absurd is such an objection ; for that very variety of cases makes an individual revelation for each perfectly impossible, if a revelation is to accomplish its proper purposes at all. Besides, the change proposed would only make the work immense and unmanageable, instead of comprehensive and convenient ; while amid the interminable variety, no one could discover the portion best adapted to his case. But in the Scriptures general principles and uniform laws are laid down, which, when properly developed as circumstances require, furnish abundant instruction, and reproof, and consolation to all who apply for it. Has that case ever yet occurred amid all the vicissitudes and ne- cessities which flesh is heir to, for which no remedy is to be found in the Book of books ? In it all important prin- ciples are duly discussed, which, like the watchword of a vast array, serve to instruct and guide harmoniously all who use it, and give compactness and order to their move- ments. Here the duties and relations of all men are dis- cussed ; here the hatefulness of all sin is exposed ; here the loveliness of all obedience and virtue is made known. That instance has yet to occur, in the history of our race, where the instructions of the sacred volume do not come to the aid of the inquirer and say, " this is the way, walk ye in it." From this fact we may learn the consistency and impar- ls* 150 THE DESIGN tiality of the Bible. It lays its requisitions equally upon all, the learned and the ignorant, the sedate and the frivo- lous, the lofty and the low. Whatever may be national or personal peculiarities, it makes no exception in favor of any ; and if they yield to the power of its truth, it will make them all alike, one in Jesus Christ ; they will rejoice in one faith, one hope, one baptism, one Lord and Master of all. The superior wisdom of this arrangement is so apparent, that it scarcely needs to be enlarged upon. These general principles are all characterized by superior wisdom ; and while they are concise and intelligible, they are capable of being expanded with infinite malleability, and applied with infinite accuracy to every imaginable emergency. Accord- ingly, by this plan no such case can occur where a virtue is not enjoined, or a vice is not prohibited. No instance can be urged, in which definite instruction is not imparted ; and therefore no plea can be found for continuance in unforbidden sin. Single laws are so arranged and placed, and applied, that they operate like a wise and potent me- dicine ; and though a thousand sufferers apply to the heal- ing balm for relief, and though a thousand similar cases are subjected to its influence, is capable of eflfecting an equally radical cure in every instance. Thus the divine pharmacy is provided with such powerful moral sanatives, adapted to every general principle, containing within it, as it were, every possible instance, each genus comprises all the species beneath it ; that all diseases are considered, and able cures provided for all. These prescriptions the Bible has carefully preserved. We need but cite, as unansvi'era- ble instances of this, the golden rule, the rule of the for- giveness of injuries, the laws of marriage, and duties to government. There is something remarkable here in this influence of the Bible. The followers of Christ of all lands and OF TBE BIBLE. ISl ages, are to be distinctly known by one grand feature, which beams forth through the bright hue- of the Europe- an, tlie sable mantle of the African, the soft vesture of the Oriental, and the red garment of the Indian ; that where- soever they have passed down the stream of years, or wherever their silent bones repose, they prove to all around them, that they have been with Jesus, that they have learned of him, that they have imbibed his heavenly spirit. This characteristic is enough to obliterate all rank, and caste, and prejudice. Such is the power of the glo- rious gospel of the blessed God, who has ransomed earth's countless millions with his precious blood, that all who embrace his grace, shall be made one in him. There are some historical services, which the Bible was intended to render, of vast importance to the Church ; such as the record of the planting and training of that com- munity. So extraordinary an institution deserves a worthy historian. Though others might have written upon the origin and development of the Christian fold ; yet an au- thoritative record was necessary, and that could alone be furnished by inspired men, of whose acquaintance with the subject, and ability to do it justice there could be no doubt. Hence a portion of these sacred pages has been appropriated to this work. These writers describe the doctrines, the duties, the rites and ceremonies, the members and relations, triumphs and afflictions of the in- fant church. They tell how holiness and virtue flourished in the days of Christian simplicity and purity; how, when the truth fell upon congenial soil, it took root, sprang up, sent forth its branches, distilled its blessings, cast its fra- grance forth upon the surrounding waste, when first esta- blished in the world. Nor does this narrative extend merely to the outward development of the Church, but also reaches to the doc- 152 THE DESIGN trinal training which it received; which, though imparted by different apostles, possesses a remarkable identity and unity. Thus the Christian from the high vantage ground of the nineteenth century, may well look back with pride and wonder, upon the unpretending commencement of the church, and behold with joy, how with sure and steady steps' it advanced achieving victories, and erecting monu- ments of its success, wherever its influence was felt. He may contrast its primitive weakness and obscurity, the hum- ble few who were enlisted through its behalf, with its ad- vancing triumphs in succeeding ages, until now the mighty of the earth delight to acknowledge her supremacy ; grasp- ing nations in her comprehensive arms, and towering hea- venward over every other institution the earth has seen. The Christian may recur to primitive and apostolic usages and doctrines, as a guidance or pattern for his own ; based as these necessarily are, upon the immediate instructions of the apostles. The doctrinal instructions of Christ and his apostles are of inestimable value to the church and the world. They have accordingly been preserved for the benefit of succeed- ing ages in the sacred volume. Those whose privilege it was to listen to these words originally, declared that never man spake as that man. He was justly termed the Great Teacher. Before him the wisest sages of earth were igno- rant and imbecile. These words possess a supernatural charm, to make the dying live, and they are here deposited that after generations may rejoice in the blessedness they confer. Now in order that these truths taught by Christ and after him, by his apostles, might live among men, some permanent and secure depository was absolutely necessary. A written record was superior to every other, scripta litera manet. By reading this narrative we are involuntarily OF THE BIBLE. 153 transported back to the times and places of the Saviour's instructions; we seem to hear his sacred voice, whose soothing tones of love earnestly warned the nations of their sins ; we seem to look into that countenance so full of mild- ness and benignity, on that countenance in which might be read, as in a chronicle, the commiseration of his soul for human wo ; the deeply seated purposes of love, and the mournful yet immovable resolve to suffer in our stead, the utmost which divine justice might inflict upon him. Doubtless the apostles enlarged upon the Saviour's in- structions as circumstancea called for a varied application of them. The Holy Spirit was to bring all needful things to their remembrance. Though St. John declares, that if all the things were written which Jesus did and said, the world would not appreciate them ; yet we have reason to suppose that the most important and valuable of them have been preserved. These records deserve our entire credence and approval. It is on these writings that the church of Christ bases its authority, and to them it refers as proof of its divine original, as well as its ultimate supremacy. One more purpose for which the Scriptures were given deserves to be noticed : — to serve as an indisputable au- thority to which all our religious disputes and opinions are to be subjected. As long as men retain their present constitution, they will endlessly vary on all subjects pre- sented to their notice. Their opinions will be as varied as the hues of the rainbow, as innumerable as the sands upon the sea-shore. Such is the natural tendency of minds collectively ; and the inquiry deserves notice : — Is there no means by which uniformity can be attained in their sentiments ? Truth is ever consistent with itself; and whatever opposes it must be error. Two discordant and diverse opinions cannot therefore both be right. We all feel persuaded of the tendency of the minds of 154 THB DESIGN men to diversity of sentiment ; and we all feel disposed to appeal to some standard for the sake of certainty and uni- formity. Some have recourse to the dicta of Popes and Councils ; some to the Fathers and to Tradition ; some to the voice of Nature, and the suggestions of an inward Mo- nitor. But the variety of sentiment, as well as the endless contradictions of these guides themselves, te^ch the utter impossibility of deriving permanency and concord of sen- timent from them. No standard of religious truth drawn from reason alone is valuable, for that reason is fallible. Even the voice of experience is not sure ; for frequently we are unable to understand its teachings. The Word of God alone pre- sents that certainty and fullness of instruction v^hich men need. Here the views of Christians can be harmonized, and their errors corrected. By contact with this sacred Touchstone all carnal dross is purged away, while the purity, beauty and brilliancy of Divine truth are brought to light. God has an undeniable right to mould our sentiments ; for being the author of our thinking faculties, and imparting constantly that vigor which is necessary to their proper exercise, we are thus placed under great and continued obligations to Him. He possesses the ability to guide us into the possession of truth : for while all other teachers are involved in darkness themselves, God is the great source of all knowledge, the great author of all wis- dom. The Bible bears evidence that it is his own accre- dited and authorized will, as revealed to men for their guidance and instruction. No other existing volume pre- sents similar undeniable credentials, — to this one, there- fore, so distinct and full in its evidences, it becomes us to appeal, not only as being just and due in itself, but with reference also to our own interests. Nor is the objection of the least consequence, that it is from the Bible, that here- OF THE BIBLE. 155 tics and schismatics of every age and every grade, have professedly drawn their countless errors ; and that hence this standard is wholly uncertain and indecisive. For no book or standard is responsible for the perversions which have been put upon it. Any man may distort a declara- tion, however clear, to favor almost any position, and make the worse appear the better part. Whoever comes to the Bible with a clear understanding, a sincere and ho- nest purpose, without foregone conclusions, and stubborn prejudices, will find in it harmonious and consistent truth; plain and distinct instructions, comprehensive and com- plete enlightenment. By subjecting all our religious dis- putes to this standard, with a submissive and teachable spirit, the God of Truth will so enlighten our eyes, that what is dark and inexplicable to the natural man, may ap- pear in all its unvaried clearness to those who are thus divinely instructed. It is indeed mournful to witness the efforts which have been made to invalidate the claims of this sacred book, as an authority in religious truth. The goddess of human reason has been exalted upon a throne above it. Espe- cially is this the more remarkable, when the attempt is made by some who are the professed expounders of the very book which they traduce. Says Dr. Roehr, a prominent German divine, in his Letters on nationalism, " We regard the Bible as nothing more than any other book. We hold its declarations to be valid, only where they are in accord- ance with our own convictions ; and its declarations do not constitute the ground of determination, for these depend on their own rational proofs ; but they serve merely as an illiistration, that other wise men of antiquity have so thought and believed." Another theologian of similar stamp, Dr. Bretschneider of Gotha, declares, " Not only is the inter- pretation of Scripture to be abandoned to science, but even 156 THE DESIGN the contents of Scripture, discovered 'by such interpreta- tion, are to be estimated according to the sciences." According to these dogmatists, the reasons of sinful and short-sighted creatures are to sit in judgment upon the instructions of the Creator. He is to remain silent, while his creatures decide as to the truthfulness of his declara- tions. The result of these doctrines is to be seen in that dreadful amount of unbelief and error, which, for half a century, has deluged Germany ; but from which, indeed, it is now beginning to emerge. We maintain, therefore, that the very design of the Bible strongly recommends it to mankind. The benevolence, the wisdom, the fullness, and the appropriateness of that design, clearly show its divine origin, and as clearly prove that it is admirably adapted to the wants of mankind. It is the only anchor in reliance on whose powerful grasp, we can securely outride the storm of discordant and conflicting sentiment. But he who doubts this point, which is preliminary to every other article of Christian doctrine, is already on the border of fatal unbelief. He is thoughtlessly playing on the smiling verge of the enchanted land of Infidelity. He will find an alluring prospect gradually developing before him, tempting him with visions of untasted bliss, to advance to actual fruition. If he yields, seducing charmers will press around him on every hand. The now deserted abode of for- mer trust and confidence, will gradually fade from his view, and the path of return will become involved in obscurity. He becomes more and more confounded and uncertain, while the syrens whose songs had once charmed his soul, now begin to deride his folly and mock his fears. They turn to fiends, and exult in his dismay and destruction ; and when too late, he sighs for the peace and security of that abode which he once so heartily despised and unfor- tunately deserted. 157 CHAPTER IV. THE PLENARY INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE. However excellent and harmonious the design of the Bible might be, it is plain that it would not deserve our supreme confidence, nor attain its professed purposes, un- less it were directly inspired by the Spirit of God. The plenary inspiration of the sacred book, necessarily lies at the foundation of all its other merits, — of its historical teachings, of all its good intents, of all its claims to cre- dence, of all its doctrinal instructions, — in a word, of all its pretended authority. The Scriptures clearly claim for themselves this merit of plenary inspiration. " The Holy Spirit shall teach you in that hour what ye shall say. I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries shall be unable to gainsay or resist. The spirit of truth, he shall guide you into all truth. The gospel which was preached of me (says Paul) I neither received from men, nor was I taught it but by the revelation of Jesus "Christ. Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God." We cannot for a moment, doubt what position the Bible claims for itself; and it hereby comes at once into direct conflict with the bold and absurd detractions of Modern Infidelity, which has addressed its most resolute attempts to overturn this fundamental merit of the sacred volume. Without directly noticing the individual objections which have been 14 158 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION adduced on this point, we will briefly present the opposing evidence. Many opinions have existed among the learned in regard to the extent of that inspiration which belongs to the Bible. Some affirm that the sacred writers were divinitus inspi- rati, or Spiritu sancto inflati, to such a degree, that jpven their expressions or forms of speech were controlled by this influence. Others ascribe to the Spirit a less exten- sive agency. It is evident that these writers enjoyed a general superintendence in the execution of their important task, more or less minute or special, in proportion to their own wants, and to the importance of the matter in hand. They were probably permitted to employ their own habits and modes of expression whenever they were appropriate ; but the truths which they recorded and the events which they narrated, were supplied and designated to them by the Spirit of God. Their forms of expression even, were no doubt carefully guarded from error or involuntary mis- representation. We have the high authority of Christ himself, in com- mendation of the Old Testament writers ; for in regard to the royal psalmist, he says, " David himself said by the Holy Ghost," etc. The degrees of inS'piration difiused through the Scriptures may be appropriately reduced to three classes. Sometimes this influence was permissive ; allowing the sacred writers to choose their own modes of expression and illustration, when they suited the divine purpose. Sometimes it was directive; guiding them in their modes of recording those things, which were already known. At other times, it was suggestive; directly and entirely furnishing them with the needed materials for communication.* Paul himself furnishes his approval to • The celebrated Quenstedt, in his System of Theology, thus olassi- OF THE BIBLE. 159 this classification ; for he affirms, that some things " he spoke by permission, and not of commandment. I have no commandment of the Lord, yet I give my judgment." (1 Cor. vii. 6 — 25.) Elsewhere he says, " Unto the mar- ried I command, yet not I, but the Lord," &c. (1 Cor. vii. 10.) The terms employed in the New Testament to express this important attribute of the sacred writers, are chiefly inspired by Deity, {'^eortvevstoij, taught by God, ('^eoSlSax- ■toi), and moved or impelled by the Holy Spirit; imply- ing that those who were under this influence, were men- tally supported and borne along by a divine power in the execution of their trust. Such was the aid promised by Christ to his apostles, when he declared that his Spirit should lead them into all truth, and should bring to their remembrance whatever was necessary to the completion of their commission. Not indeed to teach them mathe- matical, or philosophical, or metaphysical truth ; for this was not the design of their mission, or of their subsequent writings. But he granted such aid as was necessary to achieve a far higher work, — that of proclaiming the plan of redeeming love throughout the world, and persuading men to embrace it. We will glance briefly at those evidences of the plenary inspiration of the Bible, which strike an intelligent student of its contents, its spirit, its history, and its developed influences in the world. These proofs may be considered under the appellation of internal, external, and progressive ; for under one or other of these classes, every evidence may be appropriately placed. Our object will be gained, fies inspiration. " Inspiratio est (a) Revelatio in ignotis ; (6) direotio sive gubernatio in cognitis ; (c) permissio in suis ipsorum notionibus admisoendis.'' See his Systema TluohgUE, p. 42. 160 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION if we will be able to give a condensed view of tbese proofs, carefully avoiding any unnecessary expansion of the topics here mentioned. To those familiar with these evidences, it may not be useless thus to review them. I. The first internal proof which deserves attention is, that the Scriptures have the clear impress of inspiration stamped upon them by the nature of the truths which they reveal. From no human teacher could those extra- ordinary doctrines be obtained which now adorn the sacred pages. Who of all the wise or learned of earth could have taught the origin of our race, the fall of man from his primeval state, the causes which produced it, the consequences which result from it? Have the researches of a Plato revealed man's accountability as a free yet re- sponsible agent? Could the intellectual toils of an Aristotle have pointed out the great mystery of redeeming grace; how God can be just, and yet reward those who by re- pentance come to him ? Has their noblest system of ethics ever given the faintest glimpse of the golden rule, which if universally observed, would cast the mellow light of peace^ and love over all the habitations of men, and turn this sublunary sphere into a paradise of bliss ? Some of them have vainly tasked their highest powers to achieve such an illustrious deed, but have been constrained to ad- mit their inability to accomplish it. In the Bible alone has the great secret been taught, how to live. Not merely how we may most enjoy our fleeting years even innocently now ; but how we may turn them to the best account throughout eternity ; how we may gather with a miser's avaricious hand the rich treasures of know- ledge and truth which now surround us, and how we may husband them for nobler uses in the ages to come. To the Bible we go to learn that there is such a futurity ; that the human soul is a spark of immortality, radiating from the \JJB 'inUi JQll>ljJ!i* 161 great Source of life, which the mighty roll of immeasura- ble ages cannot quench ; that thrones and empires, and all the earth-born glories which now surround us, will pass away while the soul endures; will be lost in forgetfulness, and be as if they never had been, while the spirit that now tabernacles in the flesh, will press onward and upward, buoyant with the ecstasy of enduring life and ardor. The sacred page informs us of a day of righteous retribution on the part of the great Sovereign, when every deed of dark- ness, and every virtuous and holy act, will be exposed to the light of day, and receive its merited reward. It urges the probationary character of this life, and proclaims the chief end of man to be, to know God, and enjoy him for ever. , Now these and other revelations contained in tfie Bible, prove beyond a rational doubt, that its origin is djyine. The wisdom which it displays is found alone in the Di- vine Mind. It immeasurably transcends all human,powers. It is the voice of God speaking to our dying rape, great truths which they can scarcely comprehend, much less originate. The doubting or irreverent may say, " it thunders, or it is an angel speaking," but in truth it is the voice of God alone, condescending to instruct his erring creatures. Witness again, the singular power of tlifse revealed truths upon the human heart. More amazing refornia- tions have been produced by them upon human character, than by any other moral power the world has ever felt. By them the hardest heart is softened; and the Holy Spirit which operates through the agency of these truths, so melts down the soul, that it forcibly receives any im- press which is stamped upon it. By them, the most be- nighted heart is brilliantly illumined and made a radiant chamber of the truth, where spiritual crystals and stalac- 14* 163 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION tites glisten, as reflexions of the divine mind. By .them, firmly rooted habits are conquered, moral chains are broken asunder, and the unhappy victims set free from the worst of thraldoms. By them that soil so productive of the rankest and deadliest weeds, is made to bring forth the luxurious fruits of purity and bliss. By them in one word, the whole man is changed and he becomes a new creature in Jesus Christ. It is not strange that the good Socrates labored in vain to reclaim from a life of vicious indulgence, his gifted pupil Alcibiades. He could fill his mind with admiration for philosophy. He could convince him of the better nature and more elevated worth of virtue. He could even make him sigh for deliverance from his bondage. But to release him from his fetters or eradicate the corruption of his character, lay far beyond his power. Hence his pupil presented the singular spectacle, of an union of extraordi- nary natural excellences, and natural deformities, of ele- vated feeling and debasing passion, of exalted powers per- verted to the most ignoble ends. His great master must have lamented this strange inefficiency of the truths which he preached to reach the heart, or produce any lasting im- pression there. This extraordinary power the Bible fully possesses. This fact even its enemies are constrained to admit, while they stubbornly resist every impressive warning made to themselves. The concessions of such melancholy speci- mens of polluted and blasted humanity as Voltaire, Boling- broke and Paine, confirm our position, and at the same time preach an impressive truth. They see the moral elements quietly at work, they behold the wondrous trans- formations which are produced, they trace the progress of mighty revolutions, and despite all their efforts at resist- OF THE BIBLE. 163 ance, they see these changes progressing on every hand with irresistible power and success. In vain the proud heralds of unbelief boast of imaginary victories. Though for a time the cause of truth may seem to waver in her onward path of conquest through the world, and give momentary symptoms of hesitancy and fear, she will still press forward with streaming banners and majestic way, till every foe shall join in the chorus of her praise. But let us examine this influence of Bible-truths a little more closely. They first detect the latent sin which is in the heart, throwing open to view its depravity, and pro- claiming the necessity of a radical change. They then re- novate the soul, removing that love of sin, and implanting an ardent love for holiness. Thus that which was once hateful in the eyes of the subjects of this change, be- comes altogether lovely. That which they once admired, they now, beholding it with clearer vision, most cordially detest. This is no insignificant change. It is hard, when the transgressor by daily indulgence becomes wedded to sin, and every avenue to his conscience is pre-occupied and obstructed by evil influences, to awaken him from his lethargy. It seems like summoning the dead from their silent graves ; yet that power these truths possess, that voice they utter, that wondrous change they produce. Having proclaimed forgiveness of sins to the weary and heavy ladened, they roll away the load which presses down the soul, they give it wings by which it ascends to the city of its God, where, sustained by the power of faith,- it holds communion with its Eternal Father. Nor is the influence of these truths of the Bible in affliction undeserving of regard. All experience teaches that man was made to mourn. The worst of miseries which men endure result from sin. Hard is the lot of 164 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION that being who, when compassed round with innumerable ills, has no spiritual consolation to assuage his griefs. But he who can apply the truths of the Bible to himself, pos- sesses a balm which the world cannot give. With tear- less eye and serene countenance, can the son or the daughter of affliction look up to the hand which smites, can listen to the voice which chides, and say with con- fiding submission, " Even so. Father, for it seems good in thy sight." Any system of truth which is able, in the trying hour of dissolution, to support the soul when the dark cold waters of the sea of death roar and rage around it, pos- sesses more than human efficacy. This power the truths of the Bible can pre-eminently claim. Nothing else, as the united experience of all humanity shows, can support the dying head, and administer refreshing cordial in the last agony. All earthly supports then flee like empty bubbles past the confused and trembling spirit, bursting in their very transit. Like heartless friends, they hover round us in health and prosperity, but the solemn stillness of the sick room, the gasping agonies of the victim, his dying struggles and convulsive throes, terrify them. They flee with eager steps to their accustomed haunts of giddi- ness and joy. They leave us unfriended in our mortal terrors, unconsoled in our last extremity. The hour when, of all others, they should be most effi- cacious to support and cheer, finds them most barren of consolation, least prepared to administer relief. In the meantime, it is absurd for men, in order to remedy the deficiency of their boasted consolations, to reason and phi- losophise about their dissolution. It is absurd to mock the superstitious terrors under which the stoutest of their godless brethren have quaked and trembled, or the fears which now torment their more credulous fellow-men. OF THE BIBLK. 165 This does not drive away their own fears. It does not remove their own perils. It will not alleviate their own anguish to remember, when casting a terrified glance around them, they discover that the deep waters now rage near them, that when still upon the shore, they scorned and mocked the agonies of others. In vain will they, like Hume, in the last extremity, break irreverent jests upon Charon and his boat ; or like Hobbes, when asked what inscription should be written over his last long home, reply — the philosopher's stone. Such attempts to disguise despair by covering it over with a sardonic grin, only makes the object more hideously frightful. The contrary experience of all Christians of the sup- porting influence of Bible truths, and of those truths as de- veloped in practical Christianity, is uniform and universal. Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. The righteous hath hope in his death. The day of his death is better than the day of his birth. Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, from henceforth ; yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from their labors, and their works do follow them. The remarkable harmony which exists between the varied discussions and declarations of the Bible, is ano- ther internal proof of its inspiration. It will form part of our design to examine this point more largely elsewhere ; we therefore urge but several considerations in reference to it here. The sacred books were written by men, who lived in ages far remote from each other, and through the long lapse of sixteen hundred years. Their lives were passed in different countries, surrounded by varied cir- cumstances of social and political institutions, by different habits, customs, by prosperity and adversity, of honor and disgrace ; and yet they agree as fully, they possess as 166 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION much harmony and unity, as could be found among as many cotemporaneous writers. The Bible treats of a variety of the most intricate and important themes, demanding for their proper discussion, a variety of talents and qualifications. Yet no where have they been guilty of any one irreconcilable contradiction. It is true that there are some minor discrepances in their writings. But these only add to the greater truthfulness of the whole. They prove that there was no confederated design, no collusion on the part of these writers to mis- represent and deceive. They wrote as truth dictated, and hence having no reference to what others might have said, they vary on small matters which are perfectly non-essen- tial; like variations of minute character in the testimony of sincere witnesses, which only augnient their truthful- ness, as regards the main matter at issue. In the language of another " We can see no reason why it may not have pleased God to permit the ordinary differences of opinion and eyesight, which manifest themselves in the testimony of different witnesses to a fact, to be helps to us in the study of the real character of that fact ; the ordinary con- fusion in points of detail, to be the means of leading us away from them to what is real and substantial." — (Mau- rice's King, of Christ, p. 406.) Let us observe what a variety of discussions are con- tained in the Bible. A large portion of it is historical, relating to many of the most striking and minute events which have occurred in the history of our race. Yet all these accounts harmonize. They synchronize. They give the sante actors, the same locality, the same cause, the same effect. Thus, for instance, St., Stephen's apolo- getical speech in Acts vii., where many important events are compressed into a very small space, though uttered in the midst of a tumultuous uproar, where infuriated passion OF THE BIBLE. 167 held irresistible dominion over reason, where death in a horrid form loomed up before the great proto-martyr's vision, yet how truthful and accurate is his narrative? Several minor inaccuracies of no consequence, only throw Into bolder outline the correctness of the main detail. The doctrinal discussions of the Bible all harmonize. Though all sects and schismatics have labored to disprove this, by drawing from that sacred book all their discord- ant vagaries, yet their disagreement results from their mis- representations of the sacred page. A harmonious system of divine truth, firmly and thoroughly interwoven and united, is there revealed, which, when properly under- stood, presents a beautiful and consistent whole, and rears an impregnable front to all the assaults of multiform error. The same may be asserted of the practical or ethical portions of the word of God. The system of morals there recorded is superior to any the world has seen, and is so superior, because it is so impartial and consistent. It is a heavenly and elevated system. It accords with the di- vine perfections of its author. It is adapted to bless and renovate our race. It makes no exceptions in favor of the great and mighty of the earth. It is adapted to the wants and circumstances of all lands and ages. Its all-protecting wings can brood over every region of the world, dispensing blessings alike wherever its genial influence is felt. Thus too the prophecies of the Bible invariably har- monize, hot merely with developing events, but also with themselves. The holy men who spake them, notwith- standing the diversity of time and. place, of education, talents and occupation, all saw the strange events em- bosomed in the mysterious future, with the same certainty and accuracy of vision. Their descriptions of coming events coincide as closely, as do the inspections of those who view the same panoramic scene, through the same 168 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION camera obscura. They may describe with greater or less minuteness of detail, they may select different objects in the scene, on which to expatiate. But they never involve themselves in contradictions and discrepances. The consistent harmony of the Bible may be more clearly seen by contrasting it with its great religious rival the Koran. The author of this book, according to the varying wants and circumstances of the case, suited his instructions to his most pressing necessities. Hence he was compelled frequently to recall what he had once pro- mulgated, to suppress what he had once proclaimed. Ac- cordingly the Koran is now one complicated mass of irreconcilable contradictions and unjustifiable absurdities. It is not strange that this is its character, considering its origin and its purpose. The same inconsistency apper- tains to all other human revelations. One alone is true and consistent in all its details, and it therefore is alone in- spired of God, as the authorized herald of his will. The inspiration of this book is further proved by the re- Tnarkable analogy which exists between its most original and profound revelations, and the constitution and course of nature, which exists around us. It is of course in such portions of its discussions, that it would be most liable to error. Here it is that the most profound darkness and un- certainty surround the pathway of the adventurer. He must fail if undirected from above. The important inquiry whether there was a future state of existence, it behoved the Bible to examine and reveal. It has proclaimed its message : and on this point how ac- cordant is it with the constitution of external nature? The infidel laughs at the doctrine of a resurrection and future life. He denies that any analogous facts in visible nature attest a similar phenomenon. But is not the annual re- surrection of the serpent, which comes forth glistening with OF THE BIBLE. 169 primeval freshness from the torpor of his wintry abode, perfectly analogous ? Is not the recreation of the gaudy butterfly, decked with all the varied colors of the rainbow, as amazing a transformation from the unsightly chrysalis, as is the resurrection of the body ? The infidel denies that that future state, if it exists, can be supposed to be one of enlarged and expanded powers, because no analogy in the intellectual world now visible, resembles and fore- shadows it. But what a vast contrast is there between the frailty and pitiful imbecility of the helpless infant, and the gigantic mind of a Plato, an Aristotle, or a Newton ? Yet these intellects, which with such mighty power revel at ease throughout the vast empires of the intellectual and physical universe, grasping with vigor their profoundest and most stupendous phenomena, traveling with facility to distant realms of space, and calculating the most amazing movements of the planetary systems, as well as finding their way into the inmost chambers of the soul, there sum- moning it to an investigation of its own capacities, and penetrating its deepest mysteries, — these men were once helpless infants. Yet such an advance and enlargement is perhaps no greater, than that which these same giants in the sphere of mind will receive in the world of spirits hereafter. Infidels say again that there is no analogy in the world around us, to prove a future state of retribution. And yet we aiErm that no truth is more constantly proclaimed by the every day experience of every child of humanity. Every guilty indulgence, palpably and plainly is connected with its results here. The smallest violation of duty brings its punishment in the injury which is inflicted on health, reputation, property, peace and moral feeling. A crime once committed will often meet its righteous retri- bution in distant years, or in remote extremities of the 15 170 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION world. A moral disease as well as a physical one, will bring consequences which will adhere to, and develope, and torture the transgressor wherever he dwells. Why need we confine this retributory process to this world, and not allow it in other worlds ; in this life and prohibit it in a future one ? There is no analogy nor authority to justify this restriction. The objection is urged frequently that virtue and vice, in the results which attend them here, furnish no illustra- tion of the rewards foretold concerning them in the future. But this is an erroneous and untenable position. For the most part, virtue is even here rewarded, and vice is pun- ished. Not merely are all good laws and disciplinary enactments, erected and executed on this great principle, but even in communities, where the moral sense is exceed- ingly low, there this principle is conceded. There con- fidence and esteem naturally and uniformly cluster around the virtuous, take shelter under their wings, and appeal to their authority. Even there the vicious are held in invo- luntary distrust and dislike. The virtuous man reaps throughout succeeding years, the rich rewards connected with present excellence. The wicked man suffers through- out after life, the consequences of want of honor, rectitude and purity. Why shall we terminate these righteous awardments at the grave ? If they are righteous and in- evitable now, what is to prove that they will not con- tinue so throughout all ages ? If moral causes operate thus in this world, why shall they not much more efficiently operate in that sphere of existence, where all the obstruc- tions which now impede and oppose, will be removed ? In reference to these points of revealed truth, the analogy from nature is striking. It is equally so in regard to all other portions of the Christian system. These several points, selected from the rest, will illustrate the whole. This OF THE BIBLE. 171 Striking coincidence between the religion of the Bible and the confirmatory voice of nature, is an irrefutable argument for the truthfulness of both. The singular accuracy, with which the Scriptures deli- neate the inmost nature and operations of the human heart, is another internal evidence of its inspired origin. The most secret recesses of the soul are examined, its portals are thrown open, its veil is drawn aside, ajid every prin- ciple of action, good or bad, every weakness, every tend- ency, every passion, and every process, are clearly de- picted. The Bible is the best of books to study human nature in. Shakspeare and Goethe may be amazingly familiar with the turnings and doublings of the heart; but their most graphic sketches cannot probe to the bottom, and reach the lowest springs of human action, with the certainty and efiect which are displayed in the Bible. He who made man knows best what is in him. He who is the great physician of souls, and prescribes divine reme- dies for their diseases, is most wisely calculated to de- scribe their nature. No human writer enters so deeply into the penetration of the inner man. As we read these pages, we feel that our own spirit has been traversed, and an accurate picture drawn of our own feelings and expe- rience ; we feel that we are perusing the description of one, whose piercing eye has taken a calm survey of our whole natures. " There is no wisdom," says Dr. Chalmers, " which so commands our reverence, as that which evinces its dis- cernment of man; as that which can enter the recesses of the heart, and there detect all its lurking and unseen tendencies ; as that by which our mysterious nature is probed and penetrated, and there are brought out, to the conviction of those who wear it, the lineaments which are actually thereupon engraven." This extraordinary power 172 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION the Bible possesses. " In this way is it possible to con- ceive, that the marvellous may rise into tlie miraculous, and instead of a skillful moralist, may he M'ho thus anato- mizes ray mental frame and reveals to me its structure and its parts, impress me with the belief of a gifted Apostle ; and whether I hear from his own mouth the divinations that he has practised upon me, or read it in the authorship that he has left behind him, may I be led to the very ex- clamation of those early converts to our faith, who felt that the secrets of their hearts had by their teachers been made manifest, and so they fell down upon their face and wor- shipped God, and reported that God was in them of a truth." {Chal. Works, vol. iv. p. 123.) II. Of the external proofs of the Inspiration of the Bible, the most important is the one most frequently urged, in consequence of its unanswerable conclusiveness, — the miracles which were performed in vindication of the reli- gion of Christ, as well as those performed under the Mo- saic, and Abrahamic covenants. There are some who distinguish between this proof, as bearing upon the Bible, and the religion of the Bible, admitting only that it estab- lishes the Divinity of the latter. But this distinction can- not be maintained, for the evidence which pToves the in- spiration of the one, proves it of the other, Christianity is based partly on the truth that the Scriptures are divine. The Scriptures teach that Christianity is inspired. Ac- cordingly any argument which would bear in one case, must operate in the other. The Church might have existed without the written word. But the unwritten word must have been itself inspired, in order to form a basis to sup- port and defend the Church. The written word is the unwritten thrown into a permanent form. It therefore possesses the same authority as when first conceived by OF THE BIBLE. 173 the Divine Mind, and spoken by the lips of inspired men. If this be not so we arrive at the absurdity of having two Scriptures, or standards of Christianity. A miracle {aijuelov, portentum), means firstly, a sign, and when referred to the Deity, a sign from God. Thus the sign of Jonah the prophet, was the miracle which God wrought in reference to him. It is an extraordinary act exhibiting superhuman power, which therefore results from the exercise of divine attributes. It is an event which seems to suspend or counteract the usual order of nature, which was executed both publicly and instantaneously, and that for some extraordinary and appropriate purpose. " Miracula sunt divinae gubernationis actus, quibus prseter naturae vim, etsi non contra naturae legem, ad juvandum summum bonum in rerum natura aliquid efficitur." Hut- terus Red., p. 157. .Simmon {Bib. Theol.) calls them facta inexplicabilia, quae admirationem excitaverunt spec- tatoribus — humanas vires superante. The validity of miracles to prove the inspired origin of any religion has been universally acknowledged. Hence all impostors have pretended to possess this power, and around this position the fiercest struggles take place, in opposing or defending any system of religion. Hence the opposers of Christianity have long since summoned all their powers to overturn this strong-hold of Christianity. It will be admitted that if the miracles of the Bible actually occurred, they substantiate forever the religion in defence of which they were wrought. It will also be admitted, that if these miracles can be unanswerably and incontest- ably shown to be impostures, the system of doctrines which are so intimately connected with them, must be false and untenable. Hume has labored with all his ability, to construct an impenetrable breastwork of argument, in opposition to these 15* 174 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION miracles. He doubtless was grievously tormented by his conscience, until he had performed this task ; and we sus- pect must have been effectually tormented sometimes after- wards. He has been answered most conclusively, as is well known, by such men as Campbell, Paley, Whately, and others, who have exposed the celebrated piece of sophistry, of which he has, doubtless after many pains and labors, been safely delivered. This production runs as follows : — Miracles are violations of the order of nature. Our experience shows that that order is never violated. Miracles rest for proof on testimony, bu-t experience teaches that testimony is sometimes false. Here there is an uniform experience in favor of the unbroken order of nature, and a variable one in favor of testimony, by which miracles are established. Accordingly like a wise man, he prefers the certain to the uncertain evidence, the infalli- ble experience in preference to the fallible testimony. The very first position here is a petitio principii, be- cause it is assumed, and ndt proved, that a miracle is a violation of the order of nature. The order of nature is thait course of events which its great Author gives it. Hence if there was a miracle it would be produced by God, who can prescribe one course of events to " nature" as well as another, and the one is as much its " order" as the other. But if miracles occurred, they would be in ac- cordance with the will of God; he would permit them. Hence as he foreknows all things, he would necessarily resolve to permit them, and in this respect they would be- come the order of nature as literally and as truly as the usual events which occur. Besides, miracles, if they oc- curred, result from the agency of God; the usual order of nature also directly results from the agency of God. Hence they have both the same origin and the same au- thority. Miracles are themselves therefore, the order of OF THE BIBLE. 175 nature, they are the direct operations of nature's God, they are variations in the usual process of events pro- fessedly performed by God, which require the exercise of no more power in the person performing them, than does the usual administration and order of nature. In the language of Augustine: "In the working of miracles God does nothing contrary to nature ; because, though anything which is unusual to us, seems contrary to nature, it does not seem so to God, who made nature."*- If then miracles are possible when considered in the ab- stract, let us ask, is there sufficient evidence to prove that they actually occurred, as is recorded in the word of God ; let us sum up the evidence in the case which serves clearly to prove it. 1 . The occuTrenfce of these miracles is never denied by the early enemies of Christianity ; they merely endeavored to account for them on other principles. Among these are Celsus, Porphyry, together with Josephus, Pliny and Tacitus. 2. The agreement in the narratives of those writers who record them, is an argument in favor of their truthfulness. Minor discrepancies only enhance their general authority and credibility. 3. The noble and disinterested ends for which these miracles were wrought are an evidence in their favor. They were never performed to promote the personal aggrandizement of the men who possessed this extraordi- nary power. 4. These miracles were performed under such circum- stances as to preclude the possibility of deception. Eye- • Deus in miraoulis nihil contra naturam facit, insolita nobis con- tra naturam esse videntur, non Deo qui naturam fecit. — Quo modo est contra naturam quod est voluntate Dei, quum voluntas tanti utique creatoris est rei cujusque natura. — Be Civ, Dei, 31, 8. 176 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION witnesses who saw them openly in the face of day, testify to their occurrence. The Jews admitted "that a notable miracle had been wrought among them, which they could not deny." 5. Martyrs to the truth and Apostles who preached it, and who recorded these miracles, sealed their testimony with their blood. Nor did they sacrifice themselves in the heat of excitement, or in the midst of rhapsodical en- thusiasm. They knew their fate beforehand, and lived in the constant anticipation of it. They had consecrated themselves to the cause of truth, and calmly awaited the hour when the fearful sacrifice would be demanded. 6. Success in the attempt to work such miracles, was a certain evidence of the divine origin of Christianity. So if there had been any failure in the case, it would have conclusively testified to the imposture both of the thauma- turgists and of their religion, and would joyfully have been proclaimed throughout an unbelieving nation. 7. No objection can be drawn from the fact, that these miracles are discontinued now. For had they always been continued, they would no longer be miracles, and would therefore fail to produce the ends designed by miracles. Each rising sun is a miracle, but from its constant repeti- tion is never regarded as such. 8. Pretended miracles and impostures prove nothing against the miracles of the Bible. For they show that genuine miracles had actually existed ; and the failure of the false ones, proves more strongly the evidence produced by the genuine ones, when clearly established. Now while all these proofs are applicable to the miracles of the Bible, they are not applicable to the miracles of any other pretenders to them. Though many efforts have been made to impose upon the credulity of men in this way, they have all eventually been detected and exposed. And the OF THE BIBLE. 177 opponents of the Christian religion, by denying the miracles of the Bible, gain nothing, for even admitting their objec- tions to be valid, they must yet account for another miracle of equal magnitude, the existence of which they cannot deny — the extraordinary spread and unaccountable pre- servation of the religion of the Bible through so many lands and ages. If Christianity and its Scriptures are uninspired, because its professed miracles are 'forgeries, here is a miracle which proclaims its lesson from age to age, which cannot be disputed, and which can be ac- counted for only on the ground, that, while other religions have expired under blows and opponents infinitely less formidable, this religion has survived triumphantly only because it was divine. The next external evidence of the inspiration of the Bible is the well-known, yet very important one drawn from the prophecies which they contain. Prophecy (liavtcia, prxsagium) is an intellectual mira- cle, as extraordinary as those physical ones to which we have just alluded. It denotes a knowledge of future events which is superhuman, and must therefore be derived from a divine source. When it exists it is an unanswerable evidence of communication with the deity. When it is employed to explain the doctrines, and foretell and justify the events of any religion, it proves beyond contradiction the inspired authority of that teligion. This has occurred alone in the Bible and in defence of its system. That this influence which was exerted on the minds of ancient prophets, was extraordinary and superhuman, is undeniably certain. This is proved by those passages and expressions which occur in Scripture on the subject. Thus we read of the prophet that the hand of the Lord, or the spirit of God, fell upon him, {Ez. i. 3.) Lord, thou hast been too strong for me, and hast prevailed, (Jer. xx. 7.) 178 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION This influence even showed itself in an external manner ; for Daniel, after a certain vision, was deprived of physical strength, and sank down with faintness. On a different occasion he was " sick certain days," {Dan. viii. 27.) " The servants of the court said to Jehu," speaking of the prophet, " wherefore came this mad fellow unto thee" (2 Kings ix. 11). We may therefore suppose that the prophets were in a sort of ecstasy {fxtnatsii), or supernatural state, resulting from the overpowering effect produced upon their minds, by an unnatural mode of receiving instruction. Their physical systems by sympathy were similarly affected. Yet we should carefully distinguish between this mysteri- ous and solemn state, and that rhapsodical and insane fury (/tona) which overpowered heathen prophets and seers. The former existed together with the possession of rational powers, and the latter did not. The prophecies of the Bible are numerous and remarkable. They occur whenever the nature of the case demanded them, freely, clearly and boldly. We discover no timid and calculating hesitancy about their proclamation. They may be disposed of under four general classes. The first are those which refer to the Jewish nation in particular. The second, those referring to the surrounding nations and kingdoms. The third, those having reference to the Messiah and his peculiarities. The last, those delivered by Christ himself and his apostles. Of all those in the old Testa- ment the most remarkable refer to the Messiah. No rea- sonable inquirer could ask more minute and distinct pre- dictions, in reference to any celebrated person, than those contained in the 53d chapter of Isaiah. A careful perusal of it will convince any one, that a more than human vision was vouchsafed to him who penned it, when depicting the history of that wondrous being, " who was oppressed and afflicted, yet opened not his mouth ; who was brought as OF THE BIBLE. 179 a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth ; who was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrow and acquainted with grief ; who was wounded for our transgressions ; who was bruised for our iniquities ; who made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death." (Is. liii. 9.) If we turn to the sacred page, we will there find it clearly foretold how the Messiah was to come. The time, the place, the circumstances of his birth, his manner of life, his doctrines, his sufferings, his death, his resurrection, his ascension, are narrated ; tracing his humble yet glorious pathway with the clearness of a sunbeam, from the hour when he assumed the form of humanity in the manger, until triumphant over every foe, with his great mediatorial work completed and a ransomed world beneath his feet, he arose in majesty to his Father's throne; where now he sways a sceptre of love and grace, over the ransomed mil- lions whom he has purchased with his sacred blood. All these prophecies, uttered long ages before their intended completion, have been accurately and minutely fulfilled. Thus too the predictions of Christ himself in regard to the destruction of Jerusalem, seemed improbable to the last degree when they were uttered ; yet how strikingly true was the result ! In the time of Christ, the name and the celebrity of that city had spread over all the habitable globe. From the prominent position which it had occupied for ages in the affairs of the world, long continued harmony and security might have been anticipated for it. The Jewish nation had been incorporated compactly into the Koman empire ; its line of hereditary kings, subordinate only to the supreme power of Rome, were firmly seated on the throne. The rights and relations of the kingdom were duly established and defined. Yet forty years after Christ's ascension, by a long and aggravated career of insurrectionary movements, the Jewish 180 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION nation incurred the vengeance of the Eoman government, and soon wars and rumors of vrar surrounded them. Soon they beheld their sacred city encompassed with hostile armies, and Titus and his legions lay siege to her bulwarks. After horrid scenes of slaughter and famine, without a pa- rallel in the annals of this blood-stained earth, the city was sacked, plundered, demolished, and even the sacred temple laid low in undistinguished ruin. Behold with what unerring accuracy the hand of in- spiration traces the events of the ages which transpire between the founding of Christianity and the consumma- tion of the world. St. John clearly depicts the rise, the progress, the supremacy, and the decline of " Babylon the Great, the mother of harlots, the abomination of the earth, with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were drunken with the wine of her fornication." From his rocky height on Patmos, he beheld in glorious visions of the future, the passing drama of human affairs ; the trials of the church of God, her mortal struggles, her hard-won victories, until all lands should be brought beneath the power of the truth. Our own eyes behold the gradual yet sure fulfilment of all these predictions, as time and providence with steady steps move onward. The prophecies of Scripture which refer to the descend- ants of Ishmael, the Arabs of later ages, that they should never be vanquished and enslaved, have long been fulfilled. Those referring to the children of Ham that they should be the constant servants of their brethren, have met with a mournful completion. The declaration, that the Jews should become a proverb and a byword on the earth, is so strikingly confirmed by the events of all succeeding ages, that it forms one of the standing, living, historical miracles of the sacred volume. OF THE BIBLE. 181 III. The last class of evidence, to prove the point in hand, are the progressive. Of these, the first in order of time, as well as in duration of development, is the extra- ordinary preservation of the Scriptures so purely and uncorruptedly, through so many ages, and through so many vicissitudes. Moses, according to the best chronologists, wrote the Pentateuch, 1650 years before Christ. Whether the book of Job was written by himself, at a date previous to this, with a few complemental additions by a later hand, has not been conclusively ascertained. But after the writing of the books of Moses, additions were made to the Old Testament Scriptures down to the time of Malachi, 430 years before Christ. The canon of the New Testament was forming from the date of the Gospels, till John com- pleted it by the Apocalypse, probably in the year 95, when it was finally and authoritatively closed. During this long period of almost three thousand five hundred years, the sacred books have existed. They have now survived in comparative purity. They have success- fully excluded from their fellowship all Other productions, not inspired as themselves. They have been singularly preserved both from interpolation and erasure ; and now, at this late date, we possess the same inspired teachings which issued long ages slnee from the blazing summit of Sinai; those same sweet strains which echoed from the harp of David ; the wondrous wisdom which had been vouchsafed in remote times to the wise King of Israel ; the enraptured visions of holy prophets and patriots of ancient date; the benevolent warnings of primitive evangelists; their careful histories of important events of which they were naturally the most appropriate historians ; the earn- est and fearless expostulations of wise and good apostles in their Epistles, and above all, the matchless words and 16 182 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION wisdom which issued from the impressive and instructive lips of the Great Teacher himself, as recorded by his chosen pupils. Now there is something extraordinary here. The Scriptures have fearlessly assailed from age to age the gray-grown errors and antiquated prejudices of men. They have boldly proclaimed those truths, with unvarying constancy, which, of all others, are most unwelcome to the unsanctified heart. Hence men have had every motive for corrupting and modifying them. Their interests have urged them to this act in a variety of ways ; and yielding to this impulse, they have endeavored to make them the vehicle and the instrument of superstitious reverence of themselves, of imposition, of -extortion and of selfishness. Yet God has not permitted men to prostitute his sacred word to such ignoble uses. By his careful Providence he has preserved it not only from oblivion, but from im- purity. And now the everlasting Gospel exerts the same divine spiritual influence over human hearts which it did at the moment of its original announcement. To see the force of this argument, let us ask what has been the fate of ancient uninspired writers who were cotemporary with the Old Testament writers ? History records the existence of the ancient Phosnician writer San- choniathon, whom some regard as cotemporary with the Trojan war. What has been the fate of his productions? Fragments' of a translation of them are contained in the works of another writer. While his writings thus par- tially remain, but mutilated and consisting of detached parts, which have thus accidentally escaped, all other writings of the same age have forever perished. And even in relation to one of the most eminent poets of classic Greece, " that blind old man of Scio's isle," whose heroic song has cast such a halo of glory over the exploits which OF THE BIBLE. 183 the noblest sons of Greece achieved, around the walls and on the dusty plains of far-famed Ilium ; and whose flow- ing verse has served in after ages, to inspire the hearts of generous youth, with sentiments of exalted virtue and valor ; — even he has been denied a personal existence, and his matchless strains ascribed to ignoble sources, to the labors of collectors. Yet it would be- difficult to maintain the integrity and purity of these writings, from the proofs whicb remain in our hands ; even though they do not militate against the established prejudices of any land, or age or sect. We hesitate not to affirm, that a similar instance of the preservation of any book, especially composed under cir- cumstances similar to those of the Scriptures, cannot be pointed out in the whole range of literature. Is it not strange, that while the records of the origin' and glory of mighty empires, containing the exploits of the most fa- mous conquerors and heroes, have been lost forever : the history of the planting and successful spreading of the humble church of Jesus Christ, has survived in all its pu- rity ? Is it not strange, that while innumerable systems of philosophy and morals, taught by the wisest of human sages, are known no more, the morals of the school of Je- sus still shine forth from the sacred page, and challenge the admiration of mankind ? The spiritual and temporal potentates of the earth have long persecuted the Bible. They have endeavored to ba- nish it from the world. Diocletian issued an edict com- manding Christians, on pain of death, to deliver up their sacred writings. The priests of Rome have for succes- sive ages endeavored to banish the Bible from the habita- tions of men. They have toiled to substitute human tra- ditions in its stead. During the dark ages, systematic efforts were made to chase the sacred word from the face 184 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION of the earth ; and they well nigh succeeded. The ignorance which prevailed botli of the Greek and Hebrew languages, gave Jews and Gentiles, heretics and heathens, a fair and full opportunity to modify and adulterate the Scriptures, according to their perverse liking. All the unhallowed designs of the enemies of the Bible, / whether ancient or modern, whether to annihilate or cor- rupt it, have signally failed. It yet survives in all its puri- ty, while age after age has silently worn away, working innumerable changes in all human things, some flourishing, some decaying, some appearing, some disappearing from the stage, the Bible has remained unmoved, silently and serenely working its mighty ends, and accomplishing its glorious purposes in the earth. Are not these facts an evidence that the Scriptures are the word of God, and have been preserved by him who has declared, that though Heaven and earth should pass away, not one jot or tittle of his word shall fail ? The next proof of this point is the fact, that the early planting and diffusion of the religion of the New Testa- ment were achieved under such extraordinary circumstances, that to deny the interposition of divine agency, is to exhi- bit greater' credulity and simplicity than are exhibited by the believers in the mysteries of Revelation. If the spread of this religion, under such circumstances, proves its divinity, the divinity of this religion proves the inspiration of Scripture, for the former asserts the latter as one of its first principles. He who thinks that the early progress and success of Christianity may be- accounted for on or- dinary principles, exhibits, in so doing, more credulity than the simple serf who believes, on the authority of others, the ■Trinity, the Incarnation, the Resurrection, and every other mystery taught in Scripture. The Modern Infidel con- tends, that it is a mark of a weak intellect to admit the OF THE BIBLE. 185 miracles, and hence the divinity of Christ ; but will admit as a reasonable and historical fact, that this mighty world has been convulsed and governed during eighteen huridredi years, by the principles and the labors of an infant Jesus, — a human being. He holds that the principles of this religion are unworthy of the reception of a philosophical thinker, that they are weak, inconsistent, and deficient in reasonableness and beauty ; yet he willingly grants, as an undeniable fact, that this weak religion has overturned and obliterated by its greater power, all those boasted systems which he himself prefers and adores, thus granting that the weak have vanquished the stronger, that the ignorant have confounded the wiser, and that the absurd has exploded the profound and the philosophical. Thus he who denies the divinity of the religion of the Bible, (and hence of the Bible itself,) must stand father to the greatest absurdity that has ever been broached, — that effects are produced without adequate causes, and that ignorant men have devised a gos- pe^ and a religion, which all the united wisdom of the learned of the world have never equalled in originality and beauty and richness. He must admit that this religion, unsupported by wealth or power, which sustained and up- held all th« false religions that have evfer flourished, rapidly and irresistibly vanquished them all* with the power of their supporters ; that it strode onward with majestic and triumphant way, against all the leagued wisdom, opposition and prejudices of the world, compelling the homage of kings, and casting down the long venerated dltars of. su-' perstition, — all through the energies of men and principles worthy only of his contempt. 77*6 duration of the Religion taught in the Bible is another proof of its divinity. The Bible itself might have survived unnoticed and almost forgotten. If it had not pro- claimed certain duties and penalties, it would never have 16* 186 THK PLENARY INSPIRATION been persecuted. But then the influence and success of the religion of the Bible, are a very different thing. That has been gradually extending and accumulating its influ- ence in the earth miraculously. There is not, and never has been, among all the in- stitutions which have ever existed in the world, one which can compare in this respect with the church of God. No other system, sacred or profane, which now exists, carries us back to the dim and shadowy ages of the re- motest antiquity, when the towering summit of Babel pierced the clouds, and mighty Nimrod made primeval forests resound with his feats of prowess, and caused their inmates to tremble at his approach. This institution binds together all the great eras of human affairs, extending over the dynasties of the gorgeous East, when Babylon, and Nineveh, and Susa flourished in tlieir glory ; sweeping down the waste of centuries, and still surviving when the arts and refinements of Athens were supreme ; being on the ascendant when Rome, the boasted mistress of the world, was tottering to her fall ; gradually spreading her power in the West, when the genius of the great Haroun- el-Raschid rendered the schools of Bagdad illustrious for their learning ; and now surviving and holding captive na- tions obedient to her sway, while England, France, and even the youthful America, are eminent actors on the stage of human affairs. Since the religion of the Bible was first proclaimed, how many other religious systems have flourished and passed away 1 The magi of the East exerted their myste- rious powers for ages, but now their glory is no more. The priestess of Apollo has raved and prophesied in Del- phi's fane; but her voice has long ago become dumb. A mournful solitude now rests around the once illustrious Parthenon, while the summer breezes sigh through its di- OF THE BIBLE. 187 lapidated pillars and broken arches. The venerable sys- tems of Zoroaster and Confucius have declined, and their temples are mouldering in decay. Pilgrimages now are seldom made to the sacred shrine of Mecca, and the voice of the lonely Muezzin is unheeded, as he proclaims the hour of prayer from the minaret of his mosque. The waters of the holy Ganges are losing their eflScacy to save, and the Hindoo no longer heeds his Brahmin when he urges liira to lay his bones in the sacred Benares, hoping thereby to gain the boon of immortality. But the Church of God, which existed anterior to all these insti- tutions, and witnessed their rise and prosperity, can now look down from the high eminence of her present glory, on the decay and inevitable dissqlution of them all. They form a mournful procession, singing with varied choruses their own funeral marches to the grave ; uniting their dis- cordant voices to teach one great truth, that no religion can be enduring, unless it be divine. Miraculously, therefore, has the religion of the Bible been preserved. By a divine power has it been borne over the storms of ages, and sheltered amid the wreck of nations and of systems. It has received into its bosom the teeming millions of the North, and redeemed them from their barbarism. It has stood, as it were, by the fountain whence issued the streams of modern history, and cast into them the salt of Christian purity, which has thus been conveyed afar to bless the nations of the earth. It has bid defiance to the political, religious, and intellectual con- vulsions of three thousand years. It is the bridge which connects ancient and modern times, while every other connecting link has been swept away. The world has been its missionary field. Nations have been its pupils. The sciences have delighted to follow in its train. In its presence the demons of war and bloodshed have fled dis- 188 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION comfited away. Unspeakable blessings have clustered around its path. Add to these features of its past history her future prospects. The career of the Church of God is not yet run. Survey the world as it now appears, and say whether Christianity does not bid fair to add new triumphs to her former trophies, till she overshadows the world with her glory ? One more progressive proof of this inspiration deserves attention. It is the concessions of the professed adver- saries of the Bible to its value and its claims. When we see this volume, so persecuted and cursed, extorting from its inveterate foes the unwilling tribute of their praise, it surely means something. Several of such testimonies we will adduce. Both ancient and modern infidels have been compelled to admit the claims of Christianity, from the elevated morality, benevolence, and sanctity of its true professors. Pliny, in the well-known passage which is extant in his works, admits that the Christians of his day were "never guilty of theft, nor robbery, nor adultery, never falsified their word, nor denied a pledge committed to them when called upon to return it." These seem to have been the prevailing vices of his cotemporaries, of which the Chris- tians alone were blameless. Julian the Apostate, commends the conduct of the Christians of his day to the studious imitation of his friends; for they propagated their religion " by sanctity of life, kindness to strangers, and attention to the burial of the dead." The constancy with which they bore the martyr's doom excited their wonder. The charms of wealth, of power, of ease, of pleasure, were alike una- vailing to induce them to deny their master and touch the execrated sacrifice.* • Porphyry, a zealous opponent of Christianity, writes, "that a OF THE BIBLE. 189 Listen to the language of Rousseau : " I confess that the sanctity of the Gospel is an argument which speaks to my heart, and I should regret to find any- good answer to it. Look at the books of the philosophers, with all their pomp; how little they appear by the side of this. Can it be, that a book at once so sublime, and so simple, should be -the work of man ? Can it be that the person whose history it relates was a mere man ? What sweetness, what purity in his deportment ! What affecting kindness in his instructions ! What profound wisdom in his dis- courses ! What entire command of his passions ! Where is the man, where the sage who can act, suffer and die without weakness and without ostentation ? Truly if the life and death of Socrates are those of a sage, the life and death of Jesus are those of a God !" Strange admissions ! How wonderful was that character which could adore and blaspheme with the same breath ! Says Byron, " Christianity is the purest and most liberal religion in the world. I have read with attention the book of Christianity, and I admire the liberal and truly charita- ble principles which Christ has laid down." Bonaparte, when hearing the New Testament read, expressed himself " struck with the highest admiration, at the purity, the sublimity, the beauty of the morality which it contained." man once inquired of Apollo, what God he must appease, in order to lead his wife to renounce Christianity. The pretended Apollo, who knew the faithfulness of Christians to their belief, answered the inquirer, that he might as well attempt to write on running water, or to fly through the air, as to change the sentiments of his polluted and godless wife. Let her continue to lament her dead GodT — Neander's Church Hist., I. cent. p. 100. Byron says: — If ever man was God, and God was man, Jesus Christ was both. — (Keith's Evid., p. 317.) Volney, the French deist, affords more evidences in his Ruins, in favor of the truths of prophecy, than any other writer of his age ; although he does it involuntarily. 190 THE PLENARY INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE. Many similar concessions might be accumulated, in refer- ence to men who were eminent in the world for their theoretical, or practical opposition to Christianity ; who conceded in moments of calm reflection, or of exquisite anguish, the sincere convictions which pervaded their breasts. It is clear that the Bible depends not in the least, on any aid of men or angels for its success in its great mission in the world, yet such admissions, when so per- fectly unsolicited, embody a considerable force of argu- ment in its favor. It is true, we have not here argued the point whether the Bible is itself inspired ; or is merely the record and depository of an inspired religion. This last position is held by Unitarians and Socinians. But the connection between the two is so plain, as scarcely deserves to be argued. For the Bible professes to be inspired as a book, or collection of recorded truths. If this assumption be false, then a false and lying medium has been employed to communicate to men an inspired religion ; which is ab- surd. If then the religion of the Bible be inspired, the Bible itself, which indeed is inseparable in this respect from its religion, must be also. The arguments which serve to substantiate the one, inevitably confirm the other. 191 CHAPTER V. THE LOGICAL NECESSITY OF FAITH IN A DIVINE REVELA- TION, The first and most important claim of the Bible is, that it contains a divine revelation. This also implies an addi- tional claim to universal reception among men. But ihe contents of this volume are such, that some of the most valuable of them cannot be received except by the exer- cise of Faith ; inasmuch as they are above the power of reason to originate, as well as to explain them. Hence it is that many Modern Infidels refuse their credence and confidence to those portions of the Bible, which, because they are closely connected with all the rest of it, they substitute as part for the whole, and treat the remainder with similar indifierence. They disclaim the reception of that which is above and independent of reason, or that which, as they affirm, is contradictory to reason. They contend that this characteristic of mysteriousness is an ar- gument against the divinity of any revelation which pos- sesses it ; so that if there was no other evidence which could be produced against all such claimants to inspiration, the Bible among the rest, this would affo-rd an unanswera- ble and insuperable one to it. It is our purpose now to show that this is false reasoning ; that mysteries, or what- ever demands the exercise of faith, are not an argument against the credibility and authority of any professedly di- vine revelation ; that there is, moreover, a logical, and 192 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH hence absolute necessity for their existence in any revela- tion claiming a divine origin ; and that therefore the Bible, as making this claim preeminently, must, for consistency's sake, possess this characteristic to a remarkable degree. I. The striking analogy existing between the works of nature and the teachings of revelation, proves this necessity for faith. The material and mental universe are full of mysteries, which the mind has been unable to analyze and account for during six thousand years of past endeavor, and which it will probably never be able to explain upon earth. The philosopher looks around him, and he beholds the vast planetary system revolving with harmonious beauty around one great and permanent centre; and that on every one of these planets, the objects there are bound by a strong and uniform tie to their own centres. Now the astronomer may make his calculations, and carry his investigations into many important and useful directions, and produce results which are certain, indisputable and valuable. But he ar- rives at a point in these processes beyond which he cannot go, which it is impossible for him to surmount. Upon what principle do all these calculations depend ? What is the nature of that power which produces the phenomena which are the subject of these investigations ? No man can tell. We may call it gravitation ; we may term it centri- fugal and centripetal forces ; yet that does not explain it. But what is gravitation, its nafure, its elements, its inherent composition? Here is a deep mystery which human pene- tration cannot solve. If we grant this mystery and con- cede its truth, though we cannot explain and account for it, then we may advance to other calculations and investigations which come within our reach, and are useful to us ; but these are all forever based upon a granted and conceded mystery which we despair to elucidate. IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 193 Thus too if we descend from the outward universe, to the universe within us, we are met with an equal mystery at the very threshold of our examination. Can we un- derstand how, and where, and even when, the union takes place between our intellectual and physical structures ? The anatomist examines the nature of our bodies, their structure, their functions ; the chemist analyzes their com- ponent substances and properties, and so far they vindicate their respective sciences from the charge of inefficiency. The metaphysician examines the powers and faculties of the mental part of this wondrous being, and exhibits the attributes and characteristics which mark these powers. But when the question is propounded to so much wisdom, how the union and sympathy between these diverse ele- ments are effected by which they control each other, and operate in harmony, the answer is not at hand. It is a mystery. The fact cannot possibly be denied. We may conjecture and make suppositions about it; and these may be very shrewd and striking. But they do not resolve the difficulty or explain the mystery. The action of mind upon matter, and the ready obedience which our physical frames render to a mysterious power connected with them, we see and feel ; but we cannot explain and expound the philosophy of the process. We admit the fact, because we cBnnot deny what our senses affirm to us ; but we admit it as a mystery, as a dark enigma which remains hopelessly beyond our power to elucidate. To deny it because we cannot explain it, is an absurdity which few will be willing to commit. And so also the structure of the various faculties of the mind, and their relation to each other, is a mystery equally inexplicable. How do all these various powers constitute an harmonious whole ? The philosopher will tell us, in- deed, that these powers may all be classified in three clear 17 194 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH and distinct orders, those of the intellect, the sensibilities, and the will ; or, more correctly, the cognitive and sentient ideas,, and the active operations. He gives a luminous ex- position of every intellectual state, emotion and action. He may accumulate facts of great value and interest. But there still remains the mystery, as to how these many and diverse intellectual states and powers exist together in har- mony and in union ; and that mystery he takes for granted without hoping to explain it. There are thousands of similar enigmas crowding around our paths every hour. The harvest has grown up beneath our eye. We have watched its constant progress when first the verdant blade appeared upon the surface of the earth, increasing from day to day in size, strength, and beauty; receiving the genial rains of heaven, and the invigorating beams of the sun; until now it is filled with golden trea- sures, and bends heavily, and waves gracefully beneath the pressure of the passing breeze. By what process has this strange result been attained ; by which the nourishment and strength of the earth, the moisture of the summer shower, and the heat of the summer's sun, have all been appropriated by the crescent germ, to its own development and perfect growth ? It is again a mystery which we must admit and admire, but which we must not hope to explain. Thus also we beliold the wonderful stages through which the variegated butterfly passes from the egg, through the conditions of the caterpillar, throwing oiT from time to time its too contracted skin ; how it exists as a larva, then in the chrysalis state; then bursting its shroud, comes forth with beauteous form and colors to soar in a new element. This amazing process we behold, we see the results pro- duced, and the stages which are gone through; but the mode by which these changes take place, how matter and form are thus deposited and moulded, we cannot explain. IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 195 It is again a mystery wrhich proud reason must acknowledge her inability to comprehend and expound, We might thus indeed go on, and adduce the most remarkable and inte- resting phenomena and processes in nature, and show, what indeed is so plain as to need no proof, that they are deep, dark, and impenetrable enigmas, which no human mind can explain, and which nevertheless cannot possibly be denied, and which therefore extort from us the exercise of a faith which is entirely independent of, and superior to reason. He who would proceed to deny these phenomena, or their existence, on the ground that they cannot be under- stood or defined by his reason, would at once be stigmatized as hopelessly insane. Accordingly we find what might have been expected, that all reasonable beings admit thera, with the most cordial assent. Now the question arises, who is the author of nature ? Plainly the one great and supreme Being; that personage whom all men term God. What was his design in thus exercising his omnipotence and other divine attributes in the creation of Nature ? Plainly again to display his glory, and to reveal his will to any who may exist to learn it. And who will be the author of any divinely written revelation which may exist? Undoubtedly, it must originate with this same great being ; for there is but one universal and supreme God ; and whatever is divine must originate from the only divine source. What would be the design of an inspired revelation ? Indisputably to proclaim the glory and reveal the will of its great author. The design in this case is the same as in the creation of the works of nature. These are different volumes employed by the same Being to accomplish the same purposes ; and when we remember, that one attribute of his perfections is, that he is unchangea- ble, we must naturally infer that one principle of instruc- tion which he had once adopted, he would also afterward 196 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH employ, if his wisdom saw that it was adapted to his pur- poses. If then the Bible lays claim to that character of inspiration, must we not expect to find in it the same mys- teries recorded, which are so abundantly scattered through all the domains of nature ? And would it not have been inconsistent in God, being alike the author of nature, and of any inspired revelation, to have introduced a prin- ciple into the one, which he would have scorned to employ in the other ? Might we not most reasonably expect to find such mysteries in the written revelation, as exist in the unwritten yet instructive revelation of nature? Faith is the belief of some tiding on the authority of him who narrates it ; excepting when it is utterly irreconcilable with our reason, though not when it is simply above reason. If nature did not demand of us to believe in the existence of certain mysteries, because she is empowered to exhibit and possess them, which demand we cannot resist; we might reasonably expect that a divine revelation would also be exempt from all such mysterious ingredients. But when the converse is true ; when we behold the God of truth speaking first in the material works of his hands, and shrouding his declarations there to some extent in that which is mysterious ; must we not rationally suppose that this same being, in choosing another avenue of communi- cation to make known the same will, would permit that proclamation to be characterized to some degree by the same features ? And if it seemed necessary that such a plan should be adopted by him in the former case, would not that same necessity remain and exist also in the second ? There is nothing, so far as we can tell, by which that neces- sity could be removed. Hence we find it actively operat- ing and consistently exhibited in both Revelations, and hence too it is as unreasonable, as absurd to deny it in the one case as in the other. IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 197 n. The inherent nature of a Divine Being also proves the necessity of mysteries in any revelation which may emanate from him. One of the necessary attributes of divinity is infinity ; and immensity is the measure by which its thoughts and acts are governed. Whatever a divine being maybe supposed to think or perform, he will neces- sarily infuse the attribute of immensity into it, if the nature of the thing thought and done is capable of receiving it. If immensity be the measure of the thoughts and deeds of a divine being, then finitude is the measure of the concep- tions and actions of men ; nor are they able to grasp and fathom that which is infinite. Whatever borders on, or approaches the infinite, becomes in that proportion mys- terious to them. If, then, a divine being reveals through any intelligible medium the thoughts and processes which exist within his own mind, they will bear the impress of their original; and consequently be more or less mysterious to any finite beings to whom these thoughts may be pro- mulgated. This is precisely the case of that revelation which claims to be divine ; and consequently one evidence of its inspiration is that very mystery in it which is urged by some as an argument to overthrow its truthfulness. But the question arises, whether it would be impossible for God, to have adapted his revealed truth more to the wants and capacities of men, so that they niight more clearly understand it ? Undoubtedly, so far as the nature of the truths in question will permit, he does so ; but in the case of those which, if revealed at all, must be left un- modified and integral, he plainly cannot make any change in their character. Suppose an unalterably just sovereign were to promulgate a code of laws to a corrupt people ; if he were unchangeable, and if the nature of what is just and pure cannot be altered, then, however unpalatable and repulsive such laws must be to his corrupt subjects, he 17* 198 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH must notwithstanding proclaim them. The nature of his laws could not be made dependent upon the character and wishes of his subjects as long as he continues just. The case is similar with God. He must remain forever infinite while men remain forever finite. The divine be- ing cannot be expected to modify his laws, and hence his nature too, so as to suit the natures of his creatures ; and so long as this fact holds good, some of the instructions of a divine being must remain as mysteries to his finite sub- jects. Undoubtedly God might have revealed to men far ' greater mysteries than he ever has done, in any professedly divine revelation. The resources of the Infinite Mind are boundless. Of the mysteries which he has revealed, we can understand their fact and reality, but not their mode, This answers for us the same great end as if we under- stood both. He might,, however, have made known had he chosen, and had we been capable of thus receiving them, deeper m5'steries, of which, as we are now con- stituted, we could understand neither the fact nor the mode of their existence. Hence divine wisdom is clearly shown, in not making the attempt to communicate to men what is to them incommunicable. It does not argue the divine poverty, that no greater wonders are proclaimed ; but it proves the Divine Wisdom, which has kept from the weak knowledge of men, the profoundest arcana of the Eternal Mind, and reserved their announcement for a higher and nobler state of existence. It is an inquiry of importance, whether an infinite being, when disposed to proclaim infi- nite truths, would not be guilty of an absurdity, and a weakness, if he endeavored to modify and compress the boundless and the immense ; thereby defacing the beauty of a glorious intellectual structure, simply to accommodate IN A DIVINE REVKLATION. 199 the capacities of those who have justly been banished for their sins into the domains of the finite and the contracted. III. The actual weakness and finiteness of the human mind, are a third argument for the necessity of these mys- teries in any divine revelation. Compared with the de- monstrations of the divine character, either in the works of nature, or any other revelation, how feeble and con- tracted are the powers of man ! He resembles, in this respect, the light of a farthing taper, glimmering impotendy in the face of the noon-day sun. If we take- for granted that God, in making a revelation to men, would but speak forth the unaltered principles and truths which repose in his own mind, although all these would possess the clear- est distinctness and simplicity to him, yet the finiteness of our minds would transform these into mysteries, by the very process of communicating them to us. What was clear before to God, would now be involved in gloom and darkness to us ; what before was as luminous as the light of day, now becomes a mystery ; and these very mysteries too, which form a present part in the truths of Christianity, and occasion so strong ground of opposition to it. Who is to blame for this profundity ? Assuredly not the author of this revelation. And would we not justly suspect the jjenuineness of any professedly divine revelation, which, thus pretending to reveal to us the infi- nite thoughts of God, would not find those thoughts actu- ally transformed into mysteries to men, by the process of communication to finite beings ? This position is confirmed by the following illustration. The difiicult question concerning time and space, holds a close connection with the omnipresence and eternity of God ; attributes which are full of intricacy when we at- tempt to analyze them. A wise philosophy teaches us, 200 TPE NECESSITY OF FAITH that these are not external and independent entities, but internal entities; they are forms of spiritual being, and laws under which it is constituted to act. Now as ordina- rily regarded, the relations of God to time and space are inexplicable mysteries,* But if the latter are merely in- ternal entities, and laws of our being, God, who created us, created these laws also, and hence is entirely inde- pendent of them. Time and space are then laws of our being, and not of his ; nor can they have any bearing or control whatever over the modes of His existence or his presence. So far we can speculate as to the fact of the possibility of this mystery, showing that one portion of it is reasonable. By a just inference we may infer, that if we could fathom the mode of this mystery, it also would yield a rational basis and defence, as well as it does in regard to the fact. The parent understands the cause and nature of the sound which issues from the toy of his child ; which sound now astonishes and. delights the latter. It is a mys- tery to the child ; and requires the exercise of faith on his part — faith in the involuntary testimony of its senses — in order to believe it. There is an absolute necessity for a mystery here to the child ; but the fact in question forms no mystery to the more enlarged and expanded powers of the parent. Abstractly considered, it is no mystery ; but as brought before the attention of the child, it necessarily becomes one to him. We suppose the case to be similar in reference to the profoundest truths of Chris- tianity. To God they are perfectly clear ; hence abstract- ly considered, they are not mysteries. But when made known to men, in consequence of the nature of the human mind, they necessarily assume that form of profundity * Or, in other words, his Eternity and Omnipresence. IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 201 which we call mystery. But it is plain, this latter cha- racteristic of these truths is a result not inherent in them- selves, nor inherent in God, but produced necessarily by our own mental structures. Tliis consideration should abase the pride of human reason, teach it its impotence, induce it to charge the darkness of revealed truth upon its own incapacity alone, and to receive with submission what God is willing to impart. IV. This same necessity is proved by the very idea implied in a Divine Revelation. It is usually affirmed, that, properly speaking, whatever is still mysterious, is not revealed ; it is still involved in uncertainty. This posi- tion is fallacious, if by being revealed is mednt the full and perfect explication of what is discussed, and of every inquiry which may be started in reference to it. A per- son born blind, may not possess the least conception of the varied beauties of the ripe harvest. And though we are unable to solve the mysteries which are associated with the process by which it attains perfection, when we acquaint him for the first time with the fact, the appear- ance, and the value of these rich products of nature, it is making a revelation to him on the subject. If the nature of that subject and his own powers are such as make it impossible for us to explain everything, no reasonable person will demand it, and the want of it will not impair the value of our revelation of that which is indeed acces- sible and explicable. On the other hand, the proclamation of that which is already known, and even fully knowable to men, is no divine revelation. For this implies, that the subject of the revelation should be till then perfectly unknown. And beside this, if a portion of the truths revealed, be beyond our powers of comprehension, this proves that these truths 202 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH originate with a being, possessed of superior and snperhu-- man wisdom; and thus our confidence in that which it is both useful and possible for us to understand, is power- fully augmented. We are thereby assured by this very profundity, that we ,are not reposing our trust in the de- clarations of feeble and short-sighted beings, such as our- selves ; but are revering the instructions of the wisest, greatest and profoundest of teachers. But if it be insisted that what is mysterious, cannot therefore be revealed ; let us ask whether, so far as God is concerned, the mysteries in the Bible are not revealed ? We contend that the revelation is complete on the part of God; and that the mystery of it only appertains to us. The representations of God in reference to them may be considered as complete, inasmuch as his own conceptions of them are perfect ; and he could not, as a veracious being, make any representations of any subject, in any other terms than those accordant with his own conceptions of them. These terras he has employed ; but we are un- able to penetrate their meaning. If the mysteriousness in question is chargeable on the Revelation, and not on those who receive it, we must ask who makes this revelation ? If man be its author it deserves the charge, for he is con- fessedly implicated in the mystery. If God be the author, then neither he nor his revelation is chargeable with ad- vancing mysteries ; for his conceptions of these truths re- vealed, are as a divine being, perfectly clear and compre- hensive. The charge in question then rests immovably upon man, upon his weakness and ignorance ; and the contents of Revelation, so far as they are concerned, are relieved from the charge of mystery. But if this be so, where is the necessity of Faith ? We answer to supply our deficiency of spiritual sight and acuteness ; in order that what we cannot expound and IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 203 explain, we may thus receive, and derive from it that ad- vantage and benefit which these infinite truths are calcu- lated to bestow. Hence appears the absolute necessity of that spiritual exercise in question, in order to secure the blessings which the only inspired revelation which exists proffers to mankind. V. We argue this necessity again from the nature of the subjects and truths discussed in a divine revelation. Al- though we cannot foretell what developments will be made in a divine revelation, nor anticipate the particular facts and dogmas which will there be promulgated, yet we may know that some things will appear in the native vastness and magnitude of their infinite author. He will speak as his sublime reflections exist in his own mind. He will teach worthily of himself. He will use his accustomed tones, as if addressing his habitual hearers in the brighter and nobler courts of heaven ; for truth in such cases will permit no modification. This being the case, and our finite powers being neces- sarily unable to grasp these portions of his teachings, one of two things will become absolutely necessary. Either these profound portions of his instructions must be entirely withheld from us ; or else they must so be modified as to become adapted to our comprehension. In regard to the latter alternative, two difiiculties occur. These sub- jects may be incapable of such simplification from their very nature. Secondly, the modification required maybe so extensive and radical, that thereby the original and ele- mental nature of these truths may become entirely lost, and this professedly divine revelation turn out s. false one. This is indeed impossible in an unchangeably divine reve- lation; and bene* the modifying expedient is also impos- sible. 204 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH The other alternative then remains, either to refrain from making the revelation of these mysteries altogether ; or else for men to exercise faith in the reception of them. But which of these is the wiser alternative ? If there, be a Trinity, and if it be proclaimed, the proclama- tion of it must be made in such terms as are accordant with the truth, whether intelligible to men or not. Or shall this and all other mysteries remain untold and un- known ; shall all the sublimer truths of this heavenly re- ligion, shall all the profounder thoughts and more exalted conceptions of the Supreme Being be forever withheld from our instruction, consolation and support, simply be- cause we are incapable, without altering the whole con- stitution of our being, of fully understanding them ? Would it not be abhorrent to the mercy of God, as well as to common sense, to deprive us of one inestimable blessing, because we were not in possession of another of far less value. For it cannot be denied that the mysteries of our holy religion, when properly received by Faith, are of inestimable service, consolation and support to the Christian; such as the doctrines of the Incarnation, the Trinity and the Resurrection. ,The path of virtue and the thorny way to heaven, are made infinitely easier by the assistance which these inspired truths afford to those who by faith and patience trust in them. Accordingly we find the benevolence of God prompting him to intrust us with these glorious truths, though we cannot explain them. He has revealed them to us as they are, in order that His revelation may be free from every charge of mutilation and untruthfulness. He has revealed them to us thus, that by the exercise of a genuine Faith, they may afford us the advantage and the aid which they possess ; and to realize these ends the use of this ment# exercise thus be- comes indispensably necessary. IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 205 VI. This same necessity is proved by the progressive nature of human knowledge and mental activity. No pro- cess is more gradual in the universe than that by which the minds of men attain their highest power and richest possessions. From the first unmeaning prattle of the in- fant, to the high, imposing and consummate eloquence of the statesman, the process of accumulating power is gradual. From the delighted curiosity of the child, examining with wonder the beauties of a pebble, to the profound accents of the philosopher discoursing from his professorial chair to admiring crowds, concerning that deepest inquiry, what is pure thinking, or what it is to think ; from these wide ex- tremes of imbecility and of power, the advance is con- stantly progressive. No adage is more appropriate to the mental life of man, than that he advances peii a peu. He starts forth at the beginning of his labors, as a traveler who enters upon a journey around the world ; there is a bound- less and illimitable expanse spread out before him ; and as he joyfully advances on his way, mountains arise on moun- tains before him in the distant view ; while again, wide and verdant plains appear dotted with towns and cities, traversed by rolling rivers, checkered with placid lakes, waving forests and frowning castles. The further he proceeds, the more inexhaustibly do new wonders arise to delight his spirit, new glories appear to enchant his way. Thus it is with men. So that when their earthly career is terminated, it is scarcely possible for us to recognize in the now trained, powerful, and illustrious man, the once feeble, helpless, and unconscious infant. Any divine revelation will be intended for all times and ages of the world, and all stages of human progress, and mental power ; for universality will be an attribute of its divinity. That same progressive element which now cha- racterizes our minds will necessarily continue hereafter, in 18 206 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH a future existence. If our minds were capable of fathom- ing all the truths of a divine revelation now, that revelation would retain nothing more for us to learn, in a future exist- ence in a state of progress hereafter. Thereby the superior originality of this revelation would be impaired, it would become exhausted. It would not be adapted to impart new instruction to us in all ages, and in future times. It would thus become divested of its universality, as to time ; and with its universality would fall its very divinity. Hence even to ensure and perpetuate its divinity is any divine revelation constrained to teach mysteries to man, in their present existence. But the Bible is a divine revelation ; and hence it reserves from our penetration some of its con- tents now, and probably God its author has entirely with- held from all reference, many other mysteries which have existence in truth, because our present powers are wholly incapable of grasping them, and because it is necessarily adapted to meet and to fill the highest degree of our develop- ment, which will alone take place in a future existence ; for all reason and truth testify that our present progress will eternally continue. Suppose that now it were possible for us, by some new and extraordinary process, to reach the last verge of the physical universe, to stand upon the last star, to look down from, the last abyss of being, to hail the last planet which revolves in now untraveled realms, and gaze abroad at the unpeopled expanse of boundless space which stretched away beyond us ; would this not naturally diminish our reverence and awe at the majesty of the Creator ? Would we not have thus placed a limit on the infinite, and reached the termination of the boundless? Would not this fact imply, that there was nothing more and beyond, which omnipotence had executed, in order thereby to enlarge our «apacities, and furnish additional sources of instruction to IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 807 US, in another existence hereafter ? Doubtless this would be a rational inference. We may apply the same reason- ing to the spiritual universe as contained in any divine revelation. If here all could be fathomed, if everything could be reached and simplified, divested of mystery, and made familiar to our minds, our reverence for that divine, unsearchable and inexhaustible being would necessarily be diminished ; and we might ask with thankless and satiated curiosity, is there nothing more to learn ? has everything been analyzed and exhausted ? A divine revelation will be adapted to our improvement as we are, — that is as progressive beings. If then we should be capable of understanding all its teachings now, equally as well as we should be hereafter (and thus dispense with the necessity of faith), what would be the logical in- ference?- It would follow, that the progressive is equal to the ultimate, which is absurd. It would also follow that the capacities of man (the progressive) are equal to the capacities of God (the perfect), which is impious. It would imply that the beginning and the progress are identical with the end ; that the cause was the same with the effect; and thus we would produce an endless confu- sion in the spiritual and intellectual world, which would invade the harmony of all existing principles, to a greater or less degree. But rationality and order are both charac- teristics of a divine revelation ; and hence it will contain nothing destructive to them. VII. The works of nature teach that all her mysteries are reasonable; and we may infer that the mysteries taught by the God of nature in Revelation, will also be reasonable; and what is reasonable deserves the exercise of faith. The most profound investigations of men have never been able to discover any want of wisdom, or devise any possible 208 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH improvement in the mysteries of nature, to which they render their full credence. Thus take the principle of gravitation. A vast system of planets exhibiting the divine perfections of its great author, had been made. Suns and worlds, stars and nebulae stand forth the confessed re- sults of the creative energy of God. Shall all these lie scattered irregularly in chaotic clusters, and " Wander darkling in the eternal space, Rayless, and pathless, and the icy earth Swing blind and blackened in the moonless air ?" Or shallthey be summoned to course in beauteous order and harmony. around one great and universal centre ; there- by avoiding all possible collision, and conducing to their security and protection ? The earth has been called into being among the rest. Shall all her rocks and rivers, her trees, her fountains, her movable inhabitants, be left un- governed and uncontrolled, to fly off in eccentric and de- structive movements, introducing in a ^hort period bound- less confusion and ruin ? Or shall these be bound by a gentle, uniform and powerful tie to the planet on which they exist, according to rational and useful laws ? Such is the voice of reason. And how shall this end be pro- moted in any imaginable way, as successfully as by the great, universal, yet mysterious law of gravitation ? It is impossible to imagine or devise any expedient comparable to it. And while on the one hand, we are compelled to give up the hope of explaining this mystery, while it is perfectly unsearchable to us, and past all human analysis ; on the other, we are compelled just as implicitly and heartily to concede the boundless wisdom, penetration and reasonableness which stand forth upon the very face of the mystery itself. This fact then teaches us that what is mysterious, may still be reasonable, and that these two elements are bound together, in the great principle of gravi- IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 209 tation. This proof is confirmed when we apply it to all the other enigmas which crowd the face of nature. Every one of them brings forward its proof to show, that while God has mysteriously constituted it, he has at the same time reasonably and rationally constituted it. Now consistency demands that if the mysteries of God in Nature are reasonable, his mysteries in Revelation must be so too. It would be a contradiction of which a divine being could not be guilty, for him to adopt an expedient in one part of his instructions to men, which he would depart from in the other. Aside from the absurdity that a divine being would do anything which is unreasonable ; we may infer that when both revelations, of nature and of Scripture, emanate from the same being, are addressed to the same persons, intended to accomplish the same pur- poses, under the same circumstances; no variation of so fundamental a character would be made. If in the works of nature, the wing implies the existence of air, the eye of light, the fire of water ; so also the existence of a palpably reasonable mystery implies the exercise of an approving and confiding faith in reference to it. Accord- ingly men entertain such views in reference to it ; and why when an equally reasonable mystery, if examined in refer- ence to its actual ingredients, exists in the spiritual world of revealed truths — why shall we refuse to exercise faith in reference to it?* The mysteries of the Bible are just as reasonable, just as much approve them to our judgments, • If a mystery is a thing which, we cannot understand, how can \re tell whether it is reasonable or^ot reasonable? Just as when • we see a stone, detached from an eminence falling toward tlie earth, we see that the mystery of gravitation is a reasonable one. These mysteries are reasonable as seen in their effects, in their modes of ope- ration, and in everything concerning them which we either see, or have any conception of. 18* 210 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH as do the principles of gravitation, or the diversity of fa- culties, and yet unity of operation in the human mind. There is a logical necessity for faith equally in both cases, and it is as absurd to refuse it in the one instance as in the other. VIII. The Works of Nature teach that all her myste- ries are benevolent; that they are calculated to promote the highest possible good of men, in the highest degree. Hence they emanate from a Being possessed of boundless attributes ; and deserve our unimpaired confidence and faith on that account. We examine the works of nature, to see whether they justify this declaration. We take the ripening harvest, whose progress to full development we cannot perfectly analyze ; which is to us, in all that apper- tains to the process of its growth, a mystery. God has seen fit to involve this process in such obscurity to our minds, that we in vain endeavor to penetrate it. But what is the practical.influence of this mysterious phenomenon, upon our interests and our happiness ? Is it not eminently promotive of our welfare ; is it not eminently benevolent, eminently calculated to supply our wants, to remove our miseries, to make us blessed, in a temporal sense ? Does it not, as from year to year the face of earth is covered with this nutritious grow,th, springing up with faithful and unwearying constancy wherever the wants of men demand it, does it not loudly speak the benevolence of its myste- rious author ? Again : one of nature's mysteries is the process by which the wastes of our 'j'hysical frames are supplied by constant accessions of strength and growth, from the food which is received and assimilated by them. This process, when we examine the principle by which food is trans- formed to flesh and bones, is a mystery, however well we IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 811 may be acquainted with the outward portions of the pro- cess, and the results produced by it. But how benevolent is this mystery? Every waste by it is supplied. Every accident, unless violent beyond possible repair, is gradu- ally removed and redeemed. Every exhaustion is furnished with a new supply, and every deprivation is replaced which does not pass beyond certain necessary limits. This mysterious process is ever active, constantly opera- tive to sustain in continued strength and vigor our physical frames. • Its most marked and prominent characteristic is benevolence. Thus we might examine the tendency of every mystery in physical nature, from the formation of the antennae of the insect, to the materials and process of the sun's light and heat; and we would meet, among all the wide range of glorious deeds and mighty works which creative energy has achieved, not one solitary instance where misery was inflicted unnecessarily, or where the happiness of sen- tient beings was not promoted most efiiciently. Here, again, God is consistent and changeless ; for the same benevolence strongly characterizes every mystery recorded in revelation, which appears in the mysteries prevalent in nature. Take for instance the incarnation of Christ, the union of the two natures in Christ; which has long been a favorite theme for the jeers of a stupid infidelity. What glorious results have accrued to human welfare, to all our temporal interests, and to our immortal good, through- out everlasting ages to come, from this one mystery ! What unspeakable woes has it removed ! What ineffable delights has its secured for a ruined race ! If there was no other justification which could be urged, in defence of this mys- tery, the benevolence which adorns it, and the good which results from it, would afford an ample excuse. -The long- lapse of ages is requisite, and the eye of God is needed to survey them, before the consequences which result from 212 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH this fact and truth, can all be computed. Thus every mys- tery which is contained in the sacred volume, is marked and adorned by the same excellence. The relations of the three persons of the Trinity to each other, the eternal generation of the Son, the procession of the Holy Spirit, the resurrection, the new birth ; every one of these great mysteries is fraught with great blessings, productive of mi- computed benefit to our race. None of them are calcu- lated to promote any injury or to entail any evil on sentient beings. They are calculated to operate for our highest in- terests spiritually, as the mysteries of nature are physically. They are equally calculated to promote them to the highest possible and imaginable degree ; to operate thus, far beyond the povper and the measure of any agency, less than divine. They prove their author, therefore, to be divine ; and hence any such mysteries which He may reveal, deserve our unbounded confidence and faith on that account. IX. In the same way it is also true that the mysteries of nature prove themselves to be just; and on this account they deserve our confidence and faith. They are just, be- cause they punish whoever is guilty of violating their established laws, and their inherent modes of operation. If they are calculated to do good, it is only as long as men harmonize with their legitimate order of action. Thus the laws of gravitation are productive of the best temporal inte- rests of the universe, as long as they are not violated or infringed. They contemplate in their benevolent action, the accordance of our own volitions with their laws. But if any one, in defiance of these laws, plays upon the verge of an abyss regardless of his peril, this same law, so benevo- lent in itself, will produce his ruin. The injury of this one violator of this law, or rather despiser of it, must be weighed in the balance with all the incalculable good which IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 213 results from. the operation of that law throughout the uni- verse ; and its just rigor in punishing in such cases will even appear to be general benevolence. In other words, this mystery being of universal operation, by divine insti- tution, justly demands that all beings concede its legitimate supremacy. Whoever, therefore, rashly despises that supremacy, and violates, or is indifferent to its laws, is in- fallibly punished for it. The mystery is a just one ; inex- orably just, being partial to none, teaching every trans- gressor from the prince to the peasant, the supremacy of its demands and its authority. This is its constitution, for God has so organized it. The same characteristic is applicable to the mysteries of Revelation ; they are just. They display a rigor of similar justice, which reverts in punishment upon all who violate them, or their legitimate laws of operation. They exhibit a righteous rigor in this respect which proves their divine origin. Take, for example, the mystery of the new birlh. It is a divine change, which prepares the immortal spirit for an abode with the blessed. It confers upon mankind, as the appointed means of God, a glorious existence beyond the grave. This it accomplishes because it has been designated by the arbiter of our fate, as the only, the efficient, and hence the obligatory means, to attain this important end. If it be obligatory, the neglect of it is criminal, and entails upon those who are guilty of it, un- speakable ills. If it be erected as the only gate of heaven, those who enter not therein, necessarily remain without. It is an inevitable consequence which cannot be evaded. Here this mystery is just; bringing down upon those who violate its demands retributive ruin. It entails conse- quences which no merely human power could produce. Its operation is perfectly impartial in all directions, treating every inhabitant of earth with the same changeless rigor. 214 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH And although every thing which is just, including mysteries, are not divine, yet such things will not make an unjust claim upon our faith, or demand upon our credence. But the mysteries of the Bible do make this demand on our faith, and hence that demand should be regarded by us as legitimate, and should be complied with. These mysteries will not, cannot be just in one direction, and so unjust and presumptuous, as to make so false a claim in the other. X. We may add that the mysteries of physical nature prove themselves to be truthful, and hence might urge their claims upon our faith. The same principle holds good in the mysteries of Revelation. Constancy and Uni- formity belong to all the wonders of the material world, so that whatever intelligent calculations are based upon them, may expect to be realized. Year after year, from the begin- ning of days, the golden fruits of the earth have come forth to deck her with a variegated brow, and to cheer the hearts of rational beings. So regular and certain has this become, so strong is the implied injunction contained in it, for the husbandman to perform his appropriate duties, that he proceeds to his task from year to year, and from genera- tion to generation, with the most unwavering confidence in the result. This mystery is truthful ; for it does not hold out a false promise, or a false incentive to activity, with the intention or possibility of disappointing them. For although failures sometimes occur, the mysterious prin- ciple in question is not to blame for it ; but those foreign causes which tended to impede its operation, for which itself is not in any sense responsible. The great law of gravitation is so constant and truthful in its operation, that whatever else may change and vary, all men from the savage to the sage, live by taking it for granted. So uniform is it, that the most minute and infi- IN A DIVJNE REVELATION. 215 nitesimal calculations can be made, regarding its operations and based upon its certainty. Never has the slightest va- riation from constancy and regularity been perceptible during six thousand years which have elapsed, since the orbs of heaven first rolled along their pathway. Accidents and explosions may have taken place among that innume- rable multitude, but none of these have violated the law in question ; for masses and fragments have all obeyed this great principle in their flights and subsequent destinies. Judging then the future by the past, we may justly infer that this invariable constancy of this law will continue ; that past causes which have failed to impair it, will fail to impair it in future ; and that the energy which has granted permanency in the past will do so in time to come. But how can we prove from this position the truth- fulness or veracity of the mysteries of Eevelation ? We answer, that like causes invariably produce like effects, and as God's character constrained him to constitute the mysteries of nature truthful, so those same changeless at- tributes will constrain him to constitute the mysteries of Revelation truthful. The former mysteries prove their author to be divine; and unchangeableness is one attribute of divinity. Hence having been disposed to constitute one class of mysteries thus truthful, he will ever be disposed, under similar circumstances, to constitute ^ther mysteries in a similar way — the same causes producing the same effects. If we inquire, whether these latter mysteries ap- prove themselves to our reasons as truthful and constant, so far as we can probe them, and then by inference, further still; we answer that they most certainly do. What is pas- sive in the enigmas of the Bible, remains changeless. The trinity and the hypostatic union in Christ, endure with more changeless constancy than the everlasting hills. What is active in these enigmas, operate in the same uniform way. 216 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH The new birth, the mysterious influences of the Spirit, the resurrection, — all, so far as reason is able to judge, do and will operate with similar uniformity ; so that the most certain anticipations may be indulged in reference to them. Now although whatever is truthful, is not necessarily di- vine, yet when a mystery, by its opieration, proves itself to be uniformly truthful, and has never evinced the slight- est ground to justify the charger of falsehood, we dare not suppose that it would make z false demand upon our faith. Yet this demand the mysteries of the Bible most pointedly make. Hence if they make it upon false grounds, they are guilty of a crime, which nowhere else has appeared, but which is abhorrent to every consideration of analogy and of possibility. Because therefore this demand, made upon our faith, is a true one, are we logically bound to accede to it. There are various forms under which the demand made in the Bible for the exercise of Faith, is objected to. One of tiiese is against the possibility of the existence of mira- cles,* which call for that faith. But what is a miracle ? It is a work or deed achieved by superhuman power. And is not nature filled with acts, which are far above the reach of mortal agency 1 These are miracles ; not possi- ble, but actual and real. What is possible then to a su- perhuman power in one departthent of its activity, is surely possible to it iu another. Hence miracles in Revelation demand our faith, because they are possible, if that possi- bility is realized as much as those in nature. Again, the presumption that miracles would not occur in Eevelation either in its doctrines, or in its recorded facts, is no conclusive proof, that we should withhold our faith * A miracle is a mystery, and the arguments which go to prove or disprovethe one are valid for the other. It is allowable, therefore, to use either term, as we have done in the text. IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 217 from tliem if recorded. There are thousands of presump- tions, most rationally drawn from the lives and histories of nine-tenths of mankind, that no such man as Bonaparte would ever exist, and run his remarkable career in the world. But who would refuse their faith or credence in the accounts of him which exist, simply because, from first to last, they are one constant violation of all our. rational conceptions of what is probable and likely to occur among men ? The presumptions in the case, however strong and reasonable they may be, we do not for a moment permit to interfere with our belief in the event. Nor can it be urged that we should be slow to submit our faith to the recorded mysteries and miracles of the Bible, because they do not seem to form a part of the ori- ginal plan of the moral and intellectual universe. For there are many enigmas of this kind in the physical world which we willingly believe, which seem as little in har- mony with"the original constitution of its nature, as are mysteries in the nature of the other. An earthquake, for instance, as it passes from land to land, defacing the beau- teous face of nature, and spreading far and wide devasta- tion and death, is evidently, so far as appearances are con- cerned, entirely inconsistent with the original plan of this glorious, harmonious and joyous creation. And yet these fearful enigmas occur, not frequently, but occasionally; showing us beyond the possibility of denial, that what ap- pears adverse to the supposed order of nature, nay, wholly irreconcilable to it, may and does nevertheless exist. The works of nature are usually governed by ordinary and con- stant laws ; but the God of nature sometimes permits ^ causes to operate, which break up that harmony and spread wide confusion. Thus a sovereign may govern his sub- jects by uniform laws, and the presumption justly is, that he will ever continue so to do. But in peculiar circum- 19 218 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH Stances he changes his principles of jurisdiction, and adopts new ones. The presumption here in favor of uniformity- could argue nothing against the possibility of an innova- tion. Thus is it with the moral governor of the universe. Taking for granted the opposite of our argument; if everything in a divine Revelation ought to be fathomable by Reason, the question arises, whether under more fa- vorable circumstances, and developing mental power, rea- son could not have discovered these so simple truths, with- out the aid of Revelation ? We could not predict whether those more favorable circumstances might occur or not. They might as possibly occur as not occur. Hereby the necessity of all revelation would be entirely removed; and as God does nothing superfluously, he would in all probability, have withheld the entire Revelation. Hence the mysteries of Revelation appear absolutely necessary to justify its own existence. But inasmuch as God cannot create anything superfluously, and inasmuch as he has revealed these mysteries, this fact proves their absolute necessity, in order to justify, in one form, the proclamation of any Revelation at all. It may again be urged, — and it is the only remaining plea possessing any logical force, which can be directed against the position maintained in this argument, — that the mj'steries revealed in any revelation, and hence in the Scriptures, which are designed to operate for human re- demption, are or may be so slow and tardy in their de- velopment, permitting thousands of years to revolve of human woe, before their virtue and efiicacy appear, and become active. In this respect their benevolence, though not changed in nature, becomes apparently diminished in degree ; and hence the claim upon our faith in these mys- teries, is proportionably diminished. But this same cha- racteristic belongs to those mysterious agents in Nature, IN A DIVINE REVELATION. 219 which God has created, and which were long ago adapted to heal the diseases of the body. When the researches of modern pharmacy have brought to light the sanative powers of many of the plants, minerals, and chemical combinations which exist, but which have for ages before been unknown to a dying and suffering race; we do not for one moment withhold our confidence or faith in their energy, because they are mysterious, and because these valuable qualities of theirs have so long been unknown and inoperative. Whoever would venture thus to judge and act, would violate every universally conceded principle of reason. This argument is applicable to the benevolent mysteries of any divine revelation. If their value and efficacy should, in the progress of events, remain unknown for a time, it will doubtless result in a divine revelation, from just and righteous causes. Yet even if we had no conclusive evidence of this fact, we may reasonably infer that if this delay which actually exists in the beneficial agents in Nature, is no argument against Faith in their mysterious power ; so a similar delay in the operative agency of the benevolent mysteries of Revelation, is no just argument against our exercising faith in their existence and power,* From these considerations we think, we may safely rest in the conviction, that the positions which we laid down at the beginning of this chapter, are founded in truth ; namely, that the existence of mysteries, or of that which demands the exercise of faith on the part of finite crea- tures, is not necessarily an argument against the credibility • This remark may illustrate the fatuity of that objection which Modern Infidelity sometimes urges against the Bible, — that millions of heathens are dying every year, while God does not take measures to extend the blessings of his religion to them. 220 THE NECESSITY OF FAITH IN A DIVINE REVELATION. and authority of any professedly divine revelation which contains them ; that there is, moreover, a logical and hence absolute necessity for their existence in any Revelation professing to be divine ; that the want of them would con- stitute a just and powerful grbund for suspicion, regarding the validity of their claim to inspiration ; and that hence the Bible in making this claim, and then in supporting it by teaching such mysteries, proves itself to be fully con- sistent, truly divine, and wholly deserving of our confi- dence and reception. 221 CHAPTER VI. CONTRAST BETWEEN THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE AND MODERN INFIDELITY. There are many practical motives which should urge men to receive the Bible. Religion is an exalted principle which is addressed to them as reasonable beings, possessed of the power of rational choice. Yet these free beings, in consequence of the primitive fall, resemble a mariner whose arms and oars are indeed unconstrained, but whom a strong and never ceasing current bears rapidly onward and away from his proper course. Hence religion, when presented to such individuals, will be regarded in various lights, in proportion as they are more or less under the influence of this undue bias. All along the progress of human history, from its remotest ages and primeval scenes, down until this hour, mankind may be distinguished into two great classes, of those who believe and ihoscwho disbelieve; of those who struggle for light, and those who rejoice in darkness ; of those who are the friends of liberty ^nd truth, or those who are votaries of bondage and error. The relation which these two classes bear to each other, is necessarily that of ac.tive hostility. The self-preserva- tion of each requires .Jhat it should seek the extermination of its irreconcilable opponent. Revealed truth can be received in only one of two ways. It must either meet with a cordial reception ; or else with a virtual, and hence complete denial. If the Bible is rejected from its high 19* 222 THE KELIGION OF THE BIBLE position as a revelation from God, only one alternative really remains, and that is the adoption of a dark, cheerless, and ruinous infidelity, fraught with no substantial joys for the present, and gilded with no brighter hopes for the future. That minds of mighty power have settled down in un- belief; that they have declared themselves unsatisfied with the evidences of the truth of Revelation which were pre- sented to them, need not be affirmed. The loftiest intel- lects, moulded with exquisite benevolence and skill, and wisely adapted to behold and adore the infinite in God, as well as the sublime and beautiful in Revelation, have with mournful fatuity, groped their way downward into the abyss of error, until they have reached a remote extreme of solitude and gloom, where truth can scarcely be expected to reach them. Such great men, like fearful spectres from departed ages, rise to our remembrance from their unquiet graves, and stand forth like terrific beacons to warn all suc- ceeding generations from pursuing the same conduct and inheriting the same fate. They present mournful instances of men, whose powers should have been consecrated to the noblest purposes on the altar of God, which were desecrated and dissipated in the debasing orgies of corrup- tion and guilt. Notwithstanding all this, the friends of unbelief will often affirm, that their doctrines are in themselves more noble, more free, more elevating, and more comfortable to their own minds, than the opinions of those who believe can be to them. In contrasting their system of infidelity with that of faith, when placing them side by side, so that the comparison between them may be more direct and striking, they affirm that the contrast is favorable to them, that their views present a fairer and nobler appearance than those of their opponents, and that hence they are justifiable in retaining them on this ground, if on no other. AND INFIDELITY. 223 There are doubtless many who, in casting off the re- straints wliich former religious convictions may have im- posed upon them, and in shaking themselves free from all moral obligations, do feel, for a time, a new sensation of joyous liberty, of deliverance from present constraint, and from all future fears. They seem to rejoice, that whilst others are still enduring the inflictions of an absurd super- stition, they at least have risen above it; that while others are suffering unnecessary fears and solicitudes, they, have minds which are at perfect ease, and consciences which rest in unbroken repose. We wish now to examine what may be the relative beauty, desirableness, and profit of these two systems of opinion ; to ask whether the believer has just grounds for dissatisfaction with himself; whether the unbeliever has any just reason to congratulate himself and admire his system ; or whether on the contrary, he should not learn that his doctrines are the most absurd, the most cheerless, the most destructive of man's present welfare, and all his future good, which could possibly be entertained ; and whether the religion of the Bible on every imaginable point, is not infinitely nobler, more reasonable, and more conducive of the best interests of immortal man. There are various forms of Modern Infidelity which are prevalent in society, which are produced by different causes, but the ultimate character and consequences of which are all alike. There is a learned infidelity, enter- tained by men of great talents and extensive acquirements, who arrive at their notions by a process of investigation which they suppose to be learned, but which is only pedantic. These pretend to find unanswerable objections to Revelation, in the various departments of human science. There is also an ignorant infidelity, entertained by those who have sufficient penetration to detect a few supposed inaccuracies in the Bible, but possess not knowledge enough 224 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE to comprehend the replies to them. There is also an in- fidelity which is natural and instinctive with some minds, whose construction is such, that they are always prone to doubt and disbelieve whatever others around them may believe. These could scarcely be able heartily and cordial- ly to receive the truths of Revelation, unless aided by the strong preserving influences of the Holy Spirit. Besides these there is an unsettled kind of infidelity, entertained by those who, having no permanent opinions on the sub- ject, have exercised their ingenuity in contriving objections to Revelation, which they leave undetermined as to whether they are answerable or not. Yet this kind of doubt is just as injurious as any other, because it prevents better prin- ciples from being lodged in the mind, and makes it familiar with frivolity and insincerity. In regard to each and all of these forms of unbelief, we may say, that they possess the same general features and characteristics; they present the same opposition to the Bible, and afford the same horrid contrast to its religion. Let us then place them side by side, let us behold them when brought into each other's presence, and made thus directly to confront each other. I. We will discuss the main points of difference which exist between the religion of the Bible and Infidelity, and show in each case the amazing contrast which presents it- self to view. The various forms of unbelief which exist among men, may be condensed and represented by some five or six main points, upon which the opinions of those who held them were peculiar. By glancing at each of these, we will be able to obtain a view of the whole ; which may easily be resolved into these several parts. Infidelity denies the existence of a God. Although there are various shades of opinion even on this funda- AND INFIDELITY. 225 mental point, the system of doctrine termed Infidelity may with truth be represented as virtually denying the being of a God. Some may elevate the powers of nature to the dignity of deity ; others may call the moral order of the universe God ; others still in various ways may deify certain objects as possessing the character and position of the Supreme Being ; but they all deny the existence of the true God, and hence of God, correctly speaking, alto- gether. They dispute sometimes the being of a personal God; of a separate, independent and individual Deity, while they may personify some abstract law, or principle, or influence, and call it God. In every such case they blot out the existence of a God, as efiectually as if, as in other cases they do, they wholly denied the opera- tion and existence of any Deity of any sort whatever. But what infinite absurdities are involved in all such conceptions ! We glance around us, and behold a glorious world on every hand, each portion of which contains am- ple evidence of the existence and operation of some crea- tive and active being ; while this truth is confirmed by a widening survey of the countless worlds, which stretch away throughout the domains of illimitable space. How absurd is it to suppose, that while every other product of skill and labor argues the existence of the creating agent, the greatest and sublimest of all existing objects, the uni- verse itself, should form the only and most unnatural ex- ception to the rule. If, during the experience of six thou- sand years, no one case has ever been discovered, in which a thing exhibiting ingenuity and contrivance has come into being, without the known operatioiv of some ingenious and contriving maker ; if this has been the harmonious obser- vation of all rational beings on this subject, how absurd is the supposition, that a departure from this most universal law occurred in the creation of the universe. Where is 228 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE Ihe evidence on which such an exception is based ? It is not the evidence of experience; for universal experience is against it. It is not the inference of reason, for all rea- son condemns it as absurd. It is not the postulate of analogy ; for all known analogy, in all departments of the universe, is directly in opposition to it. It is not the dic- tate either of wisdom, benevolence, justice or truth ; for all these are utterly irreconcilable with any such concep- tion. It is, in one word, the most irrational conception which could enter the mind of a rational being on any sub- ject whatever. It is true that the infidel may urge many plausible sub- stitutes in reference to the creation or origin of the uni- verse, the most acute of which is the supposition, that originally space was filled with matter exceedingly diffused and intensely heated, termed nebulous matter ; that by the force of gravitafion the larger of these particles attracted the smaller ; that a centre being thus formed, a circular motion would be given to the other moving particles ; and that from this beginning the universe has been progressively completed. All these suppositions are to form a substitute for the declarations of Revelation on the subject. But how much is taken for granted in this statement? Who first created these particles of matter and placed them in space? Who gave them their intense heat, their constant motion ? who infused into them the principle of gravitation itself which is to produce so many consequent results? All these and other questions are to be answered, which can- not be answered without granting the existence of a God ; and this concession, v^Jiatever may be his supposed attri- butes, is in direct hostility to the very nature of infidelity. In whatever ways, however acute, Infidelity may labor to assign another origin to the universe than that made known in Revelation — glaring absurdities will surround AND INFIDELITY. 237 it on every side. Hence the opponents of Revelation are driven to the necessity of declaring in plain terms that the world came into being by chance. What the cha- racteristics or elements of this principle may be, they pre- sume not to define, for the very idea of chance they sup- pose implies what is undefinable and indeterminate. Chaos then has conceived, and brought into being the glorious and harmonious works of creation ; confusion has pro- duced , order ; deformity has produced beauty, and the shades of eternal night have brought forth the beaming splendors of meridian day ! What singular productive- ness ! How different from all the principles of descent which have ever and uniformly been in operation from that day till this ! How strange4hat no similar instances of chance have occurred during so many thousand years of trial afterward ? How strange is it that no similar product of fortuitous concourse of atoms has ever since occurred even on the smallest scale, to afford an ocular evidence of the practicability of the process ! But alas ! no such friendly case has ever 'happened in any known portion of the universe, to furnish' the least support to so ingenious and so comfortable a theory. There is, then, no Supreme Being who contains all excellences in himself, none who can fill the highest and noblest conceptions of worth, which rational beings such as we can form. There is, then, no object to vchom the adoration and the pure wor- ship of pious hearts can ever- be offered. The throne of the heart must remain unoccupied ; and its noblest aspira- tions unfulfilled. Let us turn away from this revolting conception to the great principle laid down, in reference to this subject, in the Bible. Whatsoever things are noble, and honorable, and comfortable; whatever not only fulfils but exceeds the lof- tiest conceptions of the mind as to what is desirabie in 228 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE this case ; all this is involved in the teachings of the Bible on this subject. " The Lord hath established his throne in the heavens and his kingdom ruleth over all. The Lord is known by the judgments vi^hich he executeth. There is one God and one Mediator. Thou believest in one God ; thou doest well." No uncertainty in regard to this great point is thus for a moment allowed. It is most clearly taught, not simply in direct terms, but implied and confirmed by innumerable references to his works, his will, his purposes and his judgments. The idea of a God as defined and taught in the Bible is the subliraest and grandest conception which a rational be- ing can entertain. Eminence and superiority in all their grades and rising proportions, even when seen among men, are agreeable objects of contemplation. We love to be- hold all human virtues harmoniously united in one fortunate possessor. We love to contemplate an exalted personage, in an exalted situation, surrounded by every attendant which adds rational interest to his character. The king upon his throne, dispensing joy and justice to distant portions of his dominions ; the giant in intellect scaling the dizzy heights of science ; the successful conqueror placing a diadem on his once obscure head, and looking down upon a prostrate and suppliant continent ; whoever is enshrined in the temple of universal fame, as having been illustrious, great and good ; all these are naturally regarded by us with admiration. How then must the idea and the character of God be re- ceived by us when, in order to grasp them, we must elevate all these admirable traits in man, by way of eminence, to infinite proportions and degrees, and ascribe them to him, relieved from every inferior characteristic which still adheres to the best of men. He sits upon the summit of all great- ness, he crowns the apex of all that is glorious, and intensi- fies all that is to be adored in himself. AND INFIDELITY. 229 Surely this conception is far more rational in every sense, than the contrary one as taught by Infidelity. Surely the doctrines of the Bible fill up a void vi^hich otherwise would have deformed the moral universe. The infidel idea leaves the beauteous structure of the universe without a head ; while that of the Bible places upon it one every way worthy of it, and which powerfully adds to the dig- nity and worth of the whole. Infidelity deprives the world of an object of worship, and leaves all rational souls yearning for an inaccessible good. The Bible throws open a divine temple, where the whole universe may wor- ship a being supremely worthy of their choicest and sweet- est incense. Infidelity denies the existence and operation of a super- intending Providence. Unlike the religions of ancient Greece and Rome, and indeed far inferior to them in this respect, it maintains that even if God existed he would not trouble himself with the afiairs of men. These religions made their deities at least benevolent ; its rival system would soon degrade its God, if it had any, to the level of the brute. Now when any one is absurd enough to deny the exist- ence of an intelligent creator of the universe, no other ab- surdity will be too great for him. And the very next step for him will be to suppose that whatever comes by chance, will also subsist by chance. We dare not expect that after the universe had come into being, without the agency of any rational creator, any such Supreme Being will after- ward force himself into existence and take under his guidance an object with which he has had so little to do. Behold, then, this universe, whose existence none can deny, whose harmonious order, operation, and constancy are only equalled by the original attributes of its construc- tion, thus moving in such regularity only through the in- 20 230 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE fluence of unguided and unguarded chance. Age after age rolls away, generation after generation rises and vanishes, while constancy, order, benevolence and wisdom shine forth with augmenting clearness and splendor in the events of every year while it revolves ; — and yet all this happens by chance. In the mean while, in the midst of all these scenes, there is no universal eye to see, no uni- versal ear to hear, no universal hand to help. While order has heretofore prevailed, wild discord and ruin may at any moment enter the universe and carry woe and desolation throughout all its domains. Amid all the events of the world, there is no surety that the good will be protected and the wicked punished. There is in truth neither good nor bad ; all alike is immaterial, of no consequence, pos- sessing no permanent nature, the victim of chance, the dupe of the possible and uncertain. There is no sovereign power to restrain the wicked, there is no righteous arm to preserve and reward the good. The various events of life, which so often seem to teach a solemn lesson, how an in- visible power dispenses visible retribution and justice among mankind, — are mere accidents, and might just as easily have happened the other way. All the various en- deavors of men to accomplish what they suppose to be duty, have been based upon delusions, and have been so much labor idly thrown away. The hope of the good man oppressed by misfortune or despotism, which cheered betimes his gloomy soul with the prospect of a brighter day, and a nobler recompense hereafter — was a phantom. The fears of the brutal tyrant and the cruel foe, by which, ■when he surveyed his numerous acts of ferocity and in- justice, his stout breast was made to quake at the sure forebodings of coming and well-deserved wrath, — these ■were childish and groundless terrors. The universe is free to do and dare whatsoever it may list ; and whoever AND INFIDELITY. 231 is strongest may venture to riot in rampant freedom ; for if none on earth, then surely none in heaven will be able to resist and control. Then let once revolutionary violence begin; and having upturned the repose of a province, let the growing agitation extend from country to country ; let it rage from continent to continent ; let the earth itself be- come convulsed with the novel commotion ; let even the contagion spread to distant stars and worlds, till it involves the centre of creation itself, and the sun whirl away from his position in crazy wildness, and the whole universe break up in the general dissolution ! Now all these absurdities would happen in all reason- able probability, if the supposition of the infidel on this point, were founded in truth. Where, we ask, is the pre- servative against such a catastrophe ? What could pre- vent it if all things subsisted by chance ? What could resist it except the agency of a God, and a Providence which the infidel denies ? No arm of man, or angel, or demon could enforce order. Well may the poet ask, in words of unrivaled beauty: " Oh lives there, Heaven ! beneath thy dread expanse, One hopeless, dark, idolater of chance, Content to feed with pleasures unrefined. The lutewarra passions of a lowly mind ; A friendless slave, a child without a sire, Whose mortal life and momentary fire Lights to the grave his chance created form. As ocean wrecks illuminate the storm ; And when the gun's tremendous flash is o'er, To night and silence sink forever more ?" For of all the conceptions calculated to fill the pious and even benevolent soul with sorrovv and fear, this one is most powerfully adapted to do it. What spectacle is more mournful than that of an unguided and a fatherless world? 232 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE When we contemplate the solitary child of want, cast forth on the cold charities of a selfish world, or wandering wil- fully away from the guidance and protection of a parent ; a helpless child without a home to shelter its head from the storms of life, and without a friend to impart counsel and protection or sustenance ; — the scene is one deeply affecting. Nothing could call forth our sympathy more powerfully than such a sight. But according to Infidelity how many millions of beings, who are equally helpless, without a superintending Providence, are by its doctrine made unprotected wanderers in the waste of existence. The scene of woe becomes elevated from the experience of one to the miseries of millions ; and the world becomes peopled with countless beings, every one of Whom calls for sympathy and protection, while not one of them has a powerful friend to appeal to for them. What a beautiful contrast to this harsh and iron scene, is presented by the teachings of the Bible? Though " man was made to mourn," there is an universal God and Father to sympathize with him. Though in some cases misery and misfortune are his lot, the smile of that Friend as- suages and mitigates his anguish. And when happiness and good fortune cheer his way, how consolingly are they attributed to the guardian care of that Friend who makes us rejoice, while so many others are constrained to mourn in consequence of the inevitable evils of humanity ? The Bible teaches that God, though elevated on his throne, is deeply concerned in the welfare of his humblest subjects; that his arm guides their destinies, that his hand provides their blessings, that his care wards off their ills. The Bible teaches, that by his power all sublunary affairs are go- verned ; that he will promote the eventual triumph of jus- tice and virtue, and that he will secure, both here and here- after, the punishment of disobedience and crime. The AND INFIDELITY. 233 Bible teaches, that our confidence in God and obedience to him should be supreme ; for, though sometimes his dis- pensations may seem dark and unjust; though he may veil himself behind clouds and tempests ; that soon the clouds and the tempests will all vanish away, and the splendor of His divine benevolence, and the glory of His character will beam forth so brightly, as to remove every former doubt, and amply compensate for every previous terror. In accordance with the rest of its follies. Infidelity de- nies the immortality of the soul. It were not enough to deprive us of all the consolations in this life, which the truth of a Providence could afford: it must carry its sense- less cruelties into the domains of the future and the dead, and by an act of foregone baseness, deprive us of whatso- ever consolation might be deduced from those anticipated scenes. Infidelity would seriously persuade these think- ing, feeling, fearing and ever hoping spirits of ours, that the boundary of their being is the grave ; that all their exalted powers will be buried there ; and that with the inevitable decay of the body, will also occur the dissolution of the soul. Infidelity would fain teach us to believe, that the aspirations of our spirits after an endless duration are absurd; and that the fears of coming dissolution are only of a kin to those terrors which the brute displays, when it is pursued by its foe, and sees its own violent death before it. Infidelity glories in the idea, that if there is no hap- piness, no bliss for men in a distant world, there is at least no anguish nor misery. It rejoices in the concep- tion, that at death the miseries which men suffer, the pas- sions which agitate their breasts, the disappointments, the aspirations, the hatreds, and the loves which constitute the apparent sum of mortal being, here will end forever. It teaches that mankind are but a nobler order of the brute creation, with more refined passions, and stronger powers ; 30* 234 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE that they are destined and adapted by Nature to occupy a nobler sphere, to achieve nobler deeds, and be swayed by nobler instincts ; but then to die. It declares that just as the sweet strains of the nightingale, the superior intelli- gence of the elephant, or the greater faithfulness of the dog, do not deliver them from the common destiny of all other brutes ; so the more refined and elevated powers of man do not preserve him from their fate, and furnish any ground of surer hope. The consequences to which these doctrines would lead, can easily be anticipated. Men will never live in view of a world which has no being save in the poet's fancy, or in the preacher's craft. They will never toil for a glory which is only to be regarded as in nubibus; they will not be willing to exchange the sure possession and enjoyment of the present, the visible and the tangible, for that which is at least invisible, future and distant, and very probably has no existence whatsoever. Hence it has ever been a characteristic of Infidelity to exalt the present, and what- ever belongs to it. It leads to Hero-worship instead of God-worship. It fosters an ambition for earthly honor in- stead of heavenly glory. It adorns its annals with the achievements of the warrior, the patriot, the poet, and even of the courtezan ; while it turns away in disgust from the lives and virtues of the priesf, the sage and the Christian. It dwells with delight upon the glorious achievements of arts and arms. It points to the heroic days of Greece and Rome, and regards them as the high- est developments of humanity in its noblest form and mould. It honors the shades of the Academy and the walks of the Portico, more than it does the school of Christ. It dwells with deathless interest upon the details of Marathon, Thermopylae and Pharsalia ; while those of Sinai, Bethlehem and Calvary are treated as old wives' AND INFIDELITY. S35 fables. It leads to an apotheosis of the empty glories and honors of a fading world, and teaches an utter forgetfulness and contempt of those which are to come. Or if it pays any regard whatsoever to these, it would rather secure the sensual delights of the Elysian fields and Tempe's vale, than those of that purer heaven to which the Christian as- pires. It would congratulate an Alexander upon the estab- lishment of military empire in the world, far more than Christ as the head of a spiritual dominion. It would .re- gard the fair Cleopatra as a greater heroine than the Vir- gin Mary ; and congratulate the former more heartily upon the birth of Caesarion, than the latter upon the birth of Jesus. In one word, Infidelity makes self its God, might its rule of right, and this polluted and miserable world, its highest heaven of heavens. Now though Infidelity, in opposing the immortality of the soul, pretends to carry out the dictates of nature, it is plainly violating, in so doing, every instinct which she ex- hibits. Do mankind generally love death in any form ? Does any one of them despise life in itself considered ? Not one. They may be disgusted with some of the evils which are incident to life, and when a greater share of these, in consequence of peculiar circumstances, may overwhelm one deficient in resolution, he may kill himself. But it is not in any correct sense from a hatred of life that he ever acts so. Go to the silent chamber of the sick man, of him who disbelieves in a future immortality. You behold the pallid victim of disease gladly gazing on the light of day, and most earnestly watching every symptom which gives token of returning health and hope. How he shudders at the thought which occasionally will force itself upon him, that soon he must die, bid farewell to the busy world, and lie down in the dark grave ! How he hopes against hope, and gives the clearest evidence that the voice of nature 236 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE within him rebels against the idea of possible dissolution ! Even the dying man, from whom every rational hope has fled, does he not catch at the last straw ? does he not al- most die hoping and struggling against his fate? or, should despair at length prevail before death has done its work, how horrid and fearful are his demonstrations of deepen- ing terror ? Now in contrast with all this, how sublime as well as elevating are the teachings of the Bible ! According to it, this mortal shall put on immortality, this corruptible shall put on incorruption. It teaches that the present life is but the beginning of an endless being hereafter, and that the soul of man, having accomplished its appropriate des- tiny here, will arise from the scene of mortal dissolution, to an existence in another world, to which no end is pos- sible. It elevates man above the level of the brute. It declares that his exalted powers were designed by the wise being that gave them, for a wise purpose ; and that a sphere of action will be given it hereafter, fully adapted to enlarge and perfect its powers ; where its noblest aspira- tions will be fulfilled, and its every desire realized. Does the physician who promises health on rational grounds to the sick man, deserve his gratitude ? and shall not the Bible, which ensures on equally sure evidence eternal life, be not regarded with equal or greater thankful- ness ? How great is the benevolence of that volume, which promises not only life, but so glorious a life — one calculated so well to bless and rejoice the soul ! This life, thenceforth, though not deprived of its charms, is made but preparatory to the future. It is not divested of its heroic attributes, but they are rendered more heroic still by an elevation from what is transient and earthly to what is enduring and heavenly. The death of the body is represented as a necessary process, by which the soul AND INFIDELITY. 237 is relieved from a companion, useful here, and well adapted to a material world, but useless there, and wholly out of place. It must accordingly be dispensed with, and this occurs in the death of the body ; which furnishes no evi- dence of the dissolution of the soul. If, then, the idea of a God is the sublimest which a ra- tional being can entertain, that pf the future, eternal ex- istence of the soul, as taught in the Bible, is the most con- soling and joyous. Well did a cultivated heathen exclaim, if the immortality of the soul be a delusion, it is a de- lightful one. What need the vexed pilgrim here fear, as he now suffers on the outskirts of an empire into which he will soon enter, whose extent is boundless, whose glories are indescribable, and whose joys are eternal? Will he not there be amply compensated for all the sacrifices which he must here make, and the toils which he must here en- dure ? Immortal Spirit! let thy thoughts travel down the vale of coming ages, and view thyself still enduring, strong in the possession of eternal youth. Thou wilt there look around thee, and from the heights of Eternity thou wilt see all the thrones, the kingdoms, the glories, the struggles and the pains of earth, forever vanished and stilled. Thou wilt seek in vain to behold from afar, the wondrous triumphs of art, the renowned cities, the illustrious empires, and the fields of blood where so much glory once was won. The greatness of the mighty dead, and the pomp of the now living, will all have passed away, sunken into one promiscuous and eternal grave. The earth itself may re- ■ volve darkly and gloomily in its accustomed orbit ; widely spread solitude and desolation may pervade its once crowded scenes. But thou wilt still remain exempt from mutability and death, still enduring amid so much change, still undy- ing amid so much decay. No fearful disaster can quench thy torch of being, no lapse of ages diminish the fresh- 238 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE ness of thy youth ! As lasting as the God who made thee, thou and he alike will outlive the old age and dissolution of the universe itself, and soar above its crumbling ruins, rejoicing in the possession of an endless and deathless du- ration ! All this is due to the teachings of the Bible and the benevolence of its author. Infidelity denies the divine authority and inspiration of the Scriptures, and endeavors to render them wholly ridicu- lous in the eyes of those who are disposed to revere them. Whatever may be the value of the Scriptures, simply as a depository of wise counsels, sublime conceptions, pure morality and instructive history, they are wholly degraded from all claim to the respect and reverence of men, so far as this can be accomplished. In so doing Infidelity car- ries out its system of despoiling men of whatever is richest and dearest in their earthly inheritance, and even in their future prospects. Removing the existence and providence of God, denying the immortality of the soul, it now de- grades that benevolent and wise guide which has been given us to lead us in the way of security and peace. This base end Infidelity as usual accomplishes in va- rious ways, and is inconsistent with itself. Sometimes it denies the inspiration of but a portion of the sacred canon. Again, it calls in question a whole book, — then a cluster of books, and lastly the whole sum. Sometimes it opposes by means of grave argument, at others by sophistical quibbling, and lastly, by open ridicule and rebuke. It en- deavors to place men, by all these means, in the situation of a traveler in a distant and dangerous land, without any guide to direct his steps or secure his safety. If that tra- veler has found a directory which, however false it may be in any other respect, at least has this merit, that expe- rience shows its value as a practical and efficient guide, — it would deprive him even of it, on the ground that all its AND INFIDELITY. 239 Other claims were not based on truth. Infidelity would constrain him to venture amid frowning precipices and gloomy forests ; to pass through dangerous mountains, and over rolling seas ; to meet with crafty impostors and invete- rate foes, — all without the slightest protector or friend whose services could have been effectual. Thus it con- strains the pilgrim man, who has entered on a journey of far greater moral uncertainty and peril, than any preserved in the records of earthly romance and adventure, without any other directory than his own short-sighted wisdom. Infidelity would throw contempt on this time-honored volume, which has rendered such essential service to all ages and races of men who have ever improved it ; and which has securely survived so many assaults and such fierce attacks, which would have utterly destroyed any other than a divine revelation. This is not the place to examine and prove the absurdity of each and all of the objections which Infidelity has urged against the Bible. We are bold lo say, that every one of them bears upon its brow the clear, unanswerable impress either of ignorance, deceit, or depravity. But turning away from these individual charges, look for a mo- ment at the consequences which this denial of Infidelity produces. Behold an innumerable multitude of frail beings, placed on earth by some controlling power, and yet without any instructions or aids whatsoever from that power, as to its will, its purposes or its pleasure. What an absurd supposition ! absurd in its very nature, as well as ruinous in its results. Does the earthly parent send adrift upon the wide world a helpless child, without guidance and counsel ? Does an earthly father send forth a son, to meet the buffetings and disasters of the cold world, with- out the most minute and special directions as to what he shall avoid, and what he shall pursue ? And shall the 340 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE Great Father of all the human family place them on earth to run a long career of danger and difficulty, through the lapse of almost countless ages, without any special and clear guide as to his wishes and their interests ? Yet strange as it might seem, this is precisely what Infidelity has done. Into this cruel act, all its teachings and oppo- sitions may be resolved. There is something sublime as well as delightful in the idea, as taught by the sacred volume, that it is the revealed mind of a God, guarding the interests of his moral and rational universe ; of a father promoting the cherished happiness of his children; and of a king making known the laws and statutes which are to govern his dominions in righteousness and truth. The Bible claims to be a standing evidence that God has not forgotten his creatures. It affirms that it contains extracts from the records of hea- ven, and of the decisions of its supreme chancery. It declares itself to be a full, sure, wise, and unfailing guide, adapted to all the wants of men, in all the various circum- stances of human existence ; and that all its contents have been dictated by the purest and most benevolent affection for the happiness, both present and eternal, of the frail beings whom God has made. If these declarations of the Bible are believed, do they not remove that sensation of loneliness and solitude — that feeling of unprotected helplessness which men, who ap- preciate their condition, must otherwise feel ? What a favorable contrast is presented between the teachings of the Bible and Infidelity on this point ! Would not every one who felt the least interest or concern in the welfare of his immortal being, who believed in and shuddered at the possibility of future misery, — accept with joy the aid and guidance offered in the Bible? This is doubtless true. And yet with what complacency does the Infidel strive to AND INFIDELITY. 241 tear away all the honor and esteem which the gratitude and reverence of better men have thrown around the Bible, and suppose that he is doing his race a service, by degrad- ing as far as he can, the book which alone transfers to earth the wisdom and the blessedness of heaven ! We may add to the exploits of Infidelity, that it denies the divine mission and atonement of Christ; as well as a consequence which naturally flows from them, — a state of future rewards and punishments. In regard to the first point, it affirms, that it is an absurd supposition to maintain, that a sovereign and a God (granting him to be such) would sufiier and die for an obscure race of rebels ; and that we must, to be reasonable, either deny the di- vinity of Christ, or else the reality of the atonement. This, indeed, is human wisdom, which is foolishness with God. The infidel may indeed jest about a divine nature being located in the form of an -infant. He may entertain himself with the mysterious question whether Christ, as second person of the Trinity, proceeded from the Father in eternal generation ; and whether the Spirit proceeded in like manner from both Father and Son, or from the former only. But the Christian finds in these questions no difficulty ; and in regard to the mission or advent of a God into the world to remove a great moral evil, he finds a striking parallel in the every day affairs around him- He sees many cases of a parent who is much more soli- citous for the return of one erring son, than he is joyful at the security and virtue of a score of others. He sees many instances of a sovereign, who makes far greater sacri- fices and endeavors to subdue a rebellious province than he does to enjoy the homage of an obedient empire besides. Viewed in this light, and even taking into consideration the inferiority of our world to other and nobler planets, peopled by other and nobler races of beings, we. can see 21 242 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE the reasonableness as well as the supreme benevolence of an act, which the infidel has neither the grace nor the sense to regard as it should be. The doctrine of future rewards and punishments is not only a consoling one, but an absolutely necessary one in view of many considerations. If Christ came as God to redeem the world, and if man acts as a free agent in rela- tion to the offers made to him, future retribution is an in- dispensable sequence of such facts. A being willing to make such great and amazing provisions for human salvation, will of course properly estimate the conduct of those who either receive or reject such a blessing. If the infidel denies the value of the atonement by Christ, no punish- ment will be merited by those who reject it. But if the Christian affirms its inestimable value and price, he should not be blamed for believing either that it will secure the future salvation of those who embrace it, or for contend- ing for the future punishment of those who scorn and reject it. The Christian, as a partizan of the Bible, can also per- ceive great propriety in the promulgation of these future retributions and rewards, as incentives to action among men. The infidel, in accordance with his usual selfishness, denies these ; for he is justly assured, that if there be any truth in these doctrines, they afford no consolation for him. But if the Bible taught, on the contrary, that the reward of disbelieving would be heaven, as much so as of the Chris- tian, doubtless the vast majority of unbelievers would exchange their present doubts for perfect confidence and faith. This proves that it is self-interest which dictates their whole course, without much reference to the abstract justice and truth which it possesses. We may well ask of the defenders of Infidelity, what service they suppose they render to their race, by making AND INFIDELITY. 243 them doubt in reference to all the great points which form the substance of all religious belief? In striving to rob mankind of these cardinal truths, wherein, we demand, do they improve their condition ? What substitutes do they give in their place ? None whatever ; for though unbelief can tear down, with vandal rudeness, the fairest and no- blest structures, like other savages, it can scarcely rear a hut for itself to dwell in. What more reasonable, as well as more consoling truths does it reveal in the place of those which it represents as so unreasonable and so profitless ? Not one which an idiot should not despise. Not one which an intelligent heathen would not contemn. The doctrines of Infidelity are as barren and as worthless in their influence on the mind as they are base and impious in their origin. II. Let us now examine the various results which have been produced by the operation of these two great systems of religious opinion, that we may thereby be able to form a clearer conception of their comparative merits. No one can carefully survey the history of these sys- tems, without being struck with their direct influence on morals ; on the conduct of mankind. Such doctrines as those which we have just discussed, must be powerfully operative either for good or for evil. There seems to be a harmonious opinion among all men, even without the light of Revelation, as to what is virtue and what is vice. The ancient Greek and Roman, the Persian and the Car- thagenian, all regarded such acts as murder or deceit as crimes, and such deeds as gratitude or justice as merits. Now on the universal instincts of all men on these sub- jects, the religion of the Bible powerfully promotes mo- rality, and Infidelity impedes it. Every practical precept of the sacred volume is op- 244 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE posed to immorality, and holds it up to execration. From beginning to end it threatens the severest penalties against it. The old Mosaic law was strict, even too strict accord- ing to the infidel, against the violation of moral duties. There is not one precept of the Bible which favors immo- rality ; nor yet any examples which are promotive of it, and which receive the commendation of the sacred writers. From beginning to end every argument, every threat, every inducement, every example which could oppose and resist immorality, are there powerfully set forth. The purest system of moral truth which the world has ever seen, as taught originally in the ten commandments, and completed by the divine teachings of Christ and his apos- tles, is contained in the Bible. Hence we find that the practical operation of these truths among'mankind has ever been most desirable and beneficial. The purest forms of social life, the most upright and harmonious communities, and the surest and safest systems of government, which the world has seen, have been produced by the operation, and have flourished under the control of the Bible. What- ever pure morality exists in the world, in any land or age, has either been the result of the teachings of this sacred volume, or the result of principles entirely and consist- ently harmonious with it. Now on the contrary, let the reader for a moment con- template the morals of a nation of infidels. Does not every rational being at once anticipate what would be the tone of feeling and conduct which would characterize such a nation? Does not every one instinctively imagine to himself a herd of murderers, adulterers, fornicators, thieves, tyrants and monsters, such as would convert any region where they dwelt into a pandemonium more fearful than any ever imagined by the excited fancy of a savage ? That this is the inevitable result of the wide preva- AND INFIDELITY. 245 lence of Infidelity is not mere conjecture, but is a certain truth ; based on facts and on reasoning. In reference to the abstract argument which may be urged in the case, we may observe, that Infidelity denies the fall of man ; and represents human nature in a state of perfect and pristine purity. It sees no evidence of a fallen state ; it perceives no traces of a great disaster which has occurred. Hence human nature is perfect, and accordingly whatsoever our natures prompt us to do, must be right and honorable. To obstruct that natural course, or to propose an alteration, is erroneous and harmful. Human nature then must be al- lowed to have its way — its natural tendencies ; and what are they ? We answer, that the imagination of man's heart is evil continually ; that the direct, unobstructed impulse of human nature is to corruption and turpitude. Hence corruption and pollution, according to the infidel, are right, because they are natural to man. That such is man's natural tendency few will deny. The whole history of every unrenewed person, from the cradle to the grave, is but one constant scene of evil tend- encies and evil development. The whole history of the human race, from Eden's bowers till this day, has been strongly marked by sin. Infidelity powerfully tends to the promotion of wickedness here, by removing all fears of judgment and punishment hereafter. What consideration can any person have who naturally rejoices and delights in the commission of sin, to pursue the paths of irksome holiness, when the reward which is in reserve for holiness and wickedness is the same ? If the fear of future jjun- ishment was withdrawn from the world, and this mighty moral lever removed, with what prodigiously powerful ac- tivity would the restraints of moral conduct rebound, and mankind plunge into the commission of every excess ? It is bpcause millions tremble at the thought of the future re- 31* 246 THE RELIGION OP THE BIBLE tributions of a righteous and a vigilant God, that they are outwardly and to some extent moral and virtuous. If these restraints were removed, the visits of a good man on earth would become as rare as the visits of an angel, and his abode would be as transient. It accords with the genius of Infidelity to applaud much which is directly immoral. The very object of language, Talleyrand, the infidel bishop of Auton, would tell us, is to conceal our thoughts. Hume is well known to have said that adultery, if undiscovered, was no crime whatever. Clever deceit and imposture, injustice and impurity, are perfectly commendable in proportion to the amount of talent displayed in their execution. Such are some of the cardinal principles of Infidelity, and in view of them it is hard to doubt, that the natural result must be hostile to mo- rality ; that, indeed, pure morals are wholly incompatible with them. Fortunately for Christianity, as well as for the true cha- racter of Infidelity, there exists one remarkable and re- nowned instance of a nation generally infidel, ruled by an infidel government, and that instance stands forth as a warning to all ages as to the results of that system. There is no picture more terrible in the history of the world than that of revolutionary France, the boasted land of elegance and refinement, the home of philosophy and fashion, of chivalry and of glory. On the one hand, we see her Sabbaths abolished, her churches turned to theatres, and her priesthood imprisoned and slain. We see the most sacred ties of nature despised and violated. Distrust, self- ishness and cruelty take the place of family affection, of friendship, and of all the ordinary sympathies of human existence. On the other hand, poverty and want become • the promotives of universal licentiousness, whose fires are fed by the confluent resources of beauty, accomplish- AND INFIDELltY. 247 ment and wit. The knowledge and fear of God are for- gotten, and every base passion is allowed to run riot in boundless freedom. An infidel and blaspheming gbvernment makes league with the grave and hurries its thousands to a violent death ; the soil of France is deluged with the blood of her bravest and best citizens, while her cities and plains echo with the lamentations of bereaved myriads. Surely we may say without exaggeration, that the su- premacy of hell in crime and wo, was at last endangered by the scenes which were there enacted within the bor- ders " of the beautiful France." What awful miseries were there inflicted ! what savage cruelty was there ex- hibited ! Not only did death ravage the land, but such a sink of moral corruption and filth did France become ; so completely was almost every religious institution and as- sociation removed ; so wholly heathenish had that people become ; and to such universal wretchedness and disaster did all these calamities lead ; that had this state of things continued for a few years, the whole social fabric would have dissolved in revolutionary ruin. France, even with all her vast resources, was rapidly verging toward this end ; nothing produced it but the influence of Infidelity and its natural consequences ; nothing prevented it but the return of Christianity, though even in a corrupted form. Never may the sun shine on another scene of such national dis- grace, of such individual ruin, of such social wretchedness, and of such universal and terrific wreck ! Passing from this instance of a more general nature, we add, that all the great instances of individual ferocity and depravity, which the world has seen, grace the an- nals of Infidelity. Among ancient heathens, the most no- torious public enemies were unbelievers in regard to thie po- pular superstitions which prevailed. And as the principle of contempt for religion is at bottom always the same, we 248 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE may add, that all other men eminent for depravity in Chris- tian lands and ages, were infidels. Among this list of wor- thies may be named Danton, Mirabeau, Fouche, Bonaparte, Borgia, Machiavelli, Robespierre, as well as others known for less striking crimes, Payne, Voltaire, Marat, Frederick the Great, Rousseau. An equal list of incarnate depravity no age, or nation, or association of men can possibly pro- duce. Infidelity impedes holiness and purity so directly, that even if a man, by some strange mental accident, should be theoretically an infidel, and yet would have any impulses toward what was virtuous and benevolent, he would find his greatest impediments from his own system. This might, indeed, be inferred from the fact that it so strongly promotes vice of every sort. How can any system be favorable to virtue, when it removes every motive to its culture ? Infidelity represents it as an evidence of weak- ness to practice the principles of moral rectitude. It makes it even disgraceful to be good ; thereby removing that out- ward desire for respectability which sometimes thjrows a check upon the conduct of men, and makes them more virtuous than they otherwise would be. But it accom- plishes this object more successfully by removing those influences which alone can generate real excellence and holiness — a love for the law and the character of God. The effect cannot follow without the cause ; the fruit can- not appear without the tree ; neither can genuine holiness, or holiness itself, be produced without the existence of pre- ceding influences, — to all of which Infidelity is wholly and irreconcilably opposed. That the religion of the Bible, on the contrary, is pro- motive of the growth of holiness, is a concession, as well as a complaint, even of its adversaries. " Holiness to the Lord" is its grand and constant motto, which adorns and AND INFIDELITY. 249 sanctifies its pages from its beginning to its end. The history of the operation of its truths teaches also that this is not simply an abstract principle which is incapable of producing a corresponding result ; but on the contrary, that it changes the most hopeless subjects, and powerfully ac- complishes the result which it enjoins and commands. It brings to bear upon the soul the most powerful motives which could urge to action, stimulating it by every con- sideration drawn from time and eternity, from heaven and from hell, to seek the culture of moral excellence ; and then it throws around it every facility to aid in its attain- ment of this object, which could possibly assist it on its heavenly way, — the guidance of God's spirit, the conso- lations of his grace, and the treasures of his' word. Infidelity is destructive of social security and of the stability of governments. Its evil influences are not con- fined to man in his individual capacity, but operates ruin- ously upon him even in his collective relations. So dis- organizing and destructive of everything good is it, that whatever seems promotive of security, of order, of justice, and of the most valuable rights of mankind, is hateful to the genius of infidelity. Now existing governments, or social compacts, have for the most part been good. They have been constructed by the combined wisdom, patriotism, and endeavors of men, seeking their best temporal inte- rests. Hence governments have usually produced far more happiness than misery. And even when governments have been defective, and have resulted in injury to some extent, these evils were infinitely smaller than the evils produced by a revolutionary movement. Many things of the worst nature are involved in a re- volution. Such a movement implies a contempt for existing laws ; and a contempt for those who are chosen to execute them. It implies a disregard for the happiness 250 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE of Others, which is put in danger by such struggles. It implies a disregard of the happiness of those whom they involve and seduce into the struggle with them. It im- plies, in a word, a total indifference as to consequences, of the most important and vital nature. Now unless, as in the case of our own Revolutionary struggle, great rights and principles are involved, which justify such a 'move- ment, and make the good produced thereby far greater than the inevitable evils, there can be no proper justification of such a deed. But such principles are the last ones to urge and incite infidels to resist the existing authorities. The American Revolution was a Christian Revolution ; and we behold the consequences. The French Revolution, on the contrary, was an infidel Revolution ; and we can read in the annals of the two, the wide difference which exists be- tween these tvro systems from their diverse consequences. The one was the revolution of patriots, of philanthropists, and of men ; the other was the revolution of infidels, of murderers, and of demons. It cannot be denied that Infidelity does tend to promote the injury of government, because it maintains that these are all accidents, the result of superior strength and tact, and hence, liable to be overthrown by a power superior to themselves whenever such shall appear. Infidelity regards laws and governments simply as the product of the selfish- ness of those who happen to be in power, and that to pull down and set up government is a trivial affair, in which no moral responsibility is involved. Like the ancient law of the Spartans concerning theft, the only requisite and penalty depend upon the skill in which the deed is executed. On the contrary, there is no security to laws and govern- ments as great as that which the Bible bestows. It affords the most solemn sanctions to the powers that be, inas- much as they are ordained of God. It enjoins upon all AND INFIDELITY. 251 men, to pray for those who are placed in authority, that they may have the grace to rule well, to the promotion of God's glory and the best interests of the people. In no case is rebellion justified, excepting where the rights of man and the interests of religion imperiously demand it. Even in cases of extreme tyranny, forbearance and peace are commended ; and the suffering victim is commanded to refer his case to that God who is above all earthly masters, who is no respecter of persons ; and who will one day rectify all cases of injustice and oppression ; and whom no ruler can corrupt. Even in such instances of change which the Bible permits, it teaches so much regard for jus- tice and mercy even there, and amid the stirring and ram- pant scenes of revolutionary violence, that the greater por- tion of the evils which usually attend such events are ameliorated. Infidelity, if universally prevalent, would produce universal anarchy ; Christianity, if universally pre- valent, would promote universal order, security, justice, and peace among all the nations of the earth. Infidelity powerfully promotes selfishness and ferocity among men, and destroys all that natural affection which is so necessary and so conducive to human happiness. Notwithstanding the fall, there are some traces of man's primitive glory of nature remaining; and although they are faint indeed, yet they constitute, when cultivated by the grace of God, his noblest characteristics. We some- times see displayed even by heathens, a benevolence of nature, a disinterestedness, a patriotism, a philanthropy, which are worthy of admiration and remembrance. But infidelity naturally tends to destroy even these. The family relation, which produces so much pure happiness in the world, it destroys by promoting promiscuous licentious- ness. By this means it weakens the affection of parents for children, of children for parents, and hence Kousseau 252 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE sent all his offspring to the foundling hospital, as soon as they were born, thereby forever destroying all hope of subse- quently identifying them. Imagine a nation composed of such characters, and the amount of social peace, security, and comfort which would there be enjoyed ! But the evil influence of Infidelity in this direction does not here end, in disorganizing the family circle. It carries its ruinous principles far and wide into society, makes man a selfish, cruel, crafty, ambitious tyrant with whom there is no rule of action but interest, and no standard of right but main force and power. The strongest prevails, and thus disputes and claims are all ended. By stripping man of his immortal ingredients, by leveling him to the grade of an intelligent and powerful animal, human life becomes of little value, human souls lose all their deathless interest. The infliction of injustice and misery on such beings loses almost all its baseness as well as importance. In- fidelity denies that "Denique coelesti sumus omnes oriundi, Omnibus illo idem pater est ;" lowering men, therefore, to an earthly source ; and attribut- ing their existence to the action of the laws of nature, or any other cause, it denies all responsibility in securing the spiritual or temporal interests of those around us ; as well as all responsibility to God, for the evils which men may inflict, and the injustice which they may perpetrate upon their fellows. It cannot be denied, that the tendency of Infidelity in this respect is most ruinous. It gradually hardens the whole being and nature of man. It brings evil principles and influences to bear upon him, so that at length the entire nature becomes encased in callous selfish- ness and insensibility. The fiends who enacted the scenes of the French revolution, were doubtless possessed of the AND INFIDELITY. 253 usual share of sympathy and feeling, which fall to the lot of ordinary men ; but so completely had their principles gradually extinguished their feelings of humanity, and sub- stituted others, disgraceful even to the brute, that they were prepared to accomplish deeds more black and fearful than any others perhaps which have ever deformed human his- tory. How wretched is the state of him who is physically blind! His eyes strive in vain to see the light. From his view are withheld all the varied beauties of nature in sunshine and in storm. He is shut out from all hope of seeing the starry heavens above him, and from the glorious visions which surround and charm the soul below. He is the companion of ceaseless night and gloom. All that is interesting on earth ; all that gives life its joys and com- pensates for its ills ; all that might mitigate the miseries which afflict our inevitable pathway to the tomb, — all these are hopelessly denied him. Thus with the unfortunate soul which is blinded by Infidelity. The brighter glories and richer joys of the moral world are all hidden from its view. That world to such is involved in darkness. There is no great sun to shine upon it, dispensing light and joy and heat. There are seen no beauteous tints of heavenly day which show forth the benevolence and love of the Creator. There are no genial showers to re- fresh the soul, to make it fruitful ; and no golden harvests to attest its prosperity, or prove the nearness and presence of the universal Sun and Preserver of all. It is alone in eternal night and solitude. Infidelity furnishes no hope in death, and on its own grounds ensures no happiness to the soul beyond the grave. It teaches that death is the dissolution both of body and of soul, and therefore holds out no prospect to a dying man, excepting that of perfect and eternal pbjj- 22 354 THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLiE vion. Beyond the scene of death, of course there are no everlasting ages of joy and enjoyment conceived of. No exalted existence of purity and happiness appears in pros- pect ; no widening and extending vistas of pure delight and genuine excellence. All these, and whatever else con- stitutes the rational heaven of the good man, are directly and wholly denied. But every dying infidel cannot realize in himself even the miserable comfort which such prospects afford ; for his fears and terrors then arise, quickened by the near- ness of an eternity and a judgment which he had long de- fiied, bat never could wholly disbelieve. It stands recorded on unanswerable authority, that on his death bed, Voltaire signed a complete recantation of his infidelity, and a full confession of the truth of Christianity; and that, besides this, when near his end, he displayed the greatest terror, remorse and anguish. When his infidel friends, his brethren in Satan, would approach his dying couch, with their irreverent mockeries and consolations, he exclaimed, " Begone ! it is you who have brought me to my present condition ;" and then cried out in the most piteous tones, " O Christ, O Jesus Christ, have mercy !" So appalling was this scene, that his friend and physician withdrew in terror from his chamber, and his nurse declared her deter- mination never again to wait oh the dying sufferings of a " philosopher." The last moments of D'Alembert were employed by him in calling for a priest, and demanding the rites of a religion he had ridiculed. Diderot, in his last illness, sent for a priest, and after several interviews, pre- pared publicly to recant his infidelity. This act he would have accomplished, but his associates, hearing of his weak- ness, took means by force to prevent him. Such are the ffears, uncertainties, contradictions and terrors with which an infidel must die. AND INFIDELITy. 255- How diflerent are the views and prospects held out by the Bible ! Even if its promises were a delusion, they would be better than the cheerless alternative which Infi- delity offers. The. Bible, however, is able to fulfil its pro- mises, and gives even now, ample evidence to every im- partial investigator, that it will not fail in accomplishing its declarations. It bids the redeemed soul to look forward and upward for the boon of endless being. It promises that hereafter, from the bosom of its Father and its God it may behold all the convulsions of earth, unmoved and un- affected. That, firmly seated in its everlasting abode, the echo of all earthly commotion will expire beyond the out- skirts of that happy land. Age after age will rflll away, but all will remain forever peaceful and undisturbed there. Welcome, then, is the grave to the beliex'er, for it is the portal to hira of a life and immortality beyond. With truth can he exclaim, "I know in whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep what I have com- mitted to him until that day." He is assured that his small interests arc bound up by God in the bundle of ever- lasting memory, and will be no more neglected or forgotten than the interests of a world. A.nd though now the voice and the jest of the infidel may be heard, assailing in vari- ous forms the religion of his heart, and the Saviour whom he adores ; though now indeed the foe of God may seem to triumph and wage an equal warfare with the truth ; he' is assured that the day approaches when every moutli shall be stopped, when every opponent shall be vanquished, when truth will force conviction on every heart, and the world and the church will exult in the triumph of that ce- lestial song : " The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ, and He shall reign for ever and ever." 256 CHAPTER VII. ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS AND VARIATIONS OF MODERN INFIDELITY. SECTION I. By Infidelity in the present case, and in all instances where the word is accurately used, is meant not simply a denial of the inspiration and divinity of the Bible, but some positive system of belief, which is opposed to the Bible, and substituted in its place. Hence, unless such a positive infidel system be harmonious and consistent with itself, it cannot be true. The votaries of Infidelity might be allowed to oppose Revelation on various, and even on conflicting grounds ; but when it came to the establishment of a substitute for Revelation, and the proclamation of those principles which were to be the stay and the creed of the world, then nothing like discord or disagreement can of course be admissible. But we are able to prove, without much difficulty, by a simple adherence to facts, that from the first opponent of the Bible and its truths, in the days of Jewish scribes and Roman idolaters, down until this hour, there never have been that unity and consistency in the principles set forth by infidels, which are always inhe- rent in the nature of truth; but that by an endless succes- sion of contradictory principles, boldly announced, and obstinately defended, they have shown that they maintained conflicting and equally worthless forms of baseless error. It ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS OF INFIDELITY. 257 will be our endeavor, in the present jchapter, to make good this assertion. In discussing the subject of Modern Infidelity, it might have been expected, that we would have separately sur- veyed the various forms of it which prevail in different countries. Such indeed seems to be the most natural order of discussion. But the reader will perceive that the themes heretofore discussed in these pages, are all gene- ral in their character; and that no particular school, or system of doctrine, or any one point of the Christian evi- dences is examined. It will also be seen, that each topic is of such general complexion as to embrace under it, each individual error and absurdity of its own class. In this respect, we have varied designedly from the usual method of investigating these subjects. In the present chapter, the principal schools of Infidelity will naturally call for a more minute and individual examination, with special reference to that strong test of error or of truth, their unity and consistency, or rather, their entire want of both. That truth is ever uniform and consistent, none indeed who are acquainted with the subject, will be disposed to deny. For truth is absolute and changeless, having its basis in the character of the Supreme Being; hence it must be consistent. Hence we may lay it down as an undeni- able position, that where there is no unity, there can be no truth. Thus Mohammedanism and Budhism are not necessarily true, because they may be consistent with themselves, (supposing that this was the case.) For they may possess consistency in error. But, on the other hand, if they do not possess unity or consistency, they must be false. The same holds good in regard to Infidelity. Even if it were uniformly consistent with itself, it would not fol- low that it was necessarily true ; but if it is not uniformly 22* 258 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS consistent with itself, it does follow that it is necessarily false. And this is the charge which we think so clearly applies to that system. It is a position whifih may be easily maintained by re- ference to appropriate facts, that infidels have never agreed in reference to one solitary thing, which they have inserted into their system of opinion ;. and hence, even though the Bible was false, and no truth deposited there, it could not be found with Infidelity. The general history of their endless changes shows, that they have contradicted each other, not simply in regard to what they would believe, but in regard to what they would oppose. Thus they have ever disputed how much of the Sacred Volume they ■would condemn, and how much they would admit. They have ever disagreed as to the means by which they would oppose the Scriptures ; and as regards the proper modes of resisting a system which they maintained to be erro- neous, though with greater or less admixtures of truth, according to the fancy of each disputant. It would be impossible to detail the countless and everlasting contra- dictions which mar and annihilate those positive doctrines, which they regard as their actual code of belief. Here indeed their opinions are a boundless labyrinth, — and as changing as the fitful winds of heaven. But we propose now to take a glance at the most prominent contradictions of the most prominent infidels who have lived and writ- ten, and whose opinions, being thus preserved in a per- manent form, may easily and accurately be compared. There is one point which here demands consideration. In excuse for the countless variations of Infidelity, we are sometimes told that the human mind is progressive, that it cannot arrive at certain truth at once, and hence many changes and emendations must be allowed it, in its march toward permanent certainty. But surely if truth exists in or INFIDELITY. 259 this process, or is attainable by it, it would long ago have been reached ; for this endless change has been continuing for a thousand years, during which time those who have rejected the plain teachings of the Bible, have taught and- pretended to seek the truth. Yet tliey are as far off from certainty and unity now as ever ; and hence are as far off from truth as ever, for truth is consistent. But not only have their innumerable speculators constantly changed ground from their immediate predecessors ; they have often returned again in some form, though seldom in an harmo- nious way, to the exploded errors of those who speculated long before them. Thus these champions move in a cir- cle ; they pass in solemn and pompous procession before us, each claiming to be the possessor of new light, to be advancing further and further toward ultimate truth, and leave all predecessors behind them. Although progress is right, and though some changes in speculative subjects may at first be allowable ; yet when hundreds of years have passed away, and thousands of powerful minds have expended their energies upon them, it is high time for men to have arrived at some general and permanent principles. Yet this, as is apparent to every intelligent reader, they have not done. There are no more unity and certainty now among infidels than there were five hundred years ago. We may excuse the folly of the man who would reason about the color and shape of the sun for a day, and could come to no conclusion ; but when he seems disposed to expend his lifetime in weighing various fancies and doubts in reference to it, we set him down at once as insane. The first reaction which opposed the progress of the truth, after the glorious Reformation had delivered it from the shackles which had been consolidating around it for a thousand years, was that of the English Infidelity, headed by the name and the labors of Hobbes and his imrae- 880 EXDLESS CONTRADICTIONS diate pupils,^ In his principal work, the Leviathan, he affirms that the existence of God cannot be proved, inas- much as all terms which express the incorporeal, the infi- nite, the invisible, have no meaning for the human under- standing, because they represent something not represented by sensations, and ought to be banished from philosophy and religion as vain phantoms. Thus he removes all dis- tinctions between right and wrong ; he contends that every man has naturally a right to everything, — a right to secure everything he desires. As this principle carried out, would lead to constant struggles, he teaches that war is man's natu- ral state, and hence is in itself commendable. His whole system destroys all idea of rights and duties, and of every moral obligation whatever. Directly in the face of these assertions the next eminent English skeptic, Lord Herbert, maintained that the following doctrines were the basis of all truth : The existence of a God ; the dependence of man on God ; that man is bound to reverence God ; and that there is an essential difference between good and evil, right and wrong. He also added that piety is the harmony of all the human faculties, and that these principles in- cluded the substance and sum of all religion. He thus ex- cluded all reference whatever to Christianity ; yet one of his own followers, Blount, held that these principles could have no authority over man, if it did not rest on an his- torical basis, on Christianity. Spinoza, the noted Pantheist, though not an Englishman, taught, in opposition to Hobbes, not only that God exists, but that he is the only existence ; that he is the universal substance; and that he is as such complete and absolute. Every other object and form of existence are merely attri- butes and developments of him. In opposition to Herbert, he taught that there is no such thing as right or wrong, be- cause such an idea is incompatible with a system, where OF INFIDELITY. 301 everyAing is identical, and everything that happens is the result produced by the pervading energy of the one universal substance.* Shaftesbury, in his turn, taught tliat every religious doctrine was unnecessary and therefore false, excepting that of God. The idea and the influence of revelation and inspiration were nothing but fanaticism. He thought the Bible altogether too melancholy, and gave the preference to heathenism for cheerfulness. Wollaston admitted that if the miracles of the N. Test, could be proved beyond doubf, they would form proofs at once suf- ficient and conclusive. Morgan, another English infidel, affirmed that miracles in any case were foolish and simple, and he affirmed that the apostles differed in their doctrines and narratives. Bolingbroke set forth that the Chri'slianily taught by Paul was different from that taught by Christ. Many of the doctrines and facts revealed in the Bible were nonsensical, and others of them heathenish. Compare with these statements the opinion of Rousseau and other infidels extolling the literary and intellectual excellence of the Bible in the highest degree. Bolingbroke, among other things, condemned the law of the Bible respecting mar- riage, in allowing but one wife; while other infidels grant the exalted purity and worth of the moral system contained in the sacred volume. Matthew Tindal taught, in his "Christianity as old as the Creation," that man needs no additional or divine reve- lation, and that if such an one should be given, it could contain nothing but what was already in one's own reason. * The distinguished Stapfer thus defines the theory of Spinoza : Per Spinosismura intelligitur ilia hypothesis, qua statuitur unicara tantum modo esse sjibstantiam, duobjs simiris attributis prasditam, cogitatione scilicet et extensione infinita ; prout autem duo hsEo attri- buta vaiie modiflcantur, etiam varia oriri vel corpora vel animas. Theologia Folemica, vol. ii. p. 588. 202 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS He affirmed that the principal personages of the Bible are unworthy of respect, and that some of its doctrines led to the grossest errors. These views are in opposition to those of many infidels, who have admitted the dignity, moral worth and admirable traits of the Scripture heroes; and only affirmed that they were not convinced of the inspira- tion of the volume itself. Hume, the last of English in- fidels worthy of notice, propounded other principles at variance with the notions of his predecessors. He held that the foundation of all religion must be found in man himself, and that the essence of religion consists in the ad- mission of a God and morality. What that morality is, may be inferred from the fact, that he denies that adultery is a sin at all when unknown, and affirms it to be a very small one when known. In regard to miracles, he affirms as much as to say, that they could not possibly have happened, whatever may have been the proofs and the testimony in their favor. Herein he differs from other skeptics, who do not deny the possibility of miracles, but simply that the proof of them in the case of the New Testa- ment, is insufficient. He holds that though the doctrine of a God must be admitted; he must be regarded simply as an infinite vegetative power, which supports and sus- tains the universe; thus in reality denying the personality of God, and his spirituality altogether. Hume also denies the possibility of establishing the truth of any infidel system of doctrines, or the truth of anything on the subject of religion. He affirms that even the principles of natural religion are incapable of proof; all religious doctrines are doubtful, and Providence and the immortality of the soul cannot be proved or rationally believed. Gibbon labors to show, that the extraordinary spread of Christianity in its early ages, can be attributed to the operation of natural causes ; whereas other infidels have endeavored to prove OF INFIDELITY. 263 that the success of Christianity in those ages was riot as great as is usually supposed. The despicable Paine bases his objections to Christianity simply on the petty difficul- ties and inconsistencies which he supposes he can discover in the sacred volume, without presuming to argue any of the great and general principles involved in the subject. His chief arguments he draws from the swallowing up of Korah and his company by the earth, the destruction of the Canaanites, and the harshness of some of the Mosaic laws, and their rigid punishments. Every insignificant difficulty which his entire ignorance of Jewish and Christian antiquities, history and language prevented him from un- derstanding, he brings forth, arrays it in the flimsy garb of his own ingenuity and perversion, and then boldly dares the world to resolve his objections. In opposition to some of the English skeptics, he taught that from the works of God we can form an idea of his attributes, that these attributes are not unintelligible, and professes himself to be a deist. But his God was the God of reason, the God of nature, and of self. There is not one of these men, who compose the most eminent of the English skeptics, who maintained im- portant theological doctrines in harmony with each other. As will be seen by this sketch, they differ on each prominent topic in religion, and we have purposely omitted their end- less differences on the less important points. Not one principle of all those which they investigated, did they all agree upon, and in reference to every one of them, each maintained his own conflicting sentiment. If any one were to attempt to assort a system out of the materials thus fur- nished him, it would indeed treat de omnibiis rebus et quibusdam aliis. The ardor with which the French infidels assaulted everything sacred, everything Christian, would induce us to think that they had settled upon some uniform and har- 264 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS monious system of their own, from which they drew sup- port for their presumption, and countenance for their zeal. The student of French Infidelity will be destined to a slad disappointment in this reasonable expectation. For here we find, if anything, still more extravagant and irreconcil- able notions ; more abhorrent to reason, more ruinous of every human hope and interest, and more contradictory and internecine of each other. And aside from the contra- dictory character of their opinions, there is no more dread- ful spectacle presented by the history of this creation, than that of French scholars, philosophers, and statesmen, living under the guidance of French infidelity. This In- fidelity was theoretically proclaimed by such men as Vol- taire, Rousseau, Diderot and D'Alembert ; it was practi- cally carried out in the lives and crimes of such men as Robespierre, Danton, Mirabeau, and Marat — the most fiendish, bloody, and brutal cluster of names the world has seen, before whose intensity of guilt and hideous- ness, the names of Nero, Caracalla and Caligula are harm- less and tolerable. No reader of history will deny that France, from the year 1790 to the year 1815, presents a scene more terrific than any other exhibited by any na- tion, ancient or modern. Christian or heathen. The prac- tical part of this subject we will not here enlarge upon, having considered it in the Contrast between the Religion of the Bible and Infidelity. Voltaire taught in different works which he published, that he was doubtful as to the existence of a God. He denied the existence of Providence,-as well as the immor- tality of the soul. He considered the soul to be material, and thought, mechanical. If a God existed at all, it was one who had no concern in the afi'airs of the world. He believed that the events of life proved, that if there was a Supreme Being, he could not administer a providence in the OF INFIDELITY. 265 world ; inasmuch as all events seemed to be so uncontrolled and so inconsistent. In regard to the moral system of the Bible, he maintained that it was the same as that of Cicero and Epictetus. He labored to make everything connected with Christianity ridiculous, absurd, and worthy only of the contempt of every acute and philosophical thinker.* " In bold opposition to these principles, the other great head of French infidelity, Rousseau, maintained that the Christian religion is full of elevated purity, dignity and sublimity. He even conceded that the Scriptures possess these attributes so far that God alone could have been their author. But he opposed them on the ground that the un- derstanding could not admit a revelation ; and that so many contradictions exist in the Bible, that, on the other hand, God could not have been its author. His skepticism he therefore termed an involuntary one. He professed him- self willing to believe if only his doubts could be removed. He believed in a God and a providence, in opposition to the notions of Voltaire. In opposition to him again, D'Alembert held that the existence of a God was without proof, and that it was wholly unnecessary. Hence he denied all idea of a pro- vidence and jurisdiction exercised over the world. Dide- rot denied the immortality of the soul, and all distinction between right and wrong. Every man, therefore, should be allowed to do as he pleases, and to choose according to * According to the definition of Stapfer, Voltaire was, beyond doubt, an atheist : Atheismus est negatio existentise divinBB sive entis a se, quod in se continent, hiijus universi rationem. Illi qui aut sibi persuaserunt, aut saltern dubitant, nullum tale ens existerej vooantur Athei. Tkeol. Polem., ii. p. 585. — Materialismus est illorum hypo- thesis, qui non admittunt nisi existentiam entium materialium, et prop- teria si Deum esse conoedunt, etiam ilium pro ente materiali habent. —Ibid., p. 589. 23 266 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS the instincts of his corrupt nature. The whole religious system of these men may be denominated one of denial of all truth on the one hand, and of indifference to all truth on the other. While some held to the existence of a God, and his necessary control over the world, others denied these principles, and maintained with equal firmness, the existence of universal chance. Some granted the excel- lence of the moral system of the Bible ; others denied it. Some represented the literary and practical merits of the Bible to have been of a high order, and others ridiculed it in every form, and held up everything which is connected with it to contempt. The last hero of French Infidelity worthy of note, whose contradictions swell the general variety, was Vol- ney. According to him, the great duty of man is that of self-preservation, to take care of his life, in the ordinary sense of the terra,, and that is the highest wisdom and achievement by which life is prolonged to the greatest length. He virtually denies the existence of any soul in man ; for he held that man was nothing but a collection of nervous organs, and the soul, the centre or condensed point, where matter possessed its greatest acuteness of feeling and action. He did not deny the distinction be- tvifeen right and wrong ; for he made those things right which tended to prolong life, and those vices which short- ened it. He held that life is the highest good, that ani- mal enjoyment was the greatest, and that physical pain and death are the worst of evils. Temperance, clean- liness, industry, etc., are virtues because they prolong life ; their opposite are vices because they shorten and destroy it. or INFIDELITY. 267 SECTION II. But the great giants of French Infidelity have ceased to live ; they have long since learned in another existence, the truth or falsehood, the wisdom or the folly, of their doc- trines ; — their places have heen filled and their work con- tinued by the countless herd of German free-thinkers who have since lived and written. Whenever a German wishes to become profound, he is sure to become very obscure. A clear stream will show its bottom, even though its depth may be very great. A muddy stream will be impenetra- ble to sight, though it may have no depth whatever. The great characteristic of German Infidelity is its union of presumption, erudition and frivolity. The English Infi- delity is marked by its manly tone and earnest endeavors to defend its positions, combined with great power of thought. The French Infidelity is marked by its great ingenuity, its keenness and its frivolity. But the German Infidelity has none of the English manliness, nothing of the French in- genuity — only its own dullness and self-confidence. Of the three it is the most learned, or purely scientific, and therefore the most pedantic and assuming. It is also the most discordant and contradictory, in consequence of the greater variety of its blunders, and greater license assumed by it. The first dawnings of German Infidelity were achieved through the instrumentality of Nicholai, who -established an infidel magazine in Berlin in 1765. As is the case in the perpetration of almost all wickedness, the first attempts in this case were gradual, moderate and progressive. His plan was to recommend in general all works which were written against Christianity, and to condemn and ridicule all those which were written in its defence, without 268 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS laying down any set of principles of his own. Wolf, the expounder of the philosophy of Liebnitz, carried on the work covertly on another principle, that of defending the principles of Natural Religion as being those taught and supported by reason. While thus the merits of the re- ligion of nature were strongly set forth, the merits of the religion of Christ gradually were thrown in the rear. The famous Bahrdt succeeded him, in the order of time, in opposing Christianity by still another means. In his trans- lation of the New Testament he endeavored to render everything perverse and unnatural, and thus threw it open to implied ridicule. He made the personages of Scripture speak and act as though they had been Saxons or Prus- sians living in his own day. He denied the doctrine of the inspiration of the Scriptures, on the ground of their unreasonableness ; but he retained the doctrines of the existence of God and the immortality of the soul. In the progress of time other infidels arose, under the garb of professed believers, such as Eichhorn, Gabler and Paulus, who, in their various expositions of Scripture, endeavored to remove everything supernatural. All the miracles of the Bible they represented as events produced by ordinary means ; whatever seems to indicate the presence and ope- ration of God, they softened down, until they deprived every doctrine and every fact Of all that is superhuman and divine. Throughout their writings there is a low, frivo- lous and trifling spirit perceptible, which tends to degrade the sacred writings in the eyes of superficial readers, as it degrades themselves in the eyes of the discerning. These various schools were the heralds only of that powerful and compact body of Infidelity which succeeded them in the German community. The greatest attacks made on the Bible were afterward achieved through the agency of philosophy " falsely so called." There is no OF INFIDELITY. 369 literary phenomenon in the world, which combines more of the strange, the monstrous, and the ridiculous, but espe- cially of the last, than the world-renowned German philoso- phy. Taken as a whole, throwing all the various systems together, no parallel to it can be found in the history or the freaks of mind; That Kant was a great and profound thinker will not be denied ; he still retained a hinge on reason and common sense, from the portion of Scotch ex- traction that was in him. That Schelling was a man of varied learning and good abilities, will also be admitted. But surely the world has never produced two such dreamy and bootless adventurers in thought as Fichte, and espe- cially Hegel. They were presumptuous in laying down dicta as clear, undeniable intuitions, in which there is no reason perceptible, and which, for all that appears to a rational being, may be affirmed as positively the contrary. When one of these philosophers maintains, as a great principle that " I is I ; everything is what it is ; everything is either I or not I ;" and when another of them lays down the fundamental principle, that an " entity is nothing, and that the unity of entity and nothing constitutes existence;" when these are the great foundations of their specula- tions, the value of the whole system may be inferred. And these assertions are made, not without some small acquaint- ance with the writings in quSstion.* We may easily infer the way in which Christianity would fare in the hands of such reasoners, guided by boundless presumption and the arrogance of false science. Every one of these patriarchs in German philosophy set • In what is here said of the philosophy of the Germans, refer- ence is only made to such points as have reference to religion, and we have restricted ourselves to notices merely of their theological principles and moral tendencies. 23* 270 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS forth a system of religion, or rather of no religion, in hostility to all tTie rest ; scarcely on any one point of im- portance do they harmonize and agree. While they could all pull down and destroy, none of them has established one principle which has stood the test of assault, and proved itself true. Kant taught that human reason was incapable of attaining a knowledge of invisible things, and that there- fore, in reference to such subjects, men must follow the "categorical imperative,", the absolute intuition which is planted in the breast of every man. This is the voice of nature ; and should that voice, however corrupt, contradict Scripture, the former is "imperative," and should be fol- lowed. In carrying out this principle he teaches that there are three great truths, the existence of God, the liberty of man, and the immortality of the soul, and from the last he infers a future state. By various processes of reasoning he endeavors to establish these great principles. The re- sult of this system was that Christ was esteemed only be- cause his morals resembled those taught by Kant. He may also be regarded as denying the necessity and reality of a divine revelation ; though the contrary might have been expected, when he affirmed that reason could not attain a knowledge of the infinite. Throwing away Revelation he contends that man's inward consciousness will teach him morals, will instruct hifti as to duty. This is the function of the " categorical imperative." When he speaks of God it is a personal God ; for he had not arrived at the refinement of his successors by whom the personality of the Deity was denied. The successor of Kant upon the throne of German phi- losophy, was one of his own pupils, J. G. Fichte. His system was originally based on his predecessor's ; but he soon set up for himself, and eventually propounded an en- tirely different one. His religious principles may be de- OF INFIDELITY. 271 scribed as follows. He denies the idea of a divine revela- tion ; and in reference to God, he denies his personality, and terms him the moral order of the universe ; that he only exists as operating and acting in the human soul ; that the thinking of the mind is the active existence of God, and thus man and God are made identical. According to him, a thought, and the object of it are also identical. He held that external, objective nature is created, so far as it exists, by the activity of the mind, its thoughts. His sys- tem overturns all distinctions between right and wrong, between God and man, between reason and revelation, be- tween the present and the future. Accordingly, it is a system of Idealism, denying the absolute existence of all matter ; yet it is an ideal pantheism. He reasoned thus : All matter is only a phenomenon, an appearance ; for if we were not here, it would not be here. It depends for Its qualities, on our bodily and mentalorgans. The house which now is to us white and hard, if our organs of vision and touch were differently constructed, would then appear differently ; the house might appear red and soft. In other words, the house has no inherent nature or existence at all, and is a phenomenon produced by the faculties of the mind, and the organs of the body. This is illustrated in common life ; for an object will appear comparatively smooth to a man having a very hard hand, which will seem very rough to another possessing a very soft and smooth one. From this idealism in reference to matter, he proceeds to idealism as to mental phenomena. Right and wrong seem so to us now, simply because our faculties are now con- structed as they are. Hope, ambition, love, hatred, sin and holiness, time and space, are mere pictures of the brain, mere impressions produced on the mind by other influences. If we were differently constituted mentally, the impression produced on the mind would be different, 272 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS by the same principles. Hence tiiese principles (right and wrong), have no inherent, absolute nature. By such vagaries as these the whole foundations of knowledge, of truth, of God, of revelation, of moral ob- ligation, and even of all absolute existence are overthrown. In the mean time Scripture is forgotten ; and the great teachings of the Supreme laid aside as one of these base- less phantoms, the product of man's own intellectual na- ture and operations. As will be seen, Fichte denies im- portant doctrines which Kant maintained, those of God's existence and personality, a revelation, and a future sepa- rate existence. On none of the great points of religious truth do they agree. What the one with great pains and labor by his reasonings built up, the other with equal toil and success, in the same way pulled down. In the progress of these endless contradictions, we come to the system of Schelling, whose philosophy exerted great influence on religion. Schelling taught the unity of God, in opposition to Fichte. He taught the power of the mind to form conceptions concerning the infinite, in opposi- tion to Kant. His system is called the Philosophy of the Absolute, because he makes the subject of thought and the object one ; knowledge and being are one, God, though a personal existence, exists as the universe ; and becomes personal as he advances in the work of developing him- self in the universe. This consciousness is most clearly enjoyed in the creation of man. Man, therefore, is the Infinite in his highest state of development, and clearest, fullest degree of consciousness, because he is the greatest work or product of the Infinite. This is Pantheism, not purely ideal, as was Fichte's, but material, like Spinoza's. This system overturns the doctrine of the joersona^ respon- sibility of the soul here, and its immortality hereafter. It teaches that after death the immortal mind will return to the OF INFIDELITY. 373 general life of Ihe nniverse, of the absolute again, of which it formed part before birth. Virtue he defines to be " a state in which the soul acts agreeably to the internal ne- cessity of its nature, and not conformably to some law without." He subverts all moral obligations, because he subjects everything to a blind fatality, inasmuch as every- thing must develop itself, precisely as it is developed. Hence, where there is no freedom, there is no responsi- bility, and hence no virtue and no vice. But his system has had its day, and has now given place to a successor, whose opinions are the most obscure, whose influence is the most injuries, and whose doctrines are the most blasphe- mous, probably, of any opponent of reason and revelation who has ever lived in any land or age. The system of Hegel teaches that ideas or conceptions are the only real existences ; and that there is nothing in the universe more substantial than concrete ideas. Hegel maintains that in all mental processes, the mind only looks inward upon itself, upon its own ideas and represen- tations; and that by analyzing these it arrives at all know- ledge of what is saidio be without the mind. His system is termed an absolute idealism, therefore, from this pro- minence given to conceptions and ideas in it. Hence he maintained that pure conceptions are entities, and not the representatives of entities. He asserted that whatever is rational is actual, and whatever is actual is rational ! By this absurdity all claims on moral conduct are useless, since whatever occurs or exists, or is " actual" is rational, hence is right. This system is a pantheistic one, for it maintains that all things are one and identical. It affirms that thought and being are identical. In regard to God, he is defined to be Nature coming to self-consciousness. He is the 274 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS absolute idea; he hence exists only as knowledge; and therefore his existence is only in that being who possesses knowledge, that is, man. Hence God is that being which thinks in man, — he is that pnncip/e which thinks in him. Hence if the thoughts of man are evil, (according to the standard of the Bible,) if sin hgs a place in the thinking being, it is God as much as if it were holy. Hence there cannot be anything censurable in sin, — and in truth there is no sin, for what is God cannot be "sinful." But fur- ther, by these means sin becomes positively lovely and commendable — the crime of the midnight assassin is as praiseworthy as the benevolent act of the philanthropist. For what God is ought plainly to be worthy of commen- dation. By other stops of reasoning, Hegel arrives at the dictum, that " Something and Nothing are the same." Hence the all-pervading pantheistic essence or existence of God, which he before affirmed, and which is the Uni- versal Something, thus becomes Nothing, — God is nothing ! We have here arrived at the last sublime development of human reason ; plunging blindly and clumsily about in the abyss of "Nothing" to find out truth, to describe the character of God, to discuss those eternal principles which lie nearest the interests of immortal beings, and to settle the principles and the nature of knowledge. Surely hu- man reason has here achieved her greatest possible out- rage upon herself; — she has doubtless been delivered of her last and most horrid monster, and after this achieve- ment can do no more externally to debase, to brutalize and stultify herself! In a system such as this, there is no room for such an idea as an atonement. The future ex- istence of the soul is simply the general life of the uni- verse ; and though in one sense man is immortal, it is only an immortality like that of the human race; a gene- OF INFIDELITY. 275 ral, transmitted, and not an individual and independent one. Such is the latest form of Modern Infidelity, espe- cially of the more scientific or philosophical sort. The Infidelity of Strauss, Roehr, Feuerbach, and men of simi- lar stamp, is of a more critical and exegetical kind ; it is the quibbling infidelity of Payne, only aided by the re- sources of ^eat learning and laborious research. The grounds upon which each opposes Christianity are various and contradictory ; though in a practical way they are as injurious as the more recondite and profound attempts of the philosophers. They denied the inspiration of the Bible, called in question the authenticity and genuine- ness of many of the books of the Old and New Tes- tament ; they explained away the prophecies, cast impu- tations on the motives of Christ and his Apostles, and disputed the miracles of the Bible and the necessity and possibility even of any divine revelation. In reference to the opinions of Strauss, the greatest of these last writers, the reader will find something further said elsewhere in these pages. Cotemporary with this last form of German Infidelity there has arisen the modern school of French philoso- phers, with M. Cousin at their head. Diverging from all his predecessors, he claims to be an Eclectic, to establish a system of his own, comprising the good collected from all the rest, and excluding the evil. How much evil he has excluded and good gathered, may appear from the fol- lowing statements. He teaches that spontaneous reason is God, the first and last principle of all things. For rea- son is literally an universal Revelation, which is wanting to no man ; it is the mediator between God and man, it is the Logos or Word made flesh, which serves both as the interpreter of God and the teacher of men, thus being 276 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS divine and human at the same time. Hence of course humanity is inspired. Every man thinks, and therefore thinks God — God being everywhere present, returns to self-consciousness in man. In human reason there are three prominent ideas, the infinite, the finite, and the ref- lation which exists between them ; the passage from these ideas to God is easy, for they are God himself. M. Cou- sin affirms most distinctly, the pantheistic principle of his system ; for he says God is at once true and real, at once substance and cause, that is to say, being absolute cause, one and many, time and space, — in fact God is everything. Having reduced the divine nature to this simple Panthe- ism, he teaches that there is nothing incomprehensible in that nature, but that the mighty tread of philosophy can thread all its labyrinths. Mystery is a word which philo- sophy does not recognize. God is thus described by him as reason, thought, space, number; and in creating the universe he does not form it from nothing, for the su- preme tribunal of philosophy has decided that ex nihilo nihil Jit. Hence he draws forth the universe from himself, the universal and absolute existence. Christianity he re- gards as a good moral system for the common people ; while the god-like philosophy alone is worthy of the ac- ceptation of the more knowing and intellectual. As to any moral obligation, the duty of repentance and other similar follies, there is no fate for such but to be laughed at. Why shall the divine humanity pray to the divine in God 1 — are they not one ? Why shall the former repent itself of sin? — is not reason divine 1 how can it err? Is not every act of the divine humanity holy? — why repent of it? Such is the character of the latest French philosophy ; exhibiting the same endless absurdities, contradictions and abortions. It is held and proclaimed by such men as Theodore Jouffroy, Eoyer CoUard, and Damiron. It is a OF INFIDELITY. 277 philosophy worthy of the descendants of Diderot and Volney, maintaining on different grounds equal hostility to the truth, equal presumption in error, and producing an equal amount of injury and delusion. SECTION in. But the ravages of Modern Infidelity have not been con- fined to the hostile speculations of philosophers, nor to the open attacks of the professed enemies of Christianity. Its traces are clearly seen among many who pretend to some regard and respect for tlie religion of the Bible. It is seen among different sects which would fain be numbered among those who are genuine believers of the truth. No form of Modern Infidelity is more ruinous to the interests of true religion than that which covertly as well as openly prevails among certain classes of nominal Christians. And here, for the most part, our subject c6nducts us from the men and the principles of the Old World, to those of the New. , Here, in the modern home of religious freedom, error in every imaginable form has run riot, and produced its rankest fruit. Here all the various delusions and heresies which corrupted humanity has devised, during all the past ages of the world, and among all the nations of Christen- dom, are gathered together in one body, " and are welter- ing like an Egyptian ' pitcher full of tamed vipers, each struggling to get its head above the others."* For a long period these errors met with too great opposition from the originally pure elements which marked the first inhabit- ants of the land, to permit them milch to prosper. But the infusion of foreign infidelity, and the boundless free- dom of opinion which is here enjoyed, have gradually • Carlyle, Sartor Resartus, p. 16. 24 278 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS given greater energy and success to the propagation of unbelief. And as these causes continue to operate in years to come, the struggle between truth and error will continue with enlarged and increased power and importance. But here again we observe that these various forms of error are marked by the same endless variations and contradic- tions which have ever belonged to it. In truth, these contradictions are here the most numerous, the most vari- ous, and the most irreconcilable ; exceeding in these re- spects the diversities of error which have elsewhere existed. Their influence must therefore strongly operate against each other ; and though their energy in opposing all that is true and good will be strong, their power in opposing each other will be stronger. And here is one ground for the future moral security of our land, that no one form of error can ever triumph, inasmuch as each is opposed by the united ambition and rivalry of all the other forms of it. When we remember the vast importance of the doc- trine of Christ's divinity in the Christian system, we are not surprised that Unitarians are classed among errorists and infidels. For if we knock away this foundation, this corner-stone of the sacred edifice of truth, the whole su- perstructure falls to the ground. Those who deny Christ's divinity, who maintain the unity of God's person in op- position to a trinity of persons, pretend to teach a doctrine which is both Scriptural and reasonable, and therefore in- disputably true. But in examining the doctrines of Unita- rians we meet, even on the one point of a Trinity, a va- riety of contradictory notions ; we look in vain for that unity which is the test of truth. American Unitarianism may be traced to a period prior to the Eevolution. The first church of the sect appears to have been formed in Boston, in 1785. From that pe- riod the heresy spread gradually through various portions OF INFIDELITY. 279 of the New England States ; and one church was formed by the distinguished emigrant Dr. Priestley, at Northum- berland in Pennsylvania. The possession of Harvard University, which afterwards fell under their influence and control, gave a mighty impulse to the spread of Uni- tarian sentiments ; and imparted a greater degree of learn- ing and scientific culture to the preachers of these doc- trines. But when we come to ask the question, what do these errorists teach ? we find as many opinions as there are churches or associations. Even in regard to their funda- mental doctrine concerning the nature and person of Christ, various notions prevail. Some of them teach that all creeds are useless, nay in- jurious, and simply hold to the Bible, each one exercising the right of private judgment as to its contents. Others of them deny this priftciple, and hold that creeds are in themselves useful, that they are absolutely necessary to the existence of a church, and hence employ one in setting forth their own views. In regard to God the Father, some hold his strict personal unity; contending that he has no relation whatever to the person of the Son. Oihers maintain that there exists a close relation between the two persons ; and that the Son being derived from the Father, though inferior to him, is still in close connection with him. Some teach that the sufferings of Christ were not needed in order to render God merciful toward the hu- man race ; while others hold, that it is only in consequence of the interposition of Christ, and the performance of the part which was appointed him by the Father, that man- kind are saved. Some hold that Christ did not suffer as a victim of God's wrath or to satisfy his justice; while others strongly condemn such opinions as highly objec- tionable. In regard to Christ's person and existence, some teach 280 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS that he is a created being produced by the Father. Hence they hold him to be a mere creature, the noblest and most illustrious of creatures indeed, but still without any share in the divine nature. Others teach that he is not a created being, but that he is a divine personage, vcho has mys- teriously proceeded from the Father. Hence he is not eternal ; he has had a beginning, and though divine, is far in- ferior in dignity and glory to the Father. Others go so far as to hold, that he is God and even uncreated, eternal, as to his divine nature, jind only secondary and created in reference to his relation as Son toward the Father. They suppose that the very idea of a son in>plies an existence posterior to him who begets. Thus Christ's nature and functions as Saviour of men, and as judge are derived and have had a beginning. This is the mildest form of Uni- tarian infidelity which exists, yet it is as absurd and as injurious as any other. Others deny all divinity to Christ and the Spirit, because any divinity in any being but one, involves the idea of more Gods than one. If there is anything divine in the Son ^nd Spirit, they become gods, and thus there are three separate divine personages. Some of them accordingly hold it right to address Christ in prayer, and offer hira the petitions and gratitude of the worshipper. Others con- demn this act as wrong ; and hold that prayers should be offered only to the Father, the divine being. There are some who teach the pre-existence of Christ, previous to his appearance in the world as its Saviour. There are others, ■who hold that he possesses no existence whatever, pre- vious to that event ; that he was created body and soul, by the Father when he entered the world, and received from him those powers and that commission which he here ex- hibited. While some Unitarians hold that the inquiry con- cerning Christ's nature and person is of but little conse- OF INFIDELITY. 281 quence, there are others who justly maintain the contrary, that it is a point of the greatest importance. Many Uni- tarians hold, that Christ received from his Father an im- parted divinity ; and that it is to this, that those passages of Scripture refer, which speak of Christ as God. Others contend, that only the mission and offices of Christ were divine, that is, appointed by God. Some admit the mira- cles of Christ to have been genuine, achieved through the almighty power of the Father. Others hold that these miracles are not genuine, but were the result of deception and trickery. There are some who hold that the sufferings of Christ were not penal, designed to satisfy the demands of rigid justice. Others teach that the cross and its suffer- ing stand connected with the forgiveness of sins, and that when Christ died, though he did not, and could not make an infinite sacrifice, that sacrifice was enough to wash away human guilt, and was designed to accomplish this purpose. Concerning the Holy Spirit, some Unitarians believe that he is a person possessing a nature which has been given by the Father, and forming an inferior being to either the Father or the Son. There are others who hold that the Spirit is no person whatever, but simply a divine in- fluence which is exerted by the Father. Some of them hold to the doctrine of native depravity, and thus teach the necessity of an atonement by Christ, and of sanctification by the Spirit's influence. Others strongly oppose all idea of native depravity ; and exalt human nature in the most extravagant terms. They almost are guilty of the apo- theosis of humanity, and might as well dispense with the necessity for an atonement altogether ; representing man as not alienated from God, able to do every good deed, and absolutely worthy of the divine approbation. The doc- trine of future rewards and punishments some of them 24* 282 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS hold, and others deny; and this inconsistency results from their discordant opinions respecting the nature of the atone- ment, some contending for a general atonement, and others for a limited one. The preaching of the Gospel and the ordinances of religion they hold to be useful and instruct- ive exercises, while others affirm that they possess no di- vine authority, and confer no important advantage. These are some of the endless contradictious which are held and defended among that class of American freethinkers who boast of their superior mental culture, and of their freedom from all superstition. These are they who af- firm the principle and the right of progress, and of advanc- ing illumination in regard to the principles of religion. Pretending to be Christians, there is scarcely a solitary doctrine of the Christian system, of a fundamental cha- racter, which they do not deny or adulterate. How near they have arrived at truth will clearly appear, from the nearness they have attained to unity. Our preceding statements have been drawn from many of their own pro- ductions, and that there are no agreement and system among Unitarians, is a position of which any one will be con- vinced who studies their principal productions. Here, then, is the first form of Modern Infidelity, as it has ap- peared in our country. We look in vain here, again, for anything like concord of sentiment, even on the funda- mental point of their own system. As time advances we behold one change and contradiction after another con- stantly progressing ; till, in the present features of the sect, we can scarcely discern any lineaments which resemble its original parentage. This is in accordance with an ac- knowledged principle, that mind is free, that truth as re- vealed, can yet be divested of many adhering incumbrances ■which the superstition and ignorance of former ages have thrown around it. The results which this principle, thus OF INFIDELITY. 283 carried out, effects, are seen in the endlqss absurdities and contradictions which have just been stated, and which exist in the pale of one small sect. In accordance with these principles, the next step taken by the friends of false light and freedom, consists in a re- finement upon even the doctrines usually held by Unita- rians, and comprises a medley of errors, more absurd, and at least as varied as those which we haVe just considered. Precisely as the rationalism or heterodoxy of Germany was followed by the production of transcendentalism and in- fidel philosophy ; so in our own land, the heterodoxy and rationalism of Unitarianism have been followed by the transcendentalism and would-be philosophy of Cambridge, as set forth by K. W. Emerson and similar spirits. It is true this form of Infidelity is small in its influence and insignificant in its diffusion ; just as those who proclaim it are personally insignificant and weak. But this deve- lopment illustrates a principle ; it shows what will be the results of certain doctrines, even when carried out in dif- ferent hemispheres. It proves that the intervention of oceans, no more than the revolution of ages, alters or ■weakens the power of error always to develop its legiti- mate fruit, and that the same errors will uniformly and everywhere, under similar circumstances, produce the same results. The contradictory nature of these errors here also cha- racterizes them ; and the heralds of this false philosophy, though few in number, set forth diverse views. Some of them hold, that the Deity is the substratum of all things ; others teaching the proper personality of God. By some of them man is combined with the Deity, and hence identified with him. They declare that God is in the mountain air, in the stars, in the hills, in the canvas and pencil of the painter, in the chisel and the stone of the sculptor, in 284 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS the towers and domes of the architect. Some of them hold that man is the constant worker of miracles, and that religion is so progressive in its character, when properly understood, that the Scriptures must be interpreted in snoh a way as not to offend the divine reasons of men. The days of inspiration are not past. Even now, in the god- like sovil of man, the thoughts of the Eternal are repro- duced, and principles and emotions akin to those which nestle in the Great Spirit himself, are evolved and enter- tained. Some of them teach, that Christ is not divine in a theological sense. Others, that he is divine just as all humanity is divine, partaking of the nature of God. As to miracles, they are represented as absurd, in the common conception entertained of them ; that the blowing clover and the falling rain, and the shining sun are miracles, as truly and in the same sense, as are the exploits recorded in Scripture. Some of these wise men teach that every man ■who thinks is inspired, — as much so as were the sacred penmen ; that men should look into their own souls for illumination and divine guidance ; that they themselves had discovered many important truths which the Bible has failed to teach. They hold that even Unitarianism is too credulous and antiquated a mode of teaching religion, and that it now becomes the divine in man to be and to grow, in further illumination, and in throwing off the vestiges of ignorance and simplicity which still belong to it ; and in regard to each and all these points, the members of this intellectual union are divided, and each in looking for the divine in his own soul, has discovered the element in some modified form and varied degree of purity and power. This divine light in its brightest and last coruscation haS rendered itself illustrious by setting forth, for the mastica- tion of the literary world, this precious morceau, " the law of gravitation is identical with purity of heart." OF INFIDELITY. 285 For the most part, this latest form of Infidelity pretends to hold that the reception of a theology which is trans- mitted from others, simply on authority, is absurd ; that the simple truths of Christianity are of greater importance than any of those mysteries which the selfishness and superstition of men have engrafted on them. They deny the propriety and reasonableness of having any creed, of imposing any standard of opinion whatever. They allow free scope to the divine in each individual, to pursue his own preference both as to theory and to practice. This principle being proclaimed at the outset, by these new heralds of light, will only require the progress of time, to produce not only the most extravagant, but also the most contradictory vagaries which can be conceived or pro- claimed by the " divine" in man. But there is not only an Infidelity for the learned, based on scientific claims and principles ; but also an Infidelity for the unlearned, for the popular mind, guarded and supported by proofs adapted to the popular tasle. In all ages such a form of Infidelity has always appeared, side by side with the other. Modern Infidelity has also as- sumed this twofold aspect ; and in the sad delusions and perversions of a system which claims to be Christian, but is more truly infidel — Universalisra — we find a distinct illustration of this remark. In the endless contradictions of this form of Infidelity, is shown the usual want of unity which characterizes error, and which goes to prove the hopelessness of finding truth here, as well as elsewhere, in the wide domains of unbelief. It is of course mainly with the contradictions of this system that we have now to do. Its friends maintain that it alone is truth, and that every other form of Christian doctrine is erroneous. Now if the principal doctrine of these errorists be true, it must be related to a whole system of other truths, which are 286 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS closely connected with it. For instance, if universal sal- vation is a true doctrine, it will have certain permanent relations to the doctrines of native depravity, the person and twofold nature of Christ, the nature of sin, the nature of the atonement, etc. If, on the one hand, this doctrine of Universalism be false, it will not possess any perma- nent relations to all these other doctrines ; but each or all of them may be variously held in connection with that principal doctrine. Now this is really the fact. The de- fenders of Universalism not only vary endlessly in refer- ence to their central point and principal doctrine ; but they hold the most contradictory opinions concerning all the related points of the Christian system. Thus in fact they are united on nothing; they are divided about everything; their views have no harmonious consistency with each other ; and they have no permanent and necessary connec- tion with all the other points, which necessarily belong to the Christian system. The inference is plain, that in such contradictory sentiments, so isolated, and so void of all absolute unity and adhesion, there cannot be found the truth, which is one and eternal. In proof of this remark let us glance at the views held by these errorists. In the outset we are met with the singular circumstance, as well as fatal one, that they are wholly divided into two grand and hostile sections, in reference to their main doctrine; for some teach that all suffering is confined to this world, and that good and bad enter heaven immediately after death ; while others hold, that there is suffering after death, but that all will finally be restored to universal happiness. Now these two pro- positions are wholly contradictory. There is as much difference between Restoralionism and Universal salvation, as to the principle, as there is hostility between Universal- ism and Calvinism. The one is as destructive to its op- OF INFIDELITY. 387 ponent as the other. The suffering of the wicked in a future state for a day, just as powerfully opposes the whole theory, whereby sin and misery are confined to this life, as is the suffering there of a century. Both of these can- not be true ; the one annihilates the other ; and yet they are both held in the same ecclesiastical communion, and are considered as forming two grand divisions or aspects of the same truth. Proceeding to the related points we find our previous assertion confirmed; for some Universalists hold that the sufferings of Christ were penal, and others, that they were not. Some believe that Christ is God; others deny it. Some hold the pre-existent state of Christ, while others teach that he was created, as an exalted personage, at the period of his birth in the flesh. Some believe in a per- sonal Devil; others regard this term as used in Scrip- ture as simply representing evil passions. There are some who teach that the soul enters a state of dormancy at death, in which it remains until tlije resurrection ; and some hold the contrary. Others of them are Calvinists, holding the doctrine of absolute decrees, while others again are Arminians. Some teach the doctrines of the Trinity, and some deny it. We learn that one portion of them administers baptism by sprinkling, and another by immer- sion. Some contend for the literal use of the sacraments, while others leach the necessity only of spiritual baptism and communion. Some teach a spiritual resurrection only, while others believe in a literal material resurrection of the buried body. And thus indeed, we might name almost every point or doctrine of theological knowledge, and affirm with truth, that these errorists maintain opposing and contradictory views in reference to them. Our assertion is literally jus- tified, that they agree, in the proper sense of the term, on 288 ENDLBSS CONTRADICTIONS no one point, while they disagree on every other point. It is impossible to designate any one cluster of opinions, held together either by logical or Scriptural unity, which can be described as forming the creed of this sect, or even the creed of a majority of it. All is confusion worse than confounded. Their own productions, from which the preceding statements have been in general taken, fur- nish the most ample evidence to prove the endless varia- tions and contradictions which exist among those who choose to belong to the class of sectaries under considera- tion. How can truth, or the certainty of truth, exist here ? It is vain to look for it, though there were not countless other, and unanswerable proofs to show the erroneous character of this doctrine, — this one fact would show it, that, like Satan, it is " divided against itself," and therefore " cannot stand." That it has no basis in truth, as a system, is also proved by the fact, that its friends are constantly ad- vancing to greater diversities, and less and less uniformity is existing among them. Though Universalism has no longer any prominent place in the attention of the com- munity, and no influence upon its feelings and principles ; though it makes no progress, and achieves no triumphs, and gains no accessions ; its friends themselves are anni- hilating constantly, the little unity which had prevailed among them. Thus they destroy more and more among themselves, even the semblance of truth. This remark is proved by the fact, that while the primitive Universalists held to the inspiration, or at least the equal authority of all the Scriptures, their descendants have begun to call certain particular passages in question. Some deny the authority and the truth of one chapter, another ventures the same as to another paragraph ; until what was once set- tled and uniform among Universalists, has now become wholly arbitrary, disputed and fluctuating. This is one OF INFIDELITY. 289 form of that boasted freedom and progress to wliich all infidels in every age have made such constant claims.* SECTION IV. But all the exploits of Modern Infidelity have not yet been enumerated. It would be unfair to pass by a few remaining achievements which grace the annals of the latest scientific researches. Dissatisfied with the plain and rational account given in the Bible of the origin of the uni- verse and the Providence which governs it, the author of the late " Vestiges of Creation" has set forth a theory in opposition to all others which had previously been main- tained, and wholly irreconciliable with them. He teaches, of course in opposition to the Mosaic ac- count, that the origin of the world may be accounted for on natural principles, and without the intervention of divine agency. He supposes that the regions of space were ori- ginally filled with exceedingly difljised and intensely heated * When viewed as a religious system, Universalisra cannot be re- garded by any intelligent and candid observer in any other light than that of the most injurious error. It Is the vmrst form of religious be- lief which can possibly be indulged in ; because it removes all necessity for moral excellence. It removes all fear of the consequences of sin; and offers perfect impunity to every vice. It deforms the character, and obliterates the justice of God. It offers no possible motive to virtue and holiness ; and all the teachings of the Bible and its fearful denunciations of coming wrath, are rendered entirely false and ab- surd. The preaching of the Gospel is made entirely useless, and the establishment of the Church and of the ministry is rendered unne- cessary and offensive. The Word of God is violently distorted from the plainest meaning of many of the plainest passages. Hard is the heart and beclouded is the mind which can seriously entertain such a revolting form of error ; and harder stiU are the hearts which can venture to preach it, to the fatal delusion of others. 25 290 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS matter, of a nebulous or hazy nature. It is then urgetl, that nuclei or central masses are condensed in the nebulous matter, around which, by the law of attraction, the neigh- boring substances will be drawn. Then the law which attracts these smaller masses to the larger, will give to both a rotatory motion ; just as in a whirlwind or whirlpool, the motion of the air or the water is turned in a circular direction around any stationary substance which may ob- struct the current. When this rotatory motion is estab- lished, the natural tendency will be, by centrifugal force, for these bodies to throw off detached matter. This effect would be produced in proportion as the centrifugal force, would exceed in power the centripetal force. Here we have planets, moon and satellites. We have, in a few words, a system which accounts for the whole material universe. But this theory, varying as it does from all other infidel suggestions, resembles them in the errors and assumptions which it displays. We hear it urged that we can thus ac- count for the universe independently of the Mosaic nar- rative. But how many things are here taken for granted ? Mention is made first of the existence of nebulous matter throughout space ; but who formed that nebulous matter ? Even though all the succeeding steps of the argument were logical and conclusive, we have here an important defi- ciency. No hypothesis can be given to assign the cause, on merely natural principles, of the existence of this nebu- lous matter. If it exists at all, it came then not by any process inherent in previously existing tendencies and laws, but by the direct and creative agency of God. We have here the existence of a necessary first cause, just as plainly as in the account of Moses. This theory then supposes that portions of this nebulous matter are at- tracted together, separating from some, and attaching them- OF INFIDELITY. 291 selves to other portions of that matter. This is accounted for on the principle or law, that larger substances attract smaller. But who created that law, and infused it into matter ? There is nothing- in nebulous or other substances, calculated to generate that law any more than any other law ; any more for instance, than the law of universal re- pulsion. We must here again admit the existence of an independent first cause, who infused this law in matter, and thus produced these adhesions and combinations. It is also said that these combinations of smaller masses with larger having been made, the principle of circular motion and revolution, which is given as the cause of the plane- tary movements, would commence. But not without an impulse first communicated to them from the rear; and who is to give that impulse ? No law now existing in matter would impart it ; for the existing laws of matter on this subject are, that it remains in the condition in which it already exists, whether of motion or of rest, until that state is altered by other existing and more powerful causes. Without the agency of some other cause, therefore, to start these bodies in motion in a right line, no circular motion could afterward be communicated. Hence we must again admit the existence of God. But there is another point connected with thisnew theory which deserves attention. Having eijdeavored to account for the inanimate creation in the way just alluded to, one great point yet remained to be considered. That was to explain if possible, on its own principles, the origin of the animate creation ; to account for the existence of the countless races of living beings in the world, without ad- mitting the agency of God. This is done by asserting that all animal life is produced through the action of mechanical and chemical causes. The elemental form of organic being is that of the globule, 293 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS containing a new globule within itself, which is in time discharged, and thus the process continues. It is asserted that these globules can be, and have been produced in the laboratory, by the operation of certain chemical agents. Hence when once the principle of originating life in this form has been established, all the subsequent developments will take place as the natural process of cause and effect. It is urged that if organic life can be produced in one case by these means, without being originated either by the power of the Creator, or generated by previously existing life, the principle is established, and it only demands the existence of circumstances in order to develop the whole scale of the animated creation. This theory, so ingenious and plausible in many respects, is based upon several assumptions and errors. The first is, that the affirmed production of animal life through the operation of chemical processes, by passing a current of electricity through a solution of silicate of potash, has been achieved but by several experimenters, while the thousands ■who have tried it besides, have uniformly failed ; hence the reported success in this case is liable to suspicion. The experimenters were liable to be deceived ; for the length of the experiment being nine months, and the liability to accident, and the intrusion of already existing animalculae, into the substances experimented on, all prove that the ac- count is very suspicious, and that those who report it, were themselves deceived. Especially is this probable, when it is remembered that the insects thus produced were microscopic, belonging to an already known variety of a known species. And even if this reported experiment and its results were true, it could not establish the point at issue. Because this fact would not account for the exist- ence of thousands of much more complicated orders of beings. Though globules instinct with life were produced by chemical processes, those processes would not, on that OF INFIDELITY. 293 account, produce an elephant. And we see no evidence in the works of nature which show, that one species of beings ever passes over in the process of generation into another; a fish is never known to have descended from a bird. Here, again, would be required the direct agency of some creative being — and that being is God. And although there is much of development and evolution in the animal as well as material creation, by which amazing changes are produced, all these operate uniformly according to cer- tain well known and inimitable laws, which laws have existed and been observed for ages, yet have never shown the least tendency toward working results by which one species of beings produce or pass over into another wholly different. These are not new theories, and it is not so much for the purpose of confuting them that we allude to them, but to mark their contradictory bearing toward other forms of Infidelity. While some of these forms grant the operative agency of God in the creation of the universe, and in reference to the production of each individual race and being, this denies all these views, and holds it to be ridicu- lous, that God should condescend to work whenever a muscle or a reptile was to be formed. This objection forgets that though God may not set his hand, as it were, to the production of each individual of the countless in- habitants of the universe, he did establish the laws, and supports them in execution, by which these beings are produced. In this process there is nothing which is un- worthy of the dignity and supremacy of God. These theories are also in contradiction to other Infidel supposi- tions, by which all things are supposed to have come by chance ; by a fortuitous concourse of atoms, controlled by the operation of no laws whatever. But all these absurd and vain conceits are in plain opposition to the Bible, which 25* 294 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS in the plainest manner gives another and a nobler genesis to the universe around us. In opposition to this development of scientific Infidelity, and possessing a wholly practical or utilitarian aspect, is the Socialism, the Owenism, and the Fourierism of the day ; which, though possessing but little claim to intellec- tual distinction, is sufficiently mark-worthy and monstrous to deserve attention. This form of error has its own pub- lic upon which it operates ; and while it fails to command the confidence and respect of the more sensible portion of the community, it fascinates the weak-minded on the one hand, and the corrupt on the other, of both sexes. While it never ventures to deal with the great questions of the nature of mind, the constitution of the universe, or the principles of philosophy, it pollutes the practical, the every day domestic and social opinions of men. It teaches various absurd and conflicting notions in reference to the universal brotherhood of men, the value of a com- munity in wives, in goods, equality in rights for both sexes, the uselessness of laws, the true nature of freedom, and the ability and disposition of men, under free and honor- able influences to do everything that is right. The na- ture of this form of Infidelity is that of silliness, dreami- ness and turpitude in the extreme ; while the inevitable consequences of it are the prevalence of loose notions of moral obligation, and the general disorganization and cor- ruption of the community. This Infidelity is contradictory to all the rest, because it teaches that the highest end and aim of man is to be sought in his physical and temporal relations, and that no speculations on the abstract and re- condite themes upon which others so constantly dwell, are of any value to human happiness, and are of no merit or consequence in themselves. Often have these abominable principles been tried on a limited scale ; and always have OF INFIDELITY. 295 these trials resulted in the self-annihilation of the bodies of men who espoused them. Often have these principles been exhibited in the lives of those who professed them ; and in all cases such persons have degenerated into the commission of execrable acts of baseness, selfishness, and impurity. So strong is the tendency of these doctrines to produce these censurable results, that both sexes are equally debased by them. Neither the moral vigor and firmness of men, nor the greater refinement and native purity of women, have been the least safeguard to their injurious influences. Now without enumerating the particular points on which these errorists conflict and disagree, it must be said, that on no important question, even on those which have been already specified, do they harmonize. Hence their influence and organization have become dissipated, and can scarcely be traced or recognized in the countless fragments which lie scattered abroad over New England — emphatically the land of American lUuminism. , We believe that we have now arrived at the latest form of infidelity, which has made its appearance upon the Btage either of philosophy, theology, religion, or social existence. We have looked in upon every important demonstration of infidel views, which has been made in modern times ; and though that glance has been a general one, it will still be sufficient to give us an idea of the con- tradictory and irreconcilable character of the various sys- tems which have existed ; that while justly demanding a general and fundamental unity, we have found no unity at all; and that while we rightly condemned even a partial hostility, we have been compelled to behold and abhor an universal one. Now in taking a survey of the various points in refer- ence to which contradictory opinions have been held, we find them to be of the most important and cardinal descrip- S96 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS tion. We see that Modern Infidelity has been devoted to the defence of doctrines the most opposite and adverse, on every prominent point in theology, in morals, in phi- losophy, in sacred history, in reference to the past, the pre- sent and the future. Thus in regard to the first and most interesting of all inquiries, as to the being of a personal God, what endless disputes have we seen ? We have be- held the most contradictory opinions set forth ; some teaching the existence of God, and others denying it, and others again entertaining a modified view, that admits the existence of God, not as an individual person, but as the laws of nature, or the moral order of the universe. In regard to the attributes and character of the Divine Being, infidels have held various views; inasmuch as He is sometimes represented as possessing every glorious at- tribute, and again He is described as unjust, changeable and imbecile. These writers have differed as to the pos- sibility of a Revelation, some holding that such an event was possible, and others that it was impossible. They differ as to the necessity of a Revelation ; many thinking that there is," and others that there is not any such neces- sity. They widely differ on every point of morals ; and crimes which one class regards as of great importance, ano- ther represents as venial and insignificant. They vary in all their opinions of moral duties ; and nothing could be imagined more hybrid and incongruous, than the various notions which have been proclaimed on every subject be- longing to the ethical system. They differ as to the pro- per function of Reason in matters of religion ; some hold- ing that reason has no right to enter the domain of the infinite or superhuman ; and others teaching that reason is the universal test of all truth. They differ as to the immortality of the soul, some con- tending that it continues in &n eternal duration, others, or INFIDELITY. 297 that it expires with the body, and endures no more. They differ as to the responsibility of the present life, and its probationary character, some teaching that men's future de- pends on their present, others teaching the contrary. They differ as to the great purposes of the present existence ; for some hold the pursuits of ambition, others of pleasure, others of self-defence as the highest aim. They differ as to the existence of a Providence ; some contending for the universal prevalence of chance in the affairs of the uni- verse, others holding the idea of Fatalism, and others again teaching the rational jurisdiction of the Providence of God. They differ as to the origin of the universe, some ascribing it to one process, and others to another equally irrecon- cilable. They differ as to the existence and character of angels ; — as to the fact of the Fall, and as to the possibility of a future resurrection. Thus, indeed, might we proceed to the enumeration of every point of the least consequence, which has ever en- gaged the attention of rational man, and say with truth, in regard to every one of them, that they contend, and dis- agree, and exhibit the most irreconcilable diversity. It would be difficult to say, upon what one point Modern In- fidelity has ever been agreed. It would, indeed, be wholly impossible to designate one such solitary item. Any one who intelligently surveys this subject will perceive that Infidelity is wholly a negative, system ; it tears down every- thing, and builds up nothing. It destroys every human consolation and conviction ; but gives nothing in return. Like a robber grasping always at the treasures of others, it has never imparted the smallest pittance to supply the most urgent wants of those whom it has defrauded. From the preceding survey we deduce the following important inferences. The first is, in view of the endless contradictions of Modern Infidelity, that the truth cannot 298 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS possibly exist there. Truth cannot contradict itself. It is united and harmonious. Here in these infidel systems, we meet only with contradiction, and hence no harmo- nious truth can be found in it. We must first destroy these contradictions of Infidelity themselves. But if we venture on such a task, we destroy Infidelity itself — its nature is involved in these very contradictions. Had truth been there, it had long since shown and approved itself as such, and would have divested the opposers of th^ Bible, and the friends of unbelief of all their hostile attri- butes, and fused them into one. We infer again, that even if the truth existed in any one of the many forms of Infidelity, which we have described, it would be impossi- ble to decide which one possessed it; inasmuch as each claims to be the only true one, and each claims to be judged by the same standard. Even if we were to grant that some one form of Infidelity possessed the truth, it would be impossible to decide the proper claimant, as each makes the same pretensions, and each has nearly equal evidences to sustain them. Now it is absurd to say, that truth was never designed to be known and recogniz- ed ; its author God, intended it to be universally appre- hended, and hence universally received. If he designed the truth to be obeyed at all, he must have intended it to be known. But in this endless variety we should be lost ; and should be left in an uncertainty equal in hate- fulness and danger, to entire ignorance itself. It may be asked whether, when we cannot ascertain whether a thing be true or not, it thereby becomes impossible for it to be truth ? It would be- so much so, that our uncer- tainty would prevent us from proving any other system to be false; nor could we prove the Bible then to be in error, even if it were so. From the diversified nature of Modern Infidelity it results, that when men build up and OF INFIDELITY. 299 sustain one portion or school, by the same act, they pull down another portion or school. Hence they can never succeed in triumphing themselves, nor can they be suc- cessful in permanently injuring the religion of the Bible. We infer again that even if Modern Infidelity could be established as true, it would be highly injurious to men in an intellectual respect. It debases the soul from its highest and noblest aspirations, and binds it down to associations which are transient and trivial. It would be of no ser- vice in a moral or social respect, for it removes every no- ble incentive to virtue, every honorable inducement to ac- tion and excellence. It would be of no use in a spiritual respect ; for the immortality of the soul, and the heaven of the good as taught by Infidelity, and often denied by it, are unworthy of the regard or the attainment of a noble na- ture. If Infidelity be true, it disgraces God, sometimes by denying his existence altogether, and at others investing him with attributes which are unworthy and dishonorable. And if there was no other argument than this to condemn Infidelity, this would abundantly do it; for it is palpably absurd to regard truth as disgraceful to God, its necessary and only possible author. If Infidelity, be true it affords far less peace and consolation to man, than the truths of the Bible, in the present life ; and leaves our earthly ex- istence barren, hopeless and cheerless. If it be true, it takes away all noble motive to virtuous action. It degrades man to the brute ; it makes all his knowledge indistinct and worthless. It makes all duty and obligation uncer- tain ; and deprives every cheering hope, which illumines the future to dying men, of its brilliancy, its surety, and its value. Now in opposition to all these contradictions on the part of Modern Infidelity, we may assert with truth the unity and harmony of Christianity. The Bible is per- 300 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS fectly consistent with itself, and its religion, though diffused through countless lands, and developed in distant climes, exhibits the same features. Though minor differences must and do exist among thinking men, on the fundamen- tals of Christianity all Christians do agree. No one can declare that such opposite elements are presented in the different portions of the genuine church of God on earth, as to make union and identity impossible between them. Now in reference to this feature, Christianity has a vast advantage over Infidelity at the outset. And so powerful is the influence of the disunion of Infidelity, as contrasted with the unity of Christianity, that even if the latter was proved untrue, much less would the former be unable to sustain itself. It would break down at the outset ; for when the question would be asked, when truth is claimed for Infidelity — ^what is it? no definite and uniform answer could be given. And yet this undefined, chaotic, contradictory and con- flicting collection of " profane and vaip babblings, and op- positions of science falsely so called," is offered to ra- tional men, as a fit substitute for the venerable religion of the Bible ! Why should mankind be invited to forsake a religion which has satisfied the intellects, and improved the hearts of the greatest of men ; which has been illus- trated by the virtues, and adorned by the faith of a Paul, an Augustine and a Newton, the hopor of their' race and the glory of their age? Why should they be urged to forsake a religion, to whose service these great and good men consecrated their noblest labors, on whose sacred altar they offered the tribute of their purest adoration, to which they looked when living, as their securest guide, and upon which they reposed when dying, as their sweetest consolation ? These faithful monitors stand forth as giant watch-towers for all succeeding generations, pointing us OF INFIDELITY. 301 to the noble example which they set, and rebuking the vanity and presumption of their degenerate descendants-. The professed philosopher, surrounded by his learned tomes, and wandering forth amid the mazes of his specu- lations, and employing the aid of human science in all its varied departments, will be lost in the endless incongrui- ties which he will be tempted to adopt, and which will confound him on every side. He knows not what to think, or what to believe. He is now disposed to embrace one theory, tries it, soon becomes dissatisfied with it, se- lects another, rejects that in its turn, until at last he is disposed to give up in despair, to doubt everything, to dis- believe everything. But go to the pious peasant, whose obscure days are spent in some remote solitude, whose only instructor has been his Bible, and he will exhibit a delightful contrast in the calm and sure conviction of truth which he possesses. He has never been bewildered by the philosophemes which confuse abler men. He has never heard of Transcendentalism, or of the Critical philosophy, or the Empirical, or the system of Identity, or the philoso- phy of the Absolute, or the Eclectic philosophy. These fantastic dreams have never had a habitation in his brain, or confounded his rational view of things. "Along the cool sequestered vale of life, He keeps the noiseless tenor of his way." Ask him whence comes the universe, what the origin of ' evil, the nature of God, the character of the soul, the ob- ject of the world ; and he will make you an answer, drawn from the plain word of God, which wholly satisfies his mind, and which the profound philosopher will in vain attempt to gainsay. Though he cannot philosophize, he can feel; though he cannot solve difficult questions, he can believe; and this feeling and belief stand him in far better 26 302 ENDLESS CONTRADICTIONS stead, than would all the moonshine of philosophy which has ever dimly illumined the land of modern speculation and transcendentalism. The cause of this fact is, that although the infinite truths of the Bible may not be analyzed by finite minds, they may be felt by then) ; and the conviction of truth produced upon the mind by feeling, may be as powerful and lasting as that produced by mere reason and conviction. It is in this way th^t the Sacred Volume is intended to operate ; and it expects men to be- lieve that they may understand, or, as Augustine has it, credo ut intelligo. Those who practice this principle are led to the posses- sion of the sublime and saving system contained in the Bible — a system which is harmonious and consistent, and confers the noblest blessings on mankind. Is it reasonable that we should be expected to believe as true what is taught by the most reckless and unprincipled of our race, (as the preceding discussion shows,) and regard as absurd that which has been loved and venerated by the most illustri- ous men, whose every principle was based on the careful study of evidence, and whose every act was performed with constant reference to honor and duty 1 For the truths which they and we believe, have sainted martyrs long since died in Roman amphitheatres, at the burning stake, and in the desert solitude. For these truths they have endured, with heroic fortitude and unbending constancy, the keenest tortures of persecution — in the silent, chilly depths of dungeons, or amid the violence of infuriated crowds ; in the opulent cities of the East, and among the ruder inhabitants of the North. And while these divine truths have been maintained as sacred treasures, by men who were the ornaments of society, and the bulwarks of their country; the opposite opinions have ever been held by those who OF INFIDELITY. 303 were respected not the least, either by their own generation, or by a juster posterity. How injurious and fatal is this spirit of unbelief to the highest and noblest of human interests ! How many in- estimable blessings do infidels of every grade destroy ! how few blessings do they confer upon the world ! In- fatuated men ! The only torch of truth which throws its rays upon the gloom which broods over this fallen crea- tion, revealing and guarding the yawning gulfs which threaten us on every hand, they would quench in night. The only arm which can firmly guide the helm of the soul through the billows of this tumultuous ocean of life, they would remove; and they would let our unfriended spirits drive adrift, in a starless night, on tempestuous seas, amid dark and dangerous shores, without guide, or chart, or compass, or even the glimmering light of the distant watch-tower. Such are the services Infidelity has rendered to our dying race, and such the consolations it bestows. Though it speaks with a thousand jarring voices, and allures with a thousand deceitful plausibilities, they are all designed to destroy the s&me hopes, and inflict the same ruin. And this is the only unity of Modem Infidelity. 304 CHAPTER VIII. THE EXCELLENCE AND HARMONY OF THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM OF THE BIBLE DEFENDED.* In opposition to all this contradiction we open the Bible and find it harmonious. A superficial student of' the Sacred Volume would suppose, that because its doctrinal truths are not arranged in any connected or logical order, but are interspersed throughout its whole extent, there- fore no connection and inter-dependence exist between them. But no conception could be more erroneous than this. The more these doctrines are examined, especially in relation to each other, the more the individual import- ance of each one appears, as well as the indispensable ne- cessity of every one of them, to complete the consistent and harmonious whole. Like some stupendous arch, — if you remove one stone from its appropriate place, the whole mass will descend in ruins to the ground. Herein we see the merit of this doctrinal system ; for its logical connec- tion far surpasses that of any other form either of religion * We insert this chapter here on the principle, that often a simple exposition of Christian doctiine is the best defence of it ; or, in the words of Dr. Carson, "to state axioms is to establish them." One frequent cause of the prevalence of Infidelity is the fact, that no effort is made to become acquainted with the beauty and internal connec- tion of all the truths of Scripture. A condensed, yet systematic defenqe of them will therefore be of service, as aiding in giving such an ac- quaintance, and hence in furnishing such a proof. THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM OF THE BIBLE. 305 \ or philosophy, which uninspired men have ever propa- gated. Mohammed gave his responses as circumstances and dangers and interests suggested ; and as often contradicted himself as otherwise. But besides the inward coherence of the doctrines which the Bible contains, their unrivaled originality and excel- lence deserve special regard. These doctrinal portions are the most wonderful and valuable which the Book con- tains. Whatever may be the superior interest of other portions of it, those which present its scheme of credenda are the most inestimable. When we glance over them, either as set forth on the sacred pages, as the wants of men and the providences of God dictated, or as arranged in our own minds in their logical order and dependence,' we are struck with their amazing originality, their superior beauty and harmony, as well as their vast importance in reference to human redemption. We propose in this chapter to en- ter Into an examination of the merits of thife doctrinal sys- tem ; to present each dogma in its proper light and appro- priate place ; to endeavor to exhibit its value, and show its harmony with all the other sublime truths with which it is associated. I. The first great doctrine which the Bible proclaims has reference to itself, as the source from which all other doctrines must emanate, {Bibliologiai) It disciisses the nature and value of Revelation. It makes known the vari- ous inherent attributes of the Sacred Volume itself; and presents in clear light, the great truth, that this volume possesses every merit which the idea and the fact of a divine Revelation imply and demand. It was necessary that the Bible should discuss this point, inasmuch as before it proclaimed doctrines and duties as obligatory upon men, it should also promulgate the authority upon which these 26* 306 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM were based. And here this vohirae justly claims for itself a great superiority over every other religious instructor. For it demands a perfect and plenary sufficiency, and de- clares that it contains all the instructions which are neces- sary to guide mankind to heaven. It declares itself to be " profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for in- struction in righteousness ; that the man of God (thereby) may be perfect, thoroughly furnished in every good, work." It represents itself as inspired : " All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.* Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." It thus claims the highest authority for its teachings which could possibly be demanded, and thereby challenges the examination of men to ascertain whether it fulfils such high pretensions. It professes to be intelligible. Its valuable instructions are not hidden under an impenetrable veil of mystery ; but " wayfaring men, though fools, need not err there- in." " So clear are its teachings, that they are as " a lamp to our feet and a light to our path." It regards it- self as having plenary authority to proclaim, doctrines and enjoin duties ; and that none others possess the right of adding to, or substracting from, its declarations. " If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in the book. If any man shall take away from the words of the book of this pro- phecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life." Now on the important doctrine of Eevelation, three things deserve to be noticed. (1.) The possibility of a • Paul declares that he had proclaimed the whole counsel of God (n-ao-uv SniKvt rm &£ou) to the Christians at Miletus, Acts xx. 27 ; and what was complete in the preached word, would be so, also, in the written. OF THE BIBLE. 307 Revelation of the will of God to men cannot admit of a reasonable doubt. God can do all things ; this is implied in the very attribute of his divinity. That he is able to do it in such a way as best to accomplish the purposes of a Revelation, also results from his combined wisdom and power. That a written Revelation, changeless and endur- ing, is best adapted to instruct mankind, is a truth which even reason can ascertain. The divine benevolence, then, which is also a necessary ingredient in the character of God, would urge him to make such a Revelation, as is best adapted to the wants of our race. This plainly teaches US that such an instructor as the Bible represents itself to be, is a possible and rational idea. (2.) The necessity of a Revelation such as the Bible claims to be, is taught us by the observations which we make of the inability of others to discover truth when unaided from above ; as well as by our experience of our own inability to accomplish this same purpose. The sal- vation of the human soul demands such a Revelation ; for without it we are " without Christ, having no hope, and atheists in the world." Unless God condescends to teach us, we must descend to our graves unblest and unsaved ; utterly unprepared for heaven, and necessarily destined for hell. (3.) The fact of a Revelation from God to men, upon which all the authority of Scripture depends, is proved by the existence of Nature around us, which is as much a revelation of his character and will, as far as it extends, as a written revelation is. Hence if God has revealed himself in the works of Nature, in order to accomplish one set of purposes, it follows that he will be willing to reveal himself in another way, to attain different ends. This way is contained in the Bible. The fact of a Re- velation, first proved in nature and in providence, is 308 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM confirmed and completed in that Revelation made in Scripture. This book claims to realize the fact of a writ- ten revelation in itself; and confirms this claim by those undeniable miracles and prophecies which it contains. Hence, as the proper basis of all its instructions, it teaches mankind to receive it as an inspired harmonious revela- tion ; as the voice of God, and not the voice of man ; as a teacher whose instructions are intended for our highest good, promotive of our best interests, and as one to op- pose or deny whom, will ruin the present and the future well-being of our immortal natures. II. Having thus prepared the way, the Bible proceeds to reveal its most important, valuable and sublime doc- trine, the existence of God, (Theologia.) It teaches that " God is;" that before the mountains were brought forth, or before the world was made, from everlasting to ever- lasting he is God. Nor are we taught to believe in the underived and eternal existence of a deity who is imper- sonal ; no moral order of the universe, nor eternal mat- ter, nor any such principle or thing, is permitted to hold the place of God. He is a person, a divine essence, a separate, independent, active existence. He is without beginning of days, or ending of years. He is the neces- sary cause of all otlier persons and things which have ex- istence. This idea shows us the absolute necessity of the existence of God ; for when we survey the multiform works of nature around us, the inference is unavoid- able that they must have had some great 'first cause to originate them. Thus; too, when we see the tendencies of vice around us in the world ; when we see acts which we know to be wicked even without the moral law, because they promote the misery and ruin of our race, we infer the necessary existence of some being, of God, in order OF THE BIBLE. 309 to punish sin here and liereafter. The security and har- mony of the universe absohitely demand the existence of God. This necessity the Bible meets. It represents the Supreme Being as seated upon the throne of the universe ; as having existed from eternity ; as being uncreated, and elevated above all vicissitude and change. " Thou believ- est in one God, thou doest well. He that built all things is God. To us there is but one God." " There is one God and Father of all." It is true, that the doctrine of God's existence is not original with the Bible ; for it is attested by the voice of reason, and the works of nature. But in the elevated and sublime form, in which his exist- ence is taught in the Sacred Volume, we have much that is original and valuable. The eternity, the independence and the pure spirituality of his existence are elements of it, which alone are clearly set forth on the inspired page. It is a truth also which should cause the heavens to re- joice and the earth be glad, that, high above all sublunary affairs, there is a sovereign throne occupied by so worthy a bfiing. III. Having taught the existence of God, this volume advances further, and teaches us the sublime nature of God. Here the merit of originality and harmony may with greater truth be urged in favor of its teachings. As far as the attributes of an infinite being could be rendered intelligible to finite creatures, so far this work is accom- plished. Here, indeed, was a theme worthy of the noblest efforts of an inspired pen ; and when the character of the greatest, wisest and best of beings came forward for dis- cussion, we might reasonably expect a sublime exposition of truth. When we inquire then what representations are there made of the character of God, we find every admirable, 310 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM, every excellent, every adorable trait involved in it which could possibly exist, and without any alloy or infusion in the least degree unworthy of esteem. These attributes are either communicable, such as his benevolence, holi- ness, truth ; or incommunicable, such as his eternity, om- nipotence and omnipresence. They may also be inferred or deduced in three ways : either by reasoning from exist- ing effects to their cause (via causalitatis), as in Psalm Ixiv. Or by infinitely exalting the virtues and excellences of the creatures of God, and then applying them to him (via eminentise), as in Isaiah Iv. 8. Or they may be drawn by removing from our ideas of his character every imper- fection which adheres to men (via negationis), as in 1 Sam. XV. 29. When now we come to examine the particular attributes of the God of the Bible, what a glorious character does he present to our contemplation? When we comparehim with the Jupiter Tonans, who shakes Olympus with his imbecile thunders ; or with any of those fabled deities whose exploits and whose crimes disgrace the annals of the "immortal gods" of Greece or Rome; the superior purity, dignity and elevation of the Lord of Hosts stand forth to view with striking and instructive prominence. This great Being is self-existent, and uncreated ; not trac- ing his origin to the agency of some other anterior God. He is eternal, without beginning and without end. Thou- sands and myriads of ages may revolve ; all created things may crumble around his throne; but he remains the same. "Time writes no wrinkle" on his eternal brow. He is perfectly just, wise, benevolent, changeless, true; he is omnipresent, possessing all power, possessing all wisdom. Whatever attributes are calculated to secure the rever- ence and esteem of rational beings, he abundantly and fully realizes in himself. The Bible delights to dwell OF THE BIBLE. 311 upon his matchless excellence ; the works of nature, with harmonious voice, delight to proclaim his praise. And yet so perfectly does he realize ihe idea of supreme spirit- uality in himself, that he possesses the attributes of invi- sibility, of immateriality, and of indestructibility ; in all which conceptions he displays a vast superiority over every human idea of the divine character. The Bible would place us under great obligations to it for its instructions in reference to the nature of the Deity alone, which should cause us to revere and admire it, though it imparted to us no other conceptions. The character of God, so purely and sublimely exhibited, exerts a most beneficial influence upon the minds of men. They are taught that they are under the control and jurisdiction of a supremely wise and worthy being, who deserves their noblest adoration, and one who is able both to reward and to punish according to every man's deserts. IV. After the nature of God come his works. A con- sideration of these necessarily demanded the attention of the Bible ; because they have a relation to the divine cha- racter itself, and a relation to our own obligations and re- sponsibilities. Here, too, was a theme worthy of an in- spired pen. The God of the Scriptures has not expended his energies in hostile conflicts with fellow deities, nor in unworthy strifes with men, or in undignified interpositions in their struggles, intrigues and private aflfairs. But we learn that the universe which surrounds us, and on which we dwell, is the product of his creative energy. By his word of command ten thousand worlds have crowded the boundless expanse above us. By his command they re- volve in changeless harmony and regularity, from age to age. By his command the sun stands fast as the centre of our world. At his word the earth was peopled with its 313 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM innumerable inhabitants ; while over it was spread its wide mantle of Verdure and richness, variegated with its moun- tains, its rivers, its forests, and its plains. By affirming that God created the world, we believe that he is the creator of all things extrinsic from himself; or that he is the author of all things which exist besides him- self. When, therefore, we are told in simple style in the Bible, that God created the universe, how many absurd and vain hypotheses are we spared, in reference to this in- teresting subject ? Men, unenlightened by Revelation, have long attempted to account for the existence of the uni- verse; but their explanations have only involved them in greater uncertainty. Their attempts have proved the great interest of the subject, as well as their woful inability to do justice to it. But having made known the character of the Creator in such impressive and exalted terms, it was an easy and natural transition, by which these attributes were exhibited as actively and appropriately employed in the works of creation. Nor did these creative acts cease •with the forming of the world; but the inanimate part of it was to be enlivened and adorned by the creation of those orders of rational and sentient beings who now exist upon it. As the highest achievement of his creative fiat, God made man in his own image and in his own likeness ; that he might enjoy the world in which he was placed; that he might rule and till it ; and that from it, his heart might ascend in pure devotion to the giver of all good. Nor was his own nearer abode left in silence and solitude; but he also created the higher orders of the angelic hosts, who peo- ple heaven, and make it echo with the praises of the Great Supreme. And all along the line of gradation, from the highest to the lowest of angels, as well as from the greatest to the smallest of human intellects, innumerable orders of mind have been made, all belonging to the rational creation, OF THE BIBLE. 313 whose duty and privilege it is to worship the God that made them. These works of the divine Creator may be termed the immediate or primitive; while there are others which necessarily result from these in logical order, which may be termed progressive or derivative. These are the works of Providence and Redemption. The creation of the world imposed the no less arduous task of its preservation. Disorder and ruin would soon have found their way into the choicest of God's handi- work, had not his preserving and controlling power been immediately brought into exercise in order to prevent such a catastrophe. What the act of preservation is for the material universe, redemption or restoration to primitive holiness is to the spiritual world. Redemption is that process by which the fallen race of men are brought back to the state in which they originally were ; and hence is in one sense equivalent to preservation, which prevents them from wholly losing iheii primitive state in the spiritual world. This agency of preservation and redemption, for the welfare of the two orders of his creation, results from the previously declared attributes of God's character. His justice and benevolence would incite him to the act. His wisdom and power would enable him to achieve it. v. But in performing these important functions, we see the evidences of the operation of several independent per- sons in the divine character, and we are led to infer the existence of the three persons who form the adorable Trinity. When we turn to the sacred page, for definite and harmonious instruction on this important and difficult inquiry, we find there the most clear and pointed declara- tions which we could possibly receive, or of which the subject was capable. We learn that God is one ; and yet that he is three, or in other words, that he is one in one 27 314 THK DOCTRINAI, SYSTEM respect, and three in another respect.* We are 'taught that with one undivided essence, are associated three separate yet harmonious persons. That this is a wise arrangement, though we cannot philosophically explain it, may be in- ferred from all of the divine acts and nature which we can understand. According to this doQtrine all the per- sons of the Trinity are divine; hence possessing equal powers, equal claims upon our adoration, equal demands- upon our obedience. Harmony and unity absolutely re- quire that, if more persons than one exist in the Godhead, they should be perfectly coeval and coequal. It is indeed true that this doctrine of the Trinity has for ages formed a stumbling-block with many opposers of the Sacred Volume. Because they cannot bring to it the approval of their reasons, they modify or reject it. But cannot the existence of this truth even be proved to be necessary and possible by the dictates of reason ? We maintain that it can ; and that if one person of the Trinity be supposed to exist, we must necessarily admit the exist- ence of the other two, as an indispensable concomitant. This may be proved as follows : It will be admitted that without a consciousness of our own personality, we can have no conception of the existence of another. It is also true, that we cannot possess a consciousness of an- other, without having a consciousness of our own per- sonality. Both of these acts of a rational mind are inseparably dependent upon each otiier. If, then, God had existed from eternity as only one person, he could not have possessed a clear consciousness of his own ex- istence ; he would have been destitute of all consciousness * Or, in the language of the schools : Deus est unus secundum essen- tiara, est trinus secundum subsistentiam, vel modum essendi. See the systems of Quenstedt and Buddeus. OF THE BIBLE. 315 of himself as a distinct person. Thus also he could never have created the universe ; for this act implies the con- scious personal existence of the Creator. Hence God must have existed from eternity, as the contemplater, and also as the person contemplated ; or as Father and Son. Nor could God have possessed all the attributes of a divine being, if there was but one person ; for one of these attributes is love, but unless more persons than one ex- isted in the Godhead, there would have been no object upon which that love could have been exercised. But in the consciousness of the Father, in • the existence of the Son, as well as the love of the Father towards the Son, we have two separate persons exercising feelings the one toward the other. But unity is a necessary ingredient in a divine nature ; hence there must be a third person in existence, who will unite in one the being loving and loved, contemplating and contemplated ; and thus we ar- rive at the necessary existence of the Holy Spirit, who forms an inseparable and coequal link between them. Inasmuch, then, as this mysterious relation must exist and does exist in the Godhead, the Bible reveals it. Here, indeed, its instructions are original. And its declarations on this point may be justified and commended in two ways. First, if the Trinity existed, it was necessary that it should be made known precisely as it existed, without any attempt to modify it. Secondly, the various acts which are ap- propriate and peculiar to these three persons having been made known in the Bible, it was proper that the existence of the three persons from whom they emanated should also be proclaimed. Thus God the Father is represented as comprehending in himself all the ideas of things and of plans, which can possibly be conceived. God the Son is the executive agent in completing the conceptions of the Father, in carrying them out into creative acts and de- 316 THE DOCTKINAL SYSTEM veloped result. God the Spirit is the necessary approver and superintender of the fulfilment by the Son, of the con- ceptions which originated with the Father. For all of these persons and functions there is a necessary exist- ence ; without them the administration of the universe would have been incomplete. All uninspired teachers have failed to reach this complete conception of the de- mands of the universe. This great idea the Bible has grasped and held forth to our clear view ; and presented in a dignified and appropriate form in the doctrine of the Trinity ; the existence of which is as absolutely necessary for the direction and government of the universe, as is the existence of any one separate person in the Trinity. VI. The Bible having thus treated the nature, works and relations of God, proceeds to discuss the doctrines concerning man, {Anthropologia.) Here, the history of our race requires that man should be viewed in a fourfold state ; that of his original purity and happiness ; that of his fall and state of degradation ; that of his state of re- demption through the agency of Christ ; and that of his glorification in heaven. The two former, however, will be now noticed ; while the remaining two states will af- terward more appropriately demand attention. In refer- ence to these two former states, they are to be viewed with regard both to man's body and soul, for they were marked by peculiarities which belong to each. The primitive state of man is described in the Sacred Volume in language the most explicit, the most instructive, as well as the most harmonious. In the fruitful regions of the east, God planted and matured a garden which was filled with every object calculated to charm, to delight, to improve, and to please. In that delicious abode he placed the first progenitors of our race, whom he had created and OF THE BIBLE. 317 blessed with an exalted nature, with a native love of holi- ness, with a tendency to it, and with an ability to practice it. In the creation of man, the divine architect appears to have put forth the most remarkable efforts of his skill and power, which the universe contains. Behold him even now, after the disastrous consequences of the fall have ravaged our earth for six thousand years. What is more noble, more lovely, than the best representatives of either sex of our race which exist ? What more splendid than man's perfect form and countenance ? What more attractive than the best representatives of his gentler helpmate ? If these admirable traces still remain, after the long duration of so many evils and so many disasters pressing down upon the family of men, what must they not have been when they first stepped forth, fresh from the hand of their Maker, upon the virgin soil of Eden, and first breathed the pure and fragrant air of that celestial land ? Indeed, the Scriptures plainly declare that nothing could be more desirable than the nature and destiny which our first parents received from God. What may have been thef peculiar construction of their bodies, cannot now be ascertained. Whether they were more ethereal or imma- terial, or transparent than they now are, as some and sun- dry have supposed, cannot be determined. That there was some important superioritj' in their constitution then, over what it now is, is apparent from the liability to death and decay which they are now subjected to, and from which they were then perfectly free. It is true, indeed, that the cause of this change was a moral one,- being the introduction of sin in the world. But the consequences were to some extent material or physical, entailing tem- poral death as well as spiritual, upon their unfortunate de- scendants. A remarkable peculiarity of man's primitive state con- 37* 318 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTE sisted in the image of God with which he was first en- dowed. This consisted, no doubt, in that moral purity and capacity for holiness and perfect happiness, with which he was invested. Whatever may be the other interpre- tations of that image— whether man's rational soul, his dominion over the brute creation, or the immortality of his body — the resemblance between their moral characters is the most probable and the least objectionable position which can be maintained.* Thus favored with an ability to understand his own highest good, surrounded by cir- cumstances admirably adapted to facilitate the prosecution of that good, and placed in a moral and physical universe where everything would tend to his happiness, if he but chimed in harmoniously with their economy and operation ; under such circumstances, the primitive state of man could not have been otherwise than blissful ; his prospects could not have been otherwise than enviable. His body was doubdess immortal. It had been originally construct- ed with such perfect skill, that but for some dire disaster, it could never have known dissolution and decay, but would have survived from age to age in perennial youth and fade- less beauty. His spirit tended upward to the God who had made him in prone devotion and love. The benignant smile of that God who had so highly blessed him, would forever have beamed upon him so as to intensify the hea- ven in which he had been placed. Vn. But soon this fair picture changes. " The de- stroyer comes to turn this Paradise into a Hell." The Creator, to test by easy trial the obedience of his favor- * For a useful discussion of these points of resemblance, see Knapp's Theol, vol. i. p. 389, and Calvin's Institutes, bk. i. chap. 15, sec. 3 ; also bk. ii. chap. 12, sec. 6. OF THE BIBLE. 319 ites, had placed forbidden fruit within their reach, and had forewarned them not to be guilty of trespass upon it. The Bible narrates the fall of men with affecting clearness and truth. It records the will of the tempter, the power of his arts, the willing weakness of his victims, and the horrid consequences of their guilt. We are informed of the process by which alone we can rationally account for the existence of so much sin, and of so much misery. This is a point, indeed, where human wisdom and the con- jectures of philosophers and sages had left all in profound darkness. But the account which the Bible contains is supported not only by the authority which the divine character of the whole imparts, but it bears so clearly upon its very brow, the impress of truth and reason, while it so well accords with the evidence which facts and experience be- stow, that it cannot but be regarded as an instructive and useful narrative. It informs us that Satan invaded the peace and purity of Eden, seduced our first parents into an act of rebellion against God, by which their favor with him was totally forfeited, and his righteous wrath necessarily incurred. But here occurs an objection which is often urged by Modern Infidelity "against this part of the Biblical narra- tive : whether it was not cruel and unbecoming in God, especially as the father of his creatures, to punish with present misery and with banishment into eternal hell here- after, the race (rf men, and Adam and Eve themselves, for so insignificant an act as the eating of a forbidden apple ? Was not the punishment vastly greater than the guilt ? The answer is easy : For what was the object in prohibit- ing the eating of the forbidden fruit ? Plainly as a test of the obedience and the attachment of our first parents to their great benefactor. Why was death threatened before- 330 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM hand, if they were guilty ? Undoubtedly in order to aug- ment the prevention of the transgression. If, then, in order to secure so small an advantage, men yielded to such an insignificant allurement as an apple, their guilt and their ingratitude were infinitely greater than if they had yielded to the allurement of a profiered world, with all its delights. If their guilt and their ingratitude were the greater, the pun- ishment deserves to be the more severe. God is therefore compelled to punish the transgressor in proportion to the amount of his guilt, and the strength or weakness of the temptation which allured him to sin, or palliated his act. In this case there were no palliating circumstances ; the crime was of the deepest dye. The consequences of the fall were radical, deplorable, and lasting. Our race forfeited their original state of accept- ance with God. They were banished from Eden ; while as wanderers, homeless and friendless, they went forth to till the soil which had been cursed for their sakes. Their bodies were made susceptible of disease and death. Their spirits were polluted with moral stains. They had lost their native tendency to purity, and their capacity for what was holy and good. They became prone to what is de- praved and polluted ; their natural tendency was now downwards and earthly, Satan successfully usurped his empire over their enthralled spirits ; and when their gloomy destiny on earth was terminated, they were heirs only to a cheerless eternity of guilt and misery ; destined to be banished from the presence of God, and from the glory of his power forever. The delightful communion which had subsisted between the Maker and his creatures, so benignant and paternal on the one hand, so honorable and exalting on the other, must now forever terminate. Having voluntarily scorned the commands of their noblest friend, they could no longer hope to realize the heavenly OF THE BIBLE. 321 communion, the beatific visions, and the enrapturing joys which once were theirs, as Heaven's favorites ; for as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, so also has death passed upon all men, in that all have sinned.* Such are the plain and harmonious declarations of the Sacred Volume, in reference to the fall of man ; whereby a thousand difficulties arfi removed, a thousand important questions answered ; and a suitable solution of many great phenomena in the moral universe successfully given. Whatever may be the difficulty involved in inter- preting many scenes and events in the life of man and the history of the world, this narrative helps powerfully to re- move it. VIII. Inasmuch, then, as a great and ruinous evil- has been introduced into the world, by the unfortunate rebel- lion of man, divine benevolence, we may naturally sup- pose, will devise, and omnipotent power will execute, some suitable deliverance from such calamity. This fact brings us to the doctrine concerning Christ (Soterologiaj, which is discussed and expounded in the sacred pages. He is the great, the only remedy for a calamity which we will all be disposed to grant actually exists. This article of the Biblical Creed we may indeed designate as the fundamental one (the axpoyuv aioj), or foundation stone of the whole system. And truly this doctrine is a * One of the most serious consequences of the Fall is, tlie inhe- riting of original sin, wjiich entails on men evil desires or corrupt tendencies, (concupiscmtia,') and being without that vigor in spiritual things necessary for holy living, (Hne libera arbitrio in rebus tpirituali- busl) This results from Adam's relation to his race, as their federal head, just as they are redeemed by the vicarious sufferings of Christ, the second Adam. 322 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM worthy basis to such a superstructure ; one upon which it can truly rest, with security and honor to itself, as well as to all those who are connected with it, either in the capa- city of author or recipients. The first point settled by the Bible, in reference to this extraordinary and glorious being, is his divine character. Although there are many difficulties connected with this subject, and although by the exercise of some ingenuity, we may propound many enigmas which are hard to explain, still the doctrine of Christ's divinity is so plainly taught on the inspired page, that we cannot reject it while we re- ceive the Bible as divine. One of these difficulties is, that if the Son proceeded from the Father, he must necessarily be posterior in existence to the being from whom he pro- ceeded; hence he cannot be eternal, and without this he cannot be God. But to this we may answer, that the per- son of the Son is a necessary ingredient in the Godhead, else he would not exist, for God occasions and approves nothing which is superfluous. If this be so, the Son must have existed during all periods of the existence of the Father, the earliest as well as the latest ; that is to say he must have existed from all eternity ; and if he existed by procession from that Father, that procession must have been eternal also. Thus every objectionable inference which may be drawn from this doctrine, can easily be avoided. But even if mysteries were involved in the dogma which could not be resolved, we need not fear to give them our full belief, when we have the most unanswerable evidence, drawn from the plain declarations of Scripture on the subject. " God was made manifest in the flesh. The word was God ; and the word was made flesh ; and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. He is OF THE BIBLE. 323 the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Men should honor the Son even as they honor the Father. I and the Father are one." Any one of these valuable declarations forms a bulwark in defence of the divinity of Christ which can- not be overturned. Nor are there any declarations of a contrary character, which are really opposed to this dog- ma, when properly understood. Several passages there are, which are not rendered in our English version in lan- guage which at this day conveys the exact sense of the original. Thus the expression, Christ is " the first born of every creature," would be more properly translated, the pre-existing to all creatures, or ihe first or greatest of all beings ; for " by him all things were created," and of course he, if a created being (or creature), could not have created himself. But the Bible represents this person not simply as di- vine, but also as human ; as uniting within himself, com- pletely yet harmoniously, two whole natures. It records the fact of his entrance into the world, of his assuming the garb of human flesh, and the attributes of human na- ture, though without sin. This hypostatic union (unio hypostatica) is absolutely necessary to attain the pro- fessed objects of his mission into the world. Without it we cannot imagine how the work of human redemption could have been completed ; for every part of this compound nature was called into activity in the prosecution of this great work. The nature of that transgression which had alienated our race ; the demands of the sovereign law which had been violated ; the necessary changes to be effected in the hearts of men, as well as the changes ne- cessary in the divine mind towards us, before his wrath could be removed ; all demanded that the Mediator be- tween this Sovereign and his subjects should be both human and divine. 324 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM The historic fact that Christ was born of a virgin, has been assailed with the ridicule and contempt of modern infidels, who haveTesolvedthis event into the following posi- tion : that the Christian religion is based upon the fact, that God committed adultery with a woman, in allusion to the mysterious influence of the Holy Ghost upon Mary. In this dignified manner have Gibbon, Hume and Voltaire spoken. But if we carefully examine the sacred record on this subject, what is the plain meaning which it con- veys ? Nothing more than this, that the Virgin Mary con- ceived through the miraculous agency of the most spiritual of beings, the Holy Ghost. The event is plainly repre- sented as the result of a miracle. Now if the Son of God had chosen to enter the world in the form of humanity, in order to accomplish some important purposes, what more appropriate and suitable method could have been selected than that, by miraculous means, "a body should be pre- pared" for him, which he could thus assume and inhabit, when in the fullness of time he should see fit to enter it? No reason, unperverted by Satan, could find in this event anything objectionable or censurable. Assuming,'then, the union of these two natures in Christ, we may ask, what was the especial benefit conferred by it? and what were the particular functions which each was called upon to perform? Undoubtedly Christ's human nature was assumed, in order that he might truly belong to the race for whose benefit he labored ; in order that their sins might be placed upon him ; in order that he might be more thoroughly associated with their miseries,' and be able the better to sympathize with them. The divine nature Christ necessarily possessed, because he could not divest himself of it ; he could not throw off the garb of Deity. But besides this, it is to be observed that without satisfying the divine law, men could not be OF THE BIBLE. 325 happy. To give this satisfaction to the law was the duty of men, which it was impossible for them to perform. God alone could do it ; and hence it was necessary for the per- son rendering this obedience to be divine. The most im- portant service which the divinity in Christ was designed to render, was that he might offer an infinite atonement to an infinite God for the violation of an infinite law. But here the question arises, whether the divine nature in Christ actually endured pains, bore ignominy, and shared in the agonies of the cross? We answer undoubtedly they did not; for the divine nature is impassible. Where, then, if the human in Christ alone suffered, is the infinite atonement for human guilt ? If the human Christ alone suffered, and that with success, what hinders any other human -being from performing a similar service? This objection, the most powerful against the divinity of Christ which the Unitarian can urge, is thus arrayed by Dr. Channing, in the most forcible order.* " If an infinite atonement be necessary, and if, consequently, none but God can make it, we see not, but that God must become a sufferer, must take upon himself our pain and wo ; a thought from which a pious mind shrinks with horror. To escape this difficulty we are told, that Christ suffered as man, not as God ; but if man only suffered, if Christ as God was perfectly happy on the cross, and bore only a short and limited pain in his human nature; where, we ask, was the infinite atonement ?" This boasted argument, we imagine, may easily be answered. Granting that Christ's divine nature did not suffer the pains of the * See his Discourses and Reviews, Boston, 1830, p. 574; also, the same objection urged on pp. 320, 425, where it is evidently brought forward as the most formidable which can be urged against the agency of the divinity in Christ, in the work of atonement. 28 326 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM cross, we yet maintain that the union of these two natures was necessary in order to render a sufficient atonement. Without this union, the human nature alone could have effected nothing. What, then, was the advan- tage of its union with the divine? We reply, 1. That Christ thereby gave a perfect example of holiness in his life, and fulfilled the demands of the righteous law, which man in his fallen state could not possibly have done. 2. If the divine nature did not suffer on the cross, its aid and support were absolutely necessary to enable the human nature to bear up under the load of misery which it became able to bear, when thus supported, and never otherwise. A human nati^re, when thus sustained by intimate union with a divine nature, would of course be able to endure infinitely more than when the human was left to its own unaided weakness and frailty. 3. The divine nature was necessary to triumph over the powers of hell ; which the human could not have done. By this means, Christ burst the bars of the grave, vanquished the principalities of darkness, and was enabled thereby to become, (what was absolutely necessary to the completion of the work of redemption,) the first fruits of them that slept. Thus his body was ransomed from the grave, where it would have ever remained, but for this union; and unless Christ had arisen, the resurrection of the dead would never have occurred. 4. The divine nature in Christ was necessary to complete his ascension ; for the human alone could not have ascended, even after it had arisen from the dead, but would have been constrained to an afcode on earth. 5. The altar sanctifies the gift. The union of the divine with the human, by the natural influence of this relation, purifies and ennobles the inferior element, and makes it become the more worthy sacrifice. The human, thus sacrificed to the divine wrath, approved and supported by its connection OF THE BIBLE. 327 with the godlike in Christ, renders that offering more worthy in itself, more adapted to the wants of men, and better calculated to succeed with the offended Judge in averting his wrath,* In view of these important services rendered by the di- vine nature in the Redeemer, every one of which is abso- lutely necessary to the completion of the work of atonement, and without each of which it would have stopped short, un- finished and ineffectual, we cannot imagine how any, be- lieving at all in the accomplishment of this noble and glo- rious work, can call in question the existence and the ope- ration of the divine nature in Christ. Remove that nature, and the atonement falls to the ground, and men are left " ivithout God, and without hope in the world." What could human toils and endeavors accomplish in such a work, if the agency and the impress of divinity were wanting ? In its exhibitions of the character and person of Christ, the Bible represents him in the threefold capacity of Pro- phet, Priest and King of the human race. " He shall be a priest upon his throne." These three offices (munera) are also necessary to the completion of the work of re- demption ; and are also inseparably and logically con- nected with each other, in the performance of their various functions. The epithet King arose from the term Mes- siah which was applied to Christ by the Jews ; which * It is in reference to this point that the Athanasian creed, one of the tliree first and most valuable symbols, (in addition to the Apos- tolic and Nicene,), uses the following language: Quicunqiie vult salvus esse, ante omnia opus habet, ut tencat Catholioam fidem. Quam nisi quisque integram inviolatamque servaverit, absque dubio in a'ternum peribit, Haec est fides Catholiea quam nisi quisque fideliter, firmiterque orediderit, salvus esse non poterit. {Base's Libri Symbolid, p. 2.) 328 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM signifies the anointed one, hence a royal personage. He is also the rightful sovereign of all his creatures ; having supreme jurisdiction over them as the author of their being, and as the constant preserver of their existence. Christ is the Priest of men, the great high priest ; whose duty and oiEce it is to offer for the sins of the world an all-sufficient sacrifice upon the altar of God, more pre- cious and more powerful than all the flowing blood of Jewish victims and offerings. He stands in this capacity as the mediator between the offended sovereign and the offending subject. He propitiates the divine wrath, averts the flaming thunderbolts of the judge, and effects a recon- ciliation between the alienated parties. Christ is'also the Prophet of men, as their wisest, their profoundest teacher. He is deeply versed in the intricacies of the law ; he is himself the basis and the burden of the Gospel. But it is not only because Christ is the teacher that he is the prophet of men. He deserves this epithet besides for being the messenger, the ambassador of God to man. His various acts and instructions were grounded on the fact that He was a teacher sent from God; a divine emissary, a heavenly delegate to earth. Take away either of these functions from the character and services of Christ, and he is left incomplete. Bemove'Jbis Kingly character, and he is no longer God ; his atonement is that of a mere man. Remove his Prophetic character, and he is no more able by his profound teachings, to prove his divine authority, or to impart to men the wisdom necessary to the attainment of eternal life. Remove his Priestly office, and no suffi- cient sacrifice has been paid for human guilt. The law remains unsatisfied; God is not propitiated; justice still thunders forth its righteous demands ; the sinner is unable to meet them, and thus remains under just condemnation. The history and condition of Christ on earth are repre- OF THE BIBLE. 329 sented in the Bible under a twofold form ; that of his humiliation and exaltation. These two characteristics force themselves upon every one who contemplates his earthly career. Under his status humilitatis may be enu- merated the assumption of human nature itself, the hum- bling garb of humanity; also his poverty ; his harsh treat- ment by his associates ; his labors of love ; his deprivations ; his sufferings upon the cross ; his death and descent into the grave. These are called Christ's " days in the flesh," and it comported with the divine purpose that he should " suffer these things, and enter into his glory." {Luke xxiv. 26.) Thus this exalted being, who was heir of all things, and who thought it not robbery to be equal with God ; who possessed the honor and the homage of heaven, condescended to assume the " form of a servant," in order to accomplish his benevolent work. Having endured this ignominious career, the state of glorification was exchanged for it ; in order that Christ might testify his inherent su- periority over the abasement to which he had voluntarily submitted. This second state consists in his glorious vic- tory over the powers of hell ; his resurrection from the grave ; his reappearance to his disciples ; his ascension from earth to his native skies ; and his triumphant establishment upon that hereditary throne, where, from the bosom of Eternity, he had dwelt. " Him therefore hath God highly exalted," and raised " to sit down at the right hand of the majesty on high." {Heb. ii. 9, 11.) With joy and gratitude may the race of men behold him who was degraded, wounded and abased, to secure for them a boon which such amaz- ing ignominy alone could obtain ; — may they see him abundantly rewarded, and gloriously exalted above the circumstances of his former state to a condition more ap- propriate to his character, and more suitable to his claims. We may add, in regard to the agency of Christ in the 28* 33.0 THK DOCTRINAL SYSTEM work of redemption, that it must be viewed in two re- spects, that of his active and his passive obedience. He must suffer intensely, work vigorously, and satisfy com- pletely, all that the violated law had demanded. Under his active obedience may be enumerated his teachings, his miracles, his holiness and exalted virtue, and all his signal triumphs over the powers and the principles of darkness. Under his passive obedience may be comprehended his suflferings, before his death, and during that awful event. Whatever divine wrath, whatever mental anguish, what- ever curses for sin, whatever mental as well as physical agonies it would have been our lot to endure had we been capable of it, and had not a substitute appeared ; all this the Son of God submissively bore for us ; they were endured in obedience to the claims of the law ; in obe- dience to the demands of abstract justice, and also in obedience to the calls of that position which he had vo- luntarily assumed for us. Thus in every stage of his earthly existence, both in a state of humiliation and ex- altation ; as prophet,' priest and king ; both by active and passive obedience, did the Saviour of men furnish the materials and prepare the way for that change in the cha- racter and condition of men which may be termed the order of salvation, and to the consideration of which we are now naturally directed by the harmonious teachings of Scriptural truth. IX. The Bible having expounded the purposes of God in reference to the redemption of men, proceeds to describe the process by which these purposes are to be realized, — the order of salvation, through the operation of which men are sanctified and saved. It is in this process that the agency of the third person in the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, is called into action. Here, too, the superior excellence of OF THK BIBLG. 331 the Bible is clearly evinced ; inasmuch as it contains a mysterious and sublime process, far exceeding all the imag- inings of the greatest of earthly sages. This is a pro- cess, which alike confers honor upon God, the divine ac- tor, as well as honor upon men, who are so highly favored as to be made the recipients of it. The elevation of a dying race, until they become " kings and priests unto God," is a change to which no parallel can be found, in the boasted plans of all earth-born benefactors. In this order of salvation, the first thing deserving no- tice is the process of redemption itself. This-is introduced by that efiiectual calling which the Holy Spirit adminis- ters to those who repent. By this, the erring wanderer is invited to return, he is authorized to return ; he is assisted to return, and he is commanded to return. In order to perform this duty, divine illumination is necessary to re- move the doubts, the fears and the errors of men ; which would efiectually impede the accomplishment of any good. The spirit of all truth acts as the inspired director to the soul ; more potent and infallible than the wisest responses of the omens, sages and priestesses, which deluded and amused the refined nations of antiquity. Whoever obeys this monitor, and improves the light which he bestows, will surely advance in the way of improvement and hap- piness. The next step in this process is repentance, penance and sorrow for sin, a hatred of its character, a detestation of its consequences, and deep, profound regret at having been guilty of its commission. Here is found the central peculiarity of the Christian system, the inward nucleus of it, the fountain into which the springs of water flow from the bowels of truth, and from which they issue forth to rejoice, to cheer and to sanctify the hearts of men. In passing through this process of repentance, the Spirit of God 332 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM alone can suggest and impart the proper feelings ; that Spirit can alone humble the pride of men into deep contri- tion for guilt at the foot of the cross — that despised and disgraceful cross on which a Saviour endured an igno- miny which human pride as well as human weakness pre- vented man from successfully enduring. Repentance in- volves three processes,; sorrow of heart (contritio cordis), confession of the lip to God (confessio oris), and the render- ing of obedience (satisfactio operis), in order to retrieve the delinquencies of the past, as well as fulfil the commands of God in the future. The possession and exercise oi faith are the next step in this great work. This is a saving faith ; a confidence in the character and laws of God; confidence in the merits and atonement of Christ ; boundless trust in his ability to save; and a practical application for the efiicacy of that blood to be applied to the heart. " The just shall live by faith." It is the concluding act on their part in this process ; the one which completes their efforts so far as the process itself is concerned. This faith and repentance are fol- lowed by the forgiveness of sins, whereby the past guilt of the penitent is washed away, as well as the conse- quences of that guilt removed. After the process of the order of salvation, naturally come the consequences of it. The first of these is re- generation, an eflect produced upon the heart of man by the agency of the Holy Spirit. The question arises : What is the distinction between this eff"ect and sanctification 1 The answer is, that the former is immediate, and the latter is progressive. They are also the same in kind, but dif- ferent, in degree. Eegeneration does not consist merely in a moral influence such as Pelagians contend for ; but in a supernatural and divine influence. It is the removal of that fondness for sin so natural to the heart. It is not merely the renunciation of error ; nor external reformation of con- OF THE BIBLE. 333 duct ; nor an external profession of religion. But it is the renewal of the old man, the purification of the feel- ings, emotions, springs of action, purposes and principles of the soul, whereby both body and soul are made " tem- ples of the Holy Ghost." Men are thus renewed in the spirit of their minds. The second consequence of this process of redemption is Justification. The guilt of the soul being removed, and the atonement and satisfaction rendered by Christ being appropriated by faith to the believer, he no longer bears toward God the attitude of hostility, but is accepted and justified before him. The relation which he bears to God being thus improved, and the obstacles to his former recon- ciliation to him being removed, the divine wrath is also averted, and God sees in the justified believer an accepted child ; his own image is reflected from his breast, his own laws and character he beholds honored and revered there, and the punishments threatened against sin pass away from him. He becomes heir of the promises which God has given to his people ; those exceeding great and pre- cious promises are his ; being justified by faith he has peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Next follows Sanctification, which comprises the conclu- sion or completion of the results. This is necessarily gradual in its nature. It results from the continued in- fluences of the Holy Spirit, operating upon the hearts of men, and requires time for the perfecting of its operations. Thus one weakness after another is conquered and re- moved, one power and faculty of the soul after another is purified and consecrated to the service and worship of God. New trials and new experiences exert their in- fluence upon the heart ; developing new departments of character and then sanctifying them ; until at last the whole man is redeemed from the power of sin ; every region of his soul is pervaded by this heavenly influence; until the 334 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM light and purity of the eternal world behold him perfect in glory. Thus sanctified, good works follow as a necessary con- sequence. They are the fruit produced by the genial in- fluence of the spiritual spring-time of grace, which, by re- pentance, dawns upon the soul, and makes it vivific and fruitful. There are the outward tests and evidences of the existence of the inward state ; and they are so indispens- able to the existence of true religion, that the inspired writer declares : By their fruits ye shall know them. They are the 'most conclusive, infallible and unanswer- able evidences of the prevalence of holiness in the heart, which we, as beings incapable of penetrating the interior, and confined only to the exterior of human character, are able to possess. Wherever the inward state is proper, the outward manifestations will be inevitably seen. All these influences and results will be followed by the constant presence of the Holy Spirit in the soul of the believer. The assurance of faith will form part of the essence of faith itself. The child of God will be united intimately with his spiritual head. The unio myslica of the Chris- tian with his Saviour will be consummated ; and he will thus advance, having passed the borders of the delightful city of God, in a sure and triumphant progress, to the fuU realization of that inheritance of the just, here and here- after, which God bestows on those who love him. X. The means of grace, or the agencies which God has ordained, and which the Bible clearly reveals, in order to preserve and perpetuate the influences which we have just discussed, come now to be noticed. All the arrange- ments which God has made, and all the operative ordi- nances which produce holiness and ensure heaven, may be classed under the general term of means of grace. The consequences produced by them are termed the OF THE BIBLE. 335 status gratise, in opposition to "the status naturalis in which all men are until sanctified and redeemed through their influence. The first of these means of divine appointment, in the order of time and of operation, are the truths contained in the word of God. These are instructive, purifying and improving in themselves considered ; and they are also the authority from which the others proceed, and hy which they are made known. The truths made known in the Bible, and especially in the New Testament, under its improved and perfected form of Christianity, are in- vested with mighty power to influence and improve man- kind. They remove the ignorance which originally im- pedes every good purpose which might exist in the heart ; and where those purposes do not exist, they are able to infuse them. Prayer is the second means of grace ordained by the Bible. It is an appointed exercise, made obligatory upon men, and connected with the promise of important bless- ings. It is a natural means, and is employed, with much ignorance and weakness indeed, among all races of rational men. If God exists, if he has made us, if he governs us, if we are dependent creatures, if he is able to supply our wants, and if he is willing so to do ; then prayer to hira is the language of nature, and the impulse of reason. Now all these conditions just mentioned, actually and power- fully exist. If such be its propriety and necessity, the consequences which result from its performance are equally proper and important. By prayer man is prepared for the gifts which he asks. He is able to appreciate their value and properly improve them. God is made willing to grant them. By the outward act of prayer, the inward emotions of the soul are deepened, intensified and defined. God is brought nearer to the suppliant, and his whole spirit is exalted and purified through its means. 336 THE docthinal system The gracious promises of God are plainly laid down in the Scriptures to urge men to ask that they may re- ceive, to seek that they may find. The personal expe- rience of every one who has tested these promises by the performance of the appointed means, confirms the truth of their efficacy, and the value of the exercise itself. The promised guidance and influence of the Holy Spirit, are also an appointed means of grace, the efficiency of which has been tested in all ages of the church. That Spirit will strengthen, direct and preserve from spiritual peril all •who apply for its almighty aid ; it will lead into all truth ; it will sanctify body and soul, making men fit temples for Him to dwell in. Vows and fastings are useful means, which, when not perverted from their legitimate use by supersti- tion and priestcraft, produce the most salutary influences upon the heart. The ordinances of the church and the sacraments of our holy religion run like threads of gold through the whole texture of "human life, purifying and sanctifying every department of duty, and every relation of existence. The enjoyment of Christian liberty is favorable, as an indirect means, to the promotion of moral culture ; for without it, but little benefit will be derived from the possession of other spiritual advantages. Ty- ranny grinds down the spirit, shuts out the light, closes up the portals of the soul, and seals it from the entrance of whatever is elevating, disenthralling, and divine. Afflic- tions are often chosen and sent as a means of grace; whereby many whose pride and resistance before had ren- dered their situation hopeless, are humbled, broken, and made accessible to the truth. XI. We have arrived in this presentation of the truths so clearly contained in the Bible, to its teachings in refer- ence to the Church : — that outward institution with which the fold of Christ on earth is connected. The church is OF THE BIBLK. 337 the external receptacle, the visible depository, of the spirit- ual and invisible elements of Christianity. It is perfectly proper, that after discussing the essence, we should now proceed to the forvn, of religion ; that, after exhibiting the reality, we should show the frame-work which contained and preserved it. The prominent idea involved in the Church of God, as a positive institution of divine appointment, is, that it is the embodiment of the kingdom of God in the world. It is an established and perpetual institution, destined to en- dure from age to age, having the sure promise of divine protection, so that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Christianity being preached in a hostile world, being aggressive in its character, having need to be strongly marked and characterized, and to array those who belong to her in clearly defined opposition to all who are not comprehended within her fold ; a separate institution was necessary in the very nature of the case. Being placed in a material world, the invisible must be represented by the visible, the heavenly by the earthly, the divine by the human. Hence the church of God is that divine institu- tion which contains all those who are the professed friends of Christ, among whom the Gospel is truly preached, and the sacraments are duly administered. This institution may be regarded as universal and par- ticular. The Bible speaks of the collective church of the redeemed as well as of individual churches. It may also be regarded as visible and invisible. The former com- prises all men who are outwardly Christians, and professed friends of Christ, whether so in reality or not ; including all the various branches and denominational associations which exist in the Christian world. The invisible church is that which comprises all those who are truly converted from sin to holiness, who have been adopted 29 338 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM by God into his favor, and are, in his view, heirs of hea- ven. The church is also militant and triumphant. In the present world, it is in a state of warfare, battling stoutly for continued existence and enlarged influence. In hea- ven, its trials and struggles over, the church shall arise, put on the garments of victory, behold every foe van- quished and suppliant, and enter on an everlasting state of joy and security. The proper purpose for which this institution was es- tablished, requires that it should comprise two classes of persons. The first of these are the members of it, the fold itself, who desire to derive spiritual benefit from the advantages of it. These are the mass of those who be- come the recipients of the blessings which Christianity bestows, and who attend upon its ordinances for the pur- pose of deriving spiritual improvement. These are neces- sary to the existence of any community or organization composing the body of it. The other class are those who are appointed as teachers and rulers in the church — the sacred order of the ministry. If the other class are the body, these are the head. A divinely appointed, and wholly separate class of men, whose duty it is to be able to instruct and direct the flock in spiritual things, in pri- vate and in public, as well as to conduct the services of the sanctuary to edification ; these are men, and such are duties, which are indispensable to the very existence of the church. How shall men hear, except they have preachers, and how shall they preach, unless they be sent? This class of men must be separated from the laity, in their ecclesiastical functions. Nothing is more absurd than the idea that every Christian is a priest, to preach to the public community of the faithful. If every man, in the true import of the term, is a priest, then there is no necessity whatever for any particular order to have been appointed by Christ ; and in making such an appoint- OF THE BIBLE. 339 merit, he infringed on the rights of the mass. If the appoint- ment of a special religious order was proper, it proves that its appropriate functions do not appertain to the church at large. In reference to the church of God, many absurd preju- dices exist among Christians. Exclusiveness is the last feature which should characterize them. Too often, the narrow spirit shows itself which opposes all Catholicity of feeling among the friends of a divine, and therefore a Catholic religion, that is strangely at war with the claims of truth. We do not suppose that the residue of the spirit is absorbed by any one branch of the church, or that in any one alone, the Gospel is truly preached, and the sacraments duly administered. While all exhibit melan- choly evidences of weakness, whenever the human ele- ment which remains in them appears, so all have merits, greater or less, which commend them to the charitable re- gards of the Christian. Another error exists in reference to the church, which deserves notice, as being at variance with the teachings of the Bible on this point. This is a disposition either to diminish, or to augment, beyond proper bounds, the effi- cacy of the church, in the work of salvation. The bar- ren and profitless system of the Quaker wholly destroys the worth of such an institution ; while the reverent Ro- manist reposes all his trust in the efficacious influence and authority of the church ; entirely obliterating the indivi- dual member, while the Quaker, on the other hand, raises that individual to a generality. Either of these extremes is an error. The blessings of Christianity here and here- after are promised to those who " confess Christ before men," which term implies the public acknowledgment of his religion, by uniting with his church. The Apostle declares " the promise is to you and to your children," speaking of members of the church, both adult and infant. 340 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM But then, too, each one is required to work out " his own salvation with fear and trembling," not relying upon the aid of any outward institution or relation, to the neglect of personal endeavors after holiness and heaven. It is not every one who calls Lord, Lord ! that shall enter the king- dom of God ; but he that does the will of his Father who is in heaven. XIL In connection with the establishment of his church on earth, the Bible teaches that Christ instituted several sacraments, which are to be administered within its fold, and which are intended to confer the most important spi- ritualblessings. The word sacramentum, as is known, originally signi- fied an oath ; then the oath taken by soldiers to their sove- reigns ; then the term was used to mean something holy ; hence also a mystery. From this sense the word was transferred to the two great rites of the Christian Church, which, from their combined sanctity and mystery, received by way of eminence the epithet of sacrament. Only two sacraments were directly established by our Lord, baptism and the holy supper ; and we read of no authority granted to the apostles or the priesthood to add to the number. Indeed, though his disciples received the promise, that all things which Christ had already taught them should be brought to their remembrance when ne- cessary, the injunction is also given, by the same autho- rity, that no one should add anything to what was found recorded in the sacred canon. Hence no doubt can exist in regard to what these sacraments originally are. The first is the sacrament of Baptism. It was abso- lutely necessary that some proper mode of initiation into the Christian community should be established ; as is plainly necessary in every association of whatever charac- ter which exists in the world. This mode of admission OF THE BIBLE. 341 must also be simple, adapted to all races and ages of men. It must also be possible and practicable in all climates and regions of the world. It must be of perpetual and un- changing obligation, and not subject in any way to be lawfully superseded. Just such a rite is Baptism. It is initial and introductory in its nature ; and hence it is ad- ministered but once. It is simple in its nature; and three things are necessary to its proper administration. The proper person, that is, the minister of religion should per- form the rite ; it should be received by the proper kind of person; and water should be the only element employed. The Bible declares, that Christ gave special commands for the performance of this rite, among all nations of the earth. He gave the command to his Apostles, and their successors in the ministry of reconciliation ; and nothing is more absurd and unscriptural than that lay baptism which is permitted among some classes of Christians. If in any emergency, the laity are permitted to assume cleri- cal functions, and their proceedings are recognized under such circumstances, as valid, the assumption will soon ex- tend to other functions, and we will hear of sapient preach- ers and authoritative advisers among those of whom Paul declares, it becomes them to keep silent in the church of God, and not interfere in its spiritual affairs. Now four things are indispensable to the existence and validity of any sacrament. It should, first, be a rite or ceremony ; something visible, and adapted to symbolize religious truth. It should be, secondly, of divine appoint- ment ; having the authority of God for its observance. It should, thirdly, be the means of spiritual blessings and gifts ; thereby conferring, through its divine efficacy, those religious graces which contribute to the growth of the Christian in holiness. It should, lastly, be of perpetual obligation, designed to be observed through all ages of the 29* 843 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM church militant on earth, and to be kept in grateful and constant remembrance by the friends of the Saviour, while their own existence here endures. When examined with reference to these tests, only two sacraments will approve themselves as such — as taught and enjoined in the Sacred Volume. Thus feet washing, as practiced by some of the sects, is no sacrament, inas- much as it confers no spiritual benefit upon those who practice it. So marriage cannot be regarded as a sacra- ment, though of divine appointment, because it, also, does not necessarily confer any spiritual graces on those who receive it. But baptism does effectually realize all these characteristics, and hence deserves to be received as one of these sacred mysteries. But having once been admitted into the church, the Christian requires the aid of another sacrament to impart to his spirit continued support and spiritual food. Hence we see the justice and value of the appointment of the Lord's Supper. If baptism is necessarily the initiatory sacrament, the Supper is the confirmatory or conservative one. For religion does not consist simply in entering the church of God, but in the continued growth and improve- ment of the soul, afterwards, in every good word and work. The Christian, being a pilgrim in a hostile land, needs food for the wants of the soul. Being in the midst of dangers, he requires additional courage and consolation. The carnal atmosphere around him tends to cool and abase his spirit; and only the repeated influence of spiritual graces, imparted by the proper reception of the sacraments, will, to some extent, ensure success and safety in the Christian struggle. Hence the Supper is intended for constant repetition, as long as the child of God has wants and dangers. But the necessity for these sacraments may be proved from another consideration ; every organization must have OF THE BIBLE. 843 certain external, distinctive badges, wliich are to designate it in thie world. Every association, religious or otherwise, must have some such distinctive features, else it would soon sink into oblivion, or be unobserved. Now the sacraments prove to the world who are Christians, and who are not. By their reception the members of the church are identified, and they are separated thereby from the world at large. This shows their strength or exposes their weakness. It also makes plain their virtues, or stig- matizes their vices. Hence we find, that those sects which have dispensed with these outward ordinances, and in their mistaken spirituality, have contented themselves with removing both form and spirit, have been under the necessity of devising other criteria, whereby to identify themselves, and prevent their associations from being forgotten. They have de- scended to the dignified and important matter of wearing shapeless coats, and fearfully avoiding the use of buttons, as well as sacredly preserving their beards. By these means they preserve themselves from oblivion, and identify all who belong to their associations. But Christ designed the sacraments as distinctive badges of the Christian, aside from their spiritual blessings, to be applicable and useful everywhere and universally ; as much in Southern India and Persia, where coats and buttons are not worn, as in England and North America. Nor is it proper to deprive these sacraments of all their mystery, as many are prone to do. The Sacred Writers term them mysteries ; and the word is fully applicable to them when we remember, that in baptism, Christ grants his sanctifying grace to all those who worthily receive it, thereby renewing their spirits ; and in the Supper, that Christ is specially present in his divine nature, to grant to the worthy communicant the forgiveness of sins, and the renewed and direct consolations of his grace. These gifts 344 THK DOCTRINAL SYSTEM and influences in both cases are extraordinary. They are also beyond tlie power of our clearly comprehending and analyzing them. Like the wind, and the new birth, we cannot tell whence they come or whither they go. They are mysteries ; and it is an act of injustice to labor to ex- pose and expound them, in such familiar style, as to deprive them of all their mystery. True religion cannot exist without mysteries ; mysteries which require our faith, and are above and beyond our reason, though not contrary to it. He, then, that would expunge them from Christianity altogether, either in its doctrinal or ritual part, aims a blow at the existence of Christianity itself.* XIII. The final truths clearly taught us in the Bible, be- longing to its systematic body of doctrine, have reference to what are termed the last things, {Eschatologia.) The first of these, upon which it throws its light, is the article of death — that mysterious and awful event which terminates the earthly existence of the human race. This consists in the separation of the spirit from the body ; the animating soul from the mass which it animates. Now the teachings of the Bible are original and harmonious on • Much has been said of late years, in reference to the mode of Christ's presence in the supper. The most remarkable of these opinions is that held by a class of persons who may be termed Mys- tical theologians, who themselves designate their view by the epithet of the mystical presence, according to which Christ's glorified hu- manity is present, and becomes united with the elements, and is thus received by the worthy communicant in the Supper. It will be difficult, we imagine, to establish any other view on this subject than that the divine nature of Christ, as second person in the Trinity, is, in accordance with his promise, specially and influentially present, at the commemoration of the Supper; and that the emblems are merely commemorative symbols, to lead our thoughts to the consideration of other things. The views of this school are ably set forth in Dr. Nevin's work, The Mystical- Presence: Philad. 1846, 12mo. OF THE BIBLE. 345 this point, because they throw around it the clearer and the fairer light which beams from a better world, so that while, by the dictates of nature, we regard this event with abhorrence and gloom, the Christian is enabled to anticipate it with calmness and peace. It alone teaches us that death is absolutely necessary to prepare the way for other and more glorious events. The apostle teaches, that unless the seed fall into the earth and decay, the fruitful corn will not appear ; and so, unless the body descend to its native dust, it cannot arise in the future resurrection. The Bible also expounds the causes of death ; why this so much dreaded calamity must be inevitable. It reveals the truth, that by the entrance of sin into the world, it brought along with it its inseparable result, the debasement of the soul, and the dissolution of the body. And though death is universally regarded with horror and aversion by the natural man, the necessity for it is clearly seen, when its first entrance into the world is expounded; for like be- gets its like, and our first parents having become polluted with guilt and mortality, their posterity have necessarily become so likewise. Without the instructions of the Bible, how uncertain and gloomy are the conceptions of men, in relation to all which occurs after the momentof dissolution ! Deep dark- ness and terror hover over the borders of that mysterious land, until the Sun of Truth arises, and beams from the heights of eternity along the waste, and casts upon it a more cheerful aspect. The Bible clearly traces the path- way of the soul, as, parting from its mortal coil, it springs upward from the bed of death, and wings its flight to an- other world. It teachps us the existence of an intermediate state between death and judgment; that the powers of the soul are in an active and vigilant condition, and will so continue until the resurrection. God is the God of Abra- ham, Isaac and Jacob; and he is not the God of the dead, 346 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM but of the living. In other words, these departed saints are now alive, in the enjoyment of changeless vigor and vitality ; and such too will be the lot of all those who pass into the world of spirits. Their being will not, cannot cease ; but will be either unspeakably happy or miserable. The nature and important consequences of this doctrine cannot be too highly estimated, though we cannot here further develop them. As might be expected, the concluding doctrines of the Bible are sublime, as well as harmonious in their character. It speaks of a general resurrection, and plainly proclaims that it will 'actually occur. This doctrine, if viewed in its full character and ingredients, is wholly original with the Bible. None of the speculations of the wisest of heathen sages proclaim it. They may speak of the existence of the soul in another world ; of its state of happiness or misery. But that the bodies of men, after mouldering in the dust, and after the lapse of thousands of generations, shall all arise again, renewed, purified and reanimated by the same spirits which once tabernacled in them ; and in this renewed and compound form, shall continue to exist forever ; this is a doctrine wholly new and wholly revealed in the Sacred Scriptures. What bright hopes and what cheering associations do not these truths throw around the grave? They remove the sadness which might seem to rest around that silent spot. With what delight do they consecrate the well- remembered scenes of the past ? With what bright hope and undying interest do they not invest the unfathomable future ? If the grave of the risen Lazarus would consti- tute a spot pregnant with great problems, invested with deep interest, and rayed around with holy associations, how must we regard the grave in general, as the last and long home of all the living, after the Bible has taught so much, and so Well, in reference to it ? OF THE BIBLE. 347 The risen universe of rational beings, this same volume informs us, will crowd around a Supreme and sovereign throne, to receive from the great Judge of all their right- eous destinies. A universal judgment, as taught in the Bible, as a separate, special, and decisive transaction, is original with it. Nowhere else is it taught. It might, indeed, be inferred from the nature of God as a Sovereign, who must necessarily have a tribunal ; as a dispenser of justice, who must necessarily equalize the various amounts of reward or penalty, which may, either here or hereafter, demand to be balanced. In accordance, then, with this de- mand of reason, the Bible has declared, that in the fullness of time, Christ shall come in his own glory, and with the glory of the Father, and with his holy angels ; that his throne shall be established in the heavens ; that upon it the once despised Redeemer shall sit ; that millions shall await in awe his Supreme decision ; that glittering hosts of angels will surround his throne ; that lofty seraphs and cherubs shall bend before him, prepared with eagerness and joy, to do his bidding and execute his will. This great event is invested with every diaracteristic and fea- ture which are calculated to make it solemn, interesting and sublime. The time, the place, the judge, the mode, the subjects of the process, and the consequences which are to follow it, — all are depicted in language which en- chant the reader with their splendor, and overwhelm him with their solemnity. Afar will the last trumpet echo, waxing louder and louder, reaching the remotest mansions of the dead. Instantaneously the awakened millions shall start forth, and attracted by the fearful glory of the erected throne, will assemble from the four winds of heaven, in awful silence, in the presence of the Judge. Legions of angels will be upon the wing, executing his high commis- sions, and facilitating the processes of the day. The stu- 348 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM pendous book of human destiny will be opened; each one will stand recorded as he deserves ; and the Judge will issue the mandate, so far raised beyond the reach of resist- ance or appeal, which will fix the eternal fate of each one.* The necessary results of this judgment, which inevita- bly follow from it, constitute the last great truths in syste- matic order, which the Bible reveals. These are the punishment of the wicked and the happiness of the right- eous. In reference to 'these events, we may briefly say, that they are necessary consequences which follow from man's present probationary state, from the existence of God's providence here, from his very capacity as Judge and Sovereign of the universe, and especially from the su- preme holiness and justice of his nature ; which urges him to the strictest impartiality in the administration of his jurisdiction. Many attempts have, indeed, been made to overturn the eternity of future punishment ; but those at- tempts are the most absurd of any made to pervert the plain teachings of Scripture. If the future retributive suffering of the finally impenitent be not eternal, then the whole tenor of the Bible is erroneous ; then the preaching of the Gospel is absurd ; then the existence of the church and of Christianity is unnecessary ; then the warnings of con- * One dangerous form of error which has appeared among us in modern days, is the spirilual interpretations of all these events, as set forth by the school of Prof Bush. They regard all such Literalism, as that employed in tlie text as absurd ; and regard everything con- nected with the Resurrection and the Judgment as spiritual and iigura- tive. If this is not Modern Infidelity, it is American Rationalism : for while it does violence to all the teachings and tenor of Scripture, it exerts a most injurious practical influence on the mind, by removing every attribute of 'solemnity and terror which, on the other principle, attends these events. See Dr. Bush on the Sesmrection : New York, 1845, 12mo. OF THE BIBLE. 349 science tell falsehoods ; and then to labor to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, is a preposterous injunction. We believe that the Bible wisely teaches this awful and yet necessary truth, that the wicked shall be banished from the presence of God, and from the glory of his power forever. On the contrary, the Bible teaches a fallen world that there is a home for the good, not btiilt with hands, eternal in the heavens. This home is the abode of the just; there God reigns; there the Saviour dwells, and there the redeemed of every age and every race who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb, and made them clean from every guilt ; and there the whole ransomed creation, which has been rescued from the power of sin, and reanimated with the vigor of holiness, shall be infinitely blessed. Their career will necessarily be a progressive one in knowledge, pov^rer and happiness. As star differs from star in glory, so there must be different grades of glory and bliss in that spiritual firmament, dependent necessarily upon the conduct of each in this life. Thus the affairs of the world will be closed, its drama ended, and the curtain fall upon it for- ever — that vast sheet of consuming flame, which shall begirt the globe, and with which it shall pass away as a scroll. Thus does this extraordinary volume reveal in clear and consistent harmony, this complete body of original and invaluable truths, of which we have here endeavored to give an outline. They are the most complete, compre- hensive and harmonious with which our fallen world has been favored. Their fullness and depth are truly inexhaustible. Notwithstanding that they have been the subject of the contemplations of the Christian church for ages, their richness of consolation, and their wealth of in- 30 350 THE DOCTRINAL SYSTEM OF THE BIBLE. struction have not been exhausted. The purer light of the eternal world will be necessary to reveal all their meaning. Heaven and its pursuits will exhibit to view much which now necessarily remains inscrutable and mysterious. But even with the feebler moral light of the present ex- istence, how much that is sublime and valuable do these great truths present to men? Commencing with the character of God, the Great Unknown, and expounding it to us as far as we can grasp it, these truths sweep over the wide waste of human history, character and destiny; as well as passing down the flight of ages, from creation's morn, into the dawning of the future eternity; they depict what is most important and record what is most instructive, in the whole universe of truth. All these doc- trines are also so inwardly associated together, that not one could be removed without marring the whole. No point is evaded, however mysterious or difficult it might be ; but as far as we can comprehend it, the most pro- found as well as the most simple are imparted to mankind, in equal fullness and with equal ease. Now the value of this doctrinal system is not in the least diminished because mankind differ in their concep- tions of it. Truth is one; and in consequence of hu- man weakness, the darkness of human thought, and the insufficiency of human language, mankind must be expected to vary in their conceptions of the meaning of what is revealed. But as the eternal principles of law and abstract justice never vary, however much men may distort and misconceive them, so also with the eternal principles of religion : they are changeless, however much men may contradict each other in their interpretations of them. It will be a part doubtless, of the felicities of heaven, to arrive at perfect assurance of truth, to have every enigma explained, each doubt removed ; and perfect know- ledge adorn and harmonize every redeemed spirit. 351 CHAPTER IX. ADAPTATION OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE TO UNIVER- SAL DIFFUSION. Modern Infidelity has objected to the Religion of the Bible, that its progress and diffusion in the world have been so tardy, and that it does not realize what might have been expected from a religion claiming to be divine. It is urged that, after eighteen hundred years of existence, scarcely one hundred millions of the nine hundred millions of beings in the world can be said to possess the pure Gospel. In reference to this, it is to be said, that these one hundred millions are the most intelligent and powerful of our race; and the members of the church have been composed of this description of persons for many ages. But the rea- son why the church has not become more universal can easily be assigned ; and arguments can on the other hand be advanced to show, that this religion is not only adapted to universal diffusion, but will inevitably attain it. These will now demand our consideration. As there can be but one true system of religion, what- ever that is, it must be designed by its author to become uni- versal; it will, therefore, accomplish this destiny in spite of every obstacle. If, then, it can be shown that any one religion is adapted to become thus universal, it is proving at the same time its divine character. One religion only is true; although there may be parcels of truth scattered in various branches of the human race, and in various corabi- 353 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION nations of human thought; but wherever they are, they •vfiW successfully assert their triumph over error. If, then, truth is more potent than falsehood ; if it possesses an in- herent energy before which the craven crest of error will sink in confusion, and its energy be dissipated in fear ; we cannot doubt for a moment that the power of truth, pos- sessing this universal harmony and elective affinity, will secure eventually an illimitable empire in the world. This expectation is one of the noblest as well as surest which adorns the religion of the Bible. When we examine the religion of the Bible in order to ascertain what features mark it as wisely adapted to uni- versal diffusion, one of the first which presents itself to notice is, that it is not suited to only one particular state of human society. The slightest acquaintance with the his- tory and the condition of the world will convince any one that every imaginable shade of condition is exhibited among the millions who people it. Wherever we travel, new and varied forms of human character and society pre- sent themselves to view — from the refinement, intelligence and power of the haughty Briton, to the rudeness, igno- rance and imbecility of the debased Hottentot. One of the most difficult tasks which a spurious religion would have to perform, and one which would most triumphantly expose its imposture, would be to meet this emergency, and adapt itself to all these varied forms of human cha- racter and condition. Every false religion would split upon this rock, and sink in the waves of forgetfulness. Every false religion which has had a proper period of trial has done so ; and left as its legacy to the world this substantiated position, that if any form of religion is able thus to adapt itself to every shade of society, that religion has earned for itself the indisputable evidence of inspi- ration and supremacy. OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBIE. 353 This honor the religion of the Sacred Volume has won for itself. Whatever may be the varied condition and re- lations of men, wherever this religion has been preached, it has with singular power made its way to the hearts of all of them with equal certainty and success. This sacred religion being designed, by its element of truth, for the redemption of the world, is suited to every exigency, is equal to every emergency which may occur in its tri- umphant march. While all other religions have been per- vaded by the spirit and the genius of some particular land, or rank, or grade of society, that of the Bible has no en- demic peculiarities which bear upon its power of influenc- ing human character and feeling. It is pervaded by one great characteristic, its universality. It is adapted to the highest eminences of human refinement ; able to produce a powerful impression there, an impression peculiarly its own; to mould, elevate and adorn, and then point out far loftier heights which tower above, but which all human effort will essay in vain to reach. It can teach the most cultured how to impart to their powers additional bril- liancy and splendor. It can show them where nobler wis- dom and improvement are to be attained than their own highest aspirations had before conceived of. It can de- scend, with equal dignity and grace, where the lowest of our race drag out a miserable existence in ignorance, bru- tality and vice, and illumine their dark and cheerless abodes with a ray of celestial light ; it can remove the mighty load of impurity and turpitude which the progress of disastrous ages had accumulated around the souls of men, and bid them stand forth renewed, redeemed and disenthralled, radiant with a divine beauty and loveliness. With what success and power this religion has influenced the refined and cultivated nations of Northern Europe, the philoso- phic Greek, the- martial Roman, the stubborn Jew, the 30* 354 UNIVEHSAI, DIFFTISIOW wandering Arab, the pliant Persian, the bigoted Turk, the naked barbarians of the Southern Isles, and the ferocious savages of the Western hemisphere ; with what uniforra vigor it has renewed and purified their hearts, transformed their varied charaeters, and made them one in Jesus Christ, stand recorded in clear and convincing light in the annals of the triumphs of the glorious Gospel of God. It is and ever has been perfectly at home in every land, and amid every grade of human character and society. Hence this feature of it, aids in removing every obstacle to universal diffusion which would necessarily attend every other re- ligion which did not possess this indisputable evidence of inspiration. This religion is equally adapted to every climate of the world; nor is this a point of insignificant consequence, when we remember the important bearing which climate and the peculiarities connected with it have upon the feel- ings and dispositions of men. There are certain forms of religion which could not possibly become universal in con- sequence of their deficiency here. Thus for instance, the religion of Mohammed is adapted alone to the warmth and heat of the southern climes, \yhere it has only prevailed ; and the various purgative rites and ablutions which are connected with it, are much more promotive there of the health of the body than of the soul. But whilst these rites are congenial with the land and the people who dwell almost beneath the intensity of the vertical sun ; or where the scorching breezes from the desert waft only to them volumes of dust and sand ; and even in winter, where the palm tree waves in the pleasant breezes of the south, and men regale themselves in the fresh air of heaven ; there the rites of this religion are at home. But let them be transported to the eternal ice, the drifting snow, and the wintry storms of the Greenlander, or the Russian even; OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 355 and the necessity of self-preservation will compel men to forsake their fulfilment forever. This religion would die away almost as soon as it deserted the soft murmur of- the waves of the Mediterranean along its shores. But the religion of the Bible labors under no such dis- advantages. All its moral injunctions can be practiced with equal facility in every clime. All its doctrinal truths can be believed and understood with equal certainty in every land. All its ritual and ceremonial observances can be practiced with equal security and comfort on every shore. It matters not what may be the location of any race of men, in any quarter or nook of the habitable globe ; there the doctrines, duties, rites and ceremonies of this religion, when taken in their native simplicity and purity, without the alloy of any human perversions or additions, are all equally practicable and beneficial. The more we examine the primitive simplicity of the religion of the Bible, and trace its relation to all degrees or grades of climate, the more this remarkable feature of it will force itself upon our conviction. Nor is the religion of the Bible adapted only to one, or a few orders of intellect ; it is equally appropriate to every grade of mental power. However varied the characters of men may be, intellectually considered, ihey all possess immortal spirits equally valuable. For all alike has the Redeemer toiled and suffered ; and any religion which pos- sesses a divine origin will also be adapted to reach every class and degree of mental power. Here indeed, some of the boasted religions of ancient heathens, as well as of modern philosophers, come singularly short. The reli- gions of the ancient Grecian sages were as little capable of practical realization in the department of morals and religion, as Plato's Republic was in the region of politics. Their beauty and originality, the most cultivated of their 356 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION age alone could understand and appreciate. All who most needed the benefit of some wise and benevolent moral code were left entirely unreached and unblest. Other forms of religion among them were adapted only to the ignorant and debased; from which the more cultivated turned away in disgust. Equally contracted in their adap- tation to general application, are those speculations on religion which sapient infidels have devised in modern days. Not so is the religion of the Sacred Volume. The history of its influences shows, that at its shrine every order of intellect, from a Bacon and a Newton, with all their splendid powers and profound investigations in two worlds, those of mind and matter, to the humble and un- tutored shepherd upon the verdant Highland, tending his flock in primeval quietude and obscurity; — all have bowed at the shrine of the religion of the Bible with equal delight and equal improvement. Such is the nature of its divine truths, that while they are more original and profound than the deepest of human speculations, they are so simple, and so wisely adapted in the mode of their communication, that they can be as easily grasped by the serf as by the sage. And all the intervening grades of culture and power, which range endlessly from the highest to the lowest, find equal success in receiving them, as well as in becoming subjects of its transforming power and agency, in their hearts. This remarkable truth is taught not merely by an examination of the contents of the Sacred Volume, but also by an inspection of the actual character and history of mankind. Any divine religion will adapt itself to the world pre- cisely as it is. It will, aim to renew the hearts of men, to reconstruct their moral natures ; but it will not attempt to reconstruct their mental part. It will indeed improve and enlarge, though not recreate them ; but in order to accom- OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 357 plish this important purpose, it must be adapted to all. Nor will that which is wisely adapted to one answer for every class of mind. A false religion would most proba- bly be incapable of benefiting morally any one; it might by possibility be of benefit to a few. But the fact that it was thus adapted to one class, would not argue its adapta- tion to all. Yet this important merit the Bible possesses; for its powerful and regenerative agency is, capable of in- fluencing all cases alike. But if the question be asked, what connection is there between the adaptation of a religion to reach all intel- lects, to do with the great work which professedly belongs to a religion, that of renewing the heart ? We answer, that the heart must be influenced through the intellect. The mind is the avenue to the Spirit; and any lasting or deep impression which is made upon the latter, can only be efl'ected through the medium of the former. What the mind cannot understand to some extent, the heart cannot feel ; and, on the other hand, what the intellect cannot es- teem as wiser and better than itself, the heart will never adore as worthy of its affection. Hence when a religion is incapable of adaptation to every class of intellectual development, it is incapable of universal supremacy over all hearts. Thus again this religion is not confined to any degree of moral culture. It is remarkable that the various forms of false religion which have existed, have either not pretend- ed to improve the hearts of men, or else have wisely di- rected their appeals to the purest of their race. By this means their powers of renovation were less severely tasked and tested. The Saviour of men when he dwelt on earth, was censured for his disposition " to receive sin- ners ;" for his condescending to that very act which, of all others, should have secured him more of the admiration 358 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION and reverence of men. Thus also does the Sacred Vohime which records his will and proclaims his law. It addresses its claims alike to all. It makes uniform demands, pro- claims uniform threats, imposes uniform duties, holds out uniform aids, and urges uniform rewards upon all men alike. God is no respecter of persons ; and why should he be ? From the lofty eminence of his throne, the inhabitants of earth all appear as equal pigmies. Their claims and me- rits are about equal ; that is to say, similarly insignificant. The Gospel does not conceal the crimes of the titled po- tentate from the searching eye and retributive rod of jus- tice, while it exposes the sins of the obscure and down- trodden transgressor to the severest rigor of deserved pun- ishment. Such being the declarations and demands of the Bible, we ask whether it exhibits power to carry them out, and when it proffers aid to every class and grade of sinners, is it able to furnish efficient assistance, and purify, and re- deem all alike ? This question can' be answered with triumph in the affirmative. The merits of a suffering, but now risen and triumphant Saviour, are boundless in their efficacy, inexhaustible in their extent. Enthroned in glory, his omnipotent power can elevate from the abasement of sin every returning wanderer ; and his renewing grace can transform the most excessive criminal from pollution to purity. Even though the hearts of men be stained with crimes of crimson hue, though they be red as scarlet, they shall be removed, and their natures made white as wool. That is to say, — such is the meaning of this ex- pressive comparison, — though mankind may reach the lowest depths and most startling extremes of moral turpi- tude, the grace of God is able to renew them, the soul- savingtruths of the Bible are able to rescue them. If, then, (the inference remains to be drawn,) such be the power OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 359 of the Gospel, able to affect the worst cases which can possibly happen, it can of course confer equal benefit upon every instance of less enormity which can possibly occur. The doctrinal system of the Bible is wisely adapted to universal diffusion. We can easily imagine the existence of a religion, some of the doctrines of which would either be above the comprehension of some, and beneath the adoption of others, of its votaries. Nor need we imagine such a case ; for it has been amply illustrated by the re- ligions of antiquity. But no objection of this nature can be urged against the Sacred Volume. There are, indeed, truths contained in it which are above human comprehen- sion. But the question arises, whether a perfect know- ledge of this portion of its revelations is necessary to the great object of the Bible, namely, the redemption of the soul ? Plainly all these mysterious portions are of second- ary importance ; are not fundamental, so far as concerns their bearing on human salvation. In other words, men may be saved without a perfect understanding of thes^ enigmas. Such an acquaintance with them is not therefore made obligatory. In false religions, whatever they contain is made known with the injunction, that all be perfectly understood and received ; a demand with which it is often impossible to comply. Hence they must be circumscribed in their diffusion. Not so with the Bible. It plainly declares that some of its contents are mysteries, and as such cannot be grasped by finite minds. It enjoins all men to receive and understand that for which theirpowers are sufBcient. These portions can be understood. While its mysteries are equally impenetrable to all men alike, thereby aiding their universality, the rest is equally in- telligible to all men. They are not adapted to any one peculiar national cast of mind, nor any individual amount 360 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION or depth of intellect. They are not in harmony with the prevalent fashions or mental habitudes of any particular age or era in the world's history. They are not irrecon- cilably opposed to any unalterable law of the human mind ; but are equally consistent, rational and unassailable, amid any degree of scientific culture and research, how- ever small or great it may be. In all these relations, this doctrinal system is admirably adapted to universality. The same is equally true of the moral system con- tained in the Bible. Here there is a slight difference existing between the doctrines and duties which it con- tains, namely, that while some of the former are confes- sedly mysterious, none of the latter are impracticable, but can be performed, by Divine assistance, by all, as they are enjoined upon all. The Bible represents all mankind as being equally responsible for the performance of these duties. It would be a strange inconsistency for a divine revelation to make a demand which could not possibly be complied with. But every duty there made known, is enjoined upon the proper persons; different duties, to some extent, are indeed laid upon different classes of men, according to the relations in which they may be placed in the world; but upon whomsoever these duties are laid, they can perform them by the use of the proper exertions and aids. But upon all men some obligations are laid; and all the obligations of the Bible are appropriated to some classes of men. But in reference to none of these can it be said, that insurmountable obstacles impede their performance. This truth follows from the fact that the moral system of the Bible is reasonable, as also simple and just. All its duties are dictated by the mind of a divine and perfect being, and bear the impress of his excellencies. They are also simple ; for simplicity is evermore an attribute of OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 361 what is superior and exalted, in any department of the universe. They are such as the claims of justice absolutely demanded ; which therefore could not be dispensed with. And inasmuch as the whole race of men were equally liable to the imposition of such a law, and hence were under obligations to fulfil it, it would of course be wisely adapted to the capacities of all men alike. Hence arises its adaptation to universal diffusion. No duties are divinely imposed upon men, which require the exercise of greater powers than they possess, or the rendering of greater sacri- fices than they can render, or the exhibition of greater holiness than they can attain. Human nature being every- where the same in its fundamental elements, a system of morals, to be universally diifused, should also possess the attribute of unity, of harmony ; and this attribute the moral system of the Bible preeminently possesses. Nor is there anything in the ritual observances of the religion of the Bible calculated to impede its universality. This remark is especially true of that form of religion taught in Ihe New Testament. There were some ceremo- nial observances of the Jewish code which were necessarily confined to Jerusalem. Mount Zion, which there reared its venerable head, was holy ground. The temple of the Most High was the especial spot where the visible presence of God was alone vouchsafed on earth. There the interced- ing and sacrificial priesthood dwelt, and upon the smoking altars of the sacred city, they offered the bleeding victims most acceptable to God. Thus, too, that form of Chris- tianity which now exists, and more resembles the religion of Moses than the religion of Christ, labors under the same feature. The Romish system of rites and ceremonies never can, in spite of all its claims to true catholicity, be- come universally diffused throughout the whole habitable globe. The peculiarities of climate, national customs, and 31 362 TTNIVERSAL DIFFUSION various other circumstances, hopelessly impede the attain- ment of this claim. Nothing of all this is applicable to that pure form of worship and simple ritual which adorn the church of the new covenant. In it there is nothing which tends to pre- vent it from becoming the religion of the whole world. There is no rite nor ceremony which may not be observed with security and profit, in any clime, on any shore, amid any style of national manners, under any imaginable form of government, by every class of the community, and in connection with any degree of culture, in any past or future age of the history of our race. There is in it nothing local, nothing exclusive, nothing burdensome, nothing expensive, nor destructive of the peace and ease and security of its votaries. There are no consecrated altars, where alone our sacrifices are to be offered, no sacred temples where alone the words of everlasting life are proclaimed, and no holy of holies where alone the spirit of God and the grace of forgiveness, and the benefit of intercession can be ob- tained. Nothing of all this impedes the universal diffu- sion and efficacy of this divine religion ; but in every nation, he that feareth God and worketh righteousness is accepted with him. This great truth was strikingly evinced by the very origin and primitive diffusion of the Gospel ; for while the Jewish religion and its blessings had been carefully confined to the chosen people of God, the apostles of the New Testament immediately proceeded to carry abroad its promulgations and its blessings to the Gentiles, who for successive generations previously, had been treated as hopeless aliens. from the fold of God. But aside from these inherent features of this religion, there is another circumstance of striking consequence which deserves attention. The Gospel is the only religion which has ever existed, which has employed the powerful OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 363 aid of systematic, constant and efficient preaching, as a chosen method of its propagation. The sacred order of the ministry of reconciliation has been chiefly ordained, in order to be the aggressive heralds of this religion throughout the world. It is remarkable that none of the heathen reli- gions of antiquity or of modern days, employed an agency in any sense resembling the Gospel ministry. The religion of Greece was not preached aggressively by its priesthood. Their labors were confined to the rendering of sacrifices, the giving of oracular responses, and attending to their endless ceremonies. Though they had philosophers of a high order, and poets, and historians, and "statesmen, they had no preachers. Nor had the religion of ancient Rome. Nor had the Jewish religion its preachers, as we now use the term. It is a peculiar feature of pure Christianity alone, that " the foolislmess of preaching" should be em- ployed in the highest commission ; it alone has its pulpits ; it alone has ordained a compact, harmonious, able, and active class of men, whose great and chief aim in life is to carry forward the triumphs of the truth, to make systematic attacks upon the powers of darkness, and proclaim from age to age, on every shore, and in every habitation of dying men, the unsearchable riches and matchless merits of a crucified and risen Saviour. No other religion in the history of the world can pre- sent such an array of preachers in its defence as a Paul, Chrysostom, Augustine, Luther, Hall, Chalmers, Edwards, Mason, whose splendid powers were all consecrated, along with a countless host of worthy compeers, to the aggressive spread and triumph of the religion of Christ. View this wondrous and powerful instrumentality, this noble order of self-denying men, who from age to age, in various quarters of the globe, have toiled and labored in all their various positions and countless relations in the world, to hold up to view the merits of the one same reli- 364 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION gion, to carry forward in the midst of trials, sufferings, persecutions, and even death, the bloodless triumphs of the one Lord and Master of all ; invading the domains of dark- ness vi^ith fearless tread, preaching Christ in the very cita- dels of sin and the strongholds of the powers of hell, with unwavering fortitude ; standing up with unsubdued resolu- tion in the face of hostile kings, and casting boldly in the teeth of enraged powers and potentates the unwelcome truths with which they were commissioned ; and then often heroically sealing their doctrines with their blood. Can it be doubted for a moment, that any religion possessing any such powerful and ceaseless instrumentality as this, could come short of universal diffusion ? It is plainly impossi- ble; and were there no other evidence of the superhuman wisdom of this religion and its author, it would clearly appear in the wondrous means which have been adopted to proclaim and extend it by direct agency throughout the world ; an agency whose inherent elements of vigor and success have been amply indicated and vindicated by the past experience and wonderful developments of eighteen hundred years. The means of propagating this divine religion are indeed wisely adapted to each other. In addition to this agency, another wise appointment forms a part of the contemplated scheme of the Bible: the active co-operation of Christians, united with the labors of the pulpit, in its diffusion. This is almost as striking a feature of Christianity as is the employment of the pulpit ; especially when we take into view the means which the members of the church of Christ are commis- sioned to employ in their work. Their weapons are in no sense carnal. They are zealously to aid in building up the church of God in their own lands ; to let their light shine around them, so as constantly and powerfully to recom- mend their religion to others. They are to sustain the OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 365 teachings of the pulpit, to support the ministrations of the word, and enlarge by every suitable means, the extent, the number, and the power of the friends of truth, where that truth is already known. But it is also their duty to aid in carrying the Gospel into lands where moral gloom and darkness still rest like a mighty pall over the spirits of deluded men. They cannot themselves preach ; but they have the means to support others who can preach, in executing this great work. It is made the duty of every member of the church to give of his substance, as the Lord has prospered him, to the proclamation of the truth. This duty is lasting; it will remain obligatory upon the church as long as her militant career endures. Accord- ingly every member of the Redeemer's fold is constituted an aggressive and faithful soldier of the cross ; commis- sioned in some way, either personally, or by those whom he sends forth, to carry the standard of the Gospel forward and onward, to plant it on heathen shores, and aid in over- turning the strongholds of idolatry. God exacts this service from him, and the faithful friend of the Redeemer will see that he carefully executes it. By this concentrated en- deavor of every true Christian, a mighty host will be actively engaged in carrying forward the triumphs of the Gospel. Another powerful promotive of this universality, is the inherent attractions which the story of the cross possesses over every human spirit. There is a narrative contained in these sacred pages, unrivaled in all the annals of hu- man thought or heroism. Whoever deeply ponders the amazing record of redeeming love, tracing the progress of the Jncarnate God from the manger to the cross, and from the grave to his hereditary throne, as these events are penned on the page of inspiration,, will feel that he peruses a narrative to which he will search in vain for a parallel 31* 366 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION elsewhere. There is a powerful charm in that story 5 more moving, astonishing and awful than is produced by the history of the most illustrious exploits of the mighty dead, whose names and deeds, after having been honored by the men of their own age, have gone down upon the scroll of immortality for the reverence of generations yet unborn. We read the story of Camillus and Cincinnatus, "guiltless of their country's blood;" and we admire their patriotism, their heroism and their worth. We peruse the history of the life and death of Socrates ; we place him high in the temple -of human virtue ; we call him worthy to sit at the feet of the immortal gods, on the lofty summit of Olympus, and say that he died as he had lived, "like a philosopher." We trace the career of Mo- hammed from his obscurity in the deserts of Arabia, till he had placed the crescent triumphantly upon the summit of Mecca's splendid fane, and then slept in death beneath it ; and we alternately yield to admiration for his talents and contempt for his weaknesses. But when we turn from these to survey the unrivaled history, labors, sufferings and services of the Son of God, our spirits are overborne by the ponderous weight of a loftier, holier, sublimer emotion. There are few who do not feel this emotion, when the cause of it is properly brought before their view. There are some indeed, who seem to be callous to its influence, and appear inaccessible to its power. But such persons either have hearts of the most flinty mould, or the whole subject is not arrayed before their minds in its completeness and amplitude. We cannot form a conception of the sun, by inspecting or ex- amining the splendors of a solitary ray. There are thou- sands who have never seriously contemplated the Saviour's history in its totality, who nevertheless pretend to be familiar wiih his life on earth. But there that story sUr- OF THE REUGION OF THE BIBLE. 367' vives, as permanent as the throne of God, and generation after generation of dying men will peruse it with delight, wonder and profit. What amazing condescension is there displayed! What unspeakable love for a rebellious race! What mighty power in the achievement of miracles and deeds of wonder ! What singular constancy in adhering to his plans and his purposes ! What forbearance with human ingratitude and baseness ! What triumphant suc- cess in the accomplishment of his glorious and heavenly purpose ! Who can view the achievemeijts of that Saviour, as he toils benevolently for our good ; as he victoriously crushes the powers of darkness for us ; as he speaks forth words of celestial wisdom, which descended with him from his native skies, for our instruction ; who can behold his meek submission amid the agonies of the cross, which he endured for us ; who can witness his triumph over the gates of hell, which he vanquished for our deliverance ; and his glorious ascension to heaven, to prepare for us the unaccustomed way ; who can review all these things, in their connection and completeness, without confessing that "this is the Son of God?" Wherever the habitations of men are reared in this world, wherever there are immortal spirits to be redeemed, wherever there are rational souls that can feel, the merits of this great story will bear onward the revelation of which it forms a part, with sure and accu- mulating success. In vain will the agency of sin and Satan attempt to obscure its lustre, to weaken its power, to resist its influence. It forms a potent aid, at which the sable Monarch of Hell may well tremble, and the redeemed in heaven and earth may well rejoice. That protracted scene of toil and love, of which our earth was the theatre, and upon which the lofty hierarchies of another world gazed in absorbed astonishment and wonder, and upon which God the Father and the Spirit may be said to have 368 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION concentrated their attention and their interest; that scene will never be properly presented to men, vphatever may be their character or their hopes, without deep emotion and lasting effect. Besides this, neither the Bible nor its religion, is de- pendent on human wisdom for its extension throughout the world. It is logically correct that where carnal evils are to be overthrown, human influences will be insufficient to accomplish this purpose. The evil to be overthrown will be as powerful as the agency employed to overthrow it. , It is necessary that spiritual and divine agencies be employed to resist spiritual evils, if we hope for success in such an enterprise. Here is the great deficiency in all merely human institutions; on this point they have failed, however excellent some of their traits may have been. They were able to summon to their aid merely human wisdom, benevolence and penetration. But the power of sin is mighty. The strong-holds of darkness are in com- pact league. They will not yield to a feigned or an impo- tent attack. They require the operation of a powerful, incessant, superhuman onset. This the religion of the Bible alone can make. The support and the vigor which are invested in its truth are more operative and effective than the energy of sin, however great this may be, which opposes it. The arm of God is the defender of the truth. He will bear onward its standard triumphantly; and be- fore his terrific visage and formidable assaults, the fiercest fiends of darkness quake and tremble. If the religion of the Bible, in any one case, professedly reposed its hopes of diffusion upon any one human instrumentality alone, we should expect nothing more for it than that it should go down with speedy descent into the common grave of human superstition and error. Again, this religion is not dependent upon any form of OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 369 human government for its diffusion ; for if it did, it would inevitably be disappointed. No one human government can become universal, or secure the empire of the world. The history of nations proves that mankind are necessa- rily divided into various national communities ; nor can the arm of power, or the struggles of ambition, ever suc- ceed in cementing into one gigantic mass all the scattered races of men. God exploded the unity of men at Babel, and the history of the greatest endeavors which have ever been made to reunite them, proves the impossibility of the achievement. If such an attainment were possible ; if one government could become supreme, one law universal; and if these should adopt the religion of the Bible as their own, and extend its influence as widely as themselves ; even then the attempt would be doubtful ; for a spiritual empire can be enlarged by no carnal means, however powerful and extended. But such a supposition can never be real- ized. Hence the religion of the Bible has been made Entirely free from all dependence upon the state, or the secular power. However circumscribed political or civil institutions may be, it can overleap their boundaries, pass far beyond their limits, and attain to universality, while they are still compressed within their former dimensions. It is equally superior to every government ; entirely ele- vated above all human laws, usages and restrictions. It rests upon the authority of the universal Governor. It is in league with the boundless empire of his truth. Wher- ever his authority extends, there his religion justly and successfully claims supremacy. Had it espoused any one form of government in prefer- ence to the rest, it would have been involved and compro- mised in those struggles and conflicts which are constantly occurring between them. Hence, whatever may be the vicissitudes of fortune, the rise or the fall of states, the 370 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION triumphs or the overthrow of empires, this religion is en- tirely exempt from all participation in their fate. It may preach justice, morality and truth ; but these great princi- ples it will preach to all alike. It may prescribe the duties of ruler and subject, and even touch upon the general principles of righteous legislation, and expose the sins of mal-administration ; but these it will proclaim to all alike irrespective of age, rank or power. Here it is also uni- versal in its spirit and its impartiality. Although there are some advantages resulting from the dependence of church on state, these do not alter the truth of our position. Nor is it affected by the fact, that the Church of Christ has, during the larger portion of its past career, been rest- ing in this connection, and flourishing to some extent under it. It would have flourished much more without it. That church when in its Apostolic purity, was not placed by its great Head in that connection. Had it been accordant with his will, and agreeable with the best interests of the Church, He would doubtless have instituted it. Thai» first emissaries of the cross sought no connection whatever between their religion and their government ; and this is doubtless one great reason why the triumphs of the truth in that age were vastly more extensive and glorious than those of any one age which has subsequently oc- curred. These first heralds despised, with an intensity which should serve as a striking and impressive example to their successors, all the splendid pageantry of thrones and sceptres, all the bright array of riches and titles, all the imposing pomp and circumstance of human glory. They relied chiefly upon the Lord God of Sabaoth ; they looked for support and favor from Messiah's throne ; they were content to urge their interests and their claims in the high chancery of heaven. One great object of all religion is to resist and crush OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 371 error. A religion, to be true as well as efficient, must be able or adapted to resist every form of error. This, few religions have been able to accomplish ; this the religion of the Bible alone can do. No other system of morals has been able to point out and designate all sin. They were deficient in spiritual penetration, in order to know the cha- racter of actions and feelings even when they examined them. Hence no other system of morals condemns all sin, and holds them up to their just and deserved reproba- tion. Both of these the- religion of the Bible accom- plishes. But a system of morals might be able to desig- nate and condemn all sin, and be yet unable to resist and crush it. This would imply a still higher grade of power and ability. This power the religion of the Bible also possesses. By it the axe is laid to the root of the tree, and it there strikes a death-blow from which, when once in- flicted, it cannot recover. It creates the heart anew, put- -ting away the old man, and giving a second and more wondrous birth to the soul. This end is alone worthy of any religion. It is of no avail, as men are here consti- tuted, to speak of' morality, honesty and virtue. What- ever other changes may be produced, none are deserving of lasting esteem, unless they prepare the soul for heaven and for God. This object if it is attained, must be secured by triumph over every sin. Holiness to the Lord is the injunction which he himself has given ; aud- it is that religion of which he is the author which can effect the change which he commends. Now sin has been universally diffused throughout the world. Any re- ligion which is able to reach and remove all sin, must by this very process, also become universal. The surety which we have of this power of the religion of the Bible to accomplish this end, is found in the fact, that it has already removed every form and shade of guilt, in such 372 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION cases as have already been subjected to its influence. And inasmuch as the nature of sin is the same, and diifers in the case before us, in extent only, what this religion has once done, it can of course achieve again. The cause of truth accumulates power in the work of its development, even from past disasters, which it has been called upon to surmount and endure. These dis- asters were in accordance with the will of God; and hence were directed by wisdom in their occurrence. They were also real disasters to that cause ; retarding for a time its progress through the world ; obscuring for a period the splendor of its glory, and causing it and its friends to be humbled in consequence of their occurrence. But though disasters are incident to all sublunary things, they cannot all arise again from them, with safety and re- newed vigor. Many worthy and commendable enter- prises and principles yield beneath the vigor of these at- tacks. Not so with the church and the religion of Christ. Every misfortune augments their wisdom, redoubles their vigilance, and increases their energy. They avoid their f6es with greater success, and press onward to the attain- ment of the inestimable prize with confirmed resolution. In past trials the Church of God " rose from her. ashes fresh in beauty and in might. Celestial glory beamed around her; she dashed down the- monumental marble of her foes, and they who hated her fled before her. She has celebrated the funeral of kings and kingdoms that plotted her destruction ; and with the inscriptions of their pride, has transmitted to posterity the record of their shame. The ark is launched, indeed, upon the floods ; the tempest sweeps along the deep ; the billows break over her on every side. But Jehovah Jesus has promised to conduct her in safety to the haven of peace." Precious in the eyes of the Lord is even the death of his saints. OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 373 From their crumbling dust and bloody graves a voice goes forth, deep and impressive as a monitor from the spirit land, which but adds new vigor to the toils, and new firmness to the constancy of those who have suc- ceeded them in the race of glory, and the combat for im- mortality. Every lesson thus taught, is carefully pondered and preserved. Every deliverance thus realized, is thank- fully received and remembered. And instead of the en- deavors of the hostile powers succeeding in undermin- ing the foundations and diminishing the conquests of the kingdom of truth, they but eventually promote it. While other systems of religion grow old and decrepit with the advance of ages; while they yield more and more to those influences which are connected with the increase of years, and thus gradually wear out their strength, and go down to an inevitable grave, Christianity has proved herself entirely superior to all these influences. The progress of centuries, with all their vicissitudes and disasters, only adds to her energy, her ardor and her triumphs. Every event is appropriated' to greater advantage and improve- ment; furnishing additional evidence, that she is supported by a power which is superior to every emergency. She has passed through greater trials during her past career than she will probably be called to meet again ; and victo- ries which she has once been able to achieve, she may achieve again, in reliance on the same Almighty protector who has already led her on to so many, and such great conquests. The experience of ages also testifies that this same great aim is promoted by the progress of arts, sciences, commerce, and even war, which are constantly advancing their domains, and enlarging the boundaries of their influ- ence. The never ceasing activity of the human mind is constantly perfecting the arts and sciences, in all their 32 374 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION varied relations and aspects. Age after age, as it rolls aviray, adds new discoveries and new Improvements, which leave far in the rear the greatest and most commendable endeavors of previous generations. The bloody conquests of war, so much in themselves to be deprecated, are turned, by the providence of God, into facilities for pro- pagating his truth. The portals of jealous nations are thus opened ; the gates of hostile cities are thus unbarred ; and the thunder of cannon prepares the way for the sweet accents of the Gospel of peace, where they would not have been heard without such preparatory agency. Thus the prejudices and erroneous opinions of heathens in reference to the Gospel, the nature of its requirements and principles, are removed by necessary and actual con- tact with Christian nations from whom they would other- wise have been excluded by their prejudices. Who can compute the amount of aid which the art of printing has bestowed upon aggressive Christianity ? Who can estimate the assistance which the compass has afforded to this same cause — ^by the aid of which these hold and adventurous emissaries of the risen Saviour can reach the dark corners of the earth, and cause the remot- est habitations of man to hear the sound of redeeming grace ? A large proportion of our race dwell on islands, remote from the main land. Three-fifths of the surface of our earth are covered with the wide expanse of the sea. By the aids of science these mighty waters can be passed with safety ; and these distant islands can be brought near. Thus, too, uninhabited realms can be colonized by those who possess and revere the word of life. Difficulties and perils which, in fornjer days, would have deterred the most zealous from active endeavors to promote the eternal good of those who were involved in heathenism, are now en- tirely removed. Timid hearts no longer tremble and hesi- OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 375 tate between the calls of duty and the claimyf security. By improvements in the art of imparting instruction, of impressing the mind, and of presenting truth, vast advan- tages have been gained to the Gospel. Every development which is made, in the treatment of mind in the physical sciences, in the cruel arts of war, and the nobler arts of peace ; in the realms of matter, of mind, and the arrange- ments of national intercourse and commercial relations ; all these have been, and now are, appropriated by the wise propagators of the Gospel to the promotion of this noblest and greatest of all causes. And as the triumphs of art in- crease and expand, and thus continue to do, as long as mind remains active, so will these facilities continue also to augment. Nor can we reasonably forget, in contemplating the chances of Christianity for universal diffusion, that it pos- sesses, as its author, an omnipotent and irresistible Being, whose power is a sure and sufficient guarantee for the at- tainment of this end. If the various forms of erroneous religion which have had being on the earth, have all flour- ished more or less, in proportion to the resources and the abilities of their professed defenders, then, too, the infinite power and energy of the God of the Bible must lead its religion on to universal conquest over the race of men. The hearts of men are in his hands. He turns them as the rivers of water are turned. He can make kings be- come nursing fathers, and queens nursing mothers to his church. The most resolute endeavors to resist him on the part of his creatures are vain and impotent. All power is in his hand ; splendor and majesty surround his throne. He is elevated far above all revolution ; secure from the shock of all convulsions. We may blast whatever is beautiful and fair in this part of his domains. We may tear the sun from his meridian throne, and quench his 376 rNIVERSAL DIFFUSION splendor in eternal night. We may roll the mighty flood of desolatiW through the starry spheres. We may con- vulse creation throughout its boundless expanse. But his throne still towers, in silent and awful majesty above the agitation of the storm. The sound of the march of de- vastation dies away along the limits of his sublime habita. tion, and never assails his ears. He beholds from afar the strides of rampant ruin, and he smiles from his abode in the heavens, at the impious and presumptuous throes of a worm. He bids all subside in peace, and man's greatness fades away like shadows over the rock. What can resist the will of such a friend and protector ? Who shall say that his purposes will fail ? God is not man that he should lie, nor the son of man that he should repent ; hath he said and shall he not do it, or hath he spoken and shall he not make it good ? The Lord is good ; his mercy is everlasting, and his truth endureth to all ge- nerations. His counsels of old are faithfulness and truth. There is no possibility of defeating his purposes. We inquire, then, what are his direct promises and declarations on this subject ? Has he given us any pointed expositions of his will and purposes ? Has he thrown back the veil which overhangs futurity, and granted us a glimpse of what exists within ? All the ends of the earth, says he, shall see the salvation of God. He must reign until he has put all enemies under his feet. The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God, as the waters cover the sea. He shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the rivers to the ends of the earth. The glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall .see it together ; for the mouth of the Lord hath sp'oken it. His way shall be known upon earth, and his saving health among all nati ns. All the ends of the earth shall remem- ber and turn t '' 'he Lord, and all the kindreds of the na- OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 877 tions shall worship before him. It shall coim to pass, in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord'^iouse shall be established upon the tops of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it. He shall say to the North, give up, and to the South, keep not back ; bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth. The dominion and the great- ness of the kingdom under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, and all domi- nions shall serve and obey him. After such plain and precious promises as these, we cannot doubt in reference to the future extension of the religion of the Bible. And these declarations of Holy Writ prove the adaptation of this religion to this end ; for such promises, made in favor of any religion not thus adapted, would necessarily fail of their fulfillment and eventuate in falsehood. But a Divine being cannot be guilty of falsehood ; hence, in making such declarations as these in regard to the religion of the Bible, he afiSrmed also its adaptation to realize and fulfill them. In accordance with this his plain intention, God has marked the religion of the Bible with a peculiar degree of vastness, expansiveness and grandeur, in the plans which belong to it. This religion is made conscious of its true and rightful vocation. It is pervaded by a consciousness of its proper destiny, and is so constructed and adapted as naturally to secure that destiny. If we examine it closely with reference to this important point, we shall dis- cover in it all the ingredients of true sublimity and gran- deur. Thus, for instance, this idea is involved in the vast and venerable duration of any object or institution. We look at the stupendous pyramids which pierce the clouds in the land of the Nile. We remember that over these mighty structures the storms of countless generations have 32* 378 UNIVERSAL DIFFUSION raged ; they were surveyed v? ith awe and wonder by nations who have l4lg since crumbled to their kindred dust. We recollect that there these have stood, unmoved and change- less, lifting their lofty summits above all surrounding ob- jects, while unnumbered revolutions have occurred at their base, as age after age has silently worn away. As we gaze upon them we are carried back in thought to the re- motest periods of primeval history, and we seem to behold the work of the first and famed progenitors' of our race. We look forward to the future, and we behold these ob- jects in existence still, when everything now around them has passed away and given place to. a new creation. We behold the wide expanse of their past and their future dura- tion, and the result is the emotion of sublimity. Thus is it with the duration of the religion of the Bible. Some of its institutions had being before the foundations of the pyra- mids were dug, and when men walked over the once fer- tile plains which now sustain their mighty burden. These institutions will continue eternal ages hence, when the pyramids have crumbled to the plain, and are known and wondered at no more^ Sublimity is involved in the expansiveness and bound- lessness of an institution or idea. Thus we behold old ocean, stretching away over thousands of miles ; where the storms career unchecked and unopposed; reaching to the remotest spots of the world ; washing the most distant shores ; and the conception causes this emotion to be felt within us. We ascend the lofty Alps; we stand upon one of the most prominent peaks ; we look abroad upon the snowy empire which spreads in grandeur as far as the eye can reach ; we hear the distant echo of the descendipg avalanche, and we are filled with the emotion of sublimity. Behold the boundlessness of the religion of the Bible. It reaches over the fairest portions of the habitable globe, OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 379 crossing rivers, oceans, mountains, and grasping in its mighty embrace millions of our race of ,veAus nations, characters and climes. Heroic enterprise imparts this same sublimity. As we trace the renowned Columbus along his track across the ■western main, and behold him, when in a new hemi- sphere, surmounting dangers, braving perils, firmly and heroically persisting in his perilous enterprise, till at last he sets his foot upon a shore where an European had never trod, the contemplation of his character, his adven- tures, his perils and his success produces this emotion within us. Behold a more sublime and exalted moral enterprise involved in the scheme of Christianity, which claims the conquest of the world as its legitimate spoil. What dan- gers to be braved, what constancy and resolution to be felt, what self-denial to be endured, far more heroic than that of Leonidas at the illustrious pass of Thermopylae ; what concentration of the«noblest faculties to the attainment of the noblest end are all involved and contemplated in the scheme of Christianity ! Exalted intellectual powers, where exhibited, also pro- duce this same emotion. See the amazing career of the great conqueror who but lately deluged Europe in blood and tears. In his whole career, what sublime efforts of genius, what noble fertility of resources, what profound intelligence and insight into the human heart, and all the available implements of success which he exhibited ! We can scarcely credit the most authentic accounts which exist ; and when we behold him thus rising from his ob- scurity in Corsica, to the throne of a mighty empire, playing with kingdoms, jesting with royal titles, and con- founding the world at his genius as much as at his suc- cess, there is something sublime in it. The execution of the scheme of the Bible involves the exercise of equal 380 UNIVERSAL DIFFDsioN abilities. I^t, indeed, that eacli of its agents is to pos- sess such a gigantic mind; but that the dangers to be braved, the truths to be promulgated, the expedients to be employed, and the resolution to be exercised, are, if any- thing, greater in the latter case than in the former. The element of sublimity is as much involved in the one as in the other. The vastness of the evils to be removed conveys the same impression. When a fearful plague ravages a land! and, passing onward, devastates one continent after another ; when we attempt to form a conception of the amount of misery which is endured by men from the virulence and fury of the pestilence; and place over against this com- putation the powerful energy of some remedy which has' been devised, whereby the agonies of millions are atated, and the dreadful death of myriads is averted, and life, health and hope infused into their hearts, — we feel the emotion of elevation and sublimity. * What a magnificent remedy for the worst of all maladies is contained in the Sacred Volume ! How many millions have by this had' their sufferings removed, their pangs alleviated, and their fears of death obliterated? When we compute the conse- quences which inevitably follow in the train, when this spiritual disease rages in the soul; that these evils endure with unabating intensity throughout endless ages, unless here removed ; and that the power of the remedy pro- claimed in the Bible is able to reach and eradicate these evils ; a sublime spectacle is presented to our view, by examining the operation of its influence. Not all the countless cases and varieties of human want and woe have ever presented an instance which was beyond the power of this remedy to relieve and to bless. Behold 'the sublime origin of this religion. How glofious is its birth-place? We admire the benevolent OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 381 schemes of men when we are persuaded that they find their commencement in the hearts of the renowned bene- factors of their race ; when they are suggested by the combined wisdom, benevolence and patriotism of philo- sophers, statesmen and sages. We then rest assured that such schemes are not the result of hasty, ill-conceived apd absurd dreams, but that they are sustained by the abilities and experience of the most eminent of men. But how infinitely exalted above every other paternity is the reli- gion of the Bible ! Its author is God ; and as he sits upon the throne of the universe, his eternal mind devises and completes the sublime scheme of love and power which is recorded on the sacred page. From that exalted birth- place this religion emanated, and traveling downward from the heights of heaven, it has gone forth to bless and to redeem a fallen world, bearing in its every feature the im- press of its sublime original. The co-operation of nature and providence with the declarations of Scripture, augments the adaptation of this religion to universal difiusion. If the God of the Bible is also the God of nature, the scheme promulgated by the one will be accordant with the movements of the other. Both will be made subservient to the promotion of the same great end. Hence, in examining the history of Christianity, we discover that it has often been furthered and promoted by the divinely ordered assistance of Providence ; whereby the events which transpired in the world and the church have been so directed as to promote the success and the triumphs of the truth. The kings of the earth have sup- posed that their enterprises and edicts have only accorded with their own selfish purposes; but God has often turned their hearts as the rivers of water are turned. The enemies of the Gospel have proudly resisted the will of Heaven ; but in the end, God has made the wrath of man 382 rNIVERSAL DIFFUSION to praise him. Statesmen and heroes have imagined, that in all their schemes of ambition and glory, they have beeii acting without constraint in the promotion of their own plans and interests ; but the ordering of the lot was decidecl by God. Men have wondered at the termination of con- flicts and the revolution of empires ; but the Christian has often discerned the secret devices of heaven, whereby all these things have been made to advance, and that often, unconsciously, the great, sovereign and supreme purpose for which they and all things were made — the glory of God and the salvation of men. God, the author of this religion, is infinitely wise; nor is it possible for any s^cherae originating in so much wisdom, and sustained by so much intelligence, to fail of eventual success. This attribute of the Divine mind exhibits itself in the exhaustless resources which it suggests, in the deep acquaintance with the human heart, and the profound know- ledge of all things, past, present arid future, which is dis- played in conducting forward its destinies. If human enter- prises often fail, not because they are not wisely originated, or are not based on truth and justice, but because the re- sources and energies of those who were commissioned to carry forward their completion, were inadequate to the demands of the case, no such danger can beset or impede that religion of which God is not only the author, but the sworn defender and support. The aid of the Holy Spirit is also directly promised, as the crowning surety and completion of the means which hasten forward the universal extension of Christianity. If that Divine spirit be indeed promised — which no one ac- quainted with the Bible will deny— it will in itself be sufficiently potent to secure that end. "It is not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit," saith the Lord, that this glorious enterprise is to be achieved. He that planteth is OF THE RELIGION OF THE BIBLE. 383 nothing, he that watereth is nothing, for it is God thatgiveth the increase. The risen and triumphant Saviour promised bis disciples " the comforter, the spirit of truth ; he shall glorify me-, for he shall take of mine and show it unto you." He shall convince the world of sin, of righteousness and judgment. It is the Spirit of God which shall call the four winds to breathe upon the slain that they may live; and the spirit shall prophesy, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord ; and they shall come together, bone to his bone, shall be covered with sinews and with flesh, and shall stand upon their feet, an exceeding great army. But the truths of the Bible are diifused and esteemed throughout the heaven of heavens ; shall they not be so also throughout this diminutive world? They are preached by the far- echoing voices of angels and archangels in that upper sanctuary, while the sound is confirmed by every twin- kling star which sparkles in the diadem of night. Thus, too, these truths are confirmed and preached by every voice in nature around us ; all things, animate and inanimate, applaud and approve them ; and wherever the hand of God has poured out an ocean, or built up a mountain, or touched even a flower into being, there his preached word will find willing witnesses to establish and enforce it. Thus, indeed, will all things that are in heaven, and on earth, and that are under the earth, be made to contribute to the propagation of that truth of which its Author has himself declared, it shall one day fill the earth as the waters fill the mighty deep. 384 CHAPTER X. THE CONSISTENCY OF THE BIBLE VINDICATED. The objection is frequently urged by Modern Infidelity against the Bible, that, by the exercise of considerable in- genuity, it may be made to teach anything. Some show of plausibility in favor of this assertion is adduced from the variety of opinions which prevail among men, which are professedly drawn from the Sacred Volume. When surveying the Christian world, and taking into view the diversity of opinions which is deduced from this one single source; when observing that the most opposite and contradictory systems are based on the Bible ; and that the defenders of these discordant systems all alike appeal, with the greatest apparent confidence, to this same author- ity, and claim its dicta in support of their irreconcilable dogmas; taking all these things into view, an inexperi- enced observer might be disposed to concede the truth of the objection. Now if the Bible can be made to teach anything, it can be made to teach nothing at all ; or else to teach false- hoods ; for truth is one, and cannot be separated. If the Bible, then, can be legitimately made to teach what is con- tradictory, one portion of its instructions at least must be false ; and if so, the Divine origin and authority of the book fall to the ground. But the position that the Bible can be made to teach anything, is absurd, and contradicts itself; for if this be true, we can prove by it that the Bible THE CONSISTENCY OF THE BIBLE. 385 is consistent. We can show, by it, if it can prove any- thing, that it does not prove anything. This objection is an infidel and blasphemous one. It is often urged by professed free-thinkers ; at other times by certain lax Christians, whose Christianity is a miserably stunted abortion, who had in truth far better renounce all claims to religious principles whatever. We hold that the Word of God when properly interpreted, presents one consistent and harmonious whole; that it possesses an identitatem essentialem ; that the same substance per- vades both the Old and New Testaments ; that this sub- stance comprises all that the Bible contains, excepting its mere language, style and arrangement ; artd that the exist- ence of the various contradictory systems which exist in the world may all be accounted for by appropriate causes, which are entirely independent of the Bible, and for which it is not in the least degree responsible. The ob- jectors now in question assert, that in proportion aa any number of men intently study the Bible or any portion of it, in the same degree they will gradually differ in their understandings of it. Mathematical truth, on the contrary, they affirm has this superiority over professed revelation, that the more men study it the- more they will harmonize. Thus for instance, a whole college of savans might ex- amine for an age the proposition that the sum of any two sides of a triangle is greater than the third side ; or the theorem, the square of the hypothenuse is equal to the squares of the other two sides ; and they would never differ in their conceptions of these two truths. But the more men study the Bible, the more variety, difference and discordance will gradually arise in their sentiments. We shall endeavor to account for this difl^erence, and the tendencies or causes which produce it. 33 386 THE CONSISTENCY I. Before we then attempt to prove the consistency of the Bible, we will adduce the causes which have pro- duced the various interpretations of Scripture which exist. These, indeed, are manifold, and are well adapted to operate on the different kinds of dispositions which exist among men. Very frequently a morbid love of in- dependence, a boasted freedom of thought, and a conceited intellectual eminence, which induce men to diverge from the received opinions which prevail around them— are fruitful sources of disagreement. The pride of human reason is great ; and frequently men who labor under this mental weakness would adopt the diametrically opposite creed from the one which they actually did espouse, had their associates entertained different sentiments. They thereby show conclusively, that it was not truth which they sought, nor error which they avoided, but singu- larity and independence. They act out what Horace sung : Oil profanum vulgus et arceo. Under such cir- cumstances, can we expect for the Bible any other fate but that it will be subjected to distortion, in order to answer the purposes of their perverters, who, disregard- ing all the rules of correct and natural interpretation, handle the Sacred Word with barbarous and relentless rudeness, in order to gratify their personal vanity ? This has been the case in innumerable instances. Frequently interest urges men to contradictory senti- ments ; and as the Bible is the conceded standard among most men, it is made the standard of appeal in defence of those dogmas which their interest leads men to adopt. The image makers who served the votaries of " Diana of the Ephesians," found their creed remarkably accordant with their profits. The voluptuous Corinthians realized im- mense advantages from their licentious idolatry ; for the temple of Venus which disgraced their cityj drew the re- OF THE BIBLE. 387 sources of profligate men from all quarters of the world into their purses. Leo X. regarded the fable of Christ as the most magnificently lucrative device which human contrivance had ever hit upon. Thus, indeed, many others, whose interests are served in a variety of forms by the introduction and maintenance of new and perverse opin- ions. The books of law, which are appealed to in courts of justice, are the repositories of legal justice and equity. Every one knows that they are perverted to answer ■'every imaginable purpose, and frequently are made to con- tradict themselves in this way. But no reasonable man would, on that account, propose their entire removal and destruction ; because they are not responsible for the illegitimate use thus made of them. It is precisely so with the law of God. The feeling of enmity has often impelled men, in con- sequence of their malignant hatred of some peculiar sys- tem, or more frequently of its defenders, to diverge into new and untrodden paths. This fact has frequently been illustrated in the annals of religion. Sometimes it is hatred of Establishments, then of Puritanism, then of Romanism, then of Mysticism, of Fanaticism, of Heresy, of Ortho- doxy, of antiquated tendencies, of modern developments ; all these have served their turn, in starting forth sew and antagonistic phases of doctrine. In all these various in- stances, recourse is instantly had to the Bible as the ablest defensive armor against all opposers; and it must there- fore be forcibly distorted to answer all the ends in view ; it must be contracted here, and enlarged there, to fit the various dimensions of the belligerents who wear it. Then, again, there are certain tendencies of human de- pravity which serve to produce these diversities. Such, for instance, as the abhorrence of the human heart to re- pentance for sin in order to avoid its punishment, has led 388 THE CONSISTENCY to the Universalist scheme of salvation; by which the joys of Paradise are conferred upon all men alike, without refer- ence to their moral conduct in this world. This doctrine is singularly convenient in calming the fears of the troubled conscience, and granting it a surreptitious peace. So also the heresy of Unitarians has manifestly resulted from the rebellious pride of the heart, which revolts at the idea of subjecting reason to revelation, and compelling it to receive a doctrine which it cannot understand. They hence reject the Trinity, because they cannot comprehend how three can be one, and one be three. Many other schemes of opinion which prevail may be traced legitimately to this same source. Another prolific cause of the evil in question is the de- spicable ambition which torments some men, to be the founders of new sects in religion, or new schools in theology. Human ambition, when operating in the sphere of religion, finds no more grateful or fruitful avenue of development than this. It has, therefore, been embraced by many minds both great and small. Considering the tempting character of this bait, we are really surprised, not at the fact that there are so many diversities of opinion, but that there are so few in the religious world. When it is remembered how ardently men of ambitious tendencies grasp at every method of aggrandizement; how easy it is to delude the ignorant and fanatical on a theme of such ge- neral and mysterious interest as religion ; and how capable the doctrines contained in the Bible are of perversion, from their variety and sometimes from their profundity ; con- sidering these things, we may well wonder that greater diversities do not prevail. But as the case really stands, the Bible is not responsible for those distortions of it which have already been made, nor for the many more which the perverse ingenuity of men might have made. If men re- OF THE BIBLE. 889 solve to make themselves illustrious or even notorious as religious reformers, they would hesitate but little to distort any standard to which they might appeal. If it can be shown from abstract and from a priori principles that the Bible may be made out as consistent ; then these diversi- ties which may be drawn from it are necessarily illegiti- mate. This evidence we suppose can be adduced beyond reasonable doubt. One more cause of doctrinal diversities in explaining the Bible, is a ridiculous ignorance of the proper prin- ciples of its interpretation, and a neglect of the careful and deep study of its contents. Hence we find that the igno- rance of these teachers is in precise proportion to their presumption. The most learned are those who show the least disposition to predicate infallibility of themselves. Facts prove that few of those who are the leaders in new religious separations, have investigated the Scriptures with the learning and patience which justice demanded. Their case resembles that of Dr. Franklin, who, in his remark- able letter to Dr. Ezra Styles, President of Yale College, who requested his opinions of Christianity, remarks:^ " With most of the present dissenters in England, I have some doubts as to Christ's divinity ; though it is a question I do not dogmatize upon, having never studied it; I think it needless to busy myself with it now, as I expect so soon an opportunity of knowing the truth with less trouble." In frankly confessing that he had never studied the sub- ject, he did well ; in not giving this most vital question his prayerful attention, he did infinitely worse ; but he did badly, in pretending to form any conception of the sub- ject without giving it appropriate study. There are thousands more .whose superficial views of truth result from an equally superficial examination. But how many are accurately acquainted with the rules 33* 390 THE CONSISTENCY of biblical study and interpretation, who loudly claim to advance religious knowledge, and throw light on these complicated matters ? The Bible in some respects is a difficult book to interpret. A knowledge of its original languages, of their peculiar idioms ; of ancient usages and national customs ; of geography, of history, of biography, of archaeology ; a proper conception of the scope and design of the various writers, of the terminus a quo, of the ter- minus ad quem, of the usus loquendi, of the analogiafidei, of the sensus historicus, of the tropical and the literal senses, all these, and various other rules of interpretation should be perfectly understood by him, who pretends to diverge from the old and approved conceptions of the meaning of Scripture, or throw new light upon it. And yet how many of those who assume this difficult task, possess all these indispensable qualifications? We sup- pose that they are rarely to be found among such professed enlighteners of mankind. Therefore if many, who so absurdly assume a task for which they have so few quali- fications, and whose ignorance finds no parallel but in their presumption ; if they blunder on all hands, and espouse opinions which are so contradictory and irreconcilable, surely the Bible is not responsible for their errors. The opinions of careless and incompetent interpreters of any other book are not regarded, nor is the book held responsible for them, with any reasonable men. Why should similarly ignorant expounders of the Bible be re- garded ? or this most extraordinary book held responsible for their misconceptions of its meaning? The Sacred Volume may be compared to some cele- brated painting of a great event, with the particulars of which every one is more or less acquainted. A variety of persons come to inspect it, and ascertain its degree of merit. One individual has had a narrative of the event OF THE BIBLE. 391 from his aged parent, who witnessed it. Of course certain features of the scene will have heen more prominently and vividly presented by the old man than others. If this does not happen to be the case with the picture, imme- diately judgment is passed against it. Another individual proceeds to the task of examination who has heard an- other story ; and he investigates the merits of the produc- tion according to that version. Thus hundreds come for the purpose of inspection, every one of whom has formed some more or less correct opinion, based upon some pre- vious descriptions of it which they had received. Each one decides the merits of the artist's production precisely as it may happen to accord with his foregone conceptions of the order, prominence and relation of the events depicted there. Besides, there are others who come to examine the picture simply as a work of art, without any reference to previous associations. One has been trained according to the principles of Rubens, and he delights, therefore, in an abundance of high coloring. Another has been taught in the school of Raphael, and admires the lightest and least possible degree of colors consistent with the truth. An- other prefers the Florentine school, and the stupendous Michael Angelo is his favorite. Another esteems highest the Spanish style, and the expressive Murillo is his beau- ideal. One most prefers the sublime, another the pathetic ; one the vast and magnificent, another the beautiful and exquisite. Another class comes to examine the claims of the picture to being a great historical painting, and there- fore as belonging to the highest order of art ; it may be good enough in itself considered, but has it this merit? Others inspect its merits as a pastoral, or a biographical, or a symbolical, or an imaginary production. Some chiefly examine its moral tendency. No beauties nor skill will 392 THE CONSISTENCY atone for an immoral influence which may be exerted by it; they view it, therefore, in this point irrespective of its artistic merit. Some again investigate its originality — is there any advance made in it over the productions of others upon the same theme. Then others demand its historical accuracy; does the picture present the scene without the least exaggeration, just precisely as it occurred 1 Some again ask whether there is much fertility of imagi- nation displayed in it; a thing entirely irreconcilable with historical accuracy and rigid resemblance. In addition to these there are some who are interested in the picture, — their friend may have been the artist, or is the owner ; they necessarily praise it. Others are inte- rested in traducing it, — an enemy or a rival may be the author or owner ; they therefore can see no merit in it whatever, it is a miserable failure. Or inasmuch as every one praises it, some must of course traduce it ; or because all condemn it, others must needs be singular and inde- pendent ; therefore they praise the artist, and represent him perhaps as an instance of exalted genius laboring under disadvantageous circumstances. Now is it not apparent that every critic will examine the production in question, according to his previous pre- judices ? Is it possible for any picture thus to please all men, or receive a uniform verdict from its judges ? Now raise this conception from a few thousands to innu- merable millions, and let them sit in judgment upon the meaning and the merits of the Scriptures ; and we have their real position. Is it possible to expect unity of judgment, or harmony of sentiment under such circumstances ? And if this be so difficult, is the Bible to be held responsible for all these conflicting sentiments 1 Surely this diversity of interpretation and sentiment is no argument against its con- sistency and value. Well has the great and good Melancthon OF THE BIBLE. 393 said, having learned it by sad experience : Nihil tam sim- pliciter, tam plane dictum est, unde acuti homines non possint, velut ex eadem cera, mille formas ducere. But, it may be asked, is not all this only an argument against the possibility of attaining uniformity in the study of Scripture? By no means. Let each one view the picture in question, as a picture executed according to the acknow- ledged rules of art, and let it be judged by those same canons of criticism and all men, of good judgments will agree. So let the Scriptures be examined according to the established rules of interpretation, as a revelation of the will of God to men, throwing aside all prejudice, and all previous associations, cultivating a teachable spirit, and seeking not for interest in any form, but truth only ; and but little discordant sentiment will result. II. Let us ask whether, when it is thus studied and ex- amined, the Bible is consistent ; — is the evidence on this point conclusive ? Every reflecting person will perceive, that if it is perfectly and thoroughly harmonious, it is a most extraordinary and unparalleled event. It was penned by a variety of men, of different talents, in different ages of the world, from Moses to St. John, during the lapse of fifteen hundred years, and in widely separated regions of the earth. The various portions of it were penned under the most diverse and frequently embarrassing cir- cumstances, — sometimes surrounded by honor and pros- perity, sometimes by contempt, danger and persecution. They treat of such a variety of subjects as to excite our astonishment merely by their diversity. Intricate and mysterious themes are not shunned, but boldly investigated whenever duty demanded it. Their writings are composed in all kinds of style, according to the nature of the sub- ject — historical, poetical, moral, doctrinal, prophetical, lau- 394 THE CONSISTENCY datory and condemnatory ; and yet as we think, it can be shown, that they are throughout perfectly harmonious and consistent. Horace has with great truth compared poems to those pictures, the effect of which varies according to the position in which the spectator stands. The same remark may be made in reference to the interpretation of the Bible. The most perfect productions of transcendent genius — of a Rubens, a Raphael or a Dominichino — will appear shorn of their splendors, unless viewed in that position or angle of vision which the artist designed. But when that proper position is assumed, the false gloss and unnatural perspec- tive vanish, and the glories of their magic skill enchant the beholder. Thus is it with the Scriptures. They are per- fectly harmonious ; they are admirably wrought according to the unchangeable laws of celestial art; "but their harmony and beauty will not be seen, unless they are viewed in re- lation to the circumstances of the work, and the aim of the Divine Artist. Each portion was penned under pecu- liar circumstances. The persons to whom it was ad- dressed were peculiarly situated. The aim always had in view was special. And all these items, besides some others, must be duly weighed in the work of interpreta- tion. Had the various parts of the Bible not been thus written in adaptedness to peculiar wants and situations, a part of the end contemplated by them would not have been attained. Contradictions in any work like the Bible, if they ex- isted, would result from the following causes: — First, an ignorance of the subject, or self-interest, or a desire of personal aggrandizement. They would result from a dis- position to impose upon the ignorance, or make game of the credulity of those who were addressed. They might result from carelessness in recollecting real facts, or former OF THE BIBLE. 395 misrepresentations of them ; together with a want of adroit- ness in skillfully weaving together the intricate tissues of a complicated falsehood ; for all liars, to be successful, must have good memories, and, besides, considerable ingenuity. Yet none of these characteristics can belong to the Sacred Writers, as may be inferred from what has been said of their characters. (See Chap. II.) They were not ignorant, for they were often eye-witnesses of the events which they recorded ; and they were thoroughly versed in their respective themes. They never exhibited a levity which would induce them to impose on others ; nor that careless recklessness which might have led them to pervert the truth involuntarily. They had no occasion for the exer- cise of perverted ingenuity ; for they had nothing to do but-to speak their commission with truth and soberness. We may prove this concord of the Sacred books, by showing their consistency, both with themselves and with truth, in the important historical relations which they contain. It will be out of place here to enter into the examination of all, or of many of the supposed contradic- tions of this sort, which mgn hostile to the Bible have charged upon it. Yet a few cases to illustrate the general principle, may be admissible. All are aware that Infidels of every grade have frequently attempted to point out vari- ous irreconcilable contradictions in the Sacred Writings; and that they have selected, as the materials of their oppo- sition, the most insignificant items. But the cause of this is sufficiently plain, for possessing no greater or more im- portant instances of supposed contradiction, they are com- pelled to employ only such as they could command. Let us look at a few such examples, as an illustration of the absurdity of the rest. Job is called a. perfect man ; and yet the same authority tells us, that there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth 396 THE CONSISTENCY good and sinneth not. But the undeniable sense, in the original here, is complete, finished ; meaning that Job was consistent and integral in the fulfilment of all the duties of the various relations which he occupied in life. It does riot convey the idea, by any proper interpretation, of any- thing like personal absolute sinlessness, which is proven by his own confession. " If I say I am perfect, (my own mouth) shall prove me perverse." When legitimately interpreted therefore the contradiction vanishes. Moses is said to have seen God face to face ; while John tells us no man has seen God at any time. And truly, for God is a Spirit, whom no man hath seen nor indeed can see. But here the original properly conveys the idea, that God spake to Moses in his presence. The literal expression " face to face," was a form of speech prevalent among the Jews, and means familiarly, '' as a man speaketh to his Mend," (Ex.xxxiii.il.) This is necessarily the sense, for if God be a spirit, he cannot possess a physical counte- nance. There is .the standing objection in reference to God's hardening Pharaoh's heart ; in contradiction to the de- claration, " God tempteth no man." It has been supposed that this difficulty was irrecqncilable, and was in itself an irrefragable argument against the Bible, and its author. Our translation does not give the accurate sense of the original, which, when properly rendered, removes every difficulty. It is well known that the Niphal conjugation in Hebrew is often intransitive and permissive, as in this case. Hence the true meaning of this passage is, God permitted Pharaoh's heart to be hardened ; he himself was passive in the transaction ; and hence " Pharaoh sinned yet more, and hardened his heart." (See Samuel vi. 6.) In every such instance where this expression occurs, this is the true and the consistent idea contained in it. In Genesis i. 'Z7, Moses narrates that God created man, (Jf the bible. 397 " male and female created he them ;" and yet in Gen. ii. 22, the creation of the first female is described as having subsequently occurred, thereby involving a con- tradiction. This passage presents no difficulty to him ■who remembers that the first chapter of Genesis pro- fessedly gives a condensed and general view of the acts of creation, while the subsequent chapters enter more into detail. Yet without this justification, it may be observed and proved, that when Adam was created, the substance, the material of Eve was also formed, inasmuch as she was subsequently taken out from him. By this simple statement the Scriptural account appears ortowj6tis may have the same signification as the Hebrew verb of existence, which some- limes has the sense of continuing in being. Thus this 40 470 Christ's descent to hades, Hebrew verb occurs in Eccles. vii. 12, and the corre- sponding word in the Septuagint is ifuortot^uci ; which is rendered by our English version, " wisdom giveth life to ihem that have it," thus implying the idea of the continua- tion of a vitality already possessed. We conclude, therefore, that the most correct and natu- ral interpretation of this portion of Peter's words is, that after the death of his body, the soul of Christ, quickened and continued in being by the power of his own divine nature, was superior to the power of the grave; that he continued to exist and advance to the performance of cer- tain other mysterious and important acts which now de- mand our consideration. "In which," namely. Spirit, continues Peter, Christ " went and preached to the spirits in prison." ' That is to say, the quickened and living spirit of Christ, which was above the power of death, went and preached. The term Ttopcvdeis Bxrifrv^fv is regarded by the ablest critics as exple- tive, as an instance of that pleonastic phraseology which frequently occurs in the New Testament. This opinion is expressed by Winer in his New Test. Idioms (p. 447), who adduces many similar instances, who makes it equivalent to " he preached." The points which remain to be examined are now, mainly, three: 1, the persons to whom Christ preached ; 2, the place where they dwelt ; 3, the purpose and import of his preaching to them. Each of these, if considered fully and separately, will exhaust the principal inquiries connected with the subject. I. The persons to whom Christ, after his death, preached, are termed by Peter " the spirits which some- times were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, when the ark was a pre- paring." As to who these spirits were, an infinitude of Christ's descent to hades. 471 suggestions have been made. Nor is it necessary to repeat them all, or show where they are liable to objections. The most natural view which others have given is, that the inhabitants of the antediluvian world are here spoken of, and that God, through Noah, preached to them, who for their disobedience were afterward punished in hell, and were there at the time of Christ's death. The objection to this is, that the preaching here spoken of occurred after the death of Christ in the body ((jopxtxus). He is repre- sented as first dying " in the flesh," and then going and preaching, to the spirits in prison. Accordingly, without doing violence to the whole order and connection of the passage, we cannot understand it as referring to any ante- diluvian preaching. But it is much more natural and legitimate to understand these spirits to mean those who were then in Hades — the departed souls of wicked men, and by way of eminence, the souls of those who had lived in Noah's day, who had heard his preaching, and were then suffering the punish- ment due to their neglect of his message. Noah was in one sense a type of Christ ; they both preached to a re- bellious race, were both for the most part unheard, and those who despised their messages would all arrive at the same eventual punishment. That those who despised Noah's message were then in the prison of hell, none can doubt. The use of the term rto-ei, once, formerly, as in John ix. 13, "They brought to the Pharisees him that was aforetime blind," [itotl ■tv^\6v,) shows that the dis- obedience in question was committed formerly, at a period prior to Christ's visit to them. Hence the disobedience occurred prior io the preaching; and hence Noah's preach- ing could not here be meant, for that was simultaneous with the disobedience of his hearers. Christ, then, preached to the rebellious spirits of the ante- 473 Christ's descent to hades. diluvian world, and through them he preaclied to all the inhabitants of that mysterious place where they dwelt. But why should these sinners be chosen as the special re- cipients of a warning and reproof from Christ? Because several circumstances marked them out as the fittest reci- pients of a message from him. They were pre-eminent sinners. They had long endured the wrath of God, and would appreciate the weight which Divine power wouldi impart to the Divine words. The long-suffering of God had waited in their case ; yet they were eventually pun- ished. So now, in Christ's case, God's long-suffering had wailed, but those who resisted his message would also suffer in their turn. And thus the message which Christ would utter to the antediluvians would be heard and felt by all those who were with them in their abode. All the spirits and powers of hell would hear his voice, and what- ever might be the import or meaning of his preaching, the benefit of it would extend to all those inhabitants who shared with them their home and their state. And besides this, the world had now seen two great baptisms, referred to by Peter in verses 20 and 21 ; by the former, a baptism of wrath and retributive justice, a rebellious world had been destroyed ; whereas by the latter baptism, which was a figure representing the church and religion of Christ as part for the whole, the world now might be saved. Just as water had submerged them, so water would now prove the " resurrection" from their state to all those who would render proper obedience to God. The one water had proved the destruction of one rebellious race, the other would prove the redemption, as the means of en- trance to the Church of God, to an obedient one. Hence these antediluvians were with propriety chosen as exam- ples, via eminentise, to illustrate and enforce the preaching of the Saviour. Some have supposed these spirits to have CHRIST S DESCENT TO HADES. 473 been all the dead, all those "in safe keeping:" but this general application of the term is also condemned by the particular mention here made of those to whom Noah preached ; although through their primary position, other sinners likewise heard the message of Christ. II. The next point to be considered is the place where these spirits were, and to which the Saviour quoad spiritum, " went and preached." Peter speaks of them as those who w&ceev ^-Kax^, in prison, in a place of durance and detention. Notwithstanding the many conflicting views which have been entertained on this point, we be- lieve that there can be but one meaning safely held in reference to it. These spirits-were in hell, in the place of eternal torment; not simply in the abode of departed spirits, but suffering the pains of endless perdition. For be- lieving in the intermediate state, we suppose that, after their death, the righteous immediately enter the joys of heaven, and the wicked immediately suffer the pains of hell. Hence these two classes cannot there be together. Hence when the disobedient, in the days of Noah, were there enduring their punishment, the righteous dead could not be there. The preaching which Christ would proclaim to the wicked, would be unheard by the righteous; and would not, therefore, be addressed to the latter. The prison here spoken of we suppose to be the abode of the lost, of " the devil and his angels." This view com- ports best with the term inferna, which has ever been applied to these regions. This view agrees best with the sense conveyed by the term ^%axvi, which implies the idea of disgrace, constraint and punishment. In most oases where this word is used in the New Testament and the Septuagint, one or other of these ideas is involved in it. Thus in Rev. xx. 7, we read, " When the thousand years 40* 474 Christ's descent to hades. are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison," (ix ■tiii fvt.axYii ai'tav.) This prison, as every one believes, in which the great adversary was to be confined, was the prison of hell, where his powers and energies were to be compressed during the thousand years. So, also, in 2 Peter ii. 4, 5, it is written, " For God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and deli- vered them into chains of daykness; but saved Noah, (t^uJiaSc No£.") That is, God guarded arid kept Noah, in a good sense ; kept watch over him for his benefiL So, also, in a bad sense, ifv'Ka-t'tci.v signifies, when in the middle voice, to guard against, as in Acts xxi. 25, where Christ- ians are warned to guard themselves from things ofl^ered to idols. Hence it has legitimately the meaning, under some circumstances, of a wholly evil sense, as in the case before us, where those who are watched, are also controlled and punished by the superior power of God. That $vXttx») is often used in this bad sense, which is equivalent, in a case like the one before us, to the place of the lost, appears from the usage of the word in the Sep- tuagint.. In Isaiah xlii, 7, it is written, speaking, prophet- ically of Christ, " To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house, (Jl olxov fuxaxrii.)" Spiritual blindness, danger and misery are 'implied in the term as here used. In the 142d Psalm, 7th verse, we read, " Bring my soul out of prison that I may jffaise thy name, £» i^vxaxvii" The word is employed in a similar sense in Rev. ii. 10, " Behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried." All which, and other passages that might be adduced, clearly show that the word, as employed in an evil sense, may be used in the passage before us ; while the context of that passage clearly proves that it actually is used in that sense. It cannot be Christ's dkscent to hades. 475 doubted, then, that the prison here spoken of is identical with the AStji, the rhna, the Sheol of Scripture; the T«p*apoj and the infernus, which are there meant; which words, although they have, in a few instances, a somewhat different meaning, have in the vast majority of cases, an acknowledged and established sense, that of the place of eternal torment. It was, then, to hell that Christ descend- ed after his agony upon the cross. It was there that he preached to the wicked spirits, to the devils and their angels, represented by the disobedient antediluvians, and we now come to consider the burden and import of his preaching. III. That Christ did not preach to them repentance and faith is apparent ; for we do not read that they accepted such an offer, and were saved. Besides this, the whole tenor of Scripture teaches that there is " no wisdom or knowledge or work in the grave whither we hasten." These spirits could not be those of holy saints who were awaiting the .progress and the end of Christ's sufferings, keeping watch, "excubias agentes," as some have sup- posed, upon the progress of Christ's work ; for the wick- ed antediluvians would take no interest in such a scene. But in order more easily to answer the question as to what Christ would preach to the inhabitants of hell, we must ask another question, as to what would most pro- bably be their feelihgs and conduct in view of the death of Christ, which had just taken place upon the cross ? When they beheld all their machinations successful, and their greatest foe, and the greatest foe of their kingdom, overcome by the combined power of men and devils, would they not impiously exult ? would they not make the gloomy caverns of hell resound with shouts of exylta- tion and unhallowed triumph? And if Christ should just 476 Christ's descent to hades. then visit their abode, what would most naturally be the meaning of his words and acts? Would it not be to abate their joy, to exhibit his unvanquished power, to proclaim his unimpaired supremacy throughout all portions of his universe ; and to make the enemies of God and man trem- ble at the vision of his glory even in their own infernal fastnesses ? Christ had, indeed, permitted himself to be vanquished upon the cross. The powers of darkness for a moment seemed to have achieved a triumph over the prince of light. All his endeavors to overthrow their power seemed to have resulted in his own destruction. Their joy and their unbelief and their malice would naturally have arisen to the highest pitch. They beheld the leader of the great enterprise against their empire cut short in his career ; they beheld his disciples scattered and dismayed ; they saw that men now gave up the enterprise as a defeated and exploded imposture. Just then the " gates of hell trembled at his approach ;" and the Lord of heaven ap- peared amid the everlasting shades, to display his undi- minished glory, and exercise his primeval power over those who, though once banished from his presence, had not escaped beyond his power. This is a natural and easy exposition ; and though it is merely a supposition, in such absence of all direct guidance from Revelation as exists in this case, it is as commendable as any which could be suggested. Christ was to put all things under his feet. Every knee was to bow before him, of things in heaven, on earth, and things under the earth. By his sufferings on the cross he had redeemed a world which had fallen from his favor and resisted his control. To complete his triumphs, a third portion of 'the moral creation was to behold his glory and this additional dis- play of his Omnipotence. Heaven had beheld it in won- Christ's descent to hades. 477 der, earth had witnessed it in amazement, and hell was now tremble at it in all its unveiled terror and majesty. His resurrection from the dead would only be a con- tinuation of this triumphant display. Before his death, the seventy disciples returned to him with the declaration, "Even the devils are subject to us through thy name." He had suspended for a time his active control over their movements ; they seemed to have their rival beneath their cloven feet. In the dark hour of Christ's death, it seemed uncertain whether the world should pass altogether under the iron sway of Satan, or become once more a reconciled province of God's empire ; whether the hopes of our race were .now forever hidden by despair ; or whether the Son of God, transforming his bloody cross into a radiant throne, should plant it upon the ruins of the citadel of hell, and thence govern, in undisputed supremacy, the empire of the world. But now by his visit to that rebellious province, he has subdued every malcontent and vanquished every rebel, and has led captivity captive, making a show of tliem openly. That our interpretation of this passage augments the amount of triumph connected with Christ's sufferings, will be apparent to every one. That it was his right and his purpose gloriously to triumph, none can deny. As his voluntary humiliation had been great, so let his glory be brilliant. By his resurrection, whereby he achieved another conquest over his foes, and tore in sunder the bars and bolts of the grave, arising in celestial beauty from his temporary resting-place, he put the finishing stroke to his exploits, completed all his enterprises, and overcame every opponent. Christ well knew how much humiliation the great work he came to accomplish de- manded. He well knew at what precise point his volun- tary degradation should cease. That important crisis came, it was enough ; and from that moment the tide of 478 Christ's descent to hades, conquest and glory turned, and he was borne along upon it from one achievement and height of honor to another; until, at length, from the depths of his terrified f6es in hell, it elevated him high above all principalities and powers, and seated him triumphantly upon his hereditary throne in heaven. Such is the reward, says Peter, of those who "suffer for well-doing." In the context he clearly prepares the way for such an interpretation as we have given. He com- mends deeds of Christian charity and forbearance, because they bring with them their own reward ; because Christ, who voluntarily assumed the form and the functions of a servant, and drank to the dregs the cup of divine wrath, found it better to suffer for well-doing than for evil-doing. For he was enabled to triumph over all his enemies, and display his undiminished glory, where even sinners as great and as old as Noah's despisers, were confined under the sway of hostile devils. So, also, obedience to the will of God, he continues, will ever meet its reward ; for just as the eight obedient persons in Noah's day were saved from the destroying fury of that ocean world, so. now, also, all who make use of the blessings connected with the church of God, and enter within it by baptism^ God's own appointed means, shall be saved and rewarded for their obedience to the divine will. This interpretation of Christ's deeds and acts renders them' a lively image of the experience of the Christian, of his own adventures in the way to heaven ; and thus fulfils the words of Peter, to " arm ourselves with the same mind" which was in him. As Christ was crucified on the tree, so must the Christian be crucified to the world. As he was buried in the grave, so must the Christian be " buried with him in baptism." As Christ vanquished and dismayed the powers of hell by his terrific presence, so must the Christ's descent to hades. 479 Christian vanquish his own spiritual foes, conquer the power of the devil, and resist him so that he flees from him. As Christ arose from the dead, so must the Christian arise in newness of life, arise from the death of sin, burst the bands of his spiritual grave, and come forth a new creature. As Christ ascended again to the throne of his father and their father, so must Christians hereafter as- cend to his presence, that where Christ is, they may be also. And as. Christ assumed the sceptre of heaven^«E(,d reigns as the now exalted sovereign of the universei so must eventually redeemed Christians partake of the glory of their Saviour, sit down upon their thrones, become k|ngs and priests to God, and reign with him forever and ever. What is there in all this to subject the descent of Christ to Hades, to the censures and the contempt of the irreverent and the unbelieving? To conclude : that Modern Infidelity, with all its con- tradictions, assumptions and errors, is unworthy of the reception of rational and immortal men, we firmly believe, and will not further argue. In every age of the church, the spirit of unbelief has attacked the noblest principles which bear upon the highest interests of humanity; and has ventured to substitute in their place its own miserable conceits and sophisms. Its energies are becoming ex- hausted; its last resources have been tried. Constantly altering its principles, never stable, never sure ; it has staggered forward in the march of ages, ever tottering to- ward the earth, ever unable to lay hold of one solitary truth capable of standing the test of inquiry, or of proving its sufficiency to satisfy the demands of the soul. The same Gospel of the Son of God which withstood the opposition of infidels and heathens in the apostolic age, when they hovered in countless legions around His little floejs, §till withstands the assaults of its foes — unchanged 480 Christ's descent to hades. after somany'ages, unmoved amid so much peril. It has endured in its unaltered purity for eighteen hundred years, while all other institutions and systems, which started with it into being, have long ago been buried in the waves of forgotten time. It has successfully resisted the persecu- tidns of kings ahd conquerors '; it has borne the buitlen of Many ages; it has survived the shock of many a disaster. In ev£ry* conflict it has triumphed ; all who have dared to assail troj^ospel have perished from the earth in deserved dis- oWftSKire." Jt now has nothing new to learn, it has nothing more to fear, from the 'assaults of Modern Infidelity— iKi mushroom offspring of yesterday. This venerable reli- -gion, supported by the power of the Eternal through so- many ages, smiles in scorn and pity at the vain and im- potent assaults of the Nineteenth Century. THE, END.