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 FROM THE LIBRARY OF 
 
 REV. LOUIS FITZGERALD BENSON, D. D 
 
 BEQUEATHED BY HIM TO 
 
 THE LIBRARY OF 
 
 PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 
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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2012 with funding from 
 
 Princeton Theological Seminary Library 
 
 http://archive.org/details/testimonyOOunit 
 
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 United I 
 
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 NOKTH AME1UCA. 
 
 ASSOCIATE & ASSOCIATE KEFOMED CHI 'KCHES UNITED. 
 
 TM TT8BURGH: 
 
 H UU i mi BY OH, WUUN A \ No: 74 THIRD STREET, 
 
 United I'ltsbyUfruui office. 
 
ADOPTION OF THE TESTIMONY. 
 
 The Associate Synod, in May, 1857, in the city of Philadelphia, adopted the Basis; and 
 the Associate Reformed Synod at the same time in Kew York city also adopted it. The 
 Associate Synod at the same meeting declared how she understood the language of the 
 Associate Refermed Synod in her adopting act on the subject of forbearance. The follow- 
 ing preamble and resolutions were adopted by both Synods, on the day preceding the con- 
 summation of the union, in Pittsburgh, May 25th, 1858. 
 
 Whereas, it is understood that the Testimony submitted to the General Synod of the 
 Associate Reformed Church bj the Associate Synod was proposed, and accepted as a term 
 of communion, on the adoption of which the union of the two churches is to be consum- 
 mated. 
 
 And whereas, it is agreed between the two churches that the forbearance in love which 
 is required by the law of God, be exercised toward any brethren who may not be able fully 
 to subscribe to the standards of the United Church, while they do not determinedly oppose 
 them, but follow the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify 
 another. 
 
 Resolved, 1st, That these churches, when united, shall be called the "United Presby- 
 terian Church of North America." 
 
 Resolved, 2d, That the respective Presbyteries of these churches shall remain as pres- 
 ently constituted until otherwise ordered, as convenience shall suggest. 
 
 Resolved, od, That the supreme court of this church shall be a General Assembly, to 
 meet annually, to be composed of delegates from the respective Presbyteries, the number 
 of delegates to be according to the proportion of the members constituting each Presby- 
 tery, as now fixed by the rules of the Associate Reformed Church, until a change shall be 
 found expedient. 
 
 Resolved, Ath, That there shall be subordinate Synods, and these shall be the same as 
 those now existing in the Associate Reformed Church, to which Synods the different Pres- 
 byteries in the Associate Church shall attach themselves for the present, according to their 
 location : Provided, That the separate Synods and Presbyteries of the said Associate Re- 
 formed and Associate Churches shall also continue as at present constituted, until other- 
 Wise directed. 
 
 Resolved, 5th, That the General and subordinate Synods shall be regulated according to 
 the rules presently in force m the Associate Reformed Church, until the United Church 
 shall see fit to alter such rules. 
 
 Resolved, Qth, That the different Boards and Institutions of the respective churches shall 
 not be affected by this union, but shall have control of their funds, and retain all their 
 corporate or other rights and privileges, until the interests of the church shall require a 
 change. 
 
 STNGERI.Y & MYERS' POWER PRESS. 
 
Til 1 : T EST I MO X ^ 
 
 o i t ii i: 
 
 9'nitrt prrsbiitfriau (Lljurdj of Jtortj) 3lmcrit;t. 
 
 INT B ODD C 1 ION. 
 
 We believe it to be t lie duty of the church, as a faithful wit- 
 ness tor the truth, to exhibit, plainly and explicitly, all the prin- 
 ciples of her profession, in a published creed or confession. A 
 simple acknowledgment of the Scriptures m the word of God, 
 and the only rule of faith and practice is not sufficient, while 
 th re multitudes professing such n belief in the Scriptun b, 
 whose principles are grossly heretical, and subversive of tlu- doc- 
 trines of our holy religion. It must therefore be evident to 
 
 who duly considers the matter, that the church i 
 Christ cannot maintain her high character with- K rf JesUS 
 
 Christ, nor deal honestly and faithfully with those who are out- 
 side of her pale, without such a clear and unequivocal statement 
 of those principles which she is bound by the word of God 
 maintain and propagate. 
 
 This course the church of Christ has pursued, with a great 
 or less degree of faithfulness, in all periodi of her histor It 
 ilarly characterized thewitm for the truth at the time 
 of the Reformation, and has erer been eminently blessed ; 
 God. fis of preserving the truth, and transmitting i* t.> 
 
 future L r ei ions. 
 
 I p >n this principle, our reforming forefathers, in I i reat Britain 
 were enabled t«> act with a high I faithfulness, and that 
 
 o, under peculiar trial- and difficult^ To them we are in- 
 d r th.. rable document called the Coni 
 
 Paith, which constitutes th mbol of the faith of the I 
 
 terian family in this country and in Great Britain 
 
TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 To these Westminster standards, (including the Confession of 
 Faith, Catechisms, Larger and Shorter — the Form of Presby- 
 terial Church Government, and Directory for the Public Worship 
 of God,) we, as a church, declare our adherence, as containing 
 a true exhibition of our faith as a branch of the church of Christ. 
 In making this declaration of adherence, we are not to be un- 
 derstood as giving an unqualified approbation of the principles 
 respecting the power of the civil magistrate, as they are set forth 
 in chap. 20th, sec. 4th; chap. 23d, sec. 3d; chap. 31st, sec, 2d, 
 of the Westminster Confession. The language there employed 
 has been variously interpreted, and by many thought to be in- 
 consistent with that "liberty of conscience " and that " distinct 
 government in the hands of church officers " which the Con- 
 fession itself recognises. For this reason, we have deemed it a 
 duty, without passing any judicial opinion in relation to the 
 meaning of these parts of the Confession, to exhibit, in a par- 
 allel column, the acknowledged doctrine of the church* — leav- 
 ing it to every reader to form his own opinion as to the agree- 
 ment or disagreement between the views thus set forth. This 
 course we have been led to adopt, from a desire to avoid doing 
 violence to that feeling of veneration, which all true Presbyte- 
 rians cherish for this standard of faith to which the church, un- 
 der God, is so much indebted ; and, at the same time, to dis- 
 charge a duty that is resting upon us, to exhibit clearly and ful- 
 ly what we believe to be the principles of divine truth on this 
 subject. If we are here agreed, a difference of opinion, as to 
 the import of the language employed in the Confession, ought 
 not to affect Christian union and communion. 
 
 We have said, that it is the duty of the church, to exhibit, 
 plainly and explicitly, all the principles of her profession, in a 
 published creed or confession. This duty was discharged with 
 a high degree of faithfulness by the framers of the Westmin- 
 ster Confession. It should, however, not be forgotten, that the 
 church of God, while "holding fast that whereunto she has at- 
 tained/' should also strive to be making progress in the attain- 
 ment of divine truth. If it be the duty of Christians, in their 
 
 *For this, see the Appep<Jix. 
 
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 
 
 individual capacity, bo u pi irard " towards perfection, it 
 
 in: dnly be th< duty of flic church, in her ; iated ;.nd 
 
 colic capacity, to Jo the same thing ; and baring made ad- 
 
 ditional attainments, to deolare her belief in them, and her a<!- 
 
 hei i to them as i part of u the testimony of • It is 
 
 only by doin . that she can fully nplish her mission in 
 
 the world, and faithfully carry out the injunction of her ascend- 
 ed Lord, ; I h all thing* whatt rheh i mtmanded ht 
 
 Under a on conviction of our duty, in this respect, wo, 
 
 as a church, have, in the following document, set forth our views 
 on certain points, which were either not distinctly introduced in- 
 to the Confession of Faith by its frarners, or not exhibited with 
 that fulness and explicitness, which the circumstances of the 
 church, the times in which we live ; and the views and practices 
 of those around us, demand of us as witnesses for the truth. 
 The articles, set forth by us in the following Testimony, on 
 Psalmody, Communion, Slaveholding, Secret Societies, and Cov- 
 enanting, may be regarded as specially referring to this class of 
 subjects, and might therefore very properly be introduced into 
 the body of our Confession of Faith. It may, however, be most 
 convenient for the present, that they appear in this Testimony. 
 
 As all the principles of our profession are set forth in the 
 Westminster Confession of Faith, and in the Articles on the 
 subjects just referred to, (which Articles may be said, in a pe- 
 culiar manner, to distinguish our profession from some of the 
 churches in this country, whose recognised symbol of faith is 
 the Westminster Confession,) it may appear to some, that a 
 further exhibition of truth is unnecessary. Such would be the 
 case, if all who profess an adherence to this Confession received 
 it in its genuine sense, and maintained it by the faithful exer- 
 
 se of discipline, and by their writings and public ministrations. 
 It is, hoK \ to be lamented, that this i> far from being always 
 done by thoSfe from whom it might be expected. Wc would be 
 sorry to make a repre- 'i<»n more unfavorable than the fac 
 of the case would justify, and we desire not to be unmindful of 
 any man tions of faithfulness on the part of thoM Pres- 
 
 byterian churches from which we are in a state of r a- 
 
6 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 tion. We love them for the sake of the truth we hold in 
 common. Yet, faithfulness to our Divine Master, and love to 
 our brethren, whom we desire to see, not only professing, but 
 walking in the truth, require us solemnly to testify against some 
 of the more serious departures from the Confession of Faith, with 
 which many, particularly in this land, are chargeable. In doing 
 this, we cannot be justly regarded as attaching a dispropor- 
 tionate importance to these points. The fact that we have 
 brought them prominently to view has arisen mainly from the 
 circumstances just mentioned, which we think attach to them 
 the character of the " present truth," in which it becomes us 
 to be " established." We believe that when the principles set 
 forth in the creed or confession of a church are assailed, mis- 
 represented, or thrown into the shade, it becomes the duty of 
 the church, to declare, explain and defend these principles, by 
 the emission of a distinctive testimony. On this principle, those 
 who have, from time to time, felt it to be their duty to secede 
 from the Church of Scotland, and those who have maintained a 
 separate ecclesiastical organization from the two great divisions 
 in this country, known by the name of Presbyterian, have acted 
 in one form or another, and we believe that there are still suffi- 
 cient causes for the performance of this duty. Such a testimo- 
 ny, although containing the same principles which have been 
 already embraced in the church's confession, is certainly well 
 calculated to bring out clearly before the mind, the principles of 
 that confession from which there have been departures, and thus 
 serve, with the blessing of God, to revive a love for them in the 
 hearts of those who profess them, and thereby secure their faith- 
 ful maintenance on the part of all concerned. Nor can such a 
 course be regarded as opposed to a spirit of union and brotherly 
 love, or a desire for union among those who profess an adher- 
 ence to the same standard of faith. On the contrary, we believe 
 it to be the dictate of love, and directly calculated, by the bless- 
 ing of God, to secure an intelligent and cordial union among all 
 those who are the true friends of our common Confession. 
 
 Deeply impressed with this fact, and sensible of the solemn 
 responsibilities of our position as a Presbyterian church, in a 
 
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 
 
 state o taration from other PrtB iaa churches, particu- 
 larly in tl to 1 animal I re trust, I i ardent de- 
 naaintain and pro the parity of the Lord'fl house in 
 d Motrin Lisoipline, an 1 g wernment, aad in Bab urdina- 
 lion t > this, the unity of the church of Christ, we hereby, in 
 the iii the great Bead of the church, publish to the world, 
 this, our Testioaony j beseeching all these into whose hinds it 
 naaj fall, and especially all the friends of the Westminster Con- 
 fessi ci of Faith, it their serious and prayerful consider- 
 ation . 
 
 An a Iherenee to the Westminster stau I urds before referred to, 
 and to the Declarations bainedio he following! aony, will 
 bj required of tfa >s >k ag ooaaunnio i with ns. An assent 
 i the argumentation and illustration under each Declaration, 
 oannot, with propriety, be demanded as a term of communion, 
 hut these parts may be useful as a guide to the meaning of the 
 Declaration. 
 
 ARTICLE I. — OF THE PLEXARY INSPIRATION OF THE 
 
 SCRIPTURES. 
 D E C L A R A 1 I O ■ . 
 
 \Y ' ir> , That Gh>d has not only in the Scriptures of the 
 
 0M an i New T iit< made a revelation of his will to man, 
 
 as the only rule of faith and practice, but that these Scriptures, 
 vi- a revelation from <1 1 1, are in every part the inspired 
 
 word of God, and that this inspiration extends to the language, 
 as well as to the sentiments which they express. 
 
 Argument ami Illustration* 
 
 This we hold to be the doctrine of our Conff ch;ip. 1st, MO. 2d. 
 
 It is the oily view of the subject that aceor 1< with Scripture an 1 N 
 son. 9 ktiOB ifl involved in the phrase "word of God," 
 
 which is applied to the Scriptw Mirk vii. 13; Rom. ix. 6 ; 2 Cor. iv. 
 
 Heh. vi. r ).» [t is exp declared, (2 Tim. iii. L6, | n M merely that 
 
 Scripture was written by impir&l /*«>*, but th it the S:ripture itself, and 
 mil Scripture, rl. -H »ly men of God," WB ire told , 
 
 (2 P* Holj Ghost." Paul tells 
 
 .r. ii. 13,) thai h »ke M tki writ w'.iioh the Holj Gho3t 
 
 taught hira id"' I vim. xxiii. 2) that the Spirit of the Lord 
 
 tp\kt bj aim, and his wyrd was iu his tongue. It m iy also be Inferred 
 
8 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 from two Scriptural facts. 1. The writers themselves did not always 
 fully understand what they wrote. 1 Pet. i. 10, 11. But no man could 
 write intelligibly on a subject which he did not understand, unless the 
 language itself was dictated. 2. We find the apostles sometimes reason- 
 ing from the very terms or modes of expression used in the Old Testa- 
 ment Scriptures, (Gal. iii. 11, 13, 16; Heb. i. 6, 8 ; Heb. iv. 1 j Heb. x. 8, 9 } 
 Heb. xii. 26, 27.) But why this, if these terms or modes of expression 
 were not dictated by the Holy Ghost? 
 
 It may be thought that the historical parts of Scripture did not re- 
 quire such an inspiration j but no one can prove this to have been the 
 case. On the contrary, as every part of Scripture has a higher end than 
 the temporal benefit of individuals and nations, even the advancement of 
 salvation in subserviency to the glory of God in Christ, it is most reason- 
 able to suppose that it would require a manner of thinking and writing 
 peculiar to itself. 
 
 There is nothing in the above declaration and testimony on this sub- 
 ject inconsistent with the belief that the inspired penmen wrote agree- 
 ably to their respective talents for composition ; and consequently, there 
 is no argument, in the diversity of style which characterizes the Scrip- 
 tures, against their plenary inspiration } unless it can be shown that the 
 Spirit of God could not direct them according to their respective talents. 
 We deem it a matter of great importance that the truth on this sub- 
 ject should be maintained, as any thing short of it is calculated to weaken 
 the authority of the Bible, render indeterminate its teachings, and throw 
 a suspicion over the whole of Divine Revelation. It is plain, if the ideas 
 only were inspired, that we have only human authority upon which to 
 depend for the accuracy with which the idea is presented. To the ne- 
 glect or denial of this truth, is to be ascribed, in a great measure, the ele- 
 vation of reason to the place of supreme judge in matters of revelation, 
 the low views which many entertain of the Old Testament Scriptures, 
 and of the feelings and motives by which their writers were prompted. 
 
 ARTICLE II. — OF THE ETERNAL SONSH1P OF CHRIST- 
 
 declaration: 
 We declare, That our Lord Jesus Christ is not only true and 
 supreme God, being one in essence with the Father, but also the 
 Son of God in respect of his natural, necessary, and eternal re- 
 lation to the Father. 
 
 Argument and Illustration, 
 
 The doctrine here stated, and which is exhibited in our Confession, 
 chap. 2d, sec. 3d, stands opposed, not only to the opinions of those who 
 deny the divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, but also of some who profess 
 
I N1TKI) L'KESfil TERIAN CHURCH, 
 
 a belief In the Trinity. They deny that our Lord is called th< 
 
 of bis relation to the ! one of the person* of the 
 
 Trinity, and affirm thai Be is so called be a, Incarn 
 
 •n, or resumption. 
 
 That the declaration we have given on this crabject is the doctrine of 
 
 !, will appear when we consider that Jesus called God His 
 in the original his proper /-VW. i irhen speaking of him as the 
 Snpteoft . (John T. IT, 18 ;) and the name son being a correlate 
 
 that uf_ must mean, when applied to the second person of the Tri- 
 
 nity, an identity of nature with the Father. The Jews understood our 
 Lord, in calling himself the Son of God, to claim an identity of nature 
 with him, and their OB landing of the extent of this claim was sanc- 
 tioned by our Lord, (John x. 30 — 30.) It is ''the Son" that knows the 
 ther, (Matt. xi. 27) — that do- me WOrkfl with the Father. (John 
 
 v. 19, 21] — is entitled to the same honours, (John v. 23.) The fact tfa 
 he was the Son of God is urged as an evidence of the greatness i Vb 
 
 love in sending him to die for our sins, (John iii. 10; Rom. viii. 32) — 
 as an evidence of his own amazing love and condescension, (Heb. v 8; 
 .1. ii. 30) — as an evidence of the dignity of his person, (Heb. i. 2 : v. 8:) 
 an evidence of the efficiency of his offices, (Heb. iii. 5, G: iv. 14, vii. 
 28; John i. 18; v. 25 ; 1 John i. 7) — all which imply a natural and ne- 
 .tion. 
 
 could not be called the Son of God on account of his eternal ap- 
 pointment to the mediatorial ofh'ee, for he is recognised as a Son in this 
 appointment, (Ps. ii. G — 8; John iii. 1G, 17;) nor on account of his in- 
 carnation, for the formation of the human nature is ascribed to the Holy 
 Ghost, who is not called by him the Father, (Luke i. 35) — nor on ac- 
 
 unt of hi irrection, for he was then only '//-"/ to be the Son 
 
 of God with po (Rom. i. 3, 4.) Paul, it if Acts ix. 20.) 
 
 "preached Christ, that he is the Son of God," in which there is a distinc- 
 
 a evidently recognised between his mediatorial office, as the anointed 
 of I and his Sonship. 
 
 We deem it a matter of great importance that this doctrine of our holy 
 religion should be witnessed for by the church : as it affects the supreme 
 deity, distinct nality . mediatorial ul! ad work of our glori- 
 
 ous Immanuel. 
 
 ARTICLE III. — <»F THK COVENANT OJ IKfl 
 
 DSOLABATIOB 
 
 H Thai <•' »1 having created man in a state of pwv 
 
 holirj ti<l in j o of a p rfed ability I him 
 
 in all things, «li'l enter into a with him, in which eov- 
 
10 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 enant Adam was the representative of all his natural posterity, 
 so that in him they were to stand or fall as he stood or fell. 
 
 Argument and Illustration. 
 
 This is the doctrine of the Confession, chap. iv. sec. 2; chap. vi. sec. 3; 
 and also of the Larger Catechism, Questions 20, 21, 22. 
 
 In this Declaration we have affirmed that God entered into a covenant 
 With man. That this was the nature of the transaction recorded in Gen. 
 ii. 16, 17, will appear from the following considerations. It is called a 
 covenant, (Hosea vi. 7, see the margin.) It possesses all the parts of a 
 covenant. 1. There are two parties mentioned, '"God" and "man." 2. 
 There is a promise on the part of God implied in the threatening, (Rom* 
 Vii. 10 ; viii. 3 ; x. 5 ; Matt. xix. 16, 17.) 3. There is a condition imposed 
 Upon man; namely, that he is not to eat of a certain tree. 4. There is 
 a mutual agreement between the parties, which agreement on the part 
 of God is expressed in the command and promise of God, and implied 
 on the part of man in the fact of his perfect conformity to the will of 
 God — in his silent acquiescence, in the reply of Eve to the serpent, and 
 in the apology which he offered to God for his sin. These considera- 
 tions, we believe, show that the transaction referred to was truly and pro* 
 perly a covenant between God and man. God, in entering into this cov- 
 enant with Adam, manifested the greatness of his condescension and 
 kinduess. It is highly important that the strictly federal character of 
 this transaction should be maintained, as erroneous views here must ne- 
 cessarily lead to erroneous views in reference to the nature of the trans- 
 action in the covenant between God and Christ, "the second Adam." 
 
 We have also affirmed that Adam, in this transaction, was the repre* 
 sentative of all his natural posterity, so that in him they were to stand 
 or fall, as he stood or fell. By "representative" we do not simply mean 
 that he was their natural head or parent, — this circumstance laid a foun- 
 dation, and proved his fitness for sustaining a representative character — 
 but we mean that he was their moral head — that he appeared and acted 
 in their name, as well as his own, so that in law, according to the cove- 
 nant agreement between God and him, his acts became virtually their 
 acts, they as well as he being held responsible for them. 
 
 That Adam thus represented his posterity, is evident from the fact that 
 they are all said to have "sinned in him," (Rom. v. 12, see margin,) — that 
 they were "made," or constituted "sinners" by his "disobedience," (Rom. 
 v. 19,) — that they all died in him, (1 Cor. xv. 22,) — that they were all 
 brought under the sentence then passed, (Rom. v. 12 — 18,) — that even 
 infants are subjected to this sentence, (Rom. v. 14.) The representative 
 character of Adam in the covenant appears further from the special no- 
 tice which the apostle takes of the "offence," the "offence of one," and 
 
(JOTTED PKKSBYTKKIAN CHURCH. 11 
 
 >ne Ban's ofl :n. v. 16 — IS) — thcrehy showing that in that of- 
 
 ft-nre he bu posterity ■ peculiar relation. It appears also 
 
 from the representative character ascribed to Christ, (John vi. M7; x. 15,* 
 xvii. I; ba. lift. It), 11: Bet), vii. 22; 1 Cor. xv. 20, 23,) taken in con- 
 nection with fcbt fact that Adam is caHed hi or type, (Rom. v. 
 MA where the reference must be to hifl representative character, and 
 also taken in connection with the comparison Whictl the apostle draws 
 
 (Horn, y.) bei lam and Christ ai to their respective relation to the 
 
 introduction of sin and ofr. Another convincing proof that 
 
 die posterity al Adam were represented by him la the covenant, we have 
 iv. the moral 1 ter and condition of infants, (Rom. v. 14; 1 Cor. vii. 
 
 Ma it being imj ble to account for (heir Bubjection to the Ian and its 
 curse but bj a reference to the "olicnee of one,'" by which "judgment 
 came upon all uren to condemnation." 
 
 trine of "he Bible and of the Confession has been sadly cor* 
 
 nipted by many "in this land who profess an adherence to the YVestmin- 
 
 ndardfl — affirming that Adam and ivis posterity were connected 
 
 only nciple of "social liability;" according to which his sin was 
 
 only in some way the occasion of their sin and death, and not the judi- 
 
 il ground of t: and that we "have no more to do with the first sin 
 
 of Adam than with the sm of any other parents. Such a view of the 
 
 .hject we tegard as wholly unscnptural. and of dangerous tendency. 
 It is the dictate of carnal reason and vain philosophy. 
 
 ABTICLB IV. — of the fall of man, and his present 
 
 INABILITY* 
 
 D I I. A R A T 1 N 
 
 Wi ieclare^ That our first parents did, by their breach of 
 veiiant with God, subject themselves to his eternal wrath, and 
 bring themselves iato such a state ui' depravity as to be wholly 
 inclined to sin, ai.d altogether unable, bj their own power, to 
 •rni a single act of acceptable obedience to God; and that 
 ail their natural posterity, hi virtue of their re pre s en tation in 
 the covenant, are born into the world in the same state of guilty 
 depravity, and inability, and in thi> -late will continue until de- 
 
 Ii\ odj l'V the grace and rigltteoHaneaa of the Lord 
 
 J( soj Chri 
 
 .1 rgutm /// and Illustration, 
 
 Tl (i that we have given On the tall o I man, and its conse- 
 
 qjoences, is in lance with tfef I'unles. f Faith, chap. vi. sees. 2, 
 
 chap, ix. s< 
 
12 TESTIMONY OF fH£ 
 
 g^ — ■ ■ I ■ - " ■■!■■■- ■ ■ . .1 ■ . , I - ■- — — — — ■ ■ - 
 
 That our first parents became by their sin subject to death, appears 
 from the threatening of death pronounced by God, (Gen. ii. 17 ;) which 
 death includes in it the separation of the soul and body, with its antece- 
 dents as a penal evil, (Rom. vi. 23; 1 Cot. xv. 56; Rom. i. 32;) and the 
 everlasting separation from his favor and presence of both soul and body 
 as appears from the contrast which the apostle draws between the sin 
 and death introduced by Adam, and the righteousness and life intro- 
 duced by Christ, (Rom. v. 12, 18;) and also from the terror, shame, and 
 confusion into which our first parents were thrown, and their disposition 
 to hide themselves from the presence of the Lord God, (Gen. iii. 7, 8 ;) 
 all which, with the provision of grace revealed for their restoration, (Gen. 
 iii. 15, 21, J clearly indicate that the condition of our first parents was 
 one of guilt, depravity, and inability 
 
 That this is the state in which the posterity of Adam come into the 
 world, follows as a necessary consequence from his representative char- 
 acter, which we have before proved ; his sin is theirs, and is so imputed 
 to them by the righteous Judge of all. Accordingly we find man decla- 
 red to be in a state of condemnation, (Rom. iii. 19; v. 16, 18; Gal. iii. 
 10,) — of death, (Rom. v. 12, 14,) — having an understanding darkened, 
 (Jer. iv. 22; 1 Cor. ii. 14; Eph. iv. 18.) — a will opposed to the will of 
 God, (Rom. viii. 7 ; Col. i. 21 ; Rom. i. 30,) a mind and conscience defiled 
 (Tit. i. 15; 1 Tim. iv. 2, Heb. ix. 14,) — ^affections corrupted, (Rom. viii. 
 5,)— and the body subjected to a state of sinful subservience (Phil. iii. 
 19, 21 ' f Rom. vi. 13; James iii. 6; Rom. iii. 13, 15.) This state of con- 
 demnation and depravity, is universal, extending to every individual of 
 the human family, (Rom. iii. 9, 19 ; John iii. 6,) — total, corrupting the 
 whole man, (Gen. vi. 5 ; Ps. xiv. Jer. xvii. 9,) — native, having been 
 brought with us into the world, (Ps. Ii. 5 j John iii. 6; Eph. ii. 3.) 
 
 Such being the condemnation and depravity of alJ men, their inability 
 to believe, repent, or by their own power to do any thing which is pleas- 
 ing to God, follows as a necessary consequence. But the proof of man's 
 inability does not depend upon inference. The Saviour says, (John xv. 
 &,) that without him we can do nothing. We cannot come to him, un- 
 less divinely drawn, (John vi. 44.) Paul declares that we are without 
 strength, (Rom. v. 6.) We are represented as dead, (Eph. ii. 1,) — corrupt 
 trees, which cannot bring forth good fruit, (Matt. vii. 17, 18.} This inabi- 
 lity of man is also supposed in the Scripture doctrine of the necessity of 
 a change of state and of heart, in order to his walking with God in new- 
 ness of life, (Rom. vii. 4; Eph. ii. 10; Phil. ii. 13.) 
 
 Many who profess an adherence to the Westminster standards, claim 
 for the sinner what is called a "natural ability" to believe, repent, and 
 perform good works. The expression conveys an erroneous idea, if it be 
 used in any other sense than simply to affirm that man is still in posses- 
 
tXITKI) ri{!>nTKR[A.V rill tfcCtt. 1 
 
 sion of hi< r.itioTvil faculties; bat if in tlii^ m t i- an improper 
 
 erpn in this— it him what he 
 
 • in anj kbility to do what God requires him to do. 
 
 >d i3 no !»:-<>of of his ability. This ability he 
 po 1 in hira lost it. It ~o an inability which in- 
 
 volves in it opposition an 1 hil law, which, of c <>t be 
 
 e* cover, does not perform towards God 
 
 en those natnra] God requires of hi' 1 thereby shows 
 
 that a sense of inability is not the no of his disobedience. And let 
 
 it be remembere I :h is freely offered in the gospel, Nah. 
 
 i. 7: Ps. xxvii. l ... \1. 2 ;•:) of this strength we are comma to 
 
 hold, i Isa. xxvii. 5.) 
 
 W solemnly tcsti: un>t the following ert — th it 
 
 there is no such thi \ original sin — that infants come into the world 
 as perfectly free from corruption as A I tin was when he was created — 
 that by original sin nothing more is meant than the fact that all the pos- 
 terity of A though born entirely free from moral defilement, will 
 al" ;in to sin when they begin to exercise moral agency, and that 
 th >raehow connected with the fall of man — that there is no 
 such thi ed sin — that the impenitent sinner is, by nature, and 
 -endently of the aid of the Holy Spirit, in full possession of all the 
 powers neces-ary to a compliance with the commands of God — and that 
 if he labor under any kind of inabilitv. natural or moral, which he could 
 not himself remove, he would be excusable for not complying with God's 
 will. 
 
 ARTICLE V. OF TIIK NATURE AND EXTENT OF TIIE 
 
 ATONEMENT. 
 
 D E C L A n A T I N . 
 
 Wc >h darty That our Lord Jesus Christ did, by the appoint- 
 ment of th- rather, and bj his own gncioiU and voluntary act, 
 place himself in the room of a definite Dumber, who were cho- 
 sen in him before the foundation of the world; so that he was 
 their true and proper legal Surety; and as sueh, did. in th ir 
 behalf. fy the j e of Ghod, mod answer all the demand- 
 
 which the law had them, and thereby infallibly obtain 
 
 fur them eternal redemption. 
 
 Ar</"hi / TUustration. 
 
 The doctrine here dec' I he doctrine of our Confession, chap, viii' 
 
 tecs. 3, 4, 8. 
 
14 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 That our Lord sustained the character and relation of a Surety and 
 Substitute is, we believe, unequivocally taught in che word of God. He 
 is called (Heb. vii. 22) "the Surety of a better testament," (covenant.) 
 He was "made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law," 
 (Gal. iv. 4, 5.) He is represented as acting not for himself, (Dan. ix. 26,) 
 but for (or instead of) his people in the work of salvation, (1 Pet. iii. 18$ 
 Matt. xx. 28 ; Isa. liii. 5.) Our "iniquities" were "laid upon him," (Isa. 
 liii. 6.) He " bore our sins," (Heb. ix. 28 ; 1 Pet. ii. 24.) He " was made 
 sin for us," (2 Cor. v. 21.) He was " made a curse for us," (Gal. iii. 13.) 
 This truth also appears from the vicarious character of the typical sacri- 
 fices under the ceremonial law, (Lev. xvii. 11; Heb. x. 1 — 12; Lev. iv* 
 24; Lev. xvi. 21.) On no other principle can we reconcile the sufferings 
 endured by Christ with the holiness of his nature and life, and with the 
 love of the Father for him, both which are asserted in the Scriptures, 
 (Luke i. 35 ; Acts iv. 27 ; 2 Cor. v. 21 ; Matt. iv. 17 ; John xvii. 24.) As 
 the Surety of his people, our Lord represented them in law ; and in this 
 light he is clearly exhibited to us in Romans v. 12 — 18. These proofs 
 fully establish the truth of our declaration that our Lord was the true 
 and proper legal Surety of his people* 
 
 We have also declared that our Lord, as the Surety of his people, sat- 
 isfied the justice of God, and answered all the demands w T hich the law 
 had against them. If Christ did, as we have seen, take the place of his 
 people in law, he must have done all this, and nothing less than this. 
 
 Retributive justice enters essentially into the character of God as Law* 
 giver and Judge, (Ps. ix. 8 ; Rom. ii. 6 — '9 ; Rom. vi. 23 ; 2 Thess. i. 6 — 8 ; 
 Heb- x. 30, 31 ; Prov. xi. 21.) This being the case, it was necessary thai, 
 as one who was " made under the law," he should make satisfaction to 
 the retributive justice of God in behalf of his people: or, in other words, 
 that he should suffer in their room the penalty of the law. Accordingly, 
 we find the great Lawgiver himself represented as dealing with him in 
 what he suffered through the instrumentality of others, (John xix. 11; 
 Acts ii. 23 ; Acts iv. 27 ; Isa. liii. 10.) It is only on this principle that 
 we can account for his amazement and agony in the garden, (Luke xxii. 
 42 — 44 ;) and his bitter lamentation on the cross, (Mark xv. 34.) That 
 our Lord satisfied the justice of God by suffering the penalty of the law, 
 is asserted in Galatians, iii. 10, 13— -"As many as are of the works of the 
 law, are under the curse; 11 "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of 
 the law, being made a curse for us. 11 The same important truth is also ex- 
 hibited to our view by the word "sacrifice," which is frequently applied 
 to the sufferings of Christ. This word, especial^ when interpreted in 
 the light of the ancient types, clearly involves the idea of the satisfaction 
 of justice in the strict and proper sense of that term, (Heb. ix. 26 ; x» 
 5 — 12.) In no other way can we reconcile the sufferings of Christ with 
 the justice of God the Father, in his dealings with his Son ; or see how 
 
I Ml KM PRESfcl IKK1 AN I BCTfiCH. 
 
 God nan be M joi Fy the nngodlj," (Iwl liii. 10; Rom. 
 
 A of Christ in tiir Idea that he 
 
 the retributive justice of God for those for whom he iras m mderthe 
 law, so it also involve.- the Idea that he perfectly < 1 all the precept! 
 
 of the law* for them. The law, under which he was made as the Sab- 
 
 adition of I ind <-on- 
 
 atly, it was w iry that this o hould b« 
 
 Him who came that We might have life, (Tit. i. '1 ; Matt. v. IT, IS; Hum. 
 
 loctrine of the suretyship and 'action of Christ stands op- 
 
 posed to tl; is that in the Bufferings of Christ there was not an en- 
 
 durance : the penalty of the law; but that they frere simply d «-d 
 
 as a substitute for the infliction of the penalty — that the whole legal sys- 
 
 en suspended by the atonement — -that the Batisfaction reii . 
 by Chri- - simply a Batisfaction to the principles of what some call 
 general or public justice, and that its only effect is to render it consistent 
 with God's honor to propose lower terms of salvation to the sinner, such 
 faith, repentance, and sincere obedience — idea- which are held mosL 
 incon tly by Borne professed Presbyterian 
 
 We 1. irther declared, that the satisfaction and obedience of Christ 
 
 were rendered by him in the room of a definite and a chosen numb 
 That this was the case follows as a necessary consequence from their 
 vicarious character, taken in connection with the fact that some will be 
 lost. (Matt. xxv. 41.) While his death po intrinsically, an in- 
 
 finite value, and must ha en sufficient a3 a. ransom for all mankind, 
 
 had it been the design of God that all mankind should b( med by it, 
 
 the Scriptures clearly represent him ving his life for a definite num- 
 
 r, called •• his Beed," (Isa. liii. 10, 1!.) — his "i in x. 15, con* 
 
 i with vers- and Matt. xxv. 1 : — hi ^ u church !ph. Y« 
 
 .) They are some out of all nations, (ReT. v. 9, 10,) and such as were 
 to him by ike Father) (John xvii. 2, I, ♦>.) The very ' 
 and "ransom" whi work of Christ, clearly im- 
 
 ply this, unless all shall actual! i hav. I iims 
 
 upon those for whose deliverance an adequate price has been paid, 
 i him did not ymy fur any but his 
 
 altogether urn lable to Bnp thai he woul 
 
 elude from his pr i whom m ,i pi , laid 
 
 ah ill lliat uni mi 
 with the atom I be found, up caminal 
 
 to th< ement of Christ ac ag bed from the Letitical at 
 
 which w tion, ( Rom. iii. . to 
 the applicability of the atonement to all, (1 Tim. ii. 6j — or to the exclu- 
 
16 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 sion of every other way of salvation, (1 John ii. 2,) — or to the offer of 
 salvation to be made to all, (2 Cor. v. 19.) 
 
 These views in reference to the nature and extent of the atonement, 
 
 Which we have exhibited, and which we have shown to be in accordance 
 
 with the Scriptures, clearly involve the idea set forth in our Declaration 
 
 that the satisfaction and obedience rendered by Christ for his people, in* 
 
 fallibly secure their salvation, and of course, stand opposed to the idea 
 
 that Christ did not die, properly speaking, in the room of sinners ; but 
 
 only for sin in general, with the view merely of rendering salvation at* 
 
 tainable, and equally attainable, by all. Such an idea is directly con* 
 
 trary to the Scriptures, which represent him as dying, not merely for our 
 
 sins, but for, (or in the room of) persons (Isa. liii. 4 — 6 ; Matt. xxvi. 28 \ 
 
 1 Pet. iii. 18: Rom. v. 6 ; 1 Thes. v. 10; John x. 15 $ and which also 
 
 represent the salvation of these persons as infallibly sure, (Rom. viii. 29, 
 
 30; 2 Tim. ii. 19; Rom. vi. 11 ; Tit. ii. 14; Eph. v. 25 — 27,) which it 
 
 would not be if he died alike for all, and that only to render salvation 
 
 possible. 
 
 Correct views in relation to the nature and extent of redemption are 
 necessarily and intimately connected, and it is a matter of the utmost im- 
 portance that the truth on both these points be clearly perceived and faith- 
 fully maintained. 
 
 ARTICLE VI. — OF IMPUTED RIGHTEOUSNESS. 
 
 DECLARATION. 
 
 We declare, That in justification there is an imputation to 
 
 the believer of that righteousness, or satisfaction and obedience 
 
 which the Lord Jesus Christ, as the surety of his people, ren* 
 
 dered to the law; and that it is ODly on the ground of this 
 
 imputed righteousness that his sins are pardoned, and his 
 
 person accepted in the sight of God. 
 
 Argument and Illustration. 
 
 This Declaration is evidently in accordance with the Confession of 
 Faith, chap. xi. 
 
 The imputation of the righteousness of Christ, is placing to the account 
 of the believer in Christ what he did as the Substitute and Surety of his 
 people. The truth of the preceding Declaration follows as a necessary 
 consequence from the doctrine that we have already established in rela- 
 tion to the substitution of Christ in the room of his people; and hence, it is 
 denied only by those who deny that as a Substitute, he fulfilled the law, 
 and endured its penalty. This doctrine, however, is not less clearly 
 taught in the Scriptures. God is said to "impute righteousness without 
 works," (Rom. iv. 6, 23.) We are said to be "made the righteousness of 
 
I [TED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. I 7 
 
 • 1 in him ''or. v. II.) Ch If- 
 
 ness," (I Cor. i. SO.) u Bythe ol iny" lid t«> 
 
 •hteou-. :. v. 19.) Chri • riled— THE LORD 
 
 o\'\l RIGHTEOUSNESS In the L re are said to 
 
 M have r : It. 24 "Of hi :i of I. 
 
 only," v.. u make mention," (Ps. lxxL 16.) "The right of 
 
 1 " is said b W and upon all them thai believe >m. iii. 22.) 
 
 The<e p - fully lisfa the doctrine of the imputation of the 
 
 a the ground of the believer's justification b< fore 
 God. As Jehorab re justified py him, it must be 
 
 either on the ground of our own righteousness, or that of bstitir 
 
 (E- iii. 7.) That m justified on the ground of our own righteous- 
 nc tossIv denied, (Rom. iii. 19 — U : Gal. ii. 1*): iii. 10; James ii. 
 
 10.) Hence it follows that the righteousness of Christ is the only ground 
 of our justification. 
 
 Some affirm that the believer is justified on the ground of his faith 
 Thi*, however, is to pervert the office of faith in the justification of the 
 soul, which is simply as an instrument to " receive the gift of righteous- 
 ness," (Rom. v. 17.) or Christ as '-the Lord our righteousness," (John i. 
 12: Rom. xiii. 14: Heb. vi. 18.) Faith, though the gift of God. (Eph. ii. 
 8,) and a grace of the Spirit (Gal. v. 22.) is nevertheless the act of the 
 believer, in which he performs a duty required by God, (1 John iii. 23; 
 John xiv. 1 : John vi. 29.) If, then, he is pardoned and accepted by God 
 on the ground of his faith, his justification is of works, which the Sciip- 
 tu: v deny, (Rom. iii. 20; iv. C : ix. 11 : xi. 6.) Again, the fad 
 
 of the sinner's justification By faith is referred to as evincing his justifi- 
 cation to be by grace, (Rom. iv. 10; Eph. ii. 8. 9.) It would, however, 
 evidently fail to evince th*i3 if he were justified on ace I of hit faith, and 
 not simply by faith, as an instrument. To affirm that God accepts of our 
 faith as : righteousi r the sake of Christ, does not in the 
 
 least change the f the doctrine, or render it leas subversive of the 
 
 grace of Christ in I lvation of the sinner. 
 
 W« therefore testify against the following sentiments that have b» 
 maintained by some, the ol of whose faith is the Westminster Con- 
 
 — That under the gospel, sinners SW not justified by having the 
 obedien account — that Chri 
 
 all hi law for himself — that faith is itself a lighten 
 
 ness, an lition liner's justification before God — 
 
 that the . "right* of G- [neatly occurring in 
 
 tb s, never I | the ground of I t>ut 
 
 O: .od of ju 
 
18 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 ARTICLE VII. OF THE GOSPEL OFFER. 
 
 DECLARATION. 
 
 We declare, That the gospel, taken in its strict and proper 
 sense, as distinguished from the law, is a revelation of grace to 
 sinners as such; and that it contains a free and unconditional 
 offer and grant of salvation through Christ, to all who hear it, 
 whatever may be their character or condition. 
 
 Argument and Illustration. 
 
 The doctrine here stated accords with the Confession of Faith, chap, 
 x., and Shorter Catechism, Quest. 31. 
 
 When we speak of the gospel, in its strict and proper sense, as distin- 
 guished from the law, we understand it simply as a proclamation of good 
 news, which is the literal import of the word, (Luke ii. 10 ; 1 Cor. xv. 1, 
 2 ; Rom. xi. 28.) Although, as such, it comes to all who hear it with 
 divine authority, and binds them to receive and improve it, (Heb. ii. 1 — 
 3 ;) yet it is a revelation of grace to sinners, containing neither precepts 
 nor sanctions, (Rom. vi. 14; Acts xx. 32 ; 2 Cor. vi. 1.) In this gospel 
 there is a free, unconditional, and unlimited offer of Christ, and salvation 
 in him, to man as guilty and depraved. That there is an offer of these in 
 the gospel is evident from the fact that they are received by man, which 
 they could not be if they were not given, (Col. ii. 6 ; John i. 12 ; John iii. 
 27.) That this offer is free appears from the fact that it is referred to 
 the love of God, (John iii. 16.) That it is unconditional appears from the 
 guilt, depravity, and helplessness of the sinner, (Rom. v. 12, 16; Ps. xiv. 
 Eph. ii. 1.) That it is unlimited, being made to all who hear it without 
 any restriction, appears from the express testimony of God's word, (Mark 
 xvi. 15 ; Isa. lv. 1 — 3 ; Prov. viii. 4 ; Isa. xlvi. 12 ; Rev. iii. 18; Rev. xxii. 
 17; John vi. 32, 37.) If the offer of the gospel were not thus made to 
 each sinner who hears it, its rejection could not be, as it is declared 
 to be, a ground of condemnation, (Prov. i. 24; John iii 18, 36.) Salva- 
 tion is thus freely offered to all, not because Christ died for all, (which 
 we have seen to be contrary to the Seriptures,) but because there is in 
 his obedience and death a sufficiency of merit for the salvation of all, 
 (Isa. xlii. 21,) and because he is invested by the Father with all power, 
 Matt, xxviii. 18, 19.) 
 
 The doctrine here declared and vindicated, is opposed to the idea that 
 salvation is to be offered by the minister of the gospel to none but sensi- 
 ble, awakened, or penitent sinners, and that it is only such sinners that 
 are warranted to come to Christ — and that, therefore, sinners are in the 
 first place to prepare therm elves to come to Christ, by trying to make 
 themselves sensible of their need of him, and to excite in their hearts 
 
[JOTTED PRESBTTEBIAN CHURCH. 19 
 
 for hi 5 Br is not onl; 
 
 honor! c ><i. but discouragh inner, ae it 
 
 ■ work without strength, Ives him no asstu when h*' 
 
 fficientlj prepared for the reception of » 
 w e, then solemnly testify. 
 
 ABTft LK VI1L— oi >a\ ino iahh. 
 
 DJ.C LA R ATI ON. 
 
 \Y, dedan . That in true and saying faith there is not merely 
 
 an assent of the mind to the proposition that the Lord Jesus 
 Christ is the Saviour of sinners; but also a eordial reception 
 
 and appropriation of him by the sinner as hie Saviour, with an 
 acoompanyii ;i or assurance corresponding to the de- 
 
 li oi' liis faith, that lie shall he saved by him; 
 which appropriation and persuasion are founded, solely, upon 
 
 the free, and unconditional, and unlimited offer of Christ and 
 
 lvation in him, which God makes in the gospel to sinners of 
 
 mankind. 
 
 Argum* nt <in<l Illustration. 
 
 This declaration we make in defence of the doctrine of the Confession 
 
 . '.:». xiv. sec. 2d. 
 
 Faith, in the general acceptation of the term, i3 a belief of testimony. 
 Human faith is a belief of human testimony ; divine faith belief of 
 
 diviu imony. Now, in order that we may ascertain what is the 
 
 nature of that faith which respects Christ as a Saviour, we must inquire 
 what is the testimony of God respecting this Saviour. This we have 
 seen in the preceding article to be. that he has made in the gospel a free 
 and unconditional offer and grant of Christ to u inners. This is the 
 
 testimony of God, (1 John v. 10.) and also of Christ himself, (John vi. 
 32.) This bring the case, the believer must, in the exercise of faith, con- 
 temp, arist as given to himself in particular. He sees Christ in the 
 gospc le of God unto him wis lom, righteous .tion, 
 and redemption, (1 Cor. i. 30;) and thus seeing him he appropriates him 
 to himself, or receives him as his I - iviour. Ih ith is expn 1 
 I, which clearly imply this direct application of I I by the 
 
 .ievcr to himself. It is called the receiving of Christ, [Col. ii. 0,] — 
 :ist, (Rom. xiii. 14,) — >f 
 
 him, (Heb.vi.lH,) — a fa Julia This 
 
 we call '• riatioi the believer v, r which God makl 
 
 of 1 t to him as gi Ting him a warrant to aim as hi 9 our. That 
 
 he thus views him is implied in tl rdl which expresi this exer- 
 
 cise of the soul (John xx. 28 ; Ps. xviii. 1,2; Ps. xliii. 2 — 4 ; Ps. xvi. 2.) 
 
20 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 We have declared, that in this appropriation there is, according to the 
 degree and strength of the faith exercised, a belief, persuasion, or assur- 
 ance, that we shall be saved. When the soul receives Christ, and rests 
 upon him, it is for salvation. This salvation, must, therefore, be in the 
 mind, as a result to be realized. Hence faith is declared to be the sub- 
 stance of things hoped for, the evidence (or demonstration,) of things 
 not seen. We are exhorted to draw nigh to the Holiest of All in " the 
 full assurance of faith," (Heb. x. 22.) This can only mean that assurance 
 which is in the direct act of faith ; for, the reason assigned for it is not 
 the work of God in the heart, but the fact that we "have a High Priest 
 over the house of God," (verse 21.) This persuasion, or assurance, is 
 also implied in those passages which represent faith as a building on 
 Christ, (Eph. ii. 20,) — a trusting in him, (Eph. i. 12, 13.) — a resting on 
 him, (Ps. xxxvii. 7,) — a leaning on him, (Song viii. 5.) 
 
 The assurance of which we have spoken, is different from that "as- 
 surance of grace and salvation," of which the Confession speaks, (chap, 
 xviii.,) and for which " a true believer may wait long, and conflict with 
 many difficulties before he be a partaker of it." The one rests upon the 
 testimony of God, speaking in his word ; the other, upon the work of 
 God in the heart. The one may exist without a consciousness or sensible 
 impression of its existence ; the other, in the very nature of the case, 
 cannot. Nor do we deny — but on the contrary, maintain — that this as- 
 surance that is in the nature of faith may be associated with doubts re- 
 specting the testimony of God to us in the gospel, (Matt. xiv. 31.) 
 
 We deem it a matter of importance that the doctrine which we have 
 exhibited on the subject of faith be maintained by the church, as it can- 
 not fail to encourage the sinner to close with the offers of the gospel and 
 thus open up to his soul a source of true and permanent peace. If he must 
 know that he is a true believer before he can warrantably say — M Surely 
 in the Lord have I righteousness and strength," where is "the begin- 
 ning" of that u confidence" which he is to hold " steadfast unto the end?" 
 We, therefore, solemnly testify against all those who give such an ex- 
 hibition of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and of the offers, and promises 
 of the gospel, as is calculated to excite a doubt in the mind even of the 
 chief of sinners, that he has a perfect warrant for an assured appropria- 
 tion of Christ, and of all the blessings of the new covenant. 
 
 ARTICLE IX. OF EVANGELICAL REPENTANCE. 
 
 DECLARATION. 
 
 We declare. That that repentance which is a saving grace, is 
 one of the fruits of a justifying faith; and, of course, cannot 
 be regarded as a ground of the sinner's pardon, or as necessary 
 to qualify him for coming to Christ. 
 
UXITKD PRESBYTERIAN CHUBCH. 21 
 
 A 'if/ I U n. 
 
 The doctriD6 here pret of the Confession of Faith, chap. 
 
 xv. 
 
 event misnnd we would distinctly state that 
 
 nee of which • atial part of that "nolii with- 
 
 out which no man shall see the I (Lnke xiii. : Acta wii. 30.) 
 
 [1 e havt I it to be. a fruit of faith. It does no! 
 
 go before faith, but follows after it as an immediate effect This will 
 appear evident if we consider either the nature of these t\\ s of the 
 
 soul, or the testimony of God's word. Whatever may be the nature of 
 the repentance, there must be. in the very nature of the C »ehef in 
 
 order to that repentance. A ling to the belief so will the repent nice 
 
 He who has no belief in the law, cannot be said, in any B< to 
 
 r^per lin: for "sin is the transgression of the law,'* (Rom. iv. 
 
 ; 1 John iii. 4 ;) an the 1. the knowledge of (Rom. iii. 
 
 : vii. 7.) There must then, ne ssarily, be a legal faith in order to a 
 legal repentance. Now, this legal repentance, or that sorrow for sin 
 which arises merely from a view of the requirements and sanctions of the 
 divine law, may and does precede evangelical faith. The siuner must see 
 that his Bin is destroying him before he will think of applying to the 
 ur. Faith in the law merely, however, is not saving. Neither is 
 that repen: hich flows from it. Such was the repentance of 
 
 Saul, (1 Sam. xv. 24, 30; xxvi. 21,) and of Judas, (Matt, xxvii. 3 — 5.) 
 Such is i: the sorrow of the world," (2 Cor. vii. 10.) Saving faith has a 
 respect to a Saviour offered in the gospel, and the mercy and grace of 
 God iu making this offer; and there is the same nc ry connection be- 
 
 tween this faith and that repentance which i> Bavin there is between 
 
 the legal faith and the legal repentance of which we hav >ken. 
 
 This saving repentance, or repentance unto life, has respect to a God in 
 Christ as one who has been offended by our sins. The sorrow for sin ex- 
 perienced bj the true penitent, springs up in the heart as an immediate 
 re-ult of tl which the believing soul takes of sin as commit! 
 
 against the God of grace, revealing and making over to us Chri.-t with 
 all his saving benefits. It is therefore, necessarily, the fruit of faith ; 
 and as dii: from n<e, I 'he faith which pro- 
 
 duces it. from a mere legal faith. 
 
 Tl ipture libit t: ing re; in 
 
 this light, as raiting the following passages: — 2 
 
 xii. 10; Jei L 13, 19; K/-k. xxxvi. i : Luke xv. 20, 21. 
 
 This rati riptural view of repeataiu ror of those 
 
 who Would call • aner to repent either as P appeasing 
 
 .e wrath of God against him for his sin, or as qualifying him fur the re- 
 c« ' <'hri- ii. 
 
22 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 Against such an exhibition of repentance we testify as dishonoring to 
 the grace of God and to the atonement of Christ, and as tending to dis- 
 couroge the sinner from making an immediate application to Christ. 
 
 ARTICLE X. — or the believer's deliverance from the 
 
 LAW AS A COVENANT. 
 DECLARATION- 
 
 We declare. That although the moral law is of perpetual 
 
 obligation, and consequently does and ever will bind the believer 
 
 as a rule of life, yet, as a covenant, he is by his justification 
 
 through Christ, completely and for ever set free from it, both as 
 
 to its commanding and condemning power, and consequently 
 
 not required to yield obedience to it as a condition of life and 
 
 salvation. 
 
 Argument and Illustration. 
 
 This declaration is in accordance with the Confession of Faith, Chap, 
 xvi, and Larger Catechism, Ques. 97. 
 
 We have said that the moral law does, and ever will bind the believer 
 as a rule of life. That this is the case appears from the very character 
 of the law as "holy, just and good," (Rom. vii, 12,) — from the nature 
 of that principle which is said to fulfill the law, namely, love, (Rom. 
 xiii. 10.) — from the sovereignty and supremacy- of God as Lawgiver, 
 he having given but one moral law, (Isa. xxxiii. 22 ; James iv. 11, 12,) 
 ■ — from the preface to the ten commandments, setting forth as a reason 
 why we should obey the law, not only the sovereignty of God, but also 
 his character as a Redeemer, which reason, in the case of the believer, 
 will always be in force, (Ex. xx. 1, 2,) — from the declared end of 
 Christ's death, which is to make us "zealous of good works," (Tit. ii. 
 14,) — from the charge of God to his people to "remember the law of 
 Moses," (Mai. iv. 4.) — and from the express declaration of the apostle 
 that we are " not without law to God, but under law to Christ," (1 Cor. 
 ix. 21,) 
 
 While, however, believers are bound to keep the whole law, and to 
 seek after perfect conformity to it as a rule of life, it is nevertheless a 
 truth clearly taught in the word of God that they are wholly, and for- 
 ever delivered from it as a covenant, promising life in case of obedi- 
 ence, and threatening death in case of disobedience. Believers are de- 
 clared to be "delivered from the law," (Rom. vii. 6.) — "not under the 
 law, but under grace," (Rom. vi. 14.) — " dead to the law," — (Rom. vii. 
 4 ;) — an 1 Christ, in whom they are " found, not having their own right- 
 eousness, which is of the law," is declared to be to them " the end of 
 the law," (Phil. iii. 9 : Rom. x. 4.) The apostle expressly declares it 
 
UNITED PK8BYT1KIAH CHURCH, 23 
 
 t he the J » r i ■ of b€ lial th i tho cur 
 
 of the 1 Gal. iii. 13.) Deliveraa from the <• . >f the as 
 
 a covenant, implies deliveran <nant : : 
 
 if it oomm it mat mial them when 
 
 they tr; 1 rnplete fi ;i tho 
 
 pr • of tin- law M I aant. further apj 
 
 from th that I retj, made under thi< law in tl. 
 
 form. in the n;unc of b •■(! 
 
 aalty, (Gal. it. 4, 5, ; M il. iii. 1 Ti. 'ruth 
 
 al~ from all th which represent the belieTer as 
 
 ju~ hteoni ('J C<>r. t. SI; B am. v. is. l 
 
 — asjnstifi [thont work >m. iii. "J": It. »'■.) And as by 
 
 gr. :n. iii. Tit. iii. 7.) 
 
 ch being the I prifilege o\ the belierer, bis obedience to the 
 
 law, when it is of an I nature, and BUCh 
 
 does not sprii _ I - slaTi&h tear of I - vindictive wrath, or a ho 
 
 of lite on the ground of hi n works. (Luke i. 74 : 1 John iv. I 
 
 Rom. viii. 15.) — but from faith in God as hi .at God in 
 
 Christ, (Dent x. I ; 1 Pet. i. 17 : Tit. ii. 14.) In n ing th 
 
 obedien * he hi i rule of life, the gospel presents to ns the m< 
 
 powerful <_ the love of the Father in sendii: 
 
 Son to save us, (1 John iv. 8, 9,) — the love oi Christ in giving his life 
 to redeem us, (1 Cor. vi. 19, 20,) — the love of the Spirit in applyj 
 this redemption, (Eph. iv. 30.) — and the hope of a glorious immortal: 
 in heaven, (1 John iii. - Matt. v. 8 : Heb. xii. 14.) 
 
 We deem it a matter of the gr test importance that the doctrine of 
 the believer's exemption from the law be actly get forth, as it 
 
 lief is nee- to a life of holiness, (Rom. vii. 4; Gal. ii. 19,) — an 
 
 to the performance of those good works that are acceptable to God, 
 (Eph. i. G: 1 Peter ii. .">.) — and to the cultivation and enjoyment, I 
 believer, of a true and b lly pe R m. v. 1. 2.) 
 
 ARTICLE XI. — oi tiik work of thi holt bpieit. 
 
 DBG L a I a t iv 
 We declare t That the Holy Spirit, the third person of the 
 Trinity, •!■ i aoeompanying the word, - 
 
 act upon the soul as to qtricken, regener :y it; :\m\ 
 
 that without this direct operation the boh! would have no abili- 
 ty to p< Baying manner, the truths of I 1. <»r 
 yield to the m< - which it pn lentfl 
 
 - ,,t a !>, I Illustration. 
 The statement her e with the Confes <»f 
 
 hap. j. 
 
24 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 The Scriptures clearly hold forth the idea that the Holy Spirit does, 
 in a gracious and supernatural way. operate upon the soul. Such an 
 operation is implied in the names by which it is expressed. It is called 
 a creation. (Eph. iv. 24,) — a renewing of the Holy Ghost, (Titus iii. 5,) 
 — an opening of the eyes, (Ps. cxix, 18,) — an opening of the understand- 
 ing, (Luke xxiv. 45,) — a quickening, (Eph. ii. 1,) — the giving of a heart 
 of flesh, [Ezek. xxxvi. 26,] — a circumcising of the heart to love the 
 Lord, [Deut. xxx. 6.] These expressions clearly intimate a direct and 
 supernatural operation of Divine power upon the soul. The necessity 
 of such an operation, appeals from the condition of the sinner as ex- 
 hibited in the word of God. He is represented as dead in sins, [Eph. 
 ii. 1,] — as blind, [Luke iv. 18 ; Rev. iii. 17 ; Eph. iv. 18.] In accord- 
 ance with all this, God is represented as working in the soul, [Eph. iii. 
 20 ; Phil. ii. 13; Col. i. 29 ; 1 Thess. ii. 13 ; Eph. ii. 10.] 
 
 This doctrine stands opposed to the idea that the regeneration and 
 salification of the soul are the result of mere moral suasion, or the 
 bare presentation of truth to the mind. Such is the natural condition 
 of the sinner, that without the direct operation of the Spirit of God 
 on his soul, the doctrines, precepts, invitations and warnings that are 
 contained in the word, must necessarily be ineffectual. He is blind, 
 and must therefore have his eyes opened that he may see : he is dead, 
 and must therefore be quickened, in order that he may hear. The 
 apostle expressly tells us, [1 Cor. ii. 14,] that the natural man cannot 
 know the things of the Spirit of God, because they are spiritually dis- 
 cerned. David prays [Ps. cxix. 18,] to God to open his eyes, that he 
 might behold wondrous things out of his law. The apostle prays [Eph. i. 
 17, 18,] that God would give those to whom he wrote the Spirit of wis- 
 dom and revelation in the knowledge of Christ, the eyes of their under- 
 standing being enlightened, thai they may know what is the hope of hit 
 calling. The Saviour, we are told, [Luke xxiv. 45,] opened the under- 
 standing of the disciples, that they might understand the Scriptures. The 
 Lord opened the heart of Lydia, that she attended to the things that were 
 spoken of Paul, [Acts xvi. 14.] Paul says — "I have planted, Apollos 
 watered, but God gave the increase" [1 Cor. iii. 6 — 9.] These passages 
 clearly show that there is an operation of Divine power, distinct from 
 that of the word, and by which alone the word is rendered efficacious; 
 yet, though this operation is distinct from the word, it is not ordinarily 
 without the word, [1 Pet. i. 23; Rom. x. 13—17; 1 Cor. iv. 15; 2 
 Thess. ii. 13.] The word is the light and food of the soul, [Ps. cxix. 
 103, 105.] The Spirit of God, in thus operating upon the soul as a 
 Spirit of light and truth, does not impart any new faculties to the soul, 
 but quickens and brings into exercise, and sanctifies those which the 
 sinner already possesses. Nor is there any violence done to the soul : 
 
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 25 
 
 the sinr.. in vi. in tin- of 
 
 ition of iv principle of 
 itend, 
 
 All' ! I. — or the in -up or CHRIST. 
 
 D I A T I N' . 
 
 W bat our I t<1 Jesus Christ, besides the domin- 
 
 •i wl icli bel( him a G 3 our God-man Media- 
 
 dominion, with which he ha ninv( by the 
 an] of his Buff Th< -minion 
 
 er the church, of which he is the Hvk land rd 
 
 tL )t all that Divine influence and authority by which 
 
 she is ined and governed j and dominion ovei all 
 
 created persona and things, whi ezerc by him in sub- 
 
 to the manifeetati od's g in the m ot 
 
 redemption, and the interests of his church. 
 
 Argitmnit and I /lustration. 
 
 The dor* Christ 1 hip. a? above exhibit* in accord- 
 
 ance with tli ip. ii., sec. 1. 
 
 Th vmentwe have made on this important subject affirms Chr 
 
 to havt >r, a dominion over his church. we have 
 
 timony of the Divine word. He himself calls thechur 
 hit kingdom, (John xviii. 36.) God, the Father, in speaking of him 
 . (Ps. ii. flf;j — "I have set my king npon my holy hill of Zion.' 
 Tl. nnouncedhis birth declared that he should "reign over 
 
 the house of . : ike i. 33.) The prophet Isaiah (Is*, ix. 
 
 ) dec' t "the rnment shall 1 .- shoulder;" and 
 
 P of hi- S " (Heb. iii. 6.) It 
 
 for the pr ation 
 
 nn n of his church. In order to this he communicates 
 
 nee h< B ad of the church, (fiph. 
 
 and the chnr be his body, (Eph. v. 23,) plainly implying 
 
 th d from Him, (John xvi. 
 
 .) Th i appoint officers and institute laws i 
 
 or IT i - t -ig 
 
 • 
 
 B — 13 : John 1.) It Is, th trefon 
 
 an unw mpti< 
 
 tl " d of his church. 
 
26 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 for any man, or any body of men, either in the church or state, to exer- 
 cise or claim a legislative power in relation to the doctrine, govern- 
 ment, worship and discipline of the church, (Matt. xv. 9 ; Isa, viii. 20.) 
 We have also, in the above declaration, ascribed to our Lord Jesus 
 Christ a dominion over all created persons and things. The testimony 
 of Scripture in proof of this, is equally direct and explicit. All pow- 
 er is given unto him in heaven and in earth, (Matt, xxviii. 18.) God 
 has given him a name which is above every name, (Phil. ii. 9.) He 
 has set him, at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all 
 principality, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named r 
 not only in this world, but also in that which is to come ; and hath put 
 all things under his feet, and gave him to be the Head over all things^ 
 (Eph. i* 20 — 22..), He has put all things in subjection under his feet, 
 and left nothing that is not put under him, (Heb. ii. 8.) He has given 
 him power over all flesh, (John xvii, 2.) Jesus has the keys of hell 
 and death, (Rev. i, 18.) These passages clearly hold forth the idea 
 that Christ, as Mediator, possesses universal power. 
 
 This dominion over all persons and things, we have declared to be 
 exercised by our Lord Jesus Chirst, in subserviency to the manifesta- 
 tion of God's glory in the system of redemption, and the interests of 
 his church. This follows as a necessary consequence from the fact 
 that this power has been delegated to him as Mediator ; for the distinct 
 and formal end of the mediatorial office is the manifestation of the 
 glory of God as the God of grace, and, in subordination to this, the 
 salvation of an elect world. Hence our Lord is said to be Head over 
 all things to the church, (Eph. i, 22,) — to have power over all flesh, that 
 he should give eternal life to as many as the Father gave him, (John xvii. 2 ;) 
 and all things, we are assured, work together for good to them that kve 
 God, (Rom. viii. 28.) The subsidiary character of this dominion of 
 Christ over all persons and things, is also clearly taught in the vision of 
 the wheels seen by Ezekiel, (Ezek. i. 19, 20.) Accordingly, we find our 
 Lord, as Mediator and Redeemer of his people, overthrowing nations 
 to make way for his church, (Hag. ii. 7 ; Heb. xii. 26, 27 : Dan. ii. 44,) 
 — raising up rulers that knew him not, to deliver his people from op- 
 pression, (Isa. xlv. 13,) — employing wicked men to correct them, (Isa. 
 x. 7,) — and punishing these wicked men for their malignant opposition 
 to them, (Isa. Ii. 22, 23; Isa. xxxiv. 2, 8; Dan. vii. 26, 27; Isa. lxiii. 
 1 — f 3 ) — casting the ungodly into hell, (2 Thess. i. 6 — 9,) — exercising a 
 Control over Satan, the god of this world, (Luke x. 18 ; John xii. 31 ; 
 Rev. xx. 7, 10; Mark xvi. 17, 18,) — and employing even the inferior 
 parts of creation as instruments of good to his people, and of evil to 
 their enemies, (Ex. viii. 9, 10 ; Ps. cxlviii. 8.) 
 
 Such beiDg the universal dominion of our Lord as Mediator, it follows 
 
TOD PRB8B LIAN 0H1 RCH, 2*3 
 
 it all Ln1 i n tbil ehar- 
 
 y mi all their 
 The upon to do 
 
 (Heb. i. ■ .in. (Phil. ii. iii. IT.) 
 
 [sa, It. I _' ii. 
 
 \Y vil 
 
 nr 
 . trulj i.) "n 
 
 il authority, nor free the people from their du< him." 
 
 r « 
 ich upon tfa r- 
 
 of the church as a distinct at kingdom. ivil 
 
 08 
 uthurity <>t' Chrisl in t nuaii 
 
 .■■•■■ 
 
 W( b matter of importance that I 
 
 1 in relation t I >hi}> of our Lord ai 9 .our Jesus 
 
 b full j maintained, and distinctly exhibited b; urchj 
 a important 
 
 the ehureh, and the H en duly 
 
 hear f the 
 
 . ■ upon tli ite them • a to his 
 
 For til - ad of »ut the world. 
 
 !LE X I I I -- REM 'V. 
 
 II"' . That the law <»i" ( | ttpOP the hi 
 
 forth in the Scriptun Old and New 
 
 in i' ithoril >d 
 
 that where the commands of tli-' church or b< re in i 
 
 ainal ' this 1, 
 
 in; 
 
 Tl rdance with t Bee* 
 
 Tt 
 nnc- with the j'rin 
 
 ■ 
 
 in t!. 
 
 ^ ID- 
 ll riti( on 
 
28 TESTIMONY OP THE 
 
 in the word of God, (Rom. xiii. 1—7; Tit. iii. 1; 1 Pet. ii. 13; 
 h. eb. xiii. 17.) and it is no doubt, therefore, a principle of the Bible, as 
 well as of our Confession of Faith, that -they who, upon pretence of 
 Christian liberty, shall oppose any lawful power, or the lawful exercise 
 of it, whether it be civil or ecclesiastical, resist the ordinance of God," 
 (Confession of Faith, chap, xx., sec. 4.) yet the power must be "law- 
 ful;" and the "exercise, 5 ' even of that power, must be "lawful" to make 
 resistance to it to amount to a resistance of the ordinance of God. 
 When, therefore, either the church or state passes laws requiring us to 
 do what the law of God forbids us to do, obedience to such laws would 
 be resistance to Him who is the source (Rom. xiii. 1,) of all authority. 
 Authority exercised in opposition to the law of God, is so far null and 
 Toid, and cannot bind the conscience. Open and violent resistance 
 may not be a duty; for it is sometimes the duty of Christians to take 
 wrong, and submit to oppression, (Matt. v. 3'J ; 1 Cor. vi. 7 ; 1 Pet. ii. 
 18.) Yet where human authority requires us to do what the law of 
 God forbids, or forbids us to do what the law of God requires, it is in 
 that particular instance to be disregarded by us, let the consequences 
 be what they may. Upon this principle Daniel acted with divine ap- 
 probation. A '-royal statute" was enacted, forbidding a petition to be 
 asked of any god or man, save the king, for thirty days. This statute 
 Daniel violated, (Dan. vi. 7 — 10.) Upon this principle, also, did 
 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego act, in refusing, at the command 
 
 the king, to worship the image which had been set up, (Danl. iii. 
 18.) Upon this principle, also, did the apostles act when commanded 
 that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, affirming that they 
 ought to "obey God rather than man," (Acts v. 29.) Those, therefore, 
 who plead the statutes of man as a justification for the doing of what 
 the word of God forbids, are guilty of exalting human laws above the 
 divine law. Those who pass unrighteous decrees expose themselves 
 to the displeasure of that God who "has prepared his throne in the 
 heavens," and whose "kingdom ruleth over all," (Ps. ciii. 19; Isa. x. 
 1, 2 ;) and those who carry out these decrees, "have fellowship with 
 the throne of iniquity," (Ps. xciv. 20.) 
 
 We therefore solemnly testify against those who will plead the law 
 of the land or of the church as a reason for doing what the law of God 
 forbids, and against those who do not oppose those sins that have re- 
 ceived the sanction of law. 
 
 ARTICLE XIV. — of slayeholding. 
 
 DECLARATION. 
 
 We declare, That slayeholding — that is, the holding of unof- 
 fending human beings in involuntary bondage, and considering 
 
.LAX CHURCH. 29 
 
 so 
 
 irit of ( lit). 
 
 This ration is in accoi a of Faith, chap, 
 
 iv. 
 
 Th notation of the 
 
 Law of God, w ill ir from the following 
 
 1. The • whole human family :i> po 
 
 Ti I m:m 
 
 1 ill n >f the human family. He is a child 
 
 of A .vho was in ae im the liki of God, 
 
 (Gen. i, l').) Qe is oi • blood" with him who holds him in bon 
 
 ag< This being the ease, his natural ri be 
 
 th s those of any other. If man po^- . by the Law of his 
 
 creatioi. natural ana inalic: _ht. that right must be incon- 
 
 sistent with the condition of a person who is considered and treated 
 as property, subject to be bought and sold. Slaveholding, then, is at 
 
 ir with humanity 
 
 The word of God, in the grant of dominion which it makes, re- 
 strains the power of man thus to treat his fellow-man. He has, by 
 the authority of God his Creator, dominion over all the lower ere - 
 tures, (Gen. i. 26.) The pi ;on of such a dominion by a person, 
 
 in ry nature, inconsistent with his condition as a slave — a person 
 
 who is himself considered and treated as property. While, therefore, 
 he is held in this condition, the grant of his Creator is rendered a nul- 
 lity. Noru this all: while this grant of dominion secures to the slave 
 his right to liberty, it interdicts, by the el< implication, th 
 
 sumption of that right which the slaveholder claim The grant of 
 
 his Creator gj .im domini. r the lower creatures. There he may 
 
 make his propel 'thus far his dominion as owner extends, but no 
 
 farth , how sumes this power. It reduces to the 
 
 condition of property, him, who by divine right is lord of all. (1 
 
 vi: . 
 
 3. The I f God recognises the i f all men to use the pow< 
 
 of b aich their C a, in the pursuit 
 
 of hi hour with . r to their support, 
 
 ii. 23; 1 Th r. 11; i Thee*, iii. 10—12.) B irhile 
 
 loom . D the fruits of ti. il, 
 
 ai. « him who has not performed th r. It thus 
 
 aich tor 1. 
 
 gi to him a right to r file ftlave, being 
 
30 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 himself the property of another, can own nothing, and of course can 
 acquire nothing. 
 
 4. The law of God enjoins it upon masters to give to their servants 
 "that which is just and equal," (Col. iv. 1.) The slaveholder gives 
 nothing to his slave, as a right acquired by labor. "What he gives as a 
 slaveholder, has a reference merely to the support of his slave, that he 
 may thereby be qualified to labor. The fruits of that labor he ap- 
 propriates to himself. He therefore violates the law of justice enjoin- 
 ed upon the master, and exposes himself to the wo pronounced against 
 him who "useth his neighbor's services without wages, and giveth him 
 not for his work ," (Jer. xxii. 13.) Neither does he give his servant that 
 which is "equal." There is no proportion between the labor perform- 
 ed by the slave and what he receives from his master. The slave may 
 be hired out to another, by whom he is fed and clothed ; but the owner 
 of the slave receives from the man to whom he is hired, the wages. 
 Nor is there any proportion between what the slave receives and what 
 another receives who performs the same amount of work. He there- 
 fore violates the principle of equality, which he is bound by the law of 
 God to observe. 
 
 5. The law of God recognises marriage as the right of all, (Heb. xiii, 
 4.) It requires the parties to dwell together, (1 Pet. iii. 7,) and makes 
 the relation indissoluble by man, (Gen. ii. 24; Matt. xix. 6.) But the 
 right which the slaveholder claims to his slave as his property, subject 
 to be bought and sold, is in direct conflict with these divine requisi- 
 tions. He may, by the exercise of his right as a slaveholder, forbid 
 his marriage, or place him in circumstances in which he cannot enjoy 
 this divine right ; or, if married, he may, at will, entirely and forever 
 separate the parties. The laws which govern and control property 
 imply all this. 
 
 6. The law of God requires parents to bring up their children in the 
 nurture and admonition of the Lord, (Eph. vi. 4.) The slaveholder, in 
 virtue of the relation which he sustains, and by the right of ownership 
 which he claims, may not only interfere with the government of the 
 parent over his children, but entirely and forever separate them from 
 each other. 
 
 1. The law of God requires every man to search the Scriptures, 
 (John v. 39.) The right of the slaveholder interferes with this. The 
 laws which govern all property necessarily secure to him the right of 
 prohibiting his slave from doing any thing which may operate against 
 the attainment of the end for which this species of property, in com- 
 mon with all others, is held — his own gain. 
 
 8. The law of God forbids man-stealing, (Deut. xxiv. 7 ; 1 Tim. i. 9, 
 10.) In this the alleged right of one man to make merchandise of his 
 
u*ir.-/> !• :'\\ cnimeu. 
 
 fellow-man. most hare «.ri. a.fl the fount ortnpt 
 
 not be pure 
 
 ba^ >d. 
 
 We hi 1 it t' irit 
 
 of Christianity. Wli ristianity? B ;— 
 
 vll th should d 
 
 M lit. vii. 1 - who would 
 
 not r and who would nod an in le 
 
 conviction tl; g had been done him. This being ti he 
 
 bound, I ■ of th tr to I okeaod 
 
 lei th vii. 21 ; lea. lviii. O.j And wh :ie 
 
 I hristi inity re . !: I ; 1 John iv. 2 
 
 21: Lufc rer, the i 
 
 (he may be a br in Christ.) to the condition of a piece of pr< 
 
 tw liable to be b . _'.; and in fiol ition of thu ho\j and divine 
 
 principle? Who, that isac imp a] l itiaa'j 
 
 heart, will deny it ? 
 
 We b n e, therefore, in the Law of God, and iu the letter and 
 of Christianity, abundant real Iding 
 
 as a sin, and c uently a disqualification for membership in the 
 
 Church of Chru It is the relation itself, which we have examined 
 in the light of Scripture, tnd which We b - I o incon- 
 
 sistent with it; and not the many cruel Lfl I lacken the 
 
 statute-books of ' £ States, and the many gross and 
 
 irful evils, thai It from th »u. A consideration, ho 
 
 ever, of these laws and etils which e i -til 
 
 to impress the mind with a sense of the inherent wickedness of thp 
 :n. 
 
 I &TIOLE XV — BT fi ttlBTIKJ 
 
 DECLARATION 
 
 W . Thu all as 5, wh rorraei forpolil 
 
 al or benevolent purposes, which in ipoo tubers an 
 
 oath of aeoreoj a on le of unknown 
 
 law- ar inc with the w ao irit of Christiani- 
 
 ■ h m"ubers Ought i fellowship with such 
 
 associations. 
 
 Ar</um nt a %d IU n. 
 
 T: liaac ace with th a of Y ip. 
 
 iking the above De ion, i: i \h it kl ire 
 
 ■ aoy things vitb vbicb an individual bee acquainted which it 
 
32 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 would be improper for him to reveal, (Prov. si. 13; xx. 19.) The same 
 thing, also, may be affirmed in relation to associations. It is not, there- 
 fore, the fact of secrecy, simply considered, that we condemn. What, 
 then, is it? It is the fact of a person giving an oath or promise that 
 he will not make known to others matters which are to be subsequent- 
 ly communicated to him, or that he will obey a code of laws with which 
 he is not made acquainted until after the oath or promise be given by 
 him. This we believe to be wrong under all circumstances ; and all 
 associations founded on this principle are to be condemned, whatever 
 be the object for which they are formed. 
 
 1. Such an obligation is inconsistent with our subjection to the law 
 of God. This law is the supreme standard. We are always to obey it, 
 (Gal. iii. 10; Isaiah viii. 20; Acts iv. 19.) When, therefore, we come 
 under an oath or promise to keep the transactions of a society of men 
 concealed, we know not but that the law of God may require us 
 to reveal them. When we bind ourselves to support the principles of 
 a society with which we have not been made acquainted, we know not 
 but that the law of God may bind us to oppose them. When we pledge 
 ourselves to obey a system of laws, of which we are ignorant, we know 
 not but that they may be in conflict with the law of God. We are, 
 therefore, giving promises, obligations and pledges to do that which, 
 for aught we know, may involve us in sin. These, under such circum- 
 stances, cannot be given "in judgment," as required by the command 
 of God, (Jer. iv. 2.) 
 
 2. Such an obligation is ensnaring and enslaving to the conscience. 
 God alone is Lord of the conscience, (Jas. iv. 12 ; Rom. xiv. 4 ; Matt, x, 
 28.) To bring ourselves, however, under an obligation to obey a code 
 of unknown laws, is, in the very act, whatever may be the character of 
 these laws, doing violence to the freedom of conscience. It is making 
 ourselves the "servants of men," (1 Cor. vii. 23.) 
 
 3. Such an obligation is not only not countenanced by the example 
 of the saints in Scripture, but is inconsistent with it. When Abra- 
 ham directed his servant to swear to him, although he informed him 
 of the matter of the oath, yet his servant did not swear until he first 
 understood what he would be required by his oath, under certain cir- 
 cumstances to do. This was made known to him by Abraham, (Gen. 
 xxiv. 2 — 9.) See, also, the case of David and Jonathan, (1 Sam. xx.) 
 
 We deem the foregoing considerations in point, whether the pledge given 
 be a promise or oath, for the principles to which we have referred are 
 equally applicable to both. When, however, an oath is given, the person 
 swearing, under such circumstances, involves himself in the additional 
 guilt of profaning the name of God, and does not, as our Confession 
 properly requires, take an oath when imposed "by lawful authority," nor 
 
(JOTTED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 33 
 
 " .. ich nothing 
 
 miIi." lo bo 
 
 1 h tl. aring vainly or — 
 
 :i.) 
 
 In addition to thi while \vc would not deny tin- right 
 
 of iations to withhold some of their transactions from the public, 
 
 when it may be deemed advisable at the tin 
 
 I liable to objections of a ?< rious (bar. - 
 
 h 'objection w them to ledared them to 
 
 . InoOl with the genius and spirit uistiani; 
 
 1. The Founder of Christianit; upon this principle. He 
 
 could appeal to his cnci. j — "I spake openly to the world: I 
 
 t in t .nd in the temple, whither the J' Iwajl 
 
 nd in John xviii. 20.) He is a light 
 
 tha (John i. 9.) 
 
 . not act upon this principle. They "renounced the 
 hidden thing lisho; ad " commended themselves to every i 
 
 CO] bj the; ..nd had their u conversation 
 
 in the world in i <j nine - • i r. iv. 2 ; 2 Cor. i. 12.) 
 
 3. The disciples of Christ are forbidden to act upon this principle. 
 Tl. Ight of the i orld,'' and are commanded to let their (; light 
 
 shine Ltfore men,'' (Matt. v. 14 — 16,) and to k, have no fdlowskip with the 
 unfruitful works of dark; ^Eph. v. 11.) 
 
 This principle ted as a favorite principle with the wick 
 
 Their rks" are said to be "in the dark,'' (Isa. >:xix. 15;) and are 
 
 called the "works of darkrr (Eph. v. 11 ;) and u they love darkne- , 
 
 because their deeds are evil,'' (John iii. 19.) 
 
 5. The fellowship of professing Christians with such societies, where 
 the members are bound together by covenants of love and friendship, and 
 constitute a distinct and separate hi 's inconsistent with that 
 
 principle ( :ion from the world which is so re, lly and ex- 
 
 plicitly enj in the word of God — we ration from 
 
 the world; for t tandard of their faith and tly and 
 
 I to the world, (Ex. xxiii. xxxiv. 12, r. 
 
 ft 14 — 18; Pa. cvi. 35; Pa. \. I.) 
 
 The: learly in our comb ion of 
 
 secret ined by the word of God. 
 
 \V< said nothing of t ion of the place of the church- 
 
 the Chri r of tl i »f worship in use — of the profane use 
 
 that i four:' f the selfish and e 
 
 tir of their I the of truth, in 
 
 wl in vol'. 
 
 t — of their injuriou . civil ana political relations of 
 
34 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 life, and of the unhappy influence which they have in drawing persons 
 away from the duties of the family and the sanctuary, — all of which in 
 relation to some of the principal of these associations, are made manifest 
 by their published writings, and by the workings of the system* in the 
 community, — of these things we have said nothing, because there may 
 be some secret associations upon which all these things are not charge- 
 able, and because we think the considerations presented by us are suffi- 
 cient to show that the church should solemnly testify against them. 
 
 ARTICLE XVI.— of communion. 
 
 DECLARATION. 
 
 We declare, That the church should not extend communion, 
 in sealing ordinances, to those who refuse adherence to her pro- 
 fession, or subjection to her government and discipline, or who 
 refuse to forsake a communion which is inconsistent with the 
 profession that she makes ; nor should communion in any ordi- 
 nance of worship be held under such circumstances as would be 
 inconsistent with the keeping of these ordinances pure and en- 
 tire, ©r so as to give countenanca to any corruption of the doc- 
 trines and institutions of Christ. 
 
 Argument and Illustration. 
 
 This Declaration is believed to be in accordance with the Confession of 
 Faith, chap, xxvi., sees. 1, 2; chap, xxviii., sec. 4. 
 
 We have not, in the above Declaration, set forth the whole doctrine of 
 the Scriptures pertaining to the communion of saints ; as it is not the ob- 
 1 ect of this Testimony to do so in relation to any of the points on which we 
 have deemed it our duty to give a declaration. We have, as in all the 
 preceding statements, exhibited only that view of the subject which we 
 think has been lost sight of by some who profess an adherence to the 
 Confession of Faith. We deem this remark the more necessary here, as 
 the principle which the :bove Declaration contains is not distinctly 
 brouo-ht to view in the Confession. From this circumstance, and from 
 the general expressions employed in that document, there has been 
 thought to be an inconsistency between the statements there made on 
 the subject of communion, and the view here presented. The first sec- 
 tion of the chapter that formally treats of the subject, exhibits union to 
 Jesus Christ by his Spirit, and union to one another in love, as the found- 
 ation and source of their fellowship with Him and with one another. 
 The next section declares: — " Saints, by profession, are bound to main- 
 tain a holy fellowship and communion in the worship of God, and in per- 
 forming such other spiritual services as tend to their mutual edification ; 
 
l ELBSBt ri-'.Kl.YN O&URCII. 
 
 so, iii :i ether in outward tl. their 
 
 several abi Which communion, as God offereth op* 
 
 portun^y. i> I .ill those, who, in - mil up 
 
 the nam* rests." Bore, l« ' be Co 
 
 is i i nit 1 v o: U is the 
 
 ier.il b ram an ion, inolndi relieving each other in 
 
 outward th. Lingtottx nd necessities." 
 
 while fellowship in sealio nbl Included in tl ■- 
 
 raunion in "the worship of G ined in this Becti el t lie sun- 
 
 jex-t being I 1 in tl set, there * U ;i necessity for the us« 
 
 of the general expn '*S •;• on," i who 
 
 in d the name of the Lord Jeeos/' ii spc iking of the 
 
 persons to whom this communion is to I tended. We believe that the 
 
 B rip:«! . "All those who in every pla 11 on the name 
 
 the Lord Je >r the special purpose of settin :i the 
 
 important idea, that C ians, in different lands, should cultivate: 
 wards each Other a holy fellowship. >>ot sutF«-r their mutual 1 'V'- to 
 
 be by lo nes or national distinctions. Th< 
 
 object for which the \ bly was convened, namely, to 
 
 effect in the three kingdoms s uniformity in doctrine, worship, and gov- 
 ernment, i: also be remembered that the ; 
 tio the Re-form ;it ion were at that time expo?. 
 
 ndered it ne for their brethren in Othi who were more 
 
 highly favore !. to extend relief to them in their i This, though 
 
 always a duty to some degrei duty to which Christians 
 
 were especially called. Hence the principle is ins< that Christian 
 
 in every pi ao\ should be the object <»ur love and sympathy. In ad 
 
 tion to thii ,ould not be forgotten that the churches, at that time, 
 
 were in . rse of re: tion : and their entire conformity in doctrine, 
 
 worship, government, and discipline, was anticipat d in contempla- 
 
 tion at the time that the Confession was made. The Ordinance of the 
 Parliament, calling the emblv 
 
 of - that Assembly to be, th< ragreemenl I mrch 
 
 of England "with the Chnrch .nd and other. Reformed Church 
 
 abroa [See the Ordinani The Chun 9 also, adopted 
 
 the C irt of the intended uniformity 
 
 in religi A | of Lb emblv ion.] 
 
 Simil for the 
 
 Public Worship i\ Cburcb G — 
 
 .rly indi the commnnion which th«y enjoined was 
 
 tor it.- 1 to sup- 
 
 pose who declared that t! I the C a of Faith 
 
 with this view, and as u a. special means for the more effectually suppress- 
 
36 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 ing of the many dangerous errors and heresies of these times,'' and who, 
 in their National Covenant, had declared that they " abhorred and de- 
 tested all religion and doctrine contrary to that received, and believed, 
 and defended by many and sundry notable kirks and realms, but chiefly by 
 the Kirk of Scotland" — *who had covenanted that they would ''endeavor 
 the preservation of the Reformed religion in the Church of Scotland, in 
 doctrine, worship, discipline, and government, 7 ' and who in their " En- 
 gagement to duties" had solemnly bound themselves to "preserve the 
 purity of religion against all error, heresy and schism, namely, Indepen- 
 dentism, Anabaptism, Antinomianism, Arminianism, Socinianism, Famil- 
 ism, Libertinism, Skepticism, and Erastianism" — how unreasonable, we 
 say, to suppose that they designed by this article in the Confession to en- 
 join the duty of the church of Christ, to extend sealing ordinances to 
 those who, though they a called on the name of the Lord Jesus," were 
 making opposition to the principles of the Confession — making opposi- 
 tion, either as individuals, or in a collective and organized capacity as a 
 church! Nothing could be more unreasonable than such a supposition. 
 We do not believe that the framers of the Confession thought of " God 
 offering opportunity" (which word means "a time favorable for the pur- 
 pose") to Christians to hold communion in sealing ordinances, under such 
 circumstances. The truth is, the present practice of intercommunion 
 among Christians living in the same place, and professing principles op- 
 posed to each other, was far from their thoughts. 
 
 While, therefore, in accordance with our Confession, we maintain that 
 communion as God offereth opportunity, is to be extended to all, who in 
 every place, call on the name of the Lord Jesus; yet, in perfect consist- 
 ency with this, we have declared that the church should not extend com- 
 munion in sealing ordinances to those who refuse adherence to her pro- 
 fession, or subjection to her government and discipline, or who refuse to 
 forsake a communion svhich is inconsistent with the profession which 
 she makes. 
 
 In making this declaration, we have assumed that this profession is in 
 accordance with the word of God. If this be so, the church is surely 
 bound to maintain it by the due exercise of government and discipline. 
 If it be the duty of the church to pro te ^ 5 the truths of Christ, as must 
 be apparent to any one who duly considers the end of her organization, 
 and the solemn injunctions of the word of God, ( Jude 3 ; Prov. xxiii. 
 23 ; Rev. iii. 10 ; Phil. i. 27 ; 1 Cor. xvi. 13; 2 Thess. ii. 15 ; Heb. iv. 14; 
 x. 23; John xv. 27; Matt, xxviii. 20,) it must also be her duty to man- 
 tain these truths by the faithful exercise of that government and discip- 
 line which have been instituted by her King and Head. The correctness 
 of this principle is so obvious that we see not how any one can call it in 
 question. The word of God clearly recognises it, as may be seen by a 
 
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHI 37 
 
 re: . 14, I . li ; !.">.— 
 
 1 in t 
 
 irticij" it a full I 
 
 the ri^lit of that lipj or r;ither, the 
 
 m itself of thv l. [f this he deni< 
 
 ask, wh church 
 
 than is done in • » a person this privi. \ I in wh.it w 
 
 a the church withhold >fthi- ibership from a person 
 
 for any i y refusing to extend to him this privi This I - 
 
 ing the case, it must appear to ler the matt palpable 
 
 in end the privi i g > those who reffl 
 
 to her | t, or subjection to her eminent and discipli By 
 
 so le church _ e which it i 
 
 her to p P communion with I i whom and herself, 
 
 church pro ain truths, there is not only no comm ut 
 
 :ual opposition. To these p 
 she g to those who are ••holding mat the profession o: ith." 
 
 ling to thJ it is plain that the government an 1 discip- 
 
 line of I arch cannot b I ith her profession; th 
 
 there >me truths which Christ has male it the du. the church 
 
 to pn and though he ha or a government an 1 a 
 
 yet she may not exercise these in maintaining these troths. How p 
 ble is the inconsistency in which this pr • involve- ! Is 
 
 it the profession may he mautained, even though this privilege 
 
 be extended to those who may be op] it in some particulars? \\ 
 
 •v is t If those who are op[> m 
 
 which the church mak . soum of i _ principl <y be 
 
 admi: i baptism and the Lords Supper, 0] ion to this profession, 
 
 on the part of any of its me with iow of cons y, 
 
 be made a ground oi exclusion from these privi ; for if one may 
 
 oppo sion which the church m. nother d 
 
 her of the church. \V: under th on of 
 
 a prin church for the pi i ation of her pun 
 
 It i 1 that the 1,) 
 
 i to h i- 
 
 ples ot nd, therefoi 
 
 a ground either for excluding th 
 
 ordin . . or of withholding these ordin from th B not 
 
 mernbr In relation to tl .Id ol ~[ l -l That the 
 
 t of their -hip i leir put, o: 
 
 f the chur .ich tl .If 
 
 i if th 
 all its prin ;" com .ve come under an 
 
38 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 implied, if not an express obligation to mantain them. [2.] The admis- 
 sion of persous to membership, with this understanding, proceeds upon 
 the supposition that private members constitute no part of the church, 
 but that it is confined exclusively to the officers of the church, which is 
 unscriptural, (Matt. xvi. 18 ; Acts ii. 47; viii. 1; xiv. 23, 27 ; xv. 22; Eph, 
 i. 22 ; v. 25; 1 Cor. xii. 28;) anti-presbyterian, and contrary to the Con- 
 fession of Faith, which defines the church to be "those who profess the 
 true religion together with their children." [3.] This principle, if it 
 were always recognised and acted upon, would render the government 
 and discipline of the church a mere nullity, and totally annihilate the 
 jurisdiction of church officers. What authority could be consistently 
 claimed and exercised over those who had given no promise, either ex- 
 press or implied, of adherence to the doctrine, worship, and government 
 of the church? 
 
 We have also declared, that communion in sealing ordinances should 
 not be extended by a church to persons who "refuse to forsake a com- 
 munion which is inconsistent with the profession which she makes.'' 
 The correctness of this principle follows as a necessary consequence from 
 the principle already established ; namely, that there should be an adhe- 
 rence to to the profession, and subjection :o the government and discip- 
 line of the church required of those who are admitted to her communion 
 in sealing ordinances. It is plain that a person cannot be a member, at 
 the same time, of two churches; nor can he be consistently admitted by 
 a church to those privileges, a participation of which implies a full right 
 to membership, on the ground of his membership in a church whose pro- 
 fession is inconsistent with that of the one to which he seeks admission. 
 The impropriety of extending to such a person the sealing ordinances, 
 becomes, under these circumstances, the more palpable; for not only 
 does he give no declaration of adherence to the church extending to him 
 its highest privileges and its most affecting pledges of communion, but 
 he appears there as the member of a religious association whose princi- 
 ples are known to be different from, and in some respects adverse to, 
 those of the church which invites him to this communion. Such a prac- 
 tice, too, involves the following evils and irregularities: — [1.] It re- 
 cognises the propriety of receiving persons to membership in the 
 church who do not profess our principles and subject themselves to 
 her laws. For if they may be received, on one occasion, to the highest 
 privileges of the church, they may be received, in the same way, to per- 
 manent membership. [2.] It recognises the principle that mere saint- 
 ship is the criterion of the right of a person to the communion of the 
 church, which is unscriptural, (2 Thess. iii. 14, 15; 1 Cor. v. 5.) [3.] It 
 requires, and supposes a recognition of the acts of those who admitted 
 these persons to membership in other churches, without a knowledge of 
 
UNITED >m:iii\\ OJ n. 39 
 
 I when th L the authorit? 
 
 be. an 1 who a no 
 
 sc i the cbui pi pie U u- 
 
 Thifl pre [a ility a ho 
 
 are nil enjoying, for the tins privi and thu 
 
 stroys the unity of I irch. ] It impairs the fullm 
 
 of the :i of tl, ordina 
 
 under >a, a 
 
 comm.m faith. [«'».] I testimony, which :'• 
 
 mem'' >f the chnroh would other ilf 
 
 of their distinctive pr i of the. ity in making it. 
 
 It has a tei / to mak ?, in 1 to divine truth. 
 
 and the duty and in faithfully maintaining it. [8.] It pc - 
 
 ats th in the church ol id thna en- 
 
 da* her pnrit; J It encour church or_ 
 
 or . rian divi it prop) ils of these divi- 
 
 sions, which contemplate- the continuance of these divisions, and thus 
 makes Christians indifferent to th if which receives no connteo in 
 
 the word of God, and is highly displeasing to the II >f the church. 
 
 While, the that no Christian should be ezclud >m 
 
 thi ing ordinances of the church, simply because of the weakness of 
 
 his faith or the smallness of his attainments, or because of difficulties 
 that may be in his mind in relation to some point 1 with the 
 
 profession of the church. .he considerations we have pi .ed fully 
 
 b the truth of our Declaration on this subject, and call upon 
 
 lemoly to testify against the practice which prevails even among many 
 who pr> the 1': erian riving persons into the com- 
 
 munion of the chur i, without requiri il 
 
 ire able to ja of the profession which the church 
 
 mak« 1 of admitt : I il communion the ir. of other 
 
 n churches, of a different faith and profession, sim: . the 
 
 ground of their membership in said churcl them 
 
 in an the government church 
 
 that admits them to this occasional communion. 
 
 ARTICLE XVII.— 01 OOYKHAHTINQ. 
 DXCLABAT] 
 
 11" </■ . Tii it public - il dut 
 
 the >f wb ! times, bu 
 
 s th<' pi il.-.- o 1. in 1 the cir- 
 cumstances of the church may iridicai It ifl B table in 
 
40 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 times of great clanger to the church — in times of exposure to 
 backsliding — or in times of reformation, when the church is re- 
 turning to God from a state of backsliding. When the church 
 has entered into such covenant transactions, they continue to 
 bind posterity faithfully to adhere to and prosecute the grand 
 object for which such engagements have been entered into. 
 
 Araument and Illustration. 
 This Declaration is in accordance with the doctrine of the Confession 
 of Faith, chap. xxii. sees. 5 — 1. 
 
 The Confession, in the sections referred to, treats of "vows." These 
 are essentially the same as covenants with God. In covenanting with 
 God we, in the way of taking hold of his covenant of grace, in which 
 he engages to be our God, promise to him, or vow, that in the strength 
 of his promised grace, we will be his people, and perform those duties 
 which he has enjoined upon us in his word. He says, in the promise of 
 the covenant, "I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people/' 
 (Heb. viii. 10.) The believer, in exercise of faith, takes God to be his 
 God; and, having done so, he engages on his part, that he will be one 
 of his people, and act towards him in a way becoming this relation. 
 This avowal and engagement are made when the believer first gives him- 
 self away to the Lord, and they are renewed upon every subsequent dedi- 
 cation. This is the essence of covenanting with God, whether it be 
 personal and private, or social and public. The churches of Macedonia, 
 therefore, covenanted with God, when they gave their own selves to the 
 Lord, (2 Cor. viii. 5.) This is the duty to which the apostle exhorts the 
 Romans, when urging them to yield themselves to the Lord, and to present 
 their bodies a living sacrifice unto God, (Rom. vi. 13; xii. 1.) The idea of 
 a covenant is necessarily involved In such a surrender. In every such 
 surrender there must be a taking hold of God's covenant, and an engage- 
 ment, on our part, to be his people, and to perform the various duties 
 that are incumbent upon us. 
 
 Besides this covenanting with God, in which every believer must be 
 supposed to have engaged, the Scriptures also clearly authorize the do- 
 ing of this on special occasions, by a formal and solemn deed. The chil- 
 dren of Israel at Horeb, after Moses had related to them the promises 
 and requirements of God, said — "All that the Lord hath spoken we will 
 do," (Ex. xix. 5 — 8.) Here were solemn engagements to duty, publicly 
 expressed. These engagements were afterwards renewed, and in making 
 these engagements they are said to "enter into covenant with the Lord 
 their God;" the end of which covenant is declared to be that the Lord 
 ''might establish them a people unto himself," (Deut. xxix. 10 — 13.) 
 Here was a public transaction, in which they formally and explicitly en- 
 
II. 
 
 At 
 
 told od 
 
 I 
 di -vill w 
 
 A 
 mrait! ite it 
 
 | On 
 d th< 
 nt to . ,rd 
 
 of thi i ith all their soul."' The 
 
 unity I on t; ion, ( 
 
 IT ine heart to mi 
 
 a c with the Lord God o; lis fie: 
 
 from Wi xi. 17) tha 
 
 ivenant I . the Loj I be kiug, and the people, ti. 
 
 lOuld be the Loi iah(2Eii ) "mi 
 
 .ore tl d to walk after the Lord. to kc- corumand- 
 
 nn jtimoni :d his statutes, with all their heait, and 
 
 with all their soul/' Manj ra made the chief ] 
 
 the Lei .1 Israel enter into a covenant a: that tl. 
 
 would i duti .) In the time oi iniah 
 
 the children of Israel We make a sure COT :id write it;" and 
 
 1 i :old that the; I into a curse and into an oath to 
 
 ilk in law, which was given by M (Neh. Lx. 38; x. 28, 29.) 
 
 These examples of God's people clearly authorize the dut forth 
 
 the Declaration. 
 
 We : it the du; consider* rformed by 
 
 ver when he dedical mself to the Lord, and was perform- 
 
 ed he churches of Macedi of the duty being mor. 
 
 ttn in which « <;ple are re| rving it on seve- 
 
 nly desi_ for our imitation, when the 
 
 oc I it. In addition to th \e 
 
 that we a: d to "vow and pay unto the Lord our 
 
 .11.) The dutj ir iDg, not only by the Lord, but 
 
 (he Lord, : ;t. v. 33.) He hi 
 
 gi ■ vice that we .-hould 
 
 IL 11; Luke i. 
 It i ;, unci 
 
 th' . ition, "Five 
 
 of unto tl 21;) a 
 
 lual i ill 
 
 not b eo." J L'l p 
 
 ixs. b, margin gi?e the baud unto the Lord.' It . xlif 
 
42 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 5,) as the result of the outpouring of his Spirit, that his people "shall sub- 
 scribe with the hand unto the Lord." Such formal, solemn transactions, 
 have been not only privately entered into by the best of God's people; 
 but also publicly, by the churches of the Reformation, and particularly 
 the Church of Scotland. 
 
 Such transactions, when entered into according to the will of God, do 
 not bind to any thing additional to what the law of God contains; but 
 they bring those who engage in them under an additional obligaticn — an 
 obligation arising from their own engagement, promise, or oath, as the 
 case may be. 
 
 We have said that this duty is not a stated, but an extraordinary duty. 
 
 That this is the case, appears from the very nature of the duty. It is only 
 on special occasions that writings and an oath between parties are re- 
 quired. It also appears from the Scripture examples referred to. 
 
 We have said that this duty is seasonable in times of great danger to 
 the church. Such was the character of the times in the reign of Asa. 
 They were "in trouble" — "great vexations" were upon them — they were 
 « vexed with all adversity," (2 Chron. xv. 3, 4, 5, 6, 12.) 
 
 We have said that this duty is seasonable in times of exposure to back- 
 sliding. Such was the case in the time of Joshua. There were "strange 
 gods" among them, (Josh. xxiv. 23.) 
 
 We have also said that it is seasonable in times of reformation Such 
 was the case in the time of Ezra. "The people wept very sore" of their 
 sins, acknowledging that they had trespassed against their God, (Ezra x. 
 1 — 3,) — and in the time of Nehemiah they had ''separated themselves 
 from the people of the land unto the law of God,"' (Neh. x. 28, 29.) 
 
 This duty being thus of a special and extraordinary character, and its 
 seasonableness to be determined by the indications of God's providences 
 and the circumstances of the church, there may be times when the call 
 to it may not be so clear to the minds of some of the members of the 
 church. On this account such members should not be required to ob- 
 serve it. nor subjected to discipline for declining to do so ; provided they 
 are not making public opposition to it as a moral duty to be observed on 
 proper occasions. 
 
 We have declared that " when the church has entered into such coven- 
 ant transactions, they continue to bind posterity faithfully to adhere to, 
 and prosecute the grand object for which such engagements have been 
 entered into." The principle here recognised, is not peculiar to these 
 transactions. It is the same principle that is acted upon in all corporate 
 or organized bodies, whether civil or ecclesiastical. Every society re- 
 gards its acts, (unless these acts are such as, in their nature, limit their 
 own duration to a certain period,) as properly binding the body until they 
 are repealed. The removal, by death, of some, or even of all those who 
 originally passed these acts, does not in the least affect their obligation 
 
C SITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 
 
 
 upon The b ime princip] M 
 
 the church in I 
 
 riptui A\ in other tra a- 
 
 th Bosea xii. 4 ; with - I ; B 
 
 but id immed tion with this dot; with 
 
 1 1. Id childn 
 
 tion in fioreb, (E v. 5 — Phe Lord m uit with 
 
 our Dithers, but with Q arc nil of us here alive thil 
 
 da . toot v. 3.) Again: M the m i ith of Q 
 
 (D M I make this w ls6 with him th re 
 
 h us this The children oflw re eh 1 with break- 
 
 ing the coven. i:it which he mil : -r. xi. 10.) Be a: 
 
 not tr m 
 (Jer. ii. 20.) Be prom a thai he will not forget the covenant 
 
 •*, which he sware unto them. ( Dent. iv. 31 ;) and th it he will 
 
 aeraber the tant of their amcetton a he brought out of the land 
 
 of Egypt] (Lev. xxvi. 44. 4">.) The descent, therefore ; upou posterity, of 
 oblig ! arising from covenant en _ r laments, is most clearly re d 
 
 in the Scriptures. In accord -vith this scriptural princip'. hiv: 
 
 descend :u the Church o: land, regard ourselves . by 
 
 the e: nents of ouf reform: og an© in the National Covenant, 
 
 aud Solemn League and Covenant, to prosecute the gran 1 object for whu h 
 these covena:. into, namely, the preservation and trans- 
 
 mission to i t v of the true Reformed religion, (Ps. Lxxriii ) In 
 
 making this statement, h are not to be understoo 1 as expre- 
 
 ing our approval of every with these Ions, as en- 
 
 tered into by them. 
 
 We h ive thus fully established the principles of the foregoing De 
 tion in relation to this duty, and therefore we solemnly V in behalf 
 
 of its oi nee by the chinch. And although, in the consideration of 
 
 this subject, vre have been goaded exclusively by tin- Q 
 
 word: yet the that this duty is, when properly oi-- 1,80 evidently 
 
 calculated, in its own n iture, to unite the hearts of God's children, in 
 their efforts to maintiin an 1 mce his cause, and keep alive in th 
 
 souls a sense of their ment to Him. fixes in our mind 
 
 the conviction that the glory i .. and the i' the church, de- 
 
 mand its oba the providences 1 the ciroon 
 
 of the church may indicate. 
 
 ARTICLE XVIII. —Of WALMODY. 
 D B( I. a B LTION. 
 
 Ii' . Tl. •• il : - - : . i of ( J » 1 th • m 
 
 in the book of Psalms, I>3 sung in his worship, b >:h • 
 lie and private, to the en 1 of the world; so I in 
 
44 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 praise, these songs should be employed to the exclusion of the 
 devotional compositions of uninspired men. 
 
 Argument and Illustration. 
 
 This Declaration is in accordance with the Confession of Faith, chap, 
 xxi. sees. 1 and 5; Shorter Catechism, Ques. 51; Larger Catechism, Ques. 
 109 ; and Directory for the Public Worship of God. 
 
 Although the Declaration we have just made on this subject is in op- 
 position to the statements and practices of many, even of those who pro- 
 fess an adherence to the Confession of Faith, we believe it to be in ac- 
 cordance with the authority of God's word. 
 
 This Declaration affirms it to be the will of God, that the songs contained 
 in the book of Psalms should be used by the church of Christ, In tes- 
 tifying in behalf of this, we, of course, are to be understood as speaking 
 of the use of the Psalms in the formal worship of God. Now, the word 
 of God is the only source to which we can apply in order to ascertain his 
 will. In the light of this word, we urge in favor of the use of these 
 Psalms: — 1. God has given them as a book of psalms. They were 
 composed by the inspiration of God, (2 Tim. iii. 16: 2 Pet. i. 21 ; 2 Sam. 
 xxiii. 2 ;) and, of course, were given by God. We have said that they 
 were given as a book of psalms. They are expressly so called in the New 
 Testament, (Luke xx. 42; Acts i. 20.) Our argument, then, is — The book 
 of Psalms, whence was it ? From heaven, or of men ? If from heaven , 
 why not use it? (Matt. xxi. 25.) 2. The title given to David, their 
 penman, indicates that it is the will of God that they should be used by 
 the church. He is called "the sweet psalmist of Israel," (2 Sam. xxiii. 
 1.) 3. They are called the "songs of the Lord," (1 Chron. xxv. 7;) 
 which, like the expressions, "table of the Lord,''* "supper of the Lord," 
 " day of the Lord," implies divine authority and appointment. 4. They 
 are called "the songs of Zion," (Ps. exxxvii. 3,) which implies that they 
 were designed for the use of the church. 5. God's worshipping people, 
 under the former dispensation, were directed to sing them, (1 Chron. xvi. 
 4,1-, 2 Chron. xxix. 30; Ps. cv. 2; Ps. lxxxi. 2:) and they sang them 
 after their captivity. (Neh. xii. 24.) These directions and examples are 
 still in force, as there is in the New Testament no intimation to the con- 
 trary. 6. These commands are renewed in the New Testament, (Eph. v. 
 19; Col. iii. 16; James v. 13.) 7. They were mos: probably sung by 
 our Lord and his disciples at the institution of the Lord's Supper, (Matt, 
 xxvi. 30 ;) the Jews made use of them at the passover, on which occasion 
 the Lord's Supper was instituted. Here the argument is the same as we 
 have for the observance of the first day of the week as the Sabbath. 
 These considerations fully establish the truth of our Declaration, that 
 the songs contained in the book of Psalms should be sung in the worship 
 of God. 
 
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 
 
 w 
 
 or 
 
 For it ifl Dot on '.;iiilo 
 
 . 
 I will,*' but tli the v 
 
 .) simple qu a, then, is — II.. 
 
 we ii\ ii 13 of unit; iu 
 
 ? It lie 
 
 not 
 [ritual (Eph. v. 19j Col. i ; ) la ithor 
 
 sought , " musl 
 
 11 1 itiona 
 
 : from thos 1 
 
 ns of uninspired men differ . of in> men. This, hu 
 
 nuot be show::. It does not in the of 
 
 for w w that the Script ften, under a variety 
 
 ofnamei me pi I which has been appointed by 
 
 "judgmenta," • ordinances," and "con Lments 
 
 (I Deut. .10; ; Ex. xviii. . 
 
 x: in the names, " 1; 'or 
 
 name ire 
 
 applied along wi (a j ..- me of the inspir ,tlni3. 
 
 The wL . in II - I/tin, the Book of 
 
 Ilymns. T ion of the Old I it — tfa 
 
 in the times of the Apostle- lies to some of the inspired 
 
 Psalms the very terms, "hymn vhich the apostle e 
 
 pi I Josephus, and other w: fer to tfa id 
 
 under the name o me." It is. therefor -rly ii 
 
 ible to to find in the 
 
 uthoi of any other compositions but th< 
 
 and hymn ion. 
 
 But not on i of authority in these passages, but th 
 
 ar I vhich are conclusive b I on 
 
 of inction as the one t. 1. It is known that ther- 
 
 and hymns, and 
 
 I to mike hymns or 
 for t 
 poss it. 3. It is d 
 
 b> 
 
46 TESTIMONY OF THE 
 
 likely that the apostle would thus place the word of God and the word of 
 man upon a par, by directing them both to be used for the same end. 6. 
 Jf we make the distinction which is alleged to exist between psalms and 
 Injmns, we must make a distinction equally great between hymns and 
 spiritual songs. 7. These songs are called spiritual, which word implies 
 that the Spirit of God is their author, (1 Cor. x. 3, 4 ; Rom. vii. 14 ; 1 Cor, 
 lii. 1 ; xv. 44, 46; Eph. i. 3; Gal. vi. 1 ; Col. i. 9, &c.) 8. They are to 
 be used as a means of being "filled with the Spirit;" to this end the 
 words of inspiration are peculiarly adapted. 9. We are to sing them as 
 a means of "letting the word of Christ dwell in us richly" — language 
 which will apply more appropriately to the inspired Psalms than to any 
 human composition. In view of these considerations, these two passages 
 of the New Testament Scriptures are to be regarded as an apostolic in- 
 junction to praise God, by means of those psalms, and hymns, and spiritual 
 s^ongs, which He himself had given to his church. In making use of any 
 thing else, we are doing that for which we have no warrant, and against 
 the expressed will of Him to whom alone it belongs to say in what way, 
 and by what means, he shall be worshipped. We, therefore, solemnly 
 testify against the use of uninspiied compositions in the worship of God. 
 
 In testifying for the use of an inspired psalmody, we, of course, make 
 no reference to any particular version. We should use the most faithful 
 that can be obtained. It is for the u e of the book of Psalms, in a faith- 
 ful translation, whether it be in measured or unmeasured lines, and 
 against the use of a mere imitation 3r loose paraphrase of these Psalms, 
 or the use of a religious song, composed by man, that we testify. 
 
 The evils which have followed the exclusion of an inspired psalmody 
 from the worship of God. and the arguments which have been urged by 
 many of the advocates of the practice which we condemn, (indicating, 
 as they often do, a disregard of Divine authority, or a want of reverence 
 for the Scriptures, and low views in relation io their inspiration,) only 
 impress us the more deeply with a sense of the importance of mantain- 
 ing this ordinance in its purity. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 We have thus, with all plainness, but we trust in "simplicity 
 and eodly sincerity/' given a declaration of our faith in relation 
 to certain articles of divine truth, which have been either deni- 
 ed by not a few professing Christians, or permitted to lie in 
 obscurity. Our object has been by thus, as a church of Christ, 
 "speaking the truth in love/ 7 to draw attention to these things, 
 in the hope that our brethren of the Presbyterian family, from, 
 whom we are in a state of separation, may be brought seriously 
 to consider the grounds of our controversy with them. We 
 most deeply deplore the divisions that exist in the Church of 
 
ITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 47 
 
 
 and ( 'ally an 
 
 Faith : belies ing that t 
 
 t hrist, and tend t<» hardeo th. tin truth in their oj 
 
 t«> it — to pron improper feelings an iren — 
 
 unteraot tin rand 
 
 and a?OW< I hii>tianity, which ifl to unit; 
 
 all countries and el G I to < ■ nti- 
 
 ment, heart, and ion. With t! nr minds 
 
 h a \. I upon the i ; I tiinonj ; and it is with a 
 
 . wiih the bl< of < rod, be instru- 
 
 mental in brinf >ur brethren ana qs to see eye I thai 
 
 we now publish if be world. 
 
 It has been to displace 
 
 'I', Btim the t Faith, or in any I \v 
 
 le. Had th liquid have in- 
 
 troduced into it many things on which we h, otirelj 
 
 lent. The \ m in which we 1 bibited this i i 3ti- 
 
 mony, clearly indicates thai our object is direetly th 
 th We ha\" In - an ans, to direct attenti 
 
 d< tit which contains th< afefi I aith, and to 
 
 rich, Church we h solemnly declared on 
 
 We would with all earnestness, remind all those into 
 
 whose hand- this Testimony may fall, and ially I who 
 
 have received it as their': 91 iiioiiy, that a pi I of it n- 
 
 ciples will be in vain, and than in vain, if this pn - on 
 
 }>, attended by a holy life — a life of |»ra mmonion 
 
 with God, and d ion to his cauc The "grace of G 
 
 hich we ha thibit, which "teach 
 
 us, thai n ;_r all ungodliness and worldly 1 should 
 
 live soberly, r; <dly in thi> present world k- 
 
 in r that ; d hope, and th< _ j of the 
 
 great God and our Saviour Jesus Chri known, 
 
 , and solemnly c ed, thatw< ird our- id 
 
 nil those who may pr 
 
 under i renounce the world, the flesh and the 
 
 devil— _ ainst _ holiness in tlie fear of 
 
 tl it upon ( lod in all ? of relii. 
 
 jhip, individual and and 
 
 tl in all their appropriate tin >ns — to pi e the 
 
 v, and prosperil ion, and I ! 
 
 • 
 tl hout th rid — of th 
 
 and promote harity and brotl 
 
 love towards all their brethren in l 
 
 j to this rule, on th< m an I nou 
 
 upon the Li Am< 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 COXEESSIOX OF THE U. PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. 
 
 Co n of Faith. Chop. 20, Sec. i — And because the pov 
 
 which i he liberty wiiich Chri>th:itli pur- 
 
 chased, arc not intended by God to destroy, but mutually to up- 
 hold and | ve one another; they who. upon pretence of 
 Christian liberty, shall oppose any lawful power, or the lawful 
 exercise of it. whether it be civil or ecclesiastical, resist the ordi- 
 nance of God. And for the publishing of such opinions, or 
 maintaining such practices as are contralto the light of nature 
 or to the known principles of Christianity, whether concerning 
 faith, worship, or conversation, or to the power of godliness ; or 
 such erroneous opinions or practices as, either in their OAvn na- 
 ture or in the manner of publishing or maintaining them, are 
 destructive to the external peace and order which Christ has 
 established in the Church; they ought to be called to account. 
 and proceeded against by the censures of the church, if they 
 belong to her communion, and thus be amenable to her own 
 spiritual authority. And as the ( ivil magistrate is the minister 
 of God for good, to the virtuous, and a revenger to execute 
 wrath upon him that doeth evil, he is therefore bound to sup- 
 press individuals and combinations, whatever may be their 
 avowed objects, whether political or religious, whose principles 
 and practices, openly propagated ami maintained arc calculated 
 to subvert the foundations of properly constituted society. 
 
 Co?ifcssion Chap. 23, Sec. 3. — The civil magistrate may not as- 
 sume to himself the administration of the Word and Sacraments 
 (2 chron. xxvi. 18 ; Heb. v. 4; Rom. x. 15 :) or the power of the 
 keys of the kingdom of heaven, or in the least interfere to regu- 
 late matters of faith and worship. (Matt. xvi. 19; i Cor. iv. 1—2: 
 John xviii. 36 ; Acts v. 1—9. 18—20: vi. &; Matt. ii. 7.) As nursing- 
 fathers, magistrates are bound to administer their government 
 according to the revealed principles of Christianity, and to im- 
 prove the opportunities which their high station and extensive 
 influence afford in promoting the Christian religion as their own 
 most valuable interest and the good of the people demand, by all 
 such means as do not imply any infringement of the inherent 
 rights of the church ; or any assumption of dominion over the 
 consciences of men, (Col. iii. 17 ; Ps. ii. 10 — 11: Ps. xciv. 20.) 
 They ought not to punish any as heretics or schismatics. No 
 authoritative judgment concerning matters of religion is compe- 
 tent to them, as their authority extends only ro the external 
 works or practices of their subjects as citizens, and not as Chris- 
 tians. It is their duty to protect the church, in such a manner 
 that all ecclesiastical persons shall enjoy the full, free and un- 
 questioned liberty of discharging every part of their sacred 
 functions without violence or danger. (Is. xlix. 23,) They should 
 enact no law which would in anyway interfere with. or hinder the 
 due exercise of government and discipline established by Jesus 
 Christ in his church. (Ps. cv. 14 ; Acts xviii. 14 — 16.) It is their 
 duty. also, to protect the person, good name, estate, natural and 
 civil rights of all their subjects, in such a way that no person 
 be s uttered, upon any pretence, to violate them : and to take 
 order that all religious and ecclesiastical assemblies be held 
 without molestation or disturbance. (1 Tim. ii. 2: Ps. lxxxii. 
 3.) God alone being Lord of the conscience, the civil magistrate 
 may not compel any under his civil authority to worship God 
 contrary to the dictates of their own. consciences, yet it is com- 
 petent in him to restrain such opinions, and punish such practi- 
 ces, as tend to subvert the foundations of civil society, and vio- 
 late the common rights of men, (2 Cor. x. 4 ; Rom. xiii. 3 — i ; 
 Xehem. xiii. 15. 17. 21, 22.) 
 
 Confession of Faith. Chap. 31, Sec. 2. — "We declare that as the 
 Church of Jesus Christ is a kingdom distinct from and indepen- 
 dent of the State having a government, laws, office-bearers, and 
 all spiritual power peculiar to herself, for her own edification ; 
 so it belongs exclusively to the ministers of Christ, together 
 with other fit persons, upon delegation from their churches, by 
 virtue of their office, and the intrinsic power committed to 
 them, to appoint their own assemblies, and to convene together 
 in them, as often as they shall judge it expedient for the good 
 of the church, (Acts xv. 
 srfL 28 : Eph. Iv. 11, 12.) 
 
 4, t>, 22, 23, 25 John xviii. 36; 1 Cor. 
 
 WESTMINSTER COXEES- 
 )N OF EA1TH. 
 
 IT Ai.d because the powers 
 which God hath ordained, and 
 the liberty which Christ hath 
 purchased, are not intended 
 by God to destroy, but mu- 
 tually to uphold and preserve 
 one another; they who, upon 
 pretence of Christian liberty, 
 shall oppose any lawful pow- 
 er, or the lawful exercise of 
 it, whether it be civil or eccle- 
 siastical, resist the ordinance 
 of God. And for the publish-' 
 in., of such oj anions, or main- 
 taining of such practices, as 
 are contrary to the light of 
 nature, or to the known prin- 
 ciples of Christianity, whether 
 concerning faith, worship, or 
 conversation ; or to the power 
 of godliness: or such errone- 
 ous opinions or practices, as 
 either in their own nature, or 
 in the manner of publishing 
 or maintaining them, are de- 
 structive to the external peace 
 and order which Christ hath 
 established in the church; 
 they may lawfully be called 
 to account, and proceeded 
 against by the censures of the 
 church, and by the power 
 of the civil magistrate. 
 
 111. The civil magistrate 
 may not assume to himself 
 the administration of the 
 word and sacraments, or the 
 power of the keys of the 
 kingdom of heaven : yet he 
 hath authority and it is his 
 duty, to take order, that unity 
 and peace be preserved in the 
 church, that the truth of God 
 be kept pure and entire, that 
 all blasphemies and heresies 
 be suppressed, all corruptions 
 and abuses in worship and 
 dicipiine prevented or re- 
 formed, and all the ordinances 
 of God duly settled, adminis- 
 tered, and observed. Eor the 
 better effecting whereof, ho 
 hath power to call synods, 
 to be present at them, and to 
 provide that whatsoever is 
 transacted in them be accord- 
 ing to the mind of God. 
 
 II. As magistrates may law- 
 fully call a synod of ministers, 
 and* other fit persons, to con- 
 sult and advise with about 
 matters of religion; so if ma- 
 gistrates be open enemies to 
 the church, the ministers of 
 Christ, of themselves, by vir- 
 tue of their office, or they, 
 with other fit persons upon 
 delegation" from their churcn- 
 tay meet together in such 
 assemblies. 
 
1! I 1, K s 
 
 FOR T 11 1. 
 
 T R A N S A C T I N F BUSINESS 
 
 IN THE 
 
 JUDICATORIES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 
 
notice:. 
 
 We have introduced so much of the Discipline here as we thought 
 necessary for present use. The Rules are all that were designed by 
 the resolutions found in the first part of this pamphlet, but we 
 thought that so much of the Discipline of the Associate Reformed 
 Church as related to the General and particular Synods should be 
 published, that those who had not that book of Discipline might 
 thus be possessed of this part. In all other matters the books of 
 the Associate and Associate Reformed Churches are so nearly alike 
 that it can make no difference which is used, and probably it is best 
 that each confine himself, for the present, to the one with which he is 
 most familiarly acquainted. " The rules for the transaction of busi- 
 ness " are substantially the same as those found in the Discipline of 
 the Associate Church, but as we are to meet together in the same 
 Synods it is necessary that we should have the same form. Hence 
 the adoption of these rules. 
 
cVf .^nodical ^ .■:..* nn Mies, 
 
 r II |8 I A H I I l T II I B P A B T I C L A B OB (iKN'JR A L. 
 
 BBCT. I. OF THK PARTICULAR >. 
 
 1. This Synod ii immediately superior to the Presbytery, and 
 f several Presbyteries met together for their mutual help 
 and comfort, and for managing the affairs of the churches under 
 their inspection. 
 
 The Synod hath power to decide on references, and appeals, 
 brought regularly before them from Presbyteries — to examine, cen- 
 re. or approve their records — to try all causes in which a Fresby- 
 :y is a party: if found guilty of flagrant misdemeanors in their 
 judicial capacity, to censure them according- to the nature of their 
 offence — to erect new Presbyteries — to unite or divide those which 
 are already erected — to appoint days of fasting and thanksgiving 
 throughout their bounds — to employ members of Presbyteries, or 
 probationers belonging to any of them, in public service — to give 
 advice to Presbyteries — and, generally, to make such regulation 
 with to Presbyter sessions, and people under their car 
 
 as do not interfere with the established order of the church. 
 
 SKCT. II. O-F THK iIENKRAL SYNOD. 
 
 1. When the multiplication of Presbyteries, and their distauces 
 from each other, render it impracticable or unedifying to meet all in 
 one Synod, it is proper that they be divided into two or more, as 
 their circumstances may require. 
 
 •J. It is lawful and requisite, for the maintenance of union, and 
 for the promotion of the common int. that all the particular 
 
 nods meet together, by Presbyterial delegation, in one general 
 
 nod. 
 
 3. Delegates to the General Synod shall be apportioned as fol- 
 lows : Kvery Presbytery containing not more than two ministers, 
 shall be entitled to send one minister and one elder; and for every 
 three mini above that number, one minister and one elder more. 
 
 This proportion shall be preserved till the number of delegate- 
 ceed thirty; after which each Presbytery consisting of more than 
 ten mil; i, shall, for every four additional minist. -rs. be entitled 
 
 sand one minister and one elder. 
 
 gates to the General Synod must produce 0OMM8 
 
52 BUSINESS RULES. 
 
 signed by the moderator and clerk of the Presbytery by whom they 
 are sent; nor can they, without such commissions, be entitled to a 
 seat. 
 
 5. Nine delegates shall constitute a quorum for business. 
 
 6. The General Synod, thus constituted, is, in every respect, to 
 the particular Synods, what the latter are to the Presbyteries within 
 their bounds. It is also the province of the General Synod, to de- 
 cide questions respecting doctrine and discipline — to bear testimony 
 against errors and immoralities — to correspond with other churches: 
 and, in general, to preside over the religious interests of the church 
 at large. But no regulations intended to be universal and perma- 
 nent shall be established, without previously transmitting them to 
 the several Presbyteries, that they may have time to consider and 
 report their judgment thereon. 
 
 7. The particular Synods are required to be very strict in calling 
 the several Presbyteries to account, with respect to their punctuality 
 in sending delegates to the general Svnod, and censuring snch as 
 are found negligent. Presbyteries are to observe equal strictness in 
 examining their delegates with respect to their attendance, and in 
 censuring delinquents. 
 
 BUSINESS RULES. 
 
 IX THE SYXOD. 
 
 I. If the Moderator be absent, the senior Minister shall take the 
 
 chair. 
 
 II. On the day after the choice of the Moderator, the following 
 •committees shall be appointed, viz: 
 
 A committee of Overtures; 
 A committee of Correspondence ; 
 A committee of Accounts ; and 
 A committee of Revision. 
 
 III. The committee of Overtures shall be charged with the con- 
 sideration of all such proposals for public acts, or other measures 
 of general interest, as shall not, by a special order of the court, be 
 otherwise disposed of. 
 
 IT. The committee of Correspondence shall be charged with the 
 <3are of all matters relative to the intercourse, in writing, with other 
 churches. 
 
Bl 
 
 V. The \ i ill m 
 
 lvlat inau- h. 
 
 VI, r nmiitee of 1* I with Mi- 
 
 ni 
 when ti- nt o the pr< lual d 
 
 \ 1 1. P mnch W be 
 
 sell orami 
 
 VIII. Oommitt shall b by the Moderator, su 
 
 their D 
 • lleeti- . nominate 
 
 man: Mowing, riz\ - 11 Mr. A. his 
 
 mm it1 
 
 LX : — 
 
 L Jm . ill shall bi "he 
 
 M their ah rs Dot 
 
 d. 
 *Jd. A roll, the minutes of the Last meeting or 
 
 and if need be, corj ' id. 
 •. [mmedia £ of the miaul he clerk shall 
 
 present to th or an eenu- ■ i list of all businc 
 
 • unfinished at tfa 
 
 nl other 
 
 uvt thi ill be the 
 
 mi .n of uiriug- reference from otfa 
 
 irts, or from thejadica >r . 
 
 \ eommii and 
 
 i ■ 
 
 .All 11 be I in ti, 
 
 in which t : and, - and minnh 
 
 there lall l> r. 
 
 i Paj reterr of a minute <•!' 
 
 nent when it conl 
 
 ball 1' m- 
 
 • the ; ' named, ill 
 
 'man. 
 Ail. * lomm ill m i luc ment 
 
 ■u* 
 report wil b o more pi 
 
 rh a bill 7; which 
 
 i i of them 
 
 a motion regularly befo 
 
54 BUSINESS RULES. 
 
 XIII. The judicatory cannot act but in virtue of a motion regu- 
 larly in its possession. 
 
 XIV. No motion shall be in possession of the judicatory for dis- 
 cussion, until it shall have been announced from the chair by the 
 Moderator, in the words of the motion. 
 
 XV. No motion or amendment thereto, excepting for adjourn- 
 ment, reference to a committee, and such like matters, shall be re- 
 ceived by the Moderator, unless reduced to writing and seconded. 
 
 X YI. There can be but one motion in the possession of the judi- 
 catorv at the same time. 
 
 ■ 
 
 XVII. Motions are always open to amendment, even to the com- 
 plete alteration of the proposition moved. 
 
 XVIII. An amendment suspends the original proposition, and 
 becomes itself the motion immediately before the judicatory. It is 
 suspended in its turn, by any amendment to itself, so that the 
 amendment last offered, is first to be considered. 
 
 XIX. An additional amendment to an original proposition, can 
 not be received until the previous one be disposed of. 
 
 XX. Amendments must be introduced in the same manner as 
 original motions. 
 
 XXI. The name of the person who moves and seconds a motion 
 admitted to discussion, shall be entered on the minutes. 
 
 XXII. When there is no debate, or it appears to be concluded, 
 the Moderator shall rise, and having distinctly read the motion, 
 shall apprize the judicatory that he is about to take their sense, in 
 this form : " Are you ready for the question f" No objection being 
 offered, nor any one rising to speak, he shall put the question thus : 
 " Shall this motion (or this bill, as the co.se may be,) pass?" And* 
 pausing for a moment, shall add : " As many as are in favor thereof 
 will say AY !*' And then, reversing the question : u As many as 
 are of a contrary opinion will say No !" 
 
 XXIII. The Moderator, after the vote, will pronounce the motion 
 to be carried or lost accordingly. 
 
 XXIV. If there be any doubt of the vote, he shall desire the 
 Ayes to rise, and shall count them ; then the Noes to rise, and count 
 them, and shall pronounce accordingly. 
 
 XXV. After the Moderator shall have declared the vote, or the 
 Clerk shall have begun to call the roll, upon a division, no further 
 discussion of the subject thereof, shall be permitted. 
 
 XXVI. Any vote may be reconsidered upon a motion therefor, 
 proceeding from the side of the majority ; but not at the same sitting 
 
SlXKSS ROLES. 
 
 ■ which it was passed, without the coDoanreoce of faro-thirds pre 
 it : nor shall a motiOD to r er anv vote I eived, unle 
 
 thereof l»e given, at farthest, on the uexl day. 
 \\\'ll. In ca >f great important difficulty, it ma) 
 
 h. proper, before the members hive made up their minds, • 
 ha immitted themselves iu their 3, to employ one of the 
 
 brethren in prayer for special light anddii >n. 
 
 XXVlll. Brery speaker, unless exempted by the court on 1 
 octant of age or infirmity, is to rise and address himself to the Mode 
 
 rat or. 
 
 X \ i.\ . Members are to observe while judicially 
 
 'livened, and closely tC attend, in their BD€ . to the ct in 
 
 debate, avoiding prolix and desultory harangues. 
 
 \ x x . Personal reflections are by no means to be tolerate 
 
 XXXI. Without express permission, members are not to en 
 in private conversation, nor are they to address one another or any 
 person concerned, but through the Moderator. 
 
 XXX II. If two or more member about the same time, the 
 
 Moderator shall decide who has the floor. 
 
 XXX111. No speaker is to be interrupted, pt he be out 
 order, or to correct mistakes and misrep itations. 
 
 XX XIV. A member called to order, which maybe done byain 
 
 her member,) shall immediately sit down until the Mod 
 cide upon the point of order, which he shall do without 
 
 isons. 
 
 XX X V. An appeal from the chair on a question of order Bhall 
 
 decided without debate. 
 
 X X X VI. A motion for adjournment is always in order. 
 
 X X X V 1 1 . The roll shall be called upon the demand of anymem- 
 
 r, and the Bomber of votes on both sides marked. The 5Teas and 
 X tys shall be recorded at the rc<j ' >f one-fifth present, and not 
 
 otherwise. 
 
 XXX VIII. No member shall be 03 1 from voting 1 when i 
 
 name is called, but by consent of the court. 
 XXXIX. A minute maybe expunged with the unanimous con- 
 it of the members present. 
 X L. A rule of order may be dispensed with, on an urgent OCCa- 
 
 sion, by unanimous consent. 
 X LI . A- it may sometimes answer valuable end- for the members 
 judicatories to confer together, on certain Bubje in a manne 
 ch would not co with the regularity and authority of a • 
 
56 BUSINESS RULES. 
 
 stituted court, it may be expedient to hold, on such occasions, tx- 
 tra judicial conferences; when the members, laying aside their judi- 
 cial character, converse as private individuals. 
 
 XLII. No member shall speak more than once upon matters 
 which have been discussed in extra-judicial conference, nor more 
 than twice upon any other, unless for explanation or rectifying mis- 
 takes, without the special permission of the judicatory, and then 
 only once. 
 
 XLIII. Judicatories have a right, when they think it proper, to 
 sit in private. 
 
 XLIY. Judicatories shall meet upon their own adjournment, 
 unless convened upon special occasions by the Moderator, or by the 
 order of a higher court. 
 
 XLY. No business regularly before the court at a stated meeting, 
 shall be transacted at a meeting pro re nata. 
 
 XLYI. No member is to leave a judicatory, to return home, or 
 for other business, without its consent. 
 
 XLYII. All judicatories, sessions excepted, are to close their 
 meetings, after prayer, by singing the 133d, or some other Psalm, 
 and pronouncing the Apostolic benediction. 
 
 IX PRESBYTERIES. 
 
 XLYIII. The same rules of order shall be observed in the Pres- 
 byteries as in Synod, ia go far as circumstances shall render them 
 suitable.