# 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 *i?* 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 « 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 •«*^ 
 
 , 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 t-3 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 . -»— — \' • 
 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 t 
 
 
 
 *f 
 
 ^ 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 
 Ifl 
 
 
 
 
 15^ 
 
 o 
 
 E-i 
 O 
 
 O 
 
 e ^ 1 ^ 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 i o 1-1 
 
 
 
 <^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ tJ ^ 
 
 
 
 e 
 
 
 
 
 
 •«i 
 
 
 CO a a> 
 
 
 
 o 
 
 
 00 wj w 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 4-> O 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 vD nj O 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 fr-D !Z _ 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 -d 
 
 
 
 ^^ 
 
 vo C O K 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 
 (N OX5 h 
 
 
 
 
 in W <D S 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^S§ t 
 
 
 
 
 
 "~> oo 
 
 
 
 
 PCI T) W 
 
 

HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
HOUSEHOLD 
 
 CONSECRATION. 
 
 NATHANIEL E. JOHNSON, 
 
 PASTOR OF THE THIRD FREE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, NEW-VORK. 
 
 NEW-YORK: 
 
 EZRA COLLIER, 148 NASSAU-STREET. 
 
 West & Trow, Printers. 
 
 1836. 
 
Entered, according to Act of Congress, by Ezra Collikb, in 
 the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-six, in the 
 Clerk's office of the Southern District of New- York. 
 
j7 
 
 ^0 ^ 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 ^/ 
 
 Q 
 
 
 Preface 9 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Fundamental principles. The constitution of the moral universe. 
 The constitution of the family state 13 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Fundamental principles. The consequences of the apostasy. — 
 The gracious design to bless parental faithfulness 18 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Abrahamic covenant. Its terms, promises, and seal. Its 
 perpetuity 27 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The right of Christians to the Abrahamic covenant. The cove- 
 nant not abolished ; confirmed ; transferred ; at the expense 
 of the Jews 38 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The change of the seal. Circumcision abolished. Baptism sub- 
 stituted 47 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Argument from ecclesiastical history. Household consecration, 
 in some form, the uninterrupted practice of the Church, during 
 four thousand years. Not neglected by any considerable por- 
 tion until within three hundred. Consecration by baptism not 
 denied by any sect during the first thousand years of Christian- 
 ity. Not commenced at any period since the apostolic age. 
 Universally practised in the fourth century. Its previous his- 
 tory. Establishing its apostolic origin 61 
 
 1* 
 
6 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Household consecration in the apostolic age. Its prominence.— 
 Under the ministry of John, of Jesus Christ, of the apostles. 
 The Church obUgated to regard it in the same manner 76 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Utility of household consecration. The state of mind essential to 
 its acceptable performance. The distinct and solemn pledge. 
 Its actual bearing on parental duties* 91 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Utility of household consecration, continued. Its influence on 
 consecrated children. Examples. Its connection with prevail- 
 ing prayer. Examples. The early conversion of children 100 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Utility of household consecration, continued. Relation of bap- 
 tized children to the Church. Influence on the prosperity of the 
 Church. The theory, viewed in connection with the practical 
 operation 106 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 Household consecration in its administration. The Wyandot chief. 
 The baptism 114 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Practical reflections. Application of these principles to parents.... 118 
 
 CHAPTER Xni. 
 
 Practical reflections. Application of these principles to fathers. ... 127 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Practical reflections, continued. Application of these principles 
 to mothers 13Q 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Practical reflections. Application of these principles to consecra- 
 ted children 143 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Duties of the Church on the subject of household ,consecration. 
 Special consecration of children, in reference to the gospel 
 ministry. Conclusion 150 
 
CONTENTS. 7 
 
 Address to parents, delivered in the Central Presbyterian Church, 
 Broome-street, New- York, before the New- York Maternal 
 Association, at their Annual Meeting, March, A. D. 1836 157 
 
 The prayer of Habakkuk, or consolations of the covenant 186 
 
 The altar of consecration 190 
 
 The consecration 191 
 
 To a consecrated youth 192 
 

 ^^yrrrw^^^' 
 
 The time has arrived when the subject of Household 
 Consecration is to be more thoroughly studied, under- 
 stood, and practised, than at any former period. An in- 
 stitution founded upon imperishable reasons, and animated 
 by principles which control the destinies of our race, 
 must, in the progress of mankind towards the ages of uni- 
 versal Christianity, be more fully displayed and divinely 
 honored. The rise of Sabbath schools, Bible classes, and 
 infant schools ; the publication of books on the domestic 
 relations ; the formation of maternal associations ; the his- 
 tory of revivals, as written in the biography of departed 
 worthies, and in our own delightful experience ; have con- 
 spired to arouse the Church of God to a deeper and live^ 
 lier faith in the covenant of consecration. 
 
 The author has, for years, watched with intense inte- 
 rest the operations of divine Providence and grace, in re- 
 ference to this ordinance of the Church, and has become 
 animated with the firm and joyful belief, that its power 
 and virtue have not at all been developed in the fulness of 
 their splendor. As this interest has led him occasionally 
 to speak of it to others, he has been delighted to find, as 
 if by one common influence, the minds of many devoted 
 
10 PREFACE. 
 
 ministers and Christians watching it with the same eager- 
 ness, and rejoicing in the same convictions. Under these 
 impressions, he feels constrained to exert such influence 
 as he may possess, to turn the attention of greater numbers 
 to this subject. 
 
 He has, therefore, resolved to employ the press, as 
 hitherto he has often employed the pulpit, to communicate 
 to his fellow Christians his views and feelings respecting 
 the consecration of households to God. * In several succes- 
 sive chapters the divine origin of the practice of infant 
 dedication; the fundamental and perpetual reasons of its 
 institution ; the designed application of its principles to all 
 nations and ages ; the ancient and the modern form, by 
 which the faith of the Church in these principles has been 
 designated; the utility of this ordinance, and its relations 
 to all the interests of future generations, will be presented 
 for the consideration of all Christian professors, and espe- 
 cially for those who already practise itj The fact, that 
 this subject has awakened so much controversy, has made 
 many lovers of peace among its friends averse to its fre- 
 quent discussion. This aversion has operated to exclude 
 it from the pulpit ; and this exclusion from the pulpit, to 
 cause even those who practise it to slumber over its spirit- 
 ual principles and ecclesiastical importance. In this slum- 
 ber many households have fearfully suffered. The rich 
 and healthy influences of this institution of ages have nei- 
 ther been fully experienced, nor, when partially experi- 
 enced, duly appreciated. Had this subject received atten- 
 tion according to its merits, instead of being considered 
 as scarcely contained in the Scriptures, it would have been 
 
PREtACE. 11 
 
 regarded as intermingled with the whole current of inspi' 
 ration ; instead of being considered as an ordinance mere- 
 }y harmless, it would have been recognized as an arrange^ 
 ment, around which the deepest plans of divine Providence 
 have taken root, and on which the great multitude of pre^ 
 cious promises have bloomed and Clustered. Indeed, there 
 is good reason to believe, that had this ordinance been 
 preserved in its original purity, the dark ages could never 
 have intervened ; and had it not fallen into disuse, the 
 reformation could scarcely have been impeded ; and had 
 it, to the present time, preserved its spirituality, the world 
 would have been filled, ere this, with the influence of a 
 pure Christianity. 
 
 The writer is aware that this will be considered, even 
 by many of its friends, as extravagant language. By those 
 who have regarded it as a superstitious and frivolous cere*- 
 mony, it will be considered as an outrage upon the princi- 
 ples of all sober reasoning. He wishes them, however, so 
 far to suspend their decision, as to consider calmly the 
 views and reasons which, to his own mind, present these 
 assertions as the language of truth and soberness. He 
 does not expect to convince, or impress those who do not 
 read, or, reading, do not reflect, or, reflecting, do not pray. 
 To those, however, who are willing to study the great per* 
 manent arrangements of divine Providence, to ponder the 
 history of the Church, to contemplate the everlasting co- 
 venant, and admit the full force of parental responsibility, 
 he feels assured that a thorough examination of this sub- 
 ject will result in a conscious justification of his strongest 
 language. If this great theme shall thus obtain a stronger 
 
12 PREFACE. 
 
 hold upon the spirit of prayer now rising in the Church ; 
 if this little hook shall excite believing minds to think, 
 and abler minds to preach and write, respecting that 
 great theme, until it shall rise in its magnitude upon 
 the vision of the Church; then will the author rejoice in 
 the thought that he has not written in vain. Encouraging 
 this hope — a hope derived from having already presented 
 these views in other methods, he commits this volume to 
 the examination of the Christian public and to the blessing 
 ofthe God of truth. 
 
^*'*er 
 
 
 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Fundamental principles. The constitution of the moral universe. The 
 constitution of the family state. 
 
 The consecration of households to God, has been prac- 
 tised by the great body of the Church ever since the time 
 of Abraham. That it originated in the wisdom of God, and 
 is emphatically a divine plan, admits of direct and positive 
 proof. This institution must have its fundamental rea- 
 sons. Its antiquity evinces their power, and its divine ori- 
 gin, their justice. We shall therefore proceed to inquire, 
 
 What foundation there is in the constitution of things 
 for the practice of household consecration. 
 
 1. There is a natural foundation for it in the constitu- 
 tion of the moral universe. 
 
 In that constitution God has claimed the supreme right 
 of property in matter ^ and has revealed himself the supreme 
 and exclusive proprietor of mind. This right is original, 
 independent, absolute, and universal. It is inalienable and 
 indestructible. It is Jehovah's prerogative, peculiarly, ex- 
 clusively, and forever. In the system of moral govern- 
 ment which he has established, for eternity, he has involved, 
 this claim, and committed himself to maintain it among an- 
 gels and men. It is wrought into every living glory of 
 heaven, and acknowledged in every celestial song. It is 
 poured in upon man through all the testimony of natural, 
 religion, and all the ordinances of revealed. It pervades 
 
 2 
 
14 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 all his circumstances and relations. It is placed upon him 
 on his first introduction to existence. Creative power hath 
 started a new nnind on its endless career, and ought not 
 that mind to be speedily consecrated to God ? The divine 
 right is in it. The divine claim is upon it. Man, there* 
 fore, should hasten to acknowledge them ; and that ac- 
 knowledgment by the proper persons, in the proper manner^ 
 is consecration. Thus, in the constitution of the moral uni- 
 verse lies one fundamental reason. There is, moreover, 
 another : That mind is ordained to exert an influence over 
 mind universally and forever. 
 
 The moral sentiments and feelings of immortal minds 
 must have channels of mutual communication, and When 
 communicated, must produce similar or diverse sentiments 
 and feelings in associated minds. 
 
 The peculiar desirableness of an intelligeilt and immoi'* 
 tal universe must consist in the capacity for niutual and in- 
 fluential communion. In consequence of this capacity, the 
 universe of created and immortal mind will be able to 
 study the perfections of God, and mutually to exercise 
 their feelings of approbation and delight, as he shall con- 
 descend to reVeal more and more clearly, through eternity, 
 his nature, his character, and his glory. In consequence of 
 this capacity, they can understand, appreciate, love, and 
 elevate each other. God may thus cast over the mighty uni- 
 verse of mind flash afl;er flash of his radiant glory, as his be- 
 nevolent plan shall be unfolded, and thus educate, for an im- 
 mensity of mutual happiness, his obedient offspring. That 
 whole plan is one system of in^uence, mind acting upon mind, 
 uncreated intelligence influencing in law, and in grace, 
 created intelligences^— and created minds influencing each 
 other. This great principle of the moral universe has 
 much to do with the practice of infant consecration. The 
 design of that ordinance is to secure the influence of mind 
 over mind in God's behalf. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 15 
 
 So far, therefore, as it is adapted in itself to promote 
 that design, and so far as God has determined to employ it 
 for this purpose : so far, moreover, as it asserts his righte- 
 ous and absolute claim to property in universal mind, it is 
 rationally based on the constitution of the moral universe 
 itself. 
 
 2. There is a natural reason for this ordinance in the 
 domestic constitution. 
 
 God has there given mind influence over mind in a most 
 intense and responsible degree. The parties are, first, two 
 beings, the parents ; and a third being, the child ; and all 
 immortal. They are introduced into a state of moral 
 probation ; and on the character formed and developed in 
 their probationary' state, depends their eternal destiny. The 
 parental minds combined, are placed in circumstances cal- 
 culated to give them an unrivalled degree of influence over 
 the mind of the child. The ardent and mutual affection 
 between the parties ; the complete superiority of the pa- 
 rents to the child in every intellectual acquirement ; the 
 entire dependence of the child on them for its opinions con- 
 cerning itself, the world, and its God ; the habitual inter- 
 course existing between them on the most ordinary occa- 
 sions ; the power of securing the additional influence of the 
 elder children over the younger, in harmony with that of 
 the parents : all these circumstances united, conspire to fur- 
 nish the parents with an almost absolute control over the 
 earlier habits and opinions of their offspring. Such, then, 
 is the construction of the family state, and such the moral 
 influences exerted in the intimacies of its bosom. There 
 the first issues of moral character are nurtured— the 
 earliest impulses sent forth upon human minds and hearts 
 begin to flow. There the first affection in an eternal series is 
 warmed into conscious existence. There the destinies of na- 
 tions are cradled. There, in the smiles, the tears, the 
 
16 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 playfulness, and the laws of home, the great moral history 
 of human nature is portrayed in living hieroglyphics. They 
 indeed form an essential part of it. 
 
 This constitution, with all its springs of influence^ was 
 designed by its great Author for the purpose of forming cha* 
 racterfor the confirmed glories of eternity. It was ordained 
 before the fall. It was adapted to preserve the choicest 
 influences of holy parents, unimpaired, and to send them on 
 accumulating through successive millenniads. The prophet 
 Malachi asserts, that although God had the residue of the 
 Spirit, he established the marriage relation between two in- 
 dividuals that he might seek a godly seed. This was the 
 definite and avowed object of the family state itself. For 
 this, its living fountains were opened ; its deep and thril- 
 ling intimacies awakened, its physical, intellectual, and mo- 
 ral relations founded. These being universal, entering into 
 the experience of every individual, were adapted to consti- 
 tute a most permanent, affecting, and influential medium of 
 communication, from heart to heart, throughout the race. It 
 was adapted to make the wide brotherhood of human nature 
 one broad ocean of affection, lying open with all its waves 
 to the perpetual breath of truth : to the congenial impulses 
 of the purest and sublimest motives. Thus its replenishing 
 fountains of forming influence were to gush forth through 
 all time, and thus its spiritual tides were to heave onward 
 through eternity. It was on this constitution, that the 
 Sanctifier would have taken his seat, in extending his pre- 
 serving grace over unfallen probation. These were the 
 cords which, thus pervading innumerable minds were pla- 
 ced in the hands of Adam, and were to convey, through 
 their whole extent, life and peace, or death and woe, ac- 
 cording as he should touch them with the unction of obe- 
 dience, or with the poison of rebellion. 
 
 Had our first parents held fast their allegiance, and ex- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 17 
 
 erted all their influence to form their children to holiness ; 
 had death remained a stranger to our race ; and even down 
 to the present time had the ancient patriarchs lived to ex- 
 ert a holy influence, and the collected wisdom of six thou- 
 sand years remained in its accumulated treasures to in. 
 struct the present generation ; had there been growing also 
 by its side ten thousand friendships, family alliances, long 
 cherished intimacies, and ever kindling, ever strengthening 
 attachment : O, then, in what heavenly places would the 
 innocent child of beauty have inhaled its earliest impres- 
 sions. Yet such was the tendency and the prospect, before 
 sin entered, " and with it death with all our woe." 
 
 The institution of infant consecration, therefore, is 
 founded in this great Providential arrangement, of placing 
 mankind in successive generations. God could have crea- 
 ted all men at once, and made us all contemporaries, instead 
 of all descendants of Adam and Eve. He saw best, how- 
 ever,, in his infinite wisdom, to constitute the parental rela- 
 tion, and connect with this constitution such a powerful 
 system of influence and responsibilities. Does there not, 
 then, a special reason at once appear, why parents, en- 
 trusted with such a charge as the education of an immortal 
 mind for an eternal residence in heaven, should be required 
 to give a solemn pledge for the faithful discharge of their 
 trust 1 Would it not accord with the immense interests 
 connected with their influence to secure that influence for 
 the eternal welfare of the child ? Would it not be impor- 
 tant to make deep the impression of the infinite value ot 
 the young immortal? In view of the grand object of the 
 domestic constitution, therefore, we discern a most urgent 
 reason for the divine institution « f household dedication. It 
 evidently has no trivial origin — it has relations of most im- 
 pressive and enduring importance, and seems at once to be 
 seated in the deep foundations of human nature. 
 2* 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 Fundamental principles. The consequences of the apostasy. The 
 gracious design of God to bless parent faithfulness. 
 
 The strength and justice of this institution in its funda- 
 mental principles will be farther apparent, if we consider, 
 3. The consequences of the apostasy on the human 
 character and the domestic constitution. Without controver- 
 sy, those consequences in themselves are tremendous. It is 
 now certain that every child, in forming his character for 
 the judgment, will tit himself for everlasting destruction. 
 Since the earliest affections of the infant are supremely sel- 
 fish, he will invariably resist the claims of God, at their 
 first presentation, and persist in his rebellion until it be- 
 comes habitual and eternal, unless through divine grace he 
 is renewed, forgiven, and prepared for heaven. In addition 
 to this, his native and voluntary depravit)', he will certainly 
 be surrounded by evil and vicious examples ; he will cer- 
 tainly be tempted to the vicious indulgence of his constitu- 
 tional propensities, he will certainly see much, even in the 
 holiest parents, which he cannot imitate with safety, and 
 finally he will inevitably be exposed to the wiles of the 
 grand adversary — the original, successful, and universal 
 tempter. Call now to mind the principle of injiuence — 
 mind influencing mind on moral subjects — and also the na- 
 ture of the family constitution, giving to such influence an 
 intense and unrivalled sway, and you will at once perceive 
 that in these appalling circumstances the parents are placed 
 on either side like two guardian angels. They, if their 
 own example be evil, will confirm, strengthen, and foster the 
 evil habits of their child. If they do not instruct him in the 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 19 
 
 knowledge of God, he will grow up ignorant and impenitent. 
 If they do not guard him from the contamination of evil and 
 seductive examples — if they do not endeavor to enlist his 
 feelings on the side of the true God — if they, above all, 
 should inculcate views of God and religion fundamentally 
 erroneous, they will exert a deep, continual, and efficacious 
 influence in fitting their child for confirmed irreligion in 
 time, and endless destruction when time shall be no more. 
 This fearful influence will issue, not from a studied design 
 to exert it, but from their neglect of pious duties ; from their 
 love for worldly pleasures ; from their vain conversation. 
 The character formed under such influence will of course 
 reproduce itself in the next generation, and thus float down 
 for ages, bearing with it an accumulating weight of guilt 
 and mourning. T.ius tlie institution of household relations, 
 so admirably calculated to perpetuate holiness through 
 successive ages ; so much like Paradise in all its original 
 tendencies, is made, by man's depravity, the engine of trans- 
 mitting evil dispositions and habits. The grand deceiver 
 has only to poison the domestic fountain, in order to mingle 
 his agency in the vast concerns of men, and cover the 
 world with his own luxuriant and congenial harvest. The 
 passions and the selfishness of men, bursting forth amidst 
 innumerable occasions of excitement, have always required 
 the most efficient restraints, even for the preservation of the 
 common interests of society. 
 
 How often, indeed, the most weighty considerations, the 
 most affecting motives, which either time or eternity can 
 furnish, are like the green withes of Sampson, or the fetters 
 of the Gadarenian demoniac. It is, therefore, manifest, 
 that since this controlless depravity is so universal ; since 
 it spreads through all the avenues of human action ; since 
 especially in the family circle these depraved minds are 
 most intimately connected ; since thus there are indissoluble 
 
20 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 cords of influence binding all generations together, sin, once 
 introduced, will spread like fire in the dry and thick forest. 
 If, therefore, any thing is to be done for the restoration of 
 man to holiness, the early sanctification of the domestic in- 
 fluences would of course be regarded as a prominent and 
 all -important measure. Unless grace had interposed, the 
 augmenting depravity of man would have overwhelmed the 
 human race with one universal and impervious darkness. 
 The eruptions of depravity in different generations would 
 have buried the mortal and spiritual interests of man under 
 ten thousand cemented incrustations. If, then, restoring 
 mercy were to exert at all her benevolent offices in our be- 
 behalf, she would be directed by all right understanding of 
 the permanent plans of God, to apply her energies to those 
 cords of inffuence which bind the ages together. If she 
 would elevate a sinking world, or even transiently suspend 
 it, from the cavernous ruin beneath, she must apply her le- 
 ver here. The nature of moral influence in itself ; its in- 
 tense action in the domestic circle ; and above all, its appal- 
 ling perversion through mun's entire depravity, demand, 
 therefore, that the parental agency be secured on the side 
 of God's truth, in order permanently to establish any sys- 
 tem of restoration. The work of restoration must employ 
 these original and all-pervading energies ; and the system 
 of gracious administration must be founded in these ever 
 during and all-controlling principles. These principles are 
 wrought into the very constitution of the moral universe, 
 and into the whole structure of that fearful edifice — human 
 nature — in its growth o^ generations. Through all the 
 joints and timber and compartments of this edifice, the per- 
 meating presence of evil agencies has left its monuments 
 of possession. What shall be done ? The plague is raging : 
 The prospective atonement has rendered forgiveness possi- 
 ble, if the hearts of men are changedj and if the sinful race 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 21 
 
 can be brought to repentance. The contrivances of mer- 
 cy here commence their direct operation upon the moral 
 condition of man. It was reasonable that the holy Agent 
 of grace should prepare himself a passage through this 
 thoroughfare of moral influence. It was reasonable that 
 He should connect his arrangements for restoring holiness, 
 with the same principles which were first designed for per- 
 petuating holiness had our race never revolted. It was rea- 
 sonable that in order to subdue the power of the devil, he 
 should atttack the strong holds, which he had erected for him- 
 self, out of these very principles. It was the more reasonable 
 that this should be done, when the ravages which death was 
 making among the guilty race, and especially when their 
 imminent exposures, were considered. It was the dictate of 
 reason, of benevolent necessity even, that some direct and 
 well adapted course of effort should be commenced, in re- 
 ference to the renovation of children. 
 
 If such a course of effort were to be commenced,where 
 could the eye of merciful visitation rest, if not upon paren^ 
 tal influence ? How could that influence be secured, even 
 in the case of regenerated parents, better than by requiring 
 from them such a pledge as should give them a power- 
 ful sense of their responsibilities ; connected with such 
 promises as should encourage them amidst their parental 
 anxieties ? Therefore, in presenting the original reasons for 
 establishing this practice, we adduce, 
 
 4. The design of ( J od to dispense spiritual blessings in 
 connection with parental faithfulness. The principles al- 
 ready contemplated illustrate the reasonableness and pro- 
 priety, of such a plan. The actual existence of such a 
 design, as an enduring principle of divine government, 
 will now be contemplated. That God has always proceed- 
 ed according to this general arrangement is evident from 
 the earliest records of his gracious deeds. It is evident 
 
22 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 from that history, even in view of the progress of wicked- 
 ness. Consider now the primeval operations of grace. 
 After the fall, the promise of a Saviour was made to our 
 first parents ; a Saviour who was to be their descendant' 
 When, therefore, after the murder of Abel, the birth of 
 Seth occurred, the believing mother of us all seems to have 
 looked upon him in the remembrance and application of the 
 merciful promise. From him the Messiah eventually de- 
 scended. In the progress of mankind through the antedi- 
 luvian period, we find two distinct classes mentioned, viz. the 
 sons of God and the sons of men. From the fact that pious 
 patriarchs of those days were the descendants of Seth ; com- 
 bined with the fact that the intermarriages of the two clas- 
 ses prepared the way for the universal corruption of the 
 whole earth, we are authorized to infer that the distinction 
 between the two classes was a distinction between the pious 
 and impious families. The patriarchs in the Hne of Seth. 
 were the leaders among the sons of God, while those of 
 Cain were undoubtedly the leaders among the sons of men. 
 The names of Enos, Enoch, Methusaleh, and Noah, desig- 
 nate the first ; and those of Cain, Lamech, Tubal-cain, are 
 characteristic of the other. 
 
 What an age of patriarchal moral power was that. The 
 longevity of those men enabled them to exert an unrivalled 
 agency over their descendants. Hundreds of years rolled 
 away, and still the venerable patriarch was there. How 
 must the aged Cain have looked, after the spirit of murder 
 had drawn its lines on hia countenance for hundreds of 
 years. If he continued unrenewed, his memory must have 
 been loaded with a catalogue of sins like the record of an 
 empire, and in the aspect of his multiplied descendants he 
 could behold his own scornful likeness forming, and his 
 own terrible example applauded. For a while the sons of 
 God enjoyed, from their longevity, the same advantages. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 23 
 
 Enoch) the seventh from Adam in the line of Seth, was 
 contemporary with Adam himself, for the space of three 
 hundred and eight years. Methusaleh, his son, enjoyed 
 the instructions of the heavenly Enoch for three hundred 
 years, and was able to extend them, after his father's won- 
 derful translation, for six hundred and ninety-five years 
 longer ! What a sublime spectacle, to have seen the aged 
 Methusaleh, training up the young Noah, his grandson, 
 and watching with tearful eye the labor of Noah in building 
 the mysterious ark. The main channels of grace were 
 certainly along the line of this sanctified parental and pa- 
 triarchal influence. The object of this arrangement was 
 to take advantage of the original family constitution, and 
 establish it with its perpetual influences over the world. 
 The time, however, for the complete accomplishment of this 
 object, had not then arrived^may I not say, has not yet 
 arrived. God, for wise reasons, perhaps that the destruc- 
 tive nature of unholy agency might be more fully exhi- 
 bited, permitted the attractions of the world to seduce from 
 the family allegiance the sons of God. The righteous and 
 the wicked began to mingle in families. The descendants 
 of such marriage connections copied the more agreeable 
 fashions of the licentious world ; tlie barriers were broken 
 down, and the impious opinions and example of the wicked 
 obtained currency and ascendency around the homes and 
 the hearths of the saints. One holy patriarch afi;er another 
 went down to the grave. The spirit of grace forsook the 
 altar-places which once he delighted to overshadow, and a 
 deep-minded^ dark-hearted race of giant men controlled, 
 with violence and oppression^ the abandoned world. When 
 God had suffered this state of things to exist, until the full 
 tendencies of perverted family influence were fearfully ex- 
 hibited, until it resulted in the production of a countless race 
 of old, experienced criminals, gigantic in stature and proudly 
 
24 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 intelligent in doing evil ; grovelling in imagination ; base 
 in purpose ; unrestrained in conduct ; he announced his 
 design to limit the days of man's probation to a much shorter 
 period, and to destroy the whole of the antediluvian race — 
 Noah and his family excepted. How strongly does the 
 story of those ancient days evince the existence of a design 
 already stated, to make the family relation the main channel 
 of grace. After the deluge, the settlement of the human 
 race was again commenced, in the family of Noah. Here, 
 moreover, the evidence is equally convincing of the exist- 
 ence of such an arrangement. The descendants, especi- 
 ally of Shem and Japhet, appear to have included the piety 
 of those ages. The art of war was introduced, probably, 
 by Nimrod, a descendant of Ham. It is very clear that 
 idolatry also originated with the descendants of Cush, the 
 son of Ham, Egypt and Canaan, countries peopled by 
 the descendants of Ham, show in the inspired record of the 
 character and curse, the power of the family constitution 
 when perverted. 
 
 The evidence of existing piety from the time of Noah to 
 Abraham is all to be obtained from the history of the race 
 of Shem and Japhet. So far, then, during a period of 2000 
 years, there is evidence that the great amount of all the 
 dispensations of grace has been on the principle of Messing 
 children through the influence of believing parents. These 
 facts will, moreover, explain the reason annexed to the 
 second commandment, and through that explanation will 
 shed much admonition and encouragement around the family 
 relations. They will explain how it is that God may visit 
 the iniquities of the father upon the children unto the third 
 and fourth generation of those that hate him. He has only 
 to leave the wicked parents to exert their natural influence 
 on their own children, and withhold his regenerating grace 
 from those households whose parents never seek it in the 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 25 
 
 behalf of their offspring. He will eventually punish the 
 children themselves only for their own iniquities, yet their 
 course of action was influenced by the examples and ini 
 structions of their ungodly parents. There is, howeverj 
 much to encourage, as well as much to admonish the parent. 
 For he does Mess with his converting grace the houseliolds of 
 his faithful people. He does bless the holy patriarch's 
 heavenly influence. He does, actually, as we have seen, 
 bestow his gracious visitations according to this rational, 
 permanent, and independent arrangement. 
 
 Let me also here remark, with grateful adoration, how 
 much, according to this principle, his goodness exceeds his 
 severity ! While his curse that is in the house of the wicked 
 may be removed in the third or fourth generation, his gra- 
 cious design and its consequent train of spiritual blessings, 
 may extend through a thousand generations of those that 
 love him. Thus by carrying out the spirit and principle 
 of this general design in the special work of his grace, all 
 the precious promises will be accomplished, and the original 
 constitution of the family state will thus be restored, to pour 
 its millennial influences over the world, until 
 
 " The rose of Eden blooms again for man." 
 
 If, then, the design which we have stated does exist as a 
 permanent gracious arrangement, how perfectly proper 
 that an institution should be founded, in which the parent 
 should promise to fulfil his high religious obligations, and 
 in which the covenant-keeping God should promise to sus- 
 tain him among his overwhelming responsibilities? Such 
 an institution is infant consecration, founded originally by 
 the direct appointment of Jehovah. Whether it ought now 
 to be continued — whether the form of consecration should 
 be water baptism, are questions hereafter to be examined ; 
 
 3 
 
26 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 but that infant dedication was originally ordained by Jeho- 
 vah himself, cannot of course be denied by any believer in 
 the Bible. The considerations already suggested will 
 show that the ordinance was based on the most important 
 reasons. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Abrahamic covenant. Terms. Promises, seal, perpetuity. 
 
 We have seen that the ordinance of infant consecration 
 is from heaven ; and like all other divine institutions, hath 
 a strong foundation — composed of the great elementary- 
 truths of moral government and family constitution ; a 
 foundation laid amidst the ruins of the fall, by the hand of 
 mercy, embodying the great fact, that God designs to dis- 
 pense spiritual blessings to children in connection with paren- 
 tal faithfulness. The existence of this design, as a perma- 
 nent plan, is manifest already by the consideration that 
 even before any external form of consecration was enjoined, 
 the transactions of grace had proceeded for two thousand 
 years, in uniform accordance with its principles. The 
 time at length arrived, when this design was to be brought 
 more prominently to view, and when its principles were to 
 become more powerful in action. The experience of ages 
 had manifested, not to God, but in man's history, for man's 
 future use, the importance of some distinct and solemn 
 pledge, which should be adopted to secure the parental 
 faithfulness, and with which the fulfilment of the gracious 
 design was so intimately connected. At the calling of 
 Abraham, idolatry had become firmly, and generally es- 
 tablished, and the worship of the true God was sinking 
 into disuse. How fearfully, in these facts of ancient days, 
 is the contagious power of depravity exhibited! What 
 lessons of instruction will be communicated to the ages to 
 come ! what impressive admonitions to all worlds against 
 
28 
 
 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 the introduction of sin ! An Eden lost ; a world destroyed ; 
 a new world corrupted. The voice of God calls from that 
 burning portion of history, Beware of sin. 
 
 God, however, was, in the course of all these events, 
 developing the truth of his law, and the arrangements of 
 his grace. He ordered the whole current of human affairs 
 in view of the advent of Christ. This great event, on which 
 the interest of a world depended, was now to be connected 
 with the posterity of Abraham, and a nation was to be pro- 
 vided as a cradle for the Saviour, and a nursery for the 
 Church. For this purpose, and in view of all results con- 
 sequent upon the establishment of Christianity, Abraham 
 was called to go out from his native land, a lonely pilgrim, 
 yet an heir of glorious promises. He was assured that in 
 his posterity all the families of the earth should be blessed. 
 He trusted in God, and by faith, saw the day of Christ and 
 was glad. Then it was, that God, from a regard to the 
 interests of mankind in all ages, revealed to him his gracious 
 plan, and established the everlasting household covenant. 
 This covenant, like the rainbow in its humid beauty, was 
 to shine illustrious by the living principles which were 
 essential to its formation. As this covenant combines in 
 itself the aforesaid fundamental principles, and establishes, 
 until the period of its own abolition, the practice of infant 
 consecration, I shall solicit the candid attention of the 
 reader to the following topics : 
 
 I. The nature and provisions of the Abrahamic cove- 
 nant. 
 
 II. The right of God's people, through all ages and 
 nations, to its invaluable privileges ; and, 
 
 III. The evidence that baptism is now, in the place of 
 circumcision, the appointed seal of that everlasting cove- 
 nant. 
 
 I. The covenant, whose nature and provisions we are 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 29 
 
 now to examine, is contained in the 17th chapter of 
 Genesis. 
 
 " And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the 
 Lord appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the 
 Almighty God, walk before me and be thou perfect. And 
 I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will 
 multiply thee exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face ; 
 and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold my 
 covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many 
 nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called 
 Abram ; but thy name shall be Abraham, for a father of 
 many nations have I made thee. And 1 will make thee 
 exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee; and 
 kings shall come out of thee. And 1 will establish my 
 covenant between me and thee, and thy seed after thee, in 
 their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God 
 unto thee and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto 
 thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art 
 a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting pos- 
 session, and I will be their God. And God said unto 
 Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou 
 and thy seed after thee, in their generations. This is my 
 covenant which ye shall keep, between me and you, and 
 thy seed after thee ; every man-child among you shall be 
 circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your 
 foreskin, and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt 
 me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be cir- 
 cumcised among you, every man-child in your generations, 
 he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any 
 stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy 
 house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs 
 be circumcised, and my covenant shall be in your flesh for 
 an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised msm- 
 child, whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that 
 
 8* 
 
30 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 soul shall be cut off from his people ; he hath broken my 
 covenant." 1-14. 
 
 In order to understand the nature and provisions of this 
 covenant, we must consider its terms, its promises, and its 
 seal. 
 
 1. What were the terms of the covenant? 
 
 In order to enter this covenant it was essential that 
 Abraham should give credible evidence of his faith. It was 
 after his faith had been well known, and well tried, that 
 his public connection with it was formed. Saving faith, or 
 vital godliness, was required in the language of its intro- 
 duction, " I am the Almighty God ; walk before me, and he 
 thou perfect. And I will make my covenant between me and 
 thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly. And Abraham fell 
 on hisface.^^ He exercised unwavering faith in the divine 
 word, and consented to the holy terms, which were essen- 
 tial to his admission. 
 
 As this covenant, moreover, respected his offspring as 
 well as himself, it was essential that he should exercise that 
 faith in a course of parental faithfulness. Thus, shortly 
 after this transaction, the Lord, referring to this very house- 
 hold promise, said, " For I know him, that he will command 
 his children, and his household after him ; and they shall 
 keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment ; that 
 the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken 
 ofhim.^' Gen. xviii. 19. It is manifest from this, that God 
 intended to bless his posterity according to his parental 
 faithfulness ; and that the promise to him, in behalf of his 
 household, was made on this condition. 
 
 2. What were the promises of this covenant ? 
 
 The promises made to Abraham on the conditions above 
 
 specified, respected both himself and his offspring. The 
 
 grand object of this covenant, in all its bearings, was, the 
 
 conveyance of spiritual blessings. Of this, the phrases, " to 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 31 
 
 be a God to thee," " I will be their God," are conclusive 
 proof. This was the language of God through all the 
 Scripture when the gifts of saving grace were promised. 
 
 Jer. xxxi. 33. " This shall he the covenant that I will 
 make with the house of Israel, saith the Lord ; I will put my 
 law in their inward parts, and will ivrite it in their hearts^ 
 and I will he their God, and they shall he my people. ^^ In 
 Ezekiel xi. 19, 20 ; xxxvi. 25-28 ; xxxvii. 26, 27 ; the 
 same expressive language is employed for the same pur- 
 pose. Thus, indeed, the new and everlasting covenant is 
 emphatically expressed. The same language is as full of 
 grace and truth when used to Abraham, as when used cm 
 any subsequent occasion. Not only the scriptural use, but 
 the grand idea of the expression itself, " I will be thy God,''^ 
 obliges us to this interpretation. What more can any im- 
 mortal spirit possess, than to have the great God his sure 
 and eternal portion ? What bestowments of grace can be 
 imagined not included here ? Nor is it an objection to these 
 views, that temporal blessings are promised, in the context, 
 as well as spiritual. This also, elsewhere, the Bible pro- 
 raises : " No good thing will he withhold from them that walk 
 uprightly. — I have never seen the righteous forsaken, nor his 
 seed begging hread: — Godliness hath the promise of the life 
 that now is, as well as of the life which is to come^ The 
 Lord is the guardian of his people in every interest, whe- 
 ther temporal or spiritual ; and the angel that encampeth 
 round about them, is not less the minister of his providence 
 than of his grace. 
 
 This glorious covenant conveys these spiritual hlessings 
 to the believer himself. His regeneration, his saving faith, 
 his personal obedience to the truth, is presupposed, as essen- 
 tial to his entrance upon these covenant privileges. The 
 personal promise to him, as a believer, insured, 1st. Par. 
 don ; 2d. Sanctification ; 3d. Perseverance. For all these, 
 
32 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 together with all needful temporal good, are included in the 
 phrase, I will be thy God, as explained by the Bible itself. 
 His own regeneration is not promised, because it is itself a 
 prerequisite to an entrance upon the covenant title. This 
 being supposed, these other blessings the covenant insures 
 to him absolutely and unconditionally, as a believer in Jesus 
 Christ. His faith is the connecting bond, which unites him 
 to these blessings of adoption. By thus securing the per- 
 severing holiness of the believer himself, it forms a sure 
 foundation for its farther procedures respecting his house- 
 hold. Therefore, it promises to convey the blessings of 
 grace to his offspring, on condition of his parental faithful, 
 ness. The promise, as extended to his children, included 
 regeneration in addition, and as the grand prerequisite to all 
 the others. A promise so rich, was made only to living 
 faith, and in proportion to the degree and eminence of pa- 
 rental faithfulness. It placed the redeemed head of a fallen 
 household on the rock of salvation, and roused him, by 
 most thrilling motives, to attempt, while it encouraged him 
 to expect, according to his operative faith, their certain re- 
 demption also. This promise to the believing parent was 
 conditional, and graduated in its gracious meaning, accord- 
 ing to the measure of faith which should be manifested in 
 the domestic constitution. Should the parent's light be 
 obscured, and his conduct be grossly inconsistent ; should 
 he break the covenant engagement ; should he fail, like 
 Eli, to restrain his children ; should he be grossly deficient 
 in any parental duty, he has reason to expect the most dis- 
 astrous consequences to his family. On the other hand, 
 should he perform the conditions of the covenant ; should 
 Jie exercise the higher degrees of faith, in its promises ; 
 should he avail himself of all its possible resources — he 
 may expect, not their salvation merely, but their dlstin- 
 tinguished usefulness, their exalted temporal prosperity, and 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 33 
 
 their eminence of celestial glory. On this subject God 
 hath always delighted to make his grace illustrious. His 
 voice, to the confiding parent is, continually, Come up 
 higher ! 
 
 There is one point here which should be distinctly mark- 
 ed. That all the spiritual blessings which the believer is 
 to expect for his children he must expect on the ground of 
 this special promise, and through the special visitations of 
 the Holy Ghost. God has designed to employ the wonder* 
 ful resources of the family state in his own cause ; but he 
 means to have us understand, that after all this adaptation 
 of means, it is only through the special influences of grace, 
 provided in the covenant promise, that the blessing shall 
 come. 
 
 3. What was the import of the seal ? 
 
 The seal itself, in its great original import, was spirit- 
 ual. The apostle declares it " a seal of the righteousness 
 of the faith which he had, being yet uncircumcised.^' By the 
 command of God it was placed upon the parent and the 
 child. When placed upon the parent, it was a token of 
 God's claim upon him, and of God's personal promise to 
 him, and of his professed submission to the claim, and living 
 faith in the promise. When placed upon the child, it was 
 a token of God's claim upon the child ; of God's promise 
 to the father on behalf of the child ; and also, of the father's 
 consent to the claim, and faith in the promise. In both 
 cases, the entire consecration of the individual on whom the 
 seal was placed, by the faith of the father, was necessarily 
 implied. When God said, I will he thy God, the submis- 
 sion to the seal was the father's amen. When he said, 
 " and of thy seed after thee," the sealing of the child was 
 that same father's amen to this promise also. It implied, 
 therefore, a pledge, in the first instance, of his own entire 
 consecration to Jehovah ; and in the second, that he as sin* 
 
34 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 cerely consecrated his household as he did himself; that he 
 himself would walk before God with a perfect heart, and 
 that he would thus command his household after him. The 
 promise, on the part of God, to him, was like that to the 
 jailer, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt he 
 saved and thine house*" The promise, on his part, to God, 
 was like that of Joshua, " As for me and my house, we will 
 serve the Lord," 
 
 The seal of the Abrahamic covenant, therefore, when 
 placed upon the father and his family, dedicated all the 
 domestic relations, influences, and interests, to the Supreme 
 God. When placed upon the father, it publicly attested 
 that glorious arrangement of saving grace which was 
 made between God and his soul. When placed upon the 
 child, it was a significant sign of that same gracious arrange- 
 ment, in its bearing, through a conditional promise, on the 
 infant. When the consecrated infant himself believed, 
 it then became to him a token of his interest in the promise 
 of pardon, sanctification, and preserving grace. Then, and 
 not till then, he also, personally, for himself and offspring, 
 entered into covenant with God. The Abrahamic cove- 
 nant, with its terms, its promises, and its seal, was a glorious 
 ecclesiastical administration of the covenant of grace. It 
 included the provisions of that covenant — and more also, 
 unless the covenant of grace be defined, as including^ in 
 itself the conditional provisions of the Abrahamic covenant, 
 respecting the households of believers. The covenant ot 
 grace has not generally been thus defined. Perhaps it 
 may, more correctly, be termed the covenant of grace, 
 brought into public profession, and extending its promise to 
 parents in behalf of their children, through certain appro- 
 priate conditions. The great ideas are the same in either 
 case, and the conclusions are precisely the same, respecting 
 parental duties and parental hopes. The application of the 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 35 
 
 seal, both to the parent and the child, was the appointed 
 manner in which the ancient believer professed his faith, 
 and solemnized his household consecration. 
 
 . The right of circumcision was well adapted as a seal 
 of that faith which receives remission of sins through the 
 shedding of blood, and professes a spiritual and internal 
 change. Hence the frequent application of the term to 
 the moral state of men. — "The Lord thy God will cir- 
 cumcise thine heart." — " Ye stiff-necked and uncircumci- 
 sed in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost, 
 as your fathers did, so do ye." There was also a special 
 propriety in the selection of circumcision, as the seal, be- 
 cause it prefigured a bleeding Saviour to come ; and pre- 
 served the nation of Israel distinct from other nations, until 
 the Messiah appeared. The last suggestion will explain 
 particularly the reason of its adoption, and will vindicate 
 the propriety of a change of the seal, when the gospel 
 was to be pubhshed through all the world, and the many 
 nations were to hail the Chaldean Shepherd as their father. 
 The advantages of this seal were sufficient, therefore, to 
 compensate for the disadvantage of its application only to 
 one sex, when it is remembered that the other sex was con- 
 sidered as characterized and included in the household, as 
 surely as if any other seal had been selected : and that the 
 circumcision would harmonize well with the Jewish cere- 
 monies, with which, for ages, it was to be associated, and 
 might be easily exchanged for another, when the Chris- 
 tian dispensation, with its more liberal privileges, should 
 commence. 
 
 The same general course of reasoning will explain the 
 propriety of especially including in the promise, the land 
 of Canaan, as the everlasting inheritance of the literal de- 
 scendants of Abraham. It was a promise subordinate to 
 the main design, like the establishment of the Jewish na- 
 
36 HOUSEHOLD CONSECEATION. 
 
 tion, and connected in this manner with the coming of the 
 Mediator, in the fulness of time, on which event the power 
 and vaUdity of all the gracious arrangements depended. 
 
 On the whole, we arrive at the following unembarrased 
 conclusions : — 
 
 1. That Abraham entered into this covenant after having 
 given evidence of his faith. 
 
 2. That this covenant was a divine arrangement esta- 
 blished by Jehovah himself! with which Abraham, as a be- 
 liever^ was called to comply. 
 
 3. That the terms of this covenant were personal faith, 
 and parental fidelity. 
 
 4fc That all the promises of this covenant were made in 
 and through the glorious Mediator., 
 
 5. That this COY enant promised spiritual blessings as the 
 main scope of its provisions, and temporal blessings as sub- 
 ordinate and collateral. 
 
 6. That it promised spiritual blessings to Abraham, ab- 
 solutely on his own behalf, and conditionally on behalf of 
 his offspring. 
 
 7. That Abraham was required to seal this covenant 
 by circumcising himself and his household ; and that cir- 
 cumcision on these principles was personal and household 
 consecration. 
 
 8. That the same mode of consecration was used for 
 his children which was used lor himself 
 
 9. That this circumcision was the appointed token, or 
 memorial, between God and Abraham of this spiritual 
 covenant. 
 
 10. That this covenant is repeatedly declared to be 
 everlasting. 
 
 The proof of the final conclusion is in the language of 
 the covenant itself I will make between me and thee an 
 everlasting covenant. In 1st Chron. xvi. 15, 17, that co- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 87 
 
 venant is portrayed in the following manner : " Be t^ 
 mindful always of his covenant, of the word which he com- 
 manded to a thousand generations. Even the covenant 
 which he made with Abraham, and of his oath unto Isaac ; 
 and hath confirmed the same unto Jacoh for a law, and to 
 Israel for an everlasting covenant," These assertions re, 
 specting the perpetuity of this covenant correspond with 
 the natural conclusion which results fVom the permanent 
 character of its fundamental principles. What can be 
 more valuable to the believer, during any period of time» 
 than a full assurance of his title to its unsearchable pri, 
 vileges ? 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The right of Christians to the Abrahamic covenant. Covenant not abo- 
 )ished — confirmed — transferred, at Uie expense of the Jews, to the Gen- 
 tiles. 
 
 We shall now proceed to consider, 
 
 II. The right of God's people, through all ages and 
 nations, to the invaluable privileges of the Abrahamic co- 
 venant. 
 
 The evidence that Christians are entitled to all the pri- 
 vileges of the Abrahamic covenant is abundant and con- 
 vincing. In the Scriptures of truth a series of positions are 
 maintained, which constitute, together, a most satisfactory- 
 proof of the perpetuity of that covenant, and of the right of 
 Christians to its promises. 
 
 1. That covenant has never heen aholished. 
 
 The truth of this sentiment might be strongly argued, 
 from the fundamental principles upon which it was origin- 
 ally established. Not only the great reasons remain un- 
 changed, but the institution is as well adapted to the circum- 
 stances of all ages and nations, as the age and nation of 
 Abraham. The family constitution remains the same, with 
 all its moral bearings, and the responsibilities of parents 
 remain ; and the design of God to bless believing parents 
 in their consecrated households is incorporated into the liv- 
 ing promises and procedures of God. If God has publicly 
 recognized these principles, and this covenant, as a part of 
 his perpetual system of administration, it is not to be sup- 
 posed that he has now abandoned it. If, however, he has 
 given up that covenant, some intimation of such relinquish- 
 ment must be contained in the Scriptures. It may be well 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 39 
 
 to examine a few passages which are sometimes adduced 
 to prove the abolition of the Abrahamic covenant. The 
 language of Jeremiah xxxi. 31-33, is quoted for this 
 purpose : 
 
 " Behold the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make 
 a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house 
 of Judah ; not according to the covenant that I made with 
 their fathers, in the day that I took them by the hand to 
 bring them out of the land of Egypt ; which my covenant 
 they brake, although I was a husband unto them, saith the 
 Lord. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with 
 the house of Israel : After those days, saith the Lord, I 
 will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their 
 hearts; and will be their God^ and Ihey shall be my 
 people." 
 
 That this text, however, does not assert the termination 
 of the Abrahamic covenant, is evident from several consi>. 
 derations. The first is, that the covenant here said to be 
 superseded, was a covenant formed hundreds of years after 
 the existence of Abraham. — " The covenant which I made 
 with your fathers in the day when I took them out of Egypt.** 
 
 2. The apostle, in his Epistle to the Hebrews, 8th and 9th 
 chapters, quotes this passage, and explains it of the Jewish 
 and Christian dispensations.. The Levitical priesthood and 
 the sacrifices, the tabernacle and its furniture, were all laid 
 aside. These are particularly referred to by Paul, as mat- 
 ters appertaining to that covenant which was done away. 
 
 3. The neH) covenant is not called new, in distinction from 
 the Abrahamic covenant, but from the civil and ecclesias- 
 tical establishments of the Jewish nation. A new dispen- 
 sation had commenced, and the old was expected to vanish 
 away. 4. Another consideration is, that the new covenant 
 is expressed in almost the same language with the Abra- 
 
40 HOtJSEKOLD COJfSECRATION. 
 
 hamic covenant. The main promise is the same, " I will 
 be their God and they shall be my people." In it God pro* 
 : mises to put his law in their hearts, and to prevent the final 
 apostasy of his redeemed children from his service. This is 
 ■the covenant of grace. The Abrahamic covenant breathes 
 the same spirit, and is the covenant of grace brought into pub- 
 lic profession, and extending its promise to parents in behalf 
 of their children. This passage, therefore, strongly evinces 
 that the ancient household covenant is not abolished. 
 
 The expression in Daniel ii. 44, is also produced by 
 some, to prove that the two dispensations were in truth two 
 distinct Churches ; or that the present Church commenced 
 its existence with the advent of Christ. " In the days of those 
 kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom that shall 
 never be destroyed." Are we to understand that God had 
 no spiritual kingdom before the coming of the Saviour ? This 
 we know is an unscriptural sentiment. Hundreds of years 
 before the Messiah came, the harps of Judah had chanted 
 the glories of the kingdom of grace. It should be consider, 
 ed, therefore, that this prophecy was spoken in view of the 
 perishable kingdoms of earth ; and while Assyria, Persia, 
 Greece, and Rome> were successively overthrown, the pro- 
 phet saw the pure gospel winning its way triumphant over 
 the obstacles in its pathj and finally established in a com* 
 plete ascendancy throughout the world. There was, there* 
 fore, a propriety in calling the commencement of a new 
 administration the setting up of a kingdom. Since, there* 
 fore, this passage cannot mean that God had no spiritual 
 kingdom before ; since it cannot mean that one kingdom of 
 God was destroyed in order to establish another, there be- 
 ing no intimation of this in the passage ; since, too, the in- 
 terpretation we have suggested is the fair and obvious con- 
 struction ; it is manifest that the passage does not authorize 
 
nOUSEHOLO CONSECRATION. 41 
 
 the sentiment, that the Abrahamic covenant is abolished. 
 If neither of these passages inculcate that doctrine, I am 
 fully persuaded that it will not be found in the Bible. 
 
 The distinction we have made between the covenant 
 made with Abraham, and extending its glorious promises 
 to his children; and the covenant of national customs and 
 ecclesiastical ceremonies, enjoined upon the Jews, is abun- 
 dantly sanctioned. The covenant of Sinai gendereth to 
 bondage, but that of faith is full of free and cheering pro- 
 mises. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of 
 promise. Isaac was a child consecrated to God under the 
 sealed covenant, and was indeed a child of promise. By 
 exercising the faith of his patriarchal father, he too could 
 bring his children to the altar of consecration, and pledge 
 a father's faithfulness, and plead Jehovah's grace. 
 
 As the destruction of the Jewish system of rites and cere- 
 monies did not invalidate the original gracious covenant, so 
 the enacting of those regulations did not disannul the pro*, 
 mise. Hence the covenant of promise could remain when 
 these superincumbent things were removed, to cheer us and 
 bless us with all its undiminished privileges. Thus, in Gal. 
 iii. 17, we read, " And this I say, that the covenant that was 
 confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four 
 hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should 
 make the promise of none effect.^^ Notwithstanding, then, any 
 changes which may have occurred since, in the circum- 
 stances of the Jewish nation, the great and invaluable Abra- 
 hamic covenant retains its unchanging truth. 
 
 If, then, this covenant is founded on such imperishable 
 reasons, if it is so well adapted to the necessities of our race 
 throughout the revolutions of time, if it promises blessings 
 of the soul to the parent in behalf of his immortal offspring, 
 if it is proclaimed an everlasting covenant, and if it is no 
 4* 
 
42 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 where iri sacred Scripture abolished, it certainly comes be- 
 fore us with a most impressive aspect. 
 
 2. God has confirmed this covenant^ instead of aholisk" 
 ing it. 
 
 In the delightful comparison of Paul between Moses and 
 Christ, this sentiment appears to be decidedly inculcated. 
 Moses was a servant, and faithful in all his house,, for a 
 testimony of those things which were to be spoken after. 
 In all that Moses did, he acted not as a son, but as a ser- 
 Vant ; was not proprietor of the house, but merely a servant 
 of the proprietor. Christ acts as a son ; and he has more 
 honor than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath huilded the 
 house hath more honor than the house. According to this 
 argument, Moses himself, considered spiritually, was the 
 workmanship, z. e. the building of Christ. He himself was 
 a part of that house in which he was called to serve. The 
 apostle, however, declares, that we, i. e, believers, are 
 ChrisVs house, and that Christ is over his own house ; there- 
 fore Christ was over Moses, as he is over us, over ancient 
 believers, over those of later ages, over all believers of 
 every age, as constituting one spiritual body ; one spiritual 
 house, of which he is the head. According to this view of 
 the subject, the Church has ever been one in both dispen- 
 sations, and the covenant confirmed before of God in Christ, 
 is thus confirmed through all time by the reigning glory of 
 the Messiah. In Gal. iii. 15, we read, " Brethren, we speak 
 after the manner of men. Though it be but a man's cove- 
 nant, yet, if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth or addeth 
 thereto." The covenant, then, which God made with Abra- 
 ham, is confirmed unto every believer on the same terms, 
 and is wisely calculated to waft the blessing from genera- 
 tion to generation. We are now prepared for the third po- 
 sition, that. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 43 
 
 3. This covenant is not only confirmed, hut distinctly 
 transferred, with all its privileges, to the Gentiles. 
 
 The proof of this position is contained in many passages 
 of scripture. In (xal. iii. 13, 14, it is said, " Christ hath re- 
 deemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for 
 us J for it is written. Cursed is every one that hangeth on a 
 tree. That the blessing of Abraham might come on the 
 Gentiles through Jesus Christ ; that we might receive the 
 promise of the Spirit through faith" The great doctrine 
 of justification by faith, in the atoning Saviour, is here 
 clearly taught, and in view of the general atonement the 
 invitations of mercy have been sent out to the Gentile. 
 The atonement was necessary in order that the Holy 
 Spirit might consistently bestow his influences upon the hu- 
 man race, and therefdre, it is through the doctrine of the 
 atonement that the design of blessing the successive gene- 
 rations of men has been formed. When, therefore, the 
 Saviour is said to have suffered, that the blessing of Abra- 
 ham might come on the Gentiles, and that he might receive 
 the promise, it is certainly meant that we also should be 
 justified by the same faith, and that we should possess with 
 him the promise of the Spirit in behalf of our children. 
 This was the blessing which Abraham possessed, and this 
 was the promise in which his parental heart delighted. 
 The passage, therefore, is conclusive in proving that Gentile 
 Christians are entitled to all the privileges of the ancient 
 covenant. *' Knoiv ye, therefore, that they which be of faith 
 are blessed with faithful Abraham" How explicit : how 
 positive : how precious is the assurance ! Gal. iii. 26-29 : 
 *' For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. 
 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ, 
 have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there 
 is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female ; 
 for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, 
 
44 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 then are ye AhrahanCs seed, and heirs according to the pro- 
 mise.^^ This last verse most surely implies that all Chris- 
 tians are the spiritual seed of Abraham, and that therefore 
 they are heirs of the promise with Abraham, and have the 
 same title with him to all its privileges. In the fourth chap- 
 ter of Romans, the admission of the Gentile believers, into 
 these exalted privileges, is inculcated with great force, ex- 
 plicitness, and satisfaction. There it is asserted, that he re- 
 ceived circumcision as a seal of the righteousness of the 
 faith which he had being uncircumcised, that he might be 
 the father of all them that believe, though they be not cir- 
 cumcised. Therefore it is offaithf that it might be by grace, 
 to the end that the promise might be sure to all the seed. 
 
 If, then, the promise to Abraham was, that God would 
 be a God to him and to his seed after him ; if he received 
 this promise through faith in the Redeemer ; if this im- 
 plied great encouragement to him to labor for the spiritual 
 welfare of his children ; if this covenant is founded on im- 
 mutable principles, and is not abolished, but solemnly con- 
 firmed ; if the great embankments, which for ages had 
 kept the waters of holy influence in one solitary channel^ 
 were torn away when the Saviour came, that the blessing of 
 Abraham might flow to the Gentiles ; and if, finally, every 
 real believer is counted as a descendant of Abraham, and if 
 the promise is sure to all his seed, is not the evidence abun- 
 dantly decisive, as to the right of Christians to that same 
 household promise, that same covenant of generations ? 
 There is, however, one more position, which will serve to 
 make the argument more impressive. 
 
 4. This covenant is not only bestowed upon the Gentilest 
 but it is even bestowed upon us at the expense of the Jews, 
 
 The full import of this last statement may be seen in a 
 candid exposition of the eleventh chapter of Romans. The 
 Jews, the natural branches, are there represented as broken 
 
HOtrSEUDLD CONSECRATION. 45 
 
 off from their own olive-tree, and the Gentiles as taken 
 From the wild olive-tree of nature, and graffed into the olive- 
 tree of grace, into the Church of the living God, to be 
 nourished by the root and fatness of new covenant privi- 
 ieges. No new olive-tree is planted, but the Gentiles are 
 represented as graffed into the old olive-tree, into the same 
 privileges which the Jews by their outrageous unbelief had 
 forfeited. 
 
 If, now, any one wishes to gain just impressions of the 
 value of this covenant, let him consider, 1st. The poor Jews 
 broken off and abandoned to perpetual unbelief and dark* 
 ntss. From generation to generation the same hard-heart- 
 ed infidelity travels on. No light seems to find its way 
 into their spiritual condition, no arguments have power to 
 dispel their delusions, no amount of evidence is equal to the 
 work of conviction. Can any one look upon thai long 
 continued moral wreck, and not remember the apostolic 
 prapliecy 1 Wrath Tia$ come upon them to the uttermost. 
 Can any mind study that mournful history, and not tremble 
 a1 the thought of perverted family influence ? 
 
 Yet, amidst these paii»ful emotions, consider, 2d. The 
 power of ike ancient covenant in securing their restoration ! 
 G<»d hath not finally cast away that people. Their delu- 
 sions shall speedily vanish ; their long, heavy night of thick 
 darkness shall be turned into refulgent morning. For God 
 will remember the covenant Which he made with Abraham. 
 In this respect, their tenacious observance of their Jewish 
 ritas ;md ceremonies ; their preservition as a distinct peo. 
 pie in all their wanderings ; their universal abhorrence of 
 idolatry, a sin to which their falhers were so much addict- 
 ed : all these are scarcely less adapted to the doctrine of 
 their restoration, than is their blindness or their obstinacy 
 to the fulfilment of the terrible sentence of their righteous 
 Judge. 
 
f46 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 If, then, it is a fact, that such judgments follow the per- 
 version of these great covenant truths ; if it be so that our 
 only hope of redemption is in the far reaching grasp of that 
 patriarchal covenant ; if, through this most melancholy fall 
 of theirs, salvation has come to the Gentiles ; if, coming 
 with no stinted measure, she has brought the fulness of all 
 those heav<;n-born privileges, and poured them at our feet, 
 shall we not prfy-e an inheritance for ourselves and our off- 
 spring in that everlasting covenant ? Shall we not feel our- 
 selves bound by every persuasive motive to affix its seal — 
 whatever that seal may be — upon our immortal children ? ; 
 
 The conclusion to which we are conducted is, that since 
 God has not abolished the Abraharnic covenant ; since he 
 has positively confirmed it in the gospel dispensation ; since 
 he has even bestowed it explicitly, with all its immunities, 
 upon the Gentile believers ; since, finally, he has even done 
 this at fearful expense to the original proprietors themselves, 
 it is the certain'privilege of every believing parent to conse» 
 crate his children to God on the terms of that covenant ; 
 and it is his solemn duty to affix the appropriate token of 
 faith and promise upon them, according to the example of 
 the Church for almost four thousand years. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 The change of the seal. Circumcision abolished. Baptism aubsJi- 
 tuted. 
 
 Having discussed the nature of the Abrahamic cove- 
 nant, and the right of behevers in all places and times to 
 its glorious privileges, we shall proceed to prove, 
 
 III. That baptism is now, in the place of circumcision, 
 its authorized and appropriate seal. 
 
 We hope it will be remembered, that the existence o€ 
 infant consecration, as an institution of Heaven, founded on 
 unchanging reasons, and secured by a perpetual covenant, 
 whose duties and blessings are extended with the whoJe 
 extent of the gospel itself, has been already abundantly 
 proved. However, therefore, the present question may be 
 determined, the duty of parents in some form to dedicate 
 their households to God, is even in the present stage of the 
 argument perfectly clear. It will be seen, moreover, that 
 the facts and principles already established will not only 
 harmonize with the sentiment, that baptism is now the seal, 
 but will even constrain us to its adoption. We therefore 
 consider it the duty of parents to consecrate their children 
 to God by baptism, for the following reasons : 
 
 1. It is certain that circumcision is abolished. By this 
 I do not mean that circumcision is abolished merely as a 
 form of infant consecration, but as a seal of the covenant, 
 either for adults or infants. It should be remembered that 
 circumcision was for adults as well as for infants. Abra- 
 ham dedicated himself to God in this form. When the 
 
48 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 Christian dispensation commenced, the Jews, understanding 
 that believing Gentiles were to be admitted to the Church, 
 the ancient Church, with all its undiminished privileges — the 
 Jewish Church even, for Christianity commenced its earliest 
 establishments among the Jews, and Jews were its earliest 
 and most successful preachers — thought that the Gentiles 
 ought to be circumcised. The question was referred to 
 the apostles ; and they decided that this yoke was not to be 
 put upon the Gentiles, because it was a yoke which neither 
 they nor their fathers were able to hear. This passage of 
 course decides the case of the Gentiles. Circumcision is 
 certainly abolished, so far as we are concerned. Hence 
 the conclusion, that as we are introduced into all the rights 
 and privileges of the children of Abraham, we are to con- 
 secrate our children to God, in the use of some other seal. 
 I am prepared to go farther, and say circumcision is abo- 
 lished as far as Jewish Christians are concerned. The 
 reasons assigned by the apostle for not requiring it among 
 the Gentiles are equally valid for its abolition among the 
 Jews — which neither we nor our fathers ii^re able to hear. 
 In this expression they did not consider circumcision merely 
 as a form of infant consecration, but as a rite binding them, 
 in the circumstances, to certain other rites and ceremonies, 
 which constituted the ritual service of the old dispensation. 
 He that is circumcised is a debtor to keep the v>hole law — 
 i. e. to observe all those rights and ceremonies. As, there- 
 fore, circumcision had served this temporary purpose, of 
 binding the ancient son of the sealed covenant to the heavy 
 and cumbersome observances with which, for wise reasons, 
 it was associated until the fulness of times, it was very 
 reasonable that now, when that whole'system of carnal ordi- 
 nances was to be abolished, a new and better rite should 
 be substituted, as a seal of the everlasting covenant, while 
 this should be lefl gradually to vanish away. With these 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 49 
 
 scriptural and rational views, the whole history of the apos- 
 tolic Church perfectly corresponds ; and all the language 
 of apostolic scripture corroborates it. While, therefore, 
 these reasons for its abolition existed, the reasons for the 
 selection of that particular form had ceased to exist. If 
 that form served to indicate the cleansing of sin by bloodf 
 now the blood of atonement had been already shed. If 
 that form served to secure the coming of the Saviour as 
 a descendant of Abraham by keeping the nation distinct, 
 the Saviour had now come, and that particular purpose was 
 no longer necessary. If that form had long been associated 
 with the observance of the ceremonial law, now since the 
 ceremonial law had expired, it was well that the association 
 of the mind should be changed, and a new form, bearing a 
 similar relation to the contents of the new dispensation, 
 which this had borne to the old, and sustaining to the ever* 
 lasting covenant itself all, and even more than all, the 
 appropriateness which this had ever sustained, should be 
 substituted in its place. Since, then, the covenant remains, 
 with all its reasons, privileges, and authority, unabolished, 
 confirmed, extended, and this at great expense, it must pos- 
 sess some appropriate and authentic seal. Since circum» 
 cision is displaced from that exalted honor, some other seal 
 must have been provided. Whatever that new seal is, it 
 is the duty and the privilege of the Christian parent to apply 
 it to himself and his offspring, because he is an heir of that 
 same gracious and unchanging covenant, and the applica- 
 tion of its seal is the direct and public profession of faith in 
 its provisions. 
 
 2. Whatever that new seal is, there is but one seal, one 
 form of dedication, both for the parent and the child. This 
 was the case in the ancient administration of the Abrahamic 
 covenant. Then both the believing adult and his infant 
 child were circumcised. Faith was an indispensable con- 
 6 
 
50 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 ditlon on the part of Abraham, and his entrance into this 
 ecclesiastical covenant was an act of solemn profession. 
 He thereby declared his dependence for salvation on a 
 Saviour to come, and dedicated by the same rite both him- 
 self and his household to the God of the covenant. His 
 faith respecting his own justification, and respecting the 
 promises of God to his children, each terminated upon Jesus 
 Christ as its all-sufficient object. It was proper, therefore, 
 that it should be expressed in the same manner, indicated 
 by the same rite, and lay fast hold of the covenant by the 
 same divinely appointed seal. Since, then, the spiritual co- 
 Venant itself remains ; since remaining, it must have some 
 seal or token by which our consent to its arrangements 
 shall be publicly given ; and since the new seal must 
 therefore be the same in the coniSecration of the child as in 
 the consecration of the parent* it Conclusively follows, that 
 whatever rite or form is now the seal of the covenant to the 
 beheving adult, is of course to be applied to the consecra* 
 tion of his offspring. 
 
 3. Baptism by Water in the name of the Father, Son, 
 and Holy Ghost, is the seal of the covenant to all believers. 
 That baptism is the ordinance by which the adult believer 
 professes his faith in Christ, his dependence on the regene* 
 rating and sanctifying influences of the Holy Ghost, and his 
 entire dedication of himself to the Most High, is a fact well 
 known to all those who are at all familiar with the contents 
 of the New Testament. *' Go ye, and teach all nations, 
 baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, 
 and of the Holy Ghost." " He that believeth and is bap- 
 tized shall be saved, and he that belieVeth not shall be 
 damned." The numerous instances of baptism mentioned 
 in the Acts of the Apostles, and the epistolary addresses to 
 those who are members of the Church, enforcing the ob- 
 ligation of their baptismal engagements, are sufficient proof 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 51 
 
 of the sentiment that baptism is the authorized mode of 
 Christian consecration. That baptism is the appropriate 
 seal of the gracious covenant, is an irresistible inference 
 from the positions already established. We have proved 
 that the covenant with Abraham was a spiritual covenant ; 
 that its spiritual provisions are extended to the Gentiles, and 
 that in baptism the believer expresses that faith by which 
 he appropriates to himself its invaluable blessings, and 
 therefore baptism is the seal to him of the covenant into 
 which he enters. If, then, it is certain that this covenant 
 requires the consecration of his children, and promises spiri- 
 tual blessings to him on their behalf ; if the same seal is 
 to be applied to the child which is applied to the adult, then 
 the duty and the privilege of the Christian parent to dedi- 
 cate his household to God by baptism is clearly and incon- 
 testably established. That baptism is now, in the place of 
 circumcision, the appropriate seal, will be evident from a 
 consideration of the points of resemblance. 
 
 Both are seals of the righteousness of faith. The doc- 
 trine of justification by faith in a Mediator has ever been the 
 cardinal doctrine of the Church. The apostle Paul, when 
 proving this fundamental sentiment, in view of those who 
 had sought salvation in strict adherence to mere carnal ob- 
 servances, produces the example of all the holy men of old, 
 showing that from the days of Abel to his own, the whole 
 noble army of confessors were witnesses to the truth of hig 
 doctrine. Respecting Abraham he positively asserts, in 
 Romans iv. 11, "That he received the sign of circumcision 
 as a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had yet 
 being uncircumcised." Circumcision was therefore a seal 
 of the righteousness o^ faith. The great doctrine of jus- 
 tification by faith alone was signified in it, and the covenant 
 of mercy was thereby sealed between God and the believer. 
 Need I even tarry to prove that baptism is a seal of the 
 
52 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 righteousness of faith? "Believe and be baptized," ** If 
 thou belie vest with all thy heart, thou mayest." As an- 
 ciently no adult could be circumcised without believing, so 
 now no adult can be baptized without believing. 
 
 In the ancient days the believer professed faith in a 
 Saviour to come; in the new dispensation the believer 
 professes faith in a Saviour that has already come. In both 
 cases the believer was justified by his faith, and the circum- 
 cision then was what the baptism is now, a seal of his 
 gracious justification. 
 
 To each, faith is an indispensable condition in the same 
 sense. The inquiry sometimes rises, How can the baptism 
 of children be consistent with the command to lelieve and 
 be baptized ? An attention to the point of resemblance will 
 answer the inquiry. Abraham could not be circumcised 
 himself until he had given evidence of his faith. The un- 
 baptized adult believer cannot now be baptized without 
 giving evidence o[ faith. The commands to believe and be 
 baptized in the New Testament are not addressed to infants, 
 but to adult unbelievers. So under the old dispensation. 
 The adult heathen who came to be circumcised as did 
 Abraham, was to believe first and then to be circumcised. 
 In this respect, therefore, the command, so far as it relates 
 to adults, is precisely the same, requiring faith first, and 
 then offering circumcision or baptism as a seal of the right- 
 eousness of the faith exercised previous to participation in 
 the ordinance. 
 
 Nor is the resemblance less complete in respect to the 
 consecration of children. The ancient believer presented 
 his household, by circumcision, to that God to whom he had 
 first, with inward sincerity and with external rite, conse- 
 crated himself. Even where the parent was him.self a child 
 of the covenant in his infancy, and circumcised at eight 
 days old, he was expected, by living faith, to act when he 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 53 
 
 dedicated his offspring to the God of his fathers. Thus 
 Isaac consecrated Jacob and Esau. Thus Jacob devoted 
 his group of young patriarchs to the God of Abraham, 
 Faith in the Shiloh of future times was essential to the ac, 
 ceptable performance of the severe but significant cere* 
 mony. Now if the positions we have taken be correct, and 
 baptism is to be applied as a seal of the covenant to the chil- 
 dren of believers, faith, of course, is professedly exercised 
 by every parent who claims, in behalf of his household, the 
 privilege of consecration. The practice of admitting pa- 
 rents, who merely assented to the confession of faith with 
 the understanding, to present their households for baptism, 
 was utterly unauthorized, and in direct violation of all the 
 terms of the covenant. The plan of the half-way covenant, 
 as it was called, was not only unauthorized, but it was a 
 direct and sacrilegious perversion of these spiritual and glo- 
 rious privileges. When the jailer heard the apostolic direc- 
 tion, the voice said, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
 thou shall he saved and thyhouse,^'' It is true, the ordinance 
 can be administered when but one of the parents is a be- 
 liever ; but, in such cases, the parental relation is regarded 
 as sanctified in consequence of the believer's faith. " E)lse 
 were your children unclean, but now are they holy." I? 
 it not, then, perfectly evident, that faith was equally essen-^ 
 tial to circumcision as it is now to baptism ; and in both 
 cases, is it not an indispensable condition, in the same sense 
 and in all respects ? 
 
 Both denote the same spiritual change. 
 
 That the depraved heart of man must be renewed by 
 the efficacious grace of the Holy Spirit, is a most important 
 doctrine of the Christian religion. The claims of God are 
 upon every individual, through the whole course of moral 
 action, and these claims are in every instance resisted 
 where the selfish heart is not changed by the sanctification 
 5* 
 
54 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRA.TION. 
 
 of the spirit. When God demands of every believing pa- 
 rent, that he shall yield up his child to these supreme and 
 righteous claims, and shall consecrate him forever to his 
 service, he has rendered the very form of consecration an 
 impressive memento of the necessity of regeneration, and 
 held up to the anxious hope of the parent a cheerful and 
 animating promise : " I will pour out my Spirit upon thy seed 
 and my Messing upon thine offspring.''^ Accordingly, both 
 in the ancient and the modern form, the purification of the 
 heart by divine grace is the great doctrine most prominent- 
 ly illustrated, whether the individual consecrated be an 
 adult or infant. " For he is not a Jew which is one outwardly ^ 
 neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh : hut 
 he is a Jew which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that 
 of the hearty in the spirit, and not in the letter , whose praise 
 is not of men but of God." From this passage it is evident 
 that the spiritual import of circumcision is not realized unless 
 the inner man is renewed. And the Lord thy God will cir- 
 cumcise thine hearty arid the heart o^ihy seedy to love the 
 Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, that 
 thou mayest live. Circumcision, therefore, was truly " an 
 outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace." 
 It signified that surrender of the heart to the Lord Jesus 
 Christ, and that spiritual dedication to his service, which is 
 the fruit of the Spirit, in every instance of its occurrence^ 
 either in the present or in former dispensations. That the 
 ordinance of baptism denotes precisely the same thing, is 
 abundantly manifest from the sacred Scriptures : '' The like 
 figure whereunto, baptism doth also now save us ; not the 
 putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a 
 good conscience toward God" — the response of a regene- 
 rated heart to the calls of Jehovah. " Then will I sprinkle 
 clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean ; from all your 
 filthinesSf and from all your idols loilll cleanse you, A new 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 55 
 
 heart also will I give you^ and a new spirit will I put with' 
 in you^ and I will take away the stony heart out of your 
 Jlesh, and will give you a heart ofjlesh," Ezekiel xxxvi. 
 26. The import of the word, and the ordinance, baptism, 
 is purification : the external application of the purifying ele- 
 ment is emblematic of the inward operations of the purify- 
 ing Spirit. Hence said Ananias to Saul, " And now, why 
 tarriest thou ? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy 
 sins." It is certain, therefore, that both circumcision and 
 baptism denote an inward and spiritual change, and indicate 
 the same great regenerating process. The resemblance is 
 perfect, in extending the comparison, either to adults or 
 children. The adult believer received circumcision as a 
 token of his inward and spiritual grace ; and dedicated, by 
 the same form, his children, as a sign of their necessity, and 
 of God's promise in reference to the Spirit's work within. 
 The adult believer receives baptism as a token of the same 
 inward cleansing, in his own case, and dedicates his child in 
 the same form, indicating the same necessity, and the same 
 glorious promise, which was anciently represented by cir- 
 cumcision. If, then, the covenant remains, promising spi- 
 ritual blessings to parents on behalf of their children ; if 
 circumcision, the ancient seal, is abolished ; and if baptism, 
 introduced at the very time of its abolition, certainly signi- 
 fies the very same thing that circumcision did, then is it not 
 conclusively established, that baptism is now in the place of 
 circumcision the seal of that everlasting covenant 1 and 
 that the form of consecration, for both parent and child, 
 appropriate to the circumstances, and authorized by Christ, 
 is baptism, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 
 of the Holy Ghost ? 
 
 Again : Baptism is to the Lord's supper what circumci* 
 sion was to the passover. Those that were admitted to the 
 passover, an ordinance originating in a temporal and na- 
 
56 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 tional deliverance, but so appointed as to be representative 
 of the Lamb of God, and analogous to the design of the 
 Lord's supper, were the consecrated households of IsraeL 
 Circumcision preceded the reception of the passover ; for, 
 although the rite itself was applied to the males, yet the 
 whole household was considered as a consecrated house- 
 hold. The distinction was as strongly marked between 
 " the daughters of Israel" and " the daughters of the uncir- 
 cumcised," as between the sons of Abraham and the unco- 
 venanted Gentile. The children, however, were not admit- 
 ted to partake of the passover, until they were of sufficient 
 age to understand its meaning, and approach in faith. Ap- 
 ply, now, these principles to the relation which baptism 
 sustains to the Lord's supper. Baptism^ in its nature adapt- 
 ed to all classes, is evidently considered, in the Scripture, 
 as preceding the communion. The sacrament of the Lord's 
 supper is an ordinance for professed believers only, in which 
 they unite to commemorate their spiritual deliverance. If 
 it is asked why we do not universally admit our children 
 to the communion, the answer is, that we do admit them 
 just as soon as they give us evidence of faith in Christ. 
 Such a profession was implied in the ancient passover, when 
 it was celebrated acceptably. Yet that ordinance had a 
 temporal and national import, as well as a spiritual and 
 typical signification. The Christian passover has no such 
 temporal and national associations ; it is an ordinance in 
 its design and recollections altogether spiritual. The bap- 
 tized child of the Church is therefore told, that as soon as 
 he will yield to the righteous claims of God, and to the in- 
 fluences of the Spirit, and to the mediation of Christ, the 
 very change indicated as indispensable in his baptism itself, 
 he shall be welcomed to the communion. He is invited, by 
 all the proffered advantages of a spiritual and immediate 
 union with the Church, to acknowledge the justice of Jehc- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 57 
 
 vah's claims, and to consecrate himself, in heart and life, to 
 the God of the everlasting covenant. If he hardens himself 
 against these merciful invitations, he is admonished, that not 
 by the will of the Church, but by his own inexcusable dis- 
 sent from the terms of the covenant, he debars himself from 
 its glorious privileges. When we consider, therefore, the 
 propriety of this strictness on the part of the Church, as 
 viewed in connection with the entirely spiritual nature of 
 the Lord's supper ; and then compare the relation of cir- 
 cumcision to the passover, and of baptism to the Lord's 
 supper, we see precisely such a resemblance as the great 
 principles of the covenant, as here indicated, must logically 
 authorize. 
 
 Each is alike a distinguishing mark of the visible Church, 
 For ages, circumcision thus designated the people of God, 
 and was employed as a token of covenant relationship. 
 When a parent neglected to circumcise his child, that child 
 was excluded from those privileges which the covenant se- 
 cured to the children of his people. He could not come to 
 the passover, nor be admitted to the fellowship of the an- 
 cient Church. When a heathen family would seek a union 
 with the congregation of the Lord, the same seal of the 
 covenant was applied to them. Since circumcision was 
 abolished, baptism has certainly been substituted in its place 
 in this respect. The child of a Christian parent who is not 
 baptized, cannot be admitted to the table of the Lord. The 
 heathen family that would cast away the idols of their 
 former worship, and join the Christian Church, must be bap- 
 tized. When persons have been excluded from the Church, 
 whether they were baptized in adult age, or in infancy, 
 they are not to have the rite repeated on their readmission, 
 after giving evidence of repentance. 
 
 The points of resemblance already mentioned, are of 
 Such a nature, that if admitted as facts, they sustain incon- 
 
58 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 testably the position — ^that baptism has been substituted in 
 the place of circumcision, as a seal of the Abrahamic cove- 
 nant. For a still stronger confirmation of this argument, 
 contemplate the points of difference. Circumcision was 
 adapted to prefigure a Saviour to come ; baptism, to pro- 
 fess the Saviour already incarnate. Circumcision was 
 adapted to serve, for a few ages, a national and temporal 
 purpose ; baptism comes in after that temporal purpose is 
 accomplished, and the national partition wall is demolished. 
 Baptism is even a more expressive ordinance, so far as 
 spiritual purification is concerned ; expressive, indeed, of 
 the same great truths which circumcision indicated, but 
 expressive of them in a manner more appropriate to their 
 clearer developments. Circumcision was applied only to 
 one sex, while in the ordinance of baptism there is not only 
 " neither Jew nor Gentile," but " neither male nor female, 
 for we are all one in Christ Jesus." While, therefore, the 
 points of resemblance compel us to regard the ordinance of 
 baptism as the authorized seal of the covenant, in the place 
 of circumcision, inasmuch as it does actually answer all 
 the original spiritual purposes of such a seal, and is divinely 
 established in the Christian dispensation, the points of differ- 
 ence do as truly suggest several substantial reasons why a 
 change of the seal was desirable. Let me now ask the 
 reflecting reader to re-examine the several positions of this 
 number, and let the individual strength of each argument, 
 and the combined testimony of the whole, be admitted in 
 the final settlement of this important question. 
 
 Finally, let there be added to the foregoing considerations 
 the fact, that baptism is denominated in Scripture the Chris, 
 tian circumcision^ " In whom also ye are circumcised with 
 the circumcision made without hands, in putting off* the body 
 of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ." — 
 "Buried with him by baptism." Col, ii. U-^14. "Beware 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 59 
 
 of the concision ; for we are the circumcision, which worship 
 God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no 
 confidence in the flesh." Thus, when the Jews urged the 
 necessity of circumcision, the believing Gentile might reply, 
 If circumcision indicated a new heart, a spiritual religion, 
 that I possess ; if circumcision expressed that change an- 
 ciently, my reception of Christian baptism has expressed it 
 with equal, if not superior emphasis. According to the 
 course of argument through which we have passed, circum- 
 cision is certainly abolished ; baptism is the acknowledged 
 seal of the gracious covenant for adult believers ; the seal 
 of the covenant is the same for the child as for the parent ; 
 therefore, as the covenant itself remains with all its privi- 
 leges undiminished, it is the duty of the believing parent to 
 consecrate his children to God in the ordinance of baptism. 
 Since, moreover, the fact that baptism is now in the place 
 of circumcision, the seal of the A brahamic covenant, is sus- 
 tained both by every point of resemblance and diversity ; it 
 being manifest that it does take the place of circumcision as 
 a seal of the righteousness of faith ; as having faith for its 
 indispensable condition in the same way that circumcision 
 had ; as a sign or token of the same spiritual change ; as a 
 distinguishing mark of the visible Church; the very points 
 in which circumcision itself was a seal of the covenant ; 
 and finally, since it is called the circumcision of Christ, and 
 answers in the new dispensation, not only all the original 
 purposes of circumcision under the old, but all the more 
 extensive applications of the covenant under the new dis- 
 pensation, the decision appears inevitable, that baptism is 
 noWf in the place of circumcision, the authorized and appro- 
 priate seal of the Abrahamic covenant. 
 
 The covenant then remains : the promise of spiritual 
 blessings in behalf of children is sure to every believer : the 
 seal is to be applied to both parent and child ; and that seal 
 
60 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 is the ordinance of Christian baptism. Dear brethren in 
 Christ ; how precious, how infinitely glorious is this cove- 
 nant ; how delightful the duty, how invaluable the privilege. 
 When you consider your influence and responsibility as 
 parents ; the great and solemn object of the family rela- 
 tions ; the dreadful depravity of your unrenewed oiTspring ; 
 the gracious design of God to sanctify your pious influence 
 to their eternal good ; the glorious arrangement of patri- 
 archal ages in which he requires the trembling parent to 
 consecrate his household to him, and gives his promise, his 
 own sure word, that he will be a God to him and to his 
 seed, affixing to this covenant a delightful, expressive, and 
 memorable seal ; O, how thrilling is the thought ! This 
 covenant ! these promises ! this indulgent God ! all are 
 mine ! With what unutterable tenderness may you kneel 
 at the family altar and say, Here am I and the children 
 which thou hast given me ! Christian ! this covenant is 
 worth more to you than worlds ! 
 
CHAPTERVI. 
 
 Argument from Ecclesiastical History. Its use. Household conse- 
 cration, in some form, the uninterrupted practice of the Church 
 during four thousand years. Not neglected by any considerable por- 
 tion until within three hundred. Consecration by baptism not 
 denied by any sect during the first thousand years of Christianity : 
 n6t commenced at any period since the apostolic age — universally 
 practised in the fourth century. Its previous history establishing 
 its apostolic origin. 
 
 The manner in which we have Contemplated the or- 
 dinance of infant consecrationj renders it, both in its spirit 
 and form, independent of the testimony of the ecclesiastical 
 fathers. The Bible alone is the infallible guide of Prote.«5t- 
 ants* There on the firm basis of scriptural proof let it rest, 
 a building on a rock. Were it manifest from ecclesiastical 
 history, that the whole Church, through successive ages> 
 had neglected her duty and her privilege, our astonishment 
 might have been awakened, while our confidence in the per- 
 petual covenant remained unshaken. Planting ourselves 
 beside its pure fountains, we could call upon the recreant 
 Church to repent of her sin, and partake of the waters she 
 had so long undervalued. 
 
 The argument from the history of the Church, however, 
 while it is not necessary for the establishment of our prin- 
 ciples, has several important uses. It is in itself an ar- 
 gument distinct and overwhelming ; it illustrates and im- 
 presses the conclusions to which we have already arrived, 
 and it will prepare us to understand a portion of scriptural 
 evidence which we have not yet examined. 
 
 As the testimony of the fathers has been oflen collected 
 and urged by able, candid, and pious men, the object of this 
 6 
 
62 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION* 
 
 chapter will be^ simply to present a few grand points which 
 are conclusively established, and which constitute the 
 strength of the argument. 
 
 The consecration of infants ly baptism being now the 
 general practice of Christendom, must have originated either 
 under apostolic authority, or at some period subsequent* 
 The consecration of infants, itself, can be attributed to no 
 later period than the days of Abraham. The adoption of 
 baptism as the form, if an unauthorized ordinance of man, 
 must have excited attention, provoked opposition, and left 
 after its prevalence palpable traces of its origin. If, on the 
 other hand, it be of God, we shall find the evidence of his- 
 tory, at every ascending height, still pointing upward to the 
 luminous age of New Testament inspiration. 
 
 1. The first point which arrests attention in a general 
 survey of historical evidence, is — That it cannot he proved 
 that the practice of infant consecration has eter ceased in the 
 Church of God, since it was established in the Abrahamic 
 covenant. 
 
 This is the impression which strikes the mind Very forci- 
 bly, as it ponders on the path of the Church through all the 
 portions of her eventful history. From the time that the 
 Chaldean shepherd dedicated his household to the present 
 hour, no one period, however brief, can be designated 
 when We can say, then there was no infant consecration* 
 Empires have fallen, and risen and fallen ; systems of na- 
 tional law, code after code, which in the science of juris- 
 prudence appeared as monuments of intellectual strength 
 and political wisdom, have been rolled together as a scroll ; 
 while the deep, unostentatious household law has continued 
 like a cord extended through successive ages, and strung 
 with the jewels of God. Even the changing features of the 
 Church itself have preserved this feature unaltered. The 
 bondage of Egypt ; the law of Sinai ; the ritual observan* 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 63 
 
 ces ; the splendor of the temple worship ; the mournful 
 captivity ; the Roman yoke ; the advent of Christ ; the 
 wonders of the new age ; the dispersion of the Jews ; the 
 introduction of the Gentiles into their forfeited privileges ; 
 the pagan persecution ; the papal corruption ; the glorious 
 Reformation : all have had their influence on the aspect of 
 the Church ; but in this respect the great body of the Church 
 has remained steadfast, that she has consecrated her off- 
 spring to the Most High. A cessation of this practice for 
 one season cannot be proved from the whole record of his, 
 tory. There, through all changes, the altar of consecra- 
 tion has stood, and successive generations have bowed with 
 their gift of souls before it. How sublime is this fact when 
 viewed in its moral import and bearings ! What an illus- 
 tration of scriptural promises, " I will be a God to thee, and 
 thy seed after thee." " And if ye be Christ's, then are ye 
 Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. "Four 
 thousand years proclaim with united voice, that his mercy 
 endureth forever. 
 
 2. The next impression which this survey is calculated 
 to make, is — That the practice of infant consecration has 
 not been neglected even ly any considerable portion of the 
 Church until within about three hundred years. 
 
 We present this fact here because we wish it to be com- 
 pared with the first. We think that this fact ought to be 
 felt in forming our estimate of the importance of this or- 
 dinance. By the above statement we express the general 
 impression of ecclesiastical history. Through all its 
 records we have no history of such neglect until the 
 year 1522. That a higher antiquity is claimed by those 
 who deny the privilege of believing parents, in this respect, 
 is true. They endeavor to prove that the testimony against 
 infant baptism was part of that testimony which, in the 
 low valleys and in the mountain fastnesses, was borne by the 
 
64 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 persecuted and the faithful against the man of sin. The 
 utmost, however, which can be admitted in behalf of this 
 claim is, that " in the year 1120 one sect of the Waldenses 
 declared against the baptism of infants, because they be- 
 lieved them incapable of salvation." Their unbelief, how- 
 ever, did not affect the main body of that people, and they 
 who cherished it soon dwindled away. Their number and 
 importance were not sufficient to render any exception 
 necessary to the statement we now contemplate. In the 
 year 1522, there rose a body of men, who insisted upon the 
 invalidity of infant baptism, and demanded a rebaptism of 
 those consecrated in childhood. It was not strange that 
 when the spirit of the Reformation was shaking the found- 
 ations of superstition, many who were ignorant should not 
 discriminate between the tares and the wheat, between the 
 precious and the vile. The wild and extravagant notions 
 which they embraced, have prevented even the respect 
 of Protestants for the fathers of the Reformation from ascrib- 
 ing any weight to their opinions. The history of that por- 
 tion of the Church which denies baptism to infants since 
 that period, in its rise to respectability and influence, does 
 not belong to the survey necessary to sustain the position 
 before us. 
 
 3. Another conclusion forced upon us by a candid con- 
 sideration of the historic argument is-^That for the first 
 thousand years of Christianity^ no sect or body of men can 
 he found, denying the validity of infant baptism. 
 
 Notwithstanding all manner of heresies rose and burst 
 like so many bubbles, this great and powerful arrangement 
 of ancient ages was not annulled. The world has been 
 challenged to produce the proof of such a class of Chris- 
 tians. We may, it is thought, extend it to eleven hundred 
 years, and deny that in all that period any Chris:tians, ad- 
 mitting baptism at all, have denied its validity because ap- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 65 
 
 plied to infants. — For fifteen hundred years, almost for ele- 
 ven hundred altogether, the practice of the whole Church was 
 based upon the covenant principles which we have urged upon 
 the attention of Christian parents. During all these centuries, 
 baptism has been used in the place of circumcision, as the 
 seal of that everlasting covenant, in the practice of the uni- 
 versal Church. At least we may rest assured, that there 
 is no proof of any portion whatever holding to baptism at 
 all, which gave to this species of unbelief any foothold dur- 
 ing the first thousand years of the Christian era. Is it pos. 
 sible that the whole Church have mistook in the application 
 of a seal to that covenant, which God has so mtimately 
 connected with all her vital interests ? Again, an exami- 
 nation of ecclesiastical history, convinces us, 
 
 4. That it cannot be proved that the adoption ofhaptism, 
 as the seal of the covenant, has commenced at any period sub^ 
 sequent to the days of the apostles. 
 
 The bearing of this argument is simply this : if infant 
 baptism is of human invention, there must be a period when 
 it originated, subsequent to the first century. Its introduc. 
 tion into the Church must have been a marked occurrence, 
 must have awakened controversy. It is highly probable, 
 therefore, that the researches of historians would have de- 
 tected that period, and rationally accounted for its appear- 
 ance. Nothing like this, however, has been accomplished. 
 If it has a birthplace among human speculations, it has 
 been, like the grave of Moses, screened from the scrutiny 
 of men. If it is from heaven, all these facts are perfectly 
 consistent. The history corresponds with the divine autho- 
 rity of the ordinance, and is most rationally explained by 
 the admission of its claims to be an ordinance of infinite 
 wisdom. The consecration of children by baptism, then, 
 cannot be proved, by any historical evidence now in posses. 
 6* 
 
66 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION, 
 
 sion of the world, to be of human origin. It is certain, 
 that ecclesiastical history has no testimony against it. 
 
 Combine, now, these four positions — infant consecration 
 has existed for four thousand years without cessation — it 
 has never been opposed by any considerable portion of the 
 Church until within three hundred years ; its validity was 
 not denied by any portion of the Church for the first one 
 thousand years — it cannot be proved to have originated at 
 any period subsequent to the apostles. Now, had we found 
 that the opposition to it had always been strong, like that 
 to the doctrine of the Trinity ; and the controversy always 
 sharp, like that between the advocates of Augustinian theo- 
 logy and their opponents ; had we found even that it had 
 always been depressed and obscure, with a testimony 
 scarcely audible amid the voice of ages ; had its existence 
 been suspended for centuries, and even its introduction ques- 
 tionable until the sixteenth century, all this frowning aspect 
 of history could not banish from our sight that testimony of 
 revelation which seems incorporated in the whole connection 
 of Bible truth. 
 
 What, then, should be the conclusion, when the whole 
 current of history coincides with the written word ; when 
 we trace, in the aspect of ages, the light of principles reflect- 
 ed in glory from preceding ages ; reflected through them 
 all upon us? What but to exclaim with stronger confi- 
 dence as we ponder the Abrahamic promise. Hath he said, 
 and shall he not do it ? hath he spoken, and shall he not 
 make it good 1 The study of the argument from history 
 does not terminate here : it proves, 
 
 5. That, in the fourth century, the consecration of infants 
 hj baptism was universally practised, on the ground of the 
 Abrahamic covenant ; was regarded as substituted for cir- 
 cumcision, and as sanctioned by apostolic authority. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 67 
 
 In proof of this position, we shall rely on the testimony 
 of four substantial witnesses, all belonging to the fourth 
 century. The fourth century, it should be remembered, 
 presents a period of time less than three hundred years after 
 the apostles, and the witnesses were the most conspicuous 
 of its fathers. Augustine, who flourished in the latter part 
 of that century, is very explicit — " Which the whole body 
 of the Church holds in the case of little infants, who are 
 baptized, who certainly cannot believe with their heart unto 
 salvation, and yet no Christian will say that they are bap- 
 tized in vain." 
 
 " The custom of our mother, the Church, in baptizing 
 infants, must not be disregarded, nor accounted useless, and 
 it must by all means be believed to be an order of the 
 
 " It is most justly believed to be no other than a thing 
 delivered by apostolic authority, that is, it came not by a 
 general council, nor by any authority later or less than that 
 of the apostles." 
 
 " By the authority of the whole Church, which was 
 undoubtedly delivered by our Lord and his apostles." 
 
 These several passages, taken from the writings of 
 Augustine, prove that it was universal in the Church, and 
 was regarded as an apostolic ordinance. That it was an 
 institution whose importance was generally realized, and 
 was so strongly regarded as divine, that in controversial 
 writings on other subjects it was used as a test by which 
 others were to be tried. The question then stood, Is this 
 new doctrine consistent with the baptism of infants ? and a 
 full conviction of its inconsistency was sufficient for its 
 refutation. This remark prepares the way for introducing 
 the testimony of Pelagius, the contemporary and opponent 
 of Augustine. He denied the doctrine of original sin, and 
 was pressed hard with the argument from infant baptism. 
 
68 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 He repels the charge of denying that institution, in very- 
 earnest language : — " Men calumniate me by charging me 
 with a denial of infant baptism. I have never heard of 
 any impious heretic or sectary who denied infant baptism," 
 He labors to prove that his sentiments on the subject of 
 original sin did not involve the denial of infant dedication, 
 and that many reasons existed for the practice, aside from 
 that assigned by Augustine. This appeal of both parties 
 to a common institution shows how firmly it was then esta- 
 blished, throughout the Church of God. Tempted, as Pela- 
 gius was, to deny its authority, he was able to oppose it, if 
 it could have been opposed. He had travelled extensively 
 in Britain, Gaul, Italy, Africa, Egypt, and Palestine. Yet, 
 with his learning and travel, he makes the affirmation above. 
 He could say, " / never heard of any impious heretic or 
 sectary who denied infant baptism.'^ Thus we have two 
 learned men, warm opponents, both uniting in the strongest 
 kind of testimony on this subject. The testimony is given 
 incidentally, not to prove or disprove infant baptism, but to 
 bear on another topic. The third witness is Chrysostom. 
 He was a contemporary with Augustine and Pelagius. — 
 " But our circumcision, that is, the grace of baptism, gives 
 us cure, without pain, and it has no determinate time as 
 circumcision has." If we admit the testimony of the first 
 two witnesses, we must believe that infant baptism was now 
 universally practised, as an apostolic institution ; and if we 
 will admit in explanation the evidence of Chrysostom, we 
 shall perceive that it was considered as coming in the place 
 of circumcision, and as possessing some advantages over 
 the ancient form, as a seal of the everlasting and extended 
 covenant. The last witness, under the present position, 
 is Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, born in the year 340. He 
 also calls baptism circumcision. Having mentioned the 
 miracle of dividing Jordan, he says, " But perhaps this may 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 69 
 
 seem to be fulfilled in our time and in the apostles' time." 
 " For that return of the waters backward towards the head 
 of the river, which was caused by Elias, when the river 
 was divided, signified the mystery of the lava of salvation 
 which was afterward to be instituted, by which those who 
 are baptized in infancy are reformed from a wicked state 
 to the primitive state of their nature." Now it is of no 
 consequence to the argument what opinion we form of his 
 exegetical capacity, or what objection we raise to his views 
 of the efficacy of the ordinance. The present argument 
 simply requires the evidence of the existence of infant bap- 
 tism as an established institution of the Church, on the 
 ground of the Abrahamic covenant, and claiming apostolic 
 authority. The united testimony of these four witnesses 
 conclusively establishes the fact. When we consider the 
 nature of the Pelagian controversy, and the standing of 
 the several witnesses, their evidence seems unimpeachable. 
 The position which we have taken, then, is firmly supported, 
 that in the fourth century, this institution, with all its claims, 
 was universally honored by the Church of God. There is 
 another consideration connected with this testimony, that 
 in the fourth century, i. e. within three hundred years after 
 the apostles, it was impossible to trace its origin. Then 
 the most learned men in the Church had never heard of its 
 being rejected. Pelagius inquires, " Who can be so impi- 
 ous as to hinder the baptism of infants ?" It is useless to 
 say that these ancient writings were corrupted in these 
 passages, for there was no temptation to interpolation. — 
 There was no controversy on the subject until centuries 
 afterwards, and the very manner in which it was interwoven 
 in the Pelagian controversy forbids the supposition of faith- 
 less records. The same and similar reasons sustain the 
 credit of extracts now to be made to substantiate another 
 position. 
 
70 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 6. It can be proved, that previous to the fourth century , 
 this institution had been established so long as to render the 
 supposition of its existence in the apostolic age essential to 
 every rational theory of its origin. 
 
 The witnesses to this position are Cyprian, Bishop of 
 Carthage, Origen, and TertuHian. 
 
 Two hundred and fifty years after the birth of Christ, 
 one hundred and fifty after the apostolic age, a council of 
 sixty-six bishops was convened at Carthage. Fidus, a 
 Presbyter, believing that infants ought not to be baptized 
 before eight days old, presented the subject before the 
 council, and obtained this ofticial answer : " As to the case 
 of infants, whereas you judge that they must not be baptized 
 within two or three days after they are horn, and that the 
 rule of circumcision is to be observed, that no one should be 
 baptized or sanctified before the eighth day after he is born, 
 we were all of a different opinion,''^ 
 
 One hundred and eighty-five years after Christ, eighty- 
 five years after the apostolic age, Origen was born. His 
 testimony is, first, " That he himself was a baptized child." 
 Second, '' That the Church received an order from the 
 apostles to give baptism even to infants." Third, " That 
 infants are baptized for the remission of sins." 
 
 About one hundred and fifty years after Christ, fifty 
 years after the apostolic age, TertuHian was born. He 
 advised a delay of baptism, because he believed that sins 
 committed after baptism were not forgiven. " The delay 
 of baptism is more profitable as to little children. For 
 why is it necessary that the sponsors should incur danger? 
 For they may fail of their promises by death, or be disap- 
 pointed by the child proving to be of a wicked disposition." 
 
 These three witnesses present the evidence from which 
 the apostolic origin of infant baptism is rationally inferred. 
 The testimony of Cyprian respecting the council at Car- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 71 
 
 thage, implies, 1. That the practice of consecrating infants 
 by baptism was an established order of the Church, unques- 
 tioned and unanimously honored. 
 
 2. That infant baptism was regarded as substituted for 
 infant circumcision ; else, why the anxious question respect- 
 ing the propriety of baptism previous to the eighth day ? 
 
 3. That the baptism of infants was understood to be a 
 sanctijicaiion-^thsit is, a consecration of them to God. 
 
 4. That the council considered the gospel dispensation, 
 not only as preserving to the Gentiles all the privileges of 
 the ancient covenant, but as applying them with less limi- 
 tation, and with wider extent, in milder forms, and more 
 glorious significancy. The same great principles which 
 we proved to be established in the fourth century, we now 
 see established in the third ; the very principles which have 
 been involved in the whole argument of these essays. — 
 This practice, founded on these principles, could not have 
 arisen in a moment, if it is of human invention. Could it 
 have become universally practised without opposition, if 
 indeed it were an innovation ? Thus, one hundred and fifty 
 years after the apostles, we behold this institution founded 
 on its permanent principles. We see that the infant con- 
 secration of those times was the same in object and in form 
 that it now is. We rely on the testimony of Cyprian for 
 the proof of its established credit, and for its definition, — 
 The testimony of Origen proves, that this institution, thus 
 defined, existed at least sixty-five years previous to the 
 council of Carthage. The parents of Origen were pious ; 
 his father a martyr, who, while imprisoned, was consoled 
 by a letter from his consecrated child, exhorting him to 
 steadfastness, and congratulating him on his privilege. — ■ 
 Even at a more tender age still, the zeal of that baptised 
 child had to be guarded by the vigilance of a believing 
 mother, lest he should rashly expose himself to martyrdom. 
 
72 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 If, then, that fathei* and mother consecrated their children 
 in infancy, they did it believing it their duty and their privi- 
 lege. There was no temptation to expose their rising 
 household in those days of persecution, any farther than 
 the command of Christ required them. In the days of his 
 parents, then, it was believed and practised as an institution 
 of the apostles. Had there been a time knoion to them, 
 when it was not practised in the Church, they could have 
 pointed out the innovation. Origen would needj in his 
 inquiries, to search no farther than his own family history. 
 TertuHian's testimony proves, that one hundred years after 
 the apostles the baptism of infants, on the faith of others, 
 was the common practice of the Church. This strengthens 
 the testimony of Origen, while the fact of Origen's own 
 baptism by such parents necessarily carries the evidence 
 at least fifty years nearer the apostles. The council of 
 Carthage, in their decision, corroborate this train of evi- 
 dence. All the five preceding positions corroborate this 
 view of the subject. We are obliged, therefore, to ac- 
 knowledge its existence and prevalence, within fifty years 
 of the days of inspiration. 
 
 Contemplate that period* The aged Polycarp, disciple 
 of John, was alive and vigorous through all its years. So, 
 also, was Justin Martyr. So, also, was Irenseus. Three 
 noble guardians of purity in the second century ! Polycarp 
 was martyred in 169 ; Justin Martyr in 164 ; Irenaeus 
 lived until after 202. If the application of baptism, then, 
 to infants, as the seal of the covenant, was not of apostolic 
 institution, it must have been introduced by their disciples 
 and immediate successors, the apostolic fathers. If it was 
 introduced by them, understanding, as they did, the mind of 
 the apostles ; then we have their views of the household 
 consecration. If it was not introduced by them, then there 
 is only the remaining conclusion, it arose under the authori" 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 73 
 
 ty of the apostles. In either case, the testimony of the ages 
 previous to the fourth century compels us to regard it as a 
 divine institution. There are, however, other considera- 
 tions, sustaining the present position. In the first place, 
 since Tertullian wished to have baptism delayed, why did 
 he not show that such early baptism, on the faith of spon- 
 sors, was an innovation ? He certainly was able to do it, if 
 such had been the fact. He had only to consult with Ire- 
 nsBus, the disciple of Polycarp, the disciple of John, or with 
 Polycarp himself, for he was contemporary with both. 
 Yet no such plea is presented against it. Instead of that, 
 his whole language implies that he felt himself contending 
 with the common and established practice ; and his extra- 
 vagant writings, together with his final separation from the 
 Church, show that same unsound judgment which his rea- 
 sonings themselves discover. Of Pagan descent himself, he 
 was not likely to appreciate the unfeigned faith of a Chris- 
 tian ancestry. 
 
 Actuated by false views of the importance of baptism, he 
 was even led to advise all persons to postpone it until the 
 season of youth had passed away. The principle on which he 
 dissuaded the practice of infant baptism was equally valid in 
 pleading against the baptism of young persons on the pro- 
 fession of their own faith. While these circumstances dimi- 
 nish our confidence in his opinions, they leave us the evi- 
 dence that the prevailing practice of the Church was against 
 him. We have already shown that this practice was firm- 
 ly rooted at an earlier age than the publication of his 
 works. So that every circumstance conspires to guide us 
 into the scenes of the first century for its birthplace. 
 
 In the next place, consider that, according to the testimo- 
 ny before us, we are directly assured that the Church re- 
 ceived an order from the apostles to give baptism to infants. 
 This was certainly the opinion of Origen. When we con- 
 
74 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATIOTT. 
 
 sider that he could ascertain the truth of it in the history of 
 his own family ; that he could ascertain it from Irenaeus 
 and other contemporaries ; that he had only that century 
 to review, which was overshadowed by the presence of the 
 apostolic fathers ; that he was remarkable for his inquisi- 
 tiveness and extensive learning, it is manifest that on this 
 subject he was competent to testify with assurance. That 
 testimony, it seems, corresponds with the plain deductions of 
 reason, as stated above. In addition to the evidence al- 
 ready before us, it may be proper to remember the allu- 
 sions of Irenseus, Clement, and Justin Martyr. If these are 
 admitted, according to the proper rules of interpretation, 
 they strengthen the conviction produced by the evidence 
 just examined. It is sufficient, however, to say that, on 
 the supposition that infant dedication existed then, these al- 
 lusions are naturally to be understood as referring to its 
 design and its form of administration. Thus Justin Mar- 
 tyr speaks of those who were made disciples of Christ from 
 their infancy ; Irenasus, of infants born again ; while Cle- 
 ment evidently exhons fishermen, in engraven images on 
 seal-rings, to choose the image of an apostle baptizing infants. 
 The testimony of Cyprian, Origen, and Tertullian, is suffi- 
 cient to establish the fact of its prevalence in the third 
 century and in the second. This being established, the 
 supposition of its existence in the first century, becomes 
 essential to every rational theory of its origin. 
 
 Thus, in contemplating the evidence of ecclesiastical his- 
 tory, we have collected several substantial positions, each 
 of which is impressive ; and all combined constitute a mass 
 of overwhelming proof. While it cannot be proved that 
 the practice of infant consecration has ever ceased, in the 
 Church of God, since he established it in the Abrahamic 
 covenant ; while it cannot be proved that it has ever been 
 neglected by any considerable portion of the Church, until 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 75 
 
 within about three hundred years ; while it cannot be proved 
 that any body of men denied baptism to infants during the first 
 thousand years of the Christian dispensation ; while it can- 
 not be shown that the practice of baptizing infants has ori- 
 ginated at any specific period since the apostolic age ; while, 
 moreover, it is abundantly proved that, in the fourth century, 
 the consecration of infants was universally practised, on 
 the ground of the Abrahamic covenant, by baptism in the 
 place of circumcision ; while, finally, it is manifest that, 
 previous to the fourth century, the evidence of its preva- 
 lence is such as to render the supposition of its existence in 
 the first century essential to any rational theory of its ori- 
 gin ; I see a body of evidence so harmonious, witnesses so 
 trustworthy, principles so consistent, and providential illus- 
 trations so accordant with divine appointments and reveal- 
 ed predictions, that I feel confident in saying to every in- 
 quirer, Go thy way forth by the footsteps of the flock ! 
 
 Still, let it not be forgotten, that we regard this sublime 
 arrangement as resting on the unchanging word of God. 
 We rely on the sacred volume as our only infallible guide 
 on this as well as on other subjects. We present these 
 considerations from history, chiefly, as confirmatory of 
 preceding arguments, as illustrative of principles, and, final* 
 ly, as preparatory to an examination of other scriptural evi^ 
 dence which we have not yet considered. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Household consecration in the apostolic age. Its prominence un- 
 der the ministry of John : of Jesus Christ : of the apostles. The 
 Church obligated to regard it in the same manner. 
 
 To the portion of scriptural evidence which we are now 
 
 to examine, the attention of believing parents is earnestly 
 solicited. My object will be, to exhibit the manner in 
 which the great principles of infant consecration influenced 
 the feelings of the early disciples. We are prepared for 
 this subject, if we have fully imbibed those principles them- 
 selves, and admit the evidence by which they are incontro- 
 vertibly established. The spiritual blessings connected 
 with parental faithfulness, in the ancient household cove- 
 nant ; the perpetuity of that covenant, and the right of be- 
 lieving Gentiles to its privileges ; the substitution of bap- 
 tism in the place of circumcision as its new and appropriate 
 seal, have been spread before us in the decisive testimony of 
 Scripture. All these, as we have seen, were understood 
 and advocated by the apostles in their writings. If they 
 thus understood these truths, their own feelings, plans, 
 and conduct must have been powerfully affected by their 
 influence. The universal practice of infant baptism in the 
 first centuries, as evinced by ecclesiastical history, confirms 
 this impression. It therefore seems proper to examine the 
 inspired history of the first century, with the expectation of 
 beholding there the dignity and grandeur of these vital 
 principles of the Church, exhibited in their native simplicity 
 and power. There, in the writings and conduct of the in- 
 spired, and in the establishment of the new dispensation, 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 77 
 
 the native, quiet operation of parental faith is most sweetly 
 portrayed. We cannot, of course, expect to find these 
 truths stated as if in the language of controversy, for there 
 the idea of controversy on this subject was unknown — but 
 if we read the inspired record with the proper spirit, we 
 shall perceive these principles invested with more practical 
 importance than ever they have been in the more degen- 
 erate — than they had been, even in the more ancient ages. 
 If this be considered unusual ground, still should it be sus- 
 tained ; it will strengthen that presentiment which doubt- 
 less is even now awakened, that this institution is destined 
 to exert a prominent agency in producing and perpetuating 
 the state of millennial glory. 
 
 1. These principles of infant consecration had a power- 
 ful influence in preparing the Jewish nation for the Mes- 
 siah's advent. 
 
 The evidence of this fact is conclusive, and deeply inte- 
 resting. We pass by the providential preparation which 
 on this axle turned the wheel of its operations for succes- 
 sive ages, and fix our minds upon that special preparatory 
 work which was prosecuted under the ministry of John the 
 Baptist In the close of Old Testament prophecy, he had 
 been designated as the messenger who was to herald the 
 Saviour's approach. It was particularly stated, he should 
 turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart 
 of the children to the fathers. The great and prominent 
 instrumentality which he was to employ, was the powerful 
 agency of family influence. The voice of one crying in 
 the wilderness,The kingdom of heaven is at hand ! prepare 
 ye the way of the Lord, must have wrought mightily on 
 the heart of the believing parent in behalf of household edu- 
 cation. As the glorious Prince of Israel was constantly 
 expected, with what eagerness would the Jew endeavor to 
 make ready a people prepared for the Lord — to set his house 
 
 7* 
 
78 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 in order for the reception of the Son of David. Hence, at 
 that joyous event, the circumcision of John, the venerable 
 Zechariah dwelt with peculiar delight on *' the mercy pro- 
 mised to our fathers ;" " on his holy covenant," and " the 
 oath which he sware to our father Abraham." Such was 
 the prominence given to this covenant and its provisions, 
 in the consecration of John the Baptist, and in the ministry 
 of preparation which he fulfilled. By operating through 
 this channel, he effectually prepared great multitudes of the 
 common people to believe on the Saviour's name at the 
 moment his arrival was announced. 
 
 From the predictions — the specific mission of John the 
 Baptist — from the results of his mission, as manifested in 
 the succeeding history of the first century, it is evident that 
 the principles of infant consecration were regarded as all- 
 important to the first advent of the Son of God. 
 
 2. The mission of Christ himself j while on earth, was 
 characterized by a special and continual regard to these 
 principles. 
 
 He devoted his entire course of personal labor to the 
 children of the covenant. He said, even on a most aflTect- 
 ing occasion, " I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the 
 house of Israel." He came unto his own — his consecrated 
 ones — ^he devoted to them his miracles and his instructions ; 
 front them he selected his apostles, and to them he made 
 the first offers of salvation ; he proclaimed himself ^7*8 King 
 of the Jews — he treated them as the privileged children of 
 the Abrahamic covenant. Consecrated to God himself in 
 infancy, he practically acknowledged the justice of the di- 
 vine claim thus placed upon him in the commencement of 
 his existence, by a personal and perfect consecration of him- 
 self to the will of his Father, until his dying hour. He 
 took a deep interest in the consecrated children of his friends. 
 When some believing parents brought their devoted oflT- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 79 
 
 spring to him, that he should recognize them, he took them 
 up in his arms and blessed them. In the very spirit of this 
 ancient covenant, he exclaimed, " Suffer little children to 
 come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the king, 
 dom ofheaven.^^ During many ages previous, the spiritual 
 kingdom, and the visible kingdom of God, had been main- 
 tained chiefly, and perhaps entirely, from the action of con- 
 secrated family influence on consecrated households. Of 
 such, out of such, the lively stones had been taken, with 
 which the building of God has thus far been erected. 
 
 If, however, the kingdom of heaven is to be understood 
 particularly of the Christian dispensation, then the perpe- 
 tuity of these covenant privileges in after ages is complete- 
 ly established. He saw in those consecrated children of 
 believing parents the future martyrs of the first century, 
 the future pillars of the Church, the Abrahams of successive 
 generations. His spirit broke out in joy as he cried, " I 
 thank thee, Father, that thou hast hidden these things from 
 the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes : 
 even so. Father, for so it seemed good in thy sight.'* How 
 illustrious, to him, did that wisdom of God appear, by which 
 " out of the mouth of babes and sucklings he had ordained 
 strength, that he might still the enemy and the avenger.'* 
 Glorious arrangement ; by which around this plain, endur- 
 ing, *univer§al principle of household consecration, God had 
 clustered all the prospects of the Church, and all the inte- 
 rests of the whole train of generations ! The testimony of 
 ecclesiastical history, both inspired and uninspired, ancient 
 and modern, J&wieh and Christian, proclaims that there 
 wa? meaning in the Saviour's jay— power in his condescen- 
 sion ; and glory in his blessing* Not in all the histof y of 
 ancient patriarchs, however, do we find their principles so 
 recognized in a whole course of action, and so made a mat- 
 
80 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 ter of exulting joy, as in the life and the language of the 
 Messiah. 
 
 3. The commission which Christ gave his apostles to 
 teach and baptize all nations, embraces, establishes y and espe^ 
 daily honors these covenant principles. 
 
 Contemplate the circumstances. The Jewish dispensa- 
 tion was now to cease ; the particular reasons for using cir- 
 cumcision as the sea] of the covenant, had all vanished ; 
 circumcision was thenceforth to be displaced ; it had once 
 pointed to a Saviour yet to come ; the preparatory dispen- 
 sation of John had also closed, and with it his baptism, which 
 pointed to a Saviour jws^ about to come; a new dispensation 
 of that same ancient covenant was now to be established, 
 varying from all others in this, that its public rite must now 
 point to a Saviour already come : like the great principle of 
 the everlasting covenant itself, that sealing rite was to be 
 applied, not to one nation exclusively, but to all nations ; 
 not to one sex, but to both ; not in the name of Jesus alone, 
 but in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ; now 
 more clearly revealed as the triune God ; and in that reve. 
 lation clothing that same covenant of faith with augmented 
 importance, because of the vast extent of its gracious pro- 
 visions, and because of the transcendant efficacy of its ad- 
 ministration. These were the circumstances in which the 
 apostolic commission, establishing the ordinance of Christian 
 baptism, was to be given. 
 
 What vast importance must have been connected with 
 that covenant which was thus to receive a new and nobler 
 seal ! How must he have remembered the promise to Abra- 
 ham : In thee all the families of the earth should be blessed ! 
 How must his omniscient mind have enjoyed the satisfac- 
 tory sight of his numerous seed, for whom he had travailed, 
 as he tore away the partition wall, and commanded the 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 81 
 
 blessing of Abraham to flow upon the Gentiles ! He knew 
 that the Abrahamic covenant promised spiritual blessings 
 to parents on behalf of their children ; that although there 
 were important reasons for changing the seal, there were 
 all the ancient, together with additional reasons, for retain, 
 ing the covenant and confirming its promises ; foreseeing 
 that the Jews would reject the gospel offer, he had deter- 
 mined to bestow all the immunities of that covenant upon 
 the Gentiles ; he was now about to appoint a seal in the 
 place of circumcision, by which faith like that of Abraham 
 would be more emphatically expressed, in the new circum- 
 stances of his Church, than it could be by retaining the one 
 which had served, in addition to its spiritual and original 
 purpose, certain temporary and national ones : he knew 
 that whatever the seal might be, the same had always been 
 used in the consecration of children, which was used in the 
 consecration of parents ; all this he knew, for all this he 
 has fully revealed in his own word. Knowing all this, he 
 yet appointed baptism, in view of fulfilling these promises 
 until the end of the world ; he neither commanded, autho- 
 rized, or permitted any limitations of the ancient privileges ; 
 and appointing it in this manner, and with this knowledge, 
 he must have intended the application of baptism as the 
 new seal of the ancient, confirmed, and extended covenant, 
 to believers and their households, * 
 
 He knew, moreover, that the apostles were all conse- 
 crated children of the covenant ; that they, as Jews, highly 
 valued their descent from Abraham ; that even they did not 
 fully understand then the design to bestow the gospel — or, 
 in other words, the spiritual blessings of the Abrahamic 
 covenant — on the Gentiles ; that, for a while, therefore, 
 thus understanding the gospel, they would confine their 
 ministrations to the Jews ; that ultimately, however, they 
 
82 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 would understand that believers of all nations were the 
 seed of Abraham, and heirs according to the promise ; and 
 that under their labors, the Gentiles as well as the Jews 
 would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith ; he 
 therefore must have intended the apostles to understand 
 him as commanding them to apply that rite which they 
 knew to be the seal of the covenant to believers and their 
 households ; and that ultimately they should thus apply it 
 both to the Jews and the Gentiles. If, therefore, he had 
 wished infants, under the new dispensation, to be denied 
 baptism, and parents, under the new dispensation, to be 
 deprived of their ancient privileges, ho would have expli- 
 citly stated this in the commission itself. No such thing 
 is stated. On the other hand, we know that the apostles 
 did understand him as confirming all these privileges to 
 parents, among all nations, because they have fully taught 
 this in their epistles to the Churches. We know that they 
 must thus have understood him, from all their habitual 
 views of the household relations. 
 
 How sublime is this view of the Saviour. Having 
 completed the great atonement — having abolished the whole 
 superstructure of the exclusive dispensation, he took the 
 great fundamental principles of household consecration; 
 the heavenly blessings of the everlasting covenant ; the 
 promises of grace which had been spread like a canopy 
 over a thousand generations, and wrought them all into the 
 new dispensation. He commanded his ministers to seal 
 them upon the company of believers in all nations and 
 through all ages ; and promised to be with them in the 
 majesty of his mediatorial throne until the end of the world. 
 The unvarying practice of the Church for the first thousand 
 years, the general practice for eighteen hundred, is thus fully 
 explained by the command to baptize, as given to apostles 
 
HOtTSfiHOLD CONSECRATION. 83 
 
 who cherished these covenant views, by him who on earth 
 sanctioned them by his example, and who in heaven has 
 gloriously honored them by the outpouring of his Spirit. 
 
 4. These principles were especially sanctioned by the 
 manner in which the apostles preached the gospel. 
 
 They preached thus at the day of Pentecost. ** Then 
 Peter said unto them. Repent and be baptized, every one of 
 you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, 
 and ye shall receive the Holy Ghost. For the promise is 
 unto you and to your children, and to all that are afar off, 
 even as many as the Lord our God shall call." The 
 Saviour had made the atonement, ascended on high, esta- 
 blished the Christian dispensation^ and now the apostles 
 stood forth to preach the gospel in all the fulness of its 
 mercy to a dying world. They held up to the view of all 
 the ancient covenant promise — the promise to parents and 
 their children-^the promise of the Spirit. They expected 
 that if the Jews then embraced the gospel, the influences of 
 the Spirit would be poured d<»wn like rain upon their house* 
 holds. They feared not to urge them, by all the value and 
 efficacy of this promise, to comply with the conditions which 
 secured their own salvation and that of their children. — 
 When they retired from the crowded assembly, they preach- 
 ed in the same manner to the private family. When the 
 trembling jailer fell down before them, inquiring about his 
 Boul, they said, " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and 
 thou shalt be saved and thy house.'''' They expected that if 
 he believed, and consecrated his household to God, God 
 would bless and save his children. In the same manner, 
 Cornelius was informed that the apostle for whom he was 
 directed to send, would tell him " words whereby he and 
 all his house should be saved." They believed the divine 
 promise, and preached it in all its simplicity and freeness. 
 They seemed to rejoice in the fact that the new dispensation 
 
84 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 was distinguished by the power of God ; and they used the 
 great principles of consecration, as if here they might be 
 applied in u manner more glorious and efficient. They did 
 not teach that either parents or children could be saved 
 without believing ; but they did teach that God would pour 
 his Spirit on their seed, and his blessing on their offspring. 
 According to the truth of the everlasting covenant, they 
 expected that the faith of the parent would produce prayer 
 and labor for the conversion of the children ; that such 
 prayer and labor would be successful, because that faith 
 made them heirs of the promise, " I will be a God to thee 
 and thy seed afler thee." They gloried in the prospect of 
 establishing over the whole world this spiritual and per- 
 petual covenant, of extending its privileges to all the fami- 
 lies of the earth, and thus providing the system of influences 
 requisite to perpetuate the universal triumph of the gospel. 
 We have reason to believe that in the first churches, these 
 anticipations of the apostles were gloriously realized, and 
 that if the principles of infant consecration had been trusted, 
 and employed in successive ages, as they were in apostolic 
 times, the gospel would have been, long ere this, the reli- 
 gion of mankind — perpetual in its ascendancy, and hea- 
 venly in its operation. But when the Church began to 
 degenerate, although the principle was maintained, and the 
 form was disproportionately esteemed, the living faith and 
 enlarged expectations of the earliest believers were com- 
 paratively disregarded. 
 
 4. The influence of these principles, in the first centuries, 
 is strikingly evinced hy the fact, that when parents believed, 
 they immediately consecrated their households to God, 
 
 On this subject we are not left to inference only : although 
 from all the facts before us, such an inference would be una- 
 voidable, because otherwise we could not explain the testi- 
 mony of ecclesiastical history ; and chiefly, because in this 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 85 
 
 Way alone the apostles could act consistently with their own 
 established and avowed principles. We should expect them 
 to be in their practice consistent with their sentiments and 
 their preaching. We should conclude they were, even if 
 no positive record existed in reference to their practice. 
 The narrative, however, is not silent — it does speak — and 
 so far as it testifies, it proves that in every case when the 
 conversion and baptism of parents are particularly meniion- 
 ed, the consecration of their households by baptism is men- 
 tioned also. The trembling j liler, as soon as he heard 
 the terms, embraced them and was baptized, he and all 
 his straightway. If, as some suppose, all his household 
 believed, the force of the principle would not thus be aba* 
 ted. This fact would corroborate the statement already 
 made, that the apostles expected the conversion of house- 
 holds to follow the conversion of the parents, because tliey 
 relied with unwavering faith on the meaning of the Abra- 
 hamic promise. This was the only promise which would 
 warrant such an expectation ; and this did warrant them to 
 invite parents to believe in Christ, in view of the salvation 
 which they would thus secure to themselves and their house- 
 hold. If, however, there were children too young to be 
 baptized, on the profession of their own faith, that same 
 promise would require them to be consecrated on the faith 
 of their parents. The language of this passage speaks of 
 the jailer's baptism as following his own faith ; while it 
 clearly implies that their baptism followed in consequence 
 of their relation to him. This leaves us the conclusion, that 
 his household consisted of those who were of nonage, and 
 who in their baptism were consecrated to God on the faith 
 of the jailer. The record of the conversion of Lydia, whose 
 heart the Lord opened, is another confirmation of the pre- 
 sent position — *• and when she was baptized and' her house 
 hold"— the baptism of her household seems to be mentioned 
 
 8 
 
86 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION* 
 
 as a matter of course, after her own ; and yet while hef 
 heart is especially mentioned as opened, not a word is said 
 respecting the failh of her household. Even had the faith 
 been mentioned, it still would appear as the immediate ful- 
 filment of the covenant promises ; while, according to the 
 present mode of narration, the impression is, that she con* 
 secrated her househol \ immediately to God by baptism, in 
 full reliance on the provisions of that covenant. The man- 
 ner in which the baptism of the household of Stephanas is 
 mentioned, conveys the same impression. Since, therefore, 
 whenever the conversion and baptism of heads of families are 
 recorded, the baptism of their families is also recorded, 
 while their conversion is not ; since, moreover, it is mani- 
 fest that the household dedication occurred in consequence 
 of the faith of the parents ; since in this fact we see the 
 direct application of those views which the apostles always 
 avowed ; since, finally, we believe the apostles consistent 
 in their views and practices, we are at once presented with 
 the general custom of the Churches under their ministration. 
 It seems, that so clearly was the promise presented, and so 
 joyfully was it received, that believing parents hastened to 
 devote their children to the triune God, in the same form in 
 which they had devoted themselves forever. 
 
 6. The manner in which the covenant relation of chiU 
 dren was regarded, in apostolic days, is manifest from the 
 manner in xohich the consecrated households of believers were 
 treated. 
 
 The first thought is, that they must have sought, and 
 generally witnessed, the piety of their offspring in very 
 early life. There is nothing said of the conversion of the 
 children of believers after their arrival at adult age. So 
 far as- we can gather, the conversion of the households ra- 
 pidly followed the conversion of the parents. If it was cus- 
 tomary to see the conversion of children delayed until many 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 87 
 
 years had rolled away, it is probable that, in the writings 
 of the apostles and evangelists, we should find some notice 
 of such conversions ; some admonitions in view of such de- 
 lay, and some allusions to the great change thus wrought 
 in believing families. Instead of this, we find parents di- 
 rected to educate their children in the nurture and admoni- 
 tion of the Lord ; we find children commanded to obey their 
 parents in all things ; we find the animating promises of 
 the covenant reiterated in the instructions of the Holy 
 Ghost, and accomplished in his operations. Another re* 
 flection is, that children of believing parents are no where 
 mentioned as subjects of baptism after they have become 
 adults. No account can be found of the baptism of a child 
 of Christian parents, unless it is found in the cases of house- 
 hold baptism, where the baptism was administered in con- 
 sequence of the faith of the parents, If now we consider, 
 that the children of believers were immediately consecrated 
 to Christ, and that the Spirit of grace early descended upon 
 them, in answer to the prayers of their parents and of the 
 whole Church ; so that they generally had an experimental 
 knowledge of the gospel, and appeared " sober and steady," 
 serious and consistent in their deportment ; of course, there 
 would be no record either of conversions or baptism in after 
 years. This is precisely the state of the case, as a sober 
 estimate of the New Testament record would give it. 
 
 This is the state in which the Church ought to be, not 
 only having all the baptisms of her children in infancy, but 
 all their sanctification, early beginning, then growing with 
 their growth and strengthening with their strength. This is 
 the state in which the Church will be when " all shall know 
 the Lord, from the least unto the greatest,'''' Then all her 
 children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the 
 peace of her children, A still more impressive considera- 
 tion is, that so important was the relation regarded, that 
 
88 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 even where only one of the parents was a believer, the chil* 
 dren were accounted holy — " Else were your children un- 
 eleaUf but now are they holy.^^ The apostle proves the va- 
 lidity of the marriage, although one of the parties remained 
 an unbeliever, perhaps a base idolater, by the fact, that the 
 children^ in consequence of their relation to the heliever, 
 were considered and treated as holy. The holiness here 
 predicated of the children is relative. The words unclean 
 and holy are used in reference to religious observances. 
 That was unclean, in an ancient Jewish usage, which was 
 not fit to be offered to God. That was holy which was 
 consecrated to his service. Hence the Sabbath, the 
 feast days, the temple, its vessels ; the priests, their vest- 
 ments ; and the circumcised children, were all denominated 
 holy. This was the customary language of the nation and 
 of the Church for ages. When, therefore, the children of 
 a believer are called holy, we understand that they are 
 either actually consecrated to God, or are proper subjects 
 of religious consecration. The very manner in which in- 
 fant dedication is alluded to in this passage indicates how 
 universally it was practised, and how highly it was esteem- 
 ed among the apostolic Churches. The children, then, of 
 the Church are to be regarded with peculiar attention in 
 her prayers and instructions. By the providence of God 
 they are cast, in their helplessness, upon her bosom ; by 
 the command of God, they are claimed for his own, and 
 enstamped with the seal of his covenant. The Church, there- 
 fore, is under solemn obligations to acknowledge the claim, 
 by obeying the command ; and the parent who refuses will 
 be responsible to God in that day when God shall judge 
 between the parent and the child. If this subject is in it- 
 self, and in its scriptural representations, so important, every 
 parent should give it a deep, and prayerful, and faithful 
 consideration. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 89 
 
 It is time for the whole Church to awake. A trust in- 
 estimable in its value is committed to her faith. But her 
 slumber is appalling. When will she feel this theme in all 
 its thrilling influence ? When will she prepare herself for 
 the millennial glory ? When will she go back, or rather as- 
 cend to the standard of apostolic ages? In the commence- 
 ment of this chapter it was said, that in the first century the 
 principles of household consecration were more highly ap- 
 preciated than at any other period, before or since. Is not 
 the position substantiated? How were they honored in the 
 preparation for Messiah's advent 1. In the whole course of 
 his ministry ! In the fulness and extent of the apostolic com^ 
 mission ! In the freeness and exuberant riches of gospel 
 proposals as apostles preached them ! In the immediate 
 consecration of Christian households to the triune God! 
 In the whole manner of treatment which the baptized chil- 
 dren of the first century received from parents and apostles, 
 from the Churches and Saviour !. Qn what period of time 
 can we fasten, in the whole range of ecclesiastical memory, 
 so highly distinguished for the spiritual power and gran- 
 deur of this institution, as were the purest and earliest years 
 of Christianity ? 
 
 What spirit-stirring motives evolve from the body of 
 evidence which is now before us ? We have seen the foun. 
 dationof this institution laid in the great principles of God's 
 eternal government, and of the family constitution j we 
 have seen its principles characterizing the divine procedures 
 until the time of Abraham ; and its enthronement signalized 
 by the stipulations of the covenant, and the appointment of 
 an external form of consecration ; we have seen in its con- 
 finement to the Jews, and in its power of preserving the 
 Jewish Church until Shiloh came, one long successful expe- 
 riment of its energy ; we have seen the incontrovertible 
 evidence of that covenant's perpetual nature ; of its exten^ 
 8* 
 
90 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 sion, with all its spiritual blessings enhanced, over the 
 Gentile world ; we have seen the title of believing Gentiles 
 to its promises incontestably established ; we have listened 
 to its assurances of mercy to believers in behalf of their 
 children ; we have felt that while the ancient seal was abo- 
 lished, a more appropriate, significant and universal one 
 was wisely established in the form of baptism. "We have 
 seen the whole testimony of ecclesiastical history ascribing 
 this change of the seal to the days of the apostles ; we have 
 seen in the records, the inspired and infallible records, of 
 those days, evidence that then this institution flourished with 
 universal honor, uncorrupted purity, and transcendant pow- 
 er ! In view of this overwhelming mass of proof, we there- 
 fore call upon the Church : " Be not faithless, but believ- 
 ing." An institution thus distinguished, thus established, 
 thus interwoven with all the vital interests of religion dur- 
 ing four thousand years, is worthy of our entire, increasing, 
 and unceasing confidence. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Utility of household consecration. The state of mind essential to its ac- 
 ceptable performance. The distinct and solemn pledge. Its actual 
 bearing on parental duties. 
 
 If God has ordained the practice of infant consecration, 
 it is presumptuous to question its utility. Even if we could 
 not at once prove its utility, from its inherent adaptation* 
 or its practical results, we should be bound to maintain it 
 faithfully, and prize it highly. Genuine faith in God 
 shrinks not from obedience, even when his command is 
 dark and mysterious. Here, however, is no dark and mys- 
 terious command. The obedience of faith would leave 
 the parent even to sacrifice his son, his only son ; his son of 
 promise and of love, if God required it. Here, however, 
 no sacrifice is demanded. 
 
 Our belief in the importance of this institution does not 
 depend simply on its divine authority. In its very nature 
 and bearing, there is abundant evidence of its salutary in- 
 fluence. In the living facts of its history, and the won. 
 drous sanctions of the Spirit, there is demonstration strong 
 of its honorable connection with the divine economy. 
 Whether we contemplate its impressive agency on the 
 parent, on the childf on the Church, on the world, we are 
 constrained to believe that, considering simply its practical 
 tendencies, the Christian Church has not another ceremony 
 of equal value. 
 
 The reader is requested to bear in mind that I speak of 
 infant dedication as it has been defined and defended in the 
 preceding chapters, I shall not undertake to prove the uti- 
 lity of a spurious consecration. I reject alike that which, 
 
92 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 having the form, denies the power, and that which, confi. 
 dent of the power, contemns the form. If there be infant 
 consecration" to false gods, or to an imaginary god, or even 
 to the true God, with a false heart, it is no part of mine to 
 eulogize its practical operation. The argument of these 
 chapters is not responsible for the infant dedication of a cor- 
 rupted Christianity in any land, family, circumstances^ or 
 generation. 
 
 The infant consecration here solemnly urged, is that 
 which the ** father of us all" first practised, and which 
 the Saviour himself modified for all nations, and con- 
 firmed for all ages. I shall therefore attempt to show in 
 what manner the ordinance of infant consecration produces 
 the parental faithfulness, and in what manner God blesses 
 that faithfulness in remembrance of his holy covenant. 
 Thus it will appear that through this institution a stream of 
 beneficial influence is conveyed, that makes glad the city 
 of our God. 
 
 1. The utility of househoid consecration is inferred 
 from the state of the mind esseniical to its most acceptable 
 performance. The parents are supposed to be true believ- 
 ers, they regard the terms of the covenant as just, its pro- 
 mises as infinitely precious, and its appointed seal as a sig- 
 nificant token of his gracious design, and of their confiding 
 love. They regard the special promise of persevering 
 grace to them, as giving them a strong foundation, for 
 prosecuting their holy plans in their household. They re- 
 gard the conditional promise of grace fOr their offspring, as 
 affording them a full opportunity for trying the strength of 
 vigorous, household faith. They see that it opens to their 
 access inexhaustible stores of grace. Promise rises upon 
 promise, prize upon prize. One apartment of mercy 
 opens into another. The angel of the covenant throws 
 wide its portals, and beckons them still to advance. The 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 93 
 
 continuance of God's Church in their household : the sal- 
 vation of each individual member : the needful temporal 
 welfare : the high attainments of holiness : the distin- 
 guished usefulness of their children : the surpassing de- 
 grees of celestial glory : and all these not for one genera- 
 tion, but by the extension of the vital principle of conse. 
 cration, for a thousand. These are the promises of the 
 covenant, in their glorious gradation ; and the pathway of 
 ascent from the lowest to the highest, is open to the aspir- 
 ings of parental faith ! 
 
 He regards the sacred seal, as implying an entire con* 
 secration of himself and his household to these lofty pro- 
 mises and purposes of the covenant. He is admonished 
 that this relation is gained only through faith, is maintain- 
 ed only through faith. The example of the unbelieving 
 Jew is before him. The danger, the guilt, the consequent 
 ces of covenant violations, of parental unfaithfulness, are 
 all before him in the history of the Church, and the records, 
 of the covenant. Suppose the parent to ponder these things 
 deeply in his heart ; then let him come to the altar of con- 
 secration, with that state of mind which all these considera- 
 tions produce and sanction, I appeal to philosophy, to 
 common sense, to experience, when I say that a powerful 
 parental influence must be secured by that state of mind 
 here supposed. The value of the child ; its depravity ; 
 its exposure ; its need of regeneration ; the great principle 
 of the divine government in its dealings with parents ; the 
 development of that principle in the Abrahamic covenant ; 
 the solemen earnestness and fulness of that promise ; the 
 privileges conferred by the gospel on the Gentiles ; the ne- 
 cessity of self-examination ; of genuine faith; of an entire 
 surrender of the young immortal ; the conviction of personal 
 parental responsibility combined with a sense of personal 
 insufficiency, and with the strength of parental affection — * 
 
94 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 all these, pressing on the soul, must render the scene of bap. 
 tism, to the spiritual parent, intensely impressive and over- 
 whelming. If ever strong resolves of parental faithfulness 
 can be formed, they could be formed then. Jf ever the 
 soul of man braces herself for high and noble efforts, it is 
 just when all the arguments of fear, with all the animation 
 of hope,'blend their strength in one impulse, and urge her 
 on to one specific movement. To deny the practical ener- 
 gy of such consecration, would be to reason against all the 
 laws of mind, and all the principles of sound philosophy. 
 
 2. The utility of this ordinance is evident from the fact, 
 that the act of consecration involves, on the part of the fa* 
 rents, a distinct and solemn pledge to educate the child for 
 Jehovah* 
 
 The reasons why such a pledge might wisely be re- 
 quired were stated in the first two chapters. Several fun. 
 damental reasons, not for believing in infant baptism, but 
 for the institution of infant consecration, were then stated. 
 It is reasonable that, if moral influence is in itself so power- 
 ful, and in its family relations so energetic ; if depravity is 
 entire and universal, and if God designs to bestow the in- 
 fluences of his grace in connection with parental faithful- 
 ness, a distinct and solemn pledge should be required of 
 parents to consecrate their whole parental influence to the 
 Lord. Such a pledge is required and given in the ordinance 
 of infant dedication. The parent there acknowledges the 
 absolute right of God to his child ; the capacity of his child 
 for moral government ; the force and abiding reality of pa- 
 rental obligation ; his own dependence on the atoning and 
 regenerating grace of God ; and in view of all the invisible 
 relations connected with the spiritual nature and destiny of 
 his offspring, he gives the pledge that he will faithfully in, 
 struct, guide, restrain, and educate, intellectually and mo-» 
 rally, thcit immortal spirit for heaven, \\. is given at the 
 
HOUSEJIOLD CONSECRATION. 95 
 
 family altar ; it is given in the house of God ; it is inscribed 
 on every parental and eVery Christian memorial ; it is given 
 in presence of his household — of the Church, of the world, 
 of ministering angels, and a covenant-keeping God. It is 
 given in a state of mind most calculated, of all others, to 
 insure it a power, a meaning, and a spiritual energy. It is 
 useless to say, that the parent will discharge his duties as 
 well without giving a pledge as with. We do not reason 
 thus on any other subject. The merchant does not reason 
 thus in his business. God has not reasoned thus in the mar- 
 riage institution, nor in requiring his followers to pledge 
 themselves by a public profession to be faithful. Our fa- 
 thers did not reason thus in signing the Declaration of Inde- 
 pendence. Nations have not reasoned thus in crowning 
 their monarchs. Among all nations, and in all institutions, 
 human and divine, when great interests are at stake, the 
 pledge, the sacred, inviolable pledge, has been required, 
 both by the dictates of human nature, of reason, and reli- 
 gion. It is folly thus to argue against all the current of 
 human experiencCj and against all the principles of human 
 practice. 
 
 To disprove the utility of a pledge in these circum- 
 stances, it is essential to prove that the interest at stake is 
 of small moment ; that the common practice of all mankind 
 is useless ; or that a piedgCj in these circumstances, will 
 not have the same tendency as in others. The opposite of 
 each of these is self-evident, and the demonstration is mo* 
 rally invulnerable, that if a pledge is important any where, 
 it is here. If it is rational any where, it is here* If it 
 is powerful any where, it must be peculiarly powerful 
 here. The souls of a household ! entrusted to the mo* 
 ral culture of two frail, trembling, and imperfect be- 
 ings ! Where is the parental heart ? where the heart of 
 faith, or mercy, or compassion, which would not wish to 
 
96 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 have secured to those souls, as strongly as possible, those 
 means and mfluences on which their eternal welfare de- 
 pends ? Who C!in fail to see how well the ordinance of 
 infant consecration is adapted to give this security ? 
 
 3. The utility of infant baptism is manifest from its ac» 
 tual bearing on the performanee of parental duties. 
 
 The parents retire from the sanctuary to the household 
 hearth. There they bow at the family altar. They plead for 
 the soul which they have given to God. They reiterate 
 their vows, and commend their child to the Spirit of the 
 covenant. Can they do less, if they act according to their 
 strongest feelings and solemn promises ? Where has family 
 worship been most faithfully maintained ? Unquestionably, 
 where the household dedication advocated in these chapters 
 has been most faithfully performed. I appeal to Scotland, 
 to England, to the United States, as compared with other 
 countries. I appeal to the history of those Churches which 
 have most clearly understood these principles and most 
 highly proved them. The maintenance of family worship 
 is regarded as a sacred, indispensable duty, generally if not 
 universally, in those Churches where family consecration 
 is rightly practised. As a convincing illustration of this^ 
 we need but present, as a specimen of a whole class, the 
 household worship of New-England. It is unnecessary to 
 extend the comparison minutely, through different denomi- 
 nations, yet let the inquiry be prosecuted ever so exten- 
 sively, the same principle would gather continual confirma- 
 tion. It is painful to present the other side of the picture. 
 An aged godly minister once said, when addressing a Churchy 
 who, like himself, rejected infant dedication, " lam acquaint- 
 ed with the state of our Churches in all this region, and there 
 are but few members who maintain family worship.^* This 
 assertion could never be made respecting families who prac- 
 tise infant consecration on the principles here professed- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 97 
 
 What glowing interest must these principles awaken in the 
 bosom of the family circle ! 
 
 « The saint, the father, and the husband prays." They 
 not only preserve family worship, but they purify, inspire, 
 and ennoble it. 
 
 If the parents are prompted to maintain family worship, 
 in consequence of their covenant faith and engagements, 
 they will, in the same manner, be influenced to diligence in 
 family instruction. They will draw around them the con- 
 secrated group. The father, when he sitteth down, and 
 when he riseth up, when he goeth out, and when he cometh 
 in, in the house, and by the way. The mother in the closet 
 and in the nursery, each in their respective stations ; both 
 at their united domestic fireside. They will instruct them. 
 Such is the inference forced upon us, for according as 
 family worship is neglected or honored, so will it generally 
 be with religious instruction. The facts correspond with 
 the inference. The catechetical instruction ; the strict 
 household regulations ; the stern doctrinal and moral prin- 
 ciples, instilled even with proverbial diligence by our an- 
 cestors ; the Sabbath school instruction ; the maternal asso- 
 ciation, the simplified religious reading in modern times, all 
 bear witness to the truth of these statements, and have 
 chiefly originated among those who baptize their children, 
 and have been mainly propelled by the zeal which the 
 coals from this altar have enkindled. It is true that 
 much is now done where the ordinance of infant dedi- 
 cation is not practised ; that an increasing interest is now 
 felt, there is no doubt ; other truths and principles have 
 operated, in a measure, to stimulate ; and more especially 
 the presence and example of infant consecration in the same 
 neighborhoods has counteracted the tendency of neglect in 
 many families. Yet the inspiring, moving spring of this 
 9 
 
98 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION* 
 
 unusual interest is manifestly the spirit of household dedi* 
 cation. 
 
 For the same reasons'that family worship and instruction 
 are nourished by this influence, will intellectual education 
 he promoted. The parents feel that the minds for whose 
 moral culture God has adapted^ such a special system of 
 provision, ought to receive the beat possible intellectual cul- 
 tivation. Hence the principles of infant consecration have 
 always tended to promote the general education of youth. 
 Again I mention Scotland, England, the United States, and 
 especially New-England. To mention these countries, 
 especially the last, is sufficient. Their common schools ; 
 their educated ministry; their literary and scientific insti- 
 tutions ; their numerous publications, in volumes and peri- 
 odicals, and their general intelligence, are known and ho- 
 nored of all men. 
 
 The parents who are influenced as described above will 
 train up their households to sanctify the Sahbath. 
 
 The mind imbued with the reasonings which establish 
 the divine authority of infant baptism, will feel the beauty 
 and force of that which sustains the divine authority of the 
 Christian Sabbath. On the other hand, those who have 
 taught the abolition of the Abrahamic covenant, have ex- 
 tensively advocated the abrogation of the fourth command- 
 ment. The heart which prizes most highly the covenant 
 of consecration, will naturally feel most deeply the value 
 of the Lord's sacred day. The same manner of investi- 
 gation, adopted under the other specifications, will equally 
 illustrate the correspondence of the history with the logical 
 deductions. 
 
 If these things are so ; if family worship and instruc- 
 tion, if the benign influences of liberal education, and the 
 auspicious energies of the Christian Sabbath, are promoted, 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 99 
 
 preserved, and elevated, through the influence of household 
 consecration, can any man question its manifest and its sur- 
 passing utility ? If, moreover, its living truths, its solemn 
 pledge, and its actual bearing on the performance of parental 
 duties, are so conspicuous, how salutary nnust be its influence 
 on the formation of parental character. The constant exer- 
 cise of such Abrahamic faith, of such patriarchal solicitude, 
 of such strong, deep, and prevailing prayer, as the fulfil- 
 ment of the pledge, the development of these principles, and 
 the performance of these duties demand, must tend to form 
 a lovely, steadfast, and consistent character. How sweetly 
 must it combine warmth of affection with vigor of intellect, 
 and domestic cheerfulness with holiness of conversation. 
 It is " as the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that de- 
 scended on the mountains of Zion ; for there the Lord com- 
 manded the blessing, even life for evermore." 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Utility of household consecration continued. Its influence on consecra- 
 ted children. Examples — its connection with prevailing prayer. Ex- 
 amples — the early conversion of children. 
 
 Having considered in what manner the ordinance of 
 infant consecration produces parental faithfulness, we shall 
 proceed to inquire in what manner God Messes that faith, 
 fulness f in rememhrance of his holy covenant. Hence we 
 remark, 
 
 4. That the utility of this ordinance is manifest, from, 
 the restraining moral influence which it exerts upon the minds 
 of consecrated children while impenitent. 
 
 A pious lady, being solicited by her daughters for per- 
 mission to attend a ball, replied. My dear children, in your 
 infancy I consecrated you to the Saviour ; how then can I 
 give my consent to your request ? — I have dedicated you to 
 him forever — do you wish to break away from that dedi- 
 cation ? Will you not rather yourselves now consent to 
 that precious covenant ? They paused, considered, assent- 
 ed to her decision, and rejoiced that they had a mother who 
 was steadfast to her baptismal engagements. 
 
 A young lad, over whose infancy a dying mother 
 breathed her prayer of faith, and over whose earliest years 
 the watchfulness of that mother's parents and sisters exer- 
 cised the care of holy affection, was once strongly tempted, 
 when at play with his shoolmates, to take the name of his 
 covenant God in vain. So powerful was the temptation, 
 that he even resolved to venture his first oath. The word 
 was forming on his lips, when the thought of his infant de- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 101 
 
 dication rushed to mind ! How can I profane that sacred 
 name which has been sealed upon me by the command of 
 divine mercy, and the faith of parental love ? Th.'it oath 
 was never uttered — and that child, in all future temptation, 
 was preserved from the sin of profaneness. 
 
 An intelligent gentleman, not himself a professor, says 
 that he should infer from his own experience, that this or, 
 dinance is more valuable for its practical tendencies, than 
 any other in the Christian Church. The thought of his 
 own infant baptism had powerfully restrained him amidst 
 the temptations of life, and preserved his character from vice 
 and immorality. To these examples multitudes might be 
 added, showing in what manner the finger of God, through 
 this institution, often touches the impenitent heart.^ — The 
 public morals of those communities where this ordinance is 
 practised in its spiritual import, afford an appropriate illus^ 
 tration of its restraining influence. 
 
 5. The utility is evinced from the manner in which God 
 answers the prayers of his people while directly pleading the 
 covenant promises. 
 
 It was the privilege of the writer to attend a protracted 
 meeting in one of our loveliest villages, which was charac» 
 terized with thrilling exhibitions of the power of the cove, 
 rant. A brother in the ministry, whose mind had been 
 long awake to the importance of this subject, being grieved 
 at the lifeless aspect of a very large Church, had almost re, 
 solved to abandon the scene of labor. He inquired of the 
 pastor if there were many baptized youth in his congrega- 
 tion who were unconverted. Yes, said he, there are very 
 many. Then I will stay. This subject of infant dedication 
 was immediately presented before the congregation. The 
 baptismal vows of believing parents, and the consequent 
 guilt of their stupidity in such a season, were urged with 
 holy fervor. The fountain was unsealed — the waters of 
 repentance flowed — parents pressed forward with their 
 9* 
 
102 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 children, to renew their vom's, and supplicate forgiveness 
 for themselves, and salvation for their offspring — baptized 
 children whose parents wore not present were invited, and 
 came trembling forward to solicit the prayers of the Church 
 — parents baptized in infancy, but unconverted, and by 
 their unbelief cutting off themselves and their children from 
 the covenant blessing, came with weeping also — and, while 
 united hearts plead the glorious promises of the Abrahamic 
 covenant, the Spirit of the Lord came down like rain upon 
 the mown grass, and from that moment the work progress- 
 ed until many souls were added to the Lord. Similar ex- 
 hibitions have oflen been witnessed in scenes of revival. 
 And were inquiry to be strictly made into the more secret 
 springs of influence, it would oflen be found that the win- 
 dows of heaven were opened by some strong grasp of the 
 covenant. 
 
 In the ordinary circumstances of the Church, and in the 
 spiritual history of individuals, the connection of household 
 promise with prevailing prayer, is abundantly exhibited. 
 A lawyer, while visiting the place where the work of God 
 was progressing, was awakened to a sense of his guilt and 
 danger, and sought the prayers of Christians. The little 
 prayer meeting] was nearly closing, and he still refused to 
 surrender. " He is a baptized child," it was said. The 
 prayer was renewed — the covenat promise urged at the 
 throne of grace, and he rose up rejoicing in the Lord. A 
 believing wife states, that she distinctly remembers the hour 
 when her husband (now occupying a sphere of distinguish- 
 ed usefulness in the Church) was delivered from the bon- 
 dage of sin while prayer was made unto God for him, on 
 the ground of the Abrahamic covenant. Instances of a 
 similar character might be recounted till they should fill the 
 pages of a volume. And in this age of revivals, it is the 
 solemn duty of the Church to make known these wonders 
 of grace. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 103 
 
 6. The utility of infant consecration is most appropri- 
 ately exhibited by its bearing on the early conversion of 
 children. 
 
 It presents this subject in its true aspect before the 
 Church. It proclaims their need of regeneration ; it points 
 to the atonement as their only hope, and to the Spirit of God 
 as the almighty agent. It encourages them to plead for 
 its speedy renovation. Should the parent who believes in 
 the ability and willingness of God to regenerate the infant, 
 when he is about to translate him to another world, exer- 
 cise the same faith in God in reference to the continuance 
 of his life on earth ; should he seek, not merely that the 
 infant may be saved, but that he may glorify God in his 
 whole earthly existence, and therefore plead for his early 
 conversion with that intense earnestness which sometimes 
 wrestles with God at the dying bed of some hardened and 
 abandoned child of the covenant, this would be acting accord, 
 ing to the spirit of the ordinance. In whatever degree 
 parental faithfulness has thus taken hold of the covenant, 
 the blessing of God has been accordingly granted. The 
 mother of Samuel acted thus when she consecrated him to 
 God, and multitudes of parents in ages since have rejoiced 
 in the same covenant promise fulfilled in early childhood. 
 In proof of this, the names of many distinguished divines 
 and holy men, in all ages, might be adduced. This sub- 
 ject is now happily growing in importance, and there have 
 recently been many examples of the conversion of house- 
 holds, especially in connection with prayer, which has 
 plead the Abrahamic promise. A clergyman states, that 
 after a season of special prayer with God for his consecra- 
 ted little ones, he obtained delightful evidence that they 
 had given their hearts to God. The great subject which 
 filled his thoughts, and his wrestling prayers, was the glory 
 of (xod as connected with the household covenant. There 
 
104 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 should be, indeed, great faithfulness in deciding on the evi- 
 dence presented, but the parental niind, rightly affected by 
 these views, will rather expect daily to behold such evidence 
 than be surprised at its occurrence. It should be remem- 
 bered, that the grand object is not simply their conversion, 
 it is that they may be holy in all their life ; that they may 
 honor the gospel by their whole course of action ; that they 
 may be trained for the service of Christ as faithful soldiers 
 that God may be glorified, in the highest possible degree, 
 through the family constitution. To this their conversion 
 is subordinate and essential. Until the parent can be satis- 
 fied of the conversion, he cannot be assured of the higher 
 and grander object. — Therefore, he should give him no 
 rest until the reign of grace is manifestly established 
 throughout the household. The increase of this spirit is 
 one of the brightest harbingers of millennial glory. It is in- 
 describably important as connected with the efforts now 
 made to instruct the rising generation. While we are 
 pouring light upon their tender age, with what intense fer- 
 vor should we beseech the genial influences of grace. It 
 is true that most affecting instances might be mentioned of 
 the power of infant consecration, to affect the mind of bar- 
 dened and abandoned sinners, when all other means have 
 failed ; and the grace of God in these marvellous outgoings 
 of its healing virtue, deserves our loudest praise ; yet the 
 primary and regular operation of this gracious economy 
 is in its own legitimate and direct bearing on the early re- 
 generation of children. O, when will Zion understand the 
 depth, the sweetness, the purity of her own ancient and 
 everlasting fountains. 
 
 On the whole, there are several considerations connected 
 with this subject which may well astonish us. It is aston- 
 ishing that the Church has not appreciated these wonderful 
 privileges more justly. It is astonishing that notwithstand- 
 
HOirSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 105 
 
 ing her cn'mmaZ unfaithfulness, the covenant promises have 
 been fulfilled so manifestly. It is, finally, astonishing, that 
 any should be disposed, afler such demonstrations as the 
 history of Zion affords, to question the utility of infant con- 
 secration. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 Utility of household consecration continued. Relation of baptized chil- 
 dren to the Church. Influence on the prosperity of the Church. The 
 theory. 
 
 The utility of infant consecration will farther appear 
 to every reflecting mind, 
 
 7, By contemplating the relation which baptized children 
 sustain to the Church. 
 
 Having by the act of the parent received the seal of 
 the great ecclesiastical covenant, they are included in the 
 relative promise made to the parent. They will not be inclu- 
 ded in the personal promise of grace made to the believer, 
 until they exercise the faith required. On the profession 
 of genuine faith in the triune God, their baptism becomes 
 to them a token of their personal interest in his saving grace. 
 Until they will do this, they are not permitted to commune 
 at his table, nor to present their own children in consecra- 
 tion. Thus by their voluntary impenitence and unbelief, 
 they exclude themselves from fellowship with the Church. 
 Their own dedication to God in childhood, if they resist the 
 righteous claim, cannot qualify them for the Lord's supper, 
 or for the baptism of their households, because these are 
 ordinances in which they must personally act, and the action 
 required is the exercise and expression of living faith. In 
 this holy manner the ancient Hebrew was commanded to 
 observe the ordinances of the Church, and he was forbidden 
 to participate with a wicked heart. Ps. 1. 16 : *' But unto 
 the wicked God saith, What hast thou to do to declare my 
 statutes, or that thou shouldst take my covenant in thy 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 107 
 
 Irsouth ?" This relation, while it does not authorize them to 
 enjoy the privileges peculiar to believers, does, however, 
 powerfully affect their condition. 
 
 It hinds the Church to watch for their souls, through 
 their parents. By consecrating them to Christ, the parents 
 have covenanted to labor for their salvation. By the 
 Church covenant, all the members have engaged to watch 
 over each other in this respect, as well as in all others. If, 
 then, a parent neglects his duty, the Church is bound by 
 her covenant with him to admonish him faithfully, and to 
 require the performance. If she does not do this, she 
 breaks her covenant. The pastor, too, is pledged to watch 
 over the Church, the parents, and the children, and see to 
 it that family worship, government, instruction, and the 
 ordinances of the Sabbath and sanctuary, are secured to 
 every household of his Church. The well regulated and 
 faithful covenant-keeping Church will certainly make it 
 sure that the baptismal vows are regarded. Of course, if 
 the Church regarding this relation does thus, through the 
 parents, act on the lambs of the flock, their moral character 
 and condition must be moulded under her influence. In 
 another manner still this relation affects their condition. 
 
 It hinds the parents to press upon them the claims of the 
 Church. Suppose the child well instructed in the princi- 
 ples of his consecration — that God, by ordaining it, has 
 turned the eye of the Church especially upon him, and has 
 presented both his righteous claim and his merciful offer 
 by the hand of parental affection — apples of gold in pic* 
 tures of silver. The question at once arises, shall I acknow- 
 ledge that claim and accept that offer ? God having mer- 
 cifully propounded them — my parents having coincided with 
 them — shall I comply ? It is difficult to perceive in what 
 manner the gospel proposal could be introduced to the mind 
 
108 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 of a young child, better adapted to enlist his intellect and 
 melt his heart. 
 
 Suppose, now, that child witnesses the communion. — 
 Not being permitted to partake, he inquires the reason ? 
 The parent explains. In participating with me in this ordi- 
 nance, you would profess that with an honest heart you 
 have trusted in Christ. You have given me no evidence 
 that you are prepared to make this profession. I am 
 grieved that you are not. Will you now consent to the 
 entire surrender which, as a parent, I made of you to Christ ? 
 Will you from this time be his, unreservedly, and forever ? 
 O, do not exclude yourself from these privileges any 
 longer. 
 
 Suppose the parent weekly, daily, should urge his 
 household to be prepared for the next communion — that he 
 should expostulate, portray the divine mercy, dwell on the 
 guilt of a refusal, on the danger of procrastination, on the 
 strong motives for immediate compliance. Now it is mani- 
 fest that this method of parental exertion, springing, as it 
 does, legitimately from the nature of the relation itself, and 
 existing just so far as that relation is understood and felt, 
 cannot fail to furnish seasons in the domestic history, when 
 the sense of personal responsibility will be overwhelming, 
 and when the thrilling call of the gospel will pass down into 
 the deep places of the soul. This relation, moreover, has 
 another bearing. 
 
 It hinds all the memhers of the Church to watch for the 
 souls of the household when the parents die. When God in 
 his holy providence calls the parent away, that parent has 
 a right to point the Church to his orphan boy, and say, 
 Woman, behold thy son ! The influence of such feelings 
 is elevating — salutary — auspicious in the highest degree. 
 It is wonderful : my soul thrills when I call to mind this 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION* 109 
 
 precious legacy of the righteous. Tales of melting sweet- 
 ness might be recited, of the power and practical operation 
 of the orphan's promise ; especially of the promises to the 
 dying believer, in behalf of the consecrated child. When 
 the special provision which God has made for the salvation 
 of the child, is removed by his own providence, he seems 
 himself to take the parent's place, and he is generally seen 
 to do it through his Church. Analagous to this last remark, 
 on the relation here considered, is another, that by virtue of it, 
 
 The consecrated child, wherever he may wander, may 
 always find those that will care for his soul. He may say 
 to the Christian, wherever he meets one, Your brother and 
 sister gave me to your God ; in their name, and for his 
 sake, I ask your prayers. Pie is a connection of the great 
 family, not merely by the ties of blood, but by the delinea- 
 tion of divine mercy. Wherever such a youth makes himself 
 known, or is known as a child of the covenant, the Church 
 is bound to plead those covenant promises in his behalf. It 
 surrounds the liomeless wanderer with a thousand guardian 
 spirits ; belter for not being angels, if indeed they are those 
 to whom appertaineth the adoption ! with the covenants and 
 the glory ! 
 
 8. The practical uses of infant consecration are mani. 
 fest, in view of the preservation and prosperity of tJie Church, 
 throughout successive ages. 
 
 Previous to the Abrahamic covenant, its fundamental 
 principles operated surely, but more silently. The express, 
 definite covenant, with its sacred seal, was unknown, and 
 therefore their native force was not fully developed. Yet, 
 
 Through all the veins of ages household streams 
 Oozed from their sacred fountains. 
 
 The current, however, although subterranean, can some- 
 times be traced by the verdure above it. After the 
 establishment of this institution, the pathway of its in- 
 10 
 
llO HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 fluence, through the successive periods, is as distinct and 
 luminous as the galaxy in the heavens. The waters 
 of mercy have rolled down from age to age, since 
 the fountain covenant was opened, in this one conspic- 
 uous channel. Where this ordinance has been fundamen- 
 tally perverted, the Church has been corrupted, but her 
 spiritual prosperity has always attended its faithful obser- 
 vance. Even since, in one portion ofthe Church, it has been 
 laid aside as an unwarranted ceremony, there have not only 
 been no particular tokens of approbation discoverable to- 
 ward those who have done so, but the healthiest and noblest 
 tide of prosperity has flowed on in the ancient channel, and 
 the evil tendencies of the disuse are already visible in the 
 short space of a few generations. « You must," said an 
 aged minister to his brethren, " you must dedicate your 
 children to God, as well as your meeting house. Our chil- 
 dren are growing up uninstructed — they are hunting on the 
 Sabbath — they are becoming skeptical — you must awake, 
 and dedicate them to God." And although the good and vene- 
 rable father in Israel was careful to state that he did not in- 
 tend to urge the dedication of children, by the affusion of water, 
 in the name ofthe Trinity, his exhortation implied, that where 
 the form did not exist, there was but little of the power, and 
 where infant dedication was neglected, there was an alarm- 
 ing tendency to the neglect of all visible religion. 
 
 The truth is, there is a sweet and holy influence con- 
 nected with this institution, which passes into the closet, 
 as well as in the family circle ; and which is shed over the 
 great congregation, as well as into the soul, that shutteth the 
 door and prayeth to Him who seeth in secret. It tends to 
 impress the parents, the children, the community, with the 
 solemnity of the marriage covenant. It unfolds its primary 
 and its heavenly design, and makes those sins which set it 
 at defiance appear peculiarly abominable. The value of 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECEATION. Ill 
 
 these, the legitimate impressions of this ordinance, cannot 
 be too highly appreciated. Especially, in view of all these 
 practical bearings, does the importance of this institution 
 seem manifest, as connected with the system of missionary 
 operations. Tending, as it does, to give permanency to 
 Christian establishments by its bearing on successive gene- 
 rations, we have reason to hail with joy the formation of 
 every new Church among the heathen, on the principles of 
 the Abrahamic covenant. An encouraging prospect is 
 before us, even in most disheartening present labors, because 
 we know that the God of that everlasting covenant has, in 
 all ages, thus illustrated the reality of his promise by the 
 whole course of his providence in the preservation and pros- 
 perity of Zion. 
 
 The practical importance, therefore, of infant consecra- 
 tion, is fully evinced by an extended examination of its 
 influence. The writer commenced these discussions under 
 the firm belief that, important as the inductive philosophy is 
 to human science, it cannot be permitted to control the 
 theories of revelation ; that if any scheme of doctrine is 
 sanctioned in the word of God, it may be adopted without 
 hesitation, and the universe of facts may be trusted to fur- 
 nish a continued scene of varied and appropriate illustration. 
 After the survey which we have taken of the actual bear, 
 ings of this practice, we may, however, return with war- 
 mer impressions of confidence to the theory with which it 
 is indissolubly connected in the word of God. How rational, 
 how consistent, and sublime, is that theory ! How glori- 
 ously it illustrates the wisdom of the Infinite Mind, and the 
 benevolence of his unfailing counsels. 
 
 We behold him taking the great principle of the moral 
 universe — that mind is ordained to exert moral influence over 
 mind universally and forever — and applying it to the pro- 
 bation of man in a most emphatic manner, by means of the 
 
112 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 family constitution and the consequent relationship of gene- 
 rations — and when the fall of man, and the certain depravity 
 of all his generations, rendered this principle powerful for 
 evil, we behold him incorporating it, by means of the family 
 constitution into all the methods of restoring mercy, that 
 it might be equally powerful for good. Then, as the cove- 
 nant of redemption had secured in Christ, and for him, the 
 certain renovation and salvation of great multitudes from 
 all generations, the consecrated household influence was 
 made the main channel of his grace, for the accomplishment of 
 this eternal purpose. Moreover, as the covenant of grace 
 secured in Christ the pardon, perseverance, and progressive 
 holiness of every believer, a foundation was thus laid, in its 
 very nature, for securing thsit permanent, holy parental in- 
 fluence, during his lifetime, over his descendants. Therefore, 
 in order that a holy influence of mind over mind might be 
 secured, as a channel of grace, during all time, through the 
 household constitution, he first established his visible Church 
 on the covenant of grace ; placed in her hands this powerful 
 family influence ; encouraged her by revealing his gracious 
 design, and wrought the elements of the three into the 
 Abrahamic covenant ; thereby making it a glorious admi- 
 nistration of grace, and confirmed it by a solemn seal for a 
 thousand generations. As that covenant thus contained the 
 personal promise of persevering grace to the believer, and a 
 distinct and precious promise of spiritual blessings to the 
 believing parent, in behalf of his descendants, the same seal 
 was applied both to the parent and the child ; the claim of 
 God to both thus being asserted, and the consecration of both 
 being necessarily implied, on the part of the parent, in his 
 own voluntary act of receiving the appropriate seal for 
 himself and his household. Thus, through all the ages of 
 the old dispensation, God was erecting his spiritual temple 
 on this foundation ; gathering his polished stones chiefly from 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 113 
 
 the Jewish nation ; and by the very peculiarities of the an- 
 cient economy, preparing for the Messiah's advent. When 
 the Saviour appeared, and that same spiritual temple was 
 to derive its materials from all nations, the Christian dis- 
 pensation was established ; mheriting the ancient covenant, 
 with confirmed, augmented, and elevated privileges, extend- 
 ing its vital principles over vaster regions of mind, and em- 
 bracing, as the result of their practical operation, the tri- 
 umphs of a universal gospel. 
 
 Such is the outline of the scriptural theory of infant 
 consecration. We have called it sublime ; perhaps we 
 should characterize it better by the appellations grand and 
 beautiful. It presents before us — 
 
 That covenant sealed — that deep domestic fount, 
 Whence streams of life perennial flow ; where flowers 
 Of holy promise, all unwithermg bloom. 
 There, too, great Spirit of redeeming grace ! 
 (Amidst these principles and changeless truths,) 
 There thou, enthroned, abidest ; at whose feet 
 The ages of redemption roll and shine. 
 
 10* 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Household consecration, in its administration. The Wyandot Chiet 
 The baptism. 
 
 If, to the reflecting and believing mind, this ordinance 
 be grand and beautiful in theory, it must in administration 
 be animating and impressive. This indeed is evident from 
 the fact, that even the untutored mind, if awakened by pa- 
 rental love, and inspired by gospel truth, is able to feel its 
 attraction, and to glow with its vital elements. As an 
 illustration of this, the story of the Wyandot Chief might 
 be adduced. Converted to Christ in the wilderness, he 
 travelled a great distance with his little son, in order to visit 
 a band of Christian ministers, and commit him to their 
 charge, to be educated for the Lord. He stood amidst the 
 Presbytery, and consecrated him to the service of Jehovah. 
 He asked them to undertake the education of his son, and 
 when they assented, he required them to give him a writ- 
 ten pledge that they would be faithful to their solemn charge. 
 When this deed of faith was accomplished he returned, con- 
 fiding, satisfied, rejoicing. Suppose this poor Indian had 
 witnessed the Christian father and mother consecrating 
 their infant children to Jehovah, would there not have been' 
 even in his untutored mind, an apprehension of its propriety, 
 and an inward fellowship with the parental vows and hopes ? 
 How much more, then, shall the scene of infant consecration 
 be appreciated, when the mind has entered deeply into its 
 spiritual design, and incorporated with its strongest emo- 
 tions these everlasting principles. 
 
 To the thoughtless it may seem a vain ceremonial and 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 115 
 
 an unscriptural rite ; but to the studious heart, to the en- 
 lightened parent, to the instructed children, and to " their 
 angels which do always behold the face of our Father 
 which is in heaven," it will reveal, through its humble as- 
 pect the grandeur of its eternal relations. To them it is 
 in truth — 
 
 A scene of glowing beauty ! 'Tis the day 
 When Zion gathers to the house of prayer. 
 Behold a young and godly pair advance, 
 And in the presence of that solemn flock 
 Present their offering to the King of saints — 
 Their first-born son, a holy child of faith. 
 Then, as the angel of the Church implores 
 The God of Abraham for his changeless love 
 To those believing parents, and their seed. 
 How low they bow, how earnestly commit 
 That child of love and beauty to his grace. 
 In that deep prayer uniting. Who can tell 
 How strong the father's purpose, or how full 
 The fond maternal heart, as on the brow 
 Of that fair infant, in affusion holy. 
 The man of God the sealing water sheds. 
 
 See, *midst the scene, that infant aspect glow 
 With beams of glory ; for the smile suppressed, 
 The rich parental tear and mutual glance — 
 Tokens expressive of glad faith within — 
 Fall sweetly on it. Lo I the triune God 
 Hath set a glorious seal, his own great name. 
 On that immortal creature. Guardian forms 
 Pledge to each other, to the Church, to God, 
 That they will guide him in the ways of truth, 
 Watch o'er him as a consecrated thing, 
 And train his spirit for the Lord of hosts. 
 O, how it girds the soul up — that deep ^^oice 
 In the pure musings of the inmost heart — 
 ♦' Fear not, O parent, I loill he a God 
 To thee and thine /" How rich that promise seemed, 
 As from that sacred altar they returned, 
 Bearing, amidst the yearnmgs of their faith, 
 A sealed spirit ! Greeting their return, 
 Some aged Simeon, or some Anna, rich 
 In heavenly treasures and in title-deeds 
 
116 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 To everlasting promises, would hail them 
 With kiss of love, with long and holy kiss. 
 Involving and expressing on the cheek 
 Of that dear infant the unsullied faith 
 Of ancient generations, and bestow 
 The patriarchal blessing on his head. 
 
 How felt those parents as, retiring calm, 
 Tender, resolved, with lofty purpose filled. 
 They to their own sweet home rejoicing bore 
 The gift of God, the child of covenant love. 
 Their holy offspring ! Never, till then, O, never 
 Seemed, in their view, that beauteous babe so dear — 
 Seemed that sweet home so glorious, so refined ! 
 
 O ! 'twas like heaven, as with a mutual care 
 They placed the cradle by the altar's side. 
 And, kneeling where their loved one sleeping smiled, 
 Renewed before the ancient household shrine 
 The heart-felt consecration ; then implored 
 That grace which He, the God of promise, sealed 
 To them and theirs. If faith, which works by love, 
 Be strong with God, strong in prevailing prayer, 
 Then rose that altar's incense pure to heaven, 
 And angels looked upon that sacred spot. 
 Where bloomed the rose of Eden — looked and said, 
 How sweet the work to guard it ! Ah, many, many 
 Such glorious watching places angels find 
 Round Zion's sunny hills and streams of grace. 
 
 Think not that angel visits are but " few 
 And far between." Oft at the rosy morn. 
 Or the still quiet evening, lo, they come, 
 Spirits invisible, to watch, to kneel 
 In the loved circle of a covenant home. 
 Strengthening the saint, the father, while he prays, 
 And leads e'en guardian angels to the throne. 
 
 Celestial work ! high, elevating task ! 
 To wear the unsullied ephod, which is cast. 
 By God's own mercy, round the household priest, 
 As trembling he advances. As he leads 
 To the pure shrine the partner of his cares, 
 O, how their souls commingle ! How the power 
 Of minds united, fired, and giving forth. 
 Into one prayer, issues of endless life. 
 Wrestles in words of faith, and tones of love. 
 
HOUSEPIOLD CONSECRATION. 117 
 
 The new creation pours its shining truths 
 In one strong argument : the radiant law, 
 Claiming for God life's earliest loves and hopes— 
 The immortal soul of infancy ; the cross 
 That op'd the gates when came the Holy Dove, 
 Bearing the peace-branch, wet with purest dews 
 Of paradise restored ; the fall of man, 
 The chain of ages ; generations linked, 
 For good or evil, bearing from earliest guilt 
 Sin to each life, and second death to death ; 
 Redemption's glorious scheme ; and covenant grace* 
 Poured like a stream in sunlight, and in joy 
 From age to age — all, all these lofty truths 
 Press on the soul, and form themselves in prayer. 
 And prayer, so formed, shall lodge its great request 
 Deep in the bosom of its covenant God, 
 Shall grasp the chain of promises, and bind 
 Around the loved that spiritual string of pearls — 
 Pearls of great price — gems of especial grace, 
 Hung, like the shield of knighthood, on the just — > 
 Or like the star that gilds the royal brow. 
 Glows on the patriarch's forehead, and beseems 
 The crown of glory, such ae Christ bestows 
 On heavenly princes. Higher than all degrees 
 Of earthly heraldry — beyond all gems 
 Of empire — purer, brighter, costlier far. 
 
 In the course of thought pursued in this chapter, I have 
 rather followed the promptings of my heart than the pre- 
 scriptions of method. There is, indeed, so much of pow- 
 erful and attractive beauty in this ordinance, that it is cal- 
 culated to impart intellectual enjoyment, as well as salutary 
 religious impression. Indeed, we have always reason to 
 exclaim, " How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of 
 hosts !" in reference to all the n^et^ods of his grace, and al] 
 the ordinances of his' worship, 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Practical reflections. Application of these principles to parents. 
 
 The grand object of this discussion having been to pro- 
 mote the practical influence of this ordinance, I trust that 
 the different classes concerned in it, will permit me to ad- 
 dress them with such reflections as the principles before us 
 authorize. In the first place, I solicit the attention of pa- 
 rents. To them this argument proclaims that the parental 
 relation itself is of deep and solemn import. It is a relation 
 which no angel may sustain ; which in the higher grades 
 of intelligence no being but God sustains. Its design is to 
 educate souls for an endless and blissful existence. God 
 has therefore confined, and adapted it, through the institution 
 of marriage, to such a mode of existence as should eflTectu- 
 ally conduce to the spiritual welfare of all the parties con- 
 cerned. This ordinance of infant consecration, has stamped 
 this relation with the seal of infinite mercy and gracious 
 protection. It regards the parent as a being loaded with 
 interests and responsibilities which draw hard on the far- 
 reaching cords of eternity. As he climbs up the straight 
 path, and the bright but rugged way, it beckons him on ; it 
 shines about his steps ; it reaches forth the hand of promise, 
 and clasps the hand of his faith to lifl; him up and lead him 
 higher, till the path is all brightness, and the day is perfect. 
 Through this ordinance, the Church has taken hold of the 
 marriage institution, and of the parental relation, thus sanc- 
 tifying them for her own appropriate and lofty purpose. — > 
 The destination of the Church is so glorious, and the pur- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 119 
 
 poses of her existence so spiritually grand, that the parental 
 relation deriveth from this connection and subserviency a 
 corresponding sacredness and grandeur. It is no light 
 thing that this relation should be publicly designated as the 
 main channel between the high designs of the spiritual 
 Church and their accomplishment in the salvation of immor- 
 tal souls. 
 
 It is no light thing for the parents to sustain this relation 
 through which the redeeming grace is poured. It will be 
 no trifling matter for the impenitent parent, that he refused 
 to acknowledge the benevolent claims of the Church upon 
 his parental influence. It will sound strange to the august 
 spectators of the judgment, that he strove to wrench it away 
 from the tenure of the Church, and secured his own oflT* 
 spring from all participation in the blessings of the cove- 
 nant. There will then be appalling disclosures as to the 
 manner in which the human heart has scorned all the ap- 
 proaches of the Church, in these provisions of mercy* It 
 will then appear, (what it really is,) most amazing infatua- 
 tion, that the impenitent parent could so deliberately bind 
 around the souls of his children the ligatures of moral pollu- 
 tion. It is abhorrent to all the instinctive principles of 
 unfallen moral natures, or of ransomed spirits, whether 
 made perfect in heaven, or going on towards perfection on 
 earth, that parents can seat themselves beside their babes 
 with thoughtless levity, to weave into the open heart of 
 childhood the principles of eternal woe. What ! are not 
 the passions of your child sufliciently ardent, unless you 
 stimulate them with the ingredients of madness ! Are not 
 the tendencies of his depraved heart sufficiently malign, 
 unless you mingle into them the elements of eternal despair? 
 Are not the temptations of Satan and the wiles of the pit 
 enough to effect his ruin, unless you shall engage in the 
 conspiracy ? Will not his moral interests be sufficiently 
 
120 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 exposed in this guilty world, unless you carefully withdraw 
 from them a parent's protection ? Let the impenitent pa- 
 rent look to this. Through this ordinance, your insulted 
 God demands your child. He claims from you, in behalf 
 of that child, that family, a holy parental influence. He 
 promises, if you will yield to his claim, to make that holy 
 influence of yours a channel for his own, and to transcribe 
 from the moral lineaments of your own mind the charac- 
 teristics of holiness on the heart of your child. If you 
 refuse this claim, and pass on impenitent, he will permit the 
 spirits of darkness to amuse themselves in painting on the 
 soul of your child the moral likeness of its parent. He now 
 calls upon you in every public administration of this ordi- 
 nance, to decide whether you will have a holy character ; 
 and hence the promise of the Spirit to transmit its features 
 from generation to generation ; or whether you will have a 
 character of pollution, and have that same character 
 wrought by the agency of Satan into that of your off*spring 
 unto the third and fourth generation. These inquiries must 
 be answered without delay, for the terrible portraiture is 
 already going on. Even while you hestitate, the image is 
 assuming its inefl'aceable lineaments. Awake, and give 
 yourself and give your child over into the bosom of the 
 covenant, and into the dominion of the Holy Ghost, if you 
 would escape a speedy and a multifold damnation. Strive ! 
 yearn ! struggle ! for, peradventure, even yet, the plague 
 may be stayed. You must meet that child whom you with- 
 hold from Christ, at the judgment seat. You must there 
 account for the perversion of that family influence. There 
 a strict inquiry will be made into all the history of your 
 household relations. There you must meet the glance of 
 every child whom your example has corrupted, your neg- 
 lect has ruined, and your perverted influence has moulded 
 for the scenes of the pit. You must meet him amidst those 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 121 
 
 scenes. How terrible that meeting in such a place ! There 
 will be the ungodly parents, with their ungodly children. 
 There will be reason, unclouded, tracing, in the light of 
 eternity, the connection between the household influences 
 and f(\e horrible pit. 
 
 There will be memory recallingj with the vividness of 
 immortality, each event in the whole series of fireside agen- 
 cies, by which the utter ruin of your offspring was per- 
 fected. There will he fancy portraying, with terrible bril- 
 liancy of conception, the realities of eternally augmenting 
 woe. There will be conscience, binding fast about the soul 
 the scorching chains of truth ; and pouring from its vials 
 of unmitigated wrath the scalding anguish of remorse. 
 There will be self-will ; unsubdued malicious passion, goad- 
 ed into frenzy ; unmingled depravity, assuming its hue of 
 settled and festering blackness ; and there, and therij and 
 thus, will the group of lost children gather round the neg- 
 lectful, the unbelieving, and the prayerless parent ! The 
 companionship which was most intimate here will be 
 most appalling there. The endearments which were most 
 valued here will be changed into most disgusting bitter- 
 ness there. The circle where the smile of impenitent joy 
 was lighted most brightly, and the image of impenitent pa- 
 rents reflected most softly ; where impenitent hopes were 
 most warmly cherished, and impenitent songs most sweetly 
 chanted ; will, if transported there, become the circle whose 
 aspect, whose reflected image, whose despair and wailing, 
 will seem, to the impenitent parent, most hateful and ago- 
 nizing, amid all the groups of hell. Hearken to the warn- 
 ing voice, O impenitent parent ! To thee, guilty as thou 
 art, the gospel yet offers pardon. It proposes to adopt thee 
 into the family of God. It proposes, even now, to bring 
 salvation to thine house. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 and thou and thy house shall be saved. There is room for 
 
 11 
 
122 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION* 
 
 thee, and room for thine offspring ! The footsteps of eter- 
 nal mercy are heard about thy dweUing. She knocks 
 loudly at thy door — she implores thee to admit her, for the 
 sake of thine own soul, for the sake of thine idolized chil- 
 dren. She offers thee, for them, the blessings of the ever, 
 lasting covenant. She throws open its door, and cries aloud, 
 Come thou and all thy house into the ark. 
 
 To pious parents I may speak with confidence. They 
 will feel, that if God has indeed established this ordinance 
 on the principles advocated in these chapters, their relation 
 to their children is most tender and momentous. Their mar- 
 riage covenant itself assumes a loftier and a sweeter aspect. 
 It is a mutual league, not for purposes of personal advan- 
 tage, but for high and overwhelming objects. It is a league 
 to defend a group of immortal souls from the wiles of the 
 devil ; to instruct them, from extremest ignorance, into the 
 mightiest truths of religion ; to constitute a channel for the 
 eternal influx of sanctifying grace ; to train up agents des- 
 tined to exert a heavenly influence on their associates in 
 time ; to educate and qualify them for the deep, sacred com- 
 pacionships of heaven ; to form, out of the ties of natural 
 affection, bonds imperishable, of sweet, celestial love ; and 
 finally, to polish and fashion them to be stones in that spirit- 
 ual temple in which the fulness of the triune God resides 
 forever ; living in every part, and through every part shi- 
 ning out, irradiating the intelligent universe with his light, 
 and eternity itself with his glory. If these are thy hopes^ 
 Christian parent, O with what earnest grasp shouldst thou 
 lay hold of covenant promises. With what untiring labor 
 shouldst thou bind all the healthy influences of the house- 
 hold covenant about the soul of thy child ! With what assi- 
 duous carefulness shouldst thou sow the ideas of the cove- 
 nant in the soil of his earliest emotions ! How shouldst thou 
 water them with thy tears, and beseech the Spirit of all 
 
HOirSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 123 
 
 grace to warm them into life and productiveness by his own 
 vital energy ! How shouldst thou be concerned, lest thy 
 partner in life should grow remiss in duty ! How careful 
 should ye be not to embarrass each other ! How anxious 
 mutually to strengthen each other in your appropriate and 
 respective duties ! How ardently should you plead the pro- 
 mise, " Where two or three are met together in my name, 
 there am I in the midsl of them to bless them." 
 
 Perhaps you can each number, in the ancestral line of 
 your fathers' house, a company of holy, faithful believers 
 in the covenant. Perhaps a cloud of witnesses encompass 
 your habitation. Lay hold, then, of the age-lasting cove- 
 nant. Avail yourselves of their precious intercessions — 
 intercessions and corresponding labors from which the hea* 
 venly influences have descended like dew on your own 
 souls ; make all these the heritage of your children's chil- 
 dren, by renewing the intercession and imitating the labor. 
 Let all the mward yearnings of your own souls concentrate 
 their power to weave, from these household truths, " the 
 ark of bulrushes," for the infant Moses ; and place it among 
 the flowers of promise, which bloom along the Nile of the 
 Church — the river of the everlasting covenant. Art thou 
 aware. Christian parent, that death will soon sever thee 
 from thy partner ? That thou shalt soon be called away to 
 leave thy partner with the uncompleted charge ? O ! how 
 should the certainty of this separation, and the uncertainty 
 when it shall occur, or which shall first be called, constrain 
 thee to live in such a manner, that if thou art first called, 
 thou mayst leave behind thee the legacy of a parent's 
 prayers, and the memory of a parent's instruction — and the 
 lustre of a partner's holy example. So let thine energy be, 
 that the surviving partner shall be admonished by the me- 
 mory of thy faithfulness to augmented diligence, and encou- 
 raged in view of the covenant promise — that treasure-house 
 
124 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 for the prayers of a departed ancestry — to sing for joy even 
 amid the loneliness of widowhood. Perhaps even now 
 there follows these lines the moistened eye of some widow- 
 ed parent. O ! to thee how solemnly, how sweetly does 
 this ordinance speak ! How delightful the 'thought, that 
 thou hast consecrated thy family to that God into whose 
 presence thy partner has ascended ! How solemn, if the 
 responsibilities which formerly rested on both are now roll- 
 ed upon thee alone ! How comforting, in these circum. 
 stances, to lean on that arm which oft sustained both, and 
 which now is especially pledged to sustain thee, because 
 thou art lonely. How glorious the thought, that thou 
 mayest now lay hold of the all-sufficient covenant with 
 greater confidence than ever ! How consoling, to lead the 
 fatherless or the motherless into his banqueting house, and 
 to sit under his banner of love ! 
 
 Perhaps some parent reads this, whose agonized soul 
 exclaims, My partner is hving, but hath no hope in Christ, 
 no portion in covenant promises. O then, let the interests 
 of thy family prompt thee to redoubled diligence for their 
 salvation. If one-half of the parental influence is withheld 
 or perverted, to which that young group are entitled, be it 
 your determination so to live, that the deficiency shall be, 
 as far as possible, supplied, or the adverse influence counter- 
 acted. Thou wilt need large supplies of grace ; but his 
 grace is sufficient even for thee. Be resolved, moreover, 
 to plead the full power of the covenant for thy partner's 
 conversion. * ' For what knowest thou, O wife ! whether 
 thou shalt save thy husband? or how knowest thou, O man ! 
 whether thou shalt save thy wife ?" Plead that the uncon- 
 verted may be taught of the Lord, in order that thy house- 
 hold may be saved, and the full design of the marriage in- 
 stitution be secured. Let the glory of divine grace, as 
 manifested through the covenant, be the grand argument 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION". 125 
 
 in thy prayer ; and, like Jacob wrestling, cry, " I will not 
 let thee go, except thou bless me !" 
 
 On the whole, this ordinance is calculated powerfully 
 to impress us with the importance of holiness of life. The 
 pious parent should remember, that he is not merely to 
 seek the conversion of his children, but to seek to educate 
 them for unblemished, consistent, and eminent Christians. 
 If he wishes this for his family, he must sustain this cha- 
 racter himself If he backslides, if he falters, or wavers ; 
 if he is grossly deficient, if he is guilty of outbreaking sin, 
 he has reason to expect that the effects of his transgression 
 will be terribly visited on his children, even if so as by fire, 
 he and they shall be saved. The standard of Christian cha- 
 racter must be high in the aim of parents, if we expect to 
 have it high in the purpose of their children. 
 
 That the standard of personal piety should be vastly 
 elevated in the Church of God, is painfully manifest. Un- 
 less it is, we shall never witness the full power of the gos- 
 pel in this guilty world. It is by the beauty and energy of 
 evangelical holiness that religion is to shine and advance. 
 The glory of God, the excellency of his government, the 
 specimens of his holiness, are to be exhibited through the 
 moral features of his visible Church. The day of universal 
 triumph for Zion is thus to be introduced, perpetuated, and 
 glorified. On the parents, therefore, of this generation the 
 responsibility rests of moulding the character of the millen- 
 nial Church. Never before seemed the provisions of this 
 covenant so infinitely important as at the present crisis. 
 O that its many voices might break like sevenfold thun- 
 der on the slumbering parents of the present generation. 
 Ye men of Israel, who bear the vessels of the Lord ; who 
 wait around the courts of this altar, where still the She- 
 chinah tarries, awake! Ye parents, ye holy watchers 
 about the fountains of holiness for unborn ages, be carC" 
 11* 
 
126 HOirSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 ful how ye tread. One false parental step may crush a 
 thousand interests ! One holy, consecrated parent may 
 yet descry, from the hills of God, some sweet, perpetual 
 stream of far distant ages issuing from the fountains which 
 his faith replenished. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Practical reflections. Application of tliese principles to fathers. 
 
 The train of thought which we have pursued, urges me 
 to address a few considerations to those who are not only 
 parents, but fathers. It proclaims that the 'paternal rela^ 
 Hon is pre-eminently responsible. May I not hope that the 
 fathers will listen while I attempt to utter, in appropriate 
 words, its deep and earnest tones. Its call to you is pecu- 
 liarly loud, because you are the constituted head of the 
 family. This station you hold by right of nature, of neces- 
 sity, and the marriage covenant. Duties grow out of rela- 
 tions. The relation of your sex to the other, is that of the 
 primary to the secondary ; of the original to the derived ; 
 of the strong to the weak — as is manifest in the order of 
 creation and the constitution of nature. The duties arising 
 from these relations are to cherish, to love, to protect, and 
 to provide. The obligation, thus arising, being as durable 
 as the relations themselves, constitutes the foundation and 
 the safety of the marriage covenant. The marriage cove- 
 nant, therefore, has bound you, as an individual, to perform 
 these duties towards the wife of your choice. In the same 
 manner these relations have been extended to your off- 
 spring, and these duties are extended as far and as perpetu- 
 ally as these relations. The mother shares with you in 
 the obligations, just in that degree that she shares the* ex- 
 tended relations, and therefore subordinately* Your share 
 in them both being primal and paramount, it binds down to 
 
128 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 your soul a corresponding weight of responsibility. You^ 
 then, as a husband and father, are held supremely respon- 
 sible both to man and to God, for the support, defence, and 
 welfare of your family. You first sought the matrimonial 
 connection in which you are placed. It was yours first ta 
 select ; first to mature the proposals and present them. — 
 You, in the marriage ceremony itself, first avowed your 
 preference and your purpose — first gave the sacred pledge. 
 From the nature of things, from the necessity of the case, 
 and from the marriage covenant, you have been set forth 
 as the constituted head of the household. On you, there- 
 fore, the heaviest bearings of the covenant of consecration 
 are made to rest. Your responsibilities are the corner 
 stone on which its claims are based. That covenant claims 
 your offspring for Christ, and demands of you, as the au- 
 thorized head, an explicit consent. That covenant claims 
 your paternal influence for Christ, and demands that you, 
 as the head of that family, shall sincerely pledge it to him, 
 and exert it for him. That covenant points you to a code 
 of laws ordained for those young immortals, and claims the 
 whole weight of your supreme authority to sustain and 
 enforce them. That covenant is a system of protection 
 graciously provided in their behalf, from the tyranny of sin 
 and the curse of the law ; from the temptations of the world 
 and the wiles of the devil. It claims, therefore, not only 
 that the united parents shall, as such, take hold of it — but 
 that you, in your relation as father, in your station as the 
 head of the household, shall stand forth, and pledge that all 
 the power which God has vested in your hands for these 
 purposes, shall be exerted to give your household its full 
 advantages as a system of protection. Your obligation to 
 stand forth in the obedience of faith in this great matter, as 
 far exceeds your obligation to protect them against an 
 attack of wild beasts or savage men, as the interest at stake 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 129 
 
 in this case exceeds that in the other. On you , therefore, 
 pre-eminently, the responsibility rests of maintaining family 
 government on the principles of the gospel. Of Abraham 
 God said, I know him, that he will command his household 
 after me. He expects that you will do the same ; that you 
 will so rule your own house that your children shall be 
 trained up in the way that they should go. He has placed 
 before you solemn warnings against a refusal in the case of 
 Adam, of Cain, of Eli, and of David. When he maketh 
 inquisition for the blood of souls, shed amidst household 
 scenes, he will call first for the father. Your name will be 
 heard first, as Adam heard his, as Eli and David heard 
 theirs, when the providence of God in one ease and bis 
 prophet in the other, and his judgment in both, said, " Thou 
 art the man !" The relation you sustain, which thus makes 
 you prominent in responsibility, will set you forth prominent 
 in the final retribution. That station being so conspicuous 
 in view of your offspring, invests your conduct with great 
 solemnity. The whole weight and power connected with it 
 will be thrown on the side of covenant claims, or will ope- 
 rate against them. You cannot retain that station, and re- 
 main neutral on this question of consecration. You cannot 
 justify yourself before the God of these relations, if you 
 will not govern your life according to them. If, against 
 the voice of God, and against the strong claims of his cove- 
 nant, you deprive your household of this system of perfection, 
 and lead them by your neglect or example into dangerous 
 exposures, God will avenge himself of the insult, and your 
 immortal children of the injury. He has bestowed upon 
 each child a natural right to parental care, instruction, and 
 example. He has demanded of the parents a solemn 
 pledge that this right shall be regarded, and he calls upon 
 you, as the father, to see to it that the pledge is both given 
 and performed. The authority which you possess is conferred 
 
130 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION". 
 
 Upon you for the sake of the child ; and if you misemploy 
 it, by using it for his worldly good only, or for purposes ad- 
 verse to his spiritual and highest good, you will involve 
 yourself in a condemnation which will be pre-eminently 
 fearful. 
 
 Another consideration, which will illustrate the nature 
 of parental responsibility, is, that the father is the constituted 
 'priest of the household. 
 
 Your household, Christian father, if regulated according 
 to the principles of the covenant, resembles a little Church. 
 Its members are consecrated to God ; its great object is his 
 glory in the salvation of souls ; its daily meals are feasts 
 of intimate communion, commemorating in the " blessing" 
 and the '' thanks" his abounding love. Its family worship 
 speaks for itself In all these respects it is your place to 
 officiate. To administer its discipline ; to direct its religious 
 services ; to dispense from the father's seat — that sacred 
 desk of the little sanctuary — the words of life ; to expound 
 the sacred page ; to lead the confiding group to the throne 
 of grace, is the office work of the father. These duties in. 
 vest him, in the view of the observing flock, with a sacred 
 character. The God of the household covenant has assign, 
 ed to you this important station. From day to day, 
 from year to year, your sentiments are thus to be uttared, 
 and your deepest and strongest emotions to be exhibited in 
 their presence. The events of the day ; the providences 
 of Ihe week ; the affecting incidents of the family, are to 
 collect their lessons in your prayers and instructions at the 
 family altar. If you are spiritually minded, the influence 
 breathed through all the concerns of the week will be spi- 
 ritual also. It is, therefore, vastly important that your at- 
 tainments in evangelical knowledge and holiness should he 
 great, eminent, and manifest. If you will feel this as you 
 ought, your heart will burn to obtain the best qualifications, 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 131 
 
 and to acquit yourself honorably in view of witnessing an- 
 gels, amidst these responsibilities. You will rejoice with 
 pure and serene joy, if you are enabled to behold the mo- 
 ther, in her own peculiar sphere, cleaving to t\\e Lord of the 
 covenant. You will delight to enforce her judicious regu- 
 lations with your decisive authority, and embody her affec- 
 tions and persuasions in your paternal counsels and prayers. 
 
 How guilty are those fathers who publicly profess re- 
 ligion, and yet who will not act as the priest of their house- 
 hold ; whose voice, if heard in prayer, would sound strange 
 in the ears of those children who often behold them at the 
 table of the Lord. If there is one such father now reading 
 these remarks, I conjure him to repent. I beg of him to 
 remember, that God will hold him responsible for depriving 
 his family of these sacred rights, which he has demanded 
 for them in the very provisions of the covenant. Your ne- 
 glect, O guilty professor, embarrasses your partner in life ; 
 if she is pious, it discourages her exertions ; if she is impe- 
 nitent, it will probably ruin her soul. 
 
 To the impenitent father these views come with implo- 
 ring earnestness, and with alarming import. Perhaps, a 
 pious wife, in the ear of her child, has to explain why the 
 father does not pray. Perhaps the thoughtful child that 
 has visited where the family altar was honored, sits wonder- 
 ing in her mind why her father does not pray. Perhaps in 
 the simplicity of childhood, she asked you, why you do not 
 pray. Perhaps you are called to stand in the place of your 
 aged father, now superannuated or departed, and that on you 
 rests the guilt of causing the voice of prayer to cease in the 
 ancient mansion, whose walls had for ages been consecra- 
 ted by the holy words of faith, and the simple rites of the 
 patriarchal Church. If any or all of these impressive cir- 
 cumstances put in their plea for God, how stubborn must 
 that heart be, which shall interpose between the descending 
 
132 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 blessings of consecrated ages past, and the immortal inter- 
 ests of ages to come, and erect the barriers of unholy 
 parental influence, to roll back the living waters. Perhaps, 
 if you have no such pious ancestry, you have lured away 
 from the G )d of her fathers your devoted wife, and are 
 standing between her soul and the spiritual good which, 
 were it not for your influence, she would have secured to 
 herself and her children. 
 
 Yet, if no such peculiar fact is connected with your his. 
 tory, there are two great facts connected with your pater- 
 nal relation, which should arouse you to repentance. One 
 is, that God will call you to account, as the head of the family, 
 for all your abuse of the sacred powers with which he in- 
 vested you. The other is, that he will demand of you a 
 reason for your refusal to act as his minister, in the circle 
 where he placed you. From this station of responsibility 
 you cannot descend, so long as your paternal relations ex- 
 ist. The final account will of course be called for. What 
 wilt thou say when he shall punish thee ? *' Prepare to 
 meet thy God," impenitent father. Be sure, moreover, that 
 he will not meet thee as a man. 
 
 3. Tlie responsibility of the father is manifest from the 
 fact, that he transmits his name, and the great historical 
 associations of the family, through all the periods of time. 
 Is it no object to you. Christian father, that the name which 
 is written on the Lamb's book of life, and that which you 
 transmit to innumerable descendants, should pass down, 
 laden with promises ; venerable for its Christian renown, 
 and revered for its holy memories ? Is it nothing to you, 
 that either you now inherit such a name from ages past, or 
 now may thus present in the chancery of the covenant 
 your own name, for ages to come ? It is a great thing for a 
 father to have his name written in the book of life. It is 
 written on the bright leaf of the covenant of grace, ensured 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 133 
 
 for free pardon ; for sanctification, and perseverance ; for 
 final glory. It is written on the leaf of the household cove- 
 nant, adorned with the personal promise of grace, on one 
 page, and with the everlasting household promise on the 
 other. An edition of the book of life, pubhshed, so far as it 
 may be to mortals, for the use of the Church. Will it be 
 no joy, to have angels continue to announce it, for the delight 
 of heaven, that another and another of distant generations, 
 bearing that name, have repented ? Will it not be above 
 all earthly applause, to hear the ancient inhabitants of hea- 
 ven respond " that same name, that old, familiar name ?" 
 This is the glory, the honor, the immortality, of the faithful 
 father. In these methods, surely, the name of the just 
 shall be held in everlasting remembrance. 
 
 But the name of the wicked shall rot. Is it noth- 
 ing to you, O impenitent father, that whatever honors 
 may be associated with your name, in the records of 
 worldly glory, it shall be indelibly disgraced in heaven ? 
 Is it nothing, that as to the third and fourth generation, 
 thy influence descends^ upon those that wear thy name, 
 ** the tormentors" shall calmly await the death of thy des- 
 cendants, as affording a sure addition to their number, or 
 taunt thee with astonishment, if any of thine come not to the 
 place of their dwelling ? Is it nothing, when the overcoming 
 mercy of God shall supplant thy influence, and elevate that 
 name, as worn by distant ages, amidst the salvations of the 
 millennium, to have it distinctly recorded, that had not thy 
 influence been especially counteracted by his sovereign 
 grace, thou wouldst have sent it down disgraced amidst all 
 those glories ? Is it nothing, to expose those that wear it, 
 to those terrible judgments which will prepare the way for 
 the millennium, by the extermination of the ungodly ? Is it 
 nothing, amidst the revelations of the judgment, to have thy 
 name, as transmitted along with thine influence, stained 
 12 
 
184 HOUSEHOLD CONSECEATION. 
 
 with all manner of crime, and characterized by all de- 
 grees of rebellion, through various ages ? Ah ! how will 
 it appear, when the searchings of the judgment shall reveal 
 the hearts that have gloried beneath it ? Reveal those 
 hearts, in all the history of their outbursting influence, and 
 the secresy of their vilest passions ! Pause, O impenitent 
 father, and give thy name — thy patriarchal name — thine 
 hereditary appellation— to the God of grace. Inscribe it, 
 associated with the names of thy children, and of thy wife, 
 on the Abrahamic covenant ! The wings of that covenant 
 are lifted, to cover thee ! O come thyself, and gather thy 
 children under them ! 
 
 The responsibility of the father is pre-eminently great. 
 He needs, therefore, to understand the covenant, in order 
 that he may fully appreciate his responsibility, and at the 
 same time be sustained under its pressure. He is the con^ 
 stituted head, priest, and representative of his household. 
 He is invested with these offices by the unchanging ordinan- 
 ces of God. He may not retire from this station of respon- 
 sibilities. Overwhelming motives call him to faithfulness. 
 He needs to take advantage of all the covenant promises. 
 His daughter, blending the mother's grace with the father's 
 dignity, claims the guardianship of the covenant. The purity, 
 the elevation of its principles, should be so wrought into the 
 father's character, that his image in all times of temptation 
 should rise upon her heart, like a guardian spirit, to purify, 
 energize, and protect. His son, exposed in this bustling and 
 licentious age, to a thousand snares, as he breaks forth from 
 the scenes of the nursery and of quiet home, to mingle with 
 the world, needs a father's thorough instructions, nobleness 
 of example, unsullied reputation, and inspiring presence, to 
 be at once a model of imitation and a wall of defence. The 
 great enterprises of benevolence ; the revolutionary spirit 
 of the age ; the great conflict of principles ; the rising im. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 135 
 
 portance of questions, of a moral nature, call loudly upon 
 the fathers of this age to build the prospects of their sons 
 on the enduring foundations of the gracious covenant. O, 
 how unwise, how recreant to all sacred trust, is that father, 
 who, not content with refusing to discharge his duty, does 
 all he can to countervail the efforts of a believing wife ; 
 who, by his habitual ungodliness, his vile sentiments, and 
 perhaps his outrageous abuse of conjugal relations, per- 
 verts all the high powers of usefulness which God has con. 
 ferred upon him, into means of ruin for his offspring, and 
 into stores of vengeance for himself. If such a father shall 
 read this passage, I beg him to remember, that the God of 
 the widow and the orphan will avenge upon his soul that 
 conduct which, to his family, is worse than widowhood and 
 orphanage. Perhaps God, to save the family, may cut him 
 suddenly down, in order that the mother may freely per. 
 form the duties which he neglects, or at least exert her owa 
 influence, uncounteracted. 
 
 Perhaps the mother may be removed to a place where 
 the wicked trouble not, while the father is left to mould and 
 fashion morally his offspring according to his own charac- 
 ter, and provide himself with accusers for the judgment seat, 
 and with tormentors for the scenes of the pit. Terrible 
 will be the fall of that fither who tramples on the interests 
 which the covenant is designed to protect, and defies the au- 
 thority of that God who has pledged for its vindication, not 
 only the issues of his grace, but the severity of his retri, 
 bution. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Practical reflections continued. Application of these principles to 
 mothers. 
 
 In applying the fundamental principles of this institution 
 to those who are not only parents but mothers, I shall sup- 
 pose a mother situated as she is assumed to he, in its original 
 and natural design. 
 
 The father is supposed to fulfil the purposes of his pecu- 
 liar relation, and to stand in his place the prophet, the priest, 
 and the ruler of his household. He is supposed to concen- 
 trate his authority, strength, and official influence for the 
 purposes of grace ; to command his household after the 
 Lord, and trust the life-giving promise ; to lead the way in 
 the act of dedication ; and finally, to exercise such faith, 
 that though his wife disbelieved, neglected, and opposed, 
 his purpose would be fixed to establish the order of his 
 house on the principles of consecration. Abraham, Isaac, 
 and Jacob, Job, and Joseph, were such fathers. Such is 
 presumed to be the character of every Christian bishop, 
 and through him as an exemplar of every Christian father. 
 Such, therefore, is supposed to be the situation of the mo- 
 ther, wherever the covenant is completely recognized in a 
 family. Suppose the mother to be decidedly pious, like 
 the mother of John, of Jesus, or of Timothy. Then we 
 have the covenant model for the domestic constitution. 
 
 Is it yours, my Christian sister, thus to be situated ? 
 Then you have reason to weep for joy, when you study 
 the gracious covenant. You have presented a son or a 
 daughter to that father. In his guardianship the heart con- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 137 
 
 fides. You know that he will bear that child to the throne 
 of grace ; that all the tenderness of your heart may be en- 
 listed in its behalf, unchecked, unchilled, unimpeded. Nay, 
 that you cannot better meet his strongest wishes, nor even 
 otherwise satisfy his most cherished expectations, than by 
 giving unrestrained activity to every holiest impulse, and 
 baptizing every child with the gushing emotions of a believ, 
 ing mother. To you, how strong, how thrilling, how inex- 
 pressibly precious is this ordinance, in its holy claims and 
 blessed assurances. The seal of God that is placed upon your 
 child, is a memorial of mutual love, to strengthen with 
 mighty motives your marriage vows and Church relations. 
 It binds you both to the child, to each other, and to the 
 Church of God. With this threefold cord it binds the child 
 to the provisions of grace. How enrapturing must be your 
 communion with your husband over the child of your vows I 
 Often does it resemble that of Zechariah and Elizabeth at 
 the consecration of John. They did not doubt that John 
 would be born again. Why may not your joy also be full ? 
 They had a promise, so have you. They walked in all 
 the ordinances of the Lord blameless, so should you. They 
 felt in their souls that the promise could never fail ; and 
 you may, if you believe and live like them, enjoy the same 
 assurance respecting the great promise, I will be thy God, 
 and Ihe God of thy seed. Only believe, and thou shall see 
 the salvation of God. ' 
 
 If, however, you are impenitent, faithless, and neglect- 
 ful ; if you grieve your pious husband by your coldness, 
 worldliness, vanity, and evil temper ; if you manifest aver- 
 sion to all spiritual religion ; if you thwart rather than en- 
 courage his household plans, your criminality is appalling. 
 You are guilty of perverting all those strong and tender in- 
 fluences which God has blended with the maternal relation, 
 of wrenching away the spiritual interests of the child from 
 12* 
 
138 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 the endeavors of a believing father, by defeating his efforts 
 and counteracting his exanmple. There is one who will 
 avenge that neglected group when he maketh inquisition 
 for blood. He will mark your case as one of extreme 
 guilt ; for he has said, Can a mother forget ? It would be 
 enough, if, in any circumstances, you had spiritually de- 
 serted your child ; but what will the unsleeping guardian 
 of the covenant say to that mother, who, when her husband 
 hath borne the child into the secret place of the Most High, 
 will not let it abide under the shadow of the Almighty ? O 
 there is a spiritual savageness in the laugh of a worldly, 
 heartless, and skeptical mother, which is enough to make 
 one shudder ! All the eloquent tones of a mother's love ; 
 all the tenderness of a mother's caress ; all the outgoings 
 of the maternal heart are fraught with poison for the soul 
 of her child, if she has no fear of God, no regard for reli- 
 gion. If you have made the profession, it does not relieve 
 the difficulty, while you retain a character adverse to your 
 profession. Who is not shocked when woman commits her- 
 self to hardihood in sin, or in skepticism. An infidel mo- 
 ther is regarded, even by the world at large, as a shocking 
 monster. How then must she, or any impenitent mother, 
 be regarded in the sight of God ! There are many such 
 mothers in our land — many pious fathers are grieved at 
 heart, at the mournful influence which the mother is shed- 
 ding over their consecrated offspring. Her presence, about 
 the deep and precious fountains of moral life, seems almost 
 like sacrilege. Her touch dries up the early and genial 
 impulses of the mind ; her caress stings the soul ; her con- 
 stant gaze petrifies the heart. There, in the most sacred 
 places of moral being, she daily breathes, and moves, and 
 moulds the plastic character of childhood when the father 
 is away. The grand deceiver need not concern himself 
 as to his prospects in your family, so long as such a mother 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 139 
 
 watches for him, were it not for the covenant with the fa- 
 ther. If your children are still living ; if their father still 
 prays for them and for you, O come to God ! by all the 
 glory of covenant relations ; by all the everlasting traces 
 which you will leave on the character of your children ; 
 by all the jealous scrutiny of your whole life and influence, 
 which will take place at the judgment, come to the mercy- 
 seat ! come to the covenant throne ! Kneel down by the 
 side of your husband, and break your heart in penitence 
 amidst your consecrated children ! 
 
 2. / shall suppose a mother situated in other circuni' 
 stances — that her husband is impenitent, profane, and un- 
 willing to consecrate either himself or family to God. 
 
 Suppose that she, alone yet faithful, going before the 
 altar, consecrates her children to the God of her salvation ; 
 that she toils day and night to fulfil her vows ; with sleep- 
 less vigilance watches to guard them from evil, and to lead 
 them in the way of life. As a hen gathereth her brood 
 under her wings, so she, under the outspread wings of the 
 covenant, gathereth them. Afflicted sister ! Persevere. 
 Turn neither to the right hand nor the left. Shrink not 
 from the high, and sublime, and glorious station to which 
 Providence has lifted thee ! Resolve, that whatever may 
 be the father's influence, God shall have that of the 
 mother ; resolve to seek continually a double portion 
 of covenant grace. Toil on, and murmur not — toil hard, 
 and faint not ; and when your soul is wearied, wait on the 
 Lord. Pillow your head on the covenant promise, and com- 
 fort your heart with the visions of Jacob. Then rising re- 
 freshed, shake thyself from the dust, O daughter of Zion ! 
 Set up the stone of help, and still toil on. There is one 
 that hath said, ^^ I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.^* 
 Is your husband willing that you should train the children 
 for God? Be thankful for the divine mercy, and be diligent 
 
140 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 to improve sacredly every capacity you possess for this 
 purpose. Tliere is nothing which will sooner affect the 
 heart of a father, who has been rightly instructed, than to 
 behold his pious wife consecrating the household alone, and 
 toiling alone for their spiritual good. He knows who is 
 responsible for suffering her to go forth alone. Many an 
 impenitent child of the covenant has trembled when thus 
 he saw his beloved wife venturing forth to stand in his de- 
 serted place. It is, therefore, wicked for any mother to 
 defer a public profession, in order that her husband may 
 come with her. I could mention several instances illustra- 
 tive of the grievous consequences of neglecting duty, and 
 of the happy results arising from its faithful performance. 
 Is your husband opposed to your household piety, and dis- 
 dainful towards religion ? Then guard your temper with a 
 double vigilance. Fill your heart with the veriest strength 
 of benevolence. Seek his temporal comfort and happiness 
 with assiduous concern ; but never yield your religious 
 principle ; never forget your vows of consecration ; never 
 shrink from doing all your duty to your children. Does 
 he use a profane expression in the presence of his wife or 
 children? Let your tears of grief, let the manifest majesty of 
 insulted piety seated in your eye and whole demeanor, tes- 
 tify against him. Does he inculcate erroneous sentiments in 
 his household 1 Let your diligent, sure, and heaveii-directed 
 influence counteract them. Let all a mother's utmost en- 
 ergy be so put forth, that no occurrence shall ever be re- 
 called in the remorseful remembrances of the dark world, 
 to proclaim that your unfaithfulness caused the ruin of one 
 child. On the brow of the father alone let that curse be 
 written — if it must be written any where. But, O, thou 
 woman of God ! like Hannah, let your vows be deep ; sa- 
 crifice any earthly interest, chasten into heavenly purity 
 every emotion, bear any personal affliction whatever, en- 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 141 
 
 dure all wrong that may be endured without sin ; if so thou 
 canst reach the soul of the father ; if thou mayest by any 
 means deliver him from going down to the pit ; if even 
 when he hath perished thou mayest be able to look up and 
 say, Lord, thou knowest that he did not perish through my 
 neglect, 
 
 3. Suppose the mother in different circumstances still. 
 Suppose that the father is dead — that his pious example has 
 ceased to guide, or his impenitent career no more leads 
 astray. If God has left you lonely, look at once to him for 
 strength, and step forward into the vacant place. His man- 
 tie is left with you. The divine providence has made you 
 the head of the family, and you must preserve the ordi- 
 nances of God in your household. It is your business now 
 to minister at the family altar, to instruct the fatherless, and 
 to rule with gentle but decisive authority. No widowed 
 mother, who has a proper sense of her covenant obliga- 
 tions, will ever suffer the fires of the family altar to die 
 away because the father is absent, or deceased. Let not 
 the fear of your children deter you from doing your duty. 
 Act as the covenant requires you to act, and the God of its 
 promises will not suffer his faithfulness to fail. 
 
 4. The views presented in this book, call upon mothers 
 throughout our land and the world, to arise and address 
 themselves to the great work of establishing the gospel for 
 all generations. A spirit is abroad, calling upon the priest- 
 ess of the nursery to magnify her office. The world may 
 treat it with contempt, but there is a power in that voice 
 which is not to be mocked. It utters the great truths of 
 household consecration ; it works in close affinity with the 
 Spirit of God. Numerous maternal hearts are swelling 
 under the mighty impulse. The maternal associations re- 
 cently formed in our country, and now spreading in Europe, 
 are the lyceums of the nursery. They are introducing 
 
142 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 valuable publications, both volumes and periodicals, to the 
 attention of mothers. They are conveying particular in- 
 structions to individual mothers, and preparing them for 
 their silent but effectual operations. They are magnifying 
 the mother's work in her own view ; creating a deeper and 
 more powerful interest in the concerns of home ; taking the 
 place of the tea party and scandal-retailing visits, of which 
 former years complained so much ; and exciting an intel- 
 lectual and spiritual interest in the highest welfare of the 
 race. These institutions will continue to increase in value, 
 and every mother should seek to obtain from them all prac- 
 tical aid in her appropriate and important duties. The in- 
 stitutions of our own land, dependent as they are and ever 
 should be under God, upon the popular will, call loudly 
 upon maternal mind to respect in its nursery cares the in- 
 terests of the Church and the fates of nations. He that can 
 estimate the tendencies of maternal influence may calcu- 
 late shrewdly respecting the moral characteristics of the 
 next generation. How inconceivably important, then, that 
 the principles of household consecration should be graven 
 deeply on the heart of American mothers, and of Christian 
 mothers every where, and on maternal affection universally. 
 This is an object most commanding in its importance, and 
 if those principles are true, he that shall contribute essen- 
 tially to elevate maternal mind to grasp them in their ma- 
 jesty, and apply them in their power, will do no mean ser« 
 vice for the human race. Future generations will revere 
 his name, and his posterity shall be blessed. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Practical reflections. Application of these principles to the consecrated 
 children of the Church. 
 
 The natural order of thought now introduces me to the 
 consecrated youth of the Church. I trust that many of you 
 will seriously weigh the suggestions which I am about to 
 makCi It has often been my privilege to kneel by the side 
 of parents while they have gathered their consecrated 
 households at the family altar. The forms of many youth 
 are present to my mind, for whom I have heard the be- 
 lieving father pray, in the language of promise-trusting 
 faith. The forms of many children are present, on whom, 
 in the hour of baptism, the tears of believing parents have 
 fallen, almost mingling with the sacred water. Many such, 
 I have reason to believe, will read these pages. For them 
 and lor every baptized child who shall read and consider 
 these trutlis, I feel a deep and thrilling interest. Let me 
 hope that every such reader will consider himself personally 
 addressed. The first thought which I desire you to re- 
 alize, is, 
 
 1. That this ordinance of household consecration has 
 created very interesting connections between you and the 
 Church of Christ. 
 
 Have you understood the nature and value of this con- 
 nection ? Consider with whom it is formed i The Church 
 of Jesus Christ ! And what is the Church ? The invisible 
 Church is that vast company of the regenerated, gathered 
 from all ages and nations, which will finally meet in one 
 
144 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 general assembly at the right hand of God. The visible 
 Church consists of all those who profess to be among this 
 number, and who unite in the regular observance of Chris- 
 tian worship. The moral grandeur of the Church, visible 
 and invisible, is overwhelming. She is to constitute that 
 channel throusrh which the river of divine manifestation will 
 flow forever. Through her appointed ordinances, she ex- 
 hibits the glory of God on earth, and preserves the honor 
 of his name from age to age. The presence of God is 
 within her, as in the unconsumed yet burning bush of Ho- 
 reb. There, as in a world created for the purpose, God 
 exhibits the deep things of his own nature to the universe, 
 not in its childhood only, but in its maturity. It is, indeed, 
 a new creation, in which he has wrought the indestructible 
 evidences of his triune existence, and his utmost moral 
 glory, as he has into the material creation wrought the 
 bright but perishable evidences of his being, and of his 
 original perfections. This building of God, this new crea- 
 tion, will live and breathe forth that surpassing glory, and 
 glow with the unconsuming presence which fills it when all 
 the cords of the material creation shall be unstrung, and all 
 its light and majesty shall have rolled away. There the 
 peculiar and mysterious mode of the divine existence is 
 incorporated as a perpetual and vital truth, revealed not in 
 word only, but in the commemorative monuments of divine 
 workmanship and intellectual transformation. There the 
 Father shines in the spiritual law ; there the Son in the pre- 
 cious atonement ; there the Spirit in his high office work, 
 moulding into the image of God, for eternity, the hearts of 
 fallen men, regenerating, sanctifying, and eventually per- 
 fecting his spiritual workmanship, the active, living temple of 
 ransomed mind. There, in the union, harmony, and per- 
 petual combination of all the rays of truth which issue from 
 the revealed character of Jehovah, the Church, the one 
 
fiOtSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 145 
 
 body of Jesus Christ, proclaims the unity, as well as the 
 fulness of the Godhead. Subordinate to these prominent 
 features of the new creation, the natural perfections of God 
 are all furnished with intenser radiance than they can evef 
 gather from the natural operations of providential agencyw 
 Not in all the living tokens of a present God, with which 
 nature is clothed, does his energizing omnipresence so 
 shine, as in the fruits, and flowers, and garniture of quick- 
 ened mind, bursting all around us into life, and assuming the 
 freshness of immortal beauty ; not in all the majestic ope^ 
 rations of the laws of nature, or of providence, linking in 
 one perpetual chain the events of ages, or of moral govern*, 
 ment, uttering its thunders in the ear of individual guilt, or 
 paralyzing with its shock rebellious nations : not in either 
 or all of these does the omnipotence of God so gleam forth, 
 as when it touches the immortal soul in the very place of 
 free and decisive moral action, and preserving moral agency 
 unimpaired, certainly and efficiently transforms it from the 
 bitterness of supreme hate into the rapturous friendship of 
 eternal love. Corresponding with these views, the moral 
 perfections of Jehovah have also located in the very con- 
 stitution of the Church their mightiest and sublimest exhi- 
 bitions. Never, any where else, but in the foundation and 
 in the several compartments of this building, could justice, 
 in her most unsullied purity and most terrible frown, meet 
 with mercy in her extremest tenderness, and most effectual, 
 unrestrained outgoings of forgiveness ; meet, not in tolera* 
 tion merely, but in lustre mutually enhanced and in fellow- 
 ship, bursting forth with mutual rejoicings, and in one song, 
 at the name of Jesus. Finally, that glorious development 
 of the intellect and the heart of Jehovah, which shall over- 
 awe, elevate, and gladden the holy universe forever, is made 
 through the Church, wrought into the Church, hung in 
 folds of light about her, preserved in all the progress of her 
 13 
 
146 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 growth in time, and shall be evolved yet more and more 
 forever. Thus will the confirmed Church, as she holds on 
 her shining and eternal course, constitute the galaxy of 
 divine glory in the spiritual heavens. On her path thus 
 radiant, suspended worlds will gaze ; on her history thus 
 evolved, a thoughtful universe will dwell, and will open 
 itself forever to these grandest manifestations of the triune 
 God. While through the Church the moral glory of Je- 
 hovah is thus developed, there is, moreover, in her spiritual 
 guardianship, life, safety, peace : in her deep communion 
 of consecrated mind, that fellowship for which the human 
 spirit thirsts. Its present interruptions warn us of its real 
 value ; its future perfection is the richest, loftiest reward to 
 which immortality can aspire. The connection which 
 binds you as consecrated youth to this community is there- 
 fore of a most elevated and interesting nature. It rejoices 
 my heart when I think how many of the dear children of 
 the Church are now members in full communion, having 
 sought her fellowship, acknowledged her claims, and devoted 
 themselves to the covenant God. Often have I seen them 
 approach, with humble but joyous aspect, to confess their 
 guilt in rejecting so long the claims which Were placed upon 
 them in their childhood, and in voluntary covenant to 
 avouch the God of their parents' faith and of their infant 
 years, to be their God forever. To all such, this connec- 
 tion has resulted in its gracious design ; its legitimate ten- 
 dency is made known. It is yours, therefore, to feel and 
 exhibit its value. Your present membership should lead 
 you to grateful recollection of your covenant God, in his 
 early care, and your piety should be as eminent as your 
 advantages have been distinguished. To that consecrated 
 youth who has never consented to the terms of life, this 
 connection speaks with unutterable tenderness and solem- 
 nity. It unfolds to you the overwhelming grandeur of the 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 147 
 
 Church in the most persuasive manner. It has taken that 
 great name, which she wears as her crown of glory, and 
 has sealed it upon your brow. It has publicly separated 
 you from the world, and set you apart as the devoted pro- 
 perty of Christ. It has placed you in the courts of the 
 Lord's house ; commanded for you the full exercise of pa- 
 rental faith ; sanctified for your eternal welfare the deepest 
 emotions of human nature, and spread the majesty of the 
 spiritual world around the minutest concerns of home. To 
 place you in these circumstances, the God of grace has 
 controlled the winds and waves of ages, long before your 
 birth, invested the very beginnings of your existence with 
 the most solemn pledges. He did not give your soul to the 
 charge of the Pagan, the Mahometan, or the Jew ; to the 
 murderous parentage of the infidel, the thoughtless, or the 
 vicious. He hath rocked you in the cradle of faith, and con- 
 signed you first to the purity of regenerated love. The 
 first token of affection which saluted your cheek was from 
 sanctified lips, and the first breathings of music which came 
 over your soul were the songs of the Lord. The justice 
 of the claim so tenderly asserted, you will not deny ; the 
 right of God thus early to assert it, is perfectly clear ; and 
 now let me ask, is not his tender mercy thus revealed to 
 your soul, most affecting, most astonishing ! What, did he 
 begin so early to bind you with the cords of love ? Did he 
 so soon build a hedge about you to shelter you from the de- 
 stroyer ? Did he let your parents into his spiritual king- 
 dom, and then reveal its glories to them that so they might 
 unfold them to you ? Did he require them both to promise, 
 before all his people, that they would do all in their power 
 to prepare you for his presence ? Did he mercifully pro. 
 mise to bless their exertions, and crown their labors with 
 success ? Has he placed upon them his mild and spiritual 
 ^pal, and placed the same seal also upon you ? When your 
 
148 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 parents have almost fainted, hath he strengthened ; when 
 they forgot their covenant vows, hath he forgiven ; and 
 when you have resisted their faithful warnings, hath he 
 still waited ; pursued you with the kind invitation ; soften- 
 ed you with the dew of his Spirit, and rebuilt around you 
 again and again the enclosures of his everlasting covenant ? 
 O consecrated youth \ child of the Church ! what bitter 
 enmity to God is that which starts away from these ad- 
 vances of grace ! which rends those silken cords of mercy 
 asunder ! Look up and behold the ineffable grandeur of 
 the Church ; consider that precious connection which makes 
 thee an object of intense interest to those venerable forms, 
 yet detained from those higher glories, that yet they may 
 linger, and weep, and plead with thee. O let them hear 
 thy voice, thou who hast long rebelled against the holy 
 baptismal claim, thou who hast madly striven to erase the 
 name of God from thy forehead : O before that last linger- 
 ing form shall pass away, let thine heart speak out, <* Thy 
 people shall he my people, and thy God my God," 
 
 2. The consecrated children of the Church must give 
 account at the judgment seat of Christ for the manner in 
 which this interesting connection is treated 
 
 Interesting as this connection is, it can never save you, 
 unless you actually give yourselves to Christ. The great 
 question is now placed distinctly before you. As yet you 
 are debarred from the communion of saints. That very 
 state of mind which calls for your exclusion now, will as 
 certainly demand it in eternity. On account of the ten- 
 derness of this connection, your long resistance of God's 
 mercy will appear infatuated depravity. If you have lightly 
 esteemed these noble advantages hitherto, we beseech you 
 to pause and consider in what manner you can finally meet 
 the rejected God of the covenant. How terrible, if turning 
 your hack upon the claim of God when presented in mercy^ 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 149 
 
 you shall be compelled to meet it in the frown of insulted 
 justice and avenging retribution. With what plea can the 
 favored son of the Church approach the throne, who has 
 lived and died impenitent ? What wilt thou say, O child of 
 many tears ! O son of many vows ! when he shall punish 
 thee ? How will that violent breaking away from covenant 
 kindness seem to angels ? How will it seem to many a 
 lost soul who never enjoyed such advantages? How will 
 it appear to thine own soul in the scorching meditations of 
 the pit ? How will thy restlessness under salutary restraints, 
 thy pride under parental admonitions, thy rashness amongst 
 so many interests that hung trembling around thee, how 
 will all this appear in those terrible scenes of despair? 
 Pause, now, and prepare to meet thy God ! When infidelity 
 assaults, think of this connection. It will be time enoygh 
 for thee to become an infidel when thy case is utterly hope- 
 less. When vice allures, think of this connection. Shall 
 the child of such lofty hopes descend to vicious indulgence ? 
 Canst thou, like Esau, like Saul, like Absalom, turn away 
 from love, and mercy, and life ? Canst thou bitterly, darkly 
 perish in thy violent «ebellion ? Wilt thou not from this 
 time cry unto God, " My Father ! thou art the guide of my 
 youth." Wilt thou not yield to those choice influences 
 which issue from the consecrated affection of the Church, 
 and are shed around thy soul ! which are mingled with all 
 the deepest, strongest, priceless sympathies of the domestic 
 constitution? Repent of all thy sin ! Press in while the 
 door is open ! Give thine eternal all to the Father, the 
 Son, and the Holy Ghost ! Then shall thy name be inscri- 
 bed on the same bright page, where stand written together 
 thy father's and thy mother's. Then shalt thou, also, be 
 carried by angels into Abraham's bosom. 
 
 13* 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Practical reflections. Duties of the Churches. Consecration, with 
 special reference to the ministry. Conclusion. 
 
 The discussions which have engaged our attention sug- 
 gest a^few concluding thoughts respecting the duties of the 
 Church. 
 
 1. The ordinance of household consecration should be 
 practically regarded according to its real importance. 
 
 lln these times of revolution and of storm, the subject of 
 family religion must be set forth prominently among the 
 great concerns of the Church. While the walls of Zion 
 are built rapidly and high, they must be cemented well and 
 firmly founded. The vital power of household piety is 
 essential to the stability of our times ; for, without this, our 
 moral bulwarks will be worthlessj This power can be 
 ensured, enhanced, and completely developed, only by the 
 principles of household consecration. In the valuable work 
 of Anderson on the Domestic Constitution, the persons 
 whom he eulogizes, as monuments of its moral power, were 
 nearly all — probably all — consecrated to God in childhood 
 on the principles of the covenant. This fact is the more 
 impressive, as the selection was made without recognizing 
 the presence of infant dedication. The history of such 
 households as were formed under Cotton Mather, Philip 
 Henry, and Thomas Scott, should be familiar to the 
 Churches. If the Church wishes for more such men as 
 Matthew Henry, she can thus understand in what manner 
 they are to be nurtured. 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 151 
 
 2. The ministry must give this ordinance a prominent 
 place in their official performances. 
 
 The pastors of the Churches will be held responsible 
 for their manner of treating this subject. jThat pastor who 
 shall avail himself of the aid which this divinely established 
 institution is able to afford, may gather about him an army 
 of living preachers, who will direct the holy streams of the 
 sanctuary into the open channels of communication with 
 millennial ages. J If the ministry will perform their whole 
 duty in prayer, in preaching, and in family visitation, the 
 Churches will soon be awakened, and the energies^ pf this 
 institution will be fully appreciated. 
 
 3. The application of these principles must be extended 
 more thoroughly to servants and other permanent members 
 of the household. Where the connection is transientJthe 
 head of the family is bound to direct, instruct, and guide in 
 the way of lifej So far as their spiritual welfare is con- 
 ceined,'all the transient servants and members of the family 
 have a right to his prayers, watchfulness, and patriarchal 
 interest. He ought never to introdjice those into his house- 
 hold who will not honor the institutions of family religion. 
 A servant, whether Catholic or Prgtestant, should never be 
 allowed habitually to refuse attendance at the family altar. 
 Where the connection is expected to be permanent, as in 
 the adoption of orphans and other children as our own, as 
 in the taking of poor children to remain for years as do- 
 mestics, they should be consecrated to God on the principles 
 of the covenant. This was the case in the household of 
 Abraham. This was the manner in which the connection 
 between master and servant was guarded, sanctioned, and 
 blessed, under the ancient dispensation. It was a vq][untary 
 connection, when not a penal infliction— was formed for 
 mutual benefits, and hallowed by rehgious vows. If these 
 principles were duly recognized, very different would b@ 
 
152 HOUSEHOLD CONSECEATION. 
 
 the condition of poor servants in most families, even of the 
 Church. The domestic relations of a free country would 
 be blessings to thousands of those who otherwise would die 
 without instructioji. Were the principles of household con- 
 secration thus to prevail in the Church, the spirit of slavery 
 would be forever banished from her borders. Even Abra- 
 ham, holy as he was, could not be entrusted with the mild 
 authority which he exercised over his servants, without be- 
 ing required to give a most solemn pledgp for their pious 
 education. 
 
 44jChurches should take special care that the meaning 
 of this ordinance be fully explained to her consecrated chil- 
 dren. For this purpose, the pastor and officers of the 
 Church should directly and frequently meet with the chil- 
 drg^. For this purpose, the manner in which this duty is 
 discharged by every parent should be especially investi- 
 gatedj A full apprehension of its real imgiort would exert 
 a most salutary influence on the minds of the children. J^A 
 consciousness that the children understood it would power- 
 fully affect the parent^ 
 
 5.^The Churches must exercise a peculiar care over 
 their baptized childrerj The nature of their relationship 
 is such, that they are to be considered as the lambs of the 
 flock. ^In this ordinance God has erected around them a 
 railing of defence, and has charged his Church not to aban- 
 don them to the prowling wolves. So long as they refuse 
 to believe, the Churches must not admit them to the com- 
 munion, nor in this sense consider them as members. Nei- 
 ther, while they thus remain, is it best, in any sense, to call 
 them members, as this application of the term leads to con- 
 fusionj Yet the connection which they do sustain requires 
 just such a system of discipline as shall at once most cer- 
 tainly exclude them from the communion until they are 
 really pious, and most powerfully hold them around her 
 
HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 153 
 
 altars so long as any hope of their conversion remains, and 
 most speedily prepare them for a free and full admission. 
 
 iTherefore, let convincing evidence of regeneration be de- 
 manded, as essential to membership let them be admon- 
 ished through their parents, and pursued with entreaties, 
 however far they may wander ; let them never be given 
 up, till they are utterly beyond our reach : and finally, let 
 their early conversion be sought, as the legitimate object 
 of faith, and the most obvious design of their consecration. 
 
 JJVhen a family of consecrated children generally grow up 
 impenitent, and madly break away from religious restraint, 
 let diligent inquiry be made of their parents respecting their 
 household regulations, and the question, " Is there not a 
 cause ?" be urged home upon the conscience! In this man- 
 ner a rigorous discipline, of the most tender and appropriate 
 nature, should be maintained, and embrace in its supervi- 
 sion the lambs of the Church. 
 
 6. There is one more duty which demands considera- 
 tion at the present crisis. I refer to infant consecration, 
 with special reference to the gospel ministry. There are 
 several reasons why this practice, which now to some ex- 
 tent exists, should be generously encouraged. The nature 
 of all genuine consecration of infants to God implies a cor- 
 dial consent, on the part of parents, that God should take 
 any or every son for the sacred office. There are many 
 parents who have publicly dedicated their sons> and are 
 unwilling that Christ should call them into the ministry, or 
 send them on a mission. They are overcome with the 
 temptations of the world, with the prospect of acquiring the 
 fortunes and the fame which it offers. They are averse, 
 especially, to give the noblest of the flock for his sacred 
 service. Let the Church lift aloud her warning voice 
 against this parental invasion of her Master's claim. Let 
 
154 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 her denounce it as sacrilege. Let her read aloud to such 
 parents the story of Ananias and Sapphira. 
 
 The nature and privileges of the covenant encourage this^ 
 special consecration. *^ We have seen that the promise of 
 the covenant is large, extensive, and inviting to the highest 
 exercise of faith. There is ample room for this enlarged 
 desire to glow and burn freely within it. Now, if the be- 
 lieving parents, gazing on their son, feel that nothing would 
 so fill their hearts as to behold him an eminently devoted 
 minister, let them mingle that feeling in the act of conse-' 
 crating faith, let them breathe with it freely in the very 
 atmosphere of the covenant. 
 
 This special consecration is encouraged in the ancient 
 history of the Church. 
 
 The consecration of the tribe of Levi to the priesthood, 
 the special consecration of the first-born, the voluntary de- 
 dication of Samuel by his mother, and the sublimer dedica* 
 tion of John and of Jesus to their exalted destination, cer- 
 tainly invite the Church of the present age to the frequent 
 exercise of this precious privilege. 
 
 Farther encouragement is afforded in the biography of 
 many eminent ministers. The number of such men who 
 have been consecrated to God in childhood, with special 
 reference to the ministry, would surprise any one who had 
 not maturely considered the subject. I need but mention 
 the names of Buchanan, Newton, Hooker, Swartz, Mills, 
 Rice of Virginia, Summerfield, and Thomas Spencer. The 
 early history of Buchanan and Newton must have tried 
 exceedingly the faith which had especially devoted them to 
 the sacred office. What memorable energy must have 
 been lodged in that covenant grasp which lifted Newton 
 from shameful debasement, and recalled the wandering 
 Buchanan from vagrancy and ruin, which made their feet 
 
HOrsEHOLD CONSfiCRAnOX* 155 
 
 like hinds' feet, and caused them to walk on the high places 
 of Zion. The Church will forever rejoice in consequence 
 of that parental faith which gave these men to Christ, and 
 to the ministry of his Church, in early childhood. The 
 biographer of Summerfield remarks that, ^^ previously to 
 the birth of this child, his father has been frequently heard to 
 say, there was nothing that he desired more in early life 
 than that he should have a son, that that son should he a mi' 
 nister of the gospel, and that his name should be called John, 
 and at the time of the birth of this babe his father solemnly 
 dedicated him to the work of the ministry." The interesting 
 statement presents before us the very principle which lies 
 at the foundation of all consecration— /a«^/i on the part of 
 the parent, in the gracious promise of God, strong, enlarged, 
 cheerful, and active. God has thus invited his friends to 
 come, and present their choicest gifts before his altar. The 
 plan of God's grace solicits from the believer the fullest 
 confidence and the noblest aims and efforts. In accordance 
 with these invitations, the believing parent, assured that God 
 will receive him graciously, may come boldly to the throne, 
 especially, when his object is to glorify the Saviour, 
 through the services of his children ;'and when he feels that to 
 behold his son a faithful niinister of the cross, would be his 
 highest joy, he may know both from the promise, and from 
 the history of the Church, that God will not upbraid him. 
 
 This practice commends itself moreover to the Church 
 by its intrinsic propriety. 
 
 Where the parental faith is vigorous, and the conse- 
 cration is sincere ; where the believer hath gone up into 
 the higher resources of the covenant, and feels himself an- 
 ointed with its peculiar power, so that he may place his in- 
 fant son in his Saviour's arms, and rejoice in th e light of 
 his countenance ; he is prepared to enter upon the steady 
 prosecution of the purpose which this consecration implies. 
 
156 HOUSEHOLD CONSECRATION. 
 
 That a consecrated son of the Church, who should enter the 
 ministry, through such a process of special and definite 
 training, would be surrounded with unwonted advantages, 
 is abundantly manifest. To the considerations already ad- 
 duced, we may finally suggest, that the increasing demand 
 for ministers powerfully urge this practice upon the atten- 
 tion of the Churches. Oa this point it is unnecessary to 
 dwell. The necessities of the world, the straitened opera- 
 tions of the Church, send forth an exceedingly earnest cry 
 for m€n, good men, and many men. They have appealed 
 to our pious youth, and are appealing still. This appeal 
 must reach, not the youth only, but the parents. It must 
 pass through the outer courts. It must be lodged upon the 
 altar. 
 
 The Church of Christ, in this age of moral conflict, needs 
 the inexhaustible resources of this gracious covenant. 
 These supplies, so ample, so glorious, are the purchase of 
 her Saviour's blood ; the gifts of his mediatorial throne ! 
 Let them neither be wasted nor lightly esteemed. The 
 blood must be sprinkled upon the door-posts of Israel, be- 
 fore the Church shall escape from Egypt. 1 She must write 
 " Holiness to the Lord" upon her children, if she wishes to 
 behold it written upon all things J in the spirit of consecra* 
 ting faith she must stand forth. She must descend upon 
 the vales of the nineteenth century to battle. She must en- 
 large the place of her tent ; she must extend its cords* 
 She must drive down her stakes amidst the deep principles of 
 truth, and make them strong. Then when she consecrates her 
 offspring to God, she will feel that approaching generations 
 are looking on — then every fresh conquest will be hailed as 
 another pledge of universal triumph — that triumph, thus 
 gained, shall thus be secured ; and the rainbow of the cove- 
 nant shall be glorious when the morning breaketh, and 
 paradise is regained., 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS, 
 
 Delivered in the Central Presbyterian Church, Broome-street, New- York, 
 before the New- York City Maternal Association, at their Annual 
 Meeting, March, A. D. 1836. 
 
 The spirit of the age demands the discussion of those 
 great principles which lie at the foundation even of old and 
 venerable institutions. These principles, as they are roused 
 up, take strong hold of the public mind. They force the 
 prevailing maxims of the Church and the world into fiercest 
 conflict. They are impelling the interests of both towards 
 their final junction. 
 
 It is delightful in this war of principles, to behold some 
 veteran truth shake itself from the mountainous rubbish of 
 centuries, and break forth to grapple with the moral Hydras 
 of this and of former ages. The soldier of the truth, the 
 champion of the right, the heaven-entitled defender of the 
 faith, must have intimate communion with these permanent 
 principles of all times and places. Only thus can he acquit 
 himself worthily in these present and approaching conflicts. 
 He must look deeper intothe elements of human nature, 
 and into the divine provision for their control, than simply 
 to wonder at its earthquakes, or analyze the ruin of its 
 eruptions. 
 
 The leaders of the Church and of the State must descend 
 below the surface of public opinion. They must detect those 
 latent energies which lie around the roots of the mountains. 
 The necessity which is thus devolved upon us in our civil 
 and ecclesiastical relations, has intruded itself into the do- 
 14 
 
158 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 mestic constitution. It is useless, with the hand of imbe- 
 cility, to wave it back. The Spirit of God, who broodeth 
 over the moral abyss> is summoning these giant principles 
 of truth to abandon their cloisters, to disencumber them- 
 selves of unadapted armor, for the purpose of returning 
 defeat for defiance to the champions of sin. He calls to 
 the first principles of rehgious truth, of civil government, of 
 the domestic constitution. He bids them come forth, and 
 they will come. The purity and enlargement of the Church ; 
 the defence of inalienable civil rights ; the salvation of do- 
 mestic interests in the present and in future generations, 
 demand their presence. Every principle of man's highest 
 life, and of God's holy cause, will hear that summons. 
 
 Since, therefore, the great truths of the family compact 
 must be roused, it is the duty of every parent to compre- 
 hend them, to appreciate them, spiritually, in their bear- 
 ings, both upon the kingdoms of men and the kingdom of 
 God. Now, if ever, should the Christian parent acquit 
 himself well. Now, if ever, should he understand what 
 power of self-preservation, of commanding, far-reaching 
 influence, God hath wrought into the relations of home. 
 Now, if ever, should he comprehend what God has done in 
 his gracious covenant to apply that power for the renova- 
 tion of the world. Without such understanding, no parent 
 can be completely furnished for the responsibilities which 
 are rolled upon him. As it is important that the truth of 
 this position should clearly appear, I solicit your considera* 
 lion of the following sentiment : 
 
 That an enlightened and spiritual faith in the provisions 
 of the Ahrahamic covenant is essential to the perfection of 
 the parental character. 
 
 In contemplating this proposition, we shall consider its 
 application to the father and the mother in their respective 
 relations. 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 159 
 
 That the faith of which we speak is an essential qualifi- 
 cation for the father, is manifest, 
 
 1. From the fact, that without it no father can fully ap, 
 preciate the moral grandeur and resources of the domestic 
 constitution. 
 
 That this constitution has much to do with the temporal 
 welfare and civil history of man ; much with the forma^ 
 tion of character ; much with man's spiritual and highest 
 good, is a fact with which the philanthropist, the philoso^ 
 phe r, and the Christian are well acquainted. Should not 
 its resources, therefore, be thoroughly understood by the 
 father, its natural head and responsible agent? Who 
 would appoint one to manage the movements of a steamboat, 
 who was entirely ignorant of its mighty enginery, or to 
 superintend the concerns of a large manufactory, who knew 
 not the power of its machinery or the value of its produc, 
 tions ? Who would commit an extensive mercantile esta- 
 blishment to one unacquainted with mercantile transactions ? 
 Who would elect a president over this nation, who under- 
 stood neither the magnitude of her interests, nor the nature 
 of her institutions 1 
 
 The importance of a thorough acquaintance, on the 
 part of the father, with the great moral designs and re- 
 sources of that constitution which he is to administer, will 
 not be questioned. That an intelligent and spiritual faith 
 in the Abrahamic covenant is essential to that thorough 
 acquaintance, will be not merely questioned, but promptly 
 denied. I ask, however, your candid consideration of this 
 one inquiry : What the provisions of that covenant have to 
 do with the domestic constitution 7 
 
 The God of the Abrahamic covenant was himself the 
 author of the family state. Through that covenant he has 
 revealed the grand original design of the institution. It 
 was the promotion of holiness, through perpetual time, by 
 
160 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 means of moral influence. It was, after the fall, the reco- 
 very of a train of generations from the progress of eternal 
 degradation. It was to gather, even from the appalling 
 spectacle of the tendency of evil influence on a course of 
 generations, lessons of most impressive admonition for the in- 
 tercourse of unnumbered worlds in ceaseless ages. It was to 
 improve all its inherent energies for the lofl;iest purposes of 
 
 grace. 
 
 In the administration of this design, he hath lodged in 
 
 these household scenes the germs of the mightiest provi- 
 dential revolutions with which the human race has ever 
 been aflTected. 
 
 He rolled over the world the waters of the flood, and 
 swept away every ungodly family ; he called Abraham 
 from the idolatry of Chaldea, and promised him a numerous 
 posterity, and the land of Canaan; he nourished that 
 posterity even in the land of Ham, even in Egyptian bon- 
 dage, until they multiplied to milhons ; he gathered those 
 millions around the base of Sinai, for the promulgation of 
 his law ; he secured a long succession of sentinels for its 
 safe transmission ; cast up a highway of holy generations 
 for the advent of the Messiah, and spread over the regions 
 of depravity a soil which should absorb for its moisture the 
 descending dews of the Spirit. 
 
 The action of the covenant upon the natural ingredients 
 of the family constitution, has extended the chain of gra- 
 cious designs through all the periods of time, and anointed 
 each link with their living energy. It has prepared from these 
 domestic elements the sublimest monuments of mercy, and 
 by contrasting these with the natural results of family influ- 
 ence, perverted, misemployed, debased, he has revealed, as 
 majestic beacons to all ages, most remarkable specimens of 
 avenging justice. It has poured grandeur over the whole 
 system of household intercourse ; it has connected the least 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 161 
 
 of its concerns with the concerns of the Church ; it has 
 subordinated its main design to the main design of the 
 Church ; and wherever the grace of that covenant has 
 entered a house, to be greeted with welcome, and there wel- 
 comed to abide, it has transcribed the genealogy of its ages 
 into the Lamb's book of life, and preserved the story of its 
 fireside for the instruction of angels and the admiration of 
 worlds. 
 
 It has brought down to the father promises full of grace 
 and truth, full of life, inexhaustible wealth, and hereditary 
 glory. 
 
 Moreover, it has drawn upon the relations which are 
 woven into its constitution, as upon a canvass, . the linea- 
 ments of its spiritual kingdom. It has taken the relation 
 between husband and wife to illustrate that between Christ 
 and his Church ; between parent and child, to illustrate that 
 between God and the believer ; between the children them- 
 selves, to denominate those between believers ; between 
 master and servant, that between Christ and his ministers. 
 Finally, it has taken the family constitution itself, with all 
 its combined relations, to illustrate the harmony and bless- 
 edness of heaven. 
 
 The father, who believes and rejoices in the covenant, 
 will, therefore, regard the domestic relations in their spiritual 
 aspect. He will appreciate in his own soul that great pro- 
 mise, I will be a God to thee and thy seed after thee. He 
 will plead it before God. It is only by this faith, therefore, 
 that he can so consecrate the household influence as to meet 
 the conditions of the promise. It is only thus that he can 
 realize its largeness and inherit its advantages. Is it not 
 the rule of mercy. Be itio you according to your faith ? — 
 Must not faith lean upon a promise 1 Then, to believe, 
 must not man understand? If the promise is large, must 
 not the faith which meets, honors, inherits it in its fulness, be 
 14* 
 
162 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 also enlarged 7 Can a man, then, approach the highest 
 attainable blessings for himself, his family, and his posterity 
 without this faith ? If not, then can he without it be what 
 a father should be ? 
 
 Is it of no moment whether there pass down upon his 
 posterity an unfailing river of curses or of blessings ? whether 
 the long valley be full of dry bones or of living men 1 — 
 Faith in the promise, being thus essential to the blessing, is 
 essential both to the performance of the condition and the 
 application of the seal. The consecration of our families is 
 but the public expression of this faith ; the public avowal 
 of a fixed purpose to fulfil these conditions ; the public 
 sealing over of these immeasurable interests to the faithful- 
 ness of a covenant-keeping God. 
 
 Manifestly, then, an intelligent, spiritual faith in the 
 Abrahamic covenant, in its promises, terms, and seal, is 
 essential to the father, if he would gain for the long suc- 
 cession of immortal minds committed to his care the high- 
 est possible blessings, if he would elevate to its highest 
 moral efficacy the domestic constitution. 
 
 Is he worthy of a father's station who would not do 
 this ? Is he qualified for that station who can not do it ? 
 Can it be done without faith ? No ! every leaf of grace is 
 thus endorsed by the hand of justice : Without faith it is 
 impossible to please Mm. It is here, as elsewhere. He 
 that will grasp the promise, and rejoice in the blessing, must 
 believe. He who, standing at the head of the family com- 
 pact, will develop in view of the world those amazing 
 resources of mercy with which the covenant connection 
 hath endowed it, must therefore have this faith clearly in 
 the understanding, glowingly in the heart. 
 
 2. The truth of this sentiment will be farther manifest, 
 from the fact, that without this faith the father cannot lay 
 his plans for the regulation of his official conduct on proper 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 163 
 
 principles. His plans of action should be graduated ac- 
 cording to the dignity and resources of the state over which 
 he presides. He should aim to accomplish all which the 
 compact is designed to accomplish. He cannot be expected 
 to rise higher than he aims ; his aim, therefore, must be as 
 high as the occasion warrants. If, then, unless the father 
 shall exercise the faith of which we speak, he will not even 
 apprehend the capacities of the domestic constitution, and 
 will aim to accomplish only what he imagines it able to 
 effect : then, of course, his noblest plans of action will fall 
 as far below the mark which he should endeavour to reach, 
 as his views do below the moral grandeur of the relation. 
 
 Faith in the covenant, however, will aggrandize all his 
 family arrangements. He will form every household plan 
 on the principle, that the glory of God, in the spiritual 
 welfare of his whole household, shall be its final object. 
 He will plan, therefore, remembering that he and all his 
 belong to Christ ; that every calculation should be such as 
 the living Head himself would sanction ; that his household 
 have been especially claimed by the Saviour himself; that 
 on him it rests to instruct them in that claim, and plead with 
 them to acknowledge ; that God has certainly promised to 
 add the divine blessing to his labors ; that the Sanctifier 
 himself has promised, assured success ; and that, finally, 
 from his parental faithfulness that same spirit will bring 
 forth a glorious moral influence for ages yet unborn, and 
 will send down his own precious grace to a thousand gene- 
 rations through the channel thus constructed. 
 
 Thoughts like these must elevate the plans which they 
 control. His daily domestic habits ; his choice of the business 
 by which he will maintain his children; of the society to 
 which he will introduce them ; of the schools in which he 
 will educate them ; the personal influence under which he 
 will seek to form their character ; the religious ordinances 
 
164 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 from which he will derive their spiritual impressions ; these 
 must all be adopted in conformity with the elevated purpose 
 which his faith in the covenant has produced. Thus will 
 he be prompted to resolve on that course of conduct which 
 shall put the moral resources of the domestic constitution 
 to the test, and prove to the utmpst the spiritual wealth of 
 the everlasting covenant. 
 
 3, That an intelligent and cordial faith in this covenant 
 is essential to the father, is manifest from the fact, that 
 otherwise the full force of those motives will not be felt un- 
 der which God designed to form the parental character. 
 
 The objects of the family compact are so vast, its inte- 
 rests so precious, its influence when perverted so terrible, 
 that God has in his covenant provided the strongest con- 
 ceivable motives, in order to secure the co-operation of the 
 father with his own truth and Spirit. For this he gave 
 him the companion of his love, entrusted her temporal com- 
 fort to his care, blended her earthly interests with his own, 
 revealed to him the gracious design, addressed him as an 
 intimate friend, promised him persevering grace, provided 
 him with strength to defend his household, and with influence 
 to do them good, commanded him publicly to devote them as 
 really as he had devoted himself, directed him to do it in 
 the same form, required a solemn pledge that he would 
 treat them as the Lord's, assured him of grace to fulfil his 
 pledge ; and, finally, ofiered him the Spirit's influence, not 
 merely for his immediate offspring, but for his remote de- 
 scendants. 
 
 What motives can we imagine stronger than these? 
 Combining the consciousness of parental authority with the 
 tenderness of most intimate love, with the joyousness of 
 every bright hope ; blending all a father's with all a Chris- 
 tian's emotions ; calling into the service his sincerest vows, 
 his most public character, and most noble aspirations ; 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 165 
 
 pledging him personal immortality in heaven, and relative 
 immorlality on earth ; and both resulting in multiplied sal- 
 vation hereafter. This combination of motives, if it pre- 
 vail through his heart, will lift him to a sublime relation- 
 ship to all the glories of the Church, and the final develop- 
 ments of the Godhead. 
 
 Is it rash now to say, that unless a man believe the co- 
 venant from which these motives are drawn, he cannot feel 
 their power ? Can he rise under their elevating influence 
 who doth not apprehend their existence ? By so mueh as 
 you diminish a father's faith in the covenant, do you there- 
 fore detract from the influence under which the God of the 
 covenant designed the character of a father to be moulded, 
 polished, and perfected. Thus again we are brought to the 
 conclusion, most directly, that this covenant faith is an es- 
 sential qualification for every father. 
 
 4. This conclusion is substantiated by the manner in 
 which this faith leads him up among the precious promises 
 and unlocks to him their inexhaustible treasures. 
 
 The principle by which the believer inherits the object 
 of his faith has been already stated. It must respect the 
 peculiar promise of this covenant, in order to obtain its pe- 
 culiar blessing. His faith will, in its different degrees, 
 enable him to ford the stream, according as the waters rise 
 to the ankles, or successively to the breast ; will enable 
 him to walk on their current when they cannot be passed 
 over. The strength of faith shall produce depth of study ; 
 and the well-studied promise will react upon the faith, add- 
 ing strength to strength, and giving grace for grace. How 
 valuable then to the father is this privilege of believing ! 
 Since he is thus appointed the spiritual guardian of his fa- 
 mily, placed in most responsible circumstances, how rea- 
 sonable the expectation, how precious the knowledge, that 
 
166 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 ample provision is made for all his wants and for every 
 conflict. 
 
 Assured of this, let him come boldly to the Spirit's 
 throne. Let him study the scope and bearings of this co- 
 venant ; the illustrious instances of its might, which the 
 history of divine grace unfolds ; and the highest of its hea- 
 venly places to which the Church militant may aspire. In 
 the lofly honors of the twelve tribes, in the advent of the 
 Messiah, in the prosperity of the gospel among the Grentiles, 
 in the arm of mercy, which, outstretched still — notwith- 
 standing eighteen hundred years of unbelief — even now 
 holds every wandering Jewish father, as the ancestor of a 
 race of saints ; in the utterance of prophecy, which an- 
 nounces restoration for the Jew, and enhanced glory of 
 adoption for the Gentile ; he may read the deep — may feast 
 on the gracious — things of God. Such studious faith will 
 bring the promise home to his own heart, as a thing where- 
 of to glory. It will teach, that even for him there is no 
 parental good inaccessible to his aspiring toil ; that he can 
 neither aim too high, trust too far, nor hope too much, if he 
 will aim, and trust,' and hope as the covenant guides him. 
 
 His emotions will become stronger, richer, mellower, 
 as he follows the meandering of its waters, in the domestic 
 scenery which the hand of Providence hath created within 
 his own observation. Although few indeed are the fathers 
 that have risen to the highest awards of faith, yet there are 
 those whose very names are brightened by the unction of 
 the blessing so long abiding. The name of Edwards, a 
 very mantle for the saints ; of Dwight, the inheritor of its 
 holy radiance ; of Mather, and Scott, and Henry, and huo- 
 dreds of others well known in the public records of Zion ; 
 of multitudes more, well known in the deep, but more obscure 
 records of the heart, might be adduced as illustrations of its 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 167 
 
 hallowed sway. It is mentioned in one book as marvel- 
 lous, that the children of a man, named above, can reckon 
 seven generations of a pious ancestry. Yet why should 
 this seem marvellous ? It does not to the enlarged heart of 
 covenant faith : a careful examination of household records 
 around us would even present many cases not less, nay, 
 very many, that are more illustrious. Many indeed are the 
 fathers, who, by the strong wrestlings of patriarchal faith, 
 have left the power of their example — the accumulating 
 interest of their own rich grace, as a glorious legacy for 
 successive generations. 
 
 But " thou shalt see greater things than theseJ'^ The 
 covenant promise was made by him who predestinated the 
 millennium. It was adapted, therefore, to the largeness of* 
 millennial faith ; its structure was capacious, that so it 
 might contain all the interests which the earlier fathers of 
 those bright ages may roll into it. As that blessed era 
 approaches, th^ vision of the Church will be enlarged, to 
 read, and measure, and enjoy the covenant prospects. The 
 ancestry, not remote, of those millennial fathers, is now 
 forming. How shall the fathers now on the stage acquit 
 themselves honorably towards the coming generations, un- 
 less they now take hold of the covenant ? 
 
 It is faith alone which annihilates the distance of many 
 generations. Faith places the covenant home by the very 
 gate of heaven. It enables the father, who has well com- 
 pared spiritual promises with spiritual providences, forming 
 his character under these views, and plans, and motives, to* 
 summon even here, and daily, descending thousands, in the 
 assuring visions of promise, around the domestic altar. — 
 He may say, as if in their realized presence, Here am /, 
 and the children whom thou hast given me. 
 
 We shall now proceed to prove, 
 
 2. That an enlightened and spiritual faith in the Abra- 
 
168 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 hamic covenant, is essential to the perfection of the mater' 
 nal character. The truth of this sentiment, appears, 
 
 1. From the consideration, that the mother is entrusted 
 with the charge of human nature in its earliest conditions. 
 
 Thje introduction of a new immortal to scenes of moral 
 accountability — to a seres of moral feelings and deeds 
 which will never end, is the prerogative of the mother. It 
 is her voice, that, morning by morning, wakens its softest 
 impressions. It is her soul of thought, and tenderness, and 
 fire, which first seeks out the hidden sources of moral life, 
 and calls up the harmonious energies of existence. 
 
 She can hear the inward chiming of the affections when 
 others cannot. She fashions its earliest smile, and dries 
 up its earliest tear. She daily governs, originates, diversi* 
 fies its earliest plans. She sings the cradle hymn. From 
 her lips the child first gains, and best gains, his impressions 
 of God, and Christ, and duty, of happiness and heaven. 
 From her lips he catches his first idea of the chief end of 
 man — the great, the marvellous idea of eternity. 
 
 It is then of vast moment that the heart of the mother 
 should be well qualified for this ministry. She should 
 clearly perceive the worth of the human spirit, its relations 
 to God and its connections with the plan of redeeming 
 grace, with the final disclosures of the triune, self-reveal- 
 ing God. She should understand correctly, and practically, 
 the design of God in trusting such an agent for purposes of 
 moral formation in her hands. She hath need to be ade- 
 quately apprised how fearful are the elements of depravity 
 and the exposures of an immortal nature. All this she 
 needs in order to comprehend the full scope of that respon- 
 sibility under which she is commissioned to act. This she 
 will gain only by a prayerful study of the grand principles 
 and design of the covenant. Thus she will perceive how 
 the covenant of redemption mingles with the covenant of 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 169 
 
 grace, and how they both make the Abrahamic covenant 
 the reservoir for the main body of their waters. Thus she 
 can see why the God of the covenant hath set all the 
 strength of a mother's love about the moral beginnings of the 
 infant mind. Thus will she feel the necessity which is laid 
 upon her of rousing to her predestined work all the energies 
 of her nature. Thus she will understand why it is that 
 when by the very strength of her natural affection, she 
 might be tempted to idolatry, God has written in front of 
 her, on the brow of her child, This is mine. Why it is, 
 that just when she would be tempted to remissness, he has, 
 in the ordinance which presents his claim, demanded her 
 pledge ? Why it is that this intense love, thus sanctified 
 for glorious purposes, should prompt her to ply all the 
 energies of a mother's ingenuity for the spiritual welfare of 
 the child. Thus she will comprehend why the son of her 
 sorrows should be the son of her vows ; why that same 
 wisdom which wrought into her being the elements of in- 
 suppressible love, wrought also amidst the scenes of its 
 birth the ingredients of the primeval curse. It was, that all 
 might know, and that she might feel, most of all, the over- 
 whelming value of the soul, and the overwhelming grandeur 
 of that relation on which its character and interest are sus- 
 pended. 
 
 I ask, now, if the mother can demonstrate her adequacy 
 to the mother's work, without a glowing faith in these cove- 
 nant truths ? Must she not understand, believe, and feel 
 them, in order to walk in the full light, and have the candle 
 of the Lord shine with all its own lustre about her taber- 
 nacle ? 
 
 2. The faith of which we speak is essential to the mo- 
 ther, because her province is peculiarly with the heart. 
 
 To educate the intellect is not peculiarly hers, except 
 in early years. To educate the heart, is peculiarly hers, 
 15 
 
170 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 always. The earliest affection in the bosom of an infant, 
 which seems like moral affection, is love to the mother. — 
 The young being soon begins to feel that relations 
 exist between him and the ever present object from which 
 his comforts come, in whose smile he reads delight, and in 
 whose frown he feels control. Hence, probably, the ear- 
 liest feelings of remorse of which children are usually con- 
 scious, arise from having grieved a mother, from having 
 violated those relations which they most clearly perceive 
 and most keenly feel. The happiness of the human spirit, 
 through its future moral history, depends on the bestowment 
 of its affections. The mother is providentially placed where 
 she receives the first outgoings of affection. To that mo- 
 ther's caress, the first perceptible and most attenuated 
 cords of moral agency are attuned, and the first impulses 
 which are to pass down the everlasting current of affection 
 issue from it. 
 
 If to these considerations we add the intense energy of 
 the maternal love, we shall at once perceive that the mo- 
 ther has an access to the heart, which, if subservient to 
 evil purposes, is truly terrific, and if consecrated to good, is 
 benevolently majestic. Since, therefore, such peculiar 
 power is in her hands ; since the pathway to the young heart 
 is so familiar to her, that even when the rubbish of age hath 
 covered it, and the crimes of life encrusted it, she hest and 
 oflen alone can find it ; how important that her affections 
 should be spiritualized ; that their first emanations should 
 be pure, and their earliest impulses should be holy. How 
 important that the great sun of truth should look in upon 
 them and form them into a heart of spiritual vigor, — into a 
 fountain of spiritual life. 
 
 Yet what views of truth can so lifl up the heart as those 
 which the covenant gives. What amazing objects of concern 
 it unveils to the vision of faith. What intense power of 
 
ADDRESS TO PAEENTS. 171 
 
 motives it brings to bear precisely on the point where the 
 mother's love and the child's love are linked together. It 
 takes the ardent aspirations of the soul, and treasures them 
 as blessings for the child. It transforms whatever there is 
 sensual, trifling, or vain, in the natural sympathies of the 
 relation, into the pure, the elevated, the spiritual. It 
 claims all for God, and having connected the welfare of the 
 child with the admission of the claim, urges the principles 
 of entire consecration deep to the heart, forming that heart 
 into correspondence with holiest truth, and reflecting the 
 light thus formed upon the open heart of the child. The 
 maternal aflTection, thus ennobled, will become the channel 
 of sanctification and spiritual elevation to all other affec 
 tions, and will shine most radiaut in the family constel- 
 lation. 
 
 It is by the aflTections that men are swayed, character- 
 ized and impelled, classed into families, beset with compa- 
 nionships, and combined in business. It is by the affections 
 that they are deceived, brutalized, and destroyed ; that 
 they are converted, sanctified, and glorified ; that they are 
 maddened for deeds of shame ; that they are inspired for 
 actions of self-denying virtue and benevolent daring. 
 
 The covenant, therefore, placing the great claim of 
 God over all man's affection, writes that claim over the 
 first throbbings of the infant brow, infuses it into the first 
 burning glance or gaze which reveals the mother's heart 
 to the heart of the child, and sheds abroad the mellowing 
 agency of the Spirit only on the affections. 
 
 How, then, shall the Christian mother advance to th© 
 solemn business of living, breathing, moving amidst a circle 
 of young, susceptible, and glowing hearts, who hath not 
 gained that celestial anointing which deep communion with 
 the spirit of the covenant alone can give ? That mother 
 
172 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 who hath washed the feet of covenant mercy with her 
 tears, who hath revealed her most enshrined love to its 
 heart-searching inquiries after idolatrous thoughts, who 
 hath devoted her strongest passions and her loftiest energy 
 to its grand, its compassionate, its glorious purposes, she 
 will feel that the promise of the Spirit which the covenant 
 gives, is more precious than all other precious things ; that 
 the vital presence of the Spirit is so essential to her fondest 
 hopes, that without it she would not dare to leave the print 
 of a mother's footsteps along the pathway of domestic affec- 
 tion. 
 
 3. This faith in the household covenant is essential to 
 the mother, because it unfolds the vast importance of that 
 sphere of action which God has assigned to woman. 
 
 Ordinarily, she is not called to scenes where much 
 physical strength is requisite, or much public notoriety is 
 incurred. She is not expected to appear amidst the bustle 
 of the exchange, amidst the strife of public affairs, or the 
 severe labors of the shop, or the farm. She is not expected 
 to occupy the sacred desk or the hall of legislation ; to plead 
 at the bar, or to sit on the throne ; to contend for the prize 
 of medical skill or of martial glory. Had she been destined 
 for this sphere, God would have endowed her with the 
 requisite physical might and intellectual hardihood. There 
 have been emergencies, however, when public or private 
 necessity has constrained even woman to stand forth as the 
 queen of nations and the prophetess of God. 
 
 We do not stay to relate how God hath taught her 
 discretion, and used her wisdom to defeat the wise, and her 
 feebleness to overcome the strong. But her sphere, her 
 own peculiar sphere, is wide and powerful, yet it is diverse 
 from all this, for it lies nearest the spiritual world. God 
 has stationed her there, that she may grasp the young 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 173 
 
 spirit on its first entrance upon this stormy life, and stamp 
 first and deeply upon the early heart just impressions of 
 the spiritual world. 
 
 By this means, she may prepare even the son for all 
 future scenes of moral conflict. She must remember that 
 her beloved boy is to go where she may not go, and that 
 where the mother herself is not seen, she will be known 
 through her son, and that if his name goes down to pos- 
 terity, posterity will inquire after hers; they will inquire, 
 not for her name only, but for her character ; they will 
 look in upon her nursery ; they will study the peculiarities 
 of her temper ; they will connect them with the shame or 
 glory of her son. 
 
 The mothers of Samuel, of David, and of John the Bap- 
 tist, of Jesus Christ himself, and of Timothy, are known as 
 widely as their sons. The mothers of Wesley, and Ed- 
 wards, of Dwight, and Doddridge, and a host of others, share 
 in the holy eminence of these men of God. The mothers 
 of many a tyrant, or profligate writer, or miserable infidel, 
 share in another eminence, the eminence of authority abused 
 and of genius morally degraded. Faithful biography, that 
 tells these stories of the dead to us, will tell the same stories 
 to those who shall come after us. She will deal with the 
 maternal character of this generation as she has with that 
 of the past. In the statuary which she chisels out, she will 
 fold it as the everlasting drapery of the figure; for the 
 statue and its drapery are chiselled from the same material. 
 
 Should the Christian mother consecrate her son to some 
 high, patriotic, philanthropic, and evangelical labor and of- 
 fice, she can do much towards giving the first direction ; 
 if she lays hold of the covenant, she can realize the aspi- 
 rations of her fondest wishes ; if she will study deeply into 
 the import, the history, and the privileges of household con- 
 15* 
 
174 ADDRESS TO T^RExN'TS* 
 
 secration, though she never will proudly pray like the mo-' 
 ther of Zebedee's children, she may silently, but effectually 
 pray like the mother of Sannuel. She will know how in 
 the sweet, quiet peace of covenant faith, to " sit at the feet of 
 Jesus," and will " ponder these things in her heart" over her 
 children, till she can hear *" their angels" whisper, " She 
 hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken from 
 her." 
 
 There is another peculiarity in woman's sphere, which 
 illustrates the value of faith in the covenant. She is espe- 
 cially charged with the education of the daughter. When 
 her son has gone forth amidst the conflicts of life, the daugh- 
 ter is still with her. That daughter should never be obliged 
 to apply to novels for the knowledge of human nature, nor 
 to hired instructers for the knowledge of manners, nor to 
 the heartlessness of fashionable life for ideas of propriety. 
 Let the intelligent, watchful, affectionate mother, with the 
 Bible in her hand ; with the lessons of experience on her lips ; 
 and the impulses of genuine delicacy in her heart : let her 
 point to the sources of healthful knowledge, and weave 
 into her daily habits the elements of attractive manners. 
 Let her apply all the spirituality of the covenant to that 
 daughter's affections. Let her gentle persuasion remove 
 the vanity, the love of display, the undue curiosity when- 
 ever exhibited. 
 
 The faithful mother will not seek to annihilate her daugh- 
 ter's vivacity, but to engage it for delightful services of the 
 Saviour ; not to chill the warm affections of the mind, but 
 to enlist them in whatever is pure, and lovely, and of good 
 report. She will impress the mind of the daughter with the 
 vast importance of the right use of influence ; explain to 
 her the nature of that influence which she will exert ; the 
 exposures to which her powers of exciting interest will lead 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 175 
 
 her ; and point her to those grand and elevating purposes 
 which the author of all her powers commands her to che- 
 rish. 
 
 She, who as a mother sits queen amongst a circle of 
 daughters, has a most responsible post ; the destinies of 
 coming generations are domesticated about the fireside ; the 
 interests of unborn ages lie concealed in their toys. It is 
 the mother's province to revere those destinies, and to guard 
 these interests well. What motives can persuade the mother 
 to do this so effectually as those drawn from the bosom of 
 the everlasting covenant ? What other truths stamp the 
 domestic influences with such living grandeur ? What 
 other sun pours around that hearth such radiance of glory ? 
 What other views shed such imperial beauty on the future 
 history of a consecrated and pious daughter ? 
 
 There is another item which must not be forgotten. It 
 is peculiarly in her power to instruct all her children on 
 the subject of forming alliances for life. These instructions 
 should be early bestowed, and deeply impressed. Let her 
 remember what Rebecca did for Jacob. Let her remem- 
 ber what Esau did to grieve Isaac and Rebecca. Let her 
 guard her young group against all the devices of Satan : 
 instruct them into the nature of the marriage covenant, show- 
 ing them what amazing interests it involves, and what au- 
 gust connections it originates with the final judgment. Yet 
 to do thus she must understand the principles of the cove- 
 nant. She must know how that covenant pours its blessings 
 on the godly household ; how it admonishes, in all past his- 
 tory of the Church, the believing son never to introduce an 
 enemy of God, as the head of his family ; the believ- 
 ing daughter never to put all her earthly interests under 
 the protection of the ungodly. Let her remember the 
 story of the flood ; of heart-broken Lot ; of wandering Asa , 
 
176 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 of miserable Solomon : let her learn the story of her own 
 sex in all ages, when the power has been in the hands of 
 the unbeliever. 
 
 Be assured, it requires strong faith in the covenant of 
 God, for a mother, as the mother is often placed, to perform 
 all her duty here, and so to bear the case before the throne, 
 that all her own children shall be prepared to profit by 
 these warnings, by being themselves early converted. This 
 is a consummation which God does often vouchsafe to those 
 parents who walk in all the ordinances of the Lord blame- 
 less. This is a result which the covenant has provided for 
 those in whose hearts its appropriate faith does not fail, and 
 its appropriate purpose never wavers. 
 
 May we not, in view of the peculiar sphere assigned to 
 the mother, again appeal to that covenant whose provisions 
 are adequate to all the necessities of her state, and to all 
 the approaches of a correspondent faith. What mother 
 would venture into that sphere without taking hold of the 
 covenant ? 
 
 4. This faith is essential to the mother, on account of 
 the peculiar liabilities of her condition. 
 
 It is oftener the lot of the Christian mother to be asso- 
 ciated with an impenitent husband, than of a Christian father 
 with an impenitent wife. In some circumstances this connec- 
 tion greatly embarrasses her in the discharge of family duty. 
 It may, therefore, generally and especially be said of a Chris- 
 tian woman, that she needs all the vigilance, and resolution, 
 and encouragement, which the full persuasion of covenant 
 promises can give her. She needs it, in order that, in the 
 hour of temptation, she may cast all her care upon one that 
 is mighty : that, when trials thicken, she may gather her 
 loved ones under its wings : that, when strength and heart 
 faileth, she may renew them both, by fresh application to 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 177 
 
 her abiding place, under the shadow of the Almighty. The 
 changes of home come to her with a louder call upon her 
 vigor, and create a keener necessity of superhuman aid. 
 
 Suppose her widowed, and surrounded with a group of 
 unconverted sons. The father's watchful eye and guardian 
 hand no more restrain them. They are in the reckless- 
 ness of unmanageable youth, and her voice, though stronger 
 in virtuous persuasion than another's, yet needs to be sus- 
 tained by the sterner tones of the father. They are silent 
 in death. O then, surely, does the maternal heart need to 
 cling closer than ever to the Saviour, and lean where the 
 beloved disciple leaned, and ask her questions, with all the 
 confidence of a sustained and quiet spirit. See yonder 
 lonely widow ! She has a son turbulent and unthankful ; 
 and though young, far on the road to hell. Every night 
 he resorts to the theatre, spending his earnings vilely ; 
 while she, with difficulty living, has no power to control 
 him. He has no respect for himself or for her. There 
 are many such widows in Israel ; and what but a spiritual 
 faith in the everlasting covenant can furnish full consola- 
 tion to a heart so deeply wounded. 
 
 Suppose that she is called, not thus to break her heart 
 over an undutiful son, but herself to bid the beloved circle 
 of her children farewell ; leaving them, perhaps, in the 
 care of an impenitent, a dissipated, or a skeptical father. 
 Then, with what energy of faith does she need to embrace 
 the covenant, if she would say, " Now lettest thine hand- 
 maid depart in peace, for mine eyes shall see thy salva- 
 tion." There is nothing beside this, which can move a 
 Christian mother in such a case, so that she may rise up 
 to the full dignity of her spiritual relations. 
 
 Yet, in order to this, in both the cases supposed, there 
 is a long and previous action of this faith required. It is 
 not a kind of faith which is energetic, because roused in 
 
178 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 some terrible crisis, but that which, by the uniform tenor of 
 its efficacy, shall rather prevent the necessity itself; or, 
 when it comes, meet it with the calmness of conscious 
 strength, and triumph without extraordinary exertion. 
 Happy indeed is that mother who so wisely and constantly 
 labors for the immediate conversion of her children, that 
 no evil day shall take her unawares. For this she needs 
 the utmost fulness of the promise ; she must have this faith, 
 of which we speak, to herself and before God. She can- 
 not in those cases rise to all a mother's moral greatness 
 without it. 
 
 Suppose her affected by another change. She is about 
 to behold her sons pass out from her immediate control. 
 They are to enter the public school, to press forward in the 
 bustle and activities of business, to go forth amidst the 
 spirits of this world, amidst its fascinations and perils. Her 
 eye cannot be upon them, but her heart throbs with pain- 
 ful emotions. Then, again, she even fainteth, to rest her- 
 self, like the sparrow, by the altars of her God. She must 
 strengthen herself for the watchings of faith, by feasting 
 upon the truths of that perpetual covenant. It will be well 
 for her then if she can say, " Lord, thou knowest I have 
 consecrated them to thee ; that from day to day I have 
 borne them on my heart ; that I have held fast mine in- 
 tegrity before them ; I have trusted in thy word." It 
 should be the resolve of every mother so to live, that when 
 a son of hers passes out from her presence, amidst spiritu- 
 ally perilous scenes, he may go forth an heir of the per- 
 sonal promise of unchanging grace. Not till the evidence 
 of this is seen should her heart give over. 
 
 The mother of Augustine did right when she implored 
 the bishop -to exert himself to save her son, until he impa. 
 tieutly exclaimed, " Begone, woman ! the son of such 
 prayers and tears can never be lost !" She had reason for 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 179 
 
 this anxiety, and it was this very union of solicitude with 
 importuning faith, which constrained her to plead, and 
 which brought the blessing. 
 
 That mother did right who, when her son would go to 
 the public ball, told him that while he was there she should 
 spend the whole time in prayer for his soul. It was the 
 earnest action of sincere faith ; and God, who looks at the 
 heart, honored it as such, in manifesting his converting 
 grace amidst the scenes of mirth, and in returning to her a 
 penitent son. 
 
 When the maternal soul, under the impulse of such de- 
 termined faith, can take fast hold of the promise, there is a 
 sublime energy in its movements on moral subjects, analo- 
 gous to that which it oft times exhibits when roused by the 
 call of temporal necessity, or of pressing danger. Often 
 does the historic page cause our hearts to thrill with tales 
 of lofty daring, and more than masculine prowess, to which 
 the roused soul of woman hath risen in the pressure of some 
 terrible crisis. These instances are not confined to that 
 portion of mankind who win the renown of history. They 
 are constantly occurring in the ordinary ranks of life. A 
 poor woman, whose little son had fallen into a deep well, 
 which was considered very difficult of descent, even for 
 the most experienced foot, saw him rise to the surface of 
 the water, and felt that he must be saved then or never* 
 Regardless of life, of danger, of all things but her child, she 
 went down to the water cautiously-— rapidly — caught her 
 child— and up the perilous foot-holds of the well, bearing 
 him in her arms, she ascended with safety and in triumph. 
 How she did this she knew not ; it was the rapid and won- 
 drous exertion of a human spirit when all its marvellous 
 capacities were concentrated to one point, and borne forth 
 into a sublimity of execution surpassing its own comprehen- 
 sion in successive and calmer moments. 
 
180 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 There are perils of a moral nature, when the mother's 
 heart must be awakened to analogous action, or in the deep 
 pit of sin the child will be lost. Thanks be to God, that in 
 his gracious covenant he has made adequate provision for 
 the loftiest movements of parental faith. The soul which 
 will trust and obey that covenant promise may venture- 
 how far ? he hath not said — he hath appointed no bounds— 
 but this he hath said, " When thou passest through the wa- 
 ters I will le with thee ; and through the rivers^ they shall 
 not overflow thee : when thou walkest through thejlre, thou 
 shalt not behurned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee. 
 I will never leave thee nor forsake thee /" Thousands of 
 mothers, in all ages, have tried these promises, and have 
 never found them to fail ; they trusted in the everlasting 
 covenant, and sung of its glory. The Elizabeths and Ma- 
 rys of other days have exchanged their glad salutation, and 
 mutually exclaimed, " Blessed is she that believed, for there 
 shall be a performance of those things which were told her 
 from the Lord." 
 
 The considerations on which we have dwelt in this ad- 
 dress, have sustained, we trust, the main sentiment which 
 it presents, an intelligent and spiritual faith in the Abra» 
 hamic covenant essential to the perfection of the parental 
 character. 
 
 If this sentiment is true, it ought to be felt. 
 It should be felt by all those parents who treat the conse- 
 cration of children as chiefly a thing of fashion and display. 
 It is painfully true that many parents who present their 
 children for baptism, seem to be influenced by no higher 
 considerations. The beauty of the child, the elegance of 
 its dress, the public annunciation of its name, the compli- 
 ance with ecclesiastical fashion, occupy the thoughts, first, 
 midst, and always. These motives might influence an infidel 
 to present his child, and do influence many nominal Chris- 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 181 
 
 tians. Were the principles of the covenant fully wrought 
 into the parental mind and heart, they would forbid such 
 unhallowed profanation ; they would banish such ridiculous 
 and unworthy motives ; they would consume them by the 
 intense flame of consecrating faith. 
 
 It should he felt hy all those parents who are influenced 
 to olserve it by feelings of superstition. There are many 
 parents who, if a child is dangerously sick, will be anxious 
 to have it baptized, and yet never think of assuming the 
 obligations which this ordinance enforces. If the minister 
 will baptize it, they think that all is well. They do not 
 pretend to exercise any faith themselves, nor feel disposed 
 to'perform, in any respect, the conditions of the covenant. 
 They have no spiritual apprehension of the Abrahamic 
 promise. Were the promise and terms of that covenant 
 fully before them, they would not dare to have the sacred 
 seal affixed while they had no penitence or faith themselves. 
 Were this subject to be presented, with all its claims, to 
 parents in such a state of mind, it might produce very pun- 
 gent convictions of sin, and lead them to tremble under the 
 charge of withholding their own soul from the God to whom 
 they in infancy were devoted, and of voluntarily placing an 
 insuperable obstacle in the'way of their children's consecra- 
 tion. Then it would no more seem like a superstitious rite, 
 but it would speak in their heart like the voice of God pleading 
 in tones of mercy and of admonition, both for them and theirs. 
 
 It is essentially important that parents in our large cities 
 should feel the sentiment of this address. 
 
 You know the peculiar temptations of the city. You 
 mourn and tremble when you consider the exposures of 
 your beloved children. You often feel as if, like Lot, you 
 must gather all the members of your household together, 
 and make haste away. All around us is a vast wilderness 
 of mind, dark, apostate, ruined. Deadly serpents are coiled ; 
 
 16 
 
182 ADbRESS to pAreJJTS. 
 
 poisonous waters stagnate ; beasts of prey devour, in these 
 moral marshes. O, if any where the strength, authority, 
 and tenderness of the parental character should be fuliy de- 
 veloped, it is needful here and now. If any where the father 
 should exert all a father's rights, and perform all a father's 
 duty, and put the glowing presence of all a father's watch- 
 fulness about every domestic interest, it is here. If ever, 
 or any where, the maternal character should shed its most 
 hallowed purity around the infant heart, should mingle its 
 most transmuting energy among the follies of childhood, 
 should extend its strongest, most constraining influence over 
 the passions of youth, it is here. Look around the walls 
 of Zion. See the vast throng of her consecrated yet im- 
 penitent youth suspended over the bottomless gulf. Cords 
 of the sanctuary hold them. Restraints of Providence 
 hold them. There is an arm put forth ; it grasps with 
 the energy of maternal love the cords of the covenant ; it 
 is beautiful and slender ; but God hath made it strong.— 
 Let the arm of the father be stretched forth by its side. 
 Let the strong grasp of combined and perpetual parental 
 character take hold of those covenant cords, and through 
 them take hold of those unwavering interests to which God 
 hath fastened them. 
 
 It should befett throughout the Church of God, because 
 it will fire his people with holy zeal to extend the benefits of 
 the covenant to all the families of the earth. 
 
 Extend it through this city. Let this faith in the cove- 
 nant seek the immediate conversion of the heads of families 
 among us. Gain every Christian, and father, and mother, 
 into the practical belief of these truths* Enlist them into 
 full confidence in the covenant promise, and sincere per- 
 formance of the covenant pledge. Appeal to every impeni* 
 tent father and mother. Hold up this covenant ! Cry aloudj 
 *' Incline your ear, and come unto me ; heart and your soul 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 183 
 
 shall live : and I will make an everlasting covenant with 
 you, even the sure mercies of David. ^^ Tell them what the 
 sure mercies are. Repeat the great Abrahamlc promise ; 
 point to the faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God. Make 
 every father and mother the full, explicit, glorious proposal, 
 " Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt he saved, 
 and thy house." Do not forget the last three words. Let 
 your hearts thrill under the overwhelming interests which 
 they include. Press them, in all their original emphasis, 
 on the impenitent heart. Give them the additional emphasis 
 which the tremendous circumstances of a city population 
 require. Rest not — give Him no rest — ye that sigh for 
 the abominations that are done in our midst — until the An- 
 gel of Israel s'aall rejoice over one great city ; through 
 whose long crowded streets, on every door-post, shall shine. 
 The blood of the covenant. 
 
 Remember the many consecrated children which have 
 come away from the care of Churches in our country, 
 from the guardianship of pious homes, from the watchful- 
 ness of covenant-trusting parents, to enter into the business, 
 to conquer or eternally die, amidst the temptations of the 
 city. The blood of many such hath already stained our 
 streets. The young budding plants of covenant cultivation 
 have withered rapidly and mournfully, under the moral in- 
 fluence which here assailed them. Search out the early 
 history of the young, whom you behold, from week to week, 
 approaching this vortex. Receive them to your compas- 
 sion, your friendship, your watchfulness, your Christian 
 privileges, and your promise-pleading prayer. The cords 
 of consecration in the city must be joined with those of the 
 country. As the worldly business, intercourse, and influ^ 
 ences of both amalgamate, so must the prayers, the endea- 
 vors, the strong, enduring faith of the Church, throughout 
 our cities and our towns, be speedily united. Pledge must 
 
184 ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 
 
 extend to pledge ; promise woven in with promise ; prayer 
 responded in associate prayer, until the presence of cove- 
 nant principles shall be, upon our intermingling nation, uni- 
 versal, like the air we breathe ; and communicative, as our 
 country's waters. 
 
 We said that this faith would fire the people of God 
 with holy zeal, to extend the covenant blessings to all the 
 families of the earth. The Christian who rejoices in the 
 experience of the promise, in his own household, will gaze 
 with pain on the spiritual desolation which reigns in the 
 house of the wicked. The motives drawn from this gra- 
 cious constitution of mercy are calculated to raise all the 
 sensibility of the soul. They will present before him the 
 unevangelized portions of mankind, with all their compli- 
 cated woes, weighed down under the pressure of hereditary 
 and debasing superstition. The burden of falsehood and 
 shame is going down with unbroken force upon successive 
 generations. Like the wheels of Juggernaut, it crushes 
 where it rolls. He reads in the precious book, that the 
 ample provisions of grace are designed for them as well as 
 him. Will he not feel his whole soul stirred within him to 
 carry these provisions to them, to tell them of their value, 
 to urge them upon their acceptance ; beseeching them, with 
 strong crying and tears, not to receive the grace of God in 
 vain. This subject has not yet been brought to bear on 
 the cause of the world's conversion, as it will be. Some 
 {ew noble spirits, however, have been prompted by its ele- 
 vating impulse. Having experienced the power of the 
 covenant in their own souls, they have gone forth among 
 tlie heathen, impelled by its motives, cheered by its pro- 
 mises, and governed by its principles. 
 
 O'er pagan realms, long seal'd in fearful sleep, 
 O why did Mills and toil-worn Martin weep % 
 
ADDRESS TO PARENTS. 185 
 
 They heard and felt, as we should feel, the cry 
 Of hopeless millions, as it rose on hio^h : 
 Heard the pale infant's faint, expiring scream ; 
 Saw the wild mother in her frenzied dream 
 Of coming joy, self-martyr'd, clasp the stake, 
 Hug the cold corpse, and perish for his sake ! 
 For them these youths life's deepest sorrows bore. 
 And long'd, in death, to make one struggle more : 
 For them this last warm, dying prayer they gave, 
 " O God, redeem ! O God, look down and save !" 
 
 O, could the Churches of Jesus Christ once be tho- 
 roughly roused to comprehend the bearings of this faith on 
 the world's conversion ! could they first consecrate their 
 offspring to this great work ! could they realize the over- 
 whelming importance of shedding these truths amongst poor 
 heathen families ; of breaking away the habits of many 
 ages ; of setting a course of generations into the channel 
 of the covenant in every pagan land, and in all lands, they 
 would then begin to comprehend what is the height, and 
 breadth, and length, and depth of that promise, In thee shall 
 all the families of the earth he blessed! 
 
 W 
 
THE PRAYER OF HABAKKUK, 
 
 OR CONSOLATIONS OF THE COVENANT. 
 
 The attentive student of the third chapter of Habakkuk, 
 cannot fail to perceive in its whole train of thought a living 
 faith in the Abrahamic covenant. Having just been called to 
 utter the most fearful divine denunciations against Israel, and 
 oppressed with the certainty of their long Babylonian captivity, 
 he seems to have taken up his harp, and, as the ancient wonders 
 which a covenant-keeping God had wrought for the Church 
 rushed to mind, his soul was borne upward from the deepest de- 
 pression to the strongest confidence, and even to adoring rap- 
 ture. Believing that it is a precious specimen of the sustain- 
 ing power of covenant-faith, amidst severest trials, I have 
 thought that a paraphrase, which should somewhat elucidate its 
 obscurer phrases, might be at once animating and instructive 
 to every believer in the covenant. The reader will find it profit- 
 able to spread the prophecy before him, and compare its indivi- 
 dual verses, with those of the paraphrase, according to their 
 respective numbers. 
 
 1. 
 
 A prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet, upon Shigionoth. 
 
 O Lord, I heard, and as thy speech distill'd, 
 My listening soul with thoughts of terror thrill'd ; 
 Though Israel's harp, unhonor'd and unstrung. 
 Shall long o'er Babel's willow'd streams be hung, 
 Yet, when thy wrath our tribes shall captive lead, 
 'Mid those dark years let mercy intercede ; 
 Make known thy power, that thy flock may thrive 
 Amidst those years, O Lord, thy work revive ! 
 
PRAYER OF HABAKKUK. 187 
 
 3. 
 
 From Paran's wilds, and Edom's rocky shore, 
 Where the proud surges of the Red Sea roar, 
 Where Sinai, based on Teman's granite breast. 
 Rears to the sky his thunder-blasted crest. 
 Where Horeb towers untrod by mortal man. 
 The holy God his glorious march began ; 
 On Sinai's brow he fix'd his burning throne : 
 Earth teem'd with praise, and heaven with glory shone '. 
 
 4, 5. 
 
 What robes of splendor o'er that scene were cast, 
 The lightning's flash, the trump's tremendous blast, 
 The trembling tribes that heard the voice of God, 
 The quaking mount, for there Jehovah trod, 
 And there his fiery law engraved on stone. 
 Treasured the might of Israel's holy One. 
 There was the ark of God to Jacob given, 
 There round their camp was shed the light of heaven, 
 Then quail'd each foe, death struck before his ire, 
 Whose van was pestilence, whose rear was fire ! 
 
 6. 
 
 He stood ; and measured for that wond'rous host, 
 Canaan, thy realms ! against him who can boast ! 
 Onward they march'd, that promise-shielded flock, 
 While to their deep foundations wildly rock 
 Earth's everlasting mountains ! who can stay 
 The march of God ! eternal is his way ! 
 
 7. 
 
 When his keen sword o'er wolfish Amalek gleam'd. 
 When Heshbon fell, when Bashan's life-blood stream'd, 
 I saw surrounding realms and tyrants quail, 
 Saw Ethiopia shake ; his tents were frail : 
 Midian's light curtains quiver'd as they past. 
 And wild Arabia hark'd at every blast ! 
 
 8, 9, 10. 
 
 Nature's free elements, to form their path, 
 Became their slaves. Jehovah ! was thy wrath 
 
188 PRAYER OF HABAKKUK. 
 
 Against that rifted sea, or Jordan's flood, 
 Or Egypt's fertile waters turn'^ to blood 1 
 And wast thou angry with the rivers 1 No ; 
 The time predestined came : thy uncased bow 
 Wrought for thy people. 'Twas salvation gave 
 Egypt to blood, and Pharaoh to the wave ! 
 'Twas for thy word, with oaths unchanging seal'd, 
 The floods of earth were cleft ; the mountains reel'd. 
 For this the overflowing of the stream pass'd by. 
 And the deep lifted up his voice and hands on high. 
 
 11. 
 
 Earth bow'd, but not alone. Heaven knows thy will, 
 Through all his orbs : the sun and moon stood still 
 In their eternal mansions, or rolled on ; 
 Hid their bright beams, or else refulgent shone, 
 To fill thy saints with joy, thy foes with fear. 
 Like thine own arrows, and thy glittering spear ! 
 
 12, 13, 14, 15. 
 
 Then sail'd thine ark, O God, in Canaan's gore : 
 Her tribes the sheaves, her land the threshing floor ! 
 Tremendous " march'' beneath thine angry tread : 
 Those realms of crime, like groaning Egypt, bled 
 When from her iron grasp thy son was saved, 
 When thine own rod, by hands anointed waved, 
 Its withering curse o'er cot and palace flung ; 
 Till the death-wail of every household rung. 
 Till the long shriek of agony had burst 
 Through all his villages : then when the accursed, 
 Steel-hearted monarch, like a whirlwind, rush'd 
 Fierce on thy feeble saints, his power was crush'd, 
 Thou ledst thy horses through the dark Red Sea, 
 That monarch perish'd, and thy flock was free ! 
 
 16. 
 
 When first, O God, thy fearful warning came 
 Of Israel's long captivity and shame, 
 Terror ran through my frame ; my faltering lip 
 Quiver'd to tell how holy blood must drip 
 From all Judea's altars — every bone 
 Drank the cantation, till with deepest groan 
 
PRATfER OF HABAKKTJK. 189 
 
 My trembling-, fainting soul essay'd to pray 
 
 For strength and rest in that avenging day, 
 
 When proud Chaldea shall thy flock invade, 
 
 And all his cruel troops through Zion's blood shall wade. 
 
 17, 18, 19. 
 
 But thou art God ! thy hand will still restrain ; 
 Those ancient wonders were not wrought in vain ; 
 Strong is thy covenant ! though thy judgments come, 
 Firm are my hopes, and all my murmurings dumb. 
 Although the fig-tree shall no blossom wear. 
 And green, luxuriant vines no fruit shall bear ; 
 Though each bright olive grove in mockery shine, 
 Though every field in withering want shall pine, 
 Though all our flocks shall perish from the fold, 
 And not a stall its wonted herd shall hold. 
 Still shall Jehovah's praise my tongue employ, 
 And God, my Saviour, fill my soul with joy. 
 Jehovah ! covenant God I my strength, my rock, 
 'Mid dangerous paths my soul shall safely walk : 
 Climb, like the hind, still guarded by thy rod, 
 And shout exulting on the hills of God ! 
 
190 THE ALTAR OF CONSECRATION. 
 
 THE ALTAR OF CONSECRATION. 
 
 God of salvation, we rear thee this altar ! 
 
 Awake ! and upon it thy glory record ; 
 Here may the faith of thy saints never falter 
 
 While they their dear children devote to the Lord. 
 
 Joy to the parent ! thy Saviour will shield thee, 
 And cause thee to rest with thy lambs in his fold ; 
 
 Here shall the Spirit that wash'd thee and seal'd thee, 
 His seal on thy loved ones in mercy behold. 
 
 Altar of Jesus, what thousands surround thee. 
 What ages of glory upon thee shall rest ; 
 
 True to thy trust have the saints ever found thee ; 
 The home that hath own'd thee hath ever been blest. 
 
 Firm as of old, thou shalt not be demolish'd 
 Till nature's great temple retains not a stone ; 
 
 Till, built of the stones which his Spirit hath polish'd, 
 God's temple shall shine 'midst the blaze of his throne 
 
THE CONSECRATION. 191 
 
 THE CONSECRATION. 
 
 God of the cross, this heart is thine ! 
 Thou knowest that closet's secret shrine ; 
 Where, when no eye but thine could see, 
 I wept and gave it all to thee. 
 Sweet hour of mercy ! sacred spot ! 
 And shall that closet be forgot 1 
 Its pardoning smile, its secret shrine ? 
 Never while beats this heart of mine. 
 
 God of the cross, this life is thine ! 
 Thou knowest that temple's glorious shrine, 
 Where, e'en while men and angels bow'd, 
 Thy suppliant child sincerely vow'd, 
 And shall that altar be forgot ] 
 Never, in deed, or word, or thought ; 
 But oft before that glorious shrine 
 Renew'd shall be that vow of mine. 
 
 Blest was the hour, and sweet the vow, 
 Serenely on this throbbing brow 
 Fell the pure water-emblem true. 
 Of Saviour's blood and Spirit's dew-^ — 
 Pledge that through all this dangerous race 
 Mine, mine shall be thy conquering grace- 
 Pledge that through sin and passion's strife, 
 Thine, thine shall be my heart and life. 
 
192 TO A CONSECRATED YOUTH. 
 
 TO A CONSECRATED YOUTH. 
 
 Though pleasure's soft whisper fall sweet on thine ear, 
 And young fancy's bliss-lighted visions appear, 
 Though thou hearest the music which youth loves to hear, 
 
 O give not thy heart. 
 
 Though wealth should allure thee to kneel at his shrine, 
 With gifts of the ocean and gifts of the mine, 
 Though round thee his splendors should brilliantly shine, 
 
 O give not thy heart. 
 
 Though glory hath spread his pavilion on high. 
 And his rainbow-gilt temples e'en dazzle thine eye, 
 Though thou deemest his breast never rent with a sigh, 
 
 O give not thy heart. 
 
 But when the kind voice of Emanuel pleads. 
 
 From the throne where he reigns, or the cross where he bleeds, 
 
 Haste thee and list ! 'tis thy God intercedes : 
 
 O give him thy heart. 
 
Date Due 
 
 %■ 
 
 
 
 
 t££SgB0''^'^^ 
 
 m^ 
 
 
 
 fiSV^T^''^ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 (|) 
 
 
 
 
Princeton Theological Seminary-Speer Library 
 
 1 1012 0100 1 5826