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 IVINE PimPOSE; 
 
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 BISPLATED IS THE 
 
 WoTts of Pi!oyiA^i\CG auA. G^ace*, 
 
 IN A SERIES OF TWENTY LETTERS. 
 
 ADDRESSED TO AN INQUIRING FRIEND. 
 
 SECOND EDITION. 
 
 ■Having your loins girt about withtrutb." 
 "The doctrine whicli is according to godliness." 
 
 RICHMOND, Va. 
 
 6B11SHED BT POLLABB AND COSVERSE, AT TBE FRANKllK TRIN I 
 ING-OmCE, OPPOSITE THE OLB MABKET. 
 
 1827. 
 
J.ETTEIIS ON TUK DIVINE PURPOSE. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 Pernicious effects of Party Spirit in the Church. 
 
 Dear Sir, — Your letter has been received, in which 
 you request my opinion on various religious topics, for 
 the purpose of aiding you in forming a correct decision 
 respecting that denomination of christians, with which it 
 would be most expedient to connect yourself. I will en- 
 deavor to appreciate, but not abuse the opinion you 
 are pleased to express respecting my candor and my abil- 
 ity for the performance of such a task. I feel encourag- 
 ed in this undertaking by the serious intention you ex- 
 press of connecting } ours* If with that denomination, 
 which, after due dehberation and prayer, shall appear 
 to you, most conformable to the sacred scripture, in its 
 doctrines and form of government. When a person is 
 already determined, it is absurd to ask, and vain to ofifer 
 advice. 
 
 It is my duty and my pleasure to explain publicly^ and 
 from house to house, that system of doctrines, held by the 
 church to which I belong. If it pleases God to render 
 these instructions effectual in awakening the careless, in 
 dir cting the serious inquirer, or in confirming the be- 
 liever, to his name be the praise. But I sincerely pray, 
 that God, in his mercy, may preserve me from that party 
 spirit which would lead me to view it as a primary ob- 
 ject to make proselytes. 
 
 Indeed the man who cherishes party spirit is worthy 
 of compassion, itsufl'ering can render him such: for he 
 must feel no ordinary degree of torture, on whose vitals 
 such a vulture is continually preying. When this spirit 
 takes full possession of the heart, like the jaundiced eye, 
 it will pervert, distort, or misrepresent every object pre- 
 sented to the mind. The importance of every measure 
 will be calculated according to its tendency to answer this 
 paramount purpose of adding names to the catalogue of 
 his party. Every feeling of the soul must bow to this 
 sectarian spirit. Provided the end can be accomplished. 
 
4 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 there is reason to fear but few scruples will be felt res- 
 pecting the means. It will be his policy, indeed, not t« 
 give oifence where there is the most dist^mt prospect of 
 success. He will study the disposition of those on whom 
 he means to try his art. If you intimate that religion is 
 something more than mere formality, then he will be the 
 zealous advocate of vital piety. If you express your 
 opinion in favor of, wh.it some call, rational religion, and 
 that it is not necessary to be precise, then he will insin- 
 uate, that there is great danger of enthusiasm, and meet 
 your wishes by alleging, in a sense accommodated to your 
 views, that the commandments of God are not grievous. 
 If you discover a disposition to reason on the subject, 
 then he will enter into grave discussions to prove that his 
 own is the best, if not the only true church. If he should 
 perceive, in your mind, any latent prejudice, this he will 
 endeavor to rouse into action. If your ancestors have 
 been attached to the churcli to which he would make you 
 a proselyte; then, whether this attachment was right or 
 wrong, you must imitate their example; you must wor- 
 ship the God of your Fathers. But if, unfortunately, your 
 ancestors have belonged to another denomination; then he 
 will insist, that every man, in these things, has a right to 
 choose for himself. Does any member of another church 
 differ with you in opinion, on subjects which have no con- 
 nexion with religion? He will endeavor to shape this dif- 
 ference into a reason why you should not belong to the same 
 church. If you object to any doctrine which he professes 
 to hold, he will, if possible, explain this doctrine in such 
 a manner as to suit your views. If direct attempts would 
 awaken your su>p)cion, and thus disappoint his design; 
 he will then have recourse to distant hints, and sly insin- 
 tiations: and if these should not escape your suspicion, 
 £hen the subject will be dismissed; he will become youL' 
 intimate friend, and thus watch the tirst opportunity for 
 renewing the attack. If he should be a preacher of the 
 gospel — which is too often the case — he will mingle, per- 
 haps v,ith the pure doctrines of the Bible, the peculiari- 
 ties of his sect, so frequently, and with such emphasis, 
 that an entire stranger would soon perceive to what de- 
 nomination he beloniied. Thus, in a sense peculiar to 
 himself, and very different from that of the Apostle Paul, 
 he would become all things to all men, that he mightj bj 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 5 
 
 all means gain some. No difficulties are too jgjreat to be 
 enconntered; no disappoinHiients are permitted to dis- 
 courage him. He will rompass sea and lund to gain one 
 proselyte, though when gained, he fools, perhaps, too 
 little concerned whether he be a child- of G«>d, or a child 
 of the devil. His chief gratification is derived from the 
 number, not the piety of his t^ock. Such were the teach- 
 ers who labored to supplant the Apostle Paul, in the 
 church at Corinth; such have been a scourge and disgrace 
 to the church in every age; and such are too numerous 
 at the present day. 
 
 How soon will every pious feeling of the soul languish 
 under the blasting touch of such a spirit? What baleful 
 and tormenting passions will it not generate in the heart? 
 If others, through the divme hlossmg, should be made 
 instrumental in turning sinners from darkness to light^this 
 will aivaken his jealousy and envy. He will secretly 
 grieve at their success, though it is connected with the 
 salvation of immortal souls. He will derive a secret 
 pleasure from every circumstance which will diminish 
 that success. He will rejoice in those disappointments 
 which excite their grief. Their success he considers his 
 loss; of course, he will view them, not merely as rivals, 
 but as enemies to his interest. He will give himself up 
 the credulous dupe of every idle or malicious tale which 
 may operate to their disadvantage. Such tales, with per- 
 haps, expressions of regret, but with real satisfaction, he 
 will circulate; caieful that, by passing through his hands, 
 they shall lose nothing of their tendency to injure the 
 character of those whom he considers his opponents. 
 ]f the report respecting them be f^ivorable ; then he be- 
 comes incredulous; at least, he does not choose to be- 
 come a tale-bearer. With uneasiness he hears of the 
 zealous and honest efforts of others, in the vineyard of 
 the Lord; and feels the corrodings of a secret fear lest a 
 merciful God should bless those efforts to the conversioa 
 of careless sinners. This fear will be in proportion t« 
 the probability, or certainty, that the new converts will 
 not range under his banner, but connect themselves with 
 another church. Although, under the pastoral care of 
 other ministers, they may give sufficient evidence of vital 
 piety, yet this does not remove his uneasiness: Him 
 they do not follow: The shibboleth of his party, they do 
 
 1* 
 
(i Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 not use. To counteract these efiforts, and prevent 
 these efifects, he will also manifest great zeal; but it will 
 be, to use the lanj^iiage of the Apostle James, the bitter 
 zeal of party spirit. He will preach Christ, even of en- 
 vy, strife and contention; not sincerely, but for the afflic- 
 tion of others. It is possible, that under the torment of 
 thisjealonsy and envy, he may cherish the wish that sin- 
 ners should remain ignorant, under, sentence of condem- 
 nation, and tinally perish, rather than be instructed, and 
 brought to repentance through the instrumentality of 
 others. This may appear a heavy charge; and so, in- 
 deed, it is. But is it therefore groundless? If he is 
 grieved that the labors of others should be crowned with 
 success, will he not, very naturally, desire the cause of 
 that grief to be removed? 
 
 He will not dare to avow these desires and intentions: 
 Much ingenuity may be employed to conceal them. You 
 may hear from him, on suitable occasions, very plausible 
 professions of liberality, and of the purity of his motives. 
 But the general tenor of his conduct sv\\\ disclose the se- 
 crets of his heart; will declare, to the world, what are 
 his real intentions and desires. Mark his conduct, and 
 listen to his language in private. How frequently will 
 those, whom he expects to enlist in his party, receive his 
 attention; while otiiers, who encourage no such expec- 
 tation, will l>e much neglected. While those, who are 
 known to be tixed in their opinions, on these subjects, will 
 receive nothing bat the compliment of cold formaht}', 
 with what inviting and caressing smilfes will he greet, 
 others, of whom he hopes better things? 
 
 You will readily perceive how miserable must be the 
 bosom where such a spirit resides. Like the troubled 
 sea, it cannot rest. Its peace will be corroded by the 
 incessant gnawings of jealousy, of envy, and of other pas- 
 sions of a similar kind. How different is this from that 
 charity which envieth not; because it thi7ikcth no evil: 
 from that brotherly love, by which we should be knit to- 
 gether. How unlike is such a heart to that compassion- 
 ate and merciful Saviour, who prayed, and even died for 
 his enemies? How unlike to the Apostle Paul, who re- 
 joiced that Christ was preached, though with a design to 
 increase his atflictions ? How happy, compared with 
 -lich a mind, is the galley-slave, whose bosom is undis 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 7 
 
 lurbed by such a legion of passions. If you could cher- 
 ish the feeUng of revenge; if it were lavvful for you to 
 wish evil on your bitterest enemy; your wishes would 
 be gratified by seeing hina under the influence of party 
 spirit. 
 
 Often has the church of Christ been disgraced and af- 
 flicted by this spirit of intolerant bigotry and misguided 
 zeal. Its fury has driven from the altars of God thous- 
 ands of worshipers; its toil has prepared the dungeons 
 of the inquisition; its f»eat has kindled the tlames of per- 
 secution. And it is still the same. It may exist in dif- 
 ferent degrees, and under different circumstances; but 
 in all its degrees, and under all circumstances, its nature 
 is still the same. He who is now secretly grieved be- 
 caiise others, not of his party, preach the gospel with 
 success, would silence them, if he could; and if no 
 threatenings, no tines, no penalties would answer this pur- 
 pose, under a sufficient degree of this party zeal, he 
 n'ould lead them to tne stake. But thanks to a gracious 
 Providence, in this happ}/ country, it wields no such 
 power. Here, it can shut no churches, disperse no 
 worshipers, silence no ministers, kindle no flames. For 
 this reason it is the more tormenting to the heart in which 
 it lives. When anger can burst on its object, some reliet 
 is gained; but when restrained, it spends its force on him 
 who feels it. If this spirit could vent itself on others, this 
 would aff'ord some relief to its unhappy possessor; but 
 the laws of our country, and the influence of public opin- 
 ion, deny him this relief — and long may this happy state 
 of things remain. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 Difference between truth and error ahsoay important. 
 
 The preceding remarks do not imply that there is n* 
 difference between truth and error; or that error is not 
 always pernicious, and truth always useful. Nor do they 
 imply that one system of doctrines is not better calculat- 
 ed to excite devout affections in the heart, or that one 
 form of church government does not furnish happier in- 
 ducements to a rehgious life, than another. Because we 
 should guard against the influence of party spirit, that is 
 
S', Letters on the Divbie Pui^ose> 
 
 no reason why we should remain the viclima of error 
 and di^'hision; or why we should not, with patience and 
 dihgence, inquire after truth. Ignorance and error are 
 the most proHfic sources of intolerant bigotry. The 
 History of the Church will prove, if I mistake not, that in 
 proportion to the general diffusion of religious knowl- 
 edge, less of this spirit is perceived, and when the knowl- 
 edge of the Lord shall cover the earthy as the waters do the 
 sea, this spirit shall be driven from the kingdom of Christ: 
 it shall not hurt^ or destroy, in all the holy mountain. This 
 consideration furnishes additional inducements for inquir- 
 ing after truth. If we would escape the mortal fangs oi 
 this serpent, of this destroyer of christian peace, let us, 
 as much as possible, he filled zvith all knowledge ; let us 
 know the truth, and the truth will make us free. This in- 
 fl[tiiry should be pursued vvith an earnest desire for in- 
 struction, with humility, with prayer, and with a firm 
 purpose of embracing the truth when discovered: this 
 ^rmness should be tempered with meekness, lorbearance 
 and charity. 
 
 I am very far from admitting that, it is a matter of indif- 
 ference, what system of religious doctrines we receive. 
 It is impossible that opposite doctrines can both be true; 
 and equally impossible that error should answer the pur- 
 pose, or produce the effects of truth. Error may seme- 
 times mingle, and be received with truth; but still it is 
 error; and still it is pernicious. In proportion to its de- 
 gree, it will retard the progress of the christian, and mar 
 the beauty of the divine image on his heart. Truth ma}' 
 be blended with error; but still it is truth; and still it is 
 useful. The disproportion may be so great; error may 
 so far exceed truth, and may relate to such fundamental 
 points, as to prevent altogether the existence of vital pie- 
 ty. The Holy Spirit is a spirit of truth: He never has 
 made, and never will make error and falsehood instru- 
 mental in regenerating and purifying the heart: Truth 
 alone is honored with this mstrumentality. 
 
 The human countenance is composed of a certain num- 
 ber of features. If these features are regular, and in 
 just proportion, animated with intelligence, beaming with 
 generosity, mildness and love, we call it an interesting 
 and beautit'ul countenance; we are charmed with its at- 
 !^raction, and prepossessed, at first sight, in its favor. In 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 9 
 
 another, we recognise all the features; but without that 
 regularity and due proportion which would permit us to 
 call it beautiful; and without that sweetness which a»va- 
 kens our complacency. In another, we discover so little 
 of these properties, that we pronounce it the reverse of 
 beautiful and amiable. In some instances a part of the 
 feature may be handsome, and others the reverse; in 
 others, some of the features may be entirely wanting; 
 still we call it a human countenance. It is possible to 
 conceive of such an assemblage of parts, though called by 
 the same name by which the human features are, yet so 
 disproportionate, and distorted, as to be frightful; we 
 deny it the character of human; if attached to a human 
 body, we call it a monster; if to a different body, we call 
 it a brute. 
 
 In the moral character of man, a similar variety pre- 
 vails; some are beautiful with, at least, a distant resem- 
 blance of their Saviour; others are deformed with sin. 
 The features of the rlivine image are drawn on the heart 
 through sanctijication of the Spirit^ and belief of the truth. 
 The word of God is truth. The doctrines of the Bible 
 possess an intrinsic titness to impress the mind. Each 
 of them, so far as it is understood and believed, will, 
 through the spirit of grace, produce its appropriate ef- 
 fect, awaken its correspondent affection in the soul. 
 These doctrines, taken collectively, constitute that /orm, 
 or mould* into which the heart is delivered, by the 
 Great Artificer, that it may receive, and retain all the 
 features and lineaments of his own image. That this 
 form of sound, or health-giving] words may have this ef- 
 fect, we must hold it fast, must cling to it, by faith and 
 love, which is in Christ Jesus. In proportion to the ac- 
 curacy and extent of our knowledge, and the sincerity of 
 our faith in these doctrines, will he the beauty and per- 
 fection of the divine image; we shall possess all those af- 
 fections and dispositions which belong to the character of 
 Christ; of his fulness we shall receive, and grace for grace. 
 If that system of dortnnes, whicn we profess to hold, is 
 but imperfectly understood, then its effects can be but 
 faintly traced on the mmd. If it he only some of these 
 doctrines with which we are acquainted, or can be said 
 to know, while of others we are entirely ignorant, theri 
 ^ Rom. vi, 17. 1 2 Tim. i, 13. See M'Knight, 
 
10 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 correspondent deficiencies will remain in the character — 
 The mould is complete, but the metal does not come in 
 contact with it. If the system, which we receive, be 
 mixed with error, then the character will exhibit, not 
 merel}' deficiencies, but deformities, answering to, and 
 produced by these errors; for the metal will bear the 
 impression of the mould into which it is cast. Error, 
 when believed, will as certainly as truth, produce its ef- 
 fect. While christians of all denominations, in propor- 
 tion as they receive the sincere milk of the wor d, mani- 
 fest their likeness to the Saviour, and are growing in a 
 meetness for the inheritance of the saints in light; the 
 man, who has never been born again, who receives not 
 the Lord Jesus Christ by faith, whose heart has never 
 melted with evangelical repentance, is destitute of every 
 feature of the divine image. He is led astray by an evil 
 heart of unbelief; and is completely under the govern- 
 ment of falsehood. No saving truth mingles with that 
 system of error, which is habitually strengthening its 
 grasp, and deepening its impression on his soul. While 
 a divine Agent is imparting his own likeness to the char- 
 acter of christians, a very different agent, wielding differ- 
 ent instruments, is actively employed in imparting his 
 Jikeness to the character of the sinner. His affections 
 are all fixed on improper objects, or, in an improper de- 
 gree, on right objects: his dispositions'all tend the wrong 
 way. All the features of his moral character are so com- 
 pletely distorted, and so disproportionate, as to exhibit 
 nothing but a frightful and hideous picture of deformity: 
 He is a monster in the moral world. 
 
 Such is our nature, that the objects, with which the 
 heart is habitually conversant, and most intimately ac- 
 quainted, will, as certainly, form its character, and habits 
 of feeling, as the company, whi' h we keep, will form our 
 manners. By familiar and habitual intercourse with one 
 grade in society, our manners will acquire all that ea.se 
 and gracefulness, which will fit us for the politest circles. 
 In another grade they will acquire nothing but simplicity, 
 which, although not offensive nor disagreeable, yet does 
 not include that artificial polish, which would secure us 
 from embarrassment, if introduced into the higher classes, 
 where greater refinement characterises the manners. 
 From a still lower grade in society, our manners will ac- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 1 1 
 
 <4uire a rudeness and vulgarity, unadorned with that sim- 
 plicity, which would exempt such deportment from cen- 
 sure. While surrounded with those of our own gradCj, 
 whose manners resemhle our own, we feel perfectly at 
 ease; of course, most happy. But if accident, or busi- 
 ness, should place us in the midst of those, whose man- 
 ners are polished and refined, their politeness and grace- 
 fulness would be distressing to us: the contrast would 
 force upon us a sense of our own deficiencies; and the 
 moment of escape from such society, to that of our own 
 level, would be anticipated with real satisfaction. And 
 yet, if our hearts are not as destitute of sensibility, as our 
 manners are of refinement, we shall feel and acknowledge 
 the propriety of accommodating ourselves to the compa- 
 ny present. Hence attempts are often made to assume a 
 style of manners, with which we are not familiar. Such 
 attempts are generally fruitless; they discover our em- 
 barrassment, and set our awkwardness in a more striking 
 point of view. 
 
 The preceding remarks may illustrate the effects to be 
 expected from the different systems of doctrine, now re- 
 ceived in the christian world. These systems represent 
 our own character, and the character of God, with very 
 considerable shades of difference. This difference will 
 operate in forming, if I may speak so, the manners of the 
 heart; that is, its affections, dispositions, tempers and 
 feelings. Some of these systems diminish, very much, 
 the distance between us and our Maker. By represent- 
 ing our character as less depraved than it really is; our 
 guilt as less atrocious, and dangerous, than truth re- 
 quires; they proportion the displeasure of God towards 
 us, by that degree of depravity and guilt, with which we 
 are chargeable ; our reconciliation, of course, can be 
 the more easily effected ; the price of our pardon, if 
 any should be required, need be the less valuable and 
 precious. 
 
 In the ordinances of the gospel, we are emphatically 
 said to draw near to God. In one sense we are always, 
 independently of our own intentions, in his presence; he 
 is not far from every one of us; for in him ue live, and 
 move, and have our being. But in these ordinances, we 
 draw near to him, in a religious sense, and under the 
 most important relation of worshipers, for the express 
 
1 2 Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 purpose of offering to him the devout affections of our 
 hearts. These affections cannot be produced by any 
 mechanical operation; they must be excited, and will be 
 graduated by the views we entertain of ourselves, and of 
 the object of our worship. Our confessions of sin will 
 never exceed the degree of guilt, with which we suppose 
 ©urselves to be chargeable; our gratitude vvill corres- 
 pond with our estimation of the blessings we receive; 
 «ur love will glow with no greater warmth than suits our 
 Tiews of the divine benevolence; our sorrow for sin, 
 cannot, in the nature of things, exceed our belief of its 
 l)aseness and hatefulness; our fear of sin, and our watch- 
 fulness to guard against it, will be in proportion to our 
 ▼iews of the danger to which it exposes us. In propor- 
 tion as those doctrines which we believe, diminish the 
 guilt of sin, the Saviour will be the less precious to us; 
 because we«hall be the less indebted to him, we shall have 
 the less need of his assistance, he will have the less to 
 do, and to suffer for us; we shall feel the less thankful to 
 bim. Heaven, which is a state of complete deliverance 
 from sin, will be the less desirable to us; and hell, which 
 is a state of punishment for sin, v/ill be the less dreaded; 
 our exertions to secure the one, and escape the other^ 
 will be the less frequent and vigorous. Now these are 
 the affections, indispensably necessary, in all who wor- 
 ship God, ill spirit and in truth; and these are the affec- 
 tions which operate as motives of action; which exercise 
 a commanding influence over our daily deportment. — 
 Without them, we may go through all the forms of wor- 
 ship; but it will be a body, without the spirit; the form 
 without the power of godliness. Without them, our con- 
 duct may be so regular as to escape the censure of man; 
 but, in the sight of God, it will be considered as defici- 
 ent, and even condemned as criminal, just so far as it 
 €ows from any other principle than supreme and sincere 
 love to his character. 
 
 It cannot, therefore, be a matter of indifference, what 
 system of doctrines we believe. These doctrines have 
 a connexion with our everlasting happiness, too intimate, 
 and too necessary, to admit the supposition. They are 
 the means, used by the Spirit, in exciting our affections, 
 in forming our moral character, and in regulating our 
 life. It cannot be doubted that some of these systems,. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 13 
 
 rtovf held, by the disciples of Christ, are better calcula- 
 ted than others, to produce these effects; of course, it is 
 the duty of every man, as opportunity permits, to in- 
 vestigate this subject; to compare these systems with 
 the word of God, and tlrmly to believe that one, which 
 he finds to be nearest the truth. This is the duty, 
 and this the manner of performing it, enjoined by an 
 inspired Apostle; prove all things^ holdfast that zvhicli, 
 is good. Every man is required to be useful in judi- 
 cious and persevering efforts to promote the cause of 
 vital piety; but the zeal with which he employs the 
 means within his power, will be in proportion to the sin- 
 cerity, and fervor of his relij^ious affections; these, again, 
 have an intimate and necessary connexion with the doc- 
 trines which he believes. One system of doctrine is bet- 
 ter calculated to excite these affections, to prompt to 
 these exertions than another, because nearer the truth. 
 The man, who satisfies himself with the reflection, that 
 the system which he holds, is, upon the whole, good, 
 and, in some degree, useful, when by making the proper 
 inquiry, he might discover that another is evidently bet- 
 ter, possessing a still greater tendency to be useful, is 
 certainly inexcusable, of course, culpable, if he fails to 
 make that inquiry. 
 
 I, therefore, cordially approve of your intention of ex- 
 amining for yourself, by the only infallible standard — the 
 word of God, those different, and often conflicting sys^ 
 tems, now abroad in the world. If you prosecute this 
 inquiry with meekness and humility, and especially with 
 prayer for the divine blessing, I have no doubt, the Holy 
 Spirit will guide you into the knowledge and belief of all 
 truth, as it is in Jesus Christ. I will cheerfully give you 
 my sentiments on the two important doctrines, mentione«l 
 in your request — the divine decrees, and the persever- 
 ance of the saints. 
 
 LETTER III. 
 
 Hie influence of prejudice — answer to the questlotif xi'htti 
 are the decrees of God ? 
 
 No person can have been so long conversant with the 
 world, as you have been, without oftea observing the ef 
 
14 Letters on the Bhine Purpose, 
 
 fects 0^ prejudice. It implies the belief of a statement, or 
 opinion, without exatniiuUion; of course without a knowl- 
 edge of the evidence on which the truth of that opinion is 
 founded. A judgment ii? formed, for which no good reason 
 can be given. In this way, either truth or error may, and 
 often is, received. It is peculiarly unfortunate when its 
 influence operates in favor of error; for it renders the 
 mind almost, if not quite inaccessible to truth. It is a 
 hopeless undertaking, to reason with men, under its in- 
 jSuence. You state a rase to them, differently from their 
 opinion, and invite them to a fair and candid mquiry; but 
 they have prejudged the case; they have no doubts on 
 the subject. They formed thCiF opinion without delibe- 
 ration, of course, without difficulty, and why should they 
 doubt? Perfectly satisfied with their present views, 
 troubled with no doubts respecting their correctness, 
 they can see no reason for investigation. In the same 
 manner, without inquiry, and without any doubt, they 
 believe that all opinions, differing from their own, are 
 unfounded and erroneous. They, of course, consider 
 all examination as useless and unnecessary. Your pro- 
 posal, therefore, to inquire, can only excite their pas- 
 sions; which either pervert, or repel, the force of your 
 reasonings; and, in iact, disqualify their minds for any 
 thing like useful investigation. Their opposition to your 
 statements, is that of feeling, and not of the understand- 
 ing. They consider it as necessary to reject and oppose 
 error, as to hold and defend the truth. Such men are 
 apt to make a convenience of certain vague and general 
 terms, which they consider rather as the signals of a 
 party, than as the signs of definite ideas. If the term is 
 used by the party to which they belong, without convey- 
 ing one distinct perception to the mind, it awakens all the 
 feelings of approbation; and they are determined to de- 
 fend it: But if the term is generally used by those vvhom 
 they consider their opponents, then it awakens all the 
 feelings of disapprobation and hostility; the mind, almost 
 instinctively, assumes the attitude of resistance; they are 
 determined to oppose it. Their passions are excited, 
 but their understanding is not enlightened. 
 
 These remarks, as you have no doubt observed, have 
 been often verified, during the prevalence among us, of 
 party spirit, on the subject of politics. That spirit— the 
 
Lcflcrs on the Divine Purpose. 15 
 
 reproach and calamity of the American people, — appears 
 to be, in a great measure, lulled to sleep: May the sleep 
 be profound and eternal! But the etferts of prejudice 
 appear on no subject more frequently than on that of re- 
 ligion; and especially respectini? the divine decrees. 
 There are multitudes in whose minds the very term, de- 
 cree, is sufficient to excite the liveliest feelings of dislike 
 and opposition. 
 
 1 am to ofiVr you my sentiments on the subject of the 
 divine decrees. May God, in mercy, grant that spirit of 
 meekness, humility, and wisdom, without which, the in- 
 quiry will be prosecuted to no advantage! 1 am not un- 
 dei'taking to clear this doctrine of all flifficulties; or to 
 render it, in all its bearings and cpnnexions, comprehen- 
 sible to your mind. What I chiefly intend is to furnish 
 "vou with that mode of reasoning, and with that train of 
 reflection, which has led my own mind to believe in this 
 doctrine, as taught in the vvord of God. 
 
 About the middle of the seventeenth century, an as- 
 sembly of Divines, convened at Westminster, in Eng- 
 land, composed two catechisms, the one called the Lar- 
 ger and the other the Shorter Catechism; both of which 
 are received, by the Presbyterian church, as excellent 
 compendb of christian doctrine. A question in the 
 Shorter Catechism brings th-e subject, now under consid- 
 eration, fully and distinctly to view: V/kat are the decrees 
 of God? Nor do i know of any thing, \vithm the same 
 compass, more to the point, or more satisfactory, than 
 the answer to this question — The decrees of God are his 
 eternal purpose, according to the counsel oj his own will, 
 "juhereby, for his oicn glory, he hath fore-ordained 'whatso- 
 ever comes to pass. 
 
 In tliis answer, the decrees of God, and his purpose, 
 are considered the same: the one is explained by the 
 other; and both are again expressed in the term, fore- 
 ordained. To decree, to purpose, to fore-ordain, to 
 predestinate, to predetermine, when used to express the 
 intentions, designs and plans of God, are so nearly, if not 
 altogether the same in their meaning, that they will be 
 considered as such, and will be used as synonymous 
 terms. The ivords, decree, purpose, fore-ordination, 
 isc. will be considered and used also as meaning the same 
 Thing. Those events, or actions, to which the dirine 
 
I^ Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 purpose relates, may be expressed, with equal propriety; 
 either by the term decreed, or purposed, or fore-ordained, 
 or predestinated, or designed, or predetermined. These 
 purposes of the Alraijj;hty are neither capricious, nor arbi- 
 trary: they are not capricious; because they are formed, 
 or more properly, they exist in the divme mind, according 
 to a perfect rule, which is his own will. From this they 
 derive both stability and unity. They are not arbitrary; 
 since he does not ordam an event, merely because he 
 has' power to accomplish it; they are according to the 
 counsel of his own will. Of all the works of God, it is 
 said, in wisdom hast tlwu made them all. All things, and 
 all events are embraced in these decrees; for his king' 
 dom rulefh over all; and by him all thi7igs do consisty or 
 hang together. All these determinations have respect to 
 his own glory, as their chief and ultimate end; and will all 
 terminate in that glory — the highest and best end which 
 can be proposed. According to the conceptions of our 
 finite capa ities, these purposes must exist in the divine 
 mind before the events, to which they relate, are brought 
 to pass. If they exist one day, or one hour before, as it 
 respects God himself, to whom one day is as a thousand 
 years, and a thousand years as one day, it is precisely 
 the same as if they existed from all eternity. These 
 purposes are therefore eternal. Now each part of this 
 answer appears to be worthy of all acceptation; because 
 the whole of it is founded on Scripture, and agrees per- 
 fectly vvith all we know of the character of God, and of 
 the government which he exercises over the world. I 
 therefore receive it, not only because it is true; but also 
 because it is useful, and comfortable. 
 
 If, however, you feel arsy < ifficulty in receiving, as 
 true, the above statements, you will admit the truth of 
 the two following propositions, viz. That the government 
 of the universe is in the hands of .Jehovah; or that hit, 
 kingdom ruleth over all; and that, hj grace ye are saved. 
 If you receive these two propositions, then, in my opin- 
 ion, you are a genuine Calvinist; for they embrace the 
 very essence of that system. The former of tliese may 
 be understood as including the works of creation and pro- 
 vidence; the latter as referring to the work of redemp- 
 tion. But all who profess to believe the Bible, believe 
 these propositions; for they are parts of that Tolume: 
 
Letters on the Divine Parjws", IT 
 
 ;in(] yet, all are not C^jlvinists. Our only difference, 
 therefore, is respectitis; the meaning; of these, and simi- 
 lar passages of Scripture. The tirst of these will be 
 considered in my next letter. 
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 God never acts without design — Providence, z^hat — ex- 
 tends to the preservatioti of life — and to all inanimate 
 matter. 
 
 In yoar evening walk yon tread on a worm, and crush 
 it to death; presently yon observe a venomous serpent, 
 near your path, which you also kill. In the tirst case, 
 the effect, as it respected yourself, was accidental; that 
 is, it happened without your intention; you had no de- 
 sign to injure the worm. But in the latter, the effect, or 
 event, was according to your intention; your killing the 
 serpent was in consequence of a design, previously and 
 deliberately formed, in your mind. And yet, in both ca- 
 ses you were the cause of death. In a thousand instan- 
 ces, the exertions of men produce effects, not only with- 
 out design, but contrary to their deliberate intentions. — 
 But nothing like this can possibly happen with God. It 
 would be the height of absurdity, and manifest the great- 
 est ignorance of his character, to suppose that his power 
 was exerted in blind efforts, and was producing effects, 
 which he had not previously designed. Every effect 
 which his powei- produces, is according to the predeter- 
 minaiioa of his own wisdom. 
 
 It is probable, if not certain, that the whole system, to 
 which this earth belongs, was created at the same time. 
 The sun, which is the common centre, and the moon are 
 expressly mentioned. The supposition is very much 
 strengthened by the Mosaic account, in which, beside 
 mentioning the sun and moon, it is distinctly stated; he 
 made the stars also; that is, at the same time. Not the 
 fixed stars; but those planets, commonly called stars, 
 vi^hicb are known to revolve round the sun, with this 
 earth. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the 
 earth; not by accident, but from design. In that plan 
 which guided his creative power hK^ embraced all the 
 jarts of these heavens, and this earth. The number of 
 jilanets, belonging to the system; their distance from each 
 
i 8 Letters on the Divine PurposCo 
 
 other; their revolution; their figure and dimension; were 
 all decreed with absolute certainty. If then, this pur- 
 pose existed, in the divine nnind, previously to creation, 
 there is no alternative, but to believe that it ie^ an eternal 
 purpose. To suppose any thing else, involves an absur- 
 dity, too great to impute to any man. 
 
 No objection, however, will be made, ! presume, to 
 the creation of the world, according to an eternal purpose 
 of God, but chiefly to his governing the world, in the 
 same manner; and yet this, if 1 mistake not, is included 
 in the propo*;ition, which you will readily admit, that the 
 government of the universe is in the hands of Jehovah,, 
 or that, his kini^dom ruleth over all. This governments, 
 and his providence are the same. Every effect, and ev- 
 ery event, to which his providence extends, are so many" 
 particulars included in his government. Now, consider 
 lor a moment, what a vast variety of events are, in Scrip- 
 ture, most explicitly, ascribed to God; and which, of 
 course, are under the control of his guardian care. But: 
 in what sense can an event be ascribed to God, unless it 
 is brought to pass by his agency? It is true, divine pro- 
 vidence is carried on by the instrumentality of second 
 causes: but this fact cannot alter the case. These sec- 
 ond causes, whetlier they be rational, or irrational crea- 
 tures, with or without life, are completely dependent on 
 the Almighty, and could neither exist nor act, without 
 his powerful and constant support. Their preservation, 
 and the employment of their instrum* ntality, are impor- 
 tant parts in the plan of his providence. Hence the pro- 
 priety of using the term Providence, which means fore- 
 sight, or care respecting future events, so as to secure 
 their occurrence at a particular time, and under particu- 
 lar circumstances. Thus when one effect is produced, 
 care is taken that it may answer the purpose of a second 
 cause, or be instrumental in producing a second eifectp 
 and this again a third, kc. throughout a series of causes 
 and effects, which may terminate only with the end of 
 the world. In producing the first effect, provision was 
 made for the second, in the second, for the third, &c. — 
 That effect, which is here considered the first, was it- 
 %self produced by an||J3er which preceded it, and this also 
 "•foy another; and thus the unbroken chain may he traced 
 up, through all the intermediate links, to the First Cause. 
 
Letters ou the Divine Purpose, 19 
 
 In the first effect, produced immediately by the hand of 
 God, provision was made for all thnt were to flow from 
 it, down to the last. Thus, the first and the last event, 
 «f any given series, are connected together; the last is 
 dependent on the lirst, as the first is on God. A second 
 cause necessarily implies a first, on tvhich the whole 
 connexion, in all its parts, and in every stage of its pro- 
 gress, is dependent. Every intervening effect was, from 
 the beginning, as distinctly in his view, and as certainly- 
 embraced in his purpose, as the first. One view, and 
 ont- purpose, pervades the whole. The providence of 
 God is, therefore, his unerring and perfect foresight, bis 
 wise and guardian care, extending through avast conca- 
 tenation of causes and effects, from the first to the last 
 moment of time — a successive flow of events, which none 
 can arrest, but He who first set it in motion. 
 
 For the sake of illustration, let some particular case 
 be selected. The preservation of human life is known 
 to depend on the concurrence of a great variety of means^ 
 or second causes; man's own exertion and prudence, food^ 
 water, air, clothing, medicine, &c. and yet, in Scripture^ 
 this preservation is ascribed in the most explicit and un- 
 equivocal language, to God. O, thou preserver of men: 
 O Lord, thou preservest man and beast; in him we live, and 
 move, and have our being.'^' Creation is not ascribed t« 
 God in language more intelligible, and more explicit, than 
 this. The life of man, however, is preserved, generally, 
 not by miracle, but by providence; that is, by the use of 
 means, possessing, in themselves, a fitness to answer the 
 intended purpose. The preservation of human life ne- 
 cessarily implies the provision of all those means, on 
 which that life depends. 
 
 The preservation of the Apostle Paul's life, as far as 
 we can judge, at one time, depended on his nephew, who, 
 accidentally, as we call it, but providentially, in the pur- 
 pose of God, heard the bloody intention of the Jews; of 
 which he gave immediate information to the chief cap- 
 tain. j Had this captain been a Gallio, still the effect 
 would not have taken place. But he was not; provision 
 was made in his character, and in the dispositions of hi^ 
 heart, for acting promptly on this information; and thus 
 *Job vii, 20— Psal. xxxvi, 6. Acts x\u, 2S, 
 t Acts xxiii, 16, et seq. 
 
520 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 securing Paul from these murderous (lesigns. Had this 
 youns; man been at a distancie, he could not have heard 
 this conversation; of course, could not have given the 
 information: But He who had determined to prolong 
 the life of the distinguished Apostle, determined also to 
 secure the presence of his nephew, at the proper place 
 and at the proper moment. At another time, his life, and 
 the life of the whole company, depended on the contin- 
 uance of the sailors in the ship. Except these abide in 
 the ship, ye cannot be saved. And yet he had been previ- 
 ously assured that his hfe should not be lost. The in- 
 tention to preserve him, included the exertions of the 
 seamen, as the means of that preservation. 
 
 The preservation of life often depends on circumstan- 
 ces too trivial to excite the least attention, at the moment; 
 yet such occurrences are sometimes the "^hield by which 
 man is secured from death. While the liev. Dr Kod- 
 «"ers, late of New-York, lived at StGeori:;es, in Maryland, 
 one of his neighbors determined to murder him. "Ac- 
 cordingly the miserable wretch made every preparation 
 for executing; his nefarious purpose. He watched the 
 motions of Mr R. with a loaded musket, day after day, for 
 a considerable time, and eagerly sought for a favorable 
 opportunity to destroy his life. He waylaid him when 
 he rode abroad. He hovered about his door, at inter- 
 vals, by day and night. But something alvvays occurred 
 to carry the object of his pursuit in a different direction 
 from that which was expected, and thus to avert the in- 
 tended mischief ''* » The Doctor knew nothing of these 
 attempts; and therefore could have no design to avoid 
 (he danger. But the great head of the church intended to 
 employ him still longer in his vineyard; and therefore, 
 at the proper moment, and in due proportion, all the rao- 
 tives, and all the circumstances necessary to his preser- 
 Tation, were ready, and brought into operation. A very 
 slight change in these occurrences might have carried 
 him on instant death. 
 
 This wise and gracious, care of the Almighty Father 
 extends to all the human family, every individual of 
 which is equally, and at all times dependent on him.— 
 Whatever God performs, in the course of his providence, 
 ^ve ought to believe that, from the beginning, it was bis 
 *Mincp's Fife ef Rodgcrs, page 111. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 intention to do so. If that intention preceded the event, 
 as it must have done, then, we cannot avoid the convic- 
 tion that, in the divine mind, it existed from all eternity. 
 In this eternal purpose is included the preservation oi 
 every human being; and of roiirse. all the means neces- 
 sary for the support of life. If the means should fail, 
 life also must fail, iinlnsis it l)e preserved by miracle, 
 ^vhich we are not to expect. If, in the divine purpose, 
 the end is rendered certain, so also are the means. No 
 Jiuman being can long subsist without food. If God has 
 determined to preserve, for a given time, the life of any 
 particular man, he must also have determined to provide 
 that food, without which he cannot live. Nor is this 
 food produced by miracle; its production depends on 
 other causes; on the fertility and cultivation of the soil, 
 on the influence of the sun, the rain, &,c. If then he de- 
 termined to provide the necessary food, he determined 
 also to secure the operation of all those causes, on which 
 the production of that food depends. The causes which 
 are instrumental in furnishing bread, are themselves the 
 effects of other causes, which preceded them, and these 
 ;igain of others, till we are led up to the great First 
 Cause. Thus we are taught to pray to our Father in 
 heaven for our daily bread. But why pray to him for it? 
 unless its provision depends on his wisdom, and his care, 
 The causes on which the provision of this bread depends, 
 are also ascribed to him. Jlnd God said, let the earth 
 bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree 
 yielding fruity after his kind.* He maketh his sun to rise 
 on the evil and on the good, and sendeih rain on the just 
 and on the wijvst.] If the preservation of our life re- 
 quires bread, for this bread we are taught to pray, and 
 thus to acknowledge it as one of his blessings. If this 
 bread is produced by other means, these means are in- 
 struments in the hand of Omnipotence, employed lor this 
 special purpose. All second «;auses are the servants of 
 the Supreme Ruler, waiting on him, in readiness to per- 
 form his will. 
 
 In the same manner, all living creatures depend on 
 
 God for their preservation. O Lord, said the Psalmist, 
 
 lliou preservest, not only man, but beast also. These wait 
 
 all upon thee, that thou mayest give them their meat in due 
 
 *Gen. i, H. fMatt. v, 45. 
 
■2'2, Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 season.'^ All the beasts of the field, the fowls of the air, 
 the fishes of the sea, together with every living thing, by 
 whatever name it is called, — all are sustained by the pro- 
 Tidential care of the great creator. God feedeth the ra- 
 vens. Thou openest thy hand, they are filled -with good : 
 thou hidest thy face, they are troubled. Thou satisfiest the 
 desire of every living thing.] Not one of them is forgot- 
 ten before God. If this- laognage nrieans any thing, it 
 means that this whole department of animated nature^ 
 from the greatest to the very least, is sustained in be- 
 ing by divine power, wisdom and goodness. Food is 
 as necessary for the support of their life, as for the life 
 of man. This food must be suited to their nature; and 
 their natures are very different from each other. Some 
 are carnivorous; some are graminivorous. That which 
 is received by one, is rejected by another. This food 
 must not only be suited to their nature, but must be given 
 in due season. The purpose of God, to preserve the life 
 of all these myriads of living creatures, certainly implies 
 his purpose of securing, for ihem, all the various kinds 
 of food, from which the nourishment of life may be de- 
 rived. It also renders certain the concurrent instrumen- 
 tality of all those means, or second causes, on which the 
 provision of this food depends. Here again, in attempt- 
 ing to trace the succession of causes and effects, we are 
 carried up, and lost in the counsels of infinite wisdom, 
 which must, forever, exceed our limited comprehension. 
 In Scripture, we are taught to believe that the provi- 
 dence of God extends to the whole vegetable kingdom; 
 and, indeed, to every [>art of inanimate nature. The 
 fruitful earth is still, and hws been, in every age, obe- 
 dient to the mandate of Jehovah. He causeth the grass 
 to grow for the cattle., and the herb for the service of man: 
 lie hath planted the cedars of Lebanon. He not only cau- 
 ses the grass, and all kinds of herbage to grow; but he 
 also clothes that grass, and this herbage. Neither their 
 number, their shape, nor their color, are either uncer- 
 tain or contingent, but determined by the wise and eter- 
 nal purposes of Him, who causes them to spring from the 
 earth. He gives the grass its form, and its verdure; to 
 iiis pencil, the lily, the rose, the pink, &.c. are indebted 
 f^v all their discriminative tints, and all their brilliancy 
 ^Psal. civ, 27, 28. fPsal. cxlv, 16, 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* P. 3 
 
 of color. If he plants the cedars of Lebanon, so, by fair 
 and undeniable consequence, does he phint the trees of 
 every other kind, ovei- the whole earth. The' oak, the 
 pine, the willow, &c. are as much dependent on his care, 
 as the lign-aloes, and the cedar. 
 
 Inaninaate matter, in all its combinations and forms, in 
 all its movements and operations, is completely subject 
 to the controllins; hand of Omnipotence. The wind 
 bloweth where it listeth, as to any power in man, to di- 
 rect its course, or stop its progress, but not without the 
 command of God; for He bringeih the zvind out of his 
 treasuries; it is his wind; he causeth it to blow. When J o- 
 uah fled from his duty, the Lord sent out a great wind in- 
 to the sea after him, and he was soon brought to repen- 
 tance. When it has answered the purpose, for which 
 it is sent out, then, he stayelh his rough wind, and ga- 
 ihereth it in his Jisi. He scattereth the hoar frost like 
 ashes. Fire and hail, snow and vapor, whether they 
 sweep over the earth, with desolating fury, or minister 
 lo the comfort and convenience of man, are only fuljill- 
 ng his word. Even the resistless thunder bolt, shiver- 
 ing, with equal ease, the palaces of kings, and the trees 
 of the forest, is launched and guided by his hand; for hr. 
 directeth his lightnings, to the ends of the earth. See him, 
 at one time, measuring the waters in the hollow of his 
 hand; at another, meting out the heavens with a span; 
 now, comprehending the dust of the earth in a measure; 
 ugain, weighing iUe mountains in scales, and tlie hills in 
 a balance; and who can suppress the devout exclamation: 
 O, Lord! how manifold are thy works; how vast, how 
 boundless the extent of thy providence ! Matter, it is 
 true, is governed by, what we usually call, the laws of 
 nature; but what are these laws, but the power, the 
 ■wisdom, and the goodness of God, producing, with regu- 
 larity and certainty, all the diversified phenomena which 
 strike our attention? 
 
 LETTER V. 
 Beatk, with all its causes, under the government of provi- 
 dence — the care of God extends to ike whole universe. 
 
 If the great Jehovah is continually employed in pre- 
 serving the life of man, must not the termination of thiit 
 
:>4 Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 life be ascribed also to him? Have we the consolation of. 
 believing, that divine wisdom presides over all the chan- 
 ges, which diversify our life, regulating the minutest 
 events connected with our safety, numbering even the 
 hairs of our head; but that, in the hour of death, we 
 shall be cast off, and be altogether deserted, by our mer- 
 ciful Father? Reason, and the word of God, unite in 
 forbidding us to admit the gloomy conclusion; and in au- 
 thorizing us to cherish the belief, that the last hour, the 
 last moment of life, is as certainly embraced in the de- 
 signs of his providence, as any of those hours, or mo- 
 ments that are past. The divine purpose, to preserve 
 our life, is not vague and indefinite, as to time. We have 
 abundant reason to believe that, the length of our life,, as 
 well as its preservation, is determined by the wisdom of 
 Him who cannot err. He alone has the right, and he 
 alone is competent to decide when it is most proper to 
 withdraw from us, his supporting hand. 
 
 In scripture, we find this event is ascribed to God. 1 
 know^ said the pious and afflicted Job, that thou wilt bring 
 •me to death. The Lord killeth; he brin^eth down to the 
 grave.^ Is there not an appointed time for man upon 
 earth? Yes., verily; his days are determined; the number 
 #/* his months is with thee; thou hast appointed his bounds, 
 that he cannot pass.] 
 
 If this event should, for a moment, be supposed to de- 
 pend, not on the will of God, but of man; that each indi- 
 vidual should possess the power to prolong his life, ac- 
 cording to his own pleasure; this would also imply the 
 power to command all those means, by which life is sus- 
 tained. If he cannot by his own power, secure those 
 means, neither can he preserve his life; for it cannot be 
 preserved vvithout them. He must have it in his power 
 to provide food: for without it, he cannot long subsist. — 
 This requires an absolute control over all those causes, 
 on which the provision of food depends. He must im- 
 part fertility to the earth; must command the sun to 
 shine, and the rain to fall; for without these the earth 
 will not yield her increase. These causes are the effects 
 of others which preceded them; and these again, of 
 others; and thus the connexion may be traced back, hun* 
 ^reds of years, before any man, now living, was born. 
 
 ' 3 Sam. ii, 6. f Job viij 1. m^ xiVj 5] 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 25 
 
 This supposition would req'iire him to act, hundreds, or 
 eiren thousands of ^ears. hefore he existed. Notiung, 
 therefore, can he more ahsurd, than to suppose man ca- 
 pable of performmi; all this; and yet, if he cannot do all 
 this, and much more, neither can he prolong his own hfe; 
 and if he cannot prolonj^ his own hfe, neither can he de- 
 termine, independently of the divine will, his own death. 
 Life and death are in the hands of the same beino;; and 
 that being must exercise the most absolute control over 
 all those causes, which contribute to the support of life: 
 That being can be none other than Jehovah. 
 
 If it depended on our own choice, how fe\v of us would 
 ever leave this world'^ Even under accumulated evils, 
 we generally clmj^ to hfe, with the most eager endear- 
 ment. To produ'^e in the human mind a desire to depart, 
 is among the sublimf>st effects of genuine piety. The 
 language of this desire, however, is, all the days of 
 my appointed time zs.nl I I zn'ait, till my change come; for it 
 is always connected with perfect submission to the will 
 of God. 
 
 Death itself is not only ascribed to the great Disposer 
 of all events, but also all those causes, which generally 
 issue in the termination of life. Thousands of the hu- 
 man family are annually swept off by diseases of various 
 kinds; all of which may be included in- the terra, pesti- 
 lence. This is so frequpntly, and under such a variety 
 of circumstances, ascribed to God, that it is almost need^ 
 less to mention partiiMilar passages. / ivill smite them 
 iuith the pestilence; He gave their life over to the pestilence; 
 I have sent among you the pestilence.'^ This pestilence, 
 walking in darkness, and w.jsting at noonday, is but the 
 servant of the Almighty, and Cdunot move, or aflfect the 
 life of a single creature, without his command. If, how- 
 ever, it should not be admitted that the pestilence in- 
 cludes all diseases, still we find, in scripture, that, col- 
 lectively, and singly, they are subject to the regulations 
 of divine power and wisdom. The Lord will make thy 
 plagues wonderful^ and sore sicknesses, and of long continu- 
 ance; also every sickness^ and every plague, which is not 
 written in the book of this law, them xmll the Lord bring 
 upon thee, until thou be destroyed.] The truth here as 
 
 ♦Num. xiv, 12. Psal. Ixxviii, 50. Amos iv^ 10, 
 |DcUt, xxriii, 60, 61. 
 
52^ Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 serted is, thai aU kinds of diseases are sent by the Ruler 
 of the world, and are subject to the guidance of his pro- 
 Tidence. Of this truth the Divine Redeemer furnished, 
 "while on earth, the most conclusive proof, by healing ali 
 manner of diseases, which he could not have done, if 
 they were not obedient to his will. / 
 
 Disease itself is the effect of other causes, which are 
 also ascribed to God. The cause of disease is often 
 generated in the atmosphere. Noxious equalities, exhal- 
 ed from the earth, combine with the air which we breathe; 
 and when thus impregnated, the wind has only to pass 
 over lis, and we are gone. Shall we suppose that these 
 exhalations rise, by chance, and are not included in the 
 divine purpose? Such, no doubt, is the opinion of some. 
 The Spirit of inspiration, hovyever, has taught us other- 
 v;ise, ascribing their rise to the same wisdom, which pre- 
 sides over the rise and fdl of empires. This vapor, 
 eventually the cause of death, does but fulfil his z^:ord. 
 He causeth the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earih,^ 
 If their ascent is rei»;ulated by his will, so are all their 
 subsequent movements and effects. 
 
 Thousands of mankind have been destroyed by fimine; 
 another of those means sometimes used by the most Iligl), 
 in accomplishing his designs. Arise and go, said Elisha, 
 to the woman, ybr the Lord hath called for famine ; which 
 accordingly came. That sore and grievous famine which 
 prevailed in Ezypt ^vas established by the purpo-e of 
 God, and came, because he called for it.^ Famine is also 
 produced by second causes, ali of which are embraced 
 in the divine plan. If it be occasioned by drought, it is 
 He who stayeth the bottles of Heaven, and bindeth up the 
 waters in his th^ck cloud, if it be occasioned by storms, 
 these, while desolating the fields, are only fulfilling his 
 word, who has only to speak, and it is done. If it be 
 the consequence of locusts, or other devouring insects, 
 be need only issue his proclamation, and the locusts come, 
 and caterpillars, zvithout number ; let him but hiss for the 
 fly, and it is ready to perform the work of ravage.- 
 Whenever it pleases God to visit a nation with famine, all 
 the causes, by which it is usually produced, are in obe- 
 dience to his will. The time, the degree, and the result 
 
 * Psal cxxjcv, ?*, f Gen, xli, 32. Psal, cv, 16. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 27 
 
 of their ojjeration, are all detailed in those plans of wis- 
 dom, by which he governs the world. 
 
 War is another engine, often employed to brin:; man. 
 to his end. While we are bound to believe, on the au- 
 thority of scripture, thi<t pes^tilence, dise.ise and famine, 
 perform their work in obedience to the divine command, 
 can we, with equal clearness and satisfirtion, perceive 
 that the rise, the proj^rcss and desohitions of war are 
 subject to the same control? If there wa** to be war zn'ith 
 Amalek^ from generation to generation., it is because the 
 Lord hath, srvorn that e zvill have it. If many of the 
 Hagarites t1ell down slain, it was because the war mas of 
 God.'^ When David was to be chastised, for his crimi- 
 nal imprudence, in numbering the people, war was one 
 of the scourges, offered to his choice. Had war been 
 his preference, we have the same reasons to believe, that 
 this would have been sent, a? that the pestdence actual- 
 ly was sent from the Lord. We have, therefore, the 
 same reasons for belie vin<j; that the r-A^^e of war is, as 
 certainly, directed and limited by an Alini^ihty arm, that 
 U's have for believing that pestilence and famine are thus 
 directed and limited. When his purposes are accom- 
 plished, then, he maketh wars to cease unto the end of the 
 earth. The death of those who fall by the sword, is em- 
 braced in the providence of God, equally with those who 
 die by disease. 
 
 Nor are we destitute of authority for ascribing to the 
 Arbiter of nations, even the cause's of war. He must, of 
 course, exercise his power over these causes, as well as 
 over that war which is their elTect. Blessed be the Lord., 
 ■my strength, saith the Psalmist, who teacheth my hands to 
 s:?ar, aiid my fingers tofight. If it oriijjinates in the wrath 
 of man, surely the Zi'rath of man shall praise thee ; the re- 
 mainder of zvrath, thou shalt restrain. The king''s heart, 
 that is, his passions, dispositions, desiorns, &c. is in the 
 hand of the Lord, as the rivers of zs^oAer : he tvrneth it 
 zvhilhersoever he u?7/.t 
 
 It appears, from this induction of particulars, that we 
 are justified in believing that death, with all the means 
 by which it is produced, are constiinlly untlprthe direc 
 'ion of an overruling providence, which controls, with 
 
 • Exod. xvii, 16.— 1 Chron. v, 22. 
 I Psal. cxliv, 1.— xlvi, 10. Prov. xxi. 1. 
 
2S Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 imerring certainty, all their movements and eftects; not 
 with respect to a few, only, but to every individual of the 
 human family. Any other supposition, as it appears to 
 me, must- and will involve us in absurdities. If one sin- 
 gle circumstance, contributing to the death of any per- 
 son, should not be under the control of heaven, under 
 whose shall we place it? Matter has no intelligence, 
 can exercise no thought, and is, therefore, incapable of 
 forming a design to move, or produce any effect what- 
 ever.' Noxious vapors have no intention of rising from the 
 earth, mingling their unhealthy qualities with the air, and 
 thus producing disease and death. The earth, the sun, 
 and the clouds, hold no consultation, in order to produce 
 a famine, for the destruction of man. To suppose that 
 man, independently of divine aid, has any commanding 
 influence over the causes of his own death, has already 
 appeared in)possible. Shall we, then, ascribe such an. 
 agency to angels? They are expressly said to be minis- 
 tering spirits, under the government of God; sent forth 
 for the execution of his plans. i'hey possess no inde- 
 pendent agency. They, with all the powers they pos- 
 sess, are as completely dependent on God, as the worm 
 that crawls on the earth. Why then should they be 
 supposed capable of dividing the government of the world 
 with their creator? For if men or angels, by an inde- 
 pendent power of their own, determine one single event, 
 over that event they would govern; of course, it could 
 not be under, nor even belong to the government of 
 God. Then his kingdom would not rule over all: here 
 would be one event, together with its governor, com- 
 pletely independent, of his power. There is no being in 
 existence capable of exercising an independent power 
 but one, that is God. 
 
 The death of all other animals is included in the wise 
 and comprehensive designs of the Almighty. They are 
 all his creatures, and share in his fatherly regard. Man, 
 for his own amusement, niay destroy the life of a spar- 
 row; the hawk may seize and devour it; the serpent 
 may crush it in his coil; but each of these are but instru- 
 ments, in the hand of God, employed in accomplishing 
 his purposes; for one sparrow shall not fall on the ground^ 
 Ihatis, die, without your Father. If this be true, respect- 
 ing the sparrow, by the fairest inference, it is also true 
 
Letters on the Dlmne Purpose. 29 
 
 of all the fowls of the air; and indeed of every living 
 creature: all are equally under the notice of his eye, at>d 
 surrounded by his providence. It" they are troubled; 
 according to the beautiful l<mij;uage of the Psalmist, it is 
 ])ecause thou hidest thy face; if they die, and return to 
 their dust, it is because thou takest away their breath. 
 
 I hope, before this time, you have seen that, in scrip- 
 lure, a wider range is given to the providence of God, 
 than would readily be admitted by a person, not accus- 
 tomed to reflect on the meaning of those passages, which 
 relate to the subject. The whole world, with all its in- 
 habitants, and all its events, is embraced in that range. 
 An all- wise, and Almighty being created, sustains and 
 governs the whole for bis own glory. Those who deny, 
 :is some do, that God has any thing to do with some 
 events, which take place among men. ratist, of course, 
 deny that the providence of God extends to thesp events; 
 for his providence necessarily implies the exercise of 
 his power, in some way or other, in bringing these 
 events to pass. Providence is not an attribute of Deity, 
 but the manner in which his attributes, especially his 
 wisdom, power and goodness, are employed in governing 
 the world. 
 
 Although the above remarks relate chiefly to this 
 world, yet there can be no doubt, but the great Sovereign 
 exercises the same paternal care over every other part 
 of the universe. If those planets, which make a part of 
 that system, lo which our earth belongs, be inhabited, as 
 modern philosophy supposes, over all their inhabitants, 
 over all their actions, and over all the changes, which, 
 in any manner, affect their existence, the eternal Jeho- 
 vah watches with a sleepless eye, and guides them with 
 an unwearied and* invincible hand. To each individual, 
 and to each event, his guardian providence extends, with 
 as much accuracy and ease, as if that individual, and that 
 event were the only objects which engaged his attention. 
 Modern Astronomers consider it probable that all those 
 lucid points, called fixed stars, are, in reality, so many 
 suns, like the one vfhich enlightens our globe, and makes 
 our day; that these suns are centres, around which sys- 
 tems of worlds revolve; and that these worlds are all in- 
 habited, by creatures of various orders. If this be ad- 
 TTiitted as probable, the Bible teaches us to view the Al- 
 
30 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 inighty Parent as watching over, sustaining and goverc- 
 ing all these worlds, and all their inhabitants, and all their 
 actions, and all the circumstances which diversify their 
 existence. Not only these worlds and their inhabitants^, 
 but a detail of events, from the greatest to the least, is 
 embraced by his plan, in the execution of which his hand 
 is continually employed. Great and marvellous are thy 
 works^ Lord God Almighty ; just and tr^ie are thy Tsoays^ 
 thou King of Saint s> 
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 The divine purpose neither suspends^ nor violates the free 
 
 agency <f man. 
 
 It has not escaped my recollection that there are many 
 objections advanced against the sentiments, contained in 
 the preceding remarks; some of which are founded on 
 misapprehension; others relate to what is really incom- 
 prehensible to our limited capacities. There are many 
 who believe, without hesitation, that the world was cre- 
 ated by the power of God. Here they understand the 
 general term, worlds in its proper sense, as including 
 each and every particular, belonging to the world. In 
 the meaning of this complex term, they include each man, 
 animal or living creature, each tree and plant, and each 
 atom of matter. As it regards creation, they do not ob 
 ject to the minutest detail of particulars. Probably they 
 will not object to the statement that God is the governor 
 of the world; b»it they will not understand the term, 
 ■worlds in the same sense as in the former case; but in a 
 vague, indefinite sense, of which the mind can form no 
 distinct idea. If you mention particulars; for instance, 
 certain events brought to pass by the agency of men^ 
 objections will soon be made. Now, what we ask, and 
 have a right to claim, is, that they will understand the 
 term, world, in the same sense in this case, as in the for- 
 mer; as including all the particulars belonging to this 
 complex term, when used in relation to the divine gov- 
 ernment. If we admit that the world is governed by the 
 Almighty, if we understand the word correctly, we ad- 
 mit that all the particulars; that is, that each individual, 
 and each event belonging to the world, is governed by 
 hira; for the world is made up of these particulars 
 
Letters on the Divine Fiirpose, Si 
 
 For the sake of illustration, let us take another term, 
 also complex; that is, including a number of particulars, 
 in its meaning; but of less extent than the term world. 
 Art thou not God in heaven^ and rulest not thou over all the 
 kingdoms of the heathen; and in thine hand is there not 
 power and might so that none is able to withstand thee ?^ 
 In the meaning of the term, kingdom, is necessarily in- 
 cluded a number of men, divided into rulers and sub- 
 jects, living under a system of laws. Abstract men from 
 the idea of a kingdom, and what will remain? nothing- 
 for without men there can be no kingdom. When there- 
 fore it is stated, that God rules over a kingdom, the 
 meaning is, that he rules over the men w ho compose that 
 kingdom. Again; what idea does the term, man, convey? 
 Does it not include his thoughts, his passions and his ac- 
 tions? If these be sepnrated from man, what will be left 
 as the subject of government? A soul, indeed, but with- 
 out thoughts or pa*sions; a body, indeed, but without 
 actions. If these are not included in the idea of man^, 
 there is nothing left which can be governed. Therefore 
 vfhen we say that the government of God is exercised 
 over man, we mean, or at least, we ought to mean, that 
 it is exercised over his thoughts, his pas«sions and his ac- 
 tions. If it be not exercised over his thoughts, &c. it 
 cannot be exercised over man; and if not over each in- 
 dividual man, it cannot be over a kingdom; for without 
 men, there can be no kingdom. To govern in any sense, 
 is to secure a conformity, in the subject of government, 
 to some law, or rule. The government of a father, over 
 his family, means his inducing them to conform them- 
 selves to his will, which is the rule. If they disobey 
 this law, they are no longer governed by him; for they 
 cannot be governed by a law which they transgress.* 
 He, of course, can be said to govern them no farther 
 than he can secure, in their conduct, a conformity to I is 
 will. So the divine government means the exercise of 
 power sufficient to secure, in the subjects of his govern- 
 ment, a conformity to his will. But the government of 
 God is exercised over the thoughts, passions and actions 
 •f men. The result is, that the thoughts, &c. of mcDo 
 are subject to the influence of such decisive control, as 
 to secure a conformity to his providential purposes. Nor 
 * 2 Chron. xi, «. 
 
.3£ Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 is it possible for any creature to disobey this government; 
 which, to distinguish it from that which is moral, I will 
 call the Government of his Providence. Part of the 
 passage of scripture, last quoted will abundantly support 
 this declaration. Such also^^ if I mistake not, is the mean- 
 ing of Isaiah; JlHy coumel shall stand, and I will do all my 
 pleasme : yea, I have spoken it, I m-ill also brin^ it to pass; 
 I have purposed it, 1 "will also do it."^ The meaning of 
 these, and many similar passages, is. 1 confess to my mind, 
 not very obvious, when understood as relating to the 
 moral p-overnment, the laws of which are shamefully, and 
 repeatedly transgressed; but clear, forcible, and undenia- 
 ble, when undet stood as relating to those wise and eter- 
 nal purposes, accordmg to which, the providence of God, 
 is uniformly conducted. 
 
 Other objections against the doctrine arise from the 
 difficulty of reconciling it with the free agency of man; 
 and you have more than intimated, that this was your own 
 case. Many others have felt the same difiiculty, who 
 have acted very, differently from what you have, or, i 
 trust ever will dor for this reason, they have rejected 
 the doctrine altogether. They are capable, at least in a 
 certain degree, of commanding their own thoughts; which 
 command, they find, may be considerably increased by 
 practice: or if their thoughts are not always the result of 
 such command, they are naturally produced by the im- 
 pression of external objects. Perhaps, "to make assur- 
 ance doubly sure," they have purposely turned their 
 thoughts from object to object, to prove that they were 
 free. They can reason on any subject, form their de- 
 signs, and put these designs in execution; they can rsse, 
 or sit still; can move either the right, or the left hand, at 
 their own pleasure. How then, they ask, can they be- 
 lieve, that there is a divine power, reigning over these 
 thoughts, designs and actions, directing the whole, in such 
 a manner as to secure a complete conformity to the pur- 
 pose of God? They are sure of their own free agency; 
 and because they cannot reconcile this doctrine with it, 
 they reject the doctrine. 
 
 I believe in the free agency of man as firmly as they 
 can do; but 1 do not believe this more firmly than I do, 
 that the eternal purpose of Jehovah, embracing the 
 * Isa. xlri, 10, 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 63 
 
 thoughts, designs and actions of men, will take eS^ec.t, at 
 the precise moment to which it relates, with absolute 
 certa'inty. Yet I neither comprehend, nor will I attempt 
 to explain to you, the connexion between these tvvo doc- 
 trines. Each of t'lem is supported by its own appropriate 
 evidence; evidence fully sufticient to produce the most 
 genuine conviction of its truth, in every candid mind. 
 And surely we ought to believe every doctrine which is 
 supported by sufficient evidence; for this is according to 
 reason and scripture; but to comprehend that doctrine is 
 a very different thing. We bjE'lieve that the soul and body 
 are united, but we do not comprehend ttiis union; shall 
 we, on this account, rejert this belief? We believe that 
 most of our bodily actions are the result of our own vo- 
 lition, but cannot explain the infitinnce of the mind over 
 the body; shall we, therefore, renounce our belief of the 
 fact! in short, there is nothing which our limited minds 
 can fully comprehend. We do not understand even that 
 free agency, of which we are conscious, still less can we 
 comprehend the counsels of mfinile wif^dom. If then we 
 can comprehend neither of these subjects, we cannot af- 
 firm that they are irrecou'^ iable. or inconsistent witheach 
 other. In that part of th. ir nature which i«^ beyond tae 
 reach of our minds, and of which we can form no clear 
 and de6nite conceptions, they may reign together, and 
 harmonize in perfect consistency. To affirm, as many 
 do, that they cannot agree, presupposes, what no maa 
 ever possessed, a perfect comprehension of their nature. 
 No man, I venture to say, vvould expose his own igno- 
 rance so far as to deny the prescience of God. This 
 knowledge extends to all thing-*; to every thought, word, 
 and action of all mankind; to evi'ry event in the ivhole 
 world; for knozvn unto God are all his works from the be- 
 ginning; and all things are naked and opened unto the eyes 
 of him, with whom we have to do. If one smgle thought 
 were supposed to be unknown to him, from eternity, then 
 his knowledge might be increased; but •this it cannot be; 
 for He is perfect m knozvledge. Here then <s a case pre- 
 senting the same (hffiiuliy, which the other does; for it is 
 just as impossible for us to comprehend the connexion be- 
 tween the foreknowledge of God, and the free agency of 
 man, as between his decrees and this free agency: and 
 yet no person denies the prescience of God, on this ac* 
 
34 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 count. The foreknowledge of God implies the absolute 
 certainty of all events; jet no person ever supposed that 
 it imposes any physical restraint, or necessity on the 
 thoughts or actions of men; every one pursues that course, 
 to which his own inclination lends him. as freely as if there 
 was no prescience in the Deity. We tjnd no difficulty 
 in believing that divine justice and mercy are united, with 
 perfect harmony, in the salvation ofsmners, through Je- 
 sus Christ; yet in all probahihty, before the sublime and 
 wonderful scheme was made known, angels considered 
 this union imposj^iblc; because they rould not compre- 
 hend it. The condemnation of a sinner would entirely 
 exclude the exercise of mercy; his pardon would, as ef- 
 fectually, deny the claims of justice. How groundless, 
 and how presumptuous would have been the conclusion, 
 that they could not be reconciled; and that, therefore. 
 there was no suf-h attribute as mercy belonging to Deity. 
 Thanks be to God, wp are taught and so are the angels, 
 to believe in this union; because it is demonstrat' d in the 
 redemption of fallen man. So we now believe, that from 
 all eternity, they were united; though the precious fact 
 is only known through the cross of a divine Saviour. 
 In a state of clearer vision, at some period of their end- 
 less progress in knowledge, the saints may yet compre- 
 hend between the high and holy purposes of God, and the 
 free agency of intelligent creatures. This may b • one 
 grade of their boundless elevation; this may be part of 
 the happiness, reserved for them in heaven. VVith a de- 
 vout expansion of thought, inconceivable to them at pre- 
 sent, from some future exaltation, they may look back 
 on the difficulties which now attend this subject, with the 
 same feeling vvith which the man of science looks back 
 on the fiinl, the dark and imperfect conceptions of infan- 
 cy and cliildhood. 
 
 It does not appear to me, that those act consistently who 
 deny the doctrine respecting the divine decrees, because 
 they cannot reconcile- thnt doctrine with the free agency 
 of man, when similar difficulties, in other cases, do not 
 prevent their belief. If they believe in the union of soul 
 and body, and in the influence of the mind over the body; 
 if they believe in the prescience of God, and yet acknowl- 
 edge that in each of these cases, there are difficulties 
 which they cannot comprehend, why should they notals© 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 35 
 
 believe in the fore-ordination of God, though they cannot 
 reconcile it, or rather cannot comprehend its reconcilia- 
 tion vvith the free agency t)f men? Especially when the 
 truth of this doctrine is supported by authority as abun- 
 dant, and as amply sufficient to produce conviction, as in 
 either of the other cases. They, no doubt, and perhaps 
 yourself also, will reply, let us have this authority. You 
 shall have vvhat, I conceive, amounts to such authority. 
 
 In the Bible, many occuiiences were foretold by the 
 prophets, lon«; before they happened. These prophe- 
 cies rendered the events, to which they related, undeni- 
 ably certain; so much so, that they are often spoken of 
 in the present tense, or as having already taken place; 
 vphen, in reality, several hundred years were to inter- 
 vene. In many instances, where the prophecy was de- 
 livered, there appeared, to human view, little or no pro- 
 bability that it would ever be vefified: still it was not the 
 less certain; for it was the language of eternal and immu- 
 table truth. Its accomplishment often required the in- 
 strumentality of man, whose free agency is not to be sus- 
 pended; still it is certain; for the mouth of the Lord hath 
 spoken it. 
 
 By the voice of prophecy God was pleased to make, 
 known to man, various events, which he intended to ac- 
 complish; one of which was the destruction of Babylon, 
 and the subversion of the Ciialdean empire. I^airih ap- 
 pears to have been the first prophet by whom the divine 
 purpose respecting this city was declared. It is tound ia 
 the xiii chapter of his prophecies, and is entitled, The 
 burden of Babylon. This prediction is, by chronologers, 
 supposed to have been delivered about two hundred years 
 before the event took pl.«ce. In the judgment of human 
 wisdom, many circumstances appeared to render this oc- 
 currence very improbable. The Jews were residing, in 
 quietness, in their own land; and yet one design of this 
 calamity was, to release them from captivit)'; of which 
 they had not, at this time, the least expectation. Indeed 
 it is supposed, that the Jews had, as yet, but little ac- 
 quaintance with the Chaldeans. The Medes, who are 
 particularly mentioned as the executors of the divine de- 
 crees, were, at this time, but an inconsiderable people. 
 Babylon, for many years subsequent to this prophecy, 
 <;:ontinued to increase in population, in opulence and 
 
36 Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 power, until it reached itfs zenith, during the reign of Ne- 
 buchadnezzar, when it full)' an«uered the d scription of 
 the prophets, who called it, great Babylon; the beauty of 
 the Chaldee''s excellency; the golden city, <^c. Yet power- 
 ful and splendid as it was, the prophet saw it, in the vo- 
 lume of the divine counsels, prostrate in ruin, swept with 
 the besom of destruction. 
 
 Thedownfal of this proud metropolis of the east, was 
 predicted, not merely in general terms, but with consid- 
 erable minuteness. The city was to be invaded; her 
 monarch, and her nobles slain; her treasures carried off; 
 her once crowded population to be dispersed; wild beasts 
 were to become her inhabitant:*; her walls, her palaces 
 and temples, either demolished, by the hand of man, or 
 ♦raduall}' consumed by the ravages of time; her very 
 surface was destmed to become a desert, no longer afford- 
 ing sustenance, even to the wild beasts, which were then 
 to be succeeded by serpents and scorpions, lurking. be- 
 neath the fragments of her ruins, and threatening death 
 toman; s'o that, even the rovinaand adventurous Arab 
 will be .deterred from pitchjng his tent there. 
 
 The agents to be employed in fultiiling these prophe- 
 cies v;ere particularly mentioned. The Medes were 
 named for this purpose; and tor this reason the Lord calls 
 them his sanctified ones; whpm he had appointed, and set 
 apart for this service. About tiiirty years after, the com- 
 mander in-chief of these victorious armies, is called b}*^ 
 name, upwards of one hundred years before he was born. 
 Cyrus is the man, chosen to triumph over Babylon; and 
 thus to commence the fulfilaient of those prophecies, re- 
 lating to that devoted city. For this reason the Lord calls 
 him his anointed; as one set apart and qualified for this 
 vrork. His success was certain; for the Kmg of Kings 
 promised to go before him, and hold his right hand. 
 
 Many circumstances respecting the manner in which 
 Cyrus would enter the rjty, are particularly mentioned, 
 Babylon, when subjugated by the Medes, was surround- 
 ed by a wall, as historians inform us, sixty miles in com- 
 pass, eighty feet thick, and three hundred and ffty feet high; 
 forming an exact square, each side of which wasjifteeit 
 miles long, built of brick, cemented with bitumen, which 
 in a short time becomes harder than the brick. In each 
 ef the four sides were txventy-jivc gates? formed of solj^ 
 
Letters on the Divine Pui'pose. -ST 
 
 "brass, opening into the same number of streets, which 
 crossed each other at right angles. A branch of the 
 river, Euphrates, passed through the city, dividing it i» 
 two equal parts. The banks of the river were faced with 
 strong brick walls, to keep it within its channel, and were 
 extended several miles beyond the city. Opposite to 
 each street, on either side of the river, was a brazen 
 jate in the wall, with stairs leading down from it to the 
 river; which gates were open in the day, and shut in the 
 night. The river passing through the city was more thaa 
 a quarter of a mile broad, and ten or twelve feet deep. 
 It was explicitly foretold that this river sh'»uld be dried 
 up; also that the«e two-leaved brazen gates should be 
 opened before Cyrus, and not be shut. It was predicted 
 that the city should be taken by surprise, and du- 
 ring a drunken feast; and that the king should be instan- 
 taneously seized vvith the greatest horror and dismay. — 
 No time was yet specified for the accomplishment of 
 these purposes. At length this also is given. Seventy 
 years before those events actually commenced, the pro- 
 phet was inspired to declare ^that at the end of that pe» 
 riod, the king of Babylon should be punished with these 
 calamities.* 
 
 * Jer. XXV, 13. 
 
 LETTER VII. 
 
 The divine purpose perfectly consistent with the free 
 agency of man. 
 
 The page of prophecy has informed us what God iu- 
 tended to do respecting Babylon; the same page, in part, 
 but chiefly the page of profane history will inform us of^ 
 the exact accomplishment of all these pre-ordinations. 
 As the time approaches for the divine purpose to take ef- 
 fect, we see every agent, and every circumstance, men- 
 tioned in the prediction, appearing, and assuming a state 
 of preparation for the grand catastrophe. Evil-mero- 
 dach, son and successor of Nebuchadnezzar, took one 
 important step in that preparation, by making an unpro- 
 voked attack on the Medes. Neriglisser, his successor, 
 hastens this preparation. Jealous of the growing power 
 of the Medes, he excites against them a general confed 
 eracy of the neighboring nations. Thus the Medes wer^ 
 iired with a spirit of irreconcilable enmity and rcvcngfi 
 4 
 
38 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 against Babylon. At the proper moment, the command- 
 er-in-chief of the invading army, is born, and is called 
 Cyrus; a name given him by the prophet, an hundred 
 years before his birth. The first twelve years of his 
 life were spent with his father; and he was educated 
 after the Persian manner, in hardship and toil, and all 
 such laborious exercises as would tend to fit him for the 
 fatigues of war. At this early period, he surpassed all 
 of his age, not only in aptness to learn, hut in the cour- 
 age and address with which he executed whatever he un- 
 dertook. The next five years were spent at the court 
 of Media, with his grandfather. Here he was generally 
 beloved on account of his generous and amiable disposi- 
 tion, and especially for the military prowess which he 
 displayed. He engaged particularly the affections of the 
 king and the nobility, and thus laid the foundation for that 
 attachment to his person which enabled him to act an 
 important part in that great drama, just opening on the 
 world. He then returned to the Persian court, and re- 
 sided with his father, till he attained the age of forty. 
 By this time, so many preparatory events had taken 
 place, as pointed out the period for some decisive move- 
 ment. The last sand, measuring the glory of Babylon, 
 is now ready to fall. Accordingly Cyrus is appointed ge- 
 nerallissiraoofan army composed of Medes and Persians. 
 This army approaches the devoted city; /or where the 
 carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together. Bel- 
 shazzar who then reigned at Babylon, hearing that Cyrus 
 was approaching his metropolis, marched out to give him 
 battle: but being easily routed, he retreated into the city 
 where he was closely besieged. But the great height 
 and strength of the walls, environed with ditches, and 
 impregnable to every mode of attack then known; the 
 numerous troops employed in their defence; immense 
 magazines of provisions, sufficient for the consumption of 
 many years, /ilh the great extent of fertile land within 
 the city, capable of furnishing continual supplies; all 
 concurred in rendering the siege of Babylon an arduous, 
 and almost hopeless enterprise. This extraordinary 
 combination of difficulties did not discourage Cyrus, nor 
 did length of time overcome his perseverance. Des- 
 pairing of taking the city by storm, he drew round its 
 immense circuit a line of circumvallation, with a large 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 39 
 
 di\(\ deep ditch, to cut off its communication with the 
 CQunlry. But the Babylonians, trusting in the strength 
 of their walls, their vast nia<i;azines and fruilt'ul gardens, 
 insulted Cyrus from the ramparts, and SRemed to defy all 
 his eiforts, and thus resigned themselves to a fatal secu- 
 rity. Cyrus, having spent t^vo whole years before Bab- 
 ylon without making any impression, adopted the follow- 
 ing stratagem, wh'ch proved successful. There was, 
 on the west side of the city, a vast lake, dug to receive 
 the waters of the river, while the brick walls which 
 faced its banks were building, and also to receive the re- 
 dundant waters in time of great floods, and thus to pre- 
 serve the plain country from intindation. Informed that 
 a great annual festival was about to be kept in the city, 
 and that it was customary to spend the whole night, oa 
 these occasions, in drunkenness and debauchery, he de- 
 termined to embrace this opportunity forsurprisingthem. 
 Accordingly he sent a strong detachment to the head ot" 
 the great canal, leading from the river to the lake, with 
 orders, at a particular hour, to break down the bank 
 which separated between the lake and the canal, and 
 thus to turn the whole current of the river into the lake. 
 At the same time he stationed one body of troops where 
 the river entered the city, and another below where it 
 came out, with orders to march in by the bed of the 
 river, as soon as they should lind it fordable. The same 
 evening he caused the head of his trenches, on both sides 
 of the river above the city, to be cut, that the water 
 might discharge itself into them; so that by means of 
 these different outlets, the channel was soon low enough 
 lo admit the entr.mce of the troops. The two bodies of 
 troops above-mentioned, conducted by Babylonian deser- 
 ters, entered by the bed of the river, and finding the bra- 
 zen gates at the end of the. streets, left open, in conse- 
 quence of the riot and disorder of the night, they pene- 
 trated into the heart of the city without opposition. Ac- 
 cording to the concerted plan of operation, they met at 
 the royal palace, where the king was giving a grand li- 
 centious cntertainm»^nt to a f/io7^savi(i of his nobles.'^ The 
 supposiiion of some writers that these troops had already 
 entered the city, when the hand-writing appeared on the 
 -ooall^ is extremely probable. Having surprised and cut 
 ^^ffthe guards, they rushed into the palace, and slew the 
 
 *Dan. V, 1. 
 
40' Letters ou the Divine Puiyose, 
 
 king and his dissolute courtiers. The people being ap 
 prised of this event, submitted, and the victory was com 
 plete without further opposition. The reduction of Ba- 
 bylon put an end to the Babylonian empire, and finally 
 fulfilled, in the name nnd character of the conqueror, and 
 in the various circumstances which attended this event, 
 the prophecies which Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel had 
 'Ottered against this proud metropolis. 
 
 Here we may remark with what accuracy the predic- 
 tions of the prophets were verified m this victory, and in 
 the consequences which flowed from it. While the pro- 
 phecies are receiving their accomplishment, there is no 
 violence done to the free agency of man; and yet men 
 are the principal agents in producing these effects. 
 Every person concerned, is influenced in the ordinary 
 way, by the circumstances with which they were sur- 
 rounded. It is highly probable if not certain, that Cy- 
 rus knew nothing of these prophecies, and of course 
 could not act with a design to fulfil them; and yet had 
 this been the fact; had he been acquainted with them 
 from his youth; and had he intended their accomplish- 
 ment; he could not possibly have done it more accurate- 
 ly than he did. His parents gave him the very name, 
 mentioned by the prophet Isaiah, an hundred years be- 
 fore he was born. He received precisely that educa- 
 tion; possessed that temper of mind, and that constitution 
 of body, which qualified him to act the part assigned 
 him. He grevv up with an increasing thirst for muitary 
 fame, without which he would not have undertaken, or 
 been fitted for the enterprise. Every circumstance at- 
 tended, every event occurred, at the proper momentj 
 necessary to verify the emphatical language of the pro- 
 phet; I girded thee. This girding implies all that was 
 requisite to fit him for this memorable campaign. The 
 martial spirit which he, by nature possessed; the active 
 employments, the toils and fatigues in which he was, 
 from his infancy trained; that noble disposition, and those 
 pleasing manners, by which he gained the favor and 
 confidence of the kings and nobles, both of Persia and 
 Media, were all essential parts of this preparation. Had 
 he possessed a timid spirit; had his disposition beea 
 grovelling and mean, his manners uncouth and forbidding, 
 he would not have been girded for this purpose. With- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 41 
 
 jul the lake, into which Cyrus turaed the waters of the 
 Euphrates, he could not have gained the victory; be- 
 cause there was no other way in which he could enter 
 the city. This lake, intended by those who dug it, for 
 a very different purpose, was designed by providence to 
 enable Cyrus to dry up the river, and thus to enter. 
 Had the brazen gates, placed at the end of the streets 
 leading to the river, been securely shut, he could not 
 even from the river, have entered the city or reached 
 the palace. But this was one circumstance, particularly 
 mentioned by the prophet; I will loose the loins of kings, 
 to open before him the two-leaved gates^and the gates shall 
 ?iot be shut."^ We are informed that it vvas the constant 
 practice to close these gates every night; yet on this 
 night, they were not shut. 
 
 Other kings, and other causes, through successive 
 ages, have contributed to the complete accomplishment 
 ©fall the particulars, predicted by the prophets, respect- 
 ing the ruin of the splendid city. At this day, the place 
 where it stood, cannot, with certainty be ascertained. 
 
 Nothing can be more undeniably certain than that God 
 had determined the capture and desolation of Babylon 
 long before the event took place; for the prophets were 
 inspired to announce this determination to the world. — 
 This determination must necessarily include and secure 
 the existence and co-operation of all the agents, means, 
 and circumstances on which the event depended. Had 
 one of these agents been wanting, one of these causes 
 failed to operate, one of these circumstances been differ- 
 ent, the event, without a miracle, would not have taken 
 place. God, however, who decreed the event, decreed 
 also the means necessary for the accomplishment of his 
 purpose. 
 
 Men were the principal agents in executing the divine 
 plan. Cyrus was his anointed; the Medes were his sanc- 
 tified ones; the loins of the kings of Babylon were loosed. 
 These men were all free agents, who willingly perform 
 their respective parts, without being conscious of the 
 -^lightest compulsion. They knew not the Lord, nor his 
 designs. Of Cyrus particularly, one of the principal 
 agents, it is affirmed, that he knew him not. Theic 
 * Isaiah zlv, 1. 
 4# 
 
42 Letters on the Bicme Purp&s€, 
 
 thoughts were employed as freely about the objects whick 
 engaged their attention as ours are. They deliberated, 
 formed their own plans, provided their means, selected 
 their own time, and proceeded to bring these means into 
 operation, for the execution of these plans according to 
 their own intentions and views of propriety. And yet 
 all this was perfectly according to the foreordination ot 
 Ood respecting Babylon. Every object which interested 
 their attention, the dispositions and passions by which 
 they were impelled, the means they provided, the time 
 they selected, the plans they formed, the end they pro- 
 '^osed, were all subservient to the designs of Jehovah, and 
 contributed with perfect accuracy to the execution of his 
 ^lans. Had no such purpose existed in the divine mind, 
 they could not have deliberated and acted with greater 
 freedom than they did; and yet had they been as destitute 
 of reason and free agency as the hail, snow or stormy 
 tvind, they could not better have fultilled the word of 
 God, or better answered his purpose. 
 
 We have, then, as it appears to me, the very best au- 
 thority for believing that the divine purposes are accom- 
 plished with absolute certainty, through the agency of 
 men, while these men think, deliberate, and act with the 
 greatest freedom. Their free agency is not suspended; 
 aor does it for a moment suffer the least violence. No 
 man can deny either of these propositions without involv- 
 ing himself in contradiction and absurdity. Both are un- 
 deniably true; and therefore do not imply the least incon- 
 sistency; for truth is always consistent. But while this 
 is my hrm belief, I repeat it again, that I cannot cotnpre 
 liend this consistency. Neither can I comprehend the 
 manner of the divine operations in any case, or on any 
 subject. How the universe was created, how it is sus- 
 tained and governed, 1 cannot comprehend; and yet, if I 
 believe^any thing, I believe that it was created, that it is 
 sustained and governed by the wisdom and power of God. 
 I cannot comprehend the influence of my own mind on 
 tny body; and yet the pen, which writes these words, is 
 ©ioving in con3er][aence of that influence. 
 
letters on the Divine Purpose, 43 
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 A mtlliod of ascertaining the extent of Divine Providence — 
 Great events necessarily include all the lesser ones, of 
 which they are made up. 
 
 You will admit, no doubt, that the subjugation of Ba- 
 bylon was decreed by the Ruler of the universe, long be- 
 ibre the event took place; for so it was predicted by the 
 prophets. Now, this is the nature of all prophecy: cer- 
 tain parts of the divine plan, according to the counsels of 
 his own wisdom, respecting nations, cities or individuals 
 are made knovvn to man. As soon as the prophecy is de- 
 livered, the decree of God is thus known. Many of these 
 prophecies have been, others still remain to be fulfilled. 
 Of those which have been accomplished, relating to 
 cities, none are more remarkable than those respecting 
 Jerusalem, delivered by our Sriviour. Josephus records 
 the exact and dreadful accomplishment of these predic- 
 tions. Of those relating to individuals none are more re- 
 markable than those which foretold the birth, the life, 
 the character, the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ; 
 the accomplishment of all which, even to the minutest 
 circumstance, is contained in the New Testament. J 
 need not tell you that the Bible, from the beginning to the 
 end, is tilled with prophecies; all of which are declara- 
 tions from God, making known to man, his intentions and 
 purpose*. 
 
 That these purposes existed in the divine mind, before 
 they were communicated to the prophet, is undeniable. 
 It is equally undeniable, in my view, that they existed 
 from all eternity. To suppose any thing else, is to make 
 God imperfect and mutable like ourselves. As our 
 knowledge increases, and our views enlarge; we form 
 ]iew plans, propose new ends. Not so however with 
 God. His knowledge and wisdom are infinite, and can 
 receive no addition; and his purposes are eternal as his 
 wisdom; the reasons on which they are founded, always 
 existed. There never was a period, in time or eternity, 
 if the expression be allowed, when the purposes relating 
 to Babylon and Jerusalem did not exist in the divine mind; 
 and exist too, in all that detail, in which they were made 
 known through the prophets, and have long since been 
 Terified in the history of those cities. This may be af- 
 
44 Letters on the Divine Furpose, 
 
 iirmed of all the prophecies contained in the Bible; frooi 
 all eternity, it was the unalterable purpose of God, that 
 all those events should take place which the prophets 
 predicted. 
 
 Although, I doubt not, but you read the Bible with 
 care and with profit, yet let me request you to read it 
 for the special purpose of ascertaining all the prophecies 
 which it contains, from the first to the last. Note down, 
 in one column, those which relate to nations, including all 
 their population; in another, those relating to cities, with 
 their inhabitants; in another, those respecting individuals, 
 &c. In connexion with each of these as far as practica- 
 ble, note the events predicted. Then go somewhat more 
 into detail; consider all the agents \vith their qualitica- 
 tions; all the means, with their operation; the existence 
 ©fall the circumstances, indispensably necessary to the 
 occurrence of these events. From a review of the 
 whole, although you may not be convinced that *'aU 
 things, whatsoever come to pass," are embraced, yet, I 
 rather think, you will be surprised, to tind what a great 
 number, anrl vast variety of events will be included in 
 this plan; all of which were, of course, embraced in the 
 purpose of God, ; nd thus rendered certain. 
 
 The promises of God, especially those called uncondi- 
 tional promises are of the same nature; the fulfilment of 
 them is undeniably certain. All the agents, means and 
 circumstances, necessary for their fulfilment, are equally 
 certain. Such was the promise of God, to Abraham, res- 
 pecting Ishraael: Of the son of ike bond-woman will Intake 
 « nation^ because he is thy seed.*' Go through your Bible 
 a second time, and note all such promises; consider all 
 the agents, means and circumstances implied in verifying 
 these words of the Lord, and you will find it will very 
 much increase the number and variety of those events, 
 thus rendered certain, long before they take place. — 
 These promises, like the prophecies, rest on the faith- 
 fulness of God, which cannot fail; his character is pledg- 
 ed for the accomplishment of both. 
 
 Note also, all those events, which although neither 
 
 predicted nor promised, are yet explicitly ascribed to 
 
 God; such as the preservation of human life, feeding the 
 
 ravens, clothing the grass, &-c. consider all the means and 
 
 ■■■' Genesis xxi, 13. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 43 
 
 second causes on which these events depend. All these 
 works of the Lord are performed according to an intention 
 previously existing in the divine aiind; which intention se- 
 cures the occurrence of the events, with all the second 
 causes on which they depend. After casting your eye over 
 the whole scheme, thus arranged, permit me to ask you, 
 what event is there, belonging to this world, wiiich is not 
 included, either in the prophecies, the promises, or the 
 works plainly ascribed to God? Ner can I perceive the 
 least exaggeration, or unfairness in this process, which 
 you may pursue with both pleasure and profit; the whole 
 of it rests on the firm basis of Scripture, which cannot 
 be shaken. 
 
 Some, I am aware will readily admit that certain great 
 events, such as the capture of Babylon, and the destruc- 
 tion of Jerusalem, were foreordained, in the counsels of 
 eternal wisdom; but they hesitate in admitting all the de- 
 tails, without whicli these events could not take place. — 
 In my view, however, the latter are necessarily implied 
 and embraced in the former. Bnbylon is to fall; not by 
 an earthquake, nor by the lightning of heaven; but by an 
 army of men. This army must have a commandei*; the 
 existence, therefore, of this commander is certain; equal- 
 ly certain is the existence of his parents before him; 
 these also were born of parents, who preceded them; and 
 so on, through all the line of their ancestors up to Noah, 
 and from Noah to Adam, who came immediately from the 
 band of God. But this commander, distinguished as he 
 was for military prowess, could not have achieved the 
 victory alone: an army was necessary. Thi*< army was 
 composed of individuals; of course, the existence of these 
 individuals was certain; for without them there could be 
 no army; and without an array, Biibylon could not be 
 taken; and thus the prophecy could not have been ful- 
 tilled. ruo-leaved gates were to be opened before 
 Cyrus. Will any person venture to say that this does 
 not render certain the existence of such gates? Yet 
 these gates were formed by men who were influenced by 
 their own motives, and without the least knowledge of 
 the purpose of God. in the same manner they were left 
 open. Similar remarks may be made respecting the des- 
 truction of Jerusalem. This devoted city was to be sur- 
 rounded and destroyed by an army; this array raust have 
 
46 Letters on the Bivine Furpose, 
 
 a commander; this rendered certain, therefore, the ex- 
 istence both of the commander, and of the individuals 
 who composed that army. 
 
 Many prophecies in the Old Testament relate exclu- 
 sively to the divine Saviour. He was to be a descendant 
 of David. Does not this necessarily secure the existence ol 
 some, at least of David's descendants until this wonderful 
 child should be born? The place of his birth is mention- 
 ed. But Bethfehem is not the residence of his parents. 
 Their presence there, however at the appointed tiine, is 
 rendered certain by the prediction. I need not mention 
 to you, the reasons which induced them to visit this vil- 
 lage. In short, how often do the Evangelists, in narrat- 
 ing the events of his life and of his death remark — This 
 was done that it might befulfdled which was spoken by the 
 prophet. 
 
 It has already appeared what an extensive influence, 
 over the world of nature, divine providence must employ 
 in preserving the life of one individual: the promise of 
 God, that he would make of Ishmael a nation, was made 
 with a perfect knowledge of all that was necessary to se- 
 cure its accomplishment, and with a real intention to pro- 
 vide all the means necessary for that purpose. Ishmael 
 of course was preserved, through many dangers, and from 
 him has descended a nation, which exists to this day. 
 This is only one of a great number of promises, involving 
 a divine control over avast variety of events, all of which 
 were necessary to the fulfilment of these promises, and 
 the occurrence of which was unalterably fixed. 
 
 To admit that some great events are decreed, and thus 
 rendered certain, and yet not to admit, in like manner, 
 that all the details, all the particular parts, on which the 
 great event depends, manifests, it appears to me, a want 
 of reflection, an ignorance of the Bible, and of the char- 
 acter and providence of God, with which no consistent 
 and intelligent christian should be chargeable. The 
 truth is, that all great events are made up of smaller ones 
 combined together. That purpose of God which ren- 
 ders certain the occurrence of a great event, renders 
 equally certain, in their own time and order, the occur- 
 rence of ail those smaller events, of which the great one 
 is made up. The ocean is made up of single drops; the 
 earth is composed of small atoms. Without drops, ther?- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 47 
 
 could be no ocean; without atoms, no earth. To 9up» 
 pose that God determined to create the earth, without 
 determining^ to create the atoms of which it is composed, 
 is not more inconsistent with truth, or more unworthy the 
 wisdom and character of God, than to suppose that he de- 
 termined the occurrence of a great event, without in- 
 cluding; in his determination, all the subordinate events 
 even down to the minutest circumstance, on which the 
 great one depends. The conquest of Babylon was a 
 great event. This was gained by an army composed of 
 individuals, whose concurrent and united exertions re- 
 suited in this conquest. Without a certain degree of mus- 
 cular strength and military skill, these exertions could 
 not have been made. Without regular and suitable 
 nourishment, this strength could not be secured; without 
 previous training, this skill could not be acquired. Had 
 this training, and this nourishment not been received, 
 this strength and this skill would not have been possess- 
 ed; of course; these exertions could not have been made; 
 without these, the victory could not have been gained; 
 and thus the divine prediction would have failed; the 
 word of the Lord would have returned to him void. 
 
 The man who makes a promise to his neighbor, with- 
 out having in view the probable means of fulfilling it, is 
 chargeable with imprudence, dishonesty, or wickedness, 
 perhaps altogether. If your neighbor, laboring under 
 pecuniary embarrassments, should apply to you for the 
 loan of a particular sum which would relieve him, and 
 promise to repay it at the end of twelve months, you 
 would no doubt wish to be informed of the means that 
 would secure a Compliance with his promise. If he could 
 satisfy you on this point, you would consider this promise 
 reasonable, and grant him relief. But if he failed in 
 giving this satisfaction; if he possessed no probable means 
 of complying with his promise; you would not only refuse 
 to trust him, but would consider him a dishonest man, 
 who intended to deceive you. Let us beware, then, of 
 ascribing to God our Maker, a procedure vvhich would dis- 
 jrace a human being, even in the view of such sinful 
 creatures as we are. Let God be true, though every 
 man should be a liar. When he promises the occurrence 
 of any event, or state of things, it is with an immutable 
 intention of accomplishing that promise. The means of 
 
48 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 this accomplishment are as distinct!}' in his view, and a-? 
 much the objects of his care, and the subjects of his con- 
 trol, as the event itself Suppose him to leave these out 
 of view, or to possess no power to secure their existence, 
 and you suppose him to resemble a weak and imprudent 
 man. ' ^ 
 
 Long before the event occurred, the prophets declared 
 the intention of God, that Babylon should be taken. This 
 intention, as we hare seen, existed in the divine mind 
 from all eternity. But unless Babylon exists, it cannot 
 be taken. This intention, therefore, rendered unaltera- 
 bly certain, before the foundation of the world, the exist- 
 ence of Babylon. When the earth received its form, the 
 site of this city was marked out on its surface. This 
 spot destined to be the theatre of such memorable events, 
 may, through successive ages, be covered by the trees of 
 the forest, may be the resort of the wild beasts, be un- 
 trodden by the foot of man; but at the appointed hour, 
 the forest shall disappear, the wild beasts shall seek ano- 
 ther resqrt, the architect shall stretch his line, and exe- 
 cute his plans — here the ivalls shall run, here the temple 
 and the palace shall stand, and Babylon shall rear hex- 
 head to the skies. When, or by whom this city was 
 founded, is uncertain. "Some say it was founded by 
 Semiramis, and according to others by Belus, who is 
 thought, by many, to be the same with Nimrod; but who- 
 ever was the founder, it was, in process of time much 
 improved; and Nebuchadnezzar, in particular, repaired, 
 enlarged, and beautified it to such a degree, that he maybe 
 said to have built it according to his own vainglorious boast; 
 Is not this great Babylon, which I have built for the house of 
 Ihekingdom^ by the might of my power, and for the honor of 
 7ny majesty?'""^ Babylon is not only to exist; but to exist 
 in a style of splendor that would verify the descriptive 
 language of scripture respecting it. It is there repre- 
 sented as — great Babylon — the golden city — the lady of 
 kingdoms — abundant in treasures — the praise of the whole 
 earth. Profane historians inform us that such was the 
 extent, the strength, the wealth and splendor of Babylon, 
 as to answer these prophetic descriptions: it was, for ages, 
 considered one of the wonders of the world. Now, un- 
 less Babylon exists, it cannot be taken; unless it is built, 
 
 Baniel iv, 30. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 49 
 
 it cannot exist; it was not built by miracle, but by buman 
 agents, by men; lliese men were rational, were free 
 agents like ourselves. Thoy would not have acted their 
 reijpective parts without motives, leadin;;; them to act; 
 these motives must have been derived frotn their own dis- 
 positions, and the circumstances in which they were plac- 
 ed. Had these dispositions and these circumstances been 
 different, these raotive^ would not have existed; without 
 them, these men would not have acted; without their agen- 
 cy the city could not have been built; of course, could not 
 have been taken; by consequence the prophets, who fore- 
 told this event, would have been found false prophets. But 
 they were not false, but true prophets. The divine pur- 
 pose which they were commissioned to reveal, secured the 
 existence of the city; of course, rendered certain the ex- 
 istence of every agent, circumstance and motive, in their 
 proper time and degree, necessary to complete his de- 
 signs. These men, marked out by divine wisdom, for 
 these purposes, knew not the Lord nor his intentions. 
 Nebuchadnezzar knew not that the Most High ruled ia 
 the kingdom of men. He tells us what was his object, 
 in all that he did: "is not this great Babylon which I have 
 built — for the honor of my majesty?" He laid his own 
 plans, proposed his own ends; yet over these plans, and 
 these ends, the high purposes of Jehovah reigned with 
 perfect ease and certainty, rendering them subservient to 
 the existence and unparalleled magnificence of this re- 
 nowned city, as it was found and conquered by Cyrus- 
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 Events, similar to those contained in the prophecies and 
 promises of God, are all included in his purpose. 
 
 Is your patience so far exhausted, or is your mind ae 
 well satisfied, that you wish for nothmg more on this 
 subject? I wish to offer a few additional remarks; yovL 
 can read or omit them, as you think proper. 
 
 It was the intention of God that Babylon should, exist, 
 and that it should be captured by Cyrus. For purposes 
 ♦f his own glory, he was pleased to make known this in- 
 tention to the world, long before the events occurred. — 
 These events did not occur because this revelation was 
 made, though in perfect accordance with it. The design 
 
50 Letters on the Divive Purpose, » 
 
 existed before the revelation was made. The occurrence 
 of these events wa? not in the lf»ast degree, more cer- 
 tain, after this revelation than they were before. It was 
 the intention of God, and not the communication of that 
 intention to man which rendert^d certain this great series 
 of events. If it had been acrordinn to the counsels of his 
 wisdom, to have withheld from man, all knowledge of this 
 intention, these events would have taken place, precise- 
 ly at the time, and in the same order, in which they did. 
 Our ignorance of the divine purpose can neither alter 
 the nature, nor hasten or retard the accomplishment of 
 that purpose. After the events had taken place, we 
 might then have been as certain that they were embraced 
 in the divine plan, as if they had been predicted by the 
 prophets. Hence, according to my view, we are au- 
 thorized to infer, that all events, similar to those which 
 have been foretold, and similar to those which God has 
 promised to accomplish, are equally embraced in the di- 
 vine purpose, with tho";e vvhich he has revealed to man. 
 We infer this, not from {)rophecies, or promises, but frona 
 the occurrence of the events themselves. Whatever is 
 accomplished by the agen<y of God, is accomplished ac- 
 cording to an intention, previously existing in his mind- 
 our knowledge, or our ignorance of this intention, can 
 liave no influence on its execution. The Jews, at least 
 the prophets, knew thaj Babylon was to be taken ; yet 
 we do not find that they had any agency in bringing the 
 event to pass: Cyrus was ignorant of the divine intention, 
 and yet accomplir^hed the will of God. Suppose there 
 had lived a pious Jew, who had never seen the pre- 
 fllictions respecting the capture of B.ibylon, but who had 
 witnessed the occurrence of the event, might he not, with 
 the greatest certainty, from his knowledge of the divine 
 character and government, have inferred, tlftit such had 
 been the intention of God, from all eternity? If these 
 very prophecies had been afterwards submitted to his in- 
 spection, it could not have increased the certainty of his 
 conclusion. With equal certainty we may infer that all 
 similar events, accomplished in the providence of God, 
 were fixed before the foundation of the world, in his wise 
 and holy purpose. 
 
 The existence, the magnificence and downfal of Baby- 
 lon were predicted; this prediction was the divine inten- 
 tion made known to man. In the book of God, no pre- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 51 
 
 (iiction is found respecting London, Paris, New York, or 
 Philadelphia. We know however that these cities do 
 exist. Their rise, progretss and present state, were all 
 determined in the «hvini' piirpo-;e; lor similir circum- 
 stances were thus determitied re8|)ertn)jj; B.ili^lon. From 
 all eternity, it was as certuo th-il these rnodern cities 
 should exist in their prtsent >tate, as that the farnnd me- 
 tropolis of the e I't should exi-t in the state in which Cy- 
 rus found it. What the future dr'stiny of these rlties is 
 to he, we cannot tell; the purpose of God respecting 
 thetn is not made known lo us. Oui iiinor;(nre. how- 
 ever, cannot alter it, in the leii-t. 'i'h.it purpose as cer- 
 taiidj exists, and will as cert uidy take etiVct, as if we 
 knew it in all its details. Whether the^ shall remain to 
 feed the flames of tlie general conflri<i;ration, or be demol- 
 ished by an earthquake, or moulder under the ravages 
 of time, or be razed fiom their foundations by some vic- 
 torious enemv, we cannot tell; it is knoun, however, to 
 Gorl as distinctly as it vvill be at the last uiotnent ot time; 
 and the progress of divine providence will disclose, it to 
 the world. The same remaks may be made, with equal 
 truth, respecting every city, town or village, which ever 
 has existed, which does now, or ever shall exist on this 
 earth. Their beginning, their proiiiess and their end, 
 were all fix^d in the counsels of Him vvho views, with 
 one intuitive glance, the past, the present, and what is t© 
 come. 
 
 Ir is but a fevv years ago when Moscow, one of the an- 
 cient cities of Russia, became the tlieatre of events which 
 tilled the civilized world with astonishment. A mighty 
 chief, the late Emperor of France, with his victorious 
 army, approached its walls The Governor formed and 
 executed the desperate resolution ol' liyins: the city in 
 ashes, and thus leavinu; the enemy nothing hut a mass of 
 smouldering ruins to shelter him from the inclemencies 
 of winter. The flight of that chief. ,ind the almost unpar- 
 allelled sufferings and carnage of his army, soon followed 
 as the result of that daring measure of defence. Now, 
 in my opinion, there are i^ifficient reasons to believe that 
 this whole series of events was predetermined, from the 
 beginning of the world, in the divine plan; and that this 
 plan embraced all the agents, and causes, and even the 
 minutest circumstances which in any manner, or degree, 
 contributed to the grand result. 
 
52 Letters an the Divine Purpose* 
 
 Still more recently, a series of events occurred, more 
 deeply interesting to our feelings than even the flames of 
 Moscow. During the h.te war, the enemy invaded the 
 metropolis of our beloved country, and laid our Capitol, 
 and other public buddings in .ishes. Shall we suppose 
 that these events were not embraced in the purpose of 
 Him who ruleth among the nations? Or did thev happen 
 unexpectedly to Hiui? Was it not the hand of Provi- 
 dence that guided the march of General Roj^s, as well as 
 the march c^f Cyrus? It will, perhaps, be replied that he 
 was prompted by his own ambiiion and petty thirst for 
 revenge. This is readily admitted; and yet the admis- 
 sion does not in the least aifp< t the conclusion, that this 
 whole transaction with all its details, was embraced in 
 the divme determination. Cyrus, in his operations 
 against B.ibylon, was prompted by his own motives; and 
 yet his motives, with the conduct to which they led, were 
 the very means of accomplishing the purposes of God. 
 General Ross could not have been influenced by his own 
 intentions, nor have acted as a free agent more than Cy- 
 rus did; and yet Cyrus executed the counsel^ and performed 
 all the pleasure of the Lord. For this purpose the Lord 
 girded him, went before him, directed all his ways, and 
 held his right hand. To my mind there can be no rea- 
 sons for supposing that General Ross, with his limited 
 and momentary victory, was not as certainly and as dis- 
 tinctly embraced in the divine purpose, as Cyrus and his 
 victory were'. The only diiference is this: the name, 
 character and conquest of Cyrus had been predicted; no 
 prophet had given similar information r- specting General 
 Ross, and his operations. And yet had this been the 
 fact; had it pleased God, two hundred }ears ago, to make 
 known that a man by the name of Ross, at the head of an 
 army, should come from the kingdom of Great Britain, 
 and in the year 1814, in the month of August, enter the 
 city of Washington in triumph, burn the '^'apitol and other 
 public buildings, and then hastily retire; this revelation 
 VTould not have rendered the events, in the least, more 
 certain than they were. Fronfj the time of such revela- 
 tion, down to the hour when t.ie smoke of the buihiings 
 ascended, those ivho had access to that revelation, might 
 have known that such an event would certainly take 
 place. Had we known that this occurrence was fixed m 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpost, 5S 
 
 the purpose of the Almighty, our exertions coulfl not have 
 prevented it. The prophecies of God have often been 
 accp.iiplished by those who knew nothing of them; and 
 generally I beheve, by those who, whether they knew 
 them or not, had no such intention at the time. No ef- 
 forts made with a desi2;n to frustrate them can ever be 
 successful. The mighty hand that rolls along the dispensa- 
 tions of Providence will crush the impious wretch who 
 dares to make Opposition. My word shall not return to 
 me void; I will do all my pleasure, saith the Lord. 
 
 If it was certain from the beginning, that Aloscow should 
 become a heap of ruins, then it was equally certain that 
 Moscow should be built, and remain till tlie very hour 
 when the torch was applied to it. This secured the ex- 
 istence and exertions of those who built and preserved 
 it. The city of Washington vvas to be invaded, and must 
 therefore exist. But its existence was impossible with- 
 out the agency of men, under the intluence of such mo- 
 tives as led to this result. These auents, and their mo- 
 iives, together with the circumstances from which they 
 were derived, were ail guided and limited in their opera- 
 lions by the divme purpose. But why was Moscow laid 
 ui ashes? Nothing but the most urgent necessity could 
 have dictated s»jch a measure. A powerful enemy ap- 
 proached; the flames were to i^natch the city from his 
 grasp, and deprive him of the comfort which its provi- 
 sions and its palaces might afford. Without this necessi- 
 ty, this tire would nvot have been kindled ; vvitho^t the 
 approach of such an enemy, this necessity would not have 
 existed; the counsels of infinite wisdom, therefore, whicU 
 determined that i\Ioscovv should be burnt, deterhiined all 
 the circumstances also which led to this catastrophe — 
 that a man, impelled by boundless ambition, (roramanding 
 a numerous and vi( torious army, should i/pproach the 
 eity ; also, as the result has proved, that there ruins should 
 be the barrier of his success, should, like the shores of 
 the ocean, beat back the tide of his an^oitious projects, 
 and occasion the ebbing of his glory commence. In 
 like manner, the Capitol of our coiv*try W4S not con- 
 sumed by a friend; the hand of an enemy alone could 
 perform a de*^d lik*^ this. The same unalterable coun- 
 sel which determined the conflagration of that distin- 
 guished building, determined to provide a hand prepared 
 
 5*. 
 
j4 Letfers on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 for the task. From the moment of his hirth, from the 
 foundation of the world, this was to be the work oi 
 General Ross; none could deprive him of the distinctioD 
 which he giiined by its performance. 
 
 Mifjht it not be a pleasing and edifying employment of 
 your leisure hours to meditate on the designs of Jehovah 
 respecting the American continent, and especially res* 
 pecting these United States? designs which are eternal as 
 the mind in which they exist. The knowledge of them 
 is not obtained from prophetic records, but from the page 
 of history, and from observation; not from inspirati()n, 
 but from the occurrence of those events, embraced in 
 these designs. Passing over those successive centuries, 
 during which the very existence of this country was un>- 
 known \o Europe, begin with Columbus, in the delibera- 
 tions and conclusions of whose masterly genius, and m 
 the execution of whose plans, the divine purpose began 
 to develop itself The steps taken in consequence of 
 his important .discoveries,, furnish a still further develop- 
 ment of that purpose. Come down to the period when 
 the tirst permanent settlements, were made on these 
 shores. Think of all the causes which induced the first 
 emigrants to leave their native country, and plant them- 
 selves in the new world. When this handful of men tirst 
 set foot on the banks of the James River, what man, or 
 angel, without the inspiration of God, would have pre- 
 dicted that this ivas the beginning of a mighty empire? 
 Trace them through all their hardships and their perils; 
 consider the annual accessions which they received from 
 the mother country, till you come to the causes of the 
 revolution. This is an epoch requiring a more than 
 usual pause. What an enlargement has your views of the 
 divine purpose now acquired? Over what a varied and 
 interesting chain of events have you now passed? giving 
 birth to a new series, not less varied, and if possible, 
 still more important. If, just now, you contemplated 
 this empire in it? small beginning, in the wilds of Vir- 
 ginia; now you must search for the liberty and indepen- 
 deice of the*e Umted States in the bosom of a few indi- 
 vid'ials. Perhaps ia the mind of some one individual the 
 thought first occurred, which, under the fostering care of 
 t?rovidence, has matured into that noble tree, under the 
 •m^Q spread branches of which, this empire now repose??. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 55 
 
 Enter the legislative hall, and listen to the grave and an- 
 imated debates of our Fathers, involving liberty or death- 
 hover over the field of battle, and with the sympathies 
 •fa brother, listen to the groans of the wounded and the 
 dying; station yourself on the plains of Little York, and 
 witness, with exultation, the last scene of this bloody and 
 protracted drama; with thankfulness to the Lord of hosts^ 
 hear the proclamation of peace and independence, see 
 this land of freedom assuming a dignified rank among the 
 nations of this earth. From that memorable era dovvo 
 to the present day, you descend and dwell with grateful 
 delight on the varied and multiplied blessings now en- 
 joyed by these United States. These blessings you can 
 easily trace back to the conclusions and discoveries of 
 Columbus, through a chain of events which we must con- 
 template in detached parts, a link at a time, but which^ 
 as it is viewed, and as it exists in the divine mind, is on© 
 Unbroken whole. Little did Columbus know the conse- 
 4|uences which were to flow fronj the first faint and ob- 
 scure conceptions of his mind. In the purpose of God^ 
 however, they were then as certain as they are now. la 
 the counsels of his eternal vvisdom, neither more nor less 
 was intended, than has been accomplished in his provi- 
 dence. 
 
 LETIEK X. 
 The purposes of God not irictinsistent with the moral j 
 agency of man. 
 
 I trust it has been made to appear that men who were 
 employed in accomplishing the purposes of God, were 
 free agents; and that therefore there is no inconsistency 
 between them: the divine decree neither de-^troys nor 
 suspends the free agency of man. Against this doctrine, 
 however, what is considered a more serious objection, is 
 sometimes urged; that it is inconsistent with the moral 
 agency of man. If, according to the purpose of God, a 
 man is to act a particular part, purstie a certain course 
 •f conduct, is he, or can be be accountable for his con- 
 duct: can he be criminal in acting this part? This ob- 
 jection merits and shall receive consideration. 
 
 In my own view, the free agency, and the moral j^gen- 
 ty of man, are snbstantially the same, and may be use;jj 
 
56 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 as synonymous terms: what is generally called reason is 
 the basis of both. When reason is wanting;, neither free 
 agency, nos moral agency can be predicated of any crea- 
 ture. According to the general o|)inion, brutes do not 
 possess the facult}/ of reason; what they do is the result 
 of instinct, not of free agency; of course they are not 
 supposed to be moral agents, or to be accountable for 
 their conduct. When it pleases God to deprive a maa 
 of his reation — a case which often occurs — we no longer 
 consider him a moral agent. If he should even take the 
 life of a fellow creature, the laws of our country do not 
 t^onsider hirn worthy of putushment. His conclusions 
 and his conduct are the result of necessity; that is, of 
 morbid impressions, made, as »s gener.illy believed, on 
 hjs animal system. These conclusions, sometmies so 
 disastrous in their consequences, govern his conduct; the 
 shattered remains of reason bemg too feeble to correct or 
 counteract them. If then the free agency and the moral 
 agency of man are substantially ihc same, every argument 
 which proves the cons'stenry of tlie dsvine purposes with 
 the free agency, proves, with equal force and clearness,- 
 fheir consistency with the ujoral agency of man. For 
 the purpose of proving and illustrating this consistency^ 
 (he case of Cyrus, out of many others, equally pertinent, 
 contained in the Bible, has been adduced. Profane his- 
 torians inform us that in all his operations, he was influ- 
 enced by his own motives, formed his plans, provided his 
 means, pursued his ends, and in all respects, manifested 
 a (ree agency as perfect as can be possessed or exercised 
 by man. The Bible declares that he executed the coun- 
 sel, and performed all the pleasure of God. The man, 
 therefore, who can deny, or evf-n doubt, this consistency, 
 can deny and doubt declarations of the Bible, as ex- 
 plicit, and as unequivocal as it is possil)le for words to 
 be. With such a man, it is vain to think of reasoning. 
 Tf, while Cyrus was executing the counsel, and perform-" 
 ing the pleasure of tiie Almighty, he remained a free 
 agent, he was also a moral agent; for they are substan- 
 tially the same. That which may, according to the 
 scripture, be affirmed of Cyrus, may, with equal truth, 
 be affirmed of every other man whose agency has, or 
 ever shall be employed m fulfillmg the prophecies, or 
 accomplishing the purposes of God. If the objectioa 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 57 
 
 now under consideration, is removed; if it can be proved 
 to huve no vveifi;hl in the ciise of one man, it is remove.d, 
 and proved to have no weit;ht in the rasf» of every other 
 man. If one has accomplishfd the designs of Jehovah 
 and yet retained his moral -tuenry, so nfiay, and so does 
 every son and danjjhter of Adan>. God is no respecter 
 of persons; as it regards theii moral agency, they are all 
 alike. 
 
 Cyrus was two whole years hefore the walls of Baby- 
 lon before his efforts were crowned with success. Du- 
 ring this time the prophecies and purposes of God were 
 accomplished through his aijency. When he stands be- 
 fore the judgn^ent seat of Christ, will this period be omit- 
 ted? will the thoughts, intentions and conduct of these 
 two years be left out of the account, and not appear in 
 the books, then to be opened? I think the most deter- 
 mined opponent of the doctrine which I defend, would 
 not hazard an assertion to this effect. If, then, these 
 years will not be omitted; if his thoughts, intentions and 
 conduct will appear, it unavoidably follows that, during 
 this period, he was a moral agent; that he was accounta- 
 ble for those thoughts, and that conduct which, with per- 
 fect accuracy, accomplished the divine purpose. If we 
 have the highest authority for believing this respecting 
 Cyrus, we have the same authority for believing it res- 
 pecting every other human being. 
 
 Those who advance the objection above stated, con- 
 ceive it ditficult, and even impossible to believe that God 
 should determine to employ the rtgt ncy of wicked men in 
 fulfilling his designs. They seem to suppose this imphes 
 his approbation of that conduct, or at least furnishes some 
 excuse for their >vickedne-is. While I feel the most af- 
 fectionate conceiri (<r piods christians, perplexed with 
 scruples and diffii Um^s, I cannot but suppose they have 
 passed over many .;• issages of the Rihle without due con- 
 sideration. Whenever is contained in the records of 
 truth, we are bo\iud to believe, whether vve can compre- 
 hend its consistency and connexion ivith other parts or 
 not. If I mi-'take not, there are many passages which 
 shew most < If^arly that such is the fact; that the wicked 
 act ons of man have fulfilled the purpose of divine provi- 
 dence. 
 
38 Leffers on the Divine Pwpose, 
 
 The conrhict of Jospph's brethren towards him was un- 
 questionably cruel and very vvi<"ked; snrh they them- 
 selvetJ acknowledjjed it to be. when the hand of adversity 
 was pressing; upon them. When cast into prison they 
 say; we are verily gvilty concerning our brother; behold^ 
 said Reuben, his blood is required. Hear the languajje of 
 Joseph, when ho (iiscox <^re<i lumself to them, respecting 
 this condurt: JVow therefore be not grieved, nor angry 
 'with yourselves that ye sold me hither; fbr God did send 
 me before you to preserve life. God sent me before you to 
 preserve you a posterity in the earth, anil to save your lives 
 by a great delir>ernnce. So now it znas not you sent me hi- 
 ther, but God * Hire Jo<^»ph asrribt^s his being brought 
 to Egypt, in the most expbnt languatce, to God. If his 
 brethren had done noihitig in this bu>iness. if he had been 
 caught up and conveyed, by mirarulous power, through 
 the air, his language couhl not be niore plain and forci- 
 ble. We cannot avoid the conclusion, that he was sent 
 into Egypt according to the purpose of God; and yet his 
 brethren were the agents in sending him there. That they 
 were riot highly criminal in Homg so, no man will pretend to 
 affirm. Here, then, is a plain instance in which the de- 
 signs of providence were arromplisheri by the wicked ac- 
 tions of men, without the sligl'test approbation of God to 
 their conduct, or any exruse for their criminality. 
 
 The cursing of Shiinei against David was no doubt sin- 
 ful; yet David will not permit his friends to revenge the 
 insult. Let him curse, said the kint:. because the Lord hath 
 said unto him, curse David; let him alone, and let him curse: 
 for the Lord hath bidden him.] Diivid does not ttiean that 
 the Lord approved of this cursing; but that it was a part 
 ©f the aflQirtion, appointed fbr him, during this hour of 
 banishment and sorrow. 
 
 The death of Jesus Christ is a remarkable instance of 
 {his kind. None wdl deny that this rvent was tixed, was 
 absolutely certain, in the counsels of infinite uisdom from 
 all eternity. If ever the wisdom of Deity propos.ed an 
 end worthy of a high and holy decree, it was this; that 
 a Saviour should die. The first penitent sinner was par- 
 doned and accepted of God, on t e grt)und of this cer- 
 tainty. ''J'housands and tens of thousands were accepted 
 on the same ground. The atonement, except in the di- 
 *Gen. xiv. 5 and 7. fS Sam. xvi. 10, 11» 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 59 
 
 vine purpose, was not yet maiie; but sinners are f »r2;iveD» 
 which they could not have beon without an absolute cer- 
 tainty that the great sacrifice for siu, wotild, at the ap- 
 pointed tirae, be offered up. They could not have been 
 forgiven on uncertaiiity. The slightest uncertainty at- 
 taching to this subject would have shaken, would have 
 blasted forever ttieir hopes of acceptance, and have 
 thrown them back to the gulph of despair. Every sin 
 that was pardoned, necessarily implied the certainty of 
 this event. The pardon of sinners, previous to the death 
 •f Christ, furnishes a view of this certainty perhaps bet- 
 ter adapted than the divine decree to our comprehension. 
 The Jewish sacritices proclaimed the same truth. Every 
 Tictim that bled at the altar pointed forward to the great 
 antitype, one day to bleed for sin. i'he prophets an- 
 nounced to the world this merciful purpose of God. — 
 They dwell on the subject, in a variety of details which 
 bave more the appearance of nistory than of prophecy. 
 They not only predict the death of the Saviour, but 
 also the manner of that death. He was to die a vio- 
 lent death, under an unjust sentence, amidst the re- 
 proaches, calumnies and derisions of men. That his 
 blood should be shed wws just as certain as tiidt he 
 should die. This death was therefore certain in the 
 olivine purpose; this certainty was made known to the 
 world, through the p,ir'ton of sinners, the Jewish sacrifi- 
 ces, and the predictions of the prophets. The New Tes- 
 tament contains the narrative of all these evenis; of all 
 that was foretold l)y the prophets, prefigured by the Jew- 
 ish types, implied in the pardon of sinners, and deter- 
 mined in the counsels of heaven. This purpose was ex- 
 ecuted by men, by his own countrymen, by the Jews, 
 who annually witnessed the sacrifices bleeding at their 
 altar, who had in their possessom the prophecies and 
 heard them read every Sabbath-day. These were the 
 men who, with malicious eyes, watched the conduct of 
 the Saviour, who denied and rejected him;" who extorted 
 from Pilate, the sentence of his death; who purchased 
 his blood; who apprehended, and bound him; who nailed . 
 him to the cross, accompanying the whole with the most 
 cruel abuse, insults and mockeries. That in all this they 
 accomplished the divine purpose, is, in my view, unde- 
 niable; that in all this they manifested a degree of wick- 
 
60 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 edness, literally without a parallel, even in this guilty 
 world, is also undeniable. 
 
 That they fultilled the divine purpose is, if I mistake 
 not, affirmed in explicit terms in scriptute — Him being de- 
 livered by the determmaie counsel and foreknoui'ledge of God: 
 For of a truth against thy holy Child Jesus, n-hom thou hast 
 anointed, both Hero'd. and Pontius Pilate, tinth the Gentiles 
 nnd the people of Israel, 'were gathered together, to do what- 
 soever thy hand and thy counsel determined before hand to be 
 done.^ Passages boldly and dirertly chaijiing the JeVvs 
 with the most diabolical wickedness in crucifying the Lord 
 of glory, are numerous, and need not be quoted, espe- 
 pecially as this point is undisputed. In all that they did, 
 the}' were moral agents, and were as much accounta- 
 ble for their conduct as if no divine purpose'had existed; 
 and yet they fulfilled this counsel with as great accuracy 
 as if they had not been moral agents. They were influ- 
 enced entirely by their own motives. Their consulta- 
 tions, their stratagems and their plans are often mentioned 
 in the Ne^v Testament. 1 cannot, therefore, see how to 
 avoid the conclusion, that the purpose of God is some- 
 times accomplished by wicked men, without furnishing 
 the least excuse for that wickedness; and is not inconsis- 
 tent with their moral agency. 
 
 If the purpose and providence of God has no control 
 over the sinful thought^, intentions and conduct of men, 
 then hovv great a portion of the human family are exclu- 
 ded from the wise and holy providence of Jehovah. All 
 men are sinful by nature. In the judgment of Him vvho 
 searcheth the heart, there is none that doeth good; no, 
 not one. Such have constitnted a vast majority of the 
 human race, in every past age of the world; at this day 
 they are an overwhelming majority. This is the state 
 and character of every pious man, till the moment of his 
 conversion. When the finally impenitent transgressor 
 shall stand before his judge, not one thought, intention or 
 desire of his heart, nor one single action of his life will 
 be pronounced good: all will be condemned as sinful and 
 wicked. . Those who advance the oljf'ction above stated 
 to the doctrine for which I contend, cannot believe, if 
 they will be consistent, that the wise and mighty Ruler 
 tf the universe can ever employ the agency of such men 
 
 *Acts ii. 23, and iv, 27, 28. See also Acts iii. 18, and xiii. 2/, 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 6 1 
 
 in the execution of his designs. He cannot ennploy their 
 agency without controlling, in some w;iy or other, their 
 thoughts, intentions and conduct. But these are all sin- 
 ful; he cannot therefore cause his holy determinations 
 to be ansvvcired by any thing that is sinful; for thi^, ac- 
 cording^to tneir opinion, would imply his approbation of 
 that sin, and be inconsistent with the nriond agency of 
 man. Hence, in their view, it is a fact, for which it 
 behooves them to account, if they ""an, that none but sin- 
 cerely pious men, and these only so far as they are pi- 
 ous, have ever been employed in promoting the dispen- 
 sations of providence, or in executing the counsels of in- 
 finite wisdom, which is the same thing; and that no sin- 
 ful man ever has, or ever will answer this purpose.— 
 Was Cyrus and his army; was Titus and his army, sin- 
 cerely pious? The brethren who oppose us on this sub- 
 ject, must either maintain that they were, or deny that 
 they ever fulfilled the prophecies, or executed the coun- 
 sel of God. If they vvill do neither of these, their objec- 
 tion has no weight, even in their own view; and they 
 ought, for the sake of consistenry, to admit that the pur- 
 poses of God are sometimes answered by sinful men; 
 ind that therefore these purposes are not inconsistent 
 with moral agency. 
 
 Jiffiiction^ we are told, coinetk not forth of the dust; nei- 
 ther doth trouble spring out of the ground. Afflictions are 
 uniformly con-idered, in scri[)tiire, as dispensations of 
 providence, sent (or our improve nent; lnat we may be 
 p;Mtabers of his holm«-ss. "They vy^rk together for good, 
 10 those who love God; they vvork out for us a far more 
 exceedinir and eternal weight of glwry" than vye ( ould ever 
 attain without them. But some of the heaviest .dflictions 
 we are ever called to bear, are orcasioned by the wick- 
 edness of men. A pious father may witness the profli- 
 gacy of a graceless son, or be called to weep over his tm- 
 timely grave, to which he is broughi by the hand of the 
 duellist. An affectionate mother ratty have continually 
 before her eyes a daughter, disgraced and ruined by the 
 infernal art of some vile seducer. These are sore afflic- 
 tions; severe trials. Are they sent for the good of those 
 who are visited by them? Ought they to be improved in 
 a religious manner? They were sent for good; and they 
 ought to be improved. But who sent them? and who 
 
 6 
 
Q2 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 gave them a tendency to work for good, to produce the 
 peaceable fruits of righteouj>ness? Satan, if he had the 
 power, has not the disposition to do any thing to promote 
 the spiritual interest of men. Wicked men have neither 
 the power nor dif^posjtion to do this. If they have a ten- 
 dency to work for good, this must have been irhparted 
 to them by a being of infinite goodness, who designed and 
 sent them for this purpose. Without this tendency, it 
 cannot be a dijty to" in^prove thern. But it is a duty to 
 improve these and all other afflictions; and therefore 
 they do possess this tendency. If they possess it, they 
 must have derived it from God; for none else could im- 
 parl it to them. If tfiey were designed and sent by him, 
 then his providen. e must extend to the cause from which 
 they spring: and his purpose and his providence are co- 
 extensive and CO- eternal. 
 
 Hence we reach the same conclusion; that the purpo- 
 ses of God are not inconsistent with the moral agency of 
 man; and that the control of his wise and holy provi- 
 dence is exercised over the wicked actions of men with- 
 out implying his approbation of that wickedness, or fur- 
 nishing for it the least shadow of excuse. 
 
 LET! EU XI. 
 
 This consistency incompr-ekensible to us — hut so are many 
 
 other things te/ia/i yet Ts^e believe. 
 
 Probably bf^fore this time you are anxious to propose 
 the question of Nicodemu^ — How can these things be? 
 Could you receive the answer from Him who taught Nic- 
 odemus, it would, no doubt, be <?atislactory. Without 
 claiming, or 'desiring to he any thing but an humble dis- 
 ciple at t!^e teet of that teacher, may 1 not reply, in his 
 language, adapted to this case — Art thou a student of the 
 Bible, of the character and government of God, and 
 tnowest not these things? Do you not read of many un- 
 doubted instances of the divine purpose being accom- 
 plished through the agency of men, without in the least 
 impairing or suspending their moral agency? If you tind 
 but even one such instance, this proves the fact, and 
 solves the difficulty. For if the determinations of God 
 are consistent vvith the moral agency of man, in the case 
 of one individual, they may be, and are consistent with 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 6S 
 
 the moral agency ofall the human family. That Teacher 
 has already given ii? all that he ronsidered useful, and 
 therefore, all that is necessity, on tl;e subject. This 
 ought to satisfy every randid min-l. When on eiiKh, he 
 never gratitieil the^'idle rurinsity of an\ it: ,• uc i : iie to 
 converse ag;iin with men, he would, no do;; !, ,u t in the 
 same manner. 
 
 The po\\er of hum. in language may be,utf<Ml\ insuffi- 
 cient (o (^onvey, t«) our minds, detinite idea- any i niher 
 thin to teach the fact. This, I oouceive. ' is do .c, both 
 ill the Bdile. arid in the providence pf God. i :io iisp of 
 words which convey no d'tinile ideas, is idtogetluM' v.iin. 
 Our minds m^v l)e fir too liujitHd to comprehend tliis 
 consistency. The attenipi, ihcr^'fore, to^muk-' us com- 
 prehend it would be fruitless: and God ni d*es no fruit- 
 less attempts. If our rapacities wero snHi ipiitlv en- 
 larged togra*Sp the magnit ide of this nuld 
 cease to be men; or if the sul)ject was bioii^lil down tO 
 the present, liuuts of our capacities, then-il woidd cease 
 to be the sul>ject wliicfi it is. All tltat can bip done is, to 
 make ijs arqu.imte<l with so much, with su( h paints of the 
 punject, as are co lipr'heusible, and of course, useful to 
 us. This, in my opinion, has been ilone. VVitii lius we 
 ought to be salistied; t«»r this we ou^^ht to be grateful. 
 That curiosity which, pusiies its inquiries farther, is, in 
 my opiuion, of at least a suspicious chararler.!" We are 
 not sitistied with tiie information Which God has given 
 us. unless it w« re exlen<ied fartfier than divine wisdom 
 has deeine«l proper and useful for us. We will j[iot ad- 
 mit the existence of ficts, unless we can comprehend the 
 consistency and 'wirmony of these ficts. We will not re- 
 ceive truths suited to our own comprehension, unless we 
 can receive those suited to superior intelligences': that 
 is, unless we are raised to a higher grade in the ?-cale of 
 being. We will not be contented' and thankful that we 
 are men; we mu-^t be angels. Well, suppose' ve uere 
 elevated to the rank of angels: there are- perfections in 
 the character of Deity which even tiiey cannot compre- 
 hend. Can they by searching Jind out God? Can they 
 find out the Almighty to pjerfectian? The same curiosity 
 might lead them to desire (-apacities silfficiently enlarged 
 to comprehend these perfections; that is, to be gods. If 
 this curiosity were not gratitied, they might be discon- 
 
64 Letters on the THvine Fnrpose. 
 
 lented; and all discontent of this kind is rebellion against 
 the Most Hijih. If it be wrong in them to indulge thi& 
 curiosity, it must, cit least, be suspicious in us. If they 
 ought to be thankful for what they can comprehend of 
 the works and charartf r of God, so o\]ght we; if they 
 ,oui:ht to be thankful and contented that they are, angels, 
 so oujiht we. that we are men. 
 
 I am far from char^iiiii;. with these consequences, all 
 
 who make this and similar inquiries; arid because thev 
 • • • ** 
 
 do not receive answers, satist.triory , in theii view, re- 
 ject the doctrine wifirh I maintain: l»pt I candidly think 
 they have noi duly considered the tepdency of that curi- 
 osity, or of that s|iirit, from which this inquiry proceeds. 
 
 If, however, they will urge the inquiiy; how ran the 
 purposes of God he consistent with tlie moral agency of 
 n)an; \ freely confers that 1 do not knov\: nor do I ever 
 exp'ec t. in this liie, to comprehend this subject. Men of 
 greater research, of greater talents, and oi much greater 
 pi' ty than I possess, have left the world, makiiii; the 
 same confession. The nian, therefore, wlio can se- 
 riously make the inquiry, 'must wait jor the clearer light 
 of futurity. 
 
 Tl)ere are many other subjects respecting which the 
 samp inquiry miijht be made, to which the same confes- 
 sion of ignorance could only be given. How did God cre- 
 ate the world? By his almighty power, it might be an- 
 swered. But should the inquirer renew the attack, and 
 ask, iiovv could divine power operate, when there was 
 nothing to operate on, nothing on which this [)Ower could 
 terminate? I confess, as freely as in the other case, I 
 do not know. How can, or how does God govern the 
 world? I do not know^^ Sliall we, therefore, refuse to 
 behcve that the world wa^ Created, and,"is governed by 
 •Tehov ih? We may. it appears to me, just with the same 
 consistency and truth with which we refuse to believe in 
 the wise and holy purpose of God, according to which he 
 created and governs the world. 
 
 The love of Jesus Christ, to guilty sinners, which sur- 
 rounds the divine character with its brightest and mildest 
 splendors, which animates the universe with new joys 
 and new glories,, is perfectly incomprehensible to us. 
 Its height we cannot reach; its depth we cannot fathom; 
 its length and its breadth we cannot grasp. Of this love 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 65 
 
 it is said with perfect truth that it passeth knowledge.—^ 
 Thanks to the (hviiie Saviour! his love is infinitely greater 
 than our comprehension. Shall we then ask, how can 
 this love exist; or hovv cari it he (exercised? and until we 
 have this (liihcully rem vved; until it is hrought down to 
 our capacity, or our cap;\^i4y.. is enlarged to its dimen- 
 sions, shall we hesitate to' rf^j'Mce in it? Because this 
 explanation cannot he i^iven; or if o;iven, cannot be com- 
 prehended hy us; shall we refuse to believe in the re- 
 ality of this love; that angels ever beheld and adored its 
 exhibition; that the he.irl of a sinnnr ever felt its life- 
 giving touch; shall vve drive iVorn our hearts the hopes 
 which it ins[Hres, and shut a;;ainst ourselves the heaven 
 to which it invites, and lor which it prepares us? The 
 man who would act thus would declare his own incorri- 
 gible wickedness, stamp his own character with the bas- 
 est ingratitude, and tix on his own soul the seal of perdi- 
 tion. We have abundant evidence to support our belief 
 in the reality and greatness of tiii«j love; yet this evidence 
 does not tender it comprt*!iensil)le to us. The more 
 tve know of it, the more diH*ply are vve convinced that it 
 passeth our knowled^je. Yet no m;tn pver thoU:;ht of al- 
 leging this as i\ rea^ion why he vould not receive and re 
 joice in it. Its greatness, on the contrary, is the ground 
 of his joys and his hopes. Why vve should not feel and 
 act, in ti»e same lii inner, ^espe<;ting other truths of the 
 Bible, [ cannot tell. . 
 
 That God is not the author of sin, I most firmly believe. 
 Nothing in his character, in \i\^ wonl, or in his works, 
 will justify such a belief. On the contrary, he declares 
 that it is odious in his si^ht, and dangerous to us. As the 
 lighteous Governor of the universe he has most plainly, 
 and positively forbidden and condemned it; as our affec- 
 tionate Father, he h-is vvarned us of its deceitful and ruin- 
 ous tendency, and furnished us with the very strongest 
 inducements to avoi.l it, — And yt, that this is a sinful 
 world. IS a melancholy f.ict, whicli none, or very few at 
 least, have been disposed to question. That we are sin- 
 ners is a plain proof that we are subjects of the moral 
 government of God: for sin is a transgression of those 
 laws, by which we ought to be governed. In the Bible, 
 those laws are contnined, which shew us what we ought 
 to be. But the Bible is adapted to us as sinners: mis- 
 
 6* 
 
6S Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 I 
 erable, helpless sinners. Therefore, in addition to the 
 moral law, it contains a revelation of mer«Tv; a i^lorioufr 
 plan of redemption, through the atoning hlood of a cru- 
 citied Saviour. It contains all that i:^ necessary for us to 
 know, in order to escape the consequences of sin, and 
 rejiain the favor of God. That we are also under the 
 government of divine providence i?, in my opinion, as 
 certain, as that we are under the moral government oi 
 God. That these two governments are perfectly consis- 
 tent with each other is evident; because they are both 
 conducted by the same wise, good and Almighty Being, 
 whose perfections and designs perfectly harm nize. But 
 although they are connected, and in harmony with each 
 other, yet there is in many respects, a dilference. The 
 government of providence is subservient to the moral 
 government: the one is admmistered for th« sake of the 
 other. In proof of this, it may be observed, that the 
 laws of providence, or as they are genet^aily called, the 
 laws of nature, have frequently heen'suspended to pro- 
 mote the designs of the moral governtnent; but no in- 
 stance occurs of a moral law being suspended, to pro- 
 mote the designs ofprovidence. I'he life of man is pre- 
 served by providence, that he may, as a moral agent, 
 enjoy and glorify Gud. They differ also in this; none 
 but intelligent creatures are subjects of the moral govern- 
 ment; but all creatures, aninjiUe and inanimate, rational 
 and irrational, are subject to ttie control of providence. 
 They differ also in this: thp laws of the ujoral govern- 
 ment, as far, at least, as we are concerned, are fully made 
 known; but the laws by which the government ofprovi- 
 dence is conducted, never have been, except in a few 
 instances, made known to man. The exceptions to 
 which I refer, are those events which have been pre- 
 dicted by the pro[)hets, or secured in the promises of 
 God. In both cases the laws of providence, respecting 
 the events to which they relate, were made known to 
 man, before they occurred. Respecting all other events^ 
 we have no such certainty; we knoxv not zvhat will be on 
 the morrorc; we know not what a day will bring forth. Iti 
 this difference both the wisdom and goodness of Goc 
 appear. It is all important that we should know the 
 moral law, according to which, our eternal state is sooa 
 to be unalterably fixed; but a full and perfect knowledge 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 67 
 
 of future events coiilfJ do us no jiooH; and in most cases 
 would add to our misery. It is enough for us to knovv 
 that a life of sin, of impenitence and unbelief, will lead 
 to eternal misery and distjrace; that a life of holiness 
 and faith m the Son of God, ^^ill conduct to iiappiness and 
 «;lory. Whether our life is to he long or short, spent in 
 sickness or in health, in affluence or in indigence, we do 
 not know: we may cheerfully leave the dispensations of 
 [)rovidence to Him who worketh all things alter the coun- 
 sel of his own wisdom. The laws of providence being 
 unknown to us, cannot, for this reason, be the rule of our 
 conduct. There is no reward proinised to those who 
 fnltil these designs; nor any threatenings uttered against 
 those who, if they could, would disobey those laws, and 
 frustrate these designs. 1 things inanimate, of course, 
 incapable of rewards or punishments, obey the will of 
 God, in the great work of [)rovidence. When the agency 
 of man is employed, no reward is promised, no reward is 
 bestowed, for this agency. In this respect man is like 
 the hail, the snow, and the vapor. The only difference 
 is that man, being a rational creature, of course, a moral 
 ngent, the wisdom of God has to secure his instrumen- 
 tality, without impairing or suspending this reason, or 
 this moral agency. To accomplish this, with certainty, 
 and to any <onsiderable degree, would Oe difficult and 
 even impossil>Ie to man. And yet something like it is 
 often attempted, and in some degree effected, by judici- 
 ous and affectionate parents, in the management of their 
 children: without positive restraint or coercion, by ob- 
 serving their, disposition, by skilful arrangement?, chil- 
 dren are often induced to act that part which is agreea- 
 ble to the ivill of their parent. In such instances, chil- 
 dren are not sensible of the influence of parental au- 
 thority; to ttiemselves they appear to act, and in fact do 
 act, according to their own choice; when it is certain that 
 without this parental influence, they would have acted a 
 different part. Now, that which parents can effect, in 
 some degree, in their children, we think it neither impos- 
 sible or even difficult for the wisdom of God to effect in 
 men, with absolute certainly, and in any degree which 
 the designs of his providence may require. He who 
 formed the rational soul, knows how to reach and influ- 
 ence that soul, without destroying its rationality, and 
 
68 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 without its being sensible of th t influence; and yet with- 
 out this, it would have thought and designed, and acted 
 differently. That this was the case with Cyrus, is un- 
 deniable; and I repeat it again; what has been effected 
 in one individual may, and no doubt is effected in all 
 others. 
 
 The great laws of the moral government are all cer- 
 tain, fixed and immutable. They are, with propriety, 
 said to be a transcript of the moral perfection* of the 
 Lawgiver. Man, whose knovvledge is very limited, and 
 who may become wiser by experience^ ^'<^y-, iind ought 
 to change his laws when he discovers their imperfection: 
 but the wisdom and goodness of God are no greater now 
 than they were from the beginning. The conduct of his 
 inor:il subjects has not taught him to make the slightest 
 change. It was, from all eternaty, immutably certain, 
 that sin of every kind and degree would be condemned: 
 and that holiness would be approved. The tinally im- 
 penitent transgressor has no more reiison to expect that 
 he will escape the righteous judgments of God, nor the 
 sincere penitent any more reason to fear that his hopes 
 will be disappointed, than that the divine perfections will 
 change. These laws are the wise and holy decrees, 
 accordii^g to which the great Sovereign will express his 
 approbation and condemnation, and distribute rewards and 
 punishments to his mor;i| subjects. U these laws are 
 tiius certain and immutable, shall we not conclude that 
 the laws of providence are equally so? The providence 
 of God is subservient to his moral <iesigns; the one is the 
 end, the other is, in part, the means, is all that relates 
 'to the end unalterably fixed, and yet the means for the 
 accomplishment of that end left vague, uncertain and mu- 
 table? As the events of providence take place, or ap- 
 proach their birth, does he receive new ideas? does he 
 become wiser, and therefore more competent to decide 
 what will be expedient in future? Befi)re he determines 
 the events of one century', year or day, does he wait to 
 observe the success of his pians'duiing the century, year 
 or day, immediately preceding? Is he merely making 
 experiments for his ovvn improvement in wisdom, to 
 ascertain the best manner of conducting his providence? 
 In short, is he a man? or is he the Allwise and Almighty 
 God? If he is God, and not man who manages the vast 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, C9 
 
 c 
 
 concerns of providence, then the laws of that providence, 
 equally with those of the moral a;overnment, are eternal, 
 fixed and iaiimitHhle. These I iw?* are the wise and holy 
 Decrlies ac( ordin^i to which all events, without one sin- 
 gle mistake or failure, ever have been, and ever will be 
 regulated. 
 
 LEITKH XII. 
 
 Moral Govern nent — Salvaiion by Grace. 
 
 A FEW reni'irks v\ill now he otft^t'd respecting the 
 Moral Government ofGod; or rather rf'Sperliii<i the re- 
 dernplioii of man thron^h a divine Savioni; the renov ?." 
 tion of hi-i heart; hi-i t estoiation to thr favor of God; and 
 his pieparation tor et«'rii;il s^loi y. May the Holy Spirit 
 enliiihfen and assi-1 both tiie writer, and tiie reader! 
 
 By grace ye are saveil, may be the basis of these re- 
 marks. Graie. in Ihi- pis>.(y;e, means the fie.e, unmerit- 
 ed favor of God. Salvaticm is an unmerited favor. Not 
 one of the human race eii her does, or run deserve it; nor 
 can they, by all that they can do, or sutfer, have the 
 sl)adow of a claim t(f it. If tliey could, it would then he 
 merited ; if merited, it would be ;» jusst debt; and if 
 a dei»t, it would be no moie grace; and if not ot giace, 
 then the passage just q'iot»"d. together with many others, 
 should be stricken from the s.a(red paiics. If it were a 
 debt, then the sinner need no loniier as-ume the attitude 
 of an huml)!'-" suppliant, humbly beirgiriii for salv.ition as a 
 favor; he might approach hi.- JikUp with all the confi- 
 dence of a claimant and boldly demand what was his njiht; 
 he need no longer appl}- lo the mer<^ of God, hut to his 
 justice. If ii were a debt, or deseived, then God is 
 bound to pay it; for the Judge, of nil the cart will do right: 
 tlien It would be no longer free, bui the result of obliga- 
 tion. He who brmy,s moth r under ohliiration, must con- 
 fer some tavor, or in some wa^ or other, be protitahle to 
 him who is laid under objiuation: but what tavor can a 
 sinner bestow; in what way < an he be profitable «o his 
 Mi.ker? He who induces another to act differently from 
 wiiat was intended, must present reasons of greater wis- 
 dom, and greater weight, than those possesed by him 
 whose intention is chan<i;ed: who then can induce the 
 Almighty to act differently from his own free and sover- 
 
ro Letters nn, the Divine Purpose. 
 
 eign pleasure? The truth ip, which we shall nil soon feel 
 and ricknowledge, in the sinrere penitence (if our henrts, 
 or in the anijiiish and dcspiiir of our eternal existence, 
 that 90 far fron) df'Sf^rvinii;?; ilvation, vvr deserve the niiiht- 
 eons iruliiination of God. just in proportion to our jiuilt: 
 for the Tjva^es.dfsin is death, • Everv -in deserves" God's 
 wrath arnl rnrse, hoth in this life, ,md that vvhirh is to 
 conje," — Now, as we h.ive all sinni'd; we all deserve to 
 perish. Tlii< is the rniserahle and helpless st;ite in which 
 all mankind are hy nature. VVere it otherwise, we should 
 ni>t need a S,iviour ; s dvntion in the evangelical sense, 
 would he intipo-^Hilih.. Ever^- sin, therefore, that is for- 
 given, must he ror^iven thiouiih grace; every sinner that 
 is saved, must he saved hy s^fficp: not one of th-enidoes, 
 or Cr«n desf-rvp it. ^ - ■ 
 
 Of the same impojt is alhothep derlaration of the Apos- 
 tle Paul; Eremal life is the ^ift (tf God. The disriples of 
 Christ aie now "n po-st-^sion oftlus gift; for he -who be- 
 Ueveth on the son hnih everlasting life. Therefore this ■i.ift: 
 includes every things perttuung to our s.dvalion — the 
 means and the agency hy v\hich we are united to Christ, 
 and reconciled to God; the chararter. the dispositions 
 and affections, and all the qualitj« ations which tit us for 
 the service of God here, jrnd f)r the enjoyment of hirn 
 hereafter— all are the gift of God. Aeconhugly we tind 
 from scripture that all thesejhings, in detail, are expli- 
 citly ascribed to God is his iiift. The Saviour himself 
 is the jiift ofGod; and in him are included dl thinjjs else, 
 necessary to salvation. The Holy Spirit, includmjj; all 
 his induenc'-s, is ijiven of God, to those who ask him. 
 The Bihie itself, with all its threMteniiijis, admonitions 
 and warnings; with all its prouiises and invitations, its 
 doctrines and precepts, its examples of obedience and 
 .rebellion, of holiness and sin; by which we are enlight- 
 ened, impressed and governed; by which we are wound- 
 ed, and healed, alarmed and comforted — the/ Bible is the 
 gift of God to an ii^norant, sinful and perishing world. 
 The holy sabbat^., so conducive to the existence and 
 progress of vital godliness, is the ordinance of Heaven. 
 Public worship, family and private devotion, are institu- 
 tions of infinite wisdom, for the perfecting of the saints. 
 Prayer is not only an important duty, but a precioufi^ 
 privilege, granted to us by the Father of mercies. Arc- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 7 1 
 
 we convinced of sin? it is by tlie Spirit, the Comforter, 
 who is the gift of God; it is by the law which God has 
 jiven lis. Are we enabled to exercise faith in Christ? 
 that faith is a divine gift. Do we love God? that love is 
 shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who is given 
 tinto US. Do we sincerely repent? that repentance is 
 given by our exalted Prince and Saviour. Are we par- 
 doned and accepted of God? that righteousness, on ac- 
 count of which we are accepted, is a gift. Are we adopt- 
 ed into the family of heaven? that spirit of adoption we 
 have received. Do we enjoy peace? that peace is the 
 legacy of Christ. Have we good hope? i( is given us 
 through grace; Do we gain the victory? thanks be unto 
 God, who giveth us the victory. All the means of grace, 
 as they are generally called, together with all the effects 
 which these means are made instrumental in producing 
 on our hearts, and on our lives, are distinctly ascribed to 
 God as his gift. 
 
 Gratitude is a sentiment awakened in the mind by the 
 reception of favors which we esteem valuable, and wliich 
 we do not deserve. Unless some favor is received, or 
 expected, the hum. in heart cannot feel grateful. Grati- 
 tude cannot be called into exercise by a mere act of voli- 
 tion, as we can raij^e our hand; it must have its appro- 
 priate cause. Accordingly, wherever you witness a heart 
 expand. ng with its deligtitful emotion.*, you may be sure 
 some valuable favor is either expected, or has been re- 
 ceived. Now where is the christian wiio does not feel 
 thankful to God for causing him to differ from others; for 
 those convictions of guilt and danger which led him to in- 
 quire wftat he must do to be saved; for that heavenly 
 light which guidtd him safely through his perplexities 
 and distresses, and taught him how to believe; for that 
 gra< I0u^ aid, l>y which he was enabled, guilty, helpless 
 and polluted as he was to cast himselt on the merits of 
 Jesus Christ; for that joy and peace which he found m 
 b lieving; lor that new heart which habitually inclines 
 him to repent of sin, to abhor himself on account of it, 
 to watch against and avoid it; for that relish for spiritual 
 things, -by which he is enabled to delight in communicn 
 with God, and in cheerful obedience to his will?* Who 
 is not. thankful (or those spiritual and devout affections 
 which adorn the character, give the thoughts an hea- 
 
72 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 venly direction, warm, elevate and purify the soul; for 
 tliMt power by which he is kept through faith un1o salva- 
 tion? The man who is not thankful for these blessings 
 proclaims his own igjnorance of them, and proves him- 
 self unworthy the name of christian. The grateful 
 heart believes and acknowledges that all these are good 
 and perfect gifts from the father of li^jhts. 
 
 All the blessings for which we are directed and per- 
 mitted to pray, are bestowed according to the good plea- 
 sure of God. The very petitions which we offer up., 
 imply that we have no right to claim them; and that when 
 received, they must be received as free and unmerited 
 favors. Careless sinners should pray that they might 
 be impressed and awakened; the awakened should pray 
 that they might be preserved from all the errors and de- 
 lusions which beset their path, and enabled to believe in 
 Christ with a heart unto righteousness; christians should 
 pray for a clean heart and a right spirit, for strength to 
 persevere and increase in the, w.iys of hblmess; or rather, 
 every person should pray without ceasing, for these and 
 for all other blessings. Now prayer has no meaning, it 
 is mockery, unless it ilows from a deep and thorough con- 
 viction that we do not possess that for which we pray; 
 that we n^eed it; and ttuit we do not deserve it. 1 can 
 conceive of no motive tp pray for that which we already 
 possess, or that which we do not need, or that which we 
 deserve: for this we would not ask as a suppliant; we 
 would demand it as our liglit. It" we pray with the un- 
 der^^tanding, we know and feel at the moment, that we do 
 not merit the blessings for which we pray; that God is 
 under no obligation, of course, to bestow them. Was this 
 conviction more deeply wrought in our hearts, our pray- 
 ers would be mingled with more reverence, more humil- 
 ity, and more earnestness than they sometimes are. — 
 When God bestows the blessing, it is not as the payment 
 of a debt, or a compensation for services which we have 
 rendered, but freely and graciously ) 
 
 These remarks are forcibly, and affectionately exem- 
 plitied in the case of the publican. His consciousness of 
 misery, guilt and unworthiness are clearly indicated by 
 the distance at which h^ stands; by his downcast eye; 
 and by smiting on his breast. He mentions no debt that 
 is due him; no services, on account of which he ought 
 
Leffers on the Divine Purpnss. 73 
 
 to be heard, and rewarded. He confesses bimself to be 
 w sinner. KnowioiC that mercy was his only plea, though 
 even this he did not deserve, with reverence, humihty 
 and earnestness, he prays — God be merciful to me a sinner! 
 
 Again; the whole work of regeneratinj; and purifying 
 the heart of man, from the first quickening touch, through 
 every intfrvenmg stage of its progress, to the most tri- 
 umphant assurance of faith, ever attained in this world, 
 is direcHy asrrihed to God, as his peruliar work. When 
 <iead in trespasaes and in sins; when children of wrath, it 
 is God who quickeneth us. From the context it would ap- 
 pear tliat this quickening marks !he first impression which 
 changes the heart from a state of death-like insensibility, 
 to serious reflection and feeling. Of the same import is 
 the languajre of the Apostle James; Of his oixni rvill begat 
 he us with the word if truth. Regeneration, with all that 
 it implies, is ascrii)ed to God; we are his workmanship. 
 Those vvho believe in Christ, are born of God. Those 
 who are called, are called of God. It is God who jusii- 
 fieth. It is Gt>d who works in the hearts o{ his people 
 the work of faith with power; who makes a way for their 
 ebcape when tempted; who comforts, streniithens and 
 upholds them. If tiey work out their own salvation, it 
 '■» God, of his good p'easure, who worketh in them, both to 
 i-ill and to do. 0th t passages to the same effect, need 
 not be mentioned; for no christian, I presume, is disposed 
 ■0 deny that all that is good, in the heart of man, is the 
 work of the Spirit. 
 
 Let me ask you now, are these things so? Are we, in- 
 deed, saved by grace? Is our salvation, with all that it 
 ncludes, a free, unmerited favor? Is our regeneration, 
 and progress in holiness, from the first serious thought, 
 to the last exercise of faith in this world, the peculiar 
 work of the Spirit? I cannot deny myself the pleasure 
 of believing that you reply in the affirmative. You not 
 only admit that these things may be true, as you ivould ad- 
 mit respecting things with which you were not acquainted, 
 or vvhich you had nut carefully examined; but on the 
 testimony of your own experience, and of the v\ord of 
 God, examined with prayerful attention, you aflkm that 
 they are true. Then, my friend, you are a genuine 
 Calvinist. This is th. very essence of that system of 
 doctrines called, sometimes by its advocates, and some 
 
 7- 
 
74 Letters on the Bivme Purpose^ 
 
 times by its opponents, Calvinism It is a matter of little 
 importance, however, by what name any system of doc- 
 trine is call^fl; if it is according to scripture, it ou«;ht to 
 be received; if it is not, it ought to be rejected. It oucjht 
 to be neither defended, nor opposed, merely on account 
 of the name which men have given it; but solely on ac- 
 count of its tiuth or its falsehood. Had this been kept 
 habitually in view, half the disputes m the religious 
 world would never have taken place; and the greater 
 part of the other half would have been much shorter^ 
 been conducted with more meekness of wisdom, of course, 
 been more protitable than they have been. By those 
 who keep this rule in view, the Bible, understood in its 
 plain and obvious meaning, is revered as the highest au- 
 thority; as the only infallible guide. They imitate the 
 noble Bereans, searching the scriptures daily^ whether 
 these things are so; if so, if found in the scripture, they 
 are received with all readiness of mind. 
 
 However, as I have mentioned the conclusion which, 
 in my opinion, follows unavoidably from the above pre- 
 mises, I will give you permission, and even request you 
 to review this letter, with greater attention, and with 
 a reference, if you please, to this very conclusion. What 
 the result of such a review may be on your mind I can- 
 not tell; on my own mind it only strengthens the convic- 
 tion that the preceding statements are abundantly sup- 
 ported by scripture; that they are the plain doctrines of 
 the Bible. Until I know to the contrary, I will suppose 
 this is also your deliberate conviction. Then 1 repeat it; 
 you are a Calvinist; you believe as they do. 
 
 LETTER XIII,' 
 
 The favors of God^ bestowed according to his own de- 
 sign — purpose^ decree^ intention, foreordination, <^'C., 
 mean the same. 
 
 Perhaps you are not quite satisfied to be called a Cal- 
 vinist; and do not feel altogether certain that you are 
 jnstly entitled to this distinctive appellation. It is not 
 my wish to induce you to adopt this, or any similar name; 
 my heart's desire, and prayer to God, for you, and for all 
 men, is that you may be saved; and in order to this, that 
 you may clearly understand, and cordially embrace the 
 truth as it is in Jesus. Of one thing, however, I am cer- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 75 
 
 tain; if you believe, as above supposed, yon are as justly 
 entitled to this appellation as I am, and as ihousunds of 
 others are, to whom it is un'tbrmly iipplied. 
 
 The <J;dv;ttion of sinn'^rs is the utiinHiited favor, the 
 gracious <i,U\ of God. \Vh<>n he bestows tiiis ^\f{, he ei- 
 ther has ,\u intention, a desij^n. to beston it, or he has 
 not. If he hiis no intention, then the hestovvinpiit of it 
 niiist be what we call arcidental. The etforts of|m;m are 
 frequently prodii<insi; cfferi? in this way; that is, arcidcn- 
 tallj'. His etforts are intended to pr linctj different ef- 
 fects; these which areprodnred ure neittief foreseen nor 
 intended by him. Th.it tlie salvation of ^ sinner slioiild 
 be an accidental effect of the (livine operations; that 
 while he was aiminu; to ac< omplish sosne oilier purpose; 
 say, the creation of an anj^el; this took plice nuexpect- 
 edly to him, is pldoly too absurd to chaiji^e on any man. 
 Nor can I admit that the man or anjjel evnr existed, who 
 cnnid believe this respecting his Maker. If he has an 
 intention, then the jjift is bestoweil accordinjj; to this pur- 
 pose, and in consequence of ,t. TheWery reason why 
 the lujif* is conferred is, the esistenre of this desiiin. This 
 intention is neititer capricious, nor arbitrary. It is not 
 like what, iir men is called a mere fan* y: itii.« de iberate; 
 it is wise; it is holy. It is not formed and executed 
 merely because he possesses the r« qui^ite pouer, and is 
 not accountable to any creature for Hie exenis- oi that 
 power. There is an end in view; an end inHiiilel\ wor- 
 thy of his own character; an end vvhi' b uill ju>iity this 
 exercise of his povver, wisdom .md sioodness m tiie view 
 of all holy heinj^s. This intention is a* cordinji: to the 
 counsels of intinite wisdou); it is touoiled on rea^-ons of 
 infinite weight. It mu«it, therefore, have been tormed 
 us soon as all the reasons, on wbiclt it is founded, were 
 perceived and felt by the divine mind; as soon as the 
 counsels, the deliberation^ of wisdom were roncluded. 
 Any other inference is alto^iether unreasonable. But 
 this wisdom is not increased by experience, nor i^re these 
 reasons discovered by investigation. Ttds was perfect; 
 these reasons existed from all eternity, witb precisely the 
 same weij;;ht which they now have. Therefore this inten- 
 tion existed from all eternity. The besto'\ment of this 
 ^iU, of this divine life, is in cons quence .f n immu- 
 table, wise, benevolent, merciful and ete^n^l intention. 
 All this, it appears to ms, is plain and undeniable. 
 
76 Letters on the Divine Furpose, 
 
 Now this intention is the decree of God. To say thv^l 
 God intended, and that he decreed from all eternity to 
 bestow a favor, is, in »jy view, the ?anrie thing. U is the 
 same also with foreordination. Tlis means the deter- 
 cjining to bestow a gift, before the Ur>,c drrives, when 
 the gift is actualiy brstowed. Tlws term is used in ac- 
 commodafion to our weakness; fo?- will: God there is 
 neither /ere, nor after ordsnatton What we call past, 
 presi-nt, Jirsd fiitur* , aie equally present to his int^iiite 
 mind. Tho v ord election nteaiiS -ub»tan'ia!l\ !he same 
 thinj;. At first view, it may appear, more forcibly to 
 su^-irst to i.ur mind, in connexion witii tiie mtention, an 
 idea, either of the gift, or tht person on whonj jt is con- 
 ferred. This, however, js more owin^ to our inatten- 
 tion, .;>in to any real (iifiVrence in the meaning of these 
 terms. If G^ ' intends to bestow a gits, that gift must as 
 certaiidy bo ir; ; » Mitention as the bestowment of it; and 
 tho person orf whom it is to bo conferred, as certainly as 
 the iiift and its bestowmont. To -ay tliat a thing is in- 
 tended, purposed or designed b^ the Almighty, is the 
 same thing as to say, that it is decreed, or foreordained. 
 To say that God intends to confer a f.ivor on any pirtic- 
 ular person, is the same as to say, that this person is 
 elec ted for that purpose. Of course, to say that there 
 is neither <lecree, nor tbreordination of God, is the same 
 as to say,- that he has no intention; and that the gifts 
 which he bestows, are given witl'out intention. To say 
 that there is nothing decreed or foreordnined, is the same 
 as to any, that he never intended to do any thing. To 
 say that no person was ever elected, is the same as to 
 say, thnt God never intended a: y person to receive his 
 gift. The same remarks are true respecting the terms 
 predestinntion, predestinate, ai.d predestinated; they 
 mean the intention of God to be^-tow a favor, or to bring 
 an event to pass: the favor bestovved, and the person on 
 whom it is conferred, ure^predestinated for these purpo* 
 ses. 
 
 Any person, who reads the Bible with attention, may 
 easily perceive that the above terms mean tho sanne 
 thing, when applied to God and his designs. In proof oi 
 this, permit me to refer you to <i few words^, in the origi- 
 •aal of the New Testament,— Eoi^/^vJ?, according to Park- 
 iiurst, siguities, design, purpose, decree, counseL Luke 
 
Letters on the Dvine F irpose. 77 
 
 Vii, 30; The. Pharisees and lazvyers rejected the counsel 
 (tYJV i3oV?\>y}v) of Gad as!;a{nst themselves. Arts li, 23; 
 &/«, being delivered by the determinate counsel {pOvXYl) 
 and fo*-ekjiozioledge of God, <^i:.* Bov^j^ai signifies, to 
 will, to design, to will witli aut'toritv- to decree, to or^ 
 Mn, AcU ^i'u ^;—intendiag ((}oV?M(J£VOg) after Easter, 
 ^'C. 1 Cor. xii, 11; ihe spirit dividing to every man sev- 
 erally as he will (xaQQg ^OV^Tat) Jarrif>s i, 18; of his 
 ozvn will ((Sov^d^ig) befrat he us, fyc. Aoy(Mi derived 
 from Aoxeo, to think, judge, to think proper, to deter- 
 fnine — signities a decree, ordinance, whether hurnan or 
 divine. It means thf ordiminces of the ceremonial lavy, 
 as m Eph. ii, 15; Col. ii, 14; also the decree of Csesar, 
 Luke ii, 1, and A^-ts xvii, 7; aUor thx> decrees ordained 
 by the Apostles and Elders, Acts xvi, 4;- We are told, 
 Acts xii, 4, that Herod, having apprehended Peter, put 
 
 hi.ii in prison, intending (i3ov7^0lA£VOg) after Easter to 
 bring him forth, to the people. Acts v . 28. Behold, .said 
 the high priest to the Apostles, ye have tilled Jerusalem 
 with your doctrine, and intend (/iot'AsO'fe) to bring this 
 man's blood upon us. The word used, in both these 
 passages, to express the intention of man, is the same 
 which is used respecting the Spirit, in the distribution of 
 his gifts. 1 Cor. xii. 11; dividing to every man seve- 
 rally as he will QSoV/^rou) translated by M'Knight and 
 Thompson as he pleaseth. Or with equal propriety it 
 might he rendered, as he intends purposes, or decrees; 
 that is, according to his own iijt< ntion or decree. Jamee 
 i, 18; a participle of the same verb is applied to God: 
 Of his own will QSovXeOeig) begat he us with the word 
 of truth. M'Knight renders ii thus; Ha.ving -willed it, he 
 bath begotten us, &c. that is, having intended, decreed 
 or designed it; either of which would convey the same 
 idea. Dr M'Knight's note, ou these words, is worthy of 
 remark; "The regent'ration of men is not a necessary 
 act in God, but proceeds from hi:f own free, will. Ail the 
 actions of God are perfectly free." This will, this plea- 
 sure of God, according to which his own fivors are be- 
 stowed, and his own works are pi^rn^rmnd, is not ex- 
 pressed, in the. comnon translation, by the term inten- 
 tion, or design; but the same word, as we have seen, in 
 
 7=Xt 
 
78 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 the original, respecting the will of men, translated intend- 
 ing, and intend, is applied to the Spirit, and to God, The 
 word decree, is not so often used with this view as some 
 others. The terms counsel, purpose, mid ordinance are 
 those most frequently used to express* the will or pur- 
 pose of Jehovah. Psalm xxxiii, 11; The counsel oj the 
 Lord standeth forever. The same mieaning would be 
 conveyed if the word intention or design was used for 
 counsel. Isaiah xlvi, 10; My couTiiel shall stand and I 
 'will do all my pleasure. My design, or my decree, shall 
 stand, conveys the same idea. Acts xx, 27; For I have 
 not shunned to declare unto you the whole counsel of God. 
 The Apostle means that he had faithfully explained all 
 the great and immutable principles of the gospel, the 
 whole gracious plan of redemption through a divine Sa- 
 viour. The same term is employed to express the re- 
 sult of those deliberations in which men are often en- 
 gaged. Jer. li, 29; Every purpose of the Lord shall be 
 'performed against Babylon. We have already seen with 
 what accuracy this intention, this decree of God was ac- 
 complished in the destruction of Babylon. 1 Tim. i, 9; 
 Who hath saved us, and called ns — according t* his own 
 purpose and grace: "In accomplishment of his own pur- 
 pose and ^ift." The sense would be the same if the 
 word intention, or design were used, instead of purpose. 
 The terms, predestinate, predestinated, and predestina- 
 tion are peculiarly objectionable to many pious people. 
 I say the terms; tor I hope they do not object to the 
 jVieanmg of these terms, when expressed in other words, 
 Predestmate, and predestinated are both used in scrip- 
 ture, ihoujih predestination is not. It is, however, si 
 word of creditable parentage, being as regularly derived 
 from its verb, to predestinate, as intention is from the 
 verb, to intend. If these words were correctly under- 
 stood, they would cease to excite those unpleasant feel- 
 ings with whicu, in some minds, they are uniformly asso- 
 ciated. Permit me to introduce them to your acquain- 
 tance, not in the garb which prejudice has lent them, 
 but in that plain and dignified dress which they wear m 
 the sacred volume. The passages in which the word is 
 used, are but few. Romans viii, 29, 30; For whom he 
 did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to 
 fke image of his son — Moreover, zvhom he did preiiesti' 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 79 
 
 fia/c, them he also called, ^c. Eph. i, 5; Having predes- 
 tinated us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to 
 himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, verse 
 11; In "whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being 
 predestinated according to the pleasure of him who worketh. 
 nil things after the counsel of his own will. The word 
 translated predastinate, is, in the original, TtpOOptfo). 
 This rerb is compounded of TtpO, which signities before; 
 and Opi^Q, which signifies to l»onnd. limit, to determine, 
 decree, appoint. Therefore Tipoopf^w, signifies to de- 
 termine, appoint or decree any tnmg before hand; that 
 is, before it comes to pass, or, as our translators be- 
 lieved, to predestinate. This translation is retained al- 
 so by Dr M^Knight. That the word, in the passages 
 just quoted, is used in connexion, with the great subject 
 of man's redemption, is unquestionable. Those whom 
 God predestinated, he predestinated to be conformed to 
 the image of his Son; that is, that they should resemble 
 the divine Saviour in their moral character; in opposi- 
 tion and hatred to sin; in love to God and man; in faith, 
 zeal, and self-denial, meekness, humility, heavenly mind- 
 edness, devotion and holiness. The grand object of this 
 predestination is, that sinners should be regenerated^ 
 made holy and enjoy everlasting happiness. That they 
 might attain this ronformity, be also called them; that is, 
 by the preaching of the ijospel, which the holy spirit ren- 
 «lered effectual in turning them from darkness to light, 
 that they might be sanctified through the truth. In Epiie- 
 sians, the object of predestination is substantially the 
 same; To the adoption of sons. Those who bear the im- 
 age of Christ, are children of God, and those are children 
 of God, who bear the imajre of their Saviour. In the latter 
 passages we are informed that this is in consequence of 
 the mediation of Christ; by Jesus Christ. We have also 
 the origin of the whole gracious plan, stated for our con- 
 temjdalion. It is accordino to the good pleasure of his will. 
 In all thi* I can see notluns objectionable. None will 
 deem it objectionable that sinners should be saved; fof 
 it IS a work in all resi»ecls, worthy of God. Satan, in- 
 deed, with all hi* malic.t', subtlety and povver, is opposed 
 to ibis work; f>ul all the holy angels rejoice in it, and 
 labor to promote it. if sinners are to be saved, in what 
 
80 Lefters on the Dhnne Purpose. 
 
 manner shall this be done? Can it be objectionable thai 
 in order to their admission to heaven, they should 6rst 
 be made holy; that their hearts should be so completely 
 changed as to resemble the lovely atid heavenly charac- 
 ter ot' Jesus, the son of God; that they should be adopted 
 into the family of their Father in hea-vn, and trained up 
 in the esercise of every (ilial affection, in habits of hum- 
 ble submission, and cheerful obedience to the divine will? 
 If they are to be made holy, by what mean? is this holi- 
 ness to be produced? Can there be riny objection to the 
 Gospel, as the means of this happy change? Never were 
 iueans better adapted to :m end, than the gospel is to this. 
 By the word of truth they are begotten, born againj 
 sanctified, saved. By the gospel they are called, vvarnedj 
 impressed, invited, enlightened, cv<mforted, animated, 
 governed. The gospel is the ■w/'sdom of God^ and the 
 jpower of God unto salvation to every one who believeth. 
 Through whose friendship shall these means be provided: 
 this waij of holiness be marked out; this access to the Fa- 
 ther be opened for sinners? Can there be any objection 
 to the mediation of Christ? Before we ohject, let us see 
 that our objections be well founded. Let us first be con- 
 vinced that he neglects his disciples; that his ear is too 
 heavy to hear their cries, his arm too short to deliver 
 them, his righteousness too scanty to cover tliem, his 
 blood without virtue to cleanse them. If no deficiency 
 can be discovered, tben, no objection can be made to his 
 mediation: Ke was chosen of God to brii;ij; many sons 
 unto glory. With Whom is this plan to originate, that it 
 may be unobjectionable to us? Would we be better 
 pleased, if it was a plan of our own devising? We are 
 indeed, generally fond of our own opimons, and of the 
 productions of our own eifoits. But .ire we, with the 
 angels for our assistants, co^jpetent to this task? Could 
 Tve grasp the mighty ^uhj^'^•t? Could we arrange in alJ 
 its parts and its piovisions, a system which is to embrace 
 ihe world, to purif}' and govern the sinful, polluted he»art 
 ©f man, to triumph over Satan, to save the soul, reconcile 
 the pardon of sm with the rights of the divine govern- 
 ment, kindle in heaven its; iiiightest glories, diffuse tlirougb 
 the universe the sublime'*' joy, and r^perate tlirongh an 
 endless duration? if we could n(n devise such a plan, 
 let us thankfully receive it from the wisdom of Him vrho 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 81 
 
 ulone could be the author of it. IfluMS its author, then 
 the whole plan must he according to his own pleasure. 
 It cannot possjhlj' have any otlirr origin, it is a scheme 
 of his own wisdom, goodm^^s and mercy, li is, therefore, 
 free^ in the strictest sense. As h<' alone could devise 
 this plan, so he alone can execute it. Men and angels 
 are as absolutely unable to arromplish this merciful de- 
 sign as th*^y are to devise it- If il is arcomplished, it 
 must be done by divine power. If sinners; are saved, 
 they must be saved by grace. 'The whole, from first to 
 last, is rtccoiding to tii- good pleasure, to I he counsel oi 
 his will. If he s;ives sinners, it must be according to his 
 own intention or according to the intention <>f others, or it 
 must be without intrt lion. The ahsunlity of this last 
 supposition, we have already seen. It is equally absurd 
 to suppose that in saving smners. he works according to 
 the plan, the intention or pleasure of others, who of 
 course, must be his cre^'tures, and who can ^exercise no 
 wisdom but what he was pleased to give them. There is 
 no escaping therefore, from the conclusion, that in the 
 salvation of sinners, he works accordmg to his own de- 
 sign; and that this design existed fiom all eternity. This 
 is the predestination of the New Testament Eternal 
 life is the gift of God. He could not bestow this gift 
 without an intention to do so. If such was his intention, 
 he must also have int^^nded some person, or persons to 
 receive this gift. Now, as far as I can see, il will convey 
 precisely the same idea, to say that these persons were 
 destinated to this end. I he verb, to d^-^stinate, according 
 to Dr Joiinson. signifies to desigr» for any particular end. 
 And if the destiiiation of these person- exist^^d m the di- 
 vine mind, before they received ihis git't. as it most un- 
 questionably did; then no word in the English language 
 can express more clearly that act of God, by which they 
 were marked out, than the worrl, pretiestinate. Like 
 the word in the original, of which this is a correct trans- 
 lation, it IS compounded of pre, which, though not used 
 separately in our language, signities, before — generally 
 adding to the word to which it is prefixed the idea of 
 priority of time, and deslinate, which is to design to a 
 particular end. Prede-lmate, therefore, signities to de- 
 sign beforehand, any pr-rson or thing to a j»articular end. 
 Can we suppobe that the intention to bestow eternal life. 
 
82 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 was fixed in the divine mind from all eternity, but that 
 the persons who were to receive this gift were left un- 
 determined, till the very moment when the gift was be- 
 stowed? Could his wi?^dom or kno'-vledge be greater at 
 that moment than thev werf hefor<'? If not, he could be 
 no better qualitied to make the most pro}>er determina- 
 tion, than he was before; of course, he could have no 
 reasons for doing it, it this moment, which were not 
 present to his mind before the foundation of the world. 
 And neither men nor angels can conceive a motive forde-^ 
 laymg this »letermination after all the reasons on which 
 it is founded are fully possessed. 
 
 Such are myvieus ot truth, clearly taught in th*i Bible, 
 respecting the salvation of sinners. All who believe that 
 God bestov\s his fivors in rou'^eqnenre of an intention, 
 previously existmg in his j ind; and that this intention 
 embraces not only the gifts bestowed, but also the per- 
 sons on whom they are conferred are Predestinarians and 
 Calvinists. Those who deny the doctrine of predestina- 
 tion, of course, deny, in my opinion, that God ever he- 
 stowed any favors on the huu»an race; or affirm that, if 
 he has conferred any favors, he has done it without an 
 intention of doing so. To say that God, has bestowed no 
 favors, is to deny that any of the human race have been, 
 or wdi be sived; for if saved, ii must be by grace, which 
 is unmerited favor. To say that this grace is given with- 
 out design, is to say that when God saves sinners, he 
 does not intend to do it; of course, it must be, what is 
 generally called, accidental. From such a work, effected 
 without design, could he either expect, or derive glory, 
 honor and praise? But the Lord Jesus Christ did not 
 come into this world, did not suffer and die, did not rise 
 from the dead and ascend to heaven; the holy spirit does 
 not enliy;IUen< impress and change the heirt; the Bible 
 was not jiiven, and is not preserved; God does not par- 
 don, preserve, and iilorify his people by accident. The 
 vrhole is from design; and tit st design is eternal. 
 
 LETIEK XIV. 
 
 The number to be saved depends entirely on the will of God. 
 
 Let me, for the sake of farther illustration, suppose 
 that the whole human race consisted of one thousand in- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 83 
 
 iiFidiials. They are all sinners asiainst God; are under 
 sentence of condemnation, and deserve to perish. They 
 are naturally and strongly inclined to sin; their hearts 
 keing gOTerned hy an artive opposition to the moral 
 character and government of God, which prompts theia 
 to transgress his law. According to their view, the lavv 
 •f God is contrary to their interest; because it foibids 
 those pleasures which they love, and i\re endeavoring to 
 enjoy. They delighted in those things which this lavr 
 condemns, and hate those which it enjoins. They there- 
 fore hate, not only this law itself, but also the govern- 
 ment to which it belongs, and the perfections of God from 
 which it flows. They desire not the knowledge of his 
 ways; they forget and rebel against him habitually. — 
 This is their nature, their employment, and their de- 
 light. Now, to my mind, it is as clear as mathematical 
 demonstration that the scheme of Redemption never 
 could have originated with them; not only because they 
 are utterly incapable of devismg the plan, but also be- 
 cause they are utterly and decidedly opposed to it. The 
 very thing from which the Gospel proposes to save them, 
 3S the very thing which they love; of course, if they 
 could, they would not devise any means of deliverance 
 from it. In proportion to their love of sin, which is very 
 sincere, they will object to such a plan being devised and 
 brought into operation by another. It is undeniable, 
 therefore, that if they are saved, the plan must originate 
 Avith God, But he cannot be under any obligation to de- 
 vise this plan; it must, theiefore, be free; all the mo- 
 tives leading to it, and all the reasons on which it is 
 founded, must exist in his own nature. Unless it is ac- 
 cording to his own pleasure, il cannot be at all. Whether 
 he will save or destroy them, depends solely on his own 
 decision; no creature has a right to interfere. They de- 
 serve every one of them to be consigned to endless 
 misery. Thanks be to his holy name, he has decided in 
 favor of mercy and salvation. His wisdom has devised a 
 plan which will bring more glory to his name than ail his 
 •ther works. All that pertains to this plan, its provi- 
 sions, its measures, its means, as well as the plan itself, 
 must be according to his own decision: his will, his sove- 
 reign pleasure, reigns over and throughout the whole. 
 It is undeserved; it is unsolicited; nay it is eren opposed 
 by those for whom it is intended. 
 
84 Letters on ihe Divine Purpose, 
 
 The number to be saved, whether the whole, or only 
 a part, depends entirely on his own will; no creyture has 
 a right to interf<^re with this derision. Nor can I possi- 
 bly suppose that this point is left undecided, in the coun- 
 sels of infinite wisdom. That God alone has the rij^ht, 
 and that he is compei«Mit to decide, is evident. If, howe- 
 Ter, it should he supposed that thi«i point is not flecided; 
 that the great Jehovah thought proper to determine every 
 thing else belono;ing to this wondertul arid gracious plan, 
 except the nufuber to be saved; then, permit me to ask, 
 by whom is this important point to be derided? to whom 
 shall it be referred? shall God. by his own wisdom, de- 
 termine every thing else, and refer this matter to the holy 
 angels; leave it with them to decide? There is not an 
 angel in heaven vvho would not shudder at the idea; they 
 know too much of the intinite wisdom of their sovereign 
 to think of undertaking a task like this; of dictating, el- 
 even oflfe ring advice to him. What he does they approve 
 and adore, bhall it be left with sinners themselves to 
 decide? Let the question, then, be proposed, in suc- 
 cession, to each individual to answer for himself: Are 
 you willing to be saved? Are you willing to cease from 
 sin, and to become holy? The whole thousand would be 
 unanimous in answering, No! They would answer ac- 
 cording to their own nature, their own inchnations, de- 
 sires and affections, which are all sinful; each one would, 
 therefore, without hesitation say, No! Th;it this is not 
 a slanderous exaggeration, but a sober and solemn truth, 
 the unequivocal language of scripture, and all accurate 
 observation of human life, do abundantly prove. To 
 suppose that a different answer would be given, is to sup- 
 pose that he who gives it. is not a sinner; of course, thai; 
 he is not one of this thousand; or, that he does not be- 
 long to the human race. Such then would be the result, 
 if this decision were left to man; for if this were the 
 answer of each individual respecting himself, it would be 
 the answer of the whole thousand collectively. The 
 whole plan of salvation would fail. The sufferings of the 
 Saviour, the proclamations of mercy, the offers of par- 
 don, would all be in vain ! Not one of the whole 
 thousand are willing to cease from sin, or cherish one 
 devout sentiment. They unanimously prefer the prac- 
 tice and the pleasures of sin; of course, reject these of- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 85 
 
 iers. Such is the reception with which the gospel uni- 
 versally meets from man, under the influence of de 
 praved nature. 
 
 But why should we suppose that God has not deter- 
 mined this point, whether the whole, or only a part oi' 
 the guilty shall be saved? Is it because he is incompe- 
 tent to the task? Who then are more competent than 
 he? Certainly it is a decision of great importance in the 
 divine government, and ought to be made in such a man- 
 ner as would best promote the divine glory. To whom 
 is this glory more important, and more precious than to 
 God himself? Who understands more clearly than he 
 does, the means of securing and promoting it? Wisdom 
 is displayed in proposing the best end, and in devising 
 means best calculated to accomplish that end. Wh it end 
 can surpass the glory of God? For this purpose the 
 universe was created; for this purpose the plan of re- 
 demption was devised ; for this purpose sinners are 
 saved: they are vessels of mercy which he prepares to 
 make known the riches of his glory. If then it is inde- 
 cision so intimately connected with the divine giory, and 
 requires the exercise of wisdom of the greatest wisdom, 
 where is the creature, or where are the creatures who 
 possess greater wisdom than God; and who could decide 
 this point in a manner better calculated than he, to pro- 
 mote this glory? The collected wisdom of the universe, 
 when compared with that of Jehovah, is less than (he 
 taper compared with the sun. Whatever others may 
 think and say, to my mind it is perfectly clear, not only 
 that God is competent, but that he alone is competent to 
 decide this question. 
 
 Or shall we suppose he declines this decision because 
 he has not the right to make it. Who then possess this 
 right; and from whence do they derive it? Creatures 
 derive their existence, and all that they possess from God. 
 If they possess this right they must have derived it from 
 the Creator. If he conferred it on them, he must have 
 previously possessed it himself; and as all that he does 
 is according to the counsels of infinite wisdom, he must 
 have had reasons for this transfer which infinite wisdom 
 approves. What are these reasons? Will creatures ex- 
 ercise this right, and decide this point, with greater sffety 
 to the divine government, and more to the glory of Go5 
 
 8 
 
86 Letters on the Diviiie Purpose. 
 
 than he himself could do? Unless thfy rould make a bet- 
 ter derision than he could, there would be no reason for 
 transferring this ri2:ht to them; and without a reason, such 
 as infinite wisdom will approve, the transfer cannot be 
 made. A better de« ision they rould not form unless the}' 
 possessed greater wisdom than he does. This is impos- 
 sible; for his wisdom is intinite. It requires, therefore, 
 hut a little soher reflertion to see that this supposition 
 leads to the grossest absurdity. 
 
 If then creatures attempt to exercise this right, they 
 must have usurped it. They must arrogate to them- 
 selves the high prerogative of God, and thus undertake 
 to prescribe to their Maker and their Judge, what he 
 must do. For those who exerci«=e a right, do not merely 
 offer advice, but prnnoiHice an nuthor-tative sentence. 
 Now we are perfectly sure that the holy angels will not 
 usurp this high prerogative of God; they will not under- 
 take to legislate for their Sovereign. If it be usurped 
 and exercised, it must be done by men: by the very 
 criminals whose case is involved in the decision. That 
 they are capahle of attem|)tirig such a daring outrage, is 
 a melancholy fact. In 'a manner as unequivocal and as 
 intelligible as words could be, by their confirmed dispo- 
 sition and their uniforn) practice, they are daily and 
 hourly declaring their di«iapprobation of the divine law. 
 By their love of sin, they reproach this law as neither 
 just nor good. Su^-h is the madness and folly of sinners, 
 that they are capable ot arrogating the right of deciding 
 this momentous rase. But what would be their decision? 
 We have already seen that they vtould decide against 
 that part of salv.ition which implies and requires deliver- 
 ance from sin. That they would- object to regeneration 
 and holiness of heart and life, is just as certain as tliat, by 
 nature, they love and practice sin. Their sentence 
 would be according to their own character, and what 
 they conceived to be their own interest. For it is im- 
 possible for men, or angels, or even for God himself, to 
 love and choose, at the same time, two things so diamet- 
 rically opposite as sin and holiness. Let us suppose 
 then, that each individual gives his decision of this case, 
 and it will be this: *' I am not to be finally condemned- 
 I am to walk according to my own lusts; to gratify my 
 own desiresj to live according to my own pleasure, with- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 97 
 
 out control, and without punishment." This would be 
 the unanimous voice of the whole thousand; for their 
 natures are all the «ame. This is the decision of a crimi- 
 nal respecting himself, whose crimes are deeper than 
 crimson, and more numerous than the stars in the sky; 
 whos"? si;uilt is established by testi'uony clearer than the 
 sun. It is the decision of on<^ whose character is f>>lly, 
 dictatinsi to infinite wisdom. It is a wenk, selfish, vvicked, 
 condemned rebel, spiirninjj; the clemency of his sovereign; 
 claimiHij; the privileije of prostrating; the best of l;iws un- 
 der Kis {ee.i with impunity; proiiomirini: an authoritative 
 sentence, ivhich through an endless duration, is to have 
 an important intlnence on the ij;overnment of the universe. 
 Now, i question very much, whether the ingenuity of 
 man, oi even the talent of. an antj;el, could conceive a 
 more palpable ahsurdity than this consiimnate folly and 
 daring wickedness, usurping the reins of government from 
 the hands of infinite wisdom ind perfect goodn "ss. The 
 con<'lusion, in my view, is un tvoi<lable, that God alone 
 has the right to decide this point. 
 
 Let us, however, .take another view of the subject. 
 The government of moral agents is exclusively m the 
 hands of God; from him they have received those I vvs 
 by which they ought tO be r»^i£ul.ited; to him alon ihey 
 are accountable. The infliction of punishment, md the 
 exercise of merry, are imong the most important mea- 
 sures of all governments, both human and divine. Now, 
 according to supposition, there are under this moral gov- 
 ernment, one thousand criminal, justly condemned, who 
 deserve to perish. The question to be derided is, whe- 
 ther th.e whole number, or only a part of them shall be 
 punished as they deserve, whether the whole or only a 
 part, shall be saved. Admit for a moment, that there is 
 neither folly, presumption, nor wickedness, in creatures 
 deciding this case; sufipose they determine the number 
 to be saved; yet they could not possibly execute their 
 own sentence.. This can be done by God idone. Sal- 
 vation is the gracious gift of God; and it is not even sup- 
 posahle that creatures can bestovv the favor of God their 
 Sovereign, on whomsoever they please. In executing 
 this sentence he would not vvork after the counsel of his 
 own will, but according to the will oi' another. VVhile 
 inflicting deserved punishment, or dispensing unmerited 
 
38 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 pardon, he would only fill the suhordinate office of exe- 
 cutor of the will and pleasure of others. He could not, 
 then, with propriety, be called the Supreme Ruler; in 
 as much as there are others, by whose decision, in these 
 important measures, he is governed. This part of the 
 government, so important, and so difficult, at least with 
 mnn, to be administered with safety, would not be his, 
 but would belong to those whose will he obeys. You 
 will, at once, perceive that this violates all our ideas of 
 propriety, and is directly contrary to the ivhole tenor of 
 scripture. 'J hose who suppose that God himself does 
 not decide this question, must suppose that he does not 
 sustain the high and august charncter of Supreme Ruler 
 of the Universe; that in some importnnt measures, he is 
 only the subordinate agent of others. Those who be- 
 lieve that he is the Siipreme Ruler, believe, of course, 
 that he decides respecting this and every other measure 
 of his own government. 
 
 That the Lord, Jehovah, and he alone, is competent 
 to decide this question; that he alone has the right; that 
 as Supreme Ruler he must decide it; appears to be the 
 unavoidable conclusion, flowing from premises clearly 
 established. 
 
 Another point, of great importance, in the scheme of 
 redemption is, when shall this decision be made; or 
 when has it been made? T he whole scheme will soon 
 come to a close; the last pardon will soon be given; the 
 Son will soon deliver up the kingdom to the Father, that 
 God may be all in all. The decision must be made be- 
 fore that day arrives. The number of those who shall 
 enter into the joy of their Lord., will then be completed, 
 neither to be increased nor diminished forever, if it 
 should be supposed that God has not determined this 
 m-atter before, he must determine it then. His determi- 
 nation, let it be formed when it may, must rest upon such 
 reasons as infinite wisdom will approve; for this is the 
 character of all his works. He does nothing in an arbi- 
 trary manner, but all things according to the counsels of 
 his wisdom. These reasons are not discovered by inves- 
 tigation, nor his wisdom increased by experience. He 
 is, then, as competent to make the decision now, as he 
 will be at the last moment of time. But those reasons 
 were as well known to him, were as clearly perceived. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 89 
 
 before the foundation of the world, as they are now. I 
 cannot, then, conceive, nor do I suppose that any man 
 can conceive, why the decision should be delayed after 
 all the reasons on which it is founded are clearly per- 
 ceived. And as it is certain that these reasons were 
 thus clearly perceived from all eternity, it is equally cer- 
 tain, at least in my view, that from all eternity, this de- 
 cision has been made. 
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 Ti'ie mea7is of salvation, suited to each individxiLal ^ embraced 
 in the divine purpose. 
 
 That God has appointed the means as well as the end, 
 13 a truth which ought not to escape our attention. If 
 ihe salvation of sinners is an end, determined in the coun- 
 sels of heaven, the means for accomplishing this end, are 
 also appointed, by the same counsels. These means are 
 wisely adapted to the necessities and character of sinners. 
 They are guilty; and need pardon; they are depraved, 
 and need regeneration and holiness; they are ignorant, 
 and need instruction. 
 
 That mankind are ignorant, by nature, of the plan of 
 salvation, through a divine Saviour, is an undeniable 
 truth. That the}' are ignorant of the true character of 
 God, is equally evident. Some idea of a Supreme Being 
 may, indeed, be found in most nations; but this knowl- 
 edge is so blended vvith error and absurdity as to be ut- 
 terly insulHcient to answer the purpose of a safe guide. 
 That this is a dangerous ignorance, destructive to the 
 soul, is contirmed by observation and by Scripture. My 
 people perish for lack of knozvledge. Having the under- 
 standing darkened, being alienated from the life of God 
 through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blind- 
 ness of their hearts. In order to salvation it is evident 
 that this ignorance must be removed. And as nothing 
 but light can remove darkness, so nothing but knowledge 
 can dispel ignorance. Without the knowledge of the gos- 
 pel, there can be no salvation; for this is life eternal, that 
 they might know iheCy the only true God, and Jesus Christ, 
 znhom thou hast sent. This knowledge is not, now at 
 least, acquired by miracle, but in the same way in which 
 the knowledge of other things is obtained; by the appli- 
 
 8* 
 
90 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 cation of the understanding; by attention and diligence- in 
 study. In order to this, the means of inforn^ation must 
 be placed vvithin the reach of every individual. The 
 Bible, either directly, or indirectly, is the only source 
 from whence this information can be obtained. All who 
 are saved, must either read and understand the Bible 
 personally themselves, or they must receive instruction 
 from those who are acquainted with it. The determina- 
 tion, therefore, to save sinners, includes the means on 
 which that salvation depends. And as there is no regen- 
 eration without the word of God; no eternal life without 
 the knowledge of the true God, and of Jesus Christ; and 
 as this knowledge can only be obtained from the Bible; 
 the divine purpose includes, of course, the presentment 
 of the sacred pages to their attention. The design of 
 God to call, to justify, to glorify sinners secures the ex- 
 istence and concurrence of all the numerous and various 
 circumstances and events on which their acquaintance 
 with the Bible depends. There is almost an endless vari- 
 ety in the circumstances and events whi(!h bring different 
 individuals to this acquaintance; all arranged and brought 
 into operation at the proper time, and in their proper or- 
 der by the wisdom of Him, to whom all his works are knoxmi 
 from the beginning. Some cannot remember the time., 
 when the care of pious parents began to store their minds 
 with religious instruction; others arrive at maturity, and 
 even old age, before the knowledge of a Saviour shines 
 into their hearts. 
 
 It is not, however, the mere possession of this knowl- 
 edge that will save the soul, though it cannot be saved 
 without it. Thousands possess it in various degrees who 
 furnish the most afflictive proof that they are children oj 
 wrath. No degree of knowledge without a change of 
 heart will prepare sinners for the joy of their Lord. — 
 This change is effected by divine power; it is the pecu- 
 liar and exclusive work of the divine Spirit; yet this di- 
 vine Agent generally works by the use of means, and 
 chiefly by the instrumentality of truth. That some are 
 savingly enlightened by reading the Bible, without the 
 opportunity of attending public worship, I am ready to 
 admit; still it is a fact, that it pleases God^ by the foolish- 
 ness. of preachings to save those who believe. By this, sin- 
 ners are generally impressed and awakened, and chris- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* • 91 
 
 tiaus are edified. But how often has every minister of 
 the gospel occasion to observe and lament, that his 
 preaching fails to awaken the careless! His most solemn 
 warnings; his most plain and forcible representations: 
 his most earnest and affectionate entreaties, as far as he 
 can observe, are in vain! Sabbath after sabbath, and 
 year after year, many of his hearers attend and return 
 from the house of God, in the same state of insensibility 
 to spiritual things. That preacher who is unwilling to 
 acknowledge the necessity of divine agency to the suc- 
 cess of the gospel, might almost as vvell acknowledge, 
 that it is not Christ Jesu", but himself, he is preaching; 
 that he is not making full proof of his mmistry; that he 
 only wishes to secure the unhallowed applause, not the 
 salvation of his hearers. The belief of this doctrine is 
 their onlj refuge, their only hope of suc( ee-s; this, in the 
 midst of surroundinii; discouragement-^, unimates them to 
 persevere. His influences they cannot command; but 
 they can use those means, which, through his aid, are suc- 
 cessful. Sometimes the hearer is more attentive and se- 
 rious; good and lasting impressions are made. This i& 
 often, if not in all cases, owing to a different slate of mind 
 in the hearer. Some event has occurred which has 
 brought the mind mto a more serious mood; which has 
 drawn off the thoughts a little more than usual from the 
 world; and thus, without chan ing the heart, has pre- 
 y)ared it to receive the word. Some narrow escape from 
 danger; some afflictive dispensation of providence; some- 
 thing in the conversation, or example of a christian; or 
 some daring wickedness in a profligate sinner, may, in 
 the hands of the spirit, have been the means of leading 
 to such a train of reflection as to open the heart for the 
 ' reception of the gospel. At the same time, without sup- 
 posing that the preaching which he hears is, upon the 
 whole, better than he has formerly heard, yet there may 
 be something in the manner of the preacher, or in the 
 sermon itself, peculiarly adapted to his present state of 
 mind, which renders it more interesting and more im- 
 pressive. Under the impulse of these impressions, 
 though very slight compared to what they ought to be. 
 yet the mind is excited to farther reflections, and farther 
 inquiries respecting spiritual things; and is thus prepared 
 to observe more carefully the events of providence, and 
 to hear with more interest and more prolit, the preach- 
 
9£ Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 ing of the word. Thus that insensibilit)? of heart, and 
 that blindness of mind which characterize impenitent sin- 
 ners, is graduall}', and to himself, perhaps, impercepti- 
 bl)^ chanujed. At lensjth the truth, respecting his own 
 guilt and danger is admitted, which, formerly, without 
 this preparation, this opening of the heart, would have, 
 been heard with inattention, or have been rejected 
 through unbelief. Thus he becomes the subject of those 
 genuine convictions of sin which extort from his heart 
 the inquiry, what must I do.to be saved? an inquiry which 
 indicates a preparation of mind to welcome the Saviour, 
 and his salvation. By the dispens itions of providence, 
 and chiefly by the gospel and its holy ordinances, he is 
 brought, laboring and heavy laden, tu the Lamb of God. 
 7vho taketh away the sin of the world , in vvhom he\rusts 
 with an humble confidence; and tinds joy and peace in 
 believing. He does not now, with cold indifference, 
 merely admit that the gospel is true; he rejoices to be- 
 lieve and feel that it is true; he embraces, he loves, he 
 clings to it as his only refuge, his only ground of hope. 
 His heart is radically changed; he is a new creature; he 
 is a christian. 
 
 Without afliirming that the holy Spirit observes this 
 method, in the case of every one, brought to Christ; yet 
 I am inclined to think it more generally the method, than 
 christians are aware of. In giving a narrative of their 
 religious experience, they very frequently omit those 
 occurrences and those events which pi oduced those slight 
 impressions, those tirst thoughts and reflections, whicli 
 prepared the mind to receive those deeper and more 
 perceptible impressions, vvith which they usually begin 
 their narrative. The very first reflection, > with the 
 cause which produced it, ought not to be omitted, any 
 mx)re than those more decisive effects, which flowed from 
 it. That circum^ta K^e, or that event, which proved the 
 c?iuse of such reflection, however trivial and unimport- 
 ant it might appear, in the view of men, was appointed, 
 in the counsels of infinite wisdom, as an important part oj 
 the means of turning the sinner from darkness to light. 
 Without this occurrence, the reflection to which it gave 
 rise, would not have been excited; and without this re- 
 flection, the mind would not have been disposed to hear 
 the gospel with the same profit: and thus it would noi 
 have been prepared to receive those deeper impressions 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 93 
 
 and those genuine convictions for sin, which may be 
 traced back, in unbroken connexion, to the first serious 
 thought, and the cause which produced it. If that event 
 had not occurred precisely when it did, this reflection 
 would not have been ex ited; the mind would have re- 
 mained the victim of that insensibility, which would have 
 resisted the truth. Had the jjospel not been heard while 
 the mind was in this state; or had there been nothing in 
 the manner of the preacher, or in his sermon, adapted 
 to this state of mind, the effect would not have taken 
 place. Under other circumstances, niid with a different 
 disposition, the sinner mishl have heard, as he had often 
 done before, and as thousand?! are habitually hearing, 
 with the most stupid indiff"erenre. But the intention of 
 God to give eternal life, secures the means of accom- 
 plishing that intention. These means, wisely adapted to 
 each individual, in all their endless variety, in their mi- 
 nutest details, are as much according to his holy and sov- 
 ereign pleasure, as the plan of salvation itself The holy 
 Spirit, with unerring and effectu d control, directs that 
 series of events, that success on of mean* v\liirh, through 
 his agency, become inslrumeiitnl in proiuoiinji the moral 
 improvement of the mind, from the ver}' first serious re- 
 flection, to the highest exultation of faith and hope. Un- 
 certainty respecting one circumstance, or one single 
 event, would mark wi h imperfection the plan and the 
 work of the Spirit; all the subsequent events, which flow 
 from this as their cause, would be equally uncertain; all 
 the impressions, all the effects, whh h these events are 
 the means of producing, would also be involved in the 
 same uncertainty. The whole work, and of course, the 
 salvation of the soul, might, in this way, be uncertain. 
 But it is impossible that uncert.unty csin belong to the 
 designs of God: with Him there is nothing vague, indefi- 
 nite or uncertain. 
 
 This conclusion I do not see how to avoid, unless we 
 suppose that, by the grace of God, the sinner is turned 
 into a mere machine. This, indeed, is a charge often 
 brought against Calvinism: hut it is like all other charges 
 brought against it— perfectly groundless. It has its 
 origin" in prejudice, or in iii;norance; perhaps in both. 
 It would not be a whit more remote from truth to say, 
 that the food which man receives, and the air which he 
 
94 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 breathes, turn his body into a statute of marble, than to 
 say, that the doctrines of grace, usually called Calvinis- 
 tic, turn his mind into a machine, without intelhgence, 
 without thought or reflection; and which can be moved 
 only by physical force. The doctrines of grace produce 
 their effect by calling into action, the most vigorous 
 action, every farully of the soul; instead of destroying 
 or suspending, they awijken into lively exercise, all the 
 virtuous sensibilities of the heart. They furnish the 
 mind with useful material for thought and reflection, 
 while they present to the heart, ohjerts most worthy of 
 its affections. Wtjolesome food, water and air, do not 
 more nalurHlly, nor more certainly, nourish the body, 
 than the doctrines of grace improve, exp^md and elevate 
 the mmd. A-cordini: to these doctrmes, the sinner is 
 not driven, blindfolded, into the kingdom of heaven, nor 
 is he bound to it, like the <acritice with rords to the 
 altar; in the day of divine power he is wilhng; he is led, 
 not driven, by the holy spirit; he is dr iwn by loving 
 kindness, which employs his serious and devout con- 
 sideration. 
 
 For the purjjose of illustrating the preceding remarks, 
 permit me to cal your attention to the rase of Lydia.* 
 Paul, the fi'st Sabbath .ifter he arrived at Philij)pi, w<mt 
 out of the rity, by a river side, whep*^ prayer was wont 
 to be made, and there' spake unto the women who re- 
 sorted thither. And n certain woman^ named Lydia, o 
 seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira^ rs'hich worshiped 
 God, heard ; whose heart the Lord (tpened, that she attended 
 to the things which were spoken nf Paul. This is a short, 
 but satisfactory account of Lydia's tirst acquaintance with 
 the gospel, and of her cleaving to the Lord with purpose 
 of heart The prea<hing of Paul was blessed, by the 
 Holy Spirit, as the means of her salv;ition. Her pres- 
 ence, at this time, by the river side, was secured by the 
 purpose of God. in the ordinary course of providence. 
 Her reasons for leaving her native city, Thyatira, in 
 Asia Minor, we do not know: probably they grew out of 
 the trade in which she was employed. No doubt she 
 came voluntarily, and without any expectation of what 
 happened. The only wise God overruled the motives by 
 which she was induced to rhange her residence to his 
 * Acts xvi, 14. 
 
 ?iv 
 
Letters on the Bh'ine Purpose, 95 
 
 own glory in her snivfition. Her residence in Philippi, 
 and her attendance r»t the phice of prayer, are not only 
 secured, but her mind also was prepared. Whose heart 
 the Lord opened, k,r. Thomson translates this, more 
 correctly, the Lord had opened her heart. This opening 
 of the heart, this preparation of the mind, was a work 
 already performed, previously to her attendance on this 
 occasion. He who called Paul to come over into Macedo- 
 nia, and who called Lydia, thoUii;h in a different way, 
 from Thyatira to Phillippi, had arranged all those cir- 
 cumstances, and brought about all those events, which 
 were made instrumental in jiivinej her thoughts and re- 
 flections that particular direction which left her mind in 
 ;i state most favorable to receive and welcome the mes- 
 sages of mercy. Under the same unerring control, Paul 
 was led to make those remarks, to give those views of 
 the gospel which exactly suited her case, and which, 
 being received by faith, sprang up, like seed in good 
 ground, and brouiiht forth the peaceable fruits of righte- 
 ousness, the end of which is everlasting life. The prepa- 
 ration of the heart in man, and the ariswer of the tongue^ is 
 from (he Lord. 
 
 As Lydia was a free agent, she must have left her na- 
 tive city under the influence of motives presented to her 
 in the ordmary vvay, arising out of the events of her life. 
 Had these events been different, they would not have 
 presented the same motives; and without motives, or 
 re.jsons, she would not have changed her residence. 
 Nor was her heart opened by any miraculous interposi- 
 tion, but by llie Wessing of God on the ordmary, perhaps, 
 casual occurrences of life. Had these occurrences been 
 ditferent, they would not have answered the purpose of 
 preparing her mind to receive the truth. Had Paul spo- 
 ken on a diffeient subject, or in a different manner, not 
 adapted to the state of her mind, the effect, without a 
 miracle, would not have taken place. But God, who, 
 from the beginning, had chosen her to salvation, had 
 chosen also the means which were instrumental in bring 
 rng her, with suitable preparation of heart, to the place 
 where she heard the words, by which she was saved. 
 Similar attention is paid to every one who is brought to 
 the Saviour, by Htm who is wonderful in counsel. 
 
96 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 Tlie providence of God subservient to the designs of mercy — 
 Great events made up of smaller — Our duty and interest 
 to meditate on all his works. 
 
 As I am not writing a system of Thpologj', nor at- 
 tempting to express my thoughts on a particular subject 
 in systematic order, you must not be disappointed if you 
 do not find every sentence and paragraph in what you 
 may suppose to be its proper place. There are several 
 considerations which I wish to suggest at present. Some 
 of them might as well have occupied any other place: 
 at the same time, they may be here, as well as any where 
 else. 
 
 The subserviency of providence to the designs of 
 mercy, has been already mentioned; and a« it follows as 
 a consequence, from the remarks of the preceding letter, 
 1 wish to oflfer a few farther reflections on the subject. 
 This subservienry is not only perceivable to all attentive 
 readers of the Bible, but is frequently mentioned in plain 
 terms. If the Lord girded Cyrus, held his right hand, 
 subdued nations before him, it was all for Jacob his ser- 
 vants sake ; and for Israel his elect. The Jews, as a cor- 
 rection for their idolatrous practices, are suffering in a 
 state of bondage; the correction has, at length, produced 
 the desired effect; and they are now to be restored to 
 their native land, to rebuild the temple; to solemnize 
 their annual festivals; and to reinstate the worship of 
 the true God. In subserviency to these designs Cyrus 
 achieves his victories; releases the Jev/s from their cap- 
 tivity; restores them to their beloved country; and even 
 aid*^ them in rearing the temple from its ruins; encoura 
 ges and protects them in the worship of Jehovah. 
 
 What a long train of events were rendered subservient 
 to the removal of Joseph into Egypt! These events can 
 be traced back to his Father's partiality; to his own 
 dream; to the envy, and unfeeling cruelty of his breth- 
 ren. They thought evil against him ; but God meant it unto 
 good — to sa7W much people alive.* In this the Egyptians, 
 the most learned and refined people then on earth, had 
 an opportunity of becoming acquainted with the charac- 
 ter and worship of the true God. We are not informed 
 
 * Gen. 1, 20. 
 
Letters on the Divine ]^2irpose. 9r 
 
 .hat they improve(i the privilejre; most probahly they did 
 not. Both nations and individual.i, however, are ac- 
 countable for the opportunities of improvement which 
 are pres^euted to them. If the means of salvation arfi 
 placed fairly within their reach, they are left without 
 excuse, though they should neglect, and ev^en resist those 
 means. Yet who will venture to say that none of them 
 were erdightened hythe illustrious and pious example of 
 •Tosepb and his father; by the messages and miracles of 
 Moses? The migration and bondage of the Hebrews in 
 Egypt was rendered subservient to other great and im- 
 portant purposes. They were rescued from this bon- 
 dage, conducted through the wilderness, and planted in 
 the promised land, by an astonishing and constant suc- 
 cession of miracles. Their departure from Egypt; their 
 passage through the Red sea; the giving of the law, at 
 Mount Sinai; the manna from heaven; the water from 
 the rock; the pillar of a cloud, and of fire; are among 
 the most astonishing and terrible disphiys of the divine 
 power and glory; and continue to warn and instruct the 
 world to this day. Wherever the Bible goes, the thun- 
 ders of Sinai are heard, and its lightnings are seen. In 
 a certain sense, the pillar of cloud by day, and of tire by 
 night, continue to guide the people of God, through the 
 wilderness, towards the promised land. These were, 
 at least, to the Jews, very instructive and impressive les- 
 ?.ons; memorials of* which were continued among them 
 by divine appointment. For this purpose they are often 
 referred to, by their religious teachers. The worship of 
 Jehovah is often entbrced, by reminding them, that He 
 whom they are required to love and obey, is the Lord 
 their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt^ and 
 from the house of bondage. 
 
 Had these miracles not been perforfned and recorded, 
 the Jews, and the world, would not have received this 
 instruction: had they not been in bondage in Egypt, the 
 •ccasion of these mira^^les would not have existed: had 
 the famine not prevailed, they would not have been 
 there; for this «vas the cause of their going: had Joseph 
 not been in Egypt, previous to this time, bread would 
 not have been found, even there; for he was the means 
 •f its preservation; and thus the cause of their going 
 would not have- existed: had Joseph not been sold, and 
 
 
 
98 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 carried Into Eijypt, he would not have been there: had 
 bis brethren lovecj him as the} ought; had they not 
 envied, and hated hira, they would not have sold him: 
 had not his Father ioved hio) more than all his other 
 children, they would not have hated him. Little did 
 that venerable patriarch know the l6ng train of conse- 
 quences which were to flow from his fond partiality ! 
 They were perfectly known, however, to Jncob's God, 
 who rendered t! is p;irli<dify, with all the consequences 
 which flowed from it, subservient to the manifestation of 
 his own power, his goodness and his mercy; who, in the 
 counsels of eternal wisdom, made this partiality an in- 
 dispensable link m that chain of events which enlighten- 
 ed, and will continue to enlighten the world, till the last 
 hour of its existence. 
 
 The first settlers of New England were induced iQ 
 leave their native country by religious intolerance. At 
 liome they could not enjoy the privilege of worshiping 
 God, according to the dictates of their own conscience. 
 This privilege they sought, and found, in the new world. 
 They brought with them the gospel, with all its blessings; 
 where it has continued to produce its heavenly effects 
 to this hour. Those who employed this intolerance had 
 certainly no design of spreading the gospel to distant 
 countries; and yet such was the effect which they were 
 made instrumental in producing. The Most High, while 
 he condemned, their persecuting bigotry, rendered it 
 subservient in carrying the word of life to that part of our 
 country, where thousands have been, through its sacred 
 influence, prepared for the mansions of glory. While 
 man is deterred at the peril of his soul, from doing evil 
 that good may come, it is the high prerogative of Jeho« 
 vah to bring good out of evil. 
 
 ■The Bible Society, the greatest Institution the world 
 ever witnessed, except those organized by special direc- 
 tion from heaven, may be traced back to the pious 
 thoughts and deliberations of one single man. The Rev. 
 Mr Charles, while preaching in Wales, found a number 
 of families without the Bible. He revolved in his mind, 
 some means of supplying this want. He expressed his 
 wishes, and his views to others; who immediately enter- 
 ed into his feelings, matured his suggestions, and were 
 the honored instruments of bringing into operation the 
 
Leffera on the Divine Pnrpnse, 99 
 
 British and Forfign Bible Sorjety. Hud those families 
 visited by thi- Mi.ssioparv <»f the cross, been supplied ivith 
 Bible>s, liis feehnj^s wotiK! n<>t have been exrited; for 
 there would have b«^en notbint; to awaken tbemj his 
 thoiiu;hts would not have taken thi>! direction; for there 
 would have been nofiiirjij to le 'd them H id he not felt, 
 and rhouf{ht as he <hd, he would not have (n..de the sug- 
 gestion;* which be did to his frietids; without these sug- 
 gestions, they would neither have matured, nor brought 
 into operation the plan whif:h they did; thf Bible So- 
 ciety vvould not have existed; of ronrse millions of the 
 human family, now possessing the means of instruction, 
 vvould have been sitting in darkness. But it was the 
 purpose of eternal mercy to dispel this darkness; and 
 with this view to bring into operation the Bible Society; 
 not by miracle, but by human ajijents, influenced by their 
 own thoughts, and their own motives; which, bad atten- 
 tion been paid to the subject, at the proper time, could 
 ail have been traced to some dispensation of providence 
 as their cause. Those dispensations, or that state of 
 things, which awakened the thouifhts and reflections of 
 Mr Charles, have been related, are now on record, and 
 will descend to posterity in the Histoiy of the British 
 anfl Foreign Bible Society. All those events which 
 furnished the motives by w\ ich these numerous ajjents 
 were induced to a« t their part, were embraced in the 
 plan of infinite wisdom, and rendered subservient to the 
 purpose of divine ben<n'olefice in «iiffiising, through the 
 \torld, the light of life. Think, f)r a moment, of , this 
 sublime Institution in embryo; when all the existence it 
 had, except in tlie divine purpo-^e, was one smuU thought 
 in the mind of Mr Charles! see this thought expan«ling, 
 and produrinji correspondent feelin^iis and de^sires; these 
 u^iviin communi''ated, awakening similar feelings in other 
 bosoms, and ripeninij into a plan; this plan coming into 
 ictive operation, movinij foiward with a majesty, benevo- 
 Lence^ and powt'r vvhich indicate its heavenly origin; 
 and now, behold, the exient, the usefulness ami jjlory of 
 this Institution, and will you not while anticipating its 
 complete and tinal success, he constrained to exclaim in. 
 the I .nguage of pious admiration, This is the Lord^s doing: 
 and it is ivondrous in our eyes I 
 
100 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 Mr R. Raikes beheld a number of children, neglected 
 by their parents, profanins; the Lord's day, growing up in 
 ignorance, acquiring h;ibits of idleness and vice. This 
 affecting spectat le wa^ rend^^red subservient, in divine 
 providence, to >the commenrement of Sunday Schools^; 
 TV'hirh promise through the blessing of God, unspeakable 
 usefulness to {he church of Christ The stale of the 
 heathew,' buried in ignorance, superi^tition and \'ice, per- 
 ishi?ig for lack of knonledge, has given rise to Missionary 
 Societi'^s. through which the spiiil of primitive piety 
 seems, in some degree, to he reviving. 'Fhose ntinu r- 
 ous benevolent in>ti'totions which flistingui^h the present 
 age. owe their origin to tlie miseries ot man, which they 
 are intended to relieve; and l>ut for whirh, they, would not 
 have existed. 'I hese miseries ure permitted to afflict 
 one part of the human hunily, that the other* part m^ty 
 have strong and rational inducements to afford relief; and 
 thus to glorify God, h)/ the-exerr,i:«e of active benevo- 
 lence. 
 
 in reading the life of the Rev. John Newton, written 
 by himself, you will find mnlny incidents, which, at the 
 time they iiajrpened, appeared altogether casual, tmd 
 promising no very important results, yet were afterwards 
 found to have an important in6uenre in de'termining the 
 course of his subsequent life. Had these events not hap- 
 pened at the very moment when they, did, or hari they 
 been hut a littb different from what they were, they 
 woukl not hjive proiiured that train of causes and effects, 
 whi( ii flowed fom them. Had the events of bis life 
 been different, his character, in all human probability, 
 would have also been different. The gieat Head of the 
 church, tioiyever, who intended him for (iistinguished 
 usefulness, kneiVwhen, and in what manner, to employ 
 the decisive control of his p:ovidenc,e,. so as to secure 
 the o' nirrence of all ihpse events, furnish hI I those op- 
 port' n tes and means of serious reflection, wMch, through 
 the tioiy spirit. i--su<'d in that piety and zeal which r« n- 
 dered him aseful to the church and to the worlii. So 
 remarkable were some of these incidents that he hiraselt 
 has a( knowledged the hand of God in them, making them 
 instrumental in bringing him to the knowledge of himseli 
 and of his Saviour. With this view he has pointed them 
 out to the particular attention of his readers. 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 101 
 
 Though few men have lived a life so eventful and di- 
 7ersiti*?d -as the former part of Mr Newton's was, yet the 
 providence of God extends alike to every man. Every 
 pious man will delio;ht to meditate on that guardian care 
 which furnished him with the means of instruction, as 
 well as on that divine power vvhich rendered these in- 
 structions effectual to his salvation. 
 
 Let me recommend to you, as an employment of your 
 thoughts hoth plear^ing and useful, frequently and seri- 
 ously to meditate on that train, of events which are Cron- 
 nected with that seriousness of mind which you now feel. 
 According; to the statement vvhich you have iven me, on 
 this subject you need ajo no farther back than the day on 
 which you received the lirst serious impression, slight 
 indeed in itself, but very im[)or.tant as it led to farther in- 
 quiries on spiritual ttiings. You have stated that you 
 were not in the habit 6f attending public worship, though. 
 quite convenient to you; that on ti»at day you had no !$uch, 
 intention; but a neighbor, contrary to his usual custom, 
 called, and. invited you to accompany him; that there 
 vras something in the manner of this invitation which in- 
 duced you to accept of it; that you returned with impres- 
 sions, not very deep, but whir h led to farther inquiries, 
 and were increased by those inquiries. Here, with pro- 
 priety, in my opinion, you date the commencement of 
 that change of heart which you have experienced, and 
 which, I hope is the work of the spirit — a radical change 
 •f character. I suppose every person will admit the 
 correctness of your own opinion, that the public worship 
 which you attended that day was blessed as the means of 
 producing that thoughtfulness with which you returned 
 bome. On how many events did }our attendance on 
 public worship that day depend? It evidently depend- 
 ed on the health of your neighboi. Had he been confin- 
 ed by sickness he would not have gone, and would not, 
 •f course, have given you the invitation which induced 
 you to go The sickness of his family might also have 
 prevented him. Your own sickness, or that of some of 
 your family, might have prevented your attending, though 
 you had received the invitation. After you reached the 
 place of worship, the service in which you engaged, de- 
 fended on the health of the minister who conducted it. 
 
 Tour impressions, no doubt depended on the sermon 
 
 94^ 
 
102 Letters on the Divive Purpose, 
 
 which you heard. Another sermon might not have had 
 the same effect; or the same sprmon from another per- 
 son, mi^ht have heen heard in v^in. Health is evidently 
 preserved hy the providenre of God; not by miraclCj 
 but by the instrumentality of second causes; by the air 
 we breathe, the clothing we wear, the food we receive^ 
 the exercise and medic ine we take, &c. These causes 
 depend, in like manner, on others which preceded them. 
 Health, in the above instances was preserved, not merely 
 for its own sake, but with ulterior and more important 
 views, that it might be subservient to the exercise of 
 mercy. Th»' health of your neighbor, was preserved 
 that he might give you the invitation, your own, that you 
 might accept of it; that of the clergyman, that he might 
 deliver those sentiments which were made effectual in 
 awakening seriona' reflection in your mind. Such was 
 the case with every individual who attended with you oq 
 that day. '^uch, indeed, is the case with all who, at any 
 time attend public worship: they are entirely dependent 
 on the providence of God for the privilege. Our health 
 is preserved, our life is prolonged, that we might live, not 
 to ourselves, but to him who has died for us, and rose again. 
 The government of providence is subservient to the work 
 of grace; and is carried on with an evident design to pro- 
 mote that work. 
 
 I know that there are many pious people, and ev6o 
 some who hold the doctrines, generally Cidled Calvinism^ 
 who are startled at the idea of extending their inquiries 
 into a detail of particulars. They firaily believe in the 
 general truth, but are afraid of tracing too minutely the 
 necessary, and even scrij>tural inferenf es from that truth. 
 Without hesitation they ascribe to the provsdences of 
 God those great events which tal<e place in the world; 
 but they hesitate when it is proposed to investigate those 
 minor events on which the great one depends. The life 
 of man, they admit, is preserved by the providenre of 
 God; and yet it is with great reluctance they think of in- 
 quiring into all those second causes, all those means, 
 which providence employs iu effecting that preservation. 
 As an excose for thenseivts. and a warning, if not a re- 
 proof to others, they repeat, what, from the frequent use 
 made* of it, by respectahl*^^' -speakers and writers too, lti*^y 
 honestly believe to be scripture^ ''Be not wise above 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 103 
 
 what is written." Now, admitting, for a moment, that 
 this caution was found in the scripture, I cannot perceive 
 that it justifies this fear; that it prohibits our inquiries 
 into those thin}i;*== which are written, confessedl}' for out 
 instruction. I know, indeed, that there are limits; very 
 uarrow limits too; heyond which the human mind cannot 
 extend its inquiries with uny advantage. With th« -e 
 good people 1 will unite most coidially in ahhorring tl t 
 rash and impious curiosity, which seeks a paltry distinc- 
 tion by agitating questions be^fond these limits. Su( li 
 discussions are not on\y useless, liui often injurious: they 
 niay gratify the vanity of the vainglorious, but never can 
 enlighten the mind of the sober inquirer after truth. 
 
 The life of men is preserved by the providence of 
 God. Can it be extending our inquiries too far to ask, 
 how is it preserved? Is it by miracle, or the use of 
 means? It is certainly safe to affirm, that it is not by mi- 
 racle, but by the use of means; by providing us bread to 
 eat, v/ater to drink, &.c. May we not, with equal safety, 
 ask, how is this bread provided? Is it possible to avoid 
 the conclusion, that it is provided by second causes; by 
 the labor of the husbandman, the fertility of the earth, 
 tife influence of the sun and rain. Without the influence 
 of the sun, the rain, kc. there < ould be no bread; and 
 without bread, the life of man could not long be pre- 
 served. These effects, as has already been stated, are 
 all, in scripture, ascribed to God; and are they not as 
 much His work, as the preservation of life? Why then 
 should they not be the subject of our inquiries and of oui; 
 grateful acknowledgments? 
 
 These good people believe that God created the earth. 
 But the earth is composed of I. ills and valleys, of rocki 
 and mountains, and these again of ,«toms. Could he cre- 
 ate the earth without creating ttiose parts, of which it is 
 composed? Can we go too far when the creation of 
 these particulars are ascribed to him, as well as the earth 
 itself? It is admitted tnat God hath measured the waterSy 
 that is the ocean, in the hollow of his hand. In rneastunig 
 the ocean, must he not measure the drops of which the 
 ocean is composed? A hoiKt- i onsi>is of a -re it iiocn i r 
 of parts; each of which were oirhided in the design of 
 tiie architect; and are as (fiM< h the proiliK i of his inj:,e- 
 a'.Mty and labor, as the building itself. These parts w«rc 
 
iU4 Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 formed, and may exist separately; but in this state they 
 answer no valuable purpose: it is only when brought to- 
 gether, and arranged in proper ordpr, that they consti- 
 tute a building. When we affirMi that this house was 
 planned by the skill and built by the I »bor of the archi- 
 tect, may we not affirm, and do we not, in fuct, affirm, 
 that all the part?, even down to the minutest, were 
 equally the product of his skill and his labor? The build- 
 ing could not exist without the parts; nor could the parts 
 have existed witJiout the design and agenry of the builder. 
 When we affirm that the life of m.m is preserved by the 
 care of providence, we, in like manner, affinn, if we un- 
 derstand our own language, that all th^ means, all the 
 subordinate causes, even down to the very minutest, are 
 as certainly, and as distinctly embraced in the plan, and 
 brought into existence through the aiiency of God, as that 
 preservation tself. These minute parts, these subordi- 
 nate causes, cannot engage our attention at one and the 
 same time; they may, and, in my opinion, ought, how- 
 ever, in successiion. To know that our life is preserved 
 l»y the constant care of heaven, is indeed calculated t© 
 excite our gratitude: but will not our grateful emotions 
 be more sincere, more useful, because more acceptalfle 
 to God, if produced by an accurate knowledge of the va- 
 rious means, the subordinate events combined, which are 
 rendered instrumental in our preservation? A person 
 viewing a building on the outside only, and at some dis- 
 tance, would judge that the builder was a man of skill 
 in his profession; but his idea of that skill would be more 
 correct and enlarged, if he should enter the building and 
 examine each part in succession, view the neatness witk 
 which it is titled Jo its place, the due proportion which it 
 liiears to each other part, and to the whole building. 
 
 • Similar remarks are applicable to that work of grace, 
 li>v which we become oiew creatures. This renovation is 
 effected by the use of means. The provision, there- 
 fore, and employment of these means, by the holy spirit, 
 claim our attention as constituent parts of that great work. 
 The more extensively we are acquainted with these 
 means, and the more diligently we use them, the more 
 complete will the image of God be in our hearts. Great 
 indeed should be our grateful ackno*vledgments to God 
 ibc a new heart: bat Tvill they be iessj will they not be 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 105 
 
 greater, if our knowledge extends, as far a9 humble and 
 judicious inquiries are ralculated to extend it, to all those 
 various means which havf been made effectual in produ- 
 cing that state of heart; to all those different series of 
 events, whirh for }Pars, for agfes past, under the control 
 of divine vvi^fdom, anti power, have been converjiin«i; to 
 this point, where a new lieart, through the good spirit of 
 grace, is the result of their combmed operation? Un- 
 doubtedly this IS the way to in* reasp our gratitude. I 
 conclude, therefore, that siich investigati«)n.s, conducted 
 with right views, and witl| a proper spirit, are, at once 
 our duty and bur interest., ' 
 
 'f he philosop.ie.r vvho confinCts his attention exclusively 
 to the planets, and other great ot-jects of creation, may 
 behold sublime disj)lays of the Creator's* wisdom and 
 power; he who vie.us, titrough a microscope, the wing, 
 the joints, &,c. of an insect, has an adflitional feast, which 
 the former denies himself"., So the Christian who is sat- 
 isfied with viev\ing the great events in the kingdom of 
 providence and grace, may derive from that exhibition of 
 the divine perfections which he perceives, the purest 
 joy; but he who considers the smaller works of God, if 
 the expression be allowed, has, in addition to the joys of 
 the former, presented to his view, numberless other 
 sources of pious deliiiht and grateful admiration. 
 
 This was the practice of pious men whose history we 
 have in the Bible. ,/ will mediiate, said the Psalmist, of 
 till thy Zi^orks: I muse on the ofork </J' thy hand. So pure 
 was the joy tlenved from this source, that he wished 
 others to drink from the same fountain. Herice his invi- 
 tation; come and $ee the work of God. Hence his pious 
 desire; Oh. that men would praise the Lord for his won- 
 derful wcjrks to the children (f men! The works of the 
 Lord are great; sought >f all them that have pleasure 
 therein. His work is honorable (i7id glorious This offers 
 no discouragement, and still jess reproof to the pious and 
 humble student of the works of God. 
 
 Many of those di«:putes which have disgraced and per- 
 plexed the christian world, would have been prevented, 
 had men been required to be more detiiiite in the mean- 
 ing of their expressions. Many te^ms, in current use, 
 are complex. One man includes more than anther, in 
 the meaning of such terms; of course, what one affirms,, 
 
i06 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 the other denies. Were both to pxplnin their meaning 
 by a stHtemenl of pHrtirul;»i>. the i^ronDfi of dispute fn.i;j;ht 
 be removed Two men v\ill n^ree thai God j^overns the 
 world, find^ thut we are saved l)y iirare; and yet dispute 
 for want of understanding the setjse in which the words 
 are used. VVere thev to fh^tine their meanir\g respert- 
 ively, they wouhl, m many ( as^s at least, tind ihey 
 agreed, when for want of this, they widely ditfer. 
 
 LETIEK XV'II. 
 
 Man is a Predestinarian — ihe Commander of an army — 
 the Architect — the Farjner, elect, foreordain, <^c. 
 
 On last week I called to see a worthy neighbor. Mi 
 Boading; a pious i^ood man. His opinions on some doc- 
 trinal subjects, and especially those called Calvinistic, are 
 different from my own. This difference has often given 
 rise to interesting conversations, always conducted, I 
 hope, with th^^ spirit of meekness and humility. It was 
 evident his mind assumed the attitude of opposition, the 
 moment he heard tfie words, election, predestination, &c. 
 I consider him practically right, but theoretically vvrong. 
 On his knees, and in his life, he is orthodox, whatever 
 he may be in conversation. 
 
 He had just commenced the execution of a very exten- 
 sive plan for the improvement of his furm. Of this plan 
 he gave me a long and particular af.rount. For several 
 years he had been collectinji information to aid him in its 
 arrangement: had made expiMimenls himself', «>n a small 
 scale: iuid carefully observed ti<e success attending ex- 
 periments made by others; and had read some of the best 
 essays on agriculture. He had not merely resolved that 
 he would improve his farm, leaving the tnean>< of im- 
 provement out of vi \v, or to ch.inre. His phiti embraced 
 a very minute detail of particulars — the implements to 
 be used; the mode of tillage, varying to -uit, as far as 
 practicable, a wei or a div season; the kind of crop in 
 each field; the rnauner of treating his ^^tork, were all, 
 after maiure delil)eration, distinctly spe< ified. He had 
 made calculations of great len^tu respecting the advanta- 
 ges of his plan; and his expectation was that it would ren- 
 der his far. . one fouith more productive than formerly, 
 with about one fourth less labor, 
 
Letters on the D vine Purpose. lOT 
 
 After expressing; my approbation of his plan, and my 
 hopes that it would answer his expectations. My friend, 
 said I, you may deny the doctrine of election and pre- 
 destination, if you please; but you are a predestinarian 
 in practice. According to ti.e best of your knowledge 
 you hfive elected, or chosen the kind of implements to be 
 used; you have predetermined the kind of crop that is to 
 ^row, in each part of your farm for ten years to come. 
 You have stated your object — the increase ofyour wealth. 
 To the attainment of this ultimate object, these decrees 
 ofyour mind, and the means and arrangements embraced 
 in these decrees, are all subservient. Why can you not 
 permit the only wise God to act as you have done? For 
 the attainment of a laudable end, according to the wis- 
 dom you p ssess, you have arranged the plan for the 
 management of your farm; the little world, subject to 
 your control; why not permit Him to have his plan ar- 
 ranged for the government of the universe? Having to 
 retire, I left these remarks for his reflection. 
 
 The truth is that every man is a predestinarian in 
 practice. As far as the knowledge he possesses will jus- 
 tify, and sometimes even further, he arranges his plan for 
 the regulation of his future efforts. This plan, and these 
 efforts have a special reference to some ultimate object 
 for the attainment of which the plan is adopted, and the 
 efforts employed. 
 
 The military chief generally forms the plan of his cam- 
 paign, before he takes the tield. The route by which 
 the different divisions of liis army are to move; the 
 places where they are to be stationed; the point, when 
 necessary, of concentration; the sources from whence 
 supplies are to be obtained; are all predetermined. He 
 elects to the different stat5ons,all his subordinate officers, 
 and assigns to each one, his appropriate part of the plan, 
 for execution. Each one is furnished with the weapon 
 he is to wield, and is made acquainted with the part he 
 ' is to act. From the common soldier, up through every 
 intervening grade, to the commander in chief, there is 
 complete subordination and concert — An army zvith ban- 
 ners. No skilful, experienced general will take the 
 field, till these arrangements are"previously made: if 
 he should, he will probably furnish an easy victory to 
 
i08 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 his enemy ; and certainly forfeit his claim to military 
 prowess. 
 
 The architect forms the plan of his huilding before his 
 mechanical operations are commenced. In his own 
 mind, the building first exists, complete in all its parts. 
 When the foundation stone is laid; when the diflferent 
 materials are prepared, and brouiiht together; as the 
 edilice rises; nhen it is completed; the vvhole is in ex- 
 act conformity to his desia;n. He will select his assist- 
 ants, or subordinate aj«;ents, in performing the work; but 
 they must obey his will; execute his plan, and not their 
 own. Were these subordinate agenis, each one, to fol- 
 low a plan of his own, regardless of that of the chief 
 architect, they would mar the beauty, and probably de- 
 stroy the usefulness of the building. If success is to 
 crown their efforts, these agents must act in complete 
 subordination and concert: one design mu^^t regulate all 
 their efforts. Those who are utterly incompetent to 
 form the plan of an elegant building, may yet very well 
 execute certain parts of that plan, when formed by ano- 
 ther. It is possible that no person hut the architect 
 liimself may have any knowledge of this plan; it may be 
 communicated, even to the workmen, no farther than is 
 necessary for their doily operation. They may perform 
 work, the use and design of which they do not fully com- 
 prehend. Nor is it necessary that they should, as their 
 part is only a subordinate one; if this is well performed, 
 it is sufficient. There are many, who, for the want of 
 some knowledge of architecture, could not comprehend 
 the plan, if an attempt were made to state and explain it 
 to them; and who are yet very sensible of the effect 
 which the execution of it, which a view of the building 
 has on their mind. When the whole work is completed, 
 "then every person may know what this plan was. The 
 building itself is neitlier more nor less, than the accom- 
 plishment of the design, previously formed, and previ- 
 ously existing in the min^l of the architect. 
 
 The farmer too practices predestmation. He decrees, 
 in his own mind, that one field shall bear one kind of 
 crop, and another field, another kmd; and that he will 
 bestow upon each, the proper cultivation. The labor of 
 every day, and week, and month, is only the execution 
 ©f that design which he had previously and deliberately 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 109 
 
 Jorniefl. When the labor of one day, or of one week ie 
 iinisbed, it is not uncertain, is not left to chance, or cas- 
 ualty, what shall be the labor of the next. His plan ex- 
 tends through tlae whole year, and fixes the operations of 
 ejjch month and week. One week is predestinated tc 
 the purpose of planting or sov^ing; another to the pur- 
 poise of reaping and gathering in the crop. The labor 
 of one week must necessarily precede that of the follow- 
 ing week. To neglect this order, this subordination, 
 would be fatal to his hopes. In vain would he sow, 
 without first preparing the soil; in vam would he expect 
 to reap, without having sowed. His labor must not only 
 be performed in succession, but each part of it at th€^ 
 proper time. If his seed is sown in harvest, it can only 
 disappoint his expectations. No skilful and experienced 
 farmer will neglect this order and this succession. He 
 determines to employ such a number of laborers as are 
 sufficient for the performance of the work. To these he 
 makes known his plan so far as is necessary for their 
 daily operations; farther than will ansvver this purpose^ 
 they may know nothing of his intention. He may direct 
 a certain field to be ploughed in a particular manner, 
 without informing the ploughman for what purpose that 
 manner of ploughing is required. His laborers have 
 nothing to do with this plan, but only to execute such 
 parts of it as may be assigned to them. At the very 
 time they are performing their work, they may not un- 
 derstand the purpose which that work is intended tc 
 answer. It may have an important connexion with pur- 
 poses which have not been communicated to them. 
 They may conjecture what are the designs of their em- 
 ployer; but in these conjectures they may be widely 
 mistaken. They may even censure his plan, as defec 
 tive and badly arranged; but how absurd would be that 
 censure. Let them wait till the whole plan is executed; 
 then what formerly appeared to be defects, may become, 
 in their view, real excellencies; what appeared badly 
 calculated to promote his interest, or even to operate 
 against it, may be the very measures which promoted 
 and secured that interest. Because they are but par- 
 tially acquainted with his design, they may even deny 
 that he has any plan, extending through the year; let 
 them wait till the end of the year, and they will see and 
 
 10 
 
110 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 confess that their denial proved nothing but their own 
 ignorance. 
 
 It cannot, indeed, be affirmed of any of these designs 
 that they are immutable, or that they \\ill certainly be 
 acconiphjihed. The knowledge of men is very imper- 
 fect and very limited. In the prosecution of their de- 
 signs, events which they could neither foresee nor pre- 
 vent, may occur, which will render part of the means 
 embraced in their plan, not only useless, but injurious to 
 the attainment of their ultimate object. During their 
 progressive operations, they may discover that, although 
 the means employed will answer a good purpose, yet 
 other means will answer still better. In all such cases 
 it is their wisdom to change their plan according to this 
 additional knowledge. Such difficulties may occur as 
 will render certain parts of their plan altogether imprac- 
 ticable, which will, of course, be relinquished. But had 
 this knowledge been possessed; had these difficulties 
 been foreseen; had those means, better adapted to the 
 end, been known; the plan itself, in its original forma- 
 tion, would have varied, just as it afterwards does when 
 this additional knowledge is acquired. The knovvledge 
 of men, though generally progressive, is never perfect. 
 In forming their designs they cannot employ that wisdom 
 which can only be acquired by future experience and 
 observation. Hence their plans often change, and some 
 of them are never accomplished. Were their knowledge 
 greater, their plans would be less mutable; were their 
 power greater, they would more frequently be realized. 
 
 In the same manner, if I am not entirely mistaken, 
 that is, according to a plan, deliberately, and previously 
 formed, men employ their influence in attempting to 
 change the moral character of others. The truth that 
 they do, and that they ought, in this manner, to exert 
 themselves, is the basis of some very important religious 
 duties. Train up a child in the way in -which he should 
 go: Parents^ bring up your children in the nurture and ad- 
 monition of the Lord; are some of them. Parents gene- 
 rally wish their child to possess that character which 
 they themselves most approve; because, in their opinion, 
 this will most probably secure respectability and useful- 
 ness in life. After this model they will endeavor to form 
 the character of their child. This opinion and this wish 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 111 
 
 will decide on the plan to be adopted, and the rnenns to 
 be used for accomplishing this purpose. If they most 
 approve the character of boldness and intrepidity, the 
 actions of the brave and courageous will often be re- 
 cited, in language, calculated to excite, in the youthful 
 bosom, the love and admiration of these qualities; while 
 the conduct of the cowardly and timid will be represent- 
 ed in colors the most repulsive and forbidding. If they 
 wish their child to be industrious and economictd, exam- 
 ples of these useful habits will be mentioned with the 
 highest commendation; while the name of the idle and 
 profligate will be associated with disapproli:*tion and re- 
 proach. Such will be the case with parents who live 
 under no sense of religious obligation. Titey will pre- 
 destinate one child to be a professional character, ftno- 
 ther to be a merchant, another to be a mechanic, another 
 a farmer, kc. But if parents themselves are truly pious, 
 it will be the supreme wish of their hearts that their 
 child may possess the character of genuine piety. Their 
 plan of education will be dictated by this desire- The 
 child will be taught to lisp the name of Jesus with rever- 
 ence and delight. Examples of piety will be pointed out 
 in the Bible as worthy of imitation. Religious friends 
 will be received with the most cordial welcome, and 
 spoken of with affection in presence of the child. Vice 
 will be pointed out as dangerous and hateful. The 
 character and example. of the ungodly and wicUed will 
 sometimes be mentioned, not for the sake of invidious 
 comparison, but of caution and warning. All iheir ef- 
 forts will be made in consequence of their pious design 
 to form the character of their child according to the 
 principles of the gospel, that it may be an active and 
 useful member of the church, and an heir ot salvation. 
 
 Ministers of the gosj»el act on the same principle. All 
 their efiforts to reform and edit'y their hearers are accor- 
 ding to the predetermination of their own mind. They 
 select a subject which will furnish matter adapted to 
 what they believe to be the general character and state 
 of their hearers. In ni^ny instances, not only their 
 ideas, but the words by which these ideas are to be con- 
 veyed, are carefully selected, before they enter the 
 rfesk. Others who pars -re a difterent method, arrange 
 
il2 LeAters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 ihe train of ideas, and depend on their resources, at the 
 moment, for ippropriate language. 
 
 Such, as it appears to me, is the very nature of man, 
 that he cannot act, at lea?t, to any valuable purpose, 
 without acting according to a design, previously formed. 
 To act in this mHoner is one characteristic of intelligence, 
 of rationalit}'; and is characteristic of man, as a rational 
 creature. The man who acts tvithout design, who exerts 
 himself without an object to accomplish by those exer- 
 tions, is, at once suspected of insanity. A series of ex- 
 ertions, subordinate to, and connected with each other, 
 as necessarily suggests the idea of a design; and, oi 
 course, of an intelligent mind whicli forms that design, 
 as an action does of an agent, who p<^rforms that action. 
 Such exertions not only suggest the idea of a design, but 
 of a design formed, and existing in the aiind, previously 
 to the commencement of these exertions. Whether the 
 time which intervenes between the formation of tlsis de- 
 sign, and the commencement of these fxertions be long 
 or short, cannot in the sm.)l!est degree, alter the princi- 
 ple, if the design existed but one hour, or even one 
 moment before the efforts are made, its priority, in the 
 order of time, is as real, and as certain, as if it had ex- 
 isted one year, or one hundred years. That the exer- 
 tions are made in consequence of a design; and that this 
 design was formed and existed, previously to the com- 
 mencement of these exertions, are the points for vvhich 
 I contend; and which, 1 presume, no xsan of reflection 
 will venture to deny. Of course, 1 c :n see no possible 
 way of escaping the conclusion that man, in the constitu- 
 tion of his nature, and in practice, is a predestinarian. 
 In his own mind, according to the bes' of his knowledge, 
 for the accomplishment of what he conceives to be an 
 iiiiportant purpose, he decrees, he eh^jts, heforeord-^ins 
 he predestinates. He determines to accomplish a speci- 
 fic purpose; he selects the means, in his opinion, best 
 adapted to this end; he employs the agency of others, 
 without making them fully acquainted with his design, in 
 the execution of which they are employed. Without 
 suspending, or destroying the free agency of those whose 
 true happiness he earnestly desires, he uses means to 
 change and improve their character, without making 
 them acquainted with his intention. All the actions o': 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. IIS 
 
 Lis life flow from these operations of his mind. Were he 
 to act differently, he would furnish melancholy proof that 
 he no longer retained the exercise of reason. Suppose 
 him to act without design, and you reduce him to the 
 grade of idiots or madmen. 
 
 ff to act from design be an undeniable proof of intelli- 
 gence and wisdom; if to act without design proves the 
 want of intelligence and wisdom; then, why should we 
 not believe that God whose intelligence and wisdom are 
 perfect, acts also from design? that all events, whether 
 great or small, in our estimation; whether they relate to 
 things temporal, or things spiritual; to the rise and fall 
 of empires, or to the salvation of sinners; rire effected 
 according to the high and holy purpose of Jehovah, 
 formed in the counsels of infinite wisdom, and from. all 
 eternity, existing in the divine mind? Till views of the 
 character of God and of the meaning of the Bible, very 
 different from those I now possess, shall reach my mind, 
 this will be my belief. 
 
 LETTER XVIir. 
 The Jinal Perseverance of Cliristians. 
 
 Agreeably to your request, a few remaMis will now 
 be offered respecting the perseverance of the saints. 
 
 All true christians are born of God ; their moral char- 
 acter is radically changed; they are united to Christ bv 
 ^faith: for his sake, all their sins are pardoned; they 
 are reconciled to God, and adopted into the family of 
 heaven. That all such will continue in a state of favor 
 with God, and tinally be saved, with an everlasting salva- 
 tion, is, in my view, a doctrine clearly taught in the Bible., 
 and, therefore, worthy of all acceptation. 
 
 Two things are essential to every christian; a change 
 of character, and a change of state; or in other words, 
 sanctification, and justitication. These two, in the plan 
 of redemption, a,re inseparably connected together: all 
 "who are sanctified, are also justified; and all who are 
 justified, are also sanctified. Regeneration is the com- 
 mencement of sanctification; and all who are horn again. 
 *are at the same time, accepted of God. Sanctification is 
 u work: of course, it'admits of degrees, and of progress: 
 justification is an act, and is perfect at once, admitting 
 
 10^ 
 
114 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 neither of degrees nor of progress. Sanctification exisle 
 in very different degrees in different individuals, and in 
 the game individual, at different periods,' and under dif- 
 ferent circumstances: justification is alike perfect in all. 
 Sanctification delivers from the love and practice of sin; 
 justification, from its guilt and condemnation. The .one 
 prepares the mind for the happiness of heaven: the other 
 gives a right to that happiness. The one is a work, ef- 
 fected in the heart: the other is an act of indemnity, 
 passed in the court of heaven. That faith which puri- 
 Jieth the heart, overcometh the world, and worketh by love^ 
 at the same time unites the soul to the Saviour, on whose 
 account pardon is obtained. The best hopes of the 
 christian, that he is pardoned and accepted of God, rest 
 on the evidence of his sanctification. 
 
 Now, it is the opinion of some, that christians, who 
 have been thus regenerated, in part sanctified, united to 
 Christ, pardoned and accepted of God, may, and fre- 
 quently do, fall from grace, as it termed; that is, that 
 they may lose every feature of the christian character, 
 be completely divested of every devout sentiment and 
 pious desire; that their hearts may again cherish a su- 
 preme love and habitual desire of sin, and be filled with 
 enmity against God; that they may be severed from 
 Christ, cease to enjoy the favor of God, and pass, a sec- 
 ond time, into a state of condemnation. I will not affirm 
 that there are no passages of scripture which seem to 
 support this opinion; but I think the passages which 
 support the doctrine of the final perseverance of christians 
 in holiness, in union with Christ, and in favor with God, 
 are more numerous, more explicit, and more consistent 
 with all that we know of the character of God, and of the 
 dispensation of his grace. 
 
 ■ That some, that many thousands of christians do per- 
 severe in holiness, to the last moment of life, none will 
 deny. Their perseverance must depend entirely on 
 themselves, or partly on themselves, and partly on di- 
 vine aid, or entirely on the help and purpose of God, — 
 Does it depend entirely on themselves? This, I am in- 
 clined to believe, no person will affirm. Their progress 
 in holiness is as much the work of the divine Spirit, as re- 
 generation itself. If they work out their own salvation, 
 it is God zvho worketh in them: if they live in a spiritual 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 115 
 
 sense, it is Christ who liveth in them; without me ye can- 
 do nothing. Does their perseverance depend partly on 
 themselves, and partly on divine aid? This, at first sight, 
 may appear plausible. But what part of this great and 
 important work is it that depends on themselves ? Is it 
 their faith? This is the gift, and the neork of God. 
 Their repentance? this is the gift of their exalted Prince 
 and Saviour. Their hope? This is given them through 
 grace. Their love? Th\s h shed abroad in their hearts 
 by the Holy Ghost. Their peace? This is bequeathed 
 to them by their divine Friend. Their knowledge? The 
 knoxvledge of God is given them. Is it their hatred and 
 opposition to sin? This is the necessary result of those 
 pious affections, cherished in the heart. All these things 
 are of God; as christians, they are his workmanship. 
 
 That there is a concurrence of their minds with the 
 Holy Spirit, in this work, is readily admitted. Feeling 
 the exercise of faith, they earnestly pray for its increase. 
 Tasting the bitterness and perceivmg the h,itefulne-a of 
 sin, they cry for help to resist its temptations and to es- 
 cape its pojlution. — Their minds being, in some degree. 
 Savingly enlightened, they desire to grow m the knowl- 
 edge of their Saviour, to abound in knowledge and wis- 
 dom and spiritual understcmding. Every faculty of the 
 mind is employed ; every affection of iUe heart is excit- 
 ed. Yet this concurrence is not such as to justify us in 
 saying that there perseverance depends, in any degree, 
 on themselves. Tcthe ar.quisitionof this knowledge, to 
 the exercise of these devout affections, to this activitv 
 and usefulness, to this perseverance in holiness, they are 
 constrained by the love of Christ., they are drawn by lovins; 
 kindness., they are led by the Spirit. Their own agency 
 is employed in preserving the life of the body; and 
 yet that preservation is explicitly ascribed to God: so, 
 the agency of christians is employed in preserving the di- 
 vine lite; and yet this preservation is the peculiar work 
 of the Spirit of God. The conclusion, therefore, is, that 
 the perseverance of christians, in a life of faith and holi- 
 ness depends entirely on God. 
 
 This conclusion is amply supported by scriptural au- 
 thority. The prayer of our Saviour furnishes this au- 
 thority. — For his disciples he prays to God, J^'ot that 
 thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou 
 
116 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 shouldst keep them from the evil. Sanctify them through 
 thy truth. The prayers of men, even of the best of men, 
 may be so mixed with ignorance, unbelief and imperfec- 
 tion, as to render them unavailing. Paul thrice besought 
 the Lord, without obtaining his request. Not po the 
 prayers of Jehovah-Jesus: they are always according to 
 the will of God; and are always heard. The Father has 
 answered, and continues to answer this prayer. Paul 
 affirms of the Corinthians, ye are sanctified by the Spirit 
 of our God. Peter declares respecting the christians to 
 whom he wrote, that they were kept by the power of God, 
 through faith unto salvation. 
 
 if then the perseverance of christians depends en- 
 tirely on God; if any of them, having been regenerated, 
 united to Christ, freely pardoned, and accepted of God. 
 and adopted into his family, should fail to receive the end 
 of their faith; should fall, and finally perish, it must be, 
 cither because God is unable, or unwilling to preserve 
 them in holiness: for if he is both able, and willing, then 
 the work will certainly be accomplished; and they will 
 receive the end of their A\itb, the salvation of their soulsr 
 
 Now 1 cannot suppose that any man, with that knowl- 
 edge of the divine character which the Bible furnishes, 
 will say that God is unable to save his people from final 
 perdition. His power can accomplish any thing which 
 does not imply an impossibility; in the perseverance of 
 christians there is no impossibility; for thousands, through 
 divine grace, have persevered. The conversion of men, 
 from sin to holiness, is much more difficult, in our view, 
 than their perseverance, in that holiness; and yet this 
 great work has been performed, by the spirit, in the 
 lieart of every christian. If he has performed that which 
 is difficult, can he not perform that which is compara- 
 tively easy? The man who has raised a weight of Miy. 
 or an hundred pounds, can he not, with the same strength.- 
 raise one of five, or of ten pounds? If God has quick- 
 ened the soul, when dead in sin, changed the heart, 
 when it was enmity against him, can he not preserve that 
 life which he has breathed into the soul, and keep in ex- 
 ercise that love which he has kindled in the heart? Such 
 is the argument of the Apostie Paul; if when we were 
 without strength, when we were sinners, were enemies. 
 v?e were made alive, pardoned, justified, reconciled to 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 117" 
 
 God: much more that is, there is much greater reason 
 to beUeve, that we shall be saved from wrath, through 
 the Saviour; and in order to this, that we shall be pre- 
 served in holiness, without which none ran be saved? 
 The argument is conclusive, and unanswerable. 
 
 Besides, who are the enemies, with whom divine 
 power has to contend? The^ are, indeed, numerous, 
 powerful, malignant and uriweariecl in iheir efforts. Sa- 
 tan and his legions, united with wicked men on earth, 
 constitute a formidable host. But still they are crea- 
 tures; of course, completely, and at all times, dependent 
 on God for the power they employ against the cause of 
 Christ, Being creatures, their power must be limited, 
 and by consequence, less than the power of God. Will 
 any person believe that the less shall overcome the 
 greater? that the creature shall vanquish the Almighty? 
 that the combined efforts of all the wicked agents in the 
 universe, shall pluck the sheep from the grasp of Omni- 
 potence? If Satan be a strong man, armed, there is a 
 stronger than he, to come upon him. If Satan is active 
 and unwearied in his efforts to destroy; the Lord, Jeho- 
 vah, is more active and unwearied to protect and to save. 
 And, if God be for us, who can be against usi Therefore 
 we conclude, respecting christians, that God is able to 
 make tfiem stand. 
 
 The willingness of God to keep his people from fall- 
 ing, is not less doubtful, than his power. This is often 
 affirmed, in the plainest terms in scripture. Those who 
 are called, are called according to the purpose and grace 
 of God. Of his own mill begat he us. This is the will of 
 God, even your sdnctification. It is not a subject for in- 
 vestigation, Dut a pleasing and momentous f^ict, that thou- 
 sands of christians have persevered in the exercise ol 
 devout affections, and in the practice of religious duties, 
 throagh all the difficulties with which they had to con- 
 tend, to the moment of death. It is also a fact, that this 
 perseverance is ascribed to God, the Spirit. The man 
 who would refuse to join in this ascription, would cast a 
 deep shade of suspicion over his claims to the christian 
 character. If God is working in his people to will and 
 to do, it is according to his good pleasure; that is most 
 willingly. Thanks be to God who giveth us the victory, is 
 the language of their hearts. This, too, is the language 
 
il8 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 of heaven, where nothing but truth is admitted; io Mm. 
 "who washed us in his own blood, their praises are continu- 
 ally ascending. If, then, their aiiffi-ciency is of God; 'ii\ 
 in a spiritual, as well as in a natural sense, in him they 
 live, and move, and have their being; if their persever- 
 ance is his worb; he must perform it willingly; for there 
 »s no power in existence, sufficient to compel him. All 
 his works, whether of creation, of providence, or re- 
 demption, are performed according to his own pleasure. 
 He does not employ a subordmate agency, in executing 
 the purpose of another; but does all things after the 
 counsel of his own will. If he raises the soul from death 
 to life; shields it from temptation, or makes a way for its 
 escape; guides, supports, strengthens and comforts it, 
 through all the trials and afflictions of life; making all 
 things work together for its good; and receives it, finally, 
 to the joys of his kingdom ; it is all according to his 
 own purpose and grace, which he purposed' in Christ Je- 
 ms, our Lord. If, then, God is both able, and willing to 
 preserve his people, they will be preserved. 
 
 Many passages of scripture, if I am not entirely mista- 
 ken, clearly teach this doctrine. The Saviour, speak- 
 ing of his people, says, My sheep hear my voice, and I 
 know them, and they follow me; and I give unto them eter- 
 nal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall any 
 pluck them out of my hand. My Father who gave them 
 me, is greater tiian all; and none is able to pluck them out 
 of my Fathers /tanrf.* The life here spoken of, is that 
 spiritual life, obtained from Christ by faitl). It is called, 
 by Him who is the truth, eternal life; that is, it will never 
 end; of course, they who receive it, vvill never perish. 
 Peter, in a passage already quoted, speaking of chris- 
 tians, affirms that they are kept by the power of God, 
 through faith unto salvation.^ Dr McKnight, on this 
 passage, observes, that the wordi here translated kept 
 '^signifies guarded, in a garrison. The term is very em- 
 phatical here. It represents believers, as attacked by 
 evil spirits and wicked men their enemies, but defended 
 against their attacks by the power of God, through the 
 influence of their faith;| just as those who are in an im- 
 pregn;>bie fortress, are secured from the attacks of theii* 
 enemies, by its ramparts and walls." This passage not 
 
 *John X, 27, &c. fl Peter i, 5. :;-l John v, 4, 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 119 
 
 only affirms that they are kept, but points out the man- 
 ner in which this preservation is effected; it is through 
 faith. Now faith implies, not only the knowledge and 
 behef of the truth, but also those pious affections and dis- 
 positions, and the practice of those religious duties, which 
 constitute true holiness. Without holiness, no man shall 
 see the Lord; and without faith, no man can attain this 
 holiness; and without the power of God, no man can ex- 
 ercise this faith. Believers are kept, not by miracle, 
 nor by means which operate on them as mere machines,, 
 but by faith; by calling into vigorous exercise, ever}" 
 power 'and faculty of the soul; by exciting their desires 
 and aversions, their joys and their sorrows, their hopes 
 and their fears, their love and their hatred. Hear ano- 
 ther witness to the truth of christian perseverance. For 
 lie hath said, I will never leave thee, nor for sane thee;"^ that 
 is, as Dr Scott observes; -'He will not in any wise leave 
 them, nor in any wise, on any account, in any emergency, 
 or at any time will he forsake them. The emphasis of 
 the original words, in which (we negatives are used to 
 increase the strength of the negation, according to the 
 Greek idiom, can scarcely be retained in any transla- 
 tion." Again; Paul thanked God, upon every remem- 
 brance of the Philippians, being confident of this very 
 thing, that he who hath begun a good work in you^ will 
 perform it, until the day of Jesus Christ. Paraphrased 
 thus, by Dr McKnight; "And thatyewill persevere, I have 
 no doubt; being persuaded of this very thing, that God, 
 who hath begun, in you, a good work of faith and love, 
 will be completing it till the day of death; when Christ 
 ivill release you from all your trials." Now it is evident 
 that without faith and love, none can be christians. That 
 he who commences, will be employed in completing this 
 good work, till the day of death, Paul was confident; and 
 wrote by inspiration. Doubtless, had the occasion re- 
 (juired it, he would have used the asseveration which he 
 did on another occasion; I speak the truth in Christ. 
 
 We see, then, that the people of God possess eternal 
 life; of course, they shall never perish; for, by the 
 power of God, they are kept, with such constancy and 
 care, that he will never leave nor forsake them; but be 
 engaged in completing the good work, begun in theif 
 
 *Heb, xiiij 5, 
 
120 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 liearts, till the day of death. These, with many othei 
 passages which might be mentioned, are sufficient to jus- 
 tify the persuasion, that neither deaths nor life^ nor an- 
 gelSf nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present^ nor 
 things to comey nor height, nor depth, nor any other crea- 
 ture, shall be able to separate christians from the love of 
 Gody 'which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. 
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 Same subject continued. 
 
 If Christians may, and frequently do, fall from grace, 
 in the current sense of this phrase, they not only lose 
 every feature of christian character, every pious dispo- 
 sition, every trace of holiness, and become a^ain totallj^ 
 depraved and sinful, as they were previous to their con- 
 version; but their religious state musl also be changed: 
 from a state of pardon, justification and peace with God, 
 they must fall, a second time, into a state of condemna- 
 tion. Their relation to God, as well as their character, 
 must be entirely changed. Instead of sustaining to him 
 the relation of children to a father, they must come to 
 sustain no other relation to him than that of criminals to 
 their Judge. It has already been stated that the change 
 of character, and change of state are inseparably con- 
 jjected together; and both are of grace. The life which 
 they possess is the gift of God; and they are justified 
 freely, through his grace. Whatever works the forfei- 
 ture of the one, does also of the other; and whatever 
 secures the one, secures also the other, i trust it has 
 been made to appear, that as their continuance in holi- 
 ness depends entirely on God, he is both able and willing 
 to preserve them in the exercise of holiness, so he will 
 preserve them in a state of pardon and peace with him- 
 self; and that there is, therefore, now no condemnation to 
 them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh,, 
 hut after the Spirit ; because sin has not, and never shall 
 have dominion over them. The law of the Spirit of life in 
 Christ Jesus has made them free from the law of sin, and by 
 consequence, also of death. I do not know that we are 
 authorized to affirm that God might not, if it appeared 
 good in his sight, revoke his own gifts; yet 1 know of no 
 authority from scripture for believing that he ever will 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 131 
 
 They were bestowed freely, and not by compulsion; not 
 inconsiderately or rashly, but deliberately, according to 
 the counsel of his own wisdom; vTJth a perfect knowl- 
 edge of all the difficulties which might arise in the way 
 of their continuance. Therefore we conclude that these 
 gifts of God, holiness and pardon, are "without repentance. 
 Every argument which justifies our belief in their per- 
 severance in holiness, proves also their continuance in a 
 state of pardon; and every truth which proves their con- 
 tinuance in a state of pardon, confirms our conviction of 
 their perseverance in holiness. So, on the other hand, 
 every difficulty which forbids the supposition of their 
 losing, or falling from the one,' forbids it also of the 
 other. Noiv, to me, it appears that the difficulties at- 
 tending the supposition of their falling from a state of 
 pardon and acceptance with God, are very great, if not 
 insuperable. 
 
 For the sake of illustration let us suppose that a mac 
 lives a sinful and wicked life for tbirtj^ years, and then, 
 through the power of the Spirit becomes a new creaturC;, 
 a sincere and genume christian. Ail his past offences 
 are, of course forgiven; for without this he could not be 
 a christian. Let us farther suppose that he contmues a 
 christian for one year, and then fid Is from grace; and 
 that, at the end of another year, he dies, a depraved sin- 
 ner, in a state of guilt and condemnation, and of course, 
 perishes forever. Will he suffer for all his sins, or only 
 for a part of them? for those of the first thirty years of 
 bis life, or only for those of the last year? If only for 
 those of the last year, then his punishment would not bo 
 in proportion to his guilt; which is contrary to the prin- 
 ciples of justice. He knew, for thirty years, his Lord's 
 will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to 
 his will, and yet shall be beaten with few strips; contra- 
 ry to the solemn declaration of the J udge himself. Then, 
 he will not receive according to the deeds done, that is, 
 the sins committed, in the body, but only according to 
 those of one year; which contradicts another decision oC 
 ^he Judge. For thirty years he treasured up wrath, foe 
 which no day of wrath overtakes him. For thirty years^ 
 he wilfully transgressed the laws, wearied the patiencc- 
 Tind grieved the Spirit of God, and is brought into judg« 
 menb and finally condemned for the guilt of odJj one ye3fI^ 
 
 St 
 
i£2 Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 Through an endless duration he will be treated neither 
 according to the mercy nor the justice of God: mercy 
 would save him from punishment altogether ; justice 
 would punish him for all his offences. He will neither 
 be a vessel of mercy, nor a vessel of xssrath. Throughout 
 eternity the glory neither of mercy nor of justice will be 
 displayed in his case. In this life, indeed, we behold the 
 goodness and severity, the mercies and judgments of God^ 
 exercised towards the same individual; because this is © 
 remedial state; but not so hereafter. In the eternal 
 state, mercy and justice will display their glories on their 
 own peculiar and exclusive objects; all will be either 
 vessels of mercy, or vessels of wrath. To my mind this 
 supposition appears utterly inadmissible. Every reason 
 ■for the infliction of punishment, in any degree, justifies 
 and demands it, in exact proportion to the guilt of those 
 on whom it is inflicted. 
 
 Shall we then suppose that he suffers for all his sins? 
 But the guilt of the first thirty years of his life was sol- 
 emnly and graciously forgiven; for, whether he had any 
 comfortable evidence of the fact or not, without the for- 
 giveness of all past offences, he could not be a christian: 
 and if not a christian, then he could not fall from grace. 
 He never can suffer, therefore, for that guilt which has 
 been forgiven; for pardon is exemption from deserved 
 punishment. Exemption and suffering; that is, to suffer, 
 and not to suffer, at the same time, and for the same guilt, 
 is clearly impossible. Pardon is as much a solemn and 
 official act of the Judge and Governor of the universe, as 
 condemnation is; and all his acts are perfectly consistent. 
 If God has justified, who is he that will condemn? For 
 the guilt, therefore, which has been thus forgiven, the 
 man never will come into condemnation, unless we sup- 
 pose that this act of pardon shall afterwards be repealed- 
 that what God has once solemnly and officially done, he 
 will, in the same manner, undo; having voluntarily and 
 deliberately declared that he will not punish, that he 
 shall afterwards, in the same manner, declare that he 
 will punish for the same crimes. When he made the 
 declaration that he never would punish the man for his 
 .past transgressions, he certainly knew that, according to 
 the case now supposed, this man would fall from grace., 
 ^ie m a state of sin, and finallv perish; and that he would 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose* 125 
 
 punish him for the very sins which he forgives. Ac- 
 cording to our mode of calculating time, a spare of two 
 years intervenes between the first and the last of these 
 declarations; between the pardon nnd the condnmnation. 
 If a thousand years is with the Lord as one day, much 
 more are two years as one and the same instant. As it 
 regards the Judge himself, it is the same thing as to say 
 that, at the same instant, he declares he wdl not, and 
 declares he will punish for the same offences; at the same 
 instant he pardons and condemns. If an earthly judge 
 were to act thus, he ought to be instantly divested of his 
 otlice, and sent to the lunatic hospital. It would grieve 
 me to believe that a single human bemg. having access 
 to the Bible, could entertain such an opinion of God his 
 Maker. 
 
 Shall we then suppose that the pardon was conditional; 
 nnd that the condition is, the man's perseverance in holi- 
 ness, till the end of life? 'I'his cannot relieve us from 
 our difficulties ; it rather increases them. A conditional 
 pardon, is no pardon. Those who contend for such a 
 pardon, can mean nothing more than the promise of a 
 pardon for the man who will comply with the condilion. 
 But who does not see the wide difference between the 
 promise of pardon in future, and the pardon itself which 
 js promised? How can it produce any beneficial effects 
 until it is passed? If it is future, how can it produce 
 any present benefit? Your indigent neighbor comes to 
 you almost dead with hunger, and asks you for a morsel 
 of bread; you do not give him that which is needful for 
 the body at this moment, but you proinise that If he will 
 preserve h.is life for a week, or a morilfi, then you will 
 give him bread. The physician finds his patient danger- 
 ously ill, and gravely promises that if he will only con- 
 tinue to live for a week, or a month, then an infallible 
 remedy shall be administered. Such tender mercies 
 are cruelties. And I feel confident that you will never 
 mock the miseries of any hvim>jn being in this manner. 
 Pardon is an act of Gud. The promise to perform an 
 act m future, necessarily implies that it is not done at 
 present. But if it is «:ot performed at present, the man 
 is not, and cannot be a christian; and if not a christian, 
 he can have no holiness in which to persevere. And the 
 ^apposition is that he possesses boliaess, is a christian; 
 
124 Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 and yet not pardoned. But the difficulties attending ihi§ 
 hypothesis are not yet done; they rather thicken upon us 
 as we advance. The heart of the man is radically 
 changed by the truth and Spirit of God: he exercises 
 faith in the merits of a divine Saviour; feels a sincere 
 love to God and man; is truly thankful for the mercies 
 he receives; gvieves for his sins with a godly sorrow; 
 is clothed with humility; cherishes a spirit of gentleness* 
 meekness, forbearance and forgiveness: render? habitual 
 and cheerful obedience to the divine will; and perse- 
 Veres in the exercise of these christian virtues, and in the 
 discharge of these duties till the end of life, or at least 
 for a number of years; this is the holiness in which he 
 is to persevere; and this perseverance is the condilioQ 
 on which his pardon is suspended. And yet this man is 
 not forgiven. He is in instate of condemnation, and the 
 Wi'ath of God abideth o\i him. '' He is sanctified, at leastj 
 in part, but not justified: exercistis idll the christian vir- 
 tues; possesses the christian character; and vyet lacks 
 something essential to a christian; is not'yet authorized 
 to hope for heaven, because he is notj^et pardoned; need 
 not, however, fear the bottomless pit, because he is holy 
 •—But 1 forbear. 
 
 If the pardon of sin depends on perseverance in holi- 
 ness for a time, then it cannot wholly depend on the 
 merits of Christ, nor on the free mercy and pleasure of 
 God. But we are assured that we are forgiven/or Chrisfs 
 take; and that for pardon we depend on the mercy of 
 God. Besides a great many passages of scripture declare 
 in the most positive and explicit manner, that christians 
 are forgiven as soon as they believe in Christ; that is^ 
 as soon as they become christians. 
 
 When this man shall stand before his Judge, he may 
 use this language: 1 have eaten and drank in thy pres- 
 ence, and thou hast taught me. But the language of the 
 Judge will be, Depart from me thou worker of iniquity ; 
 for I never knew thee ^ that is, never acknowledged thee 
 fco be one of my people. Might not the man reply; Nay, 
 but thou didst once know me. I was changed by the 
 truth and Spirit of God; for one whole year, I trusted in 
 thy merits; felt the life-giving and purifying efficacy of 
 thy blood; was reconciled to God through thy death; en- 
 joyed sweet and holy poramunion with the Father and 
 
Letters on the Divine Pui^ose, IQ0 
 
 with thee. This would be the solemn truth. For the 
 conderanation of this man, therefore, the Judge could not 
 assign this reason — I never knew thee. 
 
 It is alleged that sin is the cause of this fall from a state 
 of holiness and favor with God, into a state of depravity 
 and condemnation. Whether a state of sinless perfec- 
 tion be attainable in this life or not, I do not mean, at 
 present to inquire. I would just observe, however, that 
 when christians are supposed to reach that state, they 
 cease to be objects of the divine forbearance; and it is 
 evidently improper for them to pray for mercy. If they 
 commit no sin, they present nothing to exercise the pa- 
 tience of God; they need no mercy, as they have no guilt 
 to be forgiven. Those who contend that this state is at- 
 tainable, admit that there are thousands of christians who 
 have not yet reached it; of course, until it is gained, 
 they may, and actually do commit sin, and yet do not fall 
 from grace. The advocates for this opinion allow that 
 there may be a certam degree of sin and guilt which 
 does not effect this terrible fall: I would ask, what is 
 that degree, and how is it ascertained? The nature of 
 all sin is alike, hateful to God, and polluting and danger- 
 ous to the soul. That there are degrees in guilt I have 
 no doubt. However diversified, in our view, those opin- 
 ions, passions and practices may be which are condemned 
 as sinful,, they all have one and the same quality; and 
 that quality is expressed by the term guilt. The fall of 
 christians cannot depend on the kind of sin committed, 
 but on the degree of guilt contracted. Let us suppose 
 that the amount of guilt which produces this fall is twen- 
 ty degrees. Then it will follow that all degrees below 
 this amount are safe, as it regards this total loss of chris- 
 tian character, and forfeiture of the divine favor. Chris- 
 tians may commit sin till their guilt amounts to tive, ten, 
 iifteen, or even nineteen degrees, and yet they are 
 christians, children of God, interested in the blood of the 
 cross, and are objects of the peculiar favor and love of 
 God. But if they add one degree more, then they cease 
 to be christians, become children of wrath, come into 
 conderanation, and cease to be objects of the divme love 
 and favor. 
 
 The doctrine which I defend is charged, by its oppo- 
 nents, with a tendency to destroy all motives to christian 
 11* 
 
12Q Letters on the Divine Purpose. 
 
 watchfulness and diligence, and with furnishing induce^ 
 ments to a slothful, and even licentious life. Now I 
 think it undeniable that this charge, with equal force^ 
 lies against the opinion held by these opponents. Ac- 
 cording to their opinion christians may commit sin, may 
 gratify the desires of the flesh, without danger of fallings 
 until their guilt amounts to nineteen degrees, provided , 
 
 they do not add tiie twentieth. ^ 
 
 The charge is not well founded. The farmer does 
 not neglect judicious arrangements and remit his exer- 
 tions, because he hopes these exertions, through the 
 blessing of heaven, will be successful. This hope has 
 nothing but probability for its foundation. If the proba- 
 bility of success prompt;* him to industry , then the greater 
 this probability is, the greater will be his inducement to 
 labor; of course, if there was a certainty that his exer- 
 tions would be crowned with success, this would furnish 
 the greatest possible inducement. And shall we say that 
 the most powerful motive will fail, when a mu,ch weaket 
 one will answer the purpose? that a weight of five pounds 
 will turn the scale, when one ot ten, ar of twenty will 
 not? The two cases are sufficiently similar to justify the 
 illustration of the one by the other. The farmer has 
 not even a probability, much less a certainty, that he 
 will succeed without proper exertions: so he is* not a 
 christian, but a presumptuous libeller of the gospel who 
 "believes, or pretends to believe, that he will enjoy the 
 happiness of heaven, without holiness; and holiness con- 
 sists in the exercise of pious affections, and in the dis- 
 charge of religious duties. If the farmer sows when 
 there is only a probability that he shall reap, will not 
 christians sow to the Spirit^ when there is a blessed as- 
 surance that of the Spirit they shall reap life everlasting^ 
 The purpose of God is not to receive impenitent sinners 
 to the joys of his kingdom, but to save them from their 
 sins^ to work in them the work of faith with power, to 
 make them holy, and then admit them to his kingdona 
 and glory. 
 
 That christians do commit sin, is a mournful truth that 
 cannot be denied. That their faith becomes weak, their 
 affections languid, their exertions feeble and irregular^ 
 that they sometimes slumber, and even sleep, must be 
 admitted. Bat I think it probable^, that if jou could ask 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, X9.7 
 
 every christian, from the beginning of the world to this 
 day, whether his own declension in vital piety, was the 
 consequence of his understanding and believing the 
 doctrine of final perseverance, he would answer — No; 
 it was not. If I am not mistaken, many of those who op- 
 pose this doctrine, of course, who do not believe it, and 
 cannot be influenced by it, experience the same chills 
 and slumberings in their aflfections, and feebleness in 
 their exertions, which are so much to be deplored io 
 others. If then this sad decline in themselves is not^ 
 and cannot be the consequence of believing this doctrine., 
 I hope they will not bring it as a char2:e against the doc- 
 trine, when believed by others. In both cases, the samc^ 
 eflferts should be ascribed to the same cause. 
 
 That some have used unguarded expressions in at- 
 tempting to illustrate and defend this doctrine, I readily 
 admit; nor will I deny that some professors of religioa 
 who live ungodly and wicked lives, may refer to their 
 belief in this doctrine as the ground of their hope, that 
 {hey will finally be saved. I cannot admit, however, 
 that the doctrine itself is chargeable with ihe imprudence 
 or absurdity of its professed advocates. The scripture 
 is not chargeable with the error of those who wrest itj 
 Dor the gospel with the guilt of those who pervert its 
 pure and wholesome instructions. I do deny that we 
 have sufficient authority for believing that those who live 
 tmgodly and irreligious lives are christians, whatever 
 they may profess. They may have a name that they lives 
 'Hohile^ in fact, they are dead. This doctrine is no more 
 'accountable for their ungodliness, than the Bible which 
 condemns that ungodliness, and which they also profess 
 to believe. If on this account we should renounce this 
 doctrine, we have the same reason for rejecting also the 
 sacred volume. The real tendency of this doctrine is to 
 be ascertained from its influence and effects on the heart 
 and life of those who understand, believe and love itj 
 Bot from those who neither understand, believe nor love 
 it; and who, though its professed friends, are its secret 
 enemies. 
 
 If it be contended that christians may fall from grace,, 
 1 would not strenuously defend the contrary position. 
 We know that Adam fell; and we know that all sin is 
 dangerous. Nor does it appear to me, the correct mode 
 
128 Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 of speaking to say, that christians are in no danger of fail- 
 ing. The sins of the children of God, as certainl} nnecv 
 bis displeasure, as the sins of the unregenerate. Every 
 sin is a departure from the rule of duty, according to 
 TThich the favor of God may be expected. The tenden- 
 cy of all sin is, therefore, to separate from God. The 
 position which I defend is, that christians will not totally 
 fall; and though in danger, in imminent danger, they 
 will be shielded from that danger. Adam fell, it is true; 
 ^ut Adam, before his fall, though a pure and holy being, 
 Was not a christian. No Mediator stood between hina 
 and his God; his purity was not purchased by the suffer- 
 ings and the merit of a divine Saviour; no blood of infi^ 
 nite value was the pledge of tiis continuance in holiness. 
 This, however, is the case with christians. A divine 
 Mediator, by his obedience and suff«^rings, has procured 
 Ibr them, co:nplete and eternal salvation. But as there 
 oan be no salvation without holiness, therefore holiness 
 itself is among the invaluable blessings, procured by the 
 "blood of the cross. The covenant between them and 
 iheir God is not only ordered, but sure. The foundation 
 ©f their hopes is a sure foundation. Their perseverance 
 is secured by the death of Christ. Jehovah is their God 
 and Father; Jesus is their Mediator, their Redeemer, 
 their Intercessor; the Holy Spirit is their Monitor, their 
 Comforter. The cautions, the threatenings, the warn- 
 ings, the admonitions, the entreaties, the promises, the 
 invitations, the doctrines, the precepts of the Bible, with 
 all the dispensations of providence, will be blessed as the 
 means of their progress in the divine life. Not one of 
 them shall perish; every one of them will enter into the- 
 joy of their Lord. 
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 This doGtrine gives such views of the character of God as" 
 
 are calculated to excite devotion. — Conclusion. 
 
 Tke Bible is our only infallible guide; no system of 
 doctrines, therefore, by what name so ever it may be 
 designated, ought to be received, that is not clearly taught 
 in the sacred volume. By giving us correct views of the 
 ^haractev ef C^od, and of ourselves, by teaching ns the 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 1S9 
 
 plan of salvation through a divine Saviour; by exciting 
 every pious afl'ection of the heart, the. Bible is intended, 
 through the Holy Spirit, to prepare us for the worship and 
 society of heaven, for the joys and glories of eternity. — 
 Its docirines are according io godliness; it makes wise to 
 salvation; it is a6/e, or powerful to save the soul. Those 
 doctrines which have the greatest tendency to promote 
 holiness are for that reason most worthy of our cordial 
 acceptance. What then is the tendency of those views 
 which have been given? In my opinion the sun is not 
 more evidently intended, nor better calculated to warm 
 and enlighten the earth; the eye is not more evidently 
 fitted for the purposes of vision, than are the.se doctrines 
 to enlighten and purify the mind; to make us, and keep 
 us sincere, humble, devout, intelligent and useful chris- 
 tians. 
 
 They represent the divine character surrounded with 
 that glory and majesty which are calculated to excite the 
 deepest reverence in our minds; and reverence is an in- 
 dispensable feature in the character of all true worship- 
 pers of God. It is a compound of fear and love. While 
 the greatness of God, bows the mind in devout awe, a 
 view of his excellence attracts and elevates it by love. 
 The greatness of his goodness, of his wisdom and his 
 power is displayed in the most impressive manner. By 
 one single act of his infinite mind he designed the crea- 
 tion and government of this world, with all its number- 
 less varieties of inhabitants, with all its countless series 
 of events. His high and holy purpose is One! To our 
 minds it may appear intinitely diversified, because it re- 
 lates to an infinite diversity of objects and events; still 
 however it is emphatically one; embracing the world 
 with all its occurrences, through every period of its du- 
 ration. 
 
 The preservation and safety of one single individual 
 requires the concurrence of a great variety of causes, 
 which are the effects of other causes which preceded 
 them, still more numerous and diversified. Each of these 
 must operate at a particular time, and in a particular or- 
 der. The food that he eats is produced by the combined 
 influence of the air, the sun, the rain, the earth and the 
 toil of man. The clothing which defends and comforts 
 him is derived from different sourceSj and prepared by 
 
ISO Letters on the Divine Purpose, 
 
 different hands. The water which he drinks is collected 
 fVora innumerable veins in the earth, and presented for 
 his use in springs and rivulets. The air which he breathes 
 is prepared in a manner so recondite as to baffle all hu- 
 man discovery. Besides, he walks every day in the midst 
 of threatening danijers from which he must be continu- 
 ally shielded. All these events were designed by the 
 wisdom, and l)rought to pass by the power of God, at the 
 proper time, and in the proper order. 
 
 Our impressions of greatness are often the result of 
 comparison. Compared with (he wisdom and power of 
 God, how does the wisdom and mtelligence of man dis- 
 apfiear and shrink into nothing, and his power become 
 perfect imbecility? The mathematical discoveries of 
 Napier and Newton have urrounded their names with 
 unfnding renown. But suppose either of these men, 
 distinguished for their talents, had been required to de- 
 vise the means of preservation and safety to man for one 
 single year, how utterly insufficient for the task must they 
 have felt themselves to be ! Faint, indeed, would have 
 been their glory, compared with what it deservedly is, 
 had It depended on their discovering the manner in which 
 the means, provided by the wisdom and power of God, 
 secure this preservation and safety. If the man who 
 discovers the relation of numbers, tvho carries his re- 
 searches a little beyond the mere surface, and discovers 
 a few more properties of matter than were formerly 
 ^nown; while ho confesses that there are other relations, 
 and other properties yet undiscovered; relations and. 
 properties too which really existed before; which he 
 neither devised nor caused; if this man receives the ap- 
 plause of the civilized world; ho^v inexpressible should 
 be our pious admiration of the character of God, whode- 
 siigned and brought into existence all these relations and 
 properties!- No philosopher can. devise the means of 
 his own safety, or even comprehend how that safety is 
 secured by the means otherwise provided. Either this 
 invention or this discovery would raise him, in our esti- 
 mation, above the ;'rade of human beings. Yet these are 
 the common and daily operations of Jehovah ! His wis- 
 dom arranged these means, his power secures their con- 
 currence, he perfectly understands the manner of this 
 operalioDj not merely for one year, but every successive 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. IQt 
 
 Jfear of life. The same wisdom, power and goodness hare 
 been employed in preserving all the numerous millions 
 of mankind who have» who do now, or shall hereafter 
 live upon the earth. The same guardian care is extend- 
 ed to the beasts of the field, to the fowl? of the air, to the 
 fishes of the sea, to all creeping things, to insects, to 
 mites, though their existence should be but for a day of 
 an hour. They are all his creatures. Their creation is 
 embraced in his plan; so also is their preservation. Not 
 one of them, even the smallest, is forgotten before God. 
 The concurrence of all these causes, varied to suit their 
 diflferent natures, is perfectly secured by his immutable 
 purpose. Add to this his unceasing and decisive control 
 over all inanimate matter. The winds and the sea obeij 
 him: the torrent rushes at his command: the lightnings 
 flash, the thunders roar at his word: the earth trembles 
 and quakes at his touch. There is not a particle, not an 
 atom in air, in earth, or sea that is not as distinctly knowni 
 to him, and as completely under the influence of his 
 government, as the great globe itself. The creatiouj 
 the position and movements of each atom are his work^ 
 and accomplished according to his purpose. Add lo this^ 
 bis influence over the minds of men, using them as instru- 
 ments in efl'ecting the designs of his providence; an m- 
 fluence explicitly ascribed to him in scripture. He 
 fashioncth their hearts alike. The ki7ig^s hearty and by 
 consequence, the hearls of all his subjects, is in the hand 
 of the Lord as the rivers of ■water ; he turneth it whitherso- 
 ever he will."^ Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers who 
 hath put 'such a thing as this in the king^s heart, to beautify 
 the house of the Lord which is at Jerusalem^ This kmg 
 was an idolater, not a worshipper of Jehovah; and yet 
 what he did was put into his heart by the God of Abra* 
 ham, Isaac and Jacob. The divine influence over the 
 mind of Cyrus has already been considered. To govern 
 our own thoughts, affections and desires has ever been 
 found, if not impossible, at least a very difficult task. It 
 is only through the aid of divine grace that we can suc- 
 ceed in any tolerable degree. How much more difficult 
 is it to govern the thoughts and desires of another indi- 
 Yidual. We cannot even know these thoughts and de- 
 sires, except through the medium of external signs. We 
 
 'Psaltn sxxii, 15. Job vi, 21, fEzra vU, 57. 
 
iS3 Letters on the Bvdne Parpose* 
 
 may indeed use means for this purpose; and our efforlsj 
 may be crowned with some partial success; but to exer- 
 cise a complete control over the mind of another, for one 
 day, or even for one hour, is just as impossible as to cre- 
 ate that mind. Those things, however, which are im- 
 possible with men, are possible with God. If I have not 
 entirely mistaken the meaning of the passages just quoted, 
 with many others that might be mentioned, this is eflfect- 
 ed in a manner perfectly consistent with the moral agen- 
 cy of man, by the wisdom and power of God, just so far 
 as the designs of his providence require; over not only 
 one, but over each individual of the human race; not 
 merely for a day, or an hour, but through every day and 
 every hour of his whole life. There is not one thought 
 conceived in the mind, that is not as distinctly known to 
 God as the mind in which it is conceived. 0, Lord, thou 
 linowest my thoughts afar o^\ The Lord knoweth the 
 ihoughts of man. If one thought escaped his influence, 
 50 would also the consequences flowing from it. Very 
 great events may be traced back to one single thought in 
 the mind of some individual. One may give rise to a 
 long train of other thoughts which, generating corres- 
 pondent afi'ections and desires, ripen into purposes, and 
 thus lead to important results. The thoughts, desires 
 and affections of men are mcalculably more numerous 
 than their words and actions. The body must have 
 rest; the tongue is often silent: but the operations and 
 feelings of the mind are always progressing and always 
 changing. Numerous, complicated and mutable as they 
 are, they are all subject to the control of divine wisdom 
 ;md power. In like manner over the whole universe 
 Jehovah reigns, with perfect ease and certainty, accom- 
 plishing his purpose, without a single mistake, or a single 
 -failure. 
 
 This scheme of providence, so vast, complicated and 
 incomprehensible to the view of man, is, at the same time 
 subservient to another plan, still more glorious, intended 
 to display more fully the divine character, to give more 
 correct and exalted views to man, and awaken in his 
 heart feelings more sublime and worthy of God; that is, 
 the plan of redemption through the cross of Jesus the 
 Saviour. As food is subservient to the preservation oi' 
 •man^ ?o the whole system of pFovidenee is subservient- 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 153 
 
 to the saWatioD of guilty sinners. In this wonderful 
 work, sovereign mercy, forbearance and compassion min- 
 gle their rays with those of divine wisdom, goodness and 
 power, and display the greatness, the majesty and loveli- 
 ness of the Deity in a light more interesting and more at- 
 tractive not only to man, but to all holy intelligent beings. 
 This subserviency and this connexion, imparl to the 
 events of time a character of greatness which they would 
 not otherwise possess. Over this kingdom of grace, 
 reigns a Divine Redeemer, to whom all power in heaven 
 and earth is given; for whom, and by whom, all things, 
 visible and invisible, were created; under whose autho- 
 rity all ranks of intelligent creatures are placed. This 
 earth is but the humble theatre on which the Saviour 
 displays and executes the designs of wisdom and mercy, 
 in the salvation of unworthy criminals. All the great re- 
 volutions among the nations of this world are the means 
 of promoting the prosperity of this kingdom. The com- 
 mencement, the progress and the conclusion of this dis- 
 pensation of grace, will all be according to the purpose 
 of God. The birth, the life, the sufl'erings, the death, 
 the resurrection and ascension of the Saviour were all 
 according to the determinate counsel and foreknowledge 
 of God. When sinners are called, regenerated and sanC" 
 tified; when they enter on the possession of their inheri- 
 tance in heaven, it is according to his eternal purpose. — 
 All the means necessary to produce these gracious and 
 glorious eilects, with all the causes on wh:ch these means 
 themselves depended, whether, in our estimation, they 
 be great or small, are secured in their proper time, or- 
 der and degree, by the same unchangeable design of Je- 
 hovah. The day for the last act, in the administration 
 of this kingdom, the most awful, solemn and sublime 
 scene the universe will ever witness, was fixed from all 
 eternity. He hath appointed a day in 'which he will judge 
 the zvorld. Then shall all the purposes of God, requir- 
 ing the existence and preservation of this earth, be ac- 
 complished. Then shall all the vast and amazing schemes 
 •f Providence come to a close. Then shall the still more 
 astonishing and glorious purposes of grace be completed. 
 Then shall mercy have offered her last pardon, have se- 
 lected and prepared her last vessel; then shall forbear- 
 ance have waited her last moment; then shall compas- 
 
134 Letters on the Divine Purpose* 
 
 sion have shed her last tear. Then he who is filthy, shall 
 he filthy forever; then he who is holy, shall be holy forever. 
 Then shall the kingdom be delivered up to the Father, 
 that God may be all in all. Then shrill the glory of God, 
 the ultimate object of creation, providence and redemp- 
 tion, shine forth in all its bris^htness. Inspired with new 
 ardor and delight, with new sentiments of 2;ratitiide and 
 love, of reverence and awe, then shall the heavenlv hosts 
 un te in as-ribing. Blessing, and honor, and glory, and 
 power to Him that sitteth upon the throne, and to the Lamb 
 forever and ever. Then 'shall the redeemed of the Lord 
 add their chorus, in uhich even angels cannot join; Unto 
 Him who loved vs, and washed 71s from our sins in his own- 
 blood, be glory and dominion, forever and ever, Amen. 
 
 Now, my friend, permit m.i to ask von seriously, what 
 think you of these doctrmes? .Are they true; are they 
 scriptural; are they worthy of God; are they consistent 
 with all that we know of his character, and calculated t© 
 bring glory to his nnrae; are they suited to the sinful, 
 wretched and helpless condition of man; are they com- 
 forting, strengthening and cheering to the christian? If 
 they are, then holdfast the form of sound words, and 
 even contend, not furiously, not with the bitter zeal of 
 party spirit, but with meekness, humility and brotherly 
 love, contend earnestly for the faith, once delivered to the 
 saints. 
 
 You ascribe the preservation of your life, and your 
 hope of salvation to God; and for these blessings you are 
 ^rateful. By this gratitude, you acknowledge that these 
 are invaluable favors; and favors too, which you do not 
 deserve. Will you be less thankful if you believe that 
 they are bestowed according to an intention of your great 
 benefactor? Will it check, will it diminish, will it not 
 rather increase your grateful emotions to believe that this 
 intention was formed and existed before the foundation of 
 the world? 
 
 Let me suppose, what is not, and I hope never will be 
 the fact, that you are in a state of indigence, suffering 
 for the want, not only of the comforts, but even the 
 necessaries of life; and that you should receive some- 
 thing valuable from a man who is a maniac, vf hose ac- 
 tions, of course, are performed without reason and with- 
 out design. In the enjoyment of what you had receivetS 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose. 135 
 
 you would feel glad, but not thankful, unless to provi- 
 dence which controls even the actions of the maniac; 
 but you would feel no gratitude to this man; because 
 you would be convinced that he had no intention to re- 
 lieve your distress's, and felt no benevolence towards you. 
 Even your pleasure would be that of mere animal nature, 
 without awakening one moral sentiment of the heart. 
 Suppose your neighbor should make you a present of 
 such a nature, and at such a time, a« would justify you 
 in saying, this is the very thing which I wanted; it is ex- 
 actly suited to my necessities; my neiy;hbor must have 
 known my s«tualion, and intended to relieve m_y suffer- 
 ings, in the enjovment of this you would feel, not only 
 the gladness of animal nature, but the most lively senti- 
 ments of gratitude, which wouh) have an immediate ob- 
 ject, clearly indicated by this design to relieve your 
 wants. The knowledije of this design would have ano- 
 ther happy effect on your mind; it vvould convince yoa 
 that, as your benefactor was under no obligation to confer 
 this favor, he was prompted to form and execute this 
 design by pure and active benevolence. flie knowl dge 
 of this benevolence would awaken your love to the man. 
 This gratitude and tiiis love would increase even the 
 gladness of animal nature, and render doubly valuable 
 and welcome the relief you received. If your neighbor 
 should inform you that this design had been formed a 
 year ago; that during this time he was preparing and se- 
 lecting the articles, now presented; that he only waited 
 till the proper time should arrive, when you would be ia 
 the greatest need, when, of course, his charity would do 
 you the most good; I venture to affirm that this informa- 
 tion would not diminish, but very much increase your 
 gratitude and love. If you were also informed that your 
 neighbor was habitually engaged in relieving other suf- 
 ferers, this vvould increase, at least, your love to the man; 
 "because it would prove that benevolence was a fixed unA 
 active principle of his heart; and that he was a worthy 
 object of this love. 
 
 The application of this supposed case to the one under 
 consideration, is plain and easy. God is the preserver 
 of your life; and has given you through grace ^ good hope 
 of salvation. Will not your belief that these unmerited 
 favors flow from design, increase your gratitude aafll love 
 
136 Letters &n, the Divine Purpose* 
 
 to your merciful Benefactor? If you could receive tbose 
 favors without this belief, you could, on their account, 
 feel neither gratitude nor love to God. Whatever glad- 
 ness you might feel, it would be the gladness of mere 
 animal nature, of the animal man^ with which no devout 
 sentiments would mingle. This belief is the main spring. 
 is the exciting cause of your gratitude and love; because 
 this design proves the benevolence of the Father of lights , 
 oi* as the Apostle. John exprt-isses it, that Gud is love. 
 You see the boundless exhibitions of this benevolence in 
 the preservation of all mankind, accordmg to the wise 
 and holy purpose of God. Look around, and you will 
 see, alas! not all, but thousands and millions of the hu- 
 man race, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, rejoic- 
 ing in the same hope which cheers your own heart. 
 This will deepen the devout and pleasing conviction that 
 benevolence and mercy are immutable and active prin- 
 ciples in the divine character, and confirm your belief 
 that God is, not only a proper object, but the only proper 
 object of your supreme love. 
 
 If you believe that these favors are conferred accord- 
 ing to design, you must believe that this design was form- 
 ed, and existed, in the divine mind, before the blessings 
 were bestowed, and if you believe that it existed before, 
 though but for one day, or even one hour, you cannot, 
 without the greatest absurdity, refuse to believe that it 
 existed from all eternity. Instead of rejecting, you ought 
 to rejoice in this belief; for it exhibits the character of 
 God, cloathed with infinite majesty, loveliness and attrac- 
 tion. The preservation of your life and your hope of 
 salvation, at this moment, depend on the means which 
 God has employed and blessed for this purpose. These 
 means are the effect of causes which preceded them, and 
 these again of others; and thus, in unbroken connexion,, 
 to the beginning of time. The great Parent of the uni~ 
 verse, with a perfect knowledge of all your necessities^ 5 
 looking forward with a benevolent and merciful eye, set { 
 in operation a series of events, which, under the con- * 
 stant guidance of his watchful and omnipotent care has 
 secured your present safety and happiness. The com- 
 mencement of this series, with every subsequent move- 
 ment and stage of its progress, are as much according to 
 design, as are its present effects. Has the doctrine any 
 
Letters on the Divine Purpose, 137 
 
 thing in it forbidding aqd repulsive, which represents 
 your Heavenly Father, when the foundation of the earth 
 was laid, according to the purpose of his infinite wisdom, 
 setting in operation that chain of causes and effects, in- 
 tended to issue in your temporal comfort and safety and 
 in your eternal salvation? If this is forbidding and re- 
 pulsive, then, what is, or what can be lovely and attrac- 
 tive? If the design is eternal, so also are the benevo- 
 lence and mercy, displayed in its execution. Can the 
 belief that the goodness which now sustains and surrounds 
 you with comforts, and fills you w'\\h joy and peace in be- 
 lieving, is eternal, fail to have a most happy and power- 
 ful effect on your mind? Nor can you believe that the 
 divine benevolence is an inactive, dormant principle; it is 
 infinitely active and powerful. But how could it act in 
 reference to you, how could it sustain and comfort you, 
 how could it relieve your wants, until you existed, and 
 were in need of these blessings? The only way in which 
 it could act towards you, before yoiir life commenced, 
 and before your wants existed, was by forming a design 
 and making provision to watch over and preserve that 
 life when it commenced, and to relieve these wants as 
 they occurred. This is the very thing which has been 
 done. This design is wise, as well as good. Divine 
 Tvisdom selected the particular time and circumstances 
 when the bestowment of these favors would produce the 
 happiest effect not only on yourself, but on the whole 
 universe. Had they been given either sooner or later 
 than the time which infinite wisdom selected, the good 
 effect, if any at all, must have been less than it is. And 
 as the bestowment of these blessings is intended to im- 
 press, to warm, to expand, to elevate and purify your 
 heart, not only through life, but through an endless du- 
 ration, it is right, it is to be expected from the character 
 of Godj that they will be conferred at the very moment 
 vrhen they will produce the greatest possible effect. 
 Thus during the current of all preceding ages, provision 
 was making for your safety, causes and effects were 
 maturing and converging toward the production of that 
 hope which you now cherish; so in the events of time, 
 provision is making for the subUme enjoyment and glo* 
 ries of eternity. 
 
i38 Letters on the Divi7ie Purpose. 
 
 I caniiot see how you can escape the conclusion, that 
 the benevolence, the mercy and the purpose of Go4, 
 dearly displayed in your present safety and comfort, 
 are as eternal as the divine mind in which they exist- 
 In the possession of this belief, so honorable and glori- 
 ous to God, so well calculated to direct, comfort and sup- 
 port you through the trials of this world, and to prepare 
 you for the rewards of grace, in the world to come, with 
 my earnest prayers for your prosperity, both ia time and 
 fttemitj, f©r the present, 1 bid you adieu. 
 

 Princeton Theological Semiriarv 
 
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