YALE
UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

ESSAYS

ON

MORAL AND RELIGIOUS

SUBJECTS.

BY DANIEL COPSEY.
 "I

" Moral and religious instruction derives its efficacy,
pot so much from what men are taught to know, as from
what they are brought to feel."

PUBLISHED BY L. B. SEELEY,
IN FLEET STREET.

TOtlNTED B¥ M, SMITH, BBAINTREE.

TO
®fje &6le &6bocate
OF
" PRACTICAL PIETY," AND OF "CHRISTIAN MORALS,"
THIS
ON MORAL AND RELIGIOUS SUBJECTS,
IS INSCRIBED,
fBF PERMISSION,)

A SINCERE TRIBUTE OF GRATEFUL ESTEEM,
BY HER MOST OBLIGED

AND OBEDIENT SERVANT,
THE AUTHOR.

J.T will be allowed by all, that the subjects dis
cussed in the present volume, are very important. A
writer on religious topics has this advantage, that the
sacred nature of his theme, and the reverence with
which it is regarded by his readers, tend to soften the
asperities of criticism, and so far to identify the writer
wi<|h his subject, as to procure him a certain degree of
merit for his attempt, although he may not have distin-r
guished himself in the performance. If he do not gain
applause, he is at least in a great measure sheltered
from contempt.
The weak are most exposed to censure, when they
attempt any display to which strength is indispensable;
but they obtain regard as well as protection, when they
cling to a noble support. The ivy that twines around
the oak, derives some consequence from its situation,
and from the character of the tree on which it finds
eminence and defence; for the blow which strikes the
one, wounds also the other.

viii. PREFACE.
The subjects treated on in the following pages, are
not such as require so much the aid of novelty, to se
cure them a portion of attention, as of earnestness and
sincerity in enforcing their importance. Although re
ligion is one of the noblest principles of our nature,
yet there is nothing in -which our welfare is involved,
that requires to be so often brought before our notice,
and urged on our attention. He succeeds best in the
attempt to attract this notice, and to obtain this attention,
who embodies his ideas in the most impressive language,
and arranges his thoughts in the most striking point of
tiew ; and not he who endeavours to say some new thing.
It is not pretended that these points have been gained
in the subsequent Essays, but the efforts of the writer
have been directed towards their attainment ; and " al
though it be but little that is attained, the very aim is
right, and something there is that is done by it." A
feeble agent may become the instrument of effecting
much good i because in the case of all works of a re
ligious nature, the quantum of benefit produced by
them, depends more on the state of the reader's mind,
than on the ablest efforts of the writer;
In the Essay on the Holy Scriptures, that internal
evidence is chiefly insisted on, which consists in a won
derful adaptation of their contents to the condition of
man. This kind of evidence is underrated by some,
who think that the historical proofs which may be ad
duced of the Divine origin of the Bible, are so strong

PREFACE. IX-
and so numerous, that they should be discussed almost
exclusively, and insisted on as completely satisfactory
to every sincere inquirer after truth; In those works,
in which the existence and attributes of the Deity are
proved from his works, no small stress is laid on the ex
act adaptation of all animals to the elements in which
they live, and the agreement between the structure of
all their parts, and their various habits and instincts.
This confornlity could not have been produced without
design, nor could it haye been effected by any other
than an Omnipotent and Ali-wise Agent. Why should
not the same kind of argument be both legitimate and
powerful j When applied to the grand doctrines of Re
velation ? While it is calculated to convince the gain-
sayer, it has also an evident tendency to give additional
satisfaction to the mind of a believer.
The rapid spread of Socinianismj and the activity of
its advocates, will be a sufficient reason for the attempt,
in the Essay on the Deity of Christ, to " contend for
the faith which was once delivered unto the saints," how
weak soever that attempt may prove.
In offering some remarks on the Public Worship
of God, the main design of the writer has been to en
force spirituality of mind, in the discharge of that so
lemn duty. But in doing this, he has been led to make
some observations on the discipline maintained, in sev
eral communities of christians. He trusts that what he
-* b

X. PREFACE.
lias stated on this head, will be received with candour.
He has not written as an enemy, but as a friend ; and
as it is presumed that no society lays claim to infalli
bility, some improvement may be derived from the sug
gestions of one who renounces all intention of legislating,
while he requests a calm consideration of what he has
advanced. Of the duty and nature of Prayer, we cannot be
too often reminded, prone as we are either to neglect it,
or to become mere formalists in the observance of this
sacred service. No other apology is requisite, for the
endeavour which the author has made to urge to dili
gence and spiritual-mindedness, in the performance of
this duty.
The vice of Covetousness, to which so many are
exposed in a flourishing and wealthy nation, and which
is often so secret in its operations, as not to be easily de
tected, seems to call for repeated efforts to strip off its
mask, and expose its influence. How far the Essay on
this subject has succeeded in accomplishing these ob
jects, must be left to the judicious reader.
Some of the many deceits of the human heart, are
attempted to be laid open in the Essay on Self -Know
ledge, which, it is hopedj will not be perused without
some advantage to the reader. — "Know Thyself" is
confessedly the hardest lesson in ethics ; and therefore
the student in so important a branch of moral science,

PREFACE. XI,
should haye every assistance that can be afforded ; " line
upon ljne, and precept upon precept," far from being
tedious and unnecessary, wjU only tend to promote his
adyancemenf. Let it not be objected to any partof the following work
that it is not sufficiently sectarian, — that no attempt is
made to extol one religious party, at the expense of
another, and that what the author conceives to be the
right side of any question, is honestly [stated, without
regard to the party who chances to claim i\. The best
way to oppose error, is to maintain truth. If this
excellent maxim were more generally acted upon, we
should hear less railing in matters of religion, and it
would not be esteemed necessary to the prosperity of
any religious society, to prove others wrong, so much
as to show that themselves were in the right. ^ But ma
ny persons seem to think, that whenever they make
mention of any other religious denomination, they are
bound in justice to their own party, to affix to it some
gjjgma, on account of what they deem erroneous senti
ments, or to cast a sneer at some of its supposed super
stitious practices ; and thnt the best way to manifest
their own attachment to any peculiar doctrines or disci
pline, is to discover open hostility against all who dif
fer frpm them. To those who cannot speak of other
sects, without pronouncing a harsh judgment upon them,
or -at feast expressing a pretended charitable (but really
bigoted) concern for the future safety of their souls, the

Xll. PREFACE.
writer begs leave to recommend a careful consideration
of the following very appropriate address ; " Hast thou
no regard to the commandment of thy Lord ? Or has
he given a more express commandment than this;
"Judge not, that ye be not judged; for with what judg
ment ye judge, ye shall be judged ; and with what mea
sure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again," Does
not he, on whom thou darest to sit in judgment, profess
to be a disciple of Jesus as well as thou ? Whether he
be really so or not, is another's affair, and not thine.
In every view this practice is condemned. — It is fraught
with danger to yourselyes, with injury to your neigh
bour, and with impiety to your Lord. What shall we
say of those, who differ from us in important articles ?
What shall we say, but — that in our judgment they err,
not knowing the Scriptures! What more should we
say ! It belongs to the Omniscient Searcher of hearts,
and to Him only, to say whether their error, if they be
in an error, proceeds from depravity of disposition, or
from causes in which the will has no share. Is it for us
to determine how much wood, hay, and stubble, may
be reared upon the only foundation Jesus Christ; though
the foreign materials, by the Apostle's account, will be
consumed in the fiery trial they must undergo, yet the
builder himself will be saved ? We are ever, like Peter,
turning aside from the point in hand, (which is what
immediately concerns ourselves,) and, by a curiosity,
much less justifiable than his, inquiring what will be-

PREFACE. X1U.
come of this man. When such a question arises in thy
mind, O my fellow Christian, think thou hearest the
voice of thy Divine Master, checking thy impertinence
in the words addressed to the Apostle, — {< What is that
to thee ? Follow thou me !" (Campbell's Sermons.) i

C03VTmjPT8*

ESSAY I.
On the Holy Scriptures - - - page 1
ESSAY II.
On the Deity of Christ - - - - — 70
ESSAY III.
On Public Worship  — 118
ESSAY IV.
On Prayer  — 165
ESSAY V.
On Covetousness ------ — 189
ESSAY VI.
On Self-Knowledge  — 212

ESSAY I.
OJV THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
-K-ELIGION has its foundation in the nature
of man. A form of religion of some kind or other, ob
tains throughout the world. The necessity of it is thus
universally acknowledged ; while the nature of the
various religions which are professed, is as varied and
opposite as the complexions of men, or the climates of
the globe.
While man enjoyed the innocence and bliss of Pa
radise, he held immediate intercourse with heaven. God
came down to man, and communicated to him the
knowledge of his will. Man was constituted lord of
the creation, and was established in all the rights of that
empire by the express command of God. His autho
rity was delegated to him immediately from heaven ;
but as soon as sin entered into the world, the " presence
of the Lord God " could no longer be endured by guilty
man. The communion between heaven and earth was
suspended, and another mode of communication be
came necessary. This is supplied in the written reve
lation of the mind and will of God, which we call the
Bible. Man is a sinner, and has in consequence forfeited all
means of ascertaining the will of God ; therefore all the
knowledge of divine things which can be imparted to
him, must be "given by inspiration of God." And
this necessity of a divine commuication is acknow
ledged in every religious system that ever existed in the
B

2 OK? THE HOLY SCRIPT IRES.
world. The universal consent of mankind proves this
necessity. There never was a form of religious wor
ship in the world which was not professedly founded
either on an immediate communication from heaven, or
on the interpretation of a revelation formerly given.
The forebodings of man's mind, impressed on his
soul by God, the force of his reason given him also by
God, may lead him to some faint hope of another life ;
but without a revelation from God he can neither serve
Tiim aright, nor can he ever attain to a knowledge of
the resurrection from the dead. That his existence here
may terminate in another state of being, and that his
actions here may, in some sort, have an influence on the
happiness and misery of that state of being, is the ex
tent of knowledge to which unassisted reason Can at
tain. Indeed it may be questioned whether this partial
knowledge, to which some of the heathen attained, was
ever acquired by any one of the human race by the
mere strength of the mind, but is rather a conclusion
derived from tradition, and that tradition derived ori
ginally from a revelation from God.
The three great lights to direct man through the
world are reason, conscience, and revelation. By the
aid of the first he may attain to the knowledge of the ex
istence of a God, and of his attributes of goodness, and
wisdom and power. Conscience will not fail to ad
monish him, and to accuse him when he deviates from
rectitude, and to approve when he acts virtuously. But
witout revelation he can never know how God is to be
worshipped, nor what end is to be answered toy his cre
ation, nor what consequences are to ensue upOn his death.
Natural religion, as it is termed, is indebted to reve
lation; and without it, will always degenerate into the
wild and extravagant excesses and crttelties of super
stition. We know to what absurdities natural religion

ON TttE HOJLY SCRIPTURES. , 3t
cpnducted the Greeks and Romans, and other nations,
who never enjoyed the advantage of revelation. Man
needs a guide in this matter to direct his religious prin
ciple, and to afford him satisfaction in the observance
of religious duties, which cannot result from any ob
servances which man has invented. There is always
an uncertainty and fear attached to the strictest ob- ,
servance,of the whoh^.ceremonial.of heathen worship ;
and certainty and satisfaction can alone be found in the
assurance of having an authentic, communication from .
God, and in living agreeably to that communication.
Laying aside the Divine authority of the Bible, and
regarding it merely as a faithful history of facts ; — (and
in this respect it is as well authenticated as any received
history, for it narrates in the first part the origin and
progress of a people who still preserve its records with
religious veneration ; and the second part relates to the
establishment, and explains the doctrines of a religious
system, which is still extant and flourishing ; ) take the
Bible then, merely as a history, of facts, and it informs
us of a religion built upon a revelation from God ;
every circumstance of its foundation, and the forms of
its worship are declared to be according to Divine com
mand. In the Old Testament we find the whole fabric
of the religious system resting on the alleged authority
of an immediate revelation from God to Moses. And
the New Testament is a system of doctrines and precepts
founded on the personal instructions of the Son of God.
What were the widely extended superstitions of the
Greeks and Romans, but a professed revelation from their
gods. Pretending to a written message from their Olym
pus, they preserved the Sibylline oracles with religious.
care, and undertook nothing of moment, either in peace
or war, without previously consulting these writings*
Whether these oracles were merely a d<?vicfe of the

4 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
rulers to keep the people in awe, and to accomplish
more easily their various measures, or whether the rulers
and priests really believed them to be communications
from heaven, does not affect the present argument ; for
in either case the matter rests on the same basis, namely,
the necessity and supposed probability of a revelation
from God.
They professed, besides, to have frequent personal
manifestations of their deities, who informed them by
oral communications, of things relating to their wor
ship, and other particulars.
Mohammed produced his Alcoran as the voucher for
the form of religion which he designed to establish ;
and to the present day this book is appealed to by his
followers, as possessing divine authority.
The superstitions now prevalent in the East, and
which sway the minds of so many millions of the human
race, are built also on a supposed discovery of the will
of their deities. Their gods have also appeared to
them in different forms ; and they have besides, their
Shaster, or code of sacred instructions. And the wor
ship of the most savage and ignorant nations on the
earth is maintained upon the supposition that the will
of their fictitious gods has been made known to them,
or that by sacrifices and other rites they may obtain
information concerning that will. All these things are
a tacit confession of the ignorance of man, and the ne
cessity of a divine revelation.
The conflicting nature of the various systems which
we have briefly noticed, renders it impossible that each
could have the divine will for its basis. God is one;
and the divine government is uniform and consistent ;
and there must be unity and beauty in every thing
that proceeds from Him : therefore revelations pro-
jfessed to be made to various nations at different ages of

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 5
the world, and directly opposing each other in the
precepts which they enjoin, and the doctrines which
they inculcate, do not bear on them the primary cha
racter of a revelation from the One Supreme Being. If
any one of them be true, all the others must be false.
And if we judge of them all by their comparative,
intrinsic merits, we shall without hesitation pronounce
the Bible to be what it lays claim to be, the Word of
God; The Word to the exclusion of all other docu
ments which are competitors for the same rank and
character. It is not intended here to enter upon a minute inquiry
into the comparative merits of those various writings
which are averred by their different advocates to be
authentic communications from heaven, but to state the
claims which the Bible possesses to be regarded by us
as a message from God, and to point out the manner in
which it should be received, and the advantages result
ing from the study of its sacred pages.
We may, however, just observe, that if set in com
petition with other records pretending to be sacred,
it excels them all as much as light excels darkness,
as much as truth excels error. Indeed, the Bible de
rives a confirmation from the fact that in very many
parts of these false and pretended revelations there
may be perceived a distorted account of the truths
related in the scriptures. And some of the an-
tient writers have boasted that their information
on many mysterious subjects was derived from the
priests of the true God.* And we know that the
Greeks drew the origin of most of their fables from the
* " Sanchoniathon wrote his annals before the Trojan war,
and boasts to have received what he says concerning the
Creation from a priest of the Most High, named Jerombal."
Abbe Banier.

6 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
traditions preserved among the priests and learned men
in Egypt. The Egyptian traditions were preserved in
hieroglyphical records ; and the Grecians having re
ceived from them, allegorical descriptions of the origin
of things; and of the various important events in the
histoiy of tTie world, all derived from the authentic
history of Moses, explained these figurative accounts
according to their own fancies, making their own coun
try the scene of every event. Thus what was true in
the Egyptian traditions, but hidden and rendered ob
scure by their form of recording and preserving it, was
so distorted and misrepresented when adopted by the
Greeks, as to retain but a faint resemblance to its first :
origin. Nevertheless, some glimmerings of the true
light are visible under the mass of fiction with which
some of the antient heathen shrouded the truth.
If we contrast the dignity of the style in which the
Bible is written, the uniform consistency of all its parts,
the sanctity of its precepts, the love which it breathes,
its mild and benevolent laws, the philanthropy which it
enforces, the character which it reveals of God, the
rational appeals which it makes to our judgment, the
ground which it offers to our faith; the prospects which
it displays to our hope, the promises by which it ani
mates our drooping spirits, the threats by which it
enforces our obedience, and the terrors by which it
operates on our fears, — if we contrast the Bible in all
its various bearings, with the folly and childish super
stitions of other religious systems, with their ridiculous
fables,, their impious relations, their obscene, and profli- ,
gate, and jarring divinities, their monstrous extrava
gances, their sensual paradises, and the fierce, and
cruel, and revengeful nature of their dogmas, and the
intolerant spirit* of their constitution and their pre-
* For we are not speaking of the conduct of men, or the
interpretation they may put on the documents on which they

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 7
cepts,— we shall be constrained to say that the Bible
was "given by inspiration of God."
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God;"
therefore nothing is to be received as such which does
not bear the impress of inspiration ; and we shall now
consider what evidences may be adduced of the Divine
authority of the Bible, and these we may divide into
external and internal evidences.
The external evidences of the truth of the Bible, are
its antiquity ; the continuance of its subject by a suc
cession of inspired men, till the grand purpose of God
was accomplished in the coming of Christ; the vene
ration in which it has ever been held ; and the accom
plishment of many predictions which are recorded in
its pages.
The first five books of the Bible were written by
Moses, who was born about 1570 B. C, and the account
of the people whose history he chiefly related, is con
tinued in an unbroken narration as long as they remained
a people who were reckoned among the nations. The
canon of Scripture is an unbroken series of events,
predictions, and precepts. God left not himself without
a witness, till the completion of Sacred Writ called
forth a denunciation of Divine vengeance on any who
should " add unto," or " take away from the words of
the book of this prophecy."
' The Jews, the most antient people in the world,
have ever venerated this book, that is, the Old Testament;
they have preserved with reverence and with jealous care,
these very records which testify against themselves,
which relate their rebellions, ingratitude, and impiety ;
and they acknowledge as divine, those predictions which
rest their faith, but of the principle and nature of those
documents.

8 • ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
have been strikingly accomplished in their varied history,
and which are now verified in their present abject state ;
and those also which, while they point to a Messiah
who has already appeared, condemn their blindness
and wilfulness in rejecting.him.
The Old Testament is the standard of appeal among
the Jews ; and both Testaments are received by Christ
ians. And it maybe observed that a corroborating tes
timony is given to the authenticity of the New Testa
ment, inasmuch as it narrates the life, ministry, and
death of a personage whom the Jews acknowledge to
have appeared among them as a claimant of the dig
nity of the Messiah, but whom they hated, and per
secuted even unto death.
The internal evidences of the truth of the Bible are,
the accordance of all its parts, — the revelation it gives
us of God, — the correspondence between what it relates
of man in his origin and abasement, and what we now
feel in ourselves, and see in the world, — the wonderful
suitableness of its doctrines and promises to the judg
ment, faith, and hope, and the inward experience of all
good men, — and the congruity of the prospects which
it unfolds, and the threatenings which it denounces,
with the constitution of man's nature, the forebodings
of his mind, and the terrors and dictates of his con
science; further, the nature and design of the miracles
which it records, — the mildness of its laws, — the sanctity
and the beneficial tendency of its precepts, — and the
benevolent spirit which it inculcates on man.
The consistency of the Bible will be very apparent
to every careful and impartial reader. Although the
Holy Scriptures were written at different periods, so
that many ages intervene between the composition of the
early books of the Old Testament, and the later writings
of the Evangelists-and Apostles in the New, and con-

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 9
sequently most of the writers could not have had any
communication with each other, yet there is a wonderful
harmony and agreement in all its statements, whether
we consider them as relating to the character of the
Deity, or the moral government of mankind by God.
The greatness, and majesty, and mercy, and holiness
of God are uniformly represented in every work ascribed
to him, and in every denunciation and promise recorded
as having proceeded from him. The accounts given of
the sin and misery of the human race, are met by the
discoveries which are made of the method of redemption,
and restoration to the favour of heaven, and exaltation
to endless happiness and glory. The prophecies re
corded in one part, are verified by exact accomplishment
related in other parts : and we see many of its predictions
accomplished every day before us in the present state
of the world, and of religion, and particularly in the
condition of the Jews. The correspondence between
the types and antitypes in the two Testaments, is also
surprisingly minute and true. Many of these were
pointed out by Christ himself; others were noticed by
his apostles ; and a great number may be explained by
us in consequence of our possessing a circumstantial
account of the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.
The goodness, and power, and wisdom of God are
most conspicuous in the works of his hands, and the
B ible bears a correspondent testimony to these perfections
in all that it reveals to us concerning the Most High.
Nothing can be found in its pages derogatory to the
character of the Deity : in all that is stated of his works,
words, providential administration, miraculous inter
ference, everlasting purposes and counsel, in fine, in
all the operations of God, every thing is consistent
with the exalted glory, and infinite purity of the God
head. The majesty of the Deity is never lessened by

10 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
any representation which the Bible gives respecting his
infinite perfections. The inflexible justice and unspotted
purity of the Supreme Being are asserted with unde-
viating constancy ; and at the same time in perfect con
sistency with the statements which are exhibited of the
Divine mercy, long-suffering, and abundant goodness;
so that there is most visibly an unbroken harmony main
tained in all the Divine attributes. The just and mer
ciful, the holy and forgiving, the infinitely exalted and
condescending, the jealous and gracious God is dis
played to our view, exciting in our minds godly fear
and humble hope, profound adoration and holy boldness,
reverential awe and animating expectation, solemn fear
and confidential trust.
We are commanded to "fear this glorious and fearful
name, The Lord Thy God;" and are exhorted to
" trust in Him at all times." " Thou art of purer eyes
than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity;"
" Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity,
and passelh by the transgression of the remnant of his
heritage ? He retaineth not his anger for ever, because
he deligliteth in mercy." "O God, thou art terrible
Out Of thy holy places : — The God of Israel is he that
giveth strength and power unto his people." " God is
greatly to be feared in the assembly of his saints, and
to be had in reverence of all them that are about him ;"
" Let us, therefore, come boldly unto the throne of
grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to
help in time of need." — " Who shall not fear thee, O
Lord," is demanded in reference to the majesty and
justice of God ; again, " Rejoice in the Lord alway."
— " Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth
on high ? Who humbleth himself to behold the things
that are in heaven, and in the earth? He raiseth tip
the poor out of the dust. " " Though the Lord be high,'

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 11
yet hath he respect unto the lowly," — " Thus saith the
High and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name
is Holy, I dwell in the high and holy place; with him
also that is of a contrite and humble spirit." — " I, the
Lord thy God am a jealous God ;" " Thou, O Lord,
art a Qo$ full of compassion, and gracious, long-suffer
ing, and plenteous in mercy and truth.
Further, — There is a striking conformity between the
accounts which the Bible gives us of man in his original
state, and his abasement, and what we feel in ourselves,
and our daily observation on what passes around us.
This is a great proof of the Divine origin of the Scrip
tures. For, whether we regard the doctrines and pre
cepts there enforced, they are all adapted to the con
dition of man, and, in all his relative obligations, are
calculated to promote his true happiness and welfare ;
or whether we consider the history of the depravity of
human nature, or the conduct of men in various circum
stances, there narrated, or his motives and secret prin
ciples, there exposed, they all bear as exact a cor
respondence to the state of man, and of the world at the
present day, as they could have done when they were
first promulgated. It would require a greater degree
of acquaintance with human nature than can be acquired
by "ny man in his brief limit of fourscore years, to be
able to compose a religious code, or compile or invent a
religious system which should be applicable in all its
bearings to the condition of man in every age of the
world. There is something in the mind belonging to
the very nature of man, which corresponds with the
statements of the Scriptures ; or, let it be stated thus,
the Scriptures contain statements which are suited to the
feelings of which every human mind is conscious : let
the position be put either way, the testimony to the
truth of the Scriptures is the same. These feelings

12 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
could not then have been excited or produced in the
mind by the reading of the Scriptures, for they were
found in the heart before the Scriptures were read ; and
they exist where the Scriptures are altogether unknown.
And if it be said that the Scriptures were written to
suit the prevailing feelings of the human mind, this is
what is affirmed by the advocates for the truth of the
Bible; therefore the Bible must have been written by
inspired men, and by good men.
The dreadful effects of the fall of man are fully stated
in Scripture, both with respect to its influence on the
actual state of man in this life, and its consequences in
the next s( ate of being; and if we compare these state
ments with what we feel and observe in thepresent, and
what we apprehend in the future life, we shall find that
both tend to corroborate the statements of the Bible : and
indeed, without the explanation and information which
the Bible gives on these points, what we see and feel of
our own state and condition, would be an inexplicable
puzzle to us.
If man had not been created " upright," be would
not feel those checks of natural conscience which re
mind him of a departure from his original high con
dition. The soul resents, to a certain degree, every
injury which is inflicted by a deviation from rectitude.
Having been at first created in the likeness of God,
every tendency to evil is felt as a deformity. — Death is
declared in Scripture to be the hideous offspring of sin,
and not a law of nature, not a condition under which
man was at first formed. Man, possessing a deathless
principle in his soul, was also in his origin immortal as
to his body. Immortality was once his boon ; death is
now his punishment. Unmingled joy was once his
possession, sorrow and woe are now his inheritance. —
And who does not recoil from dissolution? Is not

ON' THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 13
death the universal dread of nature .' Is it not regarded
by all men as an infliction, and not as a necessary con
sequence of our inferior nature ? If death were the law
of our being, in the same sense as sleep is, men would
descend to the grave with the same composure as they
retire to their nightly repose. — The Bible declares the
soul of man to be deathless ; and are not those "long
ings after immortality," and that universal foreboding
of a future state, which reign in the breasts of all, a
pledge of our possessing an immortal soul ?
" Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return,"
is a sentence of which we never doubt the execution, —
we know that death passes upon all men ; and the hum
bling declaration concerning the depravity of man, that
" every imagination of the thoughts of his heart, is only
evil continually," is as true, though not as readily ac
knowledged by all. The predominant sin of man is
pride ; this was at the root of his first apostacy, and as
it then led him to covet an equality with God, so it now
prompts him to deny the extent of his debasement.
But the whole course of the world, from the first blood
shed by violence in the family of Adam, down to the
acts of cruelty and injustice which are recorded in the
chronicle of every successive day, goes to establish the
scriptural doctrine of the fall of man. God cannotbe
the author of evil ; what comes forth from his hands
must be "very good:" man, the chief work of God,
is " dead in trespasses and in sins," and must therefore
have fallen from a perfect state. His most early actions,
the continued progress of his conduct, show that his
mind is warped by an evil bias. That " the imagination
of man's heart is evil from his youth," is abundantly
confirmed by the evidences of a perverse spirit which
infants betray, even before they can give utterance to
the evil passions of their hearts in the language of sin.

14 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
The debasement of man is declared to be extreme, and
his alienation from God, that which be can never retrace
by his own power and might ; an almighty arm is as
serted to be necessary to recover him from his state of
degradation, and to restore him to the image and favour
of God. Human nature since the fall, is like a temple
in ruins. Enough is left to inform us that the whole
was majesty and beauty. We see the disjointed and
broken materials of a once glorious and splendid edifice,
which the Divine Architect alone, who planned and
erected the original structure, can rebuild, and restore
to its pristine magnificence. And this he hath done
in the mediatorial work of Christ, " in whom all the
building fitly framed together, groweth unto a holy
temple in the Lord."
And as to the extreme debasement of man, let the
anguish of the thousand deaths of war, the mutilated
bodies and crushed limbs, the deep wounds, the blood
and carnage of all the battles which infatuated men
have waged with each other through the successive ages
of the world, — let the cries of pain and woe, heard
within the walls of hospitals, lazarettoes, and sick
rooms,— let the languor of body, the sickness of heart,
the terror of spirit, endured by all the children of
affliction, — let the shrieks of agony wrung from the un
happy victims of rage, and cruel superstition, and
blood-crested bigotry, — let the racks, the whips, the
engines of torture, employed by wicked man against
his brother, — let the midnight murders, the secret as
sassinations, the foul deeds of darkness, which none
but the all-seeing eye of the Eternal have witnessed,
and which will remain concealed till that day when
" the earth shall disclose her blood, and shall no more
cover her slain," — let the victims to raging flames, and
foaming billows, to pestilential air, to scorching suns,

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 15
to famine, to deserts, to beasts of prey,— but the black
catalogue is already too extended, and yet the one half,
the one-thousandth part has not been told, for no mor
tal pen can note each case in the vast tablet of wretch
edness, no mortal tongue can name the mighty total, —
let all this sum of woe bear its concurring testimony
that man is a fallen, a depraved creature.
And shall we confine our review of the "wages of
sin," to the evils which affect the body, as they are ex
hibited in the present state ? We must: An impene
trable veil hides from our view the abodes of lost spirits.
The weepiiig and wailing, the doleful lamentations of
the gulf of despair, reach not our mortal ears ! Who
can tell what fearful visions death discloses to the im
penitent sinner ! Who can tell the horror of the regions
where dwells the "blackness of darkness for ever!" —
The dread which the guilty mind of man feels lest he
should fall into this unseen misery, is a proof of his
depravity, because it is a tacit confession of his sin, an
acknowledgment of his desert.
And to establish the necessity of an Almighty power
to restore him to the image and favonr of God, let us
look at the awful effects of the fall on the mind of man.
And what are the injuries which the mind has received
from the fall ? " The whole head is sick, the whole
heart faint ; from the sole of the foot even unto the
head, there is no soundness in it :" "there is no health
in us." " The grain of evil seed hath been sown in the
heart of Adam from the beginning, and how much un
godliness hath it brought up unto this time." We
come into the world without spiritual strength; the
powers of the soul are maimed ; the understanding is
clouded; the will is perverse; the affecti&ns are mis
placed. We do not judge rightly of things ; we choose
evil rather than good, error rathe? than truth. Oar

10 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
affections are "earthly and sensual." The love of sin
forms a chain with which "we are tied and bound,"
and from which he alone " whose nature and property
it is to have mercy, and to forgive," can of the " piti-
fulness of his great mercy loose us."
" Sin, like a venomous disease,
Infects our vital blood ;
The only balm is sovereign grace,
And the physician, God."
Besides, the few that do return into the narrow way, is
a proof of man's depravity, and of the necessity of
divine influence and strength to discover our danger,
and flee to the refuge held out to us. Salvation is ne
cessary for all, but how few regard it. All men are
journeying either to heaven or to hell, but how few
think on their ways, or stop to consider which road
they are going. — In all these points, universal expe
rience bears its testimony to the truth of the Bible.
A gain, — We have an evidence of the truth of the
Bible in the wonderful suitableness of its doctrines and
promises, to the judgment, faith, and hope, and the
inward experience of all good men.
It is but a weak objection against the Bible to say
that it contains many things above our reason and com
prehension. The suitableness of these things to our
present state and condition and our future expectations,
is a complete answer to this objection ; since that which
is suited to our state cannot be said to be unreasonable.
Some deists have objected to the doctrine of future
rewards and punishments as contrary to reason, yet
they allow that such a doctrine is not without its uses and
advantages to civil society ; and by this concession
they show the fallacy of their objection, for bow can
that he unreasonable or contrary to the principles of

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 17
natural theology which has a manifest tendency to pro
mote the good of society, unless it be said that society
is a state contrary to nature and reason, which is absurd.
Those doctrines of the Bible which are most cavilled
at by unregenerate men, such as the universal depra
vity of man, the necessity of Divine influence, and the
doctrine of eternal life through Jesus Christ, without the
possibility of our jprocuring it in any degree by our own
works and deservings, — are the doctrines which are re
ceived with cordial approbation by all good men.— r
They find in the Scriptures a most humbling statement
given of the moral condition of man, and the counter
part which the knowledge of their own hearts affords,
strengthens their faith in the Bible as the Word of God,
and at the same time produces in them that repentance
and that humility which God requires of his rebellious
children, and to which so many encouraging promises
are made. — The Christian finds his judgment yielding a
ready assent to all the precepts of God's holy law;
while to the justice of the threatenings denounced, his
conscience testifies its ready approbation. The promises
of pardon, of divine teaching, of inward strength to
overcome temptations, of consolation in every time of
distress, in fine, of acceptance and everlasting life in
and through a Mediator, exactly meet his case. He
finds in the Bible the most appropriate subjects for the
exercise of bis faith, and the most cheering objects for
the foundation of his hope, and imperishable blessings
for the gratification of the most ardent desires of 1
immortal spirit.
In the history of the human heart as pourt- ^ in
the lives of many eminent saints, recorded in o Bible,
the Christian sees a faithful picture of his own heart;
his corruptions are the same, the world presents to him
the same ensnaring attractions, the lusts of his flesh
d

IS 0>, THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
are as powerful, the wiles and devices of Satan beset
him as constantly ; he finds not only his own character
exhibited in the history of others, as far as relates to his
conduct and depraved inclinations, but he sees the
whole anatomy of his own heart, all the secret springs
of his actions, all his inward motives, and hidden pur
poses, and false reasonings, and rebellious murmurings
against the government of God, faithfully exhibited,
proving to him that "as in water face answereth to
face, so the heart of man to man."
Thus he is led to the only refuge which the Bible
offers to the penitent sinner, and which he sees to be mer
cifully suited to his own case. With the same evil heart
and depraved inclinations, he finds the same renewing
and sanctifying grace. Exposed to similar dangers, he
flees to the same strong-hold. Equally guilty, he claims
and enjoys the same pardon. As helpless and ignorant,
and beset by the same snares and temptations, he re
ceives from the same source strength, wisdom, and de
liverance. With like fears, and misgivings, and trou
bles, and sorrows, he shares in the same encouragements,
and deliverances, and consolations. A pilgrim in the
same journey — a stranger in the same land — a competitor
in the same course — a soldier in the same warfare, he
finds similar directions and refreshments and enter
tainment, the same prize held out before him, the same
captain to command, and the same crown for his eternal
reward. In fine, — lost, ruined, perishing, sinful, feeble,
blind and destitute, he partakes of the common salvation ;
and having struggled with the same difficulties , and
dangers, and departed in the same faith, he joins the
company of just men made perfect in the everlasting
kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
There is also a remarkable congruity between the ge
neral instructions that are of universal application,

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 19
which the Bible 'supplies, and the prospects unfolded,
both of happiness and misery, and the constitution of
man's nature, the forebodings of his mind, and the
terrors and dictates of his conscience.
With regard to the whole condition of man upon the
earth, there is a surprising suitableness in the Bible.
Society is the state in which men naturally desire to live ;
and while the Constitution of their nature leads them to
this state, and fits them for it by imparting a willingness
to submit to all its necessary regulations, and to afford
that mutual aid which tends to the good of the whole,
the Bible presents the basis of the laws by which societies
should be regulated, and informs us of the purest mo
tives which should influence and guide our affections.
We are here under the moral government of God — in
a state of probation for another world, and in the Bible
we find every direction to guide us, every thing to en
force the government of our Creator, and every necessary
information respecting a future state.
Fear and hope are the most powerful principles by
_which man is actuated. The dread of evil, or the ex
pectation of profit influences all our actions. Indeed
one includes the other; for the desire of wealth is sti
mulated by the fear of poverty ; while health is valued,
and earnestly sought, sickness and pain are the evils
which at the same time are dreaded and avoided ; the
love of life arises from the fear of death, as well as from
enjoyment. Now the Bible furnishes the most alarming
representations to excite our fear, and the most at
tractive promises to awaken our hope.
There is a universal foreboding in the mind of man
of a judgment to come, of the fearful effects of the
wrath of an angry God, and of the consequences of
transgression ; and the Scriptures meet this foreboding
with the plainest declarations respecting the depravity

20 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
of human nature, and the awful end that awaits the
impenitent sinner. Why does man shrink from the un
seen world, and tremble to appear a disembodied spi
rit in the presence of his Creator ? The Bible gives the
only satisfactory answer, by acquainting us with the
apostacy of all mankind, and the means of recovery
and restoration to the favour of God. Here the in
fluence of hope begins to be felt on the mind. The
promises of the Word of God, exactly suit the case
of fallen man. The consciousness of immortality, in
some degree inseparable from the soul of man, is only
a source of terror and dismay, while a sense of guilt
tends to array a future state in every feature that is for
midable to the human mind ; but the promises of the
Gospel, whereby we know that " Jesus Christ hath
abolished death, and brought life and immortality to
light," furnish an antidote to this fear, and discover a
cheering light rising amidst so dreary a darkness.
When these promises are received into the heart by
faith, they produce such a well-founded hope, as can
not be shaken by the misgivings of the heart, the op
position of the world, the trials and troubles of life, or
the assaults of Satan. The inextinguishable love of life
in man, and the promise of eternal life in the Gospel ;
the dread of pain and suffering, and the promise of
endless happiness and unvarying joy; the possession
of so many various faculties of the mind, and promises
of gratification to them all ; unite in producing a hope
which presses forward to the heaven whence it origi
nated, and where it looks for the consummation of all
its expectations.
" Hope, with uplifted foot set free from earth,
Pants for the place of her ethereal birth ;
On steady wings, sails through th' immense abyss,
"lucks amaranthine joys from bow'rs of bliss,

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 21
*' And crowns the soul while yet a mourner here,
With wreaths like those triumphant spirits wear." Cowper:
Again, — We have another evidence of the Divine
origin of the Bible in the nature and design of the
miracles which' it records.
All religious systems are attempted to be established
by the evidence and authority of something super
natural. Indeed, no other evidence will bs admitted
for the truth of a revelation which is in itself a de
parture from the course of nature, and must therefore
bring with it, as vouchers of its authenticity, some
miracles to which an appeal may be made for its truth
and authority. — In so important a question as whether
any religion be from God, or be an imposture, men
ought not to decide on any evidence short of the exer
cise of a supernatural power in the performance of
miracles to establish the authenticity of the revelation.
And these miracles should be of a nature, and have
such a manifest tendency as to show that they have in
truth proceeded from God.
To constitute the genuineness of miracles, we must
have proof that they were performed openly, before
disinterested persons, and were universal in success;
they must bear the closest inspection and examination
both of friends and enemies; the end to be obtained
must be worthy of the exercise of a supernatural power ;
and they must tend in some way to the good of man
and the glory of God ; they must be recorded by eye
witnesses, and these witnesses must be credible persons,
who cannot be supposed to have any sinister views in
their testimony.
If we examine the miracles recorded in the Old and
New Testaments, we shall find that they possess more
or less all these marks of genuineness. Among tJ»a

22 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
miracles recorded in the Old Testament, those per
formed by the ministry of Moses are the most numerous,
and the most remarkable. They were exhibited before
the eyes of a whole nation, and that nation inimical to
the people for whose sakes these wonders were displayed.
The deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt
was to be accomplished by the conviction on the minds
of their task-masters, that their freedom was demanded
in the name of God; and therefore this demand was
corroborated by a display of the most wonderful mi
racles. So long as the magicians, and sorcerers, and
wise men of Egypt, either performed similar miracles,
or seemed to do so, Pharaoh appeared to have some
reasonable excuse for detaining the Israelites; but in
the progress of the miracles, the power of these magi
cians was, surpassed, and themselves fell under the same
plagues, and were constrained to acknowledge that the
power of God was evidently manifested. And it is
worthy of remark that although these sorcerers produced
similar appearances, the prophets of the true God were
always intreated to intercede for the removal of the
plagues. Here the art of the magician failed him.
There was no failure on the part of God's ministers;
had they denounced a plague, and it had not been in
flicted, they might have been justly rejected as im-
postors And the end to be obtained, was worthy of the means
employed. A people were to be separated from the
world of idolaters, that the worship of the true God-
might be maintained in purity, and that glory might.
redound to God. These miracles were also recorded
by the person who performed them, and the records
were open to the inspection of those who had witnessed
the performance ; and they are still preserved by the
descendants of those people.

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 2-J
Of the miracles of the New Testament, we may
safely affirm that they will bear the most rigorous ex
amination, by the marks which we have stated as proofs
of the genuineness of miracles. Jesus Christ professed
to be a teacher from heaven, vested with Divine power
and authority to establish a system of religion, more
spiritual than that which was maintained by the
Jews, and in direct opposition to the superstitions and
profane rites of heathen worship. He constantly ap
pealed to the wonderful works which he performed, as
proofs of the Divine authority of his mission. These
works were done openly in the^ face of his enemies, as
well as of his friends ; they were performed sometimes
with, and sometimes without the concurrence of the
subjects of them,— sometimes on persons present, at their
own request ; at other times on persons absent, at the
intercession of others, — on the young and old, the rich
and the poor, the blind, the deaf, the lame, the diseased,
the paralytic, the possessed, the dying, and the<lead. — •
There was. no one instance in which Christ failed of
success ; not one application was rejected ; " he went
about doing good," " healing all manner of diseases."
His works were exposed to the most severe scrutiny of
those who hated him ; and when they could not gainsay
the works, they ascribed them to demoniacal agency,
rather than be willing to acknowledge the finger of God.
So that we have the evidence of enemies, as well as of
friends to the fact of the performance of the miracles
«f the New Testament. After every device and attempt
to disprove the miracles of Christ and his apostles,
" That indeed a notable miracle hath been done — and
we cannot deny it," was the reluctant confession of tiose
who sought to exterminate the religion of Jesus.
The end proposed by the exhibition of these miracles,
^as worthy of the interference of Almighty power ;

24 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
this was no other than the glory of God and the good
of man. The temporal benefit of man, was the result of
almost every miracle recorded in the New Testament,and
especially of those performed by Christ; but the grand
object was the establishment of Christianity — the pro
mulgation of a new and spiritual mode of worship — the
institution of a church which should resist all the at
tacks of men and devils — the conversion of men from
error and superstition, and the dominion of every vice,
and preparing them for a state of perfect purity and
happiness in heaven. These are objects worthy of the
display of miraculous power, and which could indeed
be effected only by the Almighty arm of God.
The historians of the New Testament were persons
who were eye-witnesses of what they related, and who
cannot be suspected of any sinister views in their testi
mony. Their narratives were compiled and published
while thousands were living who had witnessed the
facts which they related, and had listened to the in~
structions which they perpetuated, and had been bene
fited by the miracles which they recorded. They bore
testimony also to the same truths in their public preach
ing, constantly appealing to the works of Christ and to
his resurrection, as proofs of the Divine nature of his
mission ; and they promulgated and defended the doc
trines which he taught at the expense of the forfeiture
of every comfort, and of all respect and protection,
and under the severest rod of persecution which fol
lowed their steps wherever they went, and also at the
hazard of their lives.
These witnesses must be allowed to be competent,
for they were eye-witnesses of the facts which they re
lated ; and their testimony must be admitted as credible
for they wrote their history immediately after the oc
currence of the events, and while they were open to

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 25
the rigorous examination of enemies who possessed the
same means as themselves of ascertaining the truth ; and
they voluntarily underwent the greatest sufferings in
order to establish and spread abroad the doctrines of
the religion of Jesus, not only without any prospect of
emolument, but with the surest prospect of reproach,
calumny, opposition, imprisonment, torture, and death.
Finally. — 'The Bible possesses an internal evidence
of its truth, in the mildness of its laws, the sanctity
and beneficial tendency of its precepts, and the bene
volent spirit which it inculcates on man.
The morality of the Bible is indisputable; and the
laws by which this morality is enforced are in their ten
dency beneficial to man. Obedience to the commands
of God, while it ensures peace of conscience, preserves
us from those courses which are ruinous to the body as
well as the soul. The true happiness of man, with
respect to both worlds, is closely connected with the
observance of the precepts of God's word. And none
of these precepts are rigorous or painful in the per
formance. The light of reason, the religion of nature,
join with Scripture in enforcing them. They possess a
surprising adaptation to the state of man in this life, and
his prospects in a future life. To love the one true
God with all our hearts, to reverence his authority, to
observe his commands, form the ground-work of love
to our neighbour; and both united are the strongest
bonds of society, preserving to every individual relation
its due influence, cementing families by the dearest ties,
forming the civil compact which unites society, holding
nations by the firmest connections of amity and mutual
good offices, while the fear of God sheds its kindly in
fluence on each part, uniting the whole by the strongest
bond — that of universal and absolute dependance on
the Supreme Being.

26" ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
The observance of the moral precepts of Scripture
is not painful; nothing is commanded that is truly
foreign to our nature, for man is a religious being : it
is to his present fallen degraded state that these precepts
form restraints ; they would have been the natural ex
pressions of piety in his original upright condition. —
Every one feels within himself a repugnance more or less
to the holy duties commanded in the Bible ; and this is
a strong evidence of the truth of the Bible, for the de
pravity of man renders some guide, some authoritative
commands in moral and religious matters, absolutely
necessary, both for his own happiness, for the general
welfare of society, and the glory of God. The Bible
furnishes us with exactly the kind of guide supposed ; it
is (as has been before proved) wonderfully accommodated
to the actual condition of man ; and it is beyond all ob
jection certain, that if mankind lived under its influence,
loving God supremely, and their neighbour as them.
selves, happiness would infallibly ensue in the world,
just in the same degree as this influence extended.
Universal happiness would assuredly follow universal
holiness. The Old Testament is a sort of introduction to the
New. The laws and ritual observances which it com
mands, were all introductory to a more general, and
perfect dispensation. The spirit of the gospel is that
which breathes universal benevolence. The general
character of nations is changed by the reception of the
gospel. They may have been courageous, humane, and
religious, (as it regards heathen superstitions,) polite?
and learned; but then their bravery has made them only
ambitious and warlike, and, in consequence, scourges
and pests to the degree which their strength enabled
them ; their humanity has been confined in its exercise
to the ties of relationship and consanguinity ; their re-

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 27
ligion has been one without morality, without beneficial
tendency ; their polished manners have left them cruel,
haughty, and tyrannical; and their learning has not
guarded them from falling into the most dangerous
errors. We have unequivocal proof of this in the state
of theGrecian and Roman people. Butif we turn to na
tions which have imbibed the genuine spirit of the gospel,
we find in exact proportion to the reception and cul
tivation of this spirit, benevolence, kindness, true piety,
civilization, and knowledge in all its beneficial ten
dencies, predominate. And where this spirit has at
any time declined, there has been a sensible diminution
of the good effects which we have just mentioned.
Christianity is the only religious system in the world,
which extends its influence, in some degree, even over
the horrors of war; tending to restrain ambition, to
promote peace, and to prevent acts of cruelty and op
pression towards the vanquished. It alone exercises its
influence over prisons and gibbets ; softening the pu
nishments which are decreed against the vicious into re
venge against the crime, and not against the man ; and
making the end of all human laws to be the benefit of
society, the protection of the virtuous, and the reclaim
ing of offenders. ;
We may look with triumph at the influence of Chris
tianity in our own happy land. To what other source
shall we trace the public character of this nation, its
integrity, good faith, generosity. Whence have ori
ginated, but in the benign spirit of the Gospel, its in
numerable institutions for the good of man, — its hos
pitals, its asylums for the poor, the aged and the des
titute, — its munificent public benefactions to sufferers
of other nations, — its care for the poor of the land,— its
Bible and Missionary Societies,-^the mild spirit of its
laws, and their equitable administration, — and the glo-

28 ON THE HOLY SCR1PTURE9.
rious constitution of its government, the envy and ad
miration of the world.
What was Britain before it was christianized^ and
what would it become were its altars overthrown, and
the darkness of paganism, or the frigid, unsocial spirit
of Deism, to succeed ? What frightful effects were
produced in France on the decline of Christianity, and
at length the total rejection of the Bible ! Was not
their soil died with the blood of their own countrymen,
and have they not been a pest to surrounding nations !
May God preserve to Britain that faith which has pro
duced, and which alone can preserve her eminence
among the nations, and all the invaluable advantages
which her favoured sons now enjoy !
The circumstances then (to recapitulate what has been
said,) in which man is placed, render it necessary that
he should have a revelation from God. Man cannot be
instructed in Divine things, in things relating to God
and another world, either by reason or experience,
therefore such knowledge must come from God. We
find in the world a universal notion of religion, so far
as relates merely to the being of a God, and the fore
bodings of the mind with respect to a future state of
retribution. This knowledge must have come at first
immediately from God, whether we consider it as having
been imparted more fully in a written revelation, or
impressed on the minds of men by God, and thus
forming a part of their very nature. We have briefly
considered the claims which the Bible possesses of .being
a revelation from heayen, by comparing it to other
writings pretending to Diyine authority ; and have es
tablished its authenticity by an examination of its ex-
ternal and internal evidences, all which prove it to have
been given "by inspiration of God."
Let us now enquire, in what spirit and temper the

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 29
Bible ought to be studied, and notice some of the mis
takes into which those persons fall, who read the Scrip
tures with unhumbled hearts ; and endeavour to point
Out the advantages to be derived from this study.
In the school of Christ the first requisite is humility.
The disciples of the meek and lowly Jesus, must pos
sess the same mind which was also in him : they are
commanded to become as little children. It is in this
character, and with this temper the Bible must be taken
into our hands. The pride of man must be beaten
down before the Wisdom of God. All his prejudices
must yield to the testimony of truth. We must not
take up the Bible to see whether its contents are in
unison with our preconceptions of things r but we must
come to it with a conviction of ignorance, and a wil
lingness to be taught, — with a desire to know what is
revealed, and a readiness to yield obedience to its pre
cepts, — with a consciousness of our dangers and diffi
culties, and liability to stray far from the right way,
and an earnest desire to find a light to guide our du
bious steps. The Bible must be studied as a whole, as
a system, all the parts of which harmonize, and have a
bearing on each other. We are not at liberty to take
or reject as may suit our notions, but with humility to
have equal respect to all that the Bible contains.
It is conceded that reason must be our guide in deter
mining on the claims of a book, pretending to be a reve
lation from God, because we have no other means of
deciding on such a subject. But then it is above the
province of reason to determine in any degree what a
revelation from God ought to contain, for it is impos
sible that we can be judges in this matter. We are
necessarily ignorant, totally ignorant of the scheme of
God's government, and the extent of his designs. How
then can we know what is, or what is not necessary to

30 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
further these designs, and to conduct this government.
How can we know what means are best suited to pro
mote the ends which God has determined, seeing we
are so little acquainted with the connections, and the
consequences of events ? Results the most desirable and
beneficial are daily flowing from the use of means
apparently not at all calculated to produce them.—
We are surprised at such results, because of our
ignorance as to the nature and effect of the means.
Shall we then presumptuously say, such and such
things cannot be from God, because we cannot re
concile them to our notions, to our narrow bound of
knowledge ?
We are not to receive and reject doctrines according
as they are within or above the grasp of our under
standing. If the evidence on which any particular
doctrine rests be good and satisfactory, we are under an
inviolable obligation to admit it, whether we can or can
not understand that doctrine in all its bearings ; whether
we can reconcile it to other parts of Scripture, or whe
ther it seems to us to be at variance with them. The
nature of the evidence on which the authority of the
Bible rests, is open to our most diligent scrutiny, but
when we have received satisfactory proof that it is
the Word of God, we owe a ready and cheerful obe-a
dience to its contents. When the humble enquirer sits
down to ascertain the will of God, he must begin as a
little child, feeling his ignorance, and laying aside his
prejudices, and receiving lessons in Divine things with
implicit faith and trust in a Divine Teacher. — If we
meet with a declaration in Scripture ever so contrary
to our notions, we are bound nevertheless to receive that
declaration, because we are unfit to judge what a reve
lation from God ought to contain. It should be suffi
cient for us that the Bible possesses evidence of its Divine

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 31
authority above that of other pretended revelations, and
evidence sufficient to satisfy any reasonable man, and to
justify him in giving himself up to its guidance.
We see the works of God around us, and we are at
liberty to scrutinize them, and make inquiries into their
nature, and properties, and uses ; but it is vain, not to
say impious, to raise objections against many parts of
that beautiful whole, because we are unable to go into
the reasons why they were so and so created. If the
universe be the work of an infinitely wise, and good,
and powerful God, we may be assured that all things
are "very good," and that every thing is in its exact
place, in that place which is best suited to its nature
and ends ; and that all things are made according to an
exact measure, neither more nor less than they should
be. So if the Bible reveals a doctrine altogether above
our reason, and quite contrary to what we should have
supposed, we are bound to receive it without gainsaying
or hesitation, from a persuasion that it comes from
God, and that we are incompetent to decide what doc
trines should or should not be propounded for our ac
ceptance. The fact of the doctrine is our province,
and not the reason of it: faith is our duty, not a curious
investigation into the reasons of Divine precepts. To
believe God, to- give him credence is surely the least
homage we can pay him. " It is written," should at all
times silence our doubtings and disputation. All shall
at length confess that " He is a God of truth, and without
iniquity." When we meet with an assertion or command from
our fellow-men, we are at liberty, and it is our privilege
to examine that assertion or that command, and to try
it by reason and experience, and to receive or reject it
as we find it correspond or at variance with them.

32 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
But creatures must receive from their Creator all his
commandments and doctrines with reverence, with faith,
with implicit obedience. God has a sovereign and uni
versal authority over his creatures, and it must be highly
impious in them to object to any particular mode of
government which he exercises over them, or to ques
tion and reject any communications which he may at
any time have made to them.
It is allowed that there are in the Scriptures " some
things hard to be understood," but to be " wise unto
salvation" is within the reach of all minds. The Holy
Scriptures having been written to instruct men in the
way to heaven, " they are all plain to him that under-
standeth, and right to tbem that find knowledge." Yet
we find that in the study of the Scriptures there is a
great variety of attainment in different persons, and for
this reason perhaps, that no two persons think exactly
alike on any given subject ; there are some shades of
difference, could we discern the impression made on
the soul of each. This individuality in the condition of
man, while it tends to give us an enlarged idea of the
extent of God's government, in which are determined
and guided the interests of each individual according
to his particular condition, serves also to show us the
wonderful suitableness of the Word to the cases and
characters of all. Every man makes discoveries for
himself in the mine of Divine Truth, and finds some- '
thing exactly suited to his own particular case, so suited
as if it were written for him solely.
There is a correlative agreement between the condition
of man and the statements which the Bible contains ;
between his sinfulness, and the mercy which is of
fered ; between his debased state, and the method of
recovery which is revealed ; between his present misery,
and the prospect of happiness which is unfolded.—

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 33
Every part of the Bible is grounded on the presumption
that the world is in a depraved, degraded condition. It
sets out with this statement, and proceeds on this very
ground : the account of the fall of man is followed by
a relation of the universal defection of mankind, and
the dreadful display of Divine wrath, in the destruction
of nearly all the human race by a flood of waters : then
follows the history of a people, who were chosen and
selected to preserve the knowledge and worship of
the true God, and to bear testimony to the true reli
gion in the midst of an idolatrous world : the prophets
who were raised up amongst this people to instruct and
warn them, were also inspired to foretel the introduction
at a certain time of a new dispensation of mercy, where
by man might be restored to God. The New Testament
furnishes us with a complete account of the commence
ment of this dispensation, and the accomplishment of the
prophecies respecting it, so far as the fulness of time had
arrived ; and also supplies us with the most plain and
copious directions and instructions, how the Gospel is to
be received and understood.
The universal depravity of man must be acknow
ledged as one of the principal facts stated in the Bible,
because he that rejects this fact, denies that on which
every statement in the Bible is founded, and indeed
rejects the necessity of a revelation from God, inasmuch
as the depraved state of mankind is the fact which con
stitutes the necessity of a revelation. In the opposition
which this statement encounters, we have an additional
proof of its truth ; it is a part of this depravity to deny
its own existence. The natural pride of man is such
that he will not admit the circumstances of the very state
in which he finds himself; and until he does this, he ex
cludes himself from the only way of deliverance, because
this, way is fitted for, and grounded on the existence of
F

34 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
such circumstances. To humble man and to exalt
God, is the design of revelation ; but vain man fights
against this order of things, and strives to exalt him
self, although in so doing he denies the truth of God's
Word, and depreciates Divine mercy.
The effects of sin are to bring darkness into the mind,
to blind the eyes of the understanding, to spread a
veil over the heart; and therefore it is necessary that a
Divine power should remove this blindness, and impart
spiritual light and knowledge to the mind. The de
pravity of man not only renders a revelation, but also
Divine teaching necessary, to enable him to understand
what that revelation contains. This supplies us with a
solution of the question, how it is that one man discerns
particular statements and doctrines in the Bible, which
another man not only cannot find, but which he rejects
with indignation and contempt, and opposes with scorn?
ful hatred.
The universal and total depravity of man, — his reco
very by the mediation "of Jesus Christ, or God mani?
tested in the flesh, — the necessity of a Divine power to
overcome the enmity of the human heart against the
thi ngs of God, — the necessity of Divine teaching to en
able man to know the way of salvation, and of the
communications of the Holy Spirit to help him to walk
in that way agreeably to the precepts of God, — the
sovereignty of Divine grace, in God's bestowing these
blessings freely on whomsoever he will, — these are facts
and doctrines which the mere light of human reason can
never discover in the Scriptures, nor admit to be doc
trines according to godliness, because they are directly
opposed to the pride of reason ; they take away all
that man vainly desires to arrogate to himself, they
contradict all that he obstinately maintains, and over
throw all that his pride wishes to establish. So true

On the holy scriptures.

35

is it that "the natural man receiveth not the things of
the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him ;
neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned." The method which God has adopted to recover man,
and to reconcile him to himself, is one which magnifies
his own wisdom, and includes also the design of abasing
the pride of man. " Behold," says God, " I will pro
ceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even
a marvellous work, and a wonder : for the wisdom of
their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of
their prudent men shall be hid." The things which
are weakness and foolishness in the estimation of the
carnal mind, are wisdom and power to those that have
spiritual discernment ; that which is a stumbling block,
and a cause of destruction to the former, is a "savour
of life unto life," a light, a guide, and help to the
latter- A man who comes to the Bible merely with the light
of reason, and all the prejudices of the carnal mind,
cannot discern those thiugs which are so plain to the
humble enquirer, who has sought and obtained Divine
illumination, that " he may run that readeth it." While
the wise are confounded, and stumble, and perish, the
" wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err." The
carnal man not only feels an enmity against the humi
liating doctrines of the Bible, but he feels contempt for
those that do receive them ; he accounts them to be
weak-minded persons, who are easily led astray, and
persuaded into any creed,— fanatics and enthusiasts,
whose weak heads and warm hearts are apt to take up
with any crude notions, and to yield to any superstitious
influence. No man seeks direction from another, till he distrusts
his own wisdom ; he does not lean on another for sup-

36 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
port, till he feels his own weakness. There must be a
consciousness, and an humble confession of our own igno
rance in the things of God, before we shall profit by
the reading of the sacred Scriptures. This disposition
will lead us to search them diligently, and to study
them with prayer. If any man desire to be made wise
unto salvation, " let him become a fool that he may be
made wise :" let him lay aside the pride of reason which
increases the natural darkness of the mind, and let him
humbly seek that Spirit which is " the candle of the
Lord," and he will then have made an important step
towards the understanding of Divine things :
" Vous serez eclair^, puisque vous voulez l'etre."
This Divine illumination is necessary because of the
ignorance of man, the exalted character of a revelation
from God, and the dangerous errors into which men
are liable to fall by leaning to their own understanding.
It is plainly said that " the things of God knoweth no
man, but the Spirit of God ;" here the ignorance of
man, and the sublime nature of a revelation, are stated
as constituting the necessity of Divine teaching, of spi
ritual illumination. Being the " things of God," they
are beyond the grasp of human intelligence, till the
dimmed light and shortened powers of reason are en
lightened and strengthened from on high.
Without this heavenly light, men are exposed to fall
into many and dangerous mistakes in reading the Holy
Scriptures ; and many doctrines contained in them be
come an offence and a stumbling-block. Some are
offended with the plainness and simplicity of the lan
guage ; and yet dignity of style, eloquence of expres
sion, and the beauties of poetry, are not wanting in their
proper places ; but these graces are never used as mere
ornaments to recommend the 'contents of the Bible to

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 37
the imagination, and to beguile men by the beauty of
the language into a reception of the doctrines revealed.
Let the Mohammedan boast of the sublime eloquence
of many passages of his Koran, let him be satisfied with
this tinsel distinction ; we have Scriptures which carry
conviction to our minds by the majesty and authority
of inspiration.
Eloquence and high-sounding language are often used
to strengthen a weak cause, or to gloss over an unjust
one, or to recommend to the notice of men a subject
which needs such aid to make it appear important, or
to gain applause to the writer. But the message of
the Gospel is delivered with great plainness, with dig
nified simplicity, l.1 not in the Words which man's wis
dom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth."
The cause is that of truth, mighty in itself, and all-
important to man.
The humiliating doctrines of the Bible are another
source of offence to the carnal mind. These have
already been noticed, and the cause pointed out ; but
let it be observed, that if these things remain as stum
bling-blocks to the mind, they prove that the man is
still " in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of in
iquity :" "if the Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that
are lost ; in whom the God of this world hath blinded
the minds of them who believe not, lest the light of the
glorious Gospel of Christ, who is the image of God,
should shine unto them."
The Bible may also be read under a mistake, by
men's applying to themselves those parts of Scripture
which have no reference to their character and state. —
Some persons make a sort of conjuring book of the
Bible, by opening it at random, and taking the first
passage that presents itself to the eye as a direction to
them in any particular circumstances in which they

38 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
may be placed. Others are as much influenced by cer*
tain portions of the Scriptures which suddenly come to
their recollection, and they take that for an inspiration
from heaven which is the mere effect of memory and
the imagination. Many under heavy sufferings, brought
on themselves by their own imprudence and profligacy,
take comfort from the, gracious addresses made to the
people of God, while their own character and circum
stances bear no sort of resemblance to those of the
persons to whom these particular consolations were ad
dressed. Some compare themselves in the time of
severe trial and opposition from men, to the most holy
servants of God, and repeat the language of David, or
some other of the prophets, as applicable to their cases;
and some have not scrupled to compare themselves to
Christ. We should consider that the promises contained in
the Holy Scriptures, belong to us individually only
so far as we bear the marks and evidences of the per
sons to whom these promises are addressed. They are
all made to particular characters, and unless we feel
that disposition of mind which is implied in any parti
cular promise, we cannot have any just ground for'
taking comfort or encouragement to ourselves from the
gracious tenor of the promise.
The promises of pardon, are made to those only who
sorrow on the account of sin ; the promises of restora-
ration to the backslider, are addressed to those only who
are penitent and who mourn over their departure from
God ; the promises of Divine direction, are spoken to
those who acknowledge the hand of God in all things.
Glory is promised to humility ; pardon to confession
and the forsaking of sins; the fruition of God's pre
sence, to a hungering and thirsting after righteousness ;
the happiness which is laid up in heaven, to a reverential
and holy fear of God.

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 39
The greatest care, and the closest examination of our
own character, are necessary in this matter, lest we
speak peace to our hearts, when God does not speak
peace ; lest we lull ourselves into a fatal security, and
take it for granted that we have an undoubted risrht to
all the consolations of the Gospel, because we profess
to be the disciples of Christ, and yet remain destitute of
the temper and eonduct of his faithful servants.
A mere profession of faith does not induce those holy
tempers which are the fruit of the Spirit, and conse
quently does not give us any warrant or title to the pro
mises made to sincere christians. " Men are apt to for
get that their characters are not always formed by their
avowed principles ; we may hold a sound faith, without
its having that hold of us as to form our spirits and con
duct; we may profess an erroneous creed, and yet our
spirits and conduct may be formed nearly irrespective of
it ; in short, there is a difference between principles and
opinions; the former are the actual moving causes which
lie at the root of action ; and the other often float in the
mind, without being reduced to practice."
The end of knowledge is practice. The mind may
be well informed of the truths of Scripture, and the
memory well stored with its precepts and doctrines, but
unless they reach the heart, and influence the conduct,
the great end for which they were given is lost, and our
guilt will but be aggravated by our barren knowledge.
There is a lamentable inclination in men to be hearers,
but not doers of the word ; to substitute knowledge for
practice; to put the sign for the thing signified; to place
ceremonies in the stead of obedience ; to quiet the con
science by ritual observances, while a holy life is out
raged. Men may be loud talkers in defence of Ortho
doxy, and yet live wholly destitute of the power of
godliness, altogether uninfluenced by those doctrines
which they so strenuously advocate.

40 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
We may read the Bible as we do any other well
authenticated history; we may be convinced of the
truth of Scripture, our judgments may be convinced,
but unless our affections are inclined, and led into a
right bias by the revelations of Scripture, the most im
portant end for which they were made to men, has not
been fulfilled in us.
A man has much light on doctrinal subjects ; he can
discourse freely on the plan of human redemption ; he
speaks of the inability of man, and the necessity of
Divine illumination ; he gives a clear definition of con
version, and expatiates on the beauty and indispensable
necessity of holiness ; he can harrow up the soul with
the terrors of the Lord, while he sets forth the solemnity
of a judgment to come, and the torments of lost spirits ;
his language darkens the very darkness of hell, and
the pictures of misery which he paints, cause the mind
to be filled with horror : again, he describes with
powerful eloquence the glories and the bliss of hea
ven ; the ear hangs with delight on his mellifluous
accents, and the, spirit drinks in with eagerness the
splendid thoughts, the sublime ideas with which he
illustrates the fascinating theme; his auditors never tire
with listening to his inviting representations of the
pearly gates, the golden streets, the blissful mansions
of the redeemed. It is possible, and let the fact speak
with alarm to the conscience, it is possible that a man
may do all this, and yet be uninfluenced by the saving
power of the Gospel in his own soul : he may do all
this, and his heart remain unsubdued, his spirit un-
sanctified, his conscience under the power of moral
guilt, his temper uncorrected, and his conduct unholy.
There is a wide distance between profession and
practice ; between the mere knowledge of the doctrines
of the Gospel, and the holy influence which they have

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 41
on the conduct when fully received into the heart. There
is a vast difference between hypocrisy and sincerity : the
hypocrite talks of religion, the sincere christian loves it;
the former defines it, the latter receives it into his heart ;
the former commends it, the latter lives according to it;
the one knows it, the other practises it.
The Scriptures should be read to furnish us with mat
ter for prayer. We have read the Bible to no purpose,
unless it has induced a spirit of prayer. The first
evidence of spiritual life in the soul, is the voice of
prayer. It is impossible that a man can read the
Scriptures with profit, with understanding, that he can
"mark, learn, and inwardly digest them," without
discovering his ^deplorable condition as a descendant
from fallen parents, his danger, his weakness, his de
pravity, his necessities; and it is equally impossible
that he should know and understand these things aright,
and not feel an irresistible disposition to pray to the
Giver of all good, — to continue earnest in supplication
for Divine teaching, for strength to be imparted to his
soul, for his wants to be supplied, and for the obtaining
of an assurance, that he is interested in the salvation
whicl/Christ has accomplished for sinners.
To read the Bible, is the way to have a spirit of prayer
excited in the heart ; and to read the Bible with prayer,
is the means of keeping alive that spirit ; for the daily
study of the Word of God, discovers to us more of the de
pravity of our sinful natures, and the consequent neces
sity of sanctifying grace to enable us to resist the evil, —
more of the wiles of our spiritual adversary Satan, and
the need we have of weapons from the spiritual armoury
of God, and of heavenly wisdom, and heavenly strength,
to wield those weapons with success, — more of the evil
nature of sin, the holiness and justice of God, the cer
tainty of a future judgment, the anguish of hell, and
G

42 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
the glories of heaven, and consequently our want of
pardon and of righteousness, the value of a Mediator,
and the necessity of faith in him.
Thus the knowledge of our wants, excites prayer to
have those wants supplied, — a conviction of our danger,
produces a desire to be delivered from it, — a belief of
the miseries of hell, and of the blessedness of heaven,
moves us to earnest and constant supplication to be
saved from the one, and to obtain an inheritance in the
other. Thus we are led to God daily with our hard
hearts, that he may give us hearts of flesh; with our
unclean hearts, that he may sanctify them; with our
depraved hearts, that he may renew them; with our
foolish hearts, that he may teach them ; with our re
bellious hearts, that he may bring them into obedience
to Christ ; with our unbelieving hearts, that he may pro
duce saving faith in them. Thus we are inclined to
lift up our souls to God daily, that he would cause us
to be born again, to be transformed by the renewing of
our minds, to be converted to God, to be thoroughly
changed, to be created anew in Christ Jesus, and to
have a right spirit formed within us; that the love of
God may be shed abroad in our hearts, through the
Holy Spirit given unto us; that we may be saved
from the dominion of sin — be kept by the mighty
power of Gocl, through faith, unto salvation — be pre
served in Christ Jesus, and called — be redeemed from
the present evil world — be sanctified in body, soul,
and spirit — be preserved blameless unto the coming
of the day of God, and find mercy of the Lord at
that day.
Again, — The Bible must be read without partiality.
To receive Only just so much as accords with our notions,
and to reject all that opposes our conceptions of things,
— all that tends to humble our pride, and to confound

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 43
our reason, is to reflect on the Wisdom of God, and to
charge him with folly !
Many are ready enough to receive the promises of
pardon, who slight the threatenings denounced against
disobedience, — to listen to the descriptions of the hea
venly glory, but to shut their ears against the revelation
of a bottomless pit, and of everlasting burnings. The
doctrine of salvation by Jesus Christ, is a pleasant
message, but the enforcement of a holy life, the neces
sity of being renewed and sanctified, are stumbling
blocks, and grounds of offence. Doctrines are singled
out here and there, to make up a system that will be
pleasing to the foolish heart of man ; promises are se
lected, and applied to the conscience, to heal the wounds
of sin ; while all the holy precepts of the Word are
neglected, and such laxity of conduct prevails, as if
all the moral laws of God were abrogated and repealed,
and holiness made no part of the system of Christianity.
The Bible is abused unless it be made a book of di
rections to guide us, as well as an encouraging book of
gracious declarations to encourage us, — a warning book
of cautions, an alarming book of threatenings, as well
as a precious book of promises to animate our hearts,
and cheer our way. Every part should have its due
weight and influence on the heart and conduct. We
must consider the precepts of God's word, meditate on
its counsels, believe its declarations, be warned by its
cautions, alarmed by its threatenings, guided by its di
rections, swayed by its commands, sweetly inclined by
its invitations, and encouraged by its promises.
By many the Scriptures are read partially. The
freeness of the gift of salvation, the completeness of
the mediatorial work of Christ, the perseverance of be
lievers through the stability of the covenant of grace,
the promises of grace and pardon, are selected, and are

44 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
dwelt upon continually, as though the Gospel did not
command the observance of one holy duty, as though
the very system of the Gospel did not involve a renun
ciation of all sin, an aiming at universal obedience ; —
as though heaven were promised, and the way not
marked out — the way of holiness in which we must
walk thither ; — as though God had appointed an end,
without the means by which that end is to be obtained.
Among the blessings conferred by the mediation of
Jesus, sanctification takes an eminent place. It is the
hatred of sin, and the holiness of their lives, which
must distinguish between the followers of Jesus Christ,
and the lovers of the world. To affirm that the law
is not binding on believers, as an eternal obligation of
moral rule, is to divide Christ — to consent to his office of
priest, but not to submit to his authority as king; it is
to "break his sceptre at the foot of his cross," to look
to him for redemption, but not to be willing to follow
him as an example — to desire to have his blood
sprinkled on our souls, but not to receive his spirit into
our hearts. This is to pervert the office of faith, and
thereby to turn it as a weapon against the law ; whereas
St. Paul tells us, that by faith in Christ the law is
established. The law is indeed abrogated as a covenant ; that is,
we cannot now obtain eternal -life by the observance of
its commands, seeing we have broken them in numberless
instances, and have no strength to observe them. But
the end of the law — holiness and the glory of God — is
fulfilled in the Gospel. It is fulfilled in Christ, who
hath magnified the law, and brought glory to God by
the perfect observance of all its commands. It is ful
filled in us, by the communication of the sanctifying
grace of the Holy Spirit, that we may be holy and
blameless. Therefore the law is not void, but esta-

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 45
blished ; and though we are not under it, as was Adam
at his first creation, yet we are not without law unto
God. All its requirements are binding upon us as a
rule of life. Holiness is to be perfecting in us while we
are on earth ; it will be perfected in heaven, where we
shall enjoy fully the free gift of salvation through a
Mediator. Again, — The Scriptures must be read with self-ap
plication of their statements to ourselves. It is a com
mon delusion for persons to read the Bible with a mis
taken application. They read of heaven as doubtless
their final destination, — of hell as the place which they
shall of course escape, — of Christ, as the Saviour, as
their Saviour, — of the righteous, as being themselves of
that number, — and of the wicked, as some strangely
blasphemous, dishonest, murderous characters. There
is no right self-application in all this, no enquiry how
far they bear the marks of one, or are free from the spots
of the other. Some persons, under the mask of cha
ritableness, are for opening the gates of heaven to all,
that they themselves may not be shut out ; they would
widen the narrow way for all, that they themselves may
be included in it ; the hope which they express of every
one is, that he is gone to the rest which remaineth for
the people of God, because by secretly comparing
themselves with others, they feel a degree of inward
complacency as to their own superior sanctity, or at
least they form a conclusion of comparative goodness,
and an expectation of being followers of those, whom
they have thus charitably sent on first to heaven.
We must be willing to include ourselves, in the Scrip
tural statements of universal depravity and degradation
by the fall, and we must feel our necessity of salvation,
as sinners exposed to endless and irremediable ruin with
out it. In judging our real character as sinners, we

46 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
should not look so much to our conduct, as to our hearts.
We have the same evil nature that others have, and if
we have not gone the same lengths in sin, it is because
the Grace and Providence of God have restrained us.
We must be humbled for our share of the general de
pravity of man, and remember that the seeds of all
evil are within us, and that the judgment of God re
gards as much what we should do, had we the oppor
tunity, as what we have already committed. Many
whom we account exceedingly vile, might not have been
so, had they not fallen into particular circumstances ;
that is, the particular evils of their hearts, which were
suited to particular temptations, would not have ap
peared, had not those temptations come upon them to
call them forth. This should make us tender of others,
and jealous of ourselves; "let him that thinketh he
standeth, take heed lest he fall." " God is no respecter
of persons."
Many are kept from coming to Christ, may we not
say all that are lost, are kept from coming to Christ,
because they have never been convinced of sin; they
have a persuasion that they are not so bad as other men,
they are not the sinners; they set up a comparative
standard in their own imagination, and not falling un
der the sentence of total and universal corruption, they
fall short of the only way of salvation. The Gospel
being a provision for sinful, lost, and ruined man, un
less we feel this to be our state, we cannot make a sav
ing application of that provision to ourselves. Till we
receive all the statements of the Bible with respect to
sin, we cannot receive with profit its declarations and
promises of grace. Salvation implies danger, faith im
plies a consciousness of danger, which has led to an
enquiry for salvation — to an embracing of the means of
recovery and deliverance. Pardon implies guilt, and re-

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 47
pentance implies a conviction of guilt, and an earnest
cry for pardon, and restoration to the favour of God. —
When we have received and applied to ourselves all the
humiliating statements of the Bible, we are prepared to
receive the consolations and promises of the Bible.
Conviction of sin leads to fear, and anxious enquiry
about deliverance ; these lead to a knowledge of the
Gospel, to repentance, faith, humility, hope, "glory,
honour, and immortality."
There is no part of the Bible, from which some in
struction may not be derived. " Every word of God is
pure." The historical narrations, even in their mi
nuteness, teach us the universal dominion of God's
providence. The falls of good men, which are faith
fully recorded, teach us the universal depravity of man,
and that perfection resides in no one human being, that
we may neither despair nor presume. If we rightly
apply these instances, they will not make us careless,
nor harden us in presumption, nor cause us to think
lightly of sin, but we shall regard them as beacons placed
to warn us of rocks and quicksands ; and while we are
humbled under a feeling of common infirmity, we shall
become cautious and watchful, lest we also fall into
temptation. Finally, — The Bible must be read, in order that we
may discover more of the character, office, person, and
glory of Christ. " Search the Scriptures," saith our
Lord, " they are they which testify of me." Christ is
to be found in the Old Testament as well as in the New.
*' All the prophets from Samuel, and those that follow
after, as many as have spoken," wrote concerning his
manifestation in the flesh. This was the grand object
and design of prophecy. All the sacrificial offerings
which were appointed by God, from the days of Adam,
to the period of the cessation of the daily offering at

48 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
Jerusalem, pointed to Christ as the " Lamb slain from
the foundation of the world," as the propitiatory of
fering, the final sacrifice which was once to be offered in
the latter ages of the world, to put away sin. — All the
typical rites, and ceremonies, and ablutions under the
law, directed the eye of faith in the spiritual worshippers,
to the great Antitype, Jesus Christ.
We must not regard the whole ritual service of the
Jewish Church, as an institution efficacious to the sal
vation of the chosen race, while they continued a dis
tinct people, and adhered to the true God ; for in that
case the same service and rites would have been given
at some period to the other nations of the earth, that
they also might be saved ; for we know from prophecy
that the gracious designs of the Almighty, extended to
the restoration and salvation of the Gentiles. We must
not suppose that the form of religion established in the
antient church, was efficient to salvation in itself, and is
now abolished simply in consequence of the political
changes which have taken place in the Jewish nation :
that service was always inefficient per se to the salvation
of man, and was merely initial, serving to introduce a
more glorious, and a perfect economy. If the sacrifices
under the law could have taken away sin, "then would
they not have ceased to be offered ;" because the taking
away of sin was the end to be obtained, and if the
former dispensation was efficacious to this end, why
should another be introduced ; but " the law having a
shadow of good things to come," was only introductory
to a more glorious dispensation under the Gospel ; it
was merely the scaffolding, which was removed when
the " holy temple," "built upon the foundation of the
apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the
chief corner-stone," was "fitly framed," and "builded
together, for an habitation of God through the Spirit."

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 49
Christ himself thus expounded these things, " and be
ginning at Moses, and all the prophets," he showed
that " in all the Scriptures," they wrote " concerning
himself." The whole design of Revelation is to show men how
they may recover their uprightness, to instruct them in
those things in which their everlasting interests are in
volved, to make known unto them the scheme of
redemption by a Mediator. If this be the design of the
Bible, and Christ be the grand theme of inspiration,
how then can they have read this sacred book with any
advantage, who can discover in it nothing more than a
code of morals, or system of directions in what manner
men should regulate their conduct, while yet at the same
time, men have lost that moral power which would en
able them to observe such a code, and to comply with
such a system. If the Bible do no more than this, it
has in fact revealed nothing, for it only confirms and
ratifies the religion of nature — the dictate of the natu
ral conscience, without putting men into a way whereby
they may be restored to the favour of God, and have
his image restamped on the soul.
The Bible does in truth sanction and corroborate
the religion of nature, but it does far more than this {
it reveals to us what the united intelligences of men and
angels could not have discovered, the salvation of man
by the mediation of Jesus Christ. An increasing ac
quaintance with this great doctrine, should be our chief
aim in reading the Scriptures. It will be of no avail to
know our danger, unless we know the remedy also : to
be convinced of sin, to feel our moral depravity, and
to read of the necessity of holiness, will only lead us
to the borders of despair, unless we discover at the
same time the means of pardon by the death of Christ,
and the promise of renovation by the Holy Spirit.
H

50 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
The apostles desired- to know nothing but "Jesus
Christ, and him crucified;" they esteemed all things as
loss, compared with the knowledge of Christ ; they ac
counted the end of their ministry accomplished when
they had declared " the testimony of God," by preach
ing Christ unto the people. To know him is to be wise
unto salvation ; to receive all that the Bible reveals con-
teerning^him, is a proof that we have renounced the wis
dom of the flesh, and have been taught by God.
There are many things revealed concerning Christ,
which are above our comprehension, which are opposed
to our notions and ideas ; but we are not to reject what
God has revealed, because we cannot fully understand
it; this is absurd as well as impious. Our judgment
in general corresponds very little with the Word of God,
which is given to correct our judgment, and to instruct
us in those things of which we are naturally ignorant,
or but partially informed.
If we are the creatures of God, we must be amenable
to him, we must be subject to his power. The first
law of our being is to submit ourselves to his guidance,
and to supplicate his protection and blessing. If we
have sinned against God, and lost his favour, we must
receive pardon in whatever way he is pleased to grant
it, — we must embrace such a Saviour as he hath been
pleased to appoint. It is not for the guilty to dictate
the terms of forgiveness. As the creatures of God, we
are completely under his power and governance ; and
as sinful creatures, we are entirely at his disposal, and
dependant on his mercy and pity. " The prerogative!
df God comprehends the whole man. Wherefore as
we are to Obey God's law, though we find a reluctance
in our will, so we are to believe his word, though we
find a reluctance in our reason ; for if we believe only
fhat which is agreeable to our reason, we give assent to

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 51
the matter, not to the author, which is no more than we
should do towards a suspected and discredited witness."*
But " if we receive the witness of men, the witness
of God is greater." And the witness which he hath
testified of his Son — the doctrine of the personof Christ,
is called the great mystery of Godliness ; and if it be
called a mystery in that book wherein it is revealed,
this alone should silence all our cavils and objections
against it.
He reads the Bible in a right manner, who reads that
he may be instructed in those things whereby he may
be saved : He has read the Bible to a right end, who
has read it so as to find Christ, to know Christ, to de
sire to be found in him — accepted through his inter
cession — pardoned through the atonement made by his
blood, and justified through the imputation of his per
fect righteousness.
We may now endeavour to state some of the ad
vantages to be derived from the study of the Bible.
The only end of Revelation is the glory of God in
the salvation of man. The cordial reception of the
Bible fulfils this end. God is glorified when man is
saved. Holy Scripture not only makes known a salva
tion by Jesus Christ, but also furnishes us with the most
powerful motives to a holy life, and the most complete
instructions for every branch of duty. If we take the
Bible as our only guide, we shall be preserved from all
that is erroneous in doctrine, and all that is wrong in
practice. The best system of divinity is that which
is compiled from the Scriptures, in Scriptural language.
No doctrine ought to be received which has not Scrip
tural authority for its basis. He who studies his Bible
most, is the best divine. Human interpretations often
obscure the light of Divine truth. It is granted that
* Lord Bacon.

52 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
the greatest benefit is derived from perusing the medi
tations of those who have made the Bible their chief
study ; but then every explanation and assertion should
be tried by the Scriptures. If no appeal can be made
to the Word of God in proof of any doctrine, it is
plainly not of God, and must therefore be rejected.
When we take the works of an uninspired writer into
our hands, we feel a degree of distrust in receiving what
he has affirmed, from a consciousness of his fallibility,
and the possibility that he may be one who even lies in
wait to deceive ; but when we take the Bible into our
hands, we receive its message with unhesitating faith?
and place implicit confidence in all its statements. Its
authority as being the Word of God, silences all ob
jections, and the conviction of its having been given by
inspiration of God, removes every doubt and secret
misgiving of the heart. The mind yields a ready as
sent to all its assertions, and acknowledges its Divine
origin, by submitting every prepossession and prejudice,
every conclusion of science, and all the pride of li
terature to its decision.
To attain to a knowledge of the Truth, should be the
great object of our pursuit. When the reception of
any particular doctrines involves the most important
consequences — even endless happiness or misery, we
are inexcusable if we carelessly take up a groundless
faith, and are able to give no reason for our assent. The
Bible offers to us such doctrines, and at the same time
invites the most rigid investigation. " Search the
Scriptures." The christian religion has faith for its foundation, but
it is not a religion which requires its followers to receive
its dogmas with blind credence, to renounce their rea
son and understanding, and to acquiesce in a creed in
opposition to the light of nature, and to the testimony

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 53
of experience. The more the Bible is studied, the
more its Divinity appears ; the more its doctrines are
examined, the greater harmony is discovered ; the closer
the comparison is made between its statements, and the
condition of man, the more apparent is the exact suit
ableness of its discoveries to our wants and necessities.
He that reads the Bible with humility and prayer,
will know of every doctrine whether it be from God ;
while he receives a rational faith, a faith whereby he
may be saved, he will see more clearly the exceeding
breadth, the immutable stability of the foundation on
which that faith rests. Instruction will bring confirma
tion, and he will be ready always, agreeably to Scrip
tural direction, " to give an answer to every man that
asketh a reason of the hope that is in him."
The religion of the Bible possesses this advantage in
an eminent degree, that it brings perfect satisfaction to
the mind. Nothing is more timid than guilt ; and the
conscience of all men being wounded with an in
ward sense of guilt, and being under great apprehen
sion respecting a future state, they naturally look with
anxiety for some means of expiation. The notion of a
sacrifice to propitiate an angry God, is a universal sen
timent; the most unenlightened of the human race
fear an invisible but angry power. The degradation of
of man by sin, has implanted a sting in every bosom ;
and the most cruel and preposterous rites are resorted to
in order to appease the invisible Spirit, and to quiet the
reproaches of conscience. But all the inventions of
men in this way, leave the mind at last under the influ
ence of fear and doubt. An uncertainty whether the
offering be accepted, whether it be of a nature agree
able to the Deity, whether it be made in a way that is
pleasing to him, leaves the soul a prey to anxious so
licitude. It is here the Divinity of the Bible is most

54 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
apparent. The study of the Scriptures tends to remove
every difficulty, to satisfy every doubt, to quiet every
apprehension, to soothe the troubled mind, to ease the
burthened conscience ; to bind up the broken heart, to
still all anxious fears, to pour the balm into every wound,
to calm the perturbed spirit, to fill the soul with hea
venly peace.
The Scriptures should be read daily, because we are
always exposed to the danger of imbibing error — of
becoming remiss in our duty — of declining in our zeal —
of falling away from the faith. Temptations surround
us, and there is a disposition in every heart to meet
temptation, (o fall in with it. The evil is suited to our
corrupt affections ; there is an agreement between the sin
and the sinful nature ; our depravity gives meetness to
temptation, and our weakness gives it power.
The Bible offers a defence against this danger, an
antidote to this poison. The daily study of the Word
of God, tends to keep alive the spirit of devotion in
the heart, to keep the mind alert and watchful against
the insidious attacks of sin, to prompt the conscience
on the approach of danger, to urge us to flee on the
very appearance of evil.
When men grow careless, and omit reading the
Scriptures, they are on the edge of danger. It may-
seem but a small thing to omit reading that book, which
we have read so many times, — almost innumerable
times ; but every omission weakens that principle,
which the Scriptures are the means of producing in the
soul, and which the study, — the constant, daily study
of the Scriptures,is calculated to maintain and strengthen.
" He that contemneth small things, shall fall by little
and little." Of what consequence, says the flesh, is
this little deviation from the strictness of the spiritual
life. A worldly spirit is thus gradually brought over

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 55
the soul, and spreads its benumbing influence over all
its faculties. "To be carnally minded is death."
There is no spiritual life, nor sensibility, nor vigour left
to the soul ; it becomes unimpressed even by the Sword
of the Spirit, the Word of God. The sword may
pierce, but the wound is not felt. Deviations, trifling
in themselves, but formidable by repetition, unnoticed
by the world, and at length unfelt by the backslider,
insensibly become habits; — every time the omission or
commission is repeated, the impression becomes weaker,
but the evil principle gains strength ; fear is lost, and at
last a relish for the crooked ways of error is acquired.
When sin becomes sweet, then is the time of great dan
ger. — This is to "fall from grace." Many are the
Scriptural exhortations warning men against the en
croaching nature of sin. " Take heed lest there be in
any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from
the living God." " Exhort one another daily, lest any
of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin."
" Beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of
the wicked, fall from your own steadfastness."
All the evils of this lukewarm state, of this drowsy
condition of the soul, may be induced by a neglect of
the Scriptures; while the daily study of them, will
tend to keep off the fatal veil from the heart, to preserve
the feet from being taken by the entangling snare, and to
maintain the edge, if the expression may be used, of
this Sword of the Spirit, that its efficacy may be con
stantly experienced, in slaying the enmity of the na
tural mind, and the love of sin in the soul.
The way to life is described in Scripture, as a narrow
way, and the entrance to it is a strait entrance. This
straitness, and this narrowness have not proceeded from
God. He is willing that all men should be saved ; he
has sworn by his own existence, that he desires not the

56. ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
death of a sinner, but rather that he should live; the
sin and depravity of man have narrowed the road to
glory. Conviction of sin, repentance, a renuncia
tion of self-righteousness, and faith in Jesus Christ, form
the strait door. Dependance on Divine grace, humility,
meekness, self-denial, poorness of spirit, mark out the
narrow way. The reason why so many miss this strait
entrance, and are diverted from this narrow way, is that
they forsake the guidance of the Holy Scriptures,, and
follow the illusive meteors of their own imagination. —
The suggestions of a proud and depraved heart, are
often mistaken by men for the dictates of reason ; and
thus while they call themselves rational christians, they
become opposers of the Word of God. Substituting
" what tkinkest thou ?"* for the more safe enquiry, " how
readest thou ?" they turn from the narrow way of truth
into the broad road of error ; there is no end of their
wanderings ; their feet stumble on the dark mountains.
Every deviation from the path of rectitude, makes the
return more difficult. The soul, full of error, Joathes
the truth. The only means of finding the pathway.
that leadeth to life, is by searching the Scriptures ; the
only means of keeping in that path, is by givino- at
tendance daily to the Sacred Revelation.
Man is ignorant; Holy Scripture is profitable for
"instruction in righteousness:" he is easily deluded,.
and "carried away by every wind" of error; the
Scripture is profitable for " doctrine :" he is prone to
relax his diligence in the christian course, to grow
lukewarm, to degenerate into a mere form of godliness,
to lose all earnestness in securing his calling and election ;
the Bible is profitable for " reproof:'" he is ever ready
to turn aside from the ways of righteousness, to back
slide in heart, to become lax in conduct, to have slight
* Dr. Chalmers.

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 57
notions of sin, to be very tenacious of his profession of
the knowledge of God, but in works to deny him ; the
Word of God is profitable for "correction."
Holy Scripture is profitable for " instruction in righ*
teousnes." The pride and ignorance of man, form an insu
perable obstacle in the way of his discovering histrue con
dition as a sinner, and his relation to God as an account
able creature. The diligent reading of the Bible tends
to remove this obstacle; its statements abase human
pride, and its revelations instruct the darkened mind.
Religion has a foundation in the nature of man; but
unless this principle be under the guidance of the hea
venly light, it will lead men into the grossest errors of
superstition. We find the religion of savage nations,
who have not received the Divine Revelation of the Bi
ble, to be a tissue of folly and of cruelty. Ceremonies
the most puerile, and that could have resulted only from
the natural ignorance of the human mind, prompted by
the innate principle of religion, and offerings of the
most cruel and revolting kind, and which have been de
vised by the natural depravity of man, are zealously
observed with a notion of appeasing an angry Deity.
A propitiation is felt to be necessary — to be indispen
sable ; but of the nature of the sacrifice they are un
informed ; and thus the blood of human victims is com
mingled with that of beasts, and thousands of wretched
men are immolated under the notion of procuring the
favour of an unknown God, and averting the direful
consequences of his indignation.
Natural religion brings more worshippers to the devil?
than to the true God. A guilty conscience, and a
fear of the anger of an invisible Almighty Being, often
lead men, in judging of the nature of the Deity, to
form a notion of a powerful but malignant spirit, able
to injure them, but indisposed to do them good. How

58 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
does the Divinity of the Bible shine out when contrasted
with such unworthy — such blasphemous notions ! En"
veloped in the thickest darkness of the shadow of death
is every land, till illuminated by the glorious light of
the Bible. The monstrous Dagons, the filthy Baalze-
buls, fall before this Ark of the Covenant. The sa
tisfaction of truth is felt in the hearts of those who re
ceive the heavenly message.
But while these evils flow from the want of a Divine
Revelation, errors equally fatal, though not so foolish
and absurd in their nature, and practices equally erro
neous, though not so disgusting and cruel, result from
neglecting to derive every religious sentiment from the
Word of God. In the former case, the Bible opposes
the horrid rites of Moloch, and instructs men in the
knowledge of the true God; and in the latter, it com
bats the pride and self-righteous spirit of men. Men are
still possessed with a notion of saving themselves in their
own way, notwithstanding the Revelation of the Bible.
They do not indeed become gross and cruel idolaters,
but they refuse to glorify God, by submitting themselves
to the way of salvation that is revealed in the Gospel.
They take a part of their religion from the Scriptures,
and the remainder is of human invention. — But as man
is totally ignorant of Divine things till instructed by the
light of Revelation, so is he furnished by Revelation
with a knowledge of all things that are requisite to sal
vation- There is nothing left to be devised by man, so
far as the spiritual nature of the worship of God is con
cerned ; and nothing is left unfinished in his redemption ;
no meritorious part — not the smallest iota of satisfactory
obedience, is to be accomplished by man. But it is
only the diligent and constant study of the Bible, that
makes these things known to man. Without this, he
may wander into the road of destruction, even with

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 59
the Divine light in his possession; and may remain ig
norant of the only way of deliverance, even while he
has that Scripture which is " profitable for instruction."
The enquirer after Divine truth is subject to fall into
many mistakes, in consequence of the natural darkness
of his understanding, and the depravity of his heart.
It is a propensity to form some part of our religion for
ourselves, that leads us astray; men judge of God
without the Bible, and form opinions also respecting
themselves — their state — their attainments in religion
without the standard and guide of Scripture. Many
sincere christians are subject to tormenting doubts and
fears, and anxiety, because they prove themselves and
try their own character and condition, by some standard
of their own invention, by some self-righteous principle*
instead of applying to Scriptural marks and tests. Sin
cere, persons often write bitter things against themselves,
and charge the sin of hypocrisy on their consciences, in
consequence of not sufficiently examining themselves
by the Bible.
Instruction in this point is as necessary to the comfort
of a christian^ as instruction in the knowledge of God,
und of the means of redemption, is indispensable to the
safety of men. The doubting christian deprives him
self of much enjoyment in religion, because of the
weakness of his faith, the limited extent of his know
ledge, and the trembling character of his reliance on
Christ. The " instruction" of the Bible tends to
strengthen faith, by showing the security of the basis on
which Scriptural faith rests — on the truth of God, and
the perfect mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ. The
study of the Scriptures gives solidity to the character,
confirms hope, and establishes that faith thrqugh which
men are made wise unto salvation.
The church of God is founded on a rock;, the oath

60 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
and promise of God are pledged for its security. " God
is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved." But
although truth shall never utterly fail from the church,
yet many errors in doctrine, and many discrepances in
practice, may obtain among those who have a name in
the household of faith. " There is a river, the streams
whereof shall make glad the city of God." This is the
river of the water of life, gliding with a transparent
stream, in a tranquil and uninterrupted course. But
there are also turbulent waters which grieve the city of
God ; there are the hasty torrent of fanaticism, the
overwhelming flood of iniquity, and the sluggish and
foul waters of indifference and lukewarmness.
Instability is the characteristic of man ; as soon as
the good seed is sown in his heart, then cometh the e-
nemy, and finds ready admittance to sow tares also.
There is so much unsubdued evil remaining in the minds
of men, after they have received the " instruction" of
the Holy Scriptures, that they are exposed to be driven
from their steadfastness by every wind of error. Some
plausible doctrines are held out to them, and multitudes
are seduced from the truth ; some new opinion is offered
to engage their attention, and attract by its novelty, —
some sentiment is stated that is pleasing to the carnal
mind, and many "fall away to the enemy. The same
inspired writer, who declared that " the foundation of
God standeth sure," predicted also that a time should
come, when men would not " endure sound doctrine."
Holy Scripture is profitable for " doctrine ;" but as
soon as men cease to derive all their notions in religion
from this source, they fall into innumerable errors.
There is no spiritual light but that which proceedeth
from the Word of God ; but when men close their eyes
against this light, they will grope even at noon-day ;
fhejy must stumble and fall.

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 61
It was the forsaking of the Scriptures as the only
guide, which made way for the introduction of all the
corruptions and absurdities that were admitted into the
Romish church. Going back to the plain and evident
statements of Scripture, produced the Reformation,
which would doubtless have^iejected much that was re
tained, had the men who^iretedtnat great and glorious
work, been resolute in adhering to Scriptural au
thority, instead of yielding so much to the prejudices
and passions of men.
And to what cause can the present lamentable divi
sions in the church of God, be ascribed, but to the same
neglect of Scripture, to follow after the doctrines of
men. Whence come the " heap of teachers" that men
have got to themselves,' but from the " itching ears"
which cannot " endure sound doctrine." This has been
the fruitful source from which have proceeded the innu
merable sects, into which the christian world has been torn
by schism, and pride, and contention.
There is " one faith, one baptism," says the great a-
postle ; but, alas, where in the christian world shall we
now look for this uniformity in belief and in practice !
" The unity of the Spirit" is broken. The sword of
persecution hath indeed said, ' Enough ;' it is returned to
its scabbard ; and christians have now become the ene
mies and persecutors of each other. Where is that
mutual love, which was to be the characteristic of
the disciples of Christ! O strange anomaly in the
church of God, the flock worry and devour each other !
Instead of " forbearing one another in love," we see
much recrimination and hatred ; each sect assumes in
fallibility to itself; each party describes a little circle
around its peculiar sentiments, and pronounces all to
be in error, who are without the circumscribed pale.
According as one saith, " I am of Paul," and another " I

62 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
am of Apollos," such is his reception among the fol
lowers of different leaders.
Uniformity in discipline may be enjoined and enforced
by laws and regulations ; but unanimity in doctrine, will
never prevail till the Bible be made the standard of doc-
ritne. We know that all parties profess to appeal
to this book, as the standard of their faith ; but the great
evil is, that men come to the Bible with, preconceived
notions, and having first settled and arranged the articles
of their creed, they come to search in the Scriptures
for authoriy to establish them. How many are there
who leave the particular communion in which they were
instructed, and go over to some other sect, being per
suaded by the reasoning and arguments of men, instead
of taking the Bible for their sole guide and directory.
Then, and not till then, shall men have " one heart and
one way," when they shall submit to the dictates of the
Inspired Volume, and yield their judgments and af
fections to the decisions of that Scripture which is pro
fitable for "doctrine;" when they shall try all new
sentiments and opinions by the unerring standard of
Divine Truth, and receive or reject them, according
as they are conformable to, or inconsistent with the
Word of God.
But it is not error only, which spreads many a snare
for the feet of unstable man ; he is also prone to lose his
ardour in Divine things, to " settle on the lees" of in
difference, to rest contented with the " form of godliness,"
while he remains destitute of the power. This may be
the case, even while the Scriptures are regularly read ;
because unless " mixed with faith," the Word is un
profitable. The form of reading the Bible, so far from
preventing the deadly influence of lukewarmness, may
have a tendency to lull the conscience, and to induce a
morbid apathy over the soul. It is " taking heed" to

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 63
what is read, that makes the Scriptures profitable for
"reproof;" without this, which is the means by which
the Spirit quickenethi, the soul is exposed to tire in the
heavenly race. The Sardians were reproved for the
lukewarm state into which they had fallen, and in which
they had merely a name to live, while they were spi
ritually dead ; and at the same time the way of recovery
was pointed out to them ; " Remember, therefore, how
thou hast received and heard."
Animated by novelty, and satiated by repetition, we
are much dependant for our character, on peculiar cir
cumstances. When men first set out in the ways of
God, they " run well" for a time, but are soon hindered
by a variety of causes ; the world ensnares and deceives
them ; the enemy of souls avails himself of that prin
ciple in human nature, by which " passive impressions
by being repeated, grow weaker," and succeeds in
causing men to leave their first love. The mistakes of
superstition are not so much to be dreaded, as the fatal
treachery of indifference. Sincerity is not incompatible
with much ignorance and superstition ; but the life and
power, all that is vital and important in religion, may
be lost in the bowers of indolence, in the dreams of a
sluggish state of soul. Men may thus go on smoothly to
perdition, while they are looking for the inheritance
which is given to those only, who, by faith and patience
continue steadfast in the ways of God. A consciousness
that religion was once an important concern, and the
care of the soul, the one thing needful in our estimation,
may lead us to form favourable opinions respecting our
state, after we have ceased to feel the supreme importance
of religion, and to follow after it as the chief good.
There is much danger of self-deception here; the de-
ceitfulness of our hearts, the vanities of the world, and
the wiles of Satan, all conspire to give a false colouring

64 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
to our motives and pursuits, and to make us partial
judges in determining the question, "whose we arc, and
whom we serve," if at any time we are roused enough
from our spiritual lethargy to make this a question.
It is only by the " reproof" which the Scriptures ad
minister, that the mind is delivered from those silken
cords of self-delusion, which, though finer than the
chainsthat bind the open profligate and sinner, are not less
firm and unyielding. The spell which holds the soul
in durance, is broken by the mighty operation of the
Word of God ; as soon as the heart is softened by
prayer and humility, the entrance of the Scriptures
giveth light ; error is detected ; worldly mindedness is
removed ; e veil is torn from the heart ; the spiritual
life is marked by energy and vigour ; all the graces are
strengthened ; and the soul is animated to press forward
with alacrity, witli circumspection, with zeal, with
holy love. The christian, awakened from his long sleep
of earthly mindedness, shakes off his duluess, and
spurns his carelessness, and becoming more aware of
the insinuating nature of sin, and of his own infirmities
and depravity, he attains to a sensibility of mind which
is alarmed at the very appearance of evil ; he fears lest
an evil habit insensibly gain strength in his heart, and
draw him aside from the paths of righteousness. He
invites the " reproof of the Bible, he courts the admo
nition of the righteous, it enters into his heart, and he
becomes wiser; he is saved from being "hardened
through the deceitfulness of sin."
To feel lukewarm in the ways of God, and to turn
aside from them, — to forget the precepts of God, and
to violate them, — to have slight feelings of the evil of
sin, and to fall into the open commission of it, are so
nearly allied, that he who yields to the influence of one,
can scarcely escape the dominion of the other. It is

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 65
the natural progress of sin, to go on from small and al
most imperceptible deviations, to open and confirmed
iniquity. If the enemy succeed in inducing a spirit of
carelessness and indifference over the heart, men become
an easy prey to his wiles ; and from being the mere
nominal servants of God in heartless services, they end
in being his enemies by wicked works.
In this state of the soul, it commonly happens that a
man is more tenacious than ever of a form of godliness ;
having lost its life and power, he is desirous of retaining
at least the appearance of religion; and he does not
become a backslider in practice, till many struggles
have taken place between sin and the conscience. His
conscience condemns what his heart secretly loves.
Here is an evident want of sincerity. There is a con
stant strife in such a man's bosom, between conscience
and inclination — between a conviction of the error of
his ways, and an attachment to those ways — between a
knowledge of the consequences of sin, and a depraved
inclination, which has gained strength by indulgence
in evil.
Who can tell whither the first departure from God
may lead ! The backslider first allows sin in his heart,
and then he loses all defence or security against its far
ther inroads. He does not at once give up the desire
of heaven ; but his love of the heavenly world as a state
of sinless perfection, as well as of happiness, degenerates
into a mere desire of escaping the punishment of hell ;
and at last his highest aim is to be scarcely saved ; there
fore he retains as much of the world as he can, and fol
lows its courses and pleasures, just so far as not to ex
clude himself (as he fancies) from heaven at last.
The very root of all departure from God, consists in
a vain endeavour to reconcile the service of God and
the pursuits of the world,— to unite the " durable riches,"
K

66 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
and the " unrighteous mammon," — to blend time with
eternity, — to make earth and heaven a common object, —
to expect heaven as an end, while the world is the sole
pursuit of our lives. The backslider in heart thinks he
can attain the art of reconciling these opposite pursuits
and of bringing together heaven and earth ; he imagines
that he has discovered the true proportions which may
be assigned to each, and thinks he has drawn a line be
tween safety and danger. Alas! how soon does he
overstep this line, and descend without a guide into the
broad road of destruction !
And can he who just before walked with delight in
the narrow way of life, find any pleasure in treading the
faithless path of iniquity ! He has forsaken the Word
of God, and therefore his perceptions are deadened ;
his conscience becomes seared and destitute of feeling ;
he has left off to compare the abiding pleasantness and
peace of wisdom's ways, with the turbulent pleasures
of sin, which are but for a season; he can scarcely
distinguish between the husks of the world, and the
fruits of Canaan.
Wherewithal, then, shall he cleanse his way? By
taking heed thereto according to God's word. " I
thought on my ways," says David, and " turned my
feet unto thy testimonies." Holy Scripture is profitable
for "correction." The Word of God alone can re
produce conviction in the mind, and raise the soul from
the death-like influence of a state of departure from
God. As soon as the backslider returns unto the " sound
wisdom" of the Scriptures, they become health to his
spirit; he remembers whence he is fallen, and repents,
and does his first works : he has tasted the bitterness of
being filled with his own ways, and now he comes to
God with weeping and with supplication, saying, " I
have gone astray like a lost sheep ; seek thy servant,
for I do not forget thy commandments."

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. G7
Thus we see that the end of Revelation, is to instruct
men in the "things that accompany salvation." The
Bible is the only medium of communication with God;
it alone gives us any satisfactory account of the? original
condition of man, of his fall to the present state of de
gradation in which he is found, and of his future ex
pectations: The mind originally formed to move in a
more exalted sphere, and destined for more exalted
pleasures than this earth can yield, finds its true place
pointed out, and its high destination ascertained only
in the Bible. All men have departed from God; they
are all gone out of the way ; the Bible reveals the means
by which they may be restored to God, and brought
back into the' paths of life. They have lost their up
rightness, and ' have become the vassals of Satan ; the
Bible' reveals the method of recovering the image of
God, and of being set free from the bondage of sin, and
of being made the servants of God. — They have become
enemies of God by wicked works, " they are together
become unprofitable, there is none that doeth good, no
not one ;" the Bible reveals the way of reconciliation by
the mediation of Christ, and the means of sanctification
and obedience by the influence of the Holy Spirit.
They are in danger from " spiritual wickednesses," from
the " power of darkness," and are "of their own nature
inclined to evil," and to backslide from the ways of
God and of holiness: the Bible supplies them with hea
venly, armour; and by exhortation, and warning, and
expostulation, and threatening, and promises of pardon,
calls them out of the " world which lieth in wickedness,"
animates them in the christian course, teaches them to
turn aside from the evil way, recals them when they
have wandered, and seals the blessings of pardon on
their souls; and thus " the man of God" becomes " per
fect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works."

68 ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
In the Holy Scriptures may be found instructions
suited to every condition, to every gradation of intellect.
Here are " the deep things of God," "hard to be utter*
ed," for those "that are of full age;" and the "first
principles of the oracles of God," for those that are " un
skilful in the Word of righteousness." Here are mys
teries which the mind of an angel cannot fathom, and
plain truths suited to the comprehension of the meanest
capacity. " Un agneau y marche, et elle est en mSme
temps assez profonde qu'un elephant puisse y nager."
The Bible reveals subjects which the " angels desire to
look into ;" and it furnishes matter for praise even "out
of the mouth of babes and sucklings." Kings, and
princes, and nobles, may here derive wisdom to reign
and to decree justice; and subjects may be instructed
to yield due obedience to "the higher powers." The
rich may learn to "do good," to be "rich in good
works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;'
and the poor to seek " godliness with contentment." In
affliction the heart may be taught to pray, and may find
support ; and in the time of prosperity, a song of praise
be put into the mouth. Patience may be derived under
every trial; deliverance in the time of temptation;
Divine joy under earthly sorrow ; heavenly hope amidst
worldly disappointments. In times of fear, here is a
sure trust ; in the season of perplexity, here is a sure
direction ; in the hour of danger, here is a sure refuge ;
in life here is an unerring guide, and in death a never-
failing stay and consolation.
In fine, — The diligent and constant study of the
Scriptures, is the only way to be preserved from errors;
to be led into the way of truth ; to attain correct notions
respecting God and ourselves ; to discern enough of the
evil of sin, to humble us, and enough of the dangerous
state of the sinner, to lead us to Christ, — to discover

ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 69
the preciousness of his salvation — the riches of Divine
grace — the freeness and bountifulness of the mercy of
God — the nature of religion — the necessity of sancti-
fication by the Holy Spirit, as well as justification by
the imputed righteousness of the Redeemer ; to be up
held in the paths of righteousness ; to be guided by the
true light which shineth from heaven ; to be led into the
way of peace; to have the heart established in grace;
to be built up in the holy faith of the Gospel ; to wax
stronger and stronger in the faith; to be enabled to
overcome our spiritual adversaries; to go on our way
rejoicing ; to live in the enjoyment of Divine comfort,
and under the guidance of Divine teaching; and to die
in the possession of everlasting consolation and good
hope through Grace.

ESSAY II.

QJV THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
-«•©•<"¦
IxOD does nothing in vain. He always adapts
the means to the end that is to be obtained. No useless
machinery is employed, nothing is introduced merely
to give effect. He stretches not forth his omnipotent
arm without an adequate cause. He stands not in need
of showy parade and splendour to declare his glory,
but rests on the infinity, and majesty, and perfection of
his Being. The creation of the world might, doubtless,
have been effected in various ways, and by other means
than those which were used : he might have employed
other agents — the angels, to construct this beautiful
fabric; but it seemed most agreeable to the Divine wis
dom to speak — to command all things into being.
When man fell from his obedience, and Satan seemed
to have disconcerted the plans of the Almighty, and to
have brought, irretrievable ruin and disorder into the
new creation, God resolved to bring glory to himself
by rescuing his works from the destroyer, and by over
turning the kingdom and power of darkness. This
was to be done in a way which no created being could
have devised, and by an agent which creation could not
furnish. As God created man, so also was he the Re
deemer of man. He did not create by a delegated or

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 71
deputed power, nor did he redeem by any such means.
He performed the whole work of creation, and he is
also the sole aarent in redemption. Besides, is not the
work of redemption greater than that of creation f How
then could it be effected by a weaker power, by an in
ferior agent ? In creation, " God spake and it was done,
he commanded and it stood fast." Every thing moved
in obedient harmony to the Divine command. The
allegiance of man was secured by the observance of an
easy precept; and the supremacy of God was enforced
by the threat of a heavy punishment.
When man had dared to set the Almighty at defiance,
to distrust his power, and to doubt his word, — then
began the apparent conflict between the mercy and the
judgment of God ; — between his love, which prompted
him to rescue lost man, and his truth which called on
him to execute the sentence denounced against the of
fender. — Mercy pleaded for pardon and restoration:
Justice demanded the infliction of punishment, or a full
satisfaction. — Here is the difficulty of redemption.
The plan of introducing sin into the world, and
thereby counteracting the designs, and subverting the
works of God, was the master-piece of Satan's accursed
malignity, and hellish cunning. It was a device which
promised, if we may so speak, to overcome Omnipotence
itself. It was a craft which seemed above even the wis
dom of God.
Let not bold infidelity object here, that the entrance
of sin should have been prevented, — that no passage
should have been left unguarded. Infinite wisdom must
reside with the Deity ; and therefore no error or defi
ciency can possibly be found in his works. The fall
of man must have been foreseen by God ; for the sal
vation of man was in the eternal purposes of his counsel
But "vain man would be wise; in his arrogance he

72 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
would correct the works of his Maker, and instruct
Omniscience !
Respecting the origin of evil, the Scriptures
give us no further information than this, "an enemy
hath done it." It is in vain that we perplex our
selves with this most excruciating question : after all
the conjectures and hypotheses of speculative men,—
after all the elaborate disquisitions and persevering in
vestigations of the most penetrating minds, we can come
to no other conclusion than the one already afforded us,
namely, " an enemy hath done it."
God cannot be the author of sin. From him cometh
only that which is good and perfect. All the works of
God which we behold were originally without blemish ;
sin has brought disorder into the creation, and disfigured
the works of the Almighty. This evil must therefore
have proceeded at first from some source unconnected
with the Fountain of all good ; and as it could not have
entered without the permission of God, it follows ne
cessarily that his perfections will be thereby glorified ;
inasmuch as his own glory is the end of all the admi
nistration of the Deity.
What know we of the constitution of that part of
nature, with which we are most intimately connected ?
What know we of the mode of our own being ? Is not
every thing around us, and within us, a mystery which
we cannot fathom ? And shall we dare to arraign the
mighty and comprehensive purposes of the infinite God,
before the tribunal of our feeble light of reason ! ,»i"
Mystery there must be in a revelation of the will of
God. Can a finite being comprehend infinity ? Or a
limited capacity receive illimitable knowledge? Can
our confined faculties compass the " secret things" of
God? Or our contracted powers go along, and keep
pace with the Divine Intelligence? — The question to

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 73
be asked on reading the Word of God, is not, " How
can these things be ?" but, " Are these things so ?" We
must not seek to know the reason of the truths of In
spiration, but to regulate our conduct by them,— not to
comprehend but to adore.
It is this impious daring of measuring things above
their grasp, and rejecting what they cannot comprehend,
that has led many to controvert the Word of Truth, or
to explain away its clearest statements. It is on this
mistaken principle that the Socinians reject the doctrine
of the Divinity of Christ. They take reason instead
of Revelation for their guide ; and because they cannot
reconcile the Deity of Jesus with their rational notions
(so they call them) of religion, they are determined to
have a Bible which shall say nothing respecting this of
fensive doctrine ; and accordingly every passage which
asserts it, and every text which supports it, is in their
judgment an interpolation, or a mis-translation. And
every thing is brought to the test of their own measure ;
what does not comport with this, is strained or lopped
off. The counsel of God which hath been from eternal
ages, is new modelled by them ; a Revelation which is
to instruct man in things, of which he could by no other
means be informed, is scrutinized by them, and altered
or rejected as suits their notions of what a revelation
from God should be.
By taking away the Divinity of the Saviour from the
Bible, men put out that light which alone can illuminate
the sacred page; and thus "they grope in the dark
without light." By taking away this doctrine they re
move that corner-stone which supports the whole system
of Christianity, and it becomes to them, "a stone of
stumbling, and a rock of offence." If the New Tes
tament be received as the expositor of the Old, — if it be
admitted as a revelation from God, as the testimony
L

74 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
of men who " wrote as they were moved by the Holy
Ghost," then the Deity of the Redeemer must necessarily
be admitted also. And therefore those who deny Divine
honour to the Saviour, find themselves under the ne
cessity of rejecting or wresting many parts of the New
Testament, in which this doctrine is plainly advanced.
Socinians wish to be called Unitarians, though this
appellation cannot properly be restricted to them ; for
Trinitarians, as they are called^ Tare also Unitarians ; —
they believe in the unity of the Godhead ; — they receive
and maintain, "the first of all commandments," viz.
" The Lord our God is one Lord." And when they
maintain the Deity of Christ, they do not set forth other
Gods. With them there is but one God ; but they un
derstand the Scripture as revealing him to us in a three
fold character, Creator, Redeemer, and Comforter;
and in each of these characters, he is mentioned by a
distinct appellation, the Father, the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the Holy Ghost. As the Father, he hath loved us,
and chosen us in Christ Jesus ; by whom we are re
deemed ; and whose salvation is effectually made known
and applied to us by the Holy Spirit.
We apprehend this to be " the faith which was once
delivered unto the saints." It is a doctrine indeed far
above the comprehension of man, for how can a finite
creature understand the nature of an infinite Being !
The mind must be spiritually illuminated, before it can
admit " the things of God ;" for we read that the natural
man receiveth them not; that they are foolishness to
him, and that he cannot know them, because they are
spiritually discerned. And among these "things of
God," is the knowledge of the person of Christ, con
cerning which the Scripture informs us " that no man
can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost."
Lpt those who oppugn this doctrine, seriously consider.

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 75
the inference which must be deduced from an assertion
so expressly stated. If we can establish from Scripture
the doctrine of the Deity of our Saviour, the same
Scripture authorises us to conclude that all who deny
this doctrine have received " the spirit of the world,"
and not "the spirit which is of God;" and "if any
man have not the spirit of Christ he is none of his."
That there is a God may be known from the works
of the creation ; but while these works display the be
ing, wisdom, goodness and power of God, they are pro
foundly and everlastingly silent on the grand subjects
of the Scriptures : the knowledge of God, of his cha
racter, nature, perfections, and purposes, must be
communicated by Revelation ; and a Revelation from
God necessarily implies something above reason, Avhich
cannot be comprehended by it, and must be received
and obeyed by faith. Therefore they err who try the
statements of Scripture by their reason, and reject all
that they cannot comprehend. It is a trite but true re
mark, that there are many things in the Bible above
reason, but none contrary to reason. To read the Bible
profitably, we must compare spiritual things with spi
ritual. The things which the Holy Ghost teacheth, are
to be received with faith, to be studied with humility
and teachableness, to be spoken of with reverence, and
not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth.
If a doctrine be plainly stated in Scripture, that is a
sufficient warrant for us to receive it ; for if the Bible
be the Word of God, then all the doctrines it contains
must be true. Now we apprehend that the Divinity of
Christ is there fully stated. " Search the Scriptures,"
said our Lord, "for in them ye think ye have eternal
life, and they are they which testify of me." The
Scriptures here alluded to, were of course those of the
Old Testament, that is the things "which were written

76 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the
Psalms concerning Jesus." But we have also the
Scriptures of the New Testament, in addition to the
" more sure word of prophecy." Let us then " compare
spiritual things with spiritual," and see what is testified
in the Word of God concerning Christ ; —
First, — With respect to the Name by which he
is named, " The Lord."
Secondly, — In regard to his eternity.
Thirdly, — In reference to his appearing in the
flesh, and his exaltation.
Fourthly, — In relation to his second coming,
and his future kingdom and glory.
First, — What are we to understand by the term "the
Lord" which is applied to Christ, in many parts of
the Scriptures ?
The word Lord, so frequently employed in the New
Testament to designate Jesus Christ, is synonymous
with the same word used in the Old Testament, to denote
the Supreme and Eternal God. In the original Hebrew
it is Jehovah, and may be so read whenever the En
glish word Lord is printed in capital letters.
Now this name Jehovah is a title exclusively ap
plied to God ; it is the incommunicable name ; a name
that can never be given to an inferior being. It denotes
an indivisible essence ; it expresses an eternity of ex
istence ; and must therefore belong solely to Him who
was, and is, and is to come, the one Eternal, and Self-
Existent I AM. This name, however, we find to be
applied indifferently to God, and to Jesus Christ.—
St. Paul declares his confidence that "the Lord would
preserve him unto his heavenly kingdom ; that is, the
kingdom of Jesus Christ; and David says that '?the
Lord (Jehovah) is king for ever." The re
deemed in heaven cast their crowns before the throne,

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 77
saying, "Thou art worthy, O Lord" (Christ;) and
in the Psalms it is said, "The Lord's (Jehovah's)
throne is in heaven."
Of the Redeemer it was prophesied that he should be
a king ; and when Isaiah saw his vision of the Lord
(Jehovah) in his glory, [which is declared to
have been a vision of the glory of Christ,] he said,
"Mine eyes have seen the king;" and "who is this
king of glory ? The Lord (Jehovah) of Hosts, he is
the king of glory."
Christ is said to be our righteousness ; and this righte
ousness is repeatedly called in Scripture, " the righte
ousness of God." And of the Saviour it was declared in
prophecy, that he should be called " The Lord (Je
hovah) our righteousness;" and that of him men
should say, " Surely, in the Lord (Jehovah) have
I righteousness." And again, " In the Lord (Jehovah)
shall all the seed of Israel be justified."
David prayed in his affliction and said, " O my God,
take me not away in the midst of my days ; thy years
are throughout all generations ; of old hast thou laid
the foundations of the earth, &c." and in the epistle to
the Hebrews, this address is said to have been made to
the Son ; thus ascribing to Christ the title of Creator.-
And in the prophetical writings of Isaiah we read, that
the " Everlasting God, the Lord" (Jehovah,) is
"the Creator of the ends of the earth."
When our Lord gave a commission to his Apostles to
go forth and teach all nations, he commanded that they
should baptize men " in the name (not names) of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. — And
the form of the apostolic benediction is thus expressed,
" The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love
of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost be
with you all;" so that when David invoked the blessing

78 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST,
of the Lord, saying, "The name of the God of Jacob
defend thee," he did in fact pronounce the same bene
diction which was used in after-ages by the apostles.
The name of Christ is said to be a more excellent name
than that of the angels ; " a name which is above every
name;" even that of "King of Kings, and Lord of
Lords." When Moses beheld that great sight in the wilderness,
the bush burning with fire and not consumed, the Lord
(Jehovah,) revealed himself by a new name, say
ing, in reply to the question of Moses, what he should
answer unto the children of Israel, when interrogated
as to the author of his mission unto them, " Thus shalt
thou say to the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me
unto you." And we read that when the Jews were ca
villing in the days of our Lord against his Divine Au
thority, " Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say
unto you, before Abraham was I Am;" thus adopting
the very terms in which the Lord (Jehovah) had
aforetime commanded his Name to be proclaimed.
Saint Paul declares that the Israelites tempted Christ
when they murmured in the wilderness ; and by the pun
ishment which he mentions as having been inflicted on
them, viz. the destruction by serpents, we are enabled
to refer to the particular instance of rebellion in the his
tory of their wanderings. See Numb. xxi. 5, 6, where
it is said that " the people spake against God," and that
"the Lord (Jehovah) sent fiery serpents among the
people ;" and after their repentance, they confessed
their sin, and said, " We have sinned, for we have
spoken against the Lord (Jehovah.")
The title of Jehovah, is given to the Messiah by
the prophets in various passages of their writings ; —
" Behold the Lord God will come with a strong hand,
and his arm shall rule for him; behold his reward is

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 79
with him and his work before him." This is a prophecy
of the coming of Christ to judgment; and it is so ap
plied by our Lord when at the close of the vision of
Saint John, he saidj " Behold I come quickly, and my
reward is with me." — Again, " Thus saith the Lord
thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, I am the Lord
thy God;" and " I will have mercy on the house of
Judah, (God is represented as speaking) and will save
them by the Lord (Jehovah) their God." Here
V'.
the Saviour is plainly declared to be the Lord. " Lo,
I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the
Lord (Jehovah) and thou shalt know that the Lord
of Hosts hath sent me unto thee." This is very
remarkable language; the Lord speaks of being sent
by himself. His own arm brought salvation, when there
was none to help the guilty sons of men, he became the
author and finisher of their deliverance. " All things
are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus
Christ : God was in Christ reconciling the world unto
himself." The prophets ever ascribed their predictions, and de
nunciations, and words of consolation to God. The au
thority with which they delivered their message, proceed
ed from a conviction that they " spake as they were
moved by the Holy Ghost." The general preface to every
declaration is, "the Word of the Lord (Jehovah)
came unto me saying." And in the Revelation
of Saint John, Jesus declares that by his inspiration and
authority, the prophets delivered their message. " The
Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angels to show
unto his servants the things which must shortly be done."
" I Jesus have sent my angel to testify unto you these
things." By his inspiration the prophets of old
foretold things to come. " The Lord (Jehovah)
hath hid it from me," said Elisha respecting the child

80 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
of the Shunammite. And the same inspiration was given
by Christ to the writers of the New Testament; he
promised to send them the Comforter, who should teach
them all things, and bring all things to their remembrance,
whatsoever he had said unto them.
We shall cite but one more instance of the application
of the Name Jehovah to Christ; it is found by
comparing the language of God in the Old Testament,
with that of Christ in the New Testament. The God
of Israel, the Lord (Jehovah) expostulates with
his people, and says, "Hearken unto me, O Jacob,
and Israel, my called, I am he, I am the first, I also
am the last ;" and in the Revelation, the Son of man
appropriates this language of Jehovah to himself,
and saith to the favoured disciple who saw heaven open
ed, " Fear not, I am the first and the last."
Secondly, — What is the testimony of Scripture con
cerning ike eternal existence of Christ.
"In the beginning was the Word," that is Christ, See
Rev. xix. 13. " He is before all things." " Jesus
Christ, the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever."
" I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,
saith the Lord, (Christ,) which is, and which was, and
which is to come, the Almighty." — Wisdom or the
Word affirms concerning himself, that he " was set
up from everlasting," and that " the Lord (Je
hovah) possessed" him " in the beginning of his
way," thereby declaring the indivisibility of the God
head, subsisting in an ineffable union of persons.
Among tlie names which prophecy gave to the Mes
siah, is this, "The Everlasting Father;" and Christ
himself affirmed that he was without "beginning of
days," when he said to the Jews, " Verily, verily, I
say unto you, before Abraham was, I AM;" thus
claiming independent, eternal, unchangeable existence.

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.

81

When the prophet'Micah foretold the birth-place of
Christ, he spoke of his eternal existence^ affirming that
his "goings forth have been from of old, from ever
lasting;" and St. Paul bears his testimony to the same
truth, when he describes Melchisedec, that mysterious
personage, who was a type of Christ, as " having nei
ther beginning of days, nor end of life ; but made like
unto the Son of God."
He i that created all, things must have existed froiri
everlasting, and the work of Creation is ascribed to
Christ.— None, we suppose, will deny that the Crea
tor must be God, but the Scriptures tell us that Christ
was the Creator^ arid therefore God. " Lord thou hast'
been our dwelling-place in all generations. Before the
mountains were . brought forth, or ever 'thou badsf
formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting
to everlasting thou art! God," And in the book of the
prophet Isaiah, the "Creator of the ends of the earth,"
is said to be, " the everlasting God, the Lord.".
Again, '<Thus saith the Lord that created the heavens,
God himself that formed the earth, and made it." That*
this Creator was Jesus, may be seen by comparing, the
following passages from both Testaments. " In the be-v
ginning God created the heaven and the earth." " All,
things were made by him," (by the Word or Christ.)
"Thus saith the Lord the Holy One of Israel, and
his Maker, I have made the earth, and created man
upon it." "By him (Christ) were all things created
that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible, and
invisible, whether they be thrones or dominions, or prin
cipalities or powers; all things were created by him and
for him."
In the opening of the Epistle to the Hebrews, God
is represented as speaking to us in the Gospel by his
Son, and then the person and glory of the Son are de-
M

82 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
c-lared to be one with the person and glory of the Father :
and the words of David are introduced and explained
as being addressed to Christ, in which his Eternity and
Godhead are acknowledged; — " Unto the Son he saith,!
' Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever' ;" and " Thou; ,
Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundations of
the earth, &c."
Thus we find the Scriptures of both Testaments con- 1
currihg in ascribing to Christ an essential property of
the Deity, eternal and independent existence ; and also
giving to him the glory which must exclusively- helbng
to God, that of being the Creator of all things, both
in heaven and on earth. "Let all the angels of God"'
then "worship him;" let " every creature which is in!
heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and
such as are in the sea, and all that are in them," say,.
"Blessing, honour, glory, and power, be unto him
that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for
ever and ever!"
< Thirdly, — What is said in Scripture of Christ, in re-~
ference to his appearing in the flesh, and his exaltation.
So destructive of all moral powerwasthe fall of Adam,
that no one of his descendants could deliver himself
from the dominion of sin, or from the punishment due
to it. An Omnipotent Arm alone could rescue him.
God alone could supply an offering of sufficient value'
to atone for the infinite evils resulting from sin; and it
was among the secret things of God how this was to be
effected. A mediator was to be constituted between God!
and man, in such a way that both the; wisdom and pow
er of God might be displayed ; and while salvation was
provided for the guilty sons of men, none of the per
fections of the Deity might suffer. Man must be re
conciled to God, and for this purpose God must be ma
nifested in the flesh. The Deity is impassible, and

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 83
could not therefore endure the punishment denounced
against the transgression of man ;* it became necessary
that he should take upon him our nature, and by an
inexplicable union of ' Divinity and humanity in one
person, be made an offering for sin ; thus conferring by
the dignity and perfection of his Godhead, an infinite
value on the sufferings and obedience of his manhood,
and in the sinning nature making an atonement for sin.
The Christ must be truly and properly man, that he
might be capable of suffering in our stead ; and he must
be truly and properly God, that perfection might be
stamped on his atonement, to render it meritorious, and
to purchase the redemption of a world.
Let us then see what the Scripture testifies concerning
the union of these natures in the person of Jesus Christ.
The first recorded promise of the Messiah is that
Which God made to our first parents immediately after
the fall ; viz. that the seed of the woman shall bruise the
serpent's head. This is an evident prediction of the
manhood of the Messiah ; and it was accomplished
" when the fulness of time was come," and " God sent
forth his Son made of a woman."
Moses declared to the Israelites by the spirit of pro
phecy, that the Lord would raise up unto them a pro
phet from the midst of them ; and this prophecy is in
terpreted by Saint Peter as referring to Christ. See
Acts iii.
The prophet Isaiah is often called the evangelical
prophet, because he predicted in a circumstantial man
ner, the birth- of Christ, and the name by which he
should be called ; his state of humiliation, his rejection
by the Jews, his death and burial. And the prophet
Hosea foretold his resurrection. Compare Hos. vi. 2,
and 1 Cor. xv. 4.
* " Solus Deiis sentire, solus homo superare mortem non
potuit, quam pro nobis obire debuit."

84 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
In the books of the Evangelists, which record the
circumstances attendant on the whole life and ministry
of Christ, we find every property of our nature ascribed
to hini; and the whole narration shows him to have been
subject to every sinless infirmity, and to all the sorrow
incident to our fallen state. Again, all the attributes
and perfections of Deity are ascribed to and claimed by
him. The prophets who foretold his appearance in the
flesh, in the days of his humiliation, spake also of his
essential glory. Isaiah predicted that " a man," (re
ferring to the Messiah, ) should be " as a hiding-place,"
and "a covert." And in another passage of his pro*
phecy, he declares the dignity of the Godhead of this
Saviour, saying " His Name shall be called Wonderful,
Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father,,
The Prince of Peace." If " The Mighty God," be one of
the names of Christ, he must be truly and properly God,
for iiis Name is incommunicable to a creature : " Thus
saith God the Lord — I am the Lord, that is my name
and my glory will I not give to another." If the Mes*
siah be also " The Everlasting Father," who shall deny
him the essential properties of the Deity ?
We have already seen that the work of creation is as
cribed to Jesus, and that the titles given to him include
every name peculiar to the Deity ; and if we carry our
inquiry farther, we shall find that every perfection of
the Godhead resides in him.
He is Omnipotent. " All power is giyen unto me in
heaven and in earth," said the Redeemer to his disciples
after his resurrection. — He is Omniscient. " He knew
all men, and needed not that any should testify of man .
for he knew what was in man." He knows the secret
thoughts and purposes of the heart ; " Lord, thou know-
est all things," said Peter when interrogated by him re?
specting the sincerity of his attachment. " I am he,"

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 85
said Jesus in the, Revelation, "who searcheth the reins
and hearts, " — He is Omnipresent. " Where two or three
are gathered together in my name, there am I; in the
inidst of them."
The providential administration of the world is as
cribed to him. — Job in an impassioned address to God,
calls on him as the "Preserver of men." The Psalmist
in a noble hymn of praise, in which he traces the steps
of Providence, ascribes the foil riches of the earth,
and the wonders of the deep to the hand of the Almighty.
The prophet Isaiah in a sublime description of the Om
nipotence of God, recognises his irresistible power as
governing all nations, spreading out the heavens, and
marshalling the shining hosts of the skies. And the
inspired writers of the New Testament attribute all
these works and operations to the Saviour. " By him
all things consist." He reigns in heaven, " upholding
all things by the word of his power." He governs the
earth by a " sceptre of righteousness." He is the
Lord of the unseen world, holding in his hand, " the
keys of hell and of death." Universal nature is sus
pended on his will. " He giveth breath unto the people
that are upon the earth, and spirit to them that walk
therein." If he withhold his supporting energy, if lie
withdraw his hand, we should all return immediately to
our dust ; all created existence would cease ; all nature
would expire. The whole order of being depends on
" the word of his power." The meanest reptile en
joys its existence, being, supplied by his unwearied Pro
vidence ; all the beasts that roam abroad on the face of
the earth are supported by his bounty ; " the young
lions roar after their prey, and seek their meat from"
him. " The earth is full of" his " riches," and " so is
the great and wide sea." Man is the favoured object
of his richest blessings ; for him he left the high heaven,

86 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
and became a " man of sorrow, and one that had ex
perience of infirmities ;" for him " he was wounded, and
bruised," and " oppressed" and " afflicted;" for him he
gave his "back to the smiters," and "hid not his face
from shame and spitting ;" for him he toiled, and fasted,
and agonized, and was tempted, and for him he died.
Angels and archangels also live and are blessed in him.
It is his air that we breathe; by his bounty we are
clothed ; every beating pulse attests his supporting hand ;
every enjoyment of which we partake points us to him
as the source of all blessedness ; his unseen arm upholds
us ; he spreads over us his banner of love ; the shield
of his ever-present defence, is as a thousand bucklers
around us ; he that keepeth us neither slumbereth nor
sleepeth ; he is our shade upon our right hand ; he
preserves our going out and our coming in ; truly, " our
help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and
earth." He holdeth the world in the hollow of his
hand ; all the vast orbs of our system are managed by
his arm ; and he sustains the apparently interminable
systems of worlds which surround us. His power and
influence are felt from this earth to the nethermost parts
of creation — in heaven and in hell.
How safe then are his people ! None can pluck them
out of his hands. He will keep from every destructive
evil those on whom he designs to bestow eternal life.
They cannot sink who are upheld by Omnipotence.
Ko sudden evil can surprise them who are guarded by
Omniscience. None can remove them from his care
who is Omnipresent. They cannot perish who are pre
served by Infinite Goodness.
And how certain also is the punishment of his enemies !
How fearful is the thought that the despisers of the
Gospel, are preserved by that hand which shall here
after plunge them into the gulf of despair ! " The word

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 87
of his power" now upholds them ; and the same word
shall pronounce upon them the irrevocable sentence of
condemnation, the unchangeable doom of perdition I
Thus we see that the infirmities of human nature,
and the perfections of the Godhead are represented as
residing in one Christ. — Of the wonderful union of these
natures, we read that the name which should be given to
Jesus, was " Immanuel, which being interpreted is,
God with us," God in our nature. "The Word was
made flesh, and dwelt among us." "I am not alone,
but I and the Father that sent me." " Of whom (i. e.
of the Israelites) as concerning the Jlesh, Christ came,
who is over all, God blessed for ever." " God was in
Christ." " In him dwelleth all the fulness of the God
head bodily." "God was manifest in:the flesh!"
, In the constitution of the person of Christ, there is a
distinction of natures plainly stated in Scripture; but
the unity of the person is evidently asserted also.-
: He is sometimes spoken of in regard to his Divine
nature, and sometimes in reference to his mediatorship.
In, respect to theforraer, he claims equality and oneness
with the Father ; " I and my Father are one." And the
testimony of the beloved disciples is, " This is the true
God, and eternal life." In regard to the latter, in
which he took upon him our nature, he said, "My Fa
ther is greater than L." And " There is one Mediator
between God and man, the man Christ Jesus."
The not observing of this distinction, seems to be the
chief cause why some persons cannot discover in the
Scriptures the doctrine for which we are contending. They .
readily receive all the passages which relate to the hu
mility of his office, in which he necessarily appeared in
the form of a man ; but they will not acknowledge those
parts of Holy Writ which describe the dignity of ltis
Divine nature — which assert the Divinity of his person.

88 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
The distinction between the person and offices of
Christ, is clearly stated in both parts of the Word of
of God. In the Old Testament he is sometimes called
an angel, because he exercised the office of angels ; for
these spiritual beings are said to be " ministering spi
rits." In the book of Exodus, the guide and defence
of the Israelites is said to be " the angel of God," for
he ministered to the Israelites in the office of an angel.
But of the glory of his person, we read that he was the
Lord of Hosts himself; "The Lord, went before
them." So also when "the angel of the Lord" ap
peared to Moses in the burning bush, it was the Lord
himself who thus displayed his presence ; for " when
the Lord saw that he (Moses) turned aside to see,'
God called unto him out of the midst of the bush."
In the New Testament he is frequently said to be a
man, because he took upon him our nature, and ap
peared " in fashion as a man." When the Apostle was
recommending to the Philippians to cultivate a spirit of
humility, he enforced his advice by holding out before
them the example of " Christ Jesus, who, being in the
form of God, thought it not . robbery to be equal with
God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon
him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness
of men," and was indeed man. He was manifested to
us " in the body of his flesh," but thought itnot robbery —
no unjust assumption of the Divine perfections, to claim1
equality with the Father. And it is worthy of remark
that in the above passage, (Phil. ii. 5, 6, and 7,) the
same Greek word is employed in both clauses to express
the Divine nature and humiliation of Christ : therefore,
if he was truly and properly man, when he " took upon
him the form of a servant, he must be also "very God^*'
"being in the form of God." The antithesis is not
complete without this inference.

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 89
Besides, were Christ a mere man, how could it be
said with any propriety that he humbled himself, when
he took upon him our nature, and " was made in the
likeness of men." His condescension is increased by
the consideration, (and it is a Scriptural one,) that he did
not take "on him the nature of angels," but he stooped
yet lower, and " took on him the seed of Abraham."
Again, — he " was made a little lower than the angels
for the suffering of death" that is, that he might have a
capacity to endure suffering. His Divine nature being
ineapable of suffering, it was necessary that he should
assume an inferior nature which was subject to mortality.
The whole body of believers is called the " church of
God," and this church is said to be " purchased wilb,
his own blood;" and we know who it was that " by
his own blood — obtained eternal redemption for us."
" Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid
down his life for us ;" we know by what price we were
redeemed, even " with the precious blood of Christ." —
And in the confirmation of this " mystery of God
liness," we may add the very remarkable language of
the Apostle Paul, when speaking of the union that sub
sists between Christ and believers ; " Christ also loved
the Church, and gave himself for it, that he might pre
sent it to himself a glorious church." The church then
is redeemed "by him, and for him;" " Salvation is of
the Lord," "who gave himself for us, that he might
redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself
a peculiar people."
Those who waited "for the consolation of Israel,"
before the coming of our Lord in the flesh, looked for a
Divine Redeemer. When Elizabeth the mother of John
the Baptist was visited by the Holy Virgin, she exclaimed
by the spirit of prophecy, being filled with the Holy
Ghost, " Whence is this to me, that the mother of my
N

90 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
Lord should come to me ?" And the father of Jolin
the Baptist the forerunner of Christ, prophesied at the
birth of his son, that he should "go before the face of
the Lord to prepare his ways." A nd John was declared
by Christ himself to be that " Elijah the prophet," spo
ken of by Malachi, as the precursor " of the great and
dreadful day of the Lord."
The disciples of Christ acknowledged his Deity.
When the hesitating Thomas was convinced of the re
surrection of his Master, he "said unto him, My Lord,
and my God." And when Philip desired to see the
Father, Jesus answered him in these memorable words,
" He that hath seen me, hath seen the Father ;" and
this reply was satisfactory to his disciples, for we do not
find any further enquiry on the subject.
It is most evident also, that the Jews, in the days of
our Lord, understood him to claim Divine honour and
equality with the Father, and therefore his assertions
must have borne such a meaning. — And if it be said
that this was a false inference which the Jews made,
in their eagerness to substantiate a charge against him,
whereby he might be subjected to the punishment of
death, we may reply that if it had been their mistake,
Christ would have set them right. And had it been a
forced inference for the mere purpose of substantiating a
charge against him, our Lord, we may well suppose,
would have repelled such an allegation ; but as in the
case of their awful and malignant blasphemy, when they
ascribed his miracles to power delegated from Satan,
he proved to them that he performed those miracles by
a Divine power, as one who came to overturn, and not
to establish the empire of Satan, — so also when they
charged him with blasphemy for making himself equal
with God, far from renouncing the charge of claiming
this equality, he defended his assertions, and further

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 91
proved his right to Divine honour, " My Father worketh
hitherto and I work ;" — thus affirming- his own inde-
pendent existence, and his operation as one with the
Father. Again, — We find him saying, "All men should ho
nour the Son, even as they honour the Father ;" — not
merely with the honour they give to a servant or officer,
on account of the dignity of his master whom he re
presents ; but with the same honour in kind and degree,
that is given to the Father — " I and my Father are one."
" If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not;
but if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works ;
that ye may know and believe that the Father is in me,
and I in him :" as if he had said, if ye are not satisfied
with the explanation which I have given of the writings
of the prophets, and with the proofs which I have ad
vanced to show that all things which were written by
them concerning the Messiah, are fulfilled in me ;— if
ye doubt my words, admit nevertheless my title to the
dignity which I claim and assert as my own, on account'
of my works ; believe me to be the Christ, the Son of
God, and equal in power and glory to the Father, be
cause ye have all beheld the works which I have per
formed, which are such as could be done only by a
Divine Power.
If it be objected that his Apostles performed as great
miracles as did Christ, and therefore the miracles of
Christ were no proofs of his Divinity : let it be remarked,
that what he performed he did in his own name, — " I
will, be thou clean," — " Young man, I say unto thee,
arise;" here we have the authoritative voice of Deity.
But his Apostles wrought miracles by a power delegated
from him, and they ever ascribed the power to its Divine
Author. — " In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
rise up and vralk," was the form pronounced over the

92 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
cripple, whose miraculous restoration to strength and
agility, is the first recorded instance of the exercise of
the gift of healing by apostolic agents, after the resur
rection of Christ. And this miracle is ascribed by Peter
to the Name of Christ. See Acts iii. and iv. The
same difference is also observable between the miracles
of the Prophets, and those performed by Jesus. When
Elijah restored the widow's son to life, he said, " O
Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come
unto him again :" but when our Lord performed a si
milar miracle on Lazarus, he said " Lazarus, come
forth." The Jews would not acknowledge that Jesus was the
Son of God, because in so doing they would have ad-!
mitted his Divinity ; for their own words prove that they
accounted the Son of God to be equal with God ; there
fore when they sought to slay Jesus, the reason which
they assigned was, that he had said " God was his
Father, making himself equal with God." And when
our Lord demanded of them why they took up stones
to cast at him, they answered him, saying, " For a
good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy ; and
because that thou being a man, makest thyself God."
The punishment denqunced against blasphemers in
thelaw of Moses was death ; and the alleged crime on which
the High Priest condemned Christ, was that of making
himself the Son of God, which they adjudged to be
blasphemy. And yet when Jesus was arraigned on
this charge, he not only did not protest against it, but
in the most unequivqcal manner asserted before them
all, that he was the Son of God.
Thus whether we refer to the language of prophecy.
or listen to, the words of Jesus himself, or examine the
writings of his disciples and apostles ; we find one con
curring testimony to the Divinity of Christ. !Let w$

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 93
then any heart be veiled against such a light of evidence,;
let no one be daring enough to say unto Christ, as did
the unbelieving Jews of old, " Thou, being a man,
makest thyself God," but let all join in the adoration
of the Psalmist, when in the spirit of prophecy he ad
dressed the Son, and said, " Thy throne, O God, en-
dureth for ever and ever."
Further, — What is said of the exaltation of Christ ?
After having humbled himself even unto death, he
was highly exalted "far above all principality and
power, and might and dominion, and every name that
is named, not only in this worid but also in that which
is to come." Inasmuch as Christ was the '' Mediator
between God and man," and as such "the man Christ
Jesus," he is said to have been raised from the dead by his
Father : " This Jesus hath God raised :" But when the
Divine nature of our Lord is referred to, then it is said
that he laid down his life, that he might take it again ;
for he had power to lay it down, and power to take it
again, " He ascended up on high, he led captivity captive,
and gave gifts unto men." And among these gifts,
the most eminent is the gift of the Spirit, which
Christ promised to send unto his disciples. And
this Spirit is called both the Spirit of God, and the
Spirit of Christ. See Rom. viii. 9. And it is the gift
both of the Father and of Christ ; (compare John xiv.
26, and xv. 26,) and hereby we are furnished with the
best comment on the words of our Lord, " My Father
worketh hitherto, and I work."
Other gifts which Christ was exalted to bestow, are
" repentance," and the " forgiveness of sins." Repent
ance is the gift and operation of God ; and the forgive
ness of sins is the prerogative of Deity. Christ con-<
nected together the power of healing diseases, and, of

94 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. (
forgiving sins, as proceeding from the same authority,
and requiring equal power. When the Jews objected to the
exercise of this prerogative by Christ, and said, " Who
can forgive sins but God only ?" Jesus asserted that he
had power on earth to forgive sins; thus assenting to
what the Jews had stated with respect to this power be
longing solely to God, and claiming at the same time
the right of exercising it.
Christ is exalted to the glory and worship of heaven.
He is incapable of exaltation, or accession to his glory
and happiness, inasmuch as lie is " over all God blessed
for ever ;" but as the Mediator, he was raised from his
state of abjectness, and poverty, and contempt, and
misery, and death, to receive the adoration of the hea
venly hosts.
Shall we then hesitate to address our prayers to him,
into whose hands dying martyrs committed their spirits ?
— whose grace and power were supplicatedby his holy and
faithful Apostles? — and who is worshipped and adored
in heaven by angelic beings, and the spirits of redeemed
men ? Shall we fear to imitate the worship of heaven ?
The angels are commanded to worship Jesus. David spake
of the glory of his kingdom, and St. Paul interprets
his language as applying to Christ ; " And let all the
angels of God worship him." Shall we then fear or
hesitate to prostrate ourselves at His feet in humble
adoration, before whom " Cherubim and Seraphim con
tinually do cry," " Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty,
who was, and is, and is to come ;" and at whose feet
the mighty intelligences, the angelic armies, and those
whom he has ransomed from the earth, fall down, and
cast their crowns before his throne, saying, " Thou art
worthy, O Lord, to receive glory, and honour, and
power ; for thou hast created all things, and for thy
pleasure they are and were created." His ears hearken

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 95
day and night to the pure service of the church tri
umphant above ; O let not then the worship of the
church militant on earth be withheld ; but let our
prayers, as "golden vials full of odours," and our
songs of praise, "as the voice of many Waters," join
with "the voice of harpers harping with their harps,"
and ascend continually before his throne ! Let us begin
on earth the worship of the heavenly state, and say,
Hallelujah ! " Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to
receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength,
and honour, and glory, and blessing."
Fourthly, — What saith the Scripture in relation to the
second coming of Christ, and his future kingdom and
glory ?
As the " Son of man," he appeared on earth in weak
ness and poverty. He "came not to be ministered unto,
but to minister." He " made himself of no reputation."—
His coming was not with worldly pomp and grandeur;
his birth was announced only to a few shepherds ; the
world heeded not the arrival of its Lord ; men were oc
cupied in their busy scenes, and their cares, and their
follies ; and the greatest event that ever took place on
the earth, passed unnoticed and unknown ! " He was
in the world, and the world was made by him, and the
world knew him not." As soon as he was born the
sword was raised to destroy him ; and he encountered
through the whole course of his ministry, the persecution
and mockery of his enemies. He was " a reproach of
men, and despised of the people ;" yet he put not
forth his power to destroy them ; he came on an errand
of mercy ; he came to save the world.
But his second appearing shall be to raise the dead,
and to judge the world. Then shall he take to him his
mighty power, and come in all the tearfulness of his
majesty and glory, to be admired by them that believe,

96 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
and to the utter confusion, and astonishment, and terror
of soul, of all those who despised and rejected him.
He " shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty an
gels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that
know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our
Lord Jesus Christ."
On earth he was a man of sorrows ; his glory was ob
scured and veiled by the inferior nature which he as
sumed ; but on the Great Day he shall appear in all the
unapproachable brightness of his Godhead. Those eyes
which once looked on him with scorn and rage, shall be
dimmed with the insufferable splendour of his glory.—
Where are now the wise men of the world who despised
him, and charged him with madness, and imputed his
works to demoniacal agency ? — They are covered with
shame, and are speechless before him. Where are they
who took up stones to cast at him ? Where is the mul
titude that cried, "Away with him, Away with him;
Crucify him, Crucify hiin ?" Their tongues now utter
only wailing, and lamentations, and the cries of despair.
Where are the mockers and scoffers who smote him, —
who buffeted him, — who spit in his face, — who tore and
mangled his body with iron rods, — who drove with heavy
blows the thorns into his bleeding brow, — who nailed
him to the cross, and wantonly pierced his side with the
spear ? — Where are the chief priests and the scribes who
conspired to destroy him ? Where Judas who betrayed
him ? W~here Pilate who condemned, — and the soldiers
who crucified him ? — Can they now look on him ? Shall
not those hearts which were "as firm as a stone, yea, as hard
as a piece of the nether mill-stone," melt away before
" the terror of the Lord ?" Shall not their knees smite
together, and the faces of them all gather blackness?— *
His eye penetrates their souls ; the awful majesty of his
countenance — his "voice as the sound of many waters" —

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 97
his ? throne high and lifted up" — his attendant angels,
in number " ten thousand times ten thousand, and thou
sands of thousands" — all this grandeur and glory causes
their hearts to fail, and they become as dead men.
Constrained by his resistless power, they assemble in
dread suspense before the Judge of all ; from his mouth
all .await their final, their everlasting doom. What a
day of exaltation to the friends of Jesus, and what a
day of sorrow, and terror, and despair, to his enemies!
The day in which this glorious appearing shall be
manifested, is sometimes called in Scripture " the day
of our Lord Jesus Christ," or "the day of the Lord,"
and sometimes "the day of God."
It is the "day of Christ," because he will then appear
as the Messiah to execute the final act of his Mediatorial
kingdom. It is the "day of the Lord," because it will
be the time of the display of his fearful power : " The
great day of the Lord is near, it is near, and hasteth
greatly, even the voice of the day of the Lord : the
mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day
of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of
wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom
iness, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of the
trumpet and alarm." It is called " the day of God," be
cause on that day he will more clearly reveal himself to the
assembled human race as " the blessed and only Potentate,
the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords;" and because
he will then no longer offer himself to sinners as a God
in Christ, waiting to be gracious, and offering salvation,
and beseeching men by his servants to be reconciled to
him, — but as a "consuming fire." Instead of holding
forth the sceptre of pardon and peace, he will then whet
his glittering sword, and his hand will take hold on
judgment, and be will render vengeance to his ene
mies* o

98 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
This day is also called the " last day ;" the " day of
judgment;" and the "day of redemption."
It is called the " last day," because the present Order
of things shall then pass away ; these transitory and
fluctuating scenes shall be succeeded by the immutable
laws of endless duration; time shall be no more; and
all the human race shall be received into the bosom of a
fixed, unvarying eternity. — It is called the " day of
judgment," because the day of grace and of salvation,
and of the visitation of mercy will then cease. It will
be "the time of the Lord's vengeance." Instead of
patience and long-suffering, it will be the time of anger
and wrath ; instead of the cloaking and concealing of
sins, it will be the time of scrutiny and manifestation of
the secrets of all hearts ; the close visor of hypocrisy
will then be taken off, the sins of the impenitent will
follow after them unto judgment ; instead of the offering
of pardon and of mercy, it will be the time of an irre
vocable condemnation.
It is also called the "day of judgment;" because
then " small and great" shall stand before God; those
who died in the tenderest years of infancy, and those
who had reached their three-score years and ten; The
mighty monarchs of the earth, yea, the spiritual "thrones
and dominions, principalities and powers," "the rulers
of the darkness of this world," "the prince of the
power of the air," "the devil and his angels" shall
come forth to this tribunal. " The sea shall give up the
dead that are in it;" that vast population which the
mighty waters of the deluge overwhelmed in the days of
Noah, shall be reanimated, together with all that the
carnage of war, and the raging of the storm have buried
in the profundity of the ocean. — It is called the "day
of judgment," because death and hell shall deliver up
their prisoners; no hiding-place or secret cover shall be

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 99
found throughout the whole range of creation. The eye
of the Judge will pierce the deepest recesses, " hell is
naked before him, and destruction hath no covering."
The " spirits of just men made perfect," shall assemble
to have their happiness confirmed by the approbation
of their Judge, and their blessedness secured by the
seal of eternity. The spirits of the lost shall also come
forth from their abodes of horror, not to receive a respite
from their sufferings, (hell dwells in their bosom,) not
to have their torments assuaged by a drop of water to
cool their burning tongue, but to hear from the same
unalterable decisions the consummation of their misery
and despair.
It is called also the "day of redemption," because
the salvation of believers will then be perfected. Their
bodies shall be raised from the grave, and be glorified,
and they shall be ever with the Lord. Let his redeemed
then rejoice in his power and might; let them commit
their sleeping dust into his care ; he will watch over
their bodies and raise them at the last day. Whether
they have been consumed by the fires, or mangled by
the tortures of persecution, — whether they have been
wasted by loathsome disease, or destroyed by the ac
cidents common to mortality, — whether the sword of
war has slain them, or the ocean has ingulfed them in its
abyss, — whether their bodies have been devoured by the
birds of heaven, or the beasts of the forest, or their ashes
have been scattered to all the winds of heaven, — whether
they have lain among the dead, days, or years, or ages,
from righteous Abel to the last ransomed servant of
Jesus, all shall be restored and reanimated, and not
one particle be lost. They are precious in the sight of
the Redeemer ; and he shall, as it were, bestow peculiar
care in collecting their dust. They shall first behold
the morning of the resurrection; " Christ the first-fruits,

100 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
afterwards they that are Christ's at his coming;" "the
dead in Christ shall rise^rrf." "This is the first resur
rection, blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first
resurrection; on such the second death hath no power."
On this " great and dreadful day," Christ declared
to the Jews, that they should see him, " sitting on the
right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of hea
ven." As Mediator he will appear with authority de
legated from the Father, to execute judgment on all the
World ; but if his appearing in the flesh amid weakness
and poverty, were no bar to his claim of equality with
God, his appearing "on the throne of his glory," al
though still like unto the " Son of Man," will not
weaken his title to the Godhead. Indeed, this " coming
of the Lord," is also called the "glorious appearing of
the great God, and our Saviour Jesus Christ." He
shall then be seen " as he is;" not as he was, when on
earth, veiled in human form, " in all things it behoved
him to be made like unto his brethren," but in " his
glory" — in his own essential glory, which he had as one
God with the Father before the world was.
And for what purpose will he then appear ? To raise
the dead, and to judge the quick and the dead. — The
power of raising the dead, being equal to that of cre
ation, inasmuch as by corruption all bodies will be re
duced to their first elements, must belong alone to the
Deity. Jesus, however, claims this power as his own ;
and as in former cases we have seen the incommunicable
name, the glorious perfections, and the Almighty works
of Deity ascribed in Scripture to both the Father and
the Son, so in the present case, the raising of the dead
is attributed to Christ and to God. "As the Father
raised up the dead, and quickeneth them, even so the
Son quickeneth whom he will." " The hour is coming
in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 101
voice." "Every one that seeth the Son and believeth on
him, I will raise him up at the last day." " I am the
resurrection," He is the author of spiritual life in the soul, and he
will he. the restorer of natural life to the body. All men
were made by him, and he preserves all men, and he
shall raise at the end of the world their slumbering dust.
His voice called this fair creation out of nothing, and
the same powerful word shall raise the dead. Then
shall the Omnipotent power of the Redeemer be exhibited
in all its majesty and glory, when his life-giving word
shall recal into being the dead of all ages. " The Lord
himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with
the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God."
At the sound of that shout the earth shall be rent asun
der, and the dead shall awake; that loud voice shall
be heard throughout the empire of God ; the blast of
that trump shall peal on the ears of the unnumbered
myriads of the human race, whom it shall summon to
appear before the Judge of all. — Raise us, Lord,
from a death of sin, to a life of righteousness, that we
may have part in the first resurrection ! Amen.
Let us now advert to the person of the Judge. The
authority of the Judge is sometimes ascribed to Christ,
and sometimes to God. In old time the title of " Judge
of Israel," was given in prophecy to Christ; and in the
New Testament we read that he was " ordained of God
to be the Judge of quick and dead;" and "we must
all appear before the Judgment seat of Christ." But
in the Apocalyptic vision, the dead are represented as
standing before God ; and God is also said to be the
"Judge of all," because the dignity and authority of
Judge can belong inherently only to Him who is the au
thor of our being, and to whom alone wc are accountable
for all our actions.

102 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
Christ Jesus, as Mediator, is deputed by God to be
the Judge of mankind, because pardons are then to be
bestowed, or rather ratified, and sentence is to be passed
on men by one who partook of their nature ; and this
office is a part of the Messiah's ministry ; it is the com
pletion of his government, and the finishing of the
mystery of God.— And it is an act of grace in thus ap
pointing the Saviour to be Judge- When the Israelites
were travelling through the wilderness, they provoked
God with their murmurings and rebellions, till at length
God declared he would not go up in the midst of them,
lest he should consume them in the way, but would
send his angel before them. Were we to be judged by
a God of inflexible justice — a God without a Mediator,
we should be consumed in a moment; the jealous eye
of the Eternal, too pure to behold iniquity, would pierce
us with destructive brightness. And here we see the
meaning of our Lord's declaration that, "the Father
judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto
the Son."
He has a peculiar fitness for the office of Judge, be
cause he is the " Son of Man." As one who hath taken
part of our flesh and blood, and been " in all points
tempted as we are," — as one who experienced all the in
firmities of human nature, and who combated the wiles
of Satan and the snares of the world, he is able to judge
man in wisdom, and mercy, with sympathy and pity.
His enemies will be silenced in the consciousness of the
righteous, and wise, and just sentence which he shall
pass upon them; and his friends will appear with con
fidence before him.
With respect to his future kingdom and glory, " he
must reign," as Mediator, "till he hath put all enemies
under his feet ;" but as God, his " throne is for ever
and ever;" his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 103
which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one which
shall not be destroyed. " He shall reign for ever and
ever." His glory must endure as long as the blessedness
of heaven endures, for the glory of heaven emanates
from him : " The Lamb is the light thereof."
The kingdom of Christ, as the head of the Church,
"and " Lord of all," is eternal as his own throne. His
mediatorial kingdom will cease at the "day of judgment :"
" then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up
the kingdom to God even the Father ; — then shall the
Son also be subject unto him that put all things under
him, that God may be all in all." This apparent con
tradiction between temporary dignity and eternal dura
tion, between partial authority and endless dominion, is
removed by observing the distinction between the office
and the person of Christ.
The economy of redemption required that a Mediator
should interpose between God and man, in the same
nature as the offending party, and that to him should
be committed the kingdom of grace, that is, the dispen
sation of pardon and salvation. The whole tenor of
Scripture, shows that this kingdom is to endure but for
a time ; " Now is the accepted time, now is the day of
salvation ;" and it was therefore necessary that when the
office should cease, the dignity and power should also
be laid down. This subjection, then, of the Son unto
the Father, is not the deposing of a rival power, nor
the completing of the subjugation of an inferior being,
but the resumption of power delegated to an office—
the extinction of that office — the manifestation of the
Godhead, not in the separate characters of Creator,
Redeemer, and Sanctifier, but of God as all in all— the
termination of the kingdoms of nature and of grace,
and the establishment of the kingdom of glory.— " God
was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself," by

104 ON THE DEITY OF CHRI9T*
the mediation of Jesus ; but when this " accepted time''
has ceased, (for it will have an end,) then God can no
longer be approached through a Mediator; he will .then
impute the trespasses of men unto them^ the trespasses
of those who have neglected (while it lasted) the only
method by which they could be cancelled.
What a fearful consideration to the sinner is here in
volved ! When the kingdom of grace is ended, " there
remaineth no more sacrifice for sins." The " blood of
sprinkling" will no longer plead for pardon, but having
been " trodden under foot," shall cry with as prevailing
a voice for vengeance^ " Christ crucified" shall be no
longer the source of life to sinners, but having been
crucified afresh, and put " to an open shame," shall
become the power of God unto eternal condemnation.
There will be no longer an interceder for sins before the
throne,— no longer any " Daysman that might lay his
hand upon both," — no longer any " Advocate with the
Father," — no longer a " merciful and faithful High
Priest, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people,"
but only a " fearful looking for of judgment, and of
fiery indignation." Peace was proposed, but rejected;
and now the things which belong to it, are for ever hid ;
— pardon was offered, but slighted ; and now vengeance
that has a long time slumbered, falls with accumulated
weight on the heads of the disobedient. Men were per
suaded by the " terrors of the Lord," and invited by
the love and compassion of a Saviour ; — the salvation
that is by Christ Jesus was exhibited constantly before
them in the preaching of the Gospel ; but terrors were
defied, mercy was contemned, the Gospel was neglected
or derided,, and now the day of reconciliation is gone
by for ever, — and the day of redemption is come to an
end, and the " Lamb of God," who died for guilty
man, becomes the Lion of Judah, ready to tear his ene-

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 105
mies into pieces, while none can deliver." " The great
day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to
stand?" "The mountains quake at him, and the hills
melt, and the earth is burnt at his presence, yea, the
world, and all that dwell therein. Who can stand be
fore his indignation, and who can abide in the fierceness
of his anger?"
To those who have looked for the day of Christ, it
shall be the fulfilment of a blessed hope ; they shall be
hold with steadfastness of heart the conflagration which
will envelop the world — the passing away of the hea
venly bodies — the dissolution of the elements — the roll
ing together of the heavens — the resurrection of the
dead — the revelation of the Son of Man, with all the
attendant solemnities and display of majesty and power.
—They will see in all this apparent confusion and cha
otic discord, the developement of the designs of the Sa
viour; they will look on this fearful destruction as the
appointed means of introducing a new, and glorious,
and unchangeable order of things.
Houses and cities and temples fall into one common
ruin, but they loOk for "a building of God, a house
not made with hands, eternal in the heavens;" they ex
pect " a city which hath foundations, whose builder and
maker is God," even the new Jerusalem that cometh
down from God out of heaven, and where the " Lord
God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple."
Kingdoms and countries, and empires are over
whelmed in one destruction, but the redeemed wait for a
"kingdom which cannot be shaken;" "they desire a
better country, that is a heavenly." The earth itself
sinks beneath them — the heaven is fled away — the stars
are fallen — the brightness of the moon is waxed dim,
and the sun is extinct; but they " look for new heavens
and a new earth ;" they wait for a state of glory and
p

106 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
blessedness, where they shall have " no need of the sun,
neither of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God
will lighten it, and the Lamb shall be the light thereof.",
To them also "there remaineth no more sacrifice for
sin," because Jesus, by one offering hath perfected for
ever " their salvation, and by his own blood'' hath
" obtained eternal redemption for them."
; " Happy is the people that is in such a case !" Were
they poor and despised when on the earth ? Here they will
" inherit all things." They have exchanged their sor
did abodes for a city whose gates are pearls, and whose
streets are pure gold. Once they were exposed to scoff,
and slander, and reproach ; now they walk
" High in salvation, and the climes of bliss."
They go no more to the corrupt and scanty waters of
earthly springs to supply their wants, but the crystal
streams of the waters of life issuing from the throne of
God, glide through the holy city in a full and inex
haustible tide, bearing on its bosom immortality and joy.
Sorrows and trials have for ever ceased, and their
happiness and peace are pure and uninterrupted as the
unruffled surface of the " river of the water of life,"
and durable as eternity. Their existence is no longer
numbered by days, and months, and years, but they
shall flourish in immortal youth, unimpaired by the
lapse of countless ages.
Their knowledge on earth was bounded by a con
fined capacity, and by straitened means ; they saw but
" through a glass darkly," and knew but " in part ;"
an impenetrable cloud hid from them the inscrutable
ways of the Almighty ; their view of the course of Di
vine Providence was limited to that part wTiich the events
of time displayed to their notice ; — but now they know
even as they are known; now they seethe plans of the

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 107
Divine government unfolded, and discover that all was
governed by unerring wisdom, all was performed by
infinite love, and that consistent harmony and beauty
reigned throughout every event.
While travelling in %their earthly pilgrimage, their
songs were often interrupted by tears and complaints be
cause of the difficulties of the way; the cheering rays
of the " Sun of righteousness," the beams of the light
of his countenance were often interrupted by "long
nights and darkness," by the clouds of their sins, and
the thick clouds of their transgressions, which hung
heavily over their christian course ; — but now all tears
are wiped away ; unbroken songs " from blest voiecs
uttering joy," are heard day and night before the throne ;
they see the face of the Redeemer in all his unveiled
glories, and " shall reign for ever and ever."
But how shall mortal tongue declare the unutterable
glories of heaven ! What know we of the ineffable bliss
of Paradise — of light intolerable to mortal vision — of
knowledge infinitely beyond the reach of human minds —
of happiness which souls shut up within bodies of gross
flesh and blood have not capacity to enjoy — of duration
extended as eternity ! " For since the beginning of the
world, — men have not heard nor perceived by the ear,
neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he
hath prepared for him that waiteth for him." " Let me
die the death of the righteous,- and let my last end be
like his !"
Let us now see what are the practical inferences which
may be deduced from the doctrine of the Deity of
Christ. It teaches (1.) the evil nature of sin.
That sin " is an evil thing and bitter," may be per
ceived in the awful effects which it has produced in the
mind of man, and in the sufferings to which his body is

108 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
exposed, and in the curse which has fallen on the earth.
It may be perceived further in the endless torments
which the Bible declares to be reserved for impenitent
sinners ; but it is chiefly displayed in the Cross of Christ;
it cannot be placed in a stronger light than when viewed
in connexion with the sufferings and death of Christ.
The guilt of man's transgression must have been in
finite in degree, seeing it required a sacrifice of infinite
value for its atonement. How deep must have been the
die of our sins, seeing only the blood of Christ could
wash away the stain ! How abject must our slavery
have been, seeing our redemption could be purchased
only by a Divine Saviour — -his life must be the price
paid for our ransom! How great the anger of God
against sin, seeing only the offering up of Jesus could
restore us to his favour! How malignant must be the
enmity which sin excited in the breast of fallen man,
seeing only " God in Christ" could reconcile the world
unto himself! How deplorable must be our depravity,
and how completely must all moral beauty be effaced in
the soul, and to what a height must our rebellion have
arisen against the authority of God, seeing only the
Spirit of God can renew and sanctify us, and impress
again on our souls the lost image of our Creator, and
re-establish his dominion in the heart !
What language can set forth the vileness, the mag
nitude, the guilt of sin, which required for its atonement
that "the Prince of Life" should leave the songs and
adoration of heaven, that he should lay aside his eternal
glory, and make himself of no reputation, and take
upon him the form of a servant, and be made in the
likeness of sinful flesh ; and being found in fashion as
a man, should humble himself, and become obedient
unto death even the death of the cross !
In that dreadful day, when God laid on his Son the

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 109
iniquity of man, when he bruised him for our trans
gressions, when he forsook him, and left him to combat
in spirit all the powers of darkness, when beneath the
load of the sin of a world he became "sore amazed,"
and "exceedingly sorrowful even unto death," when
" being, in an agony he prayed more earnestly, and his
sweat was, as it were, great drops of blood rolling down
to the ground," when he endured that sore anguish of
soul which made him cry out, " My God, My God,
vihy hast thou forsaken me !" — in that dread day was
eminently manifested the anger of God and the hein-
ousness of sin.
A nd when a convinced sinner is led to contemplate
his guilt in the Cross of Christ, he finds there the most
efficacious means to make his heart broken and contrite,
the most powerful excitement to godly sorrow, the most
prevalent motive to induce a hatred — a soul abhorrence
of all sin, and to create a love of holiness and obedience.
A Divine Saviour shows him the great evil of sin, and
this again exhibits to him the love of the Saviour, and
enforces the necessity of looking to him for deliverance.
The love of God leads him to repentance, and produces
faith in his heart ; it sets forth his guilt, and points out
his refuge.
(2.) This doctrine teaches us further the inability of
man to rescue himself. from his state of sin and misery.
This inability arises in part from the inflexible justice
of God, and in part from the debasing nature of sin.
The justice of God could be satisfied only by the in
fliction of its righteous "denunciations against sin ; and
on whom must its wrath fall ? — if on man, he must sink
beneath it into everlasting misery. If Justice cast him
into prison, his confinement will be without hope, he
will never have paid the uttermost farthing of his vast
debt. But when a Divine Surety interposes, and by

110 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
the substitution of himself in our stead, receives the
stroke of Justice, and drinks the cups of wrath, pardon
is purchased for our transgressions, we are ransomed
from the dominion of the powers of darkness, and pro
vided with a righteousness which is our title to heaven.
Man is also unable to recover himself from the effects
of the fall, in consequence of the debasing nature of
of sin. When Adam had lost the favour of God by
violating his easy commands, he lost also the power of
recovering that favour by his own efforts. When he
had broken the terms of the covenant, all hope of sal
vation by any future observance was for ever taken
away. There was no provision made by which he might
restore himself to his former state of happiness and ac
ceptance with God. He fell under the awful conse
quences of his guilt, and became subject to all the evils
of a state of departure from his God.
And into what a degraded condition does sin reduce
us. It causes blindness in the understanding, perverse-
ness in the will, and a corrupt tendency in the affec
tions. It not only brings guilt on the conscience, but
has a tendency to destroy all moral principle in the soul ;
it not merely excites the just anger of God, but implants,
an enmity against God in the heart; it not only se-i
parates between God and the soul, but deprives us of
the power of returning to our allegiance — it indisposes
us to return : it notronly unfits the soul for communion
with God, but renders it meet only for hell — for the
company of the lost spirits of darkness ; it not only exr
eludes from heaven, but banishes to the abodes of ever-*
lasting despair.
Our minds are seldom duly impressed with the vast
distance to which sin has removed us from God, the only
source of good, the sole fountain of happiness, and yet
this distance is infinite ; it forms a gulf wide as that

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. Ill
which divides heaven from hell, a gulf which no man
can pass over. Sin has driven us " afar off" from God-
separated us from the enjoyment of his presence by an
immeasurable distance, and by obstacles insurmountable
to mortal efforts. The blood of Christ can alone bring
us nigh; his mediation can alone procure the remission
of sins — the recal of the banished ones — a meetness for
heaven, and the enjoyment of everlasting glory and
blessedness. (3.) If Christ be "God over all," what a fearful
end awaits his enemies.
" He must reign till he hath put all enemies under his
feet." And who are the enemies of Christ? Who are
ihey that enter the lists with Deity — that offer to combat
with Omnipotence ? They are those who deny his es
sential glory ; they are the " false prophets who bring in
damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought
them, who shall bring upon themselves swift destruction."
They who remain unconvinced by the plain testimony
of Scripture concerning the Divine glory of the Saviour,
shall be confounded by the manifestation of his appearing,
when he will vindicate his honour. To acknowledge
the Divine Saviour now, to obey and trust him, is to
receive a full salvation ; — but to withhold the adoring
language, "My Lord, My God," till he comes in his
glory, is to seal our endless ruin — is to trample on the
grace of a Saviour who is Omnipotent, and to invoke
on our heads the full vengeance of his Almighty arm.
It is worthy of remark that they who refuse to honour
the Son even as they honour the Father, reject also the
doctrine of the atonement. They first obliterate the
Sun of Righteousness, and then protest that the doctrine
of an imputed righteousness is not to be found in the
Bible. This is consistent. Take away that which alone
stamps infinite value and merit on the sufferings of Christ,

112 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
and you do in fact take away the vicarious nature of
this obedience and these sufferings, for their efficient
value ceases when disjoined from the Divine nature of
him who was both the subject and the agent. To say
that the sufferings and death of Christ were a proof of
the truth of the doctrines which he taught, is to say
nothing, because they could only be a proof of his sin
cerity, and nothing further, if we take from them their
vicarious nature. And to say that these sufferings and
this obedience unto death were necessary, that our re
pentance might be accepted as a satisfaction for sin, is
to make us in part our own saviours. If Christ were
not altogether a substitute, a ransom, an oblation for
guilty man, the necessity of his death is rendered
doubtful ; if salvation be by works, if it be in any de
gree of human operation, then hath Christ died in vain.
If Christ be a mere man, then salvation is not so great
a benefit as we have been accustomed to regard it ; and
sin is not so great an evil. A human sacrifice can render
human repentance an atonement for transgression ; and
as to the mercy, and peace, and love, and condescension
of the Saviour, they are in a great measure effaced,—
at least they are considerably lessened ; for doubtless,
many might have been found who would have died
(agreeably to the Socinian system) for the sins of the
world ! ! Many mortal substitutes might have been
found to receive a Divine commission, and to set an ex
ample of patience, and kindness, and submission to the
will of God ! !
Reject the Divinity of Christ, and it is no wonder'
that the doctrine of the atonement cannot be found in
the Sacred Volume. Remove this sun from the firma
ment of Revelation, and obscurity veils the face'of the'
Scriptures. Take no heed to the light of prophecy,
and the Bible is a "dark place;" no day will dawn, no
day-star arise in the heart.

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 113
Not to discern the doctrine of salvation by the im
puted righteousness of Christ, is to be blind and not
able to see afar off. St. Paul taught this doctrine, and
sought in this way his own salvation. He saw the value,
the infinite value of the righteousness of Christ — the
righteousness of God, and desired with all the earnest
ness of one who was convinced that his own best deeds
were unprofitable — that his own wisdom was but igno
rance — that his own holiness needed sanctification, and
his very repentance and best works pardon, — with all
the ardour of his soul he desired to find in Christ
"Wisdom, and Righteousness, and Sanctification, and
Redemption;" he rejected all Self-righteousness, all
dependance in any degree on his own works and merit,
and esteemed every thing as loss, that he might be
found in Christ, not having his own righteousness^ but
that which is through the faith of Christ, the right
eousness which is of God by faith.
What is the chief subject of the Bible, but the re
covery of fallen man by the mediation of our Lord
Jesus Christ ? This is the grand theme of inspiration
from the firstpromiseof the Saviour immediately after the
fall, down to the close of the canon of Scripture. All
the ritual observance of the old law, the sacrifices and
the priestly service, pointed to Christ as the great Pro
totype. Those who reject the doctrine of the atonement,
reject "the counsel of God against themselves;" for
salvation by Jesus Christ is the effect — the result of the
wisdom of God. They that are offended at this doc
trine, fall on the " stumbling-stone," and " shall be
broken ;" but on them who refuse to acknowledge the
Divine glory of the Saviour, this stone shall fall and
grind them to powder.
They are also the enemies of Christ, who obey not
his Gospel, who do not walk according to the rule of
Q

114 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
his holy Word. To refuse the offers -of mercy, — to
shake off the yoke of Christ, — to account his service a
bondage — his worship a dull and heavy employment —
prayer useless — praise burdensome — and his word a
rigorous and slavish restraint, — this is to be the enemy
of Christ, — this is to say, " We will not have this man
to reign over us."
And shall they escape who are thus " the enemies of
the Cross of Christ ?" Nay ; they shall be slain before
him ; their " end is destruction," — the destruction of
the soul, — not annihilation — not the extinction of con
sciousness; no, man is immortal; his body indeed is
frail, and in the emphatic language of Scripture, " he
dwelleth in houses of clay, his foundation is in the
dust, he is crushed before the moth;" but his soul is
never-dying. While here on earth the smallest disar
rangement of his animal system brings on his dissolution ;
the elements, the wind — the rain — the cold — the heat
are all ministers of death to him ; a portion of his own
labours, of the structures which he has himself reared,
falls on him, and he is whelmed beneath the ruin. But
his soul is imperishable; it shall survive the wreck and
utter destruction of the material universe. It shall come
forth unhurt by a ruin which shall ingulf a world I
O what fearful visions shall meet the disembodied
spirits of the wicked at the great day of the Lord !
How gladly would they be for ever in the darkness of
the grave ; but they must " come forth," to meet the
vengeance of an incensed God ! Annihilation would be
a refuge — a mercy ; but they must " come forth," to
catch a glimpse of heaven — to touch as it were the
threshold of bliss, and then to be banished into misery,
to be driven into hell ! Christ will come to take ven
geance on them, and what must be the vengeance of a
God ! They shall be cast into a " lake of fire," and

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 115
" the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and
ever!" Every sense shall become the avenue to pain
and torment ; every faculty of the soul shall be quick
ened to the acutest sense of misery and of anguish !
" O that they were wise, that they understood this, that
they would consider their latter end !" " Kiss the Son
lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way." " Hear
ye, and give ear, be not proud, for the Lord hath
spoken. Give glory to the Lord your God, before
he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon
the dark mountains, and while ye look for light, he
turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross
darkness." To conclude. — To whom shall we go but unto Christ?
Let us look to him as did the Disciple when dismayed
at the dark waves and the stormy wind, and like him
cry, saying, " Lord save me !" This brief life is the
single opportunity that is put into our hands to secure
the safety of our souls. Christ now offereth himself to
us as a Deliverer — the only Deliverer ; " for there is
none other name under heaven given among men, whereby
we must be saved."
If we despise this Saviour we must perish ; if we re
ject an Almighty Redeemer, what arm shall rescue us
from endless ruin ! What substitute have we for his
precious blood — what plea shall we urge instead of his
meritorious obedience — what justification shall we at
tempt without the " righteousness of God!" "How
shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation !"
And yet how little do we meditate on these things !
What know we of Christ ? We are commanded to
honour the Son, and how can this be done, unless we
seek to know more of the salvation of which he is the
Author, — unless we *' grow in grace, even in the know
ledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ;" — in the

116 ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST.
knowledge of his person and glory, — in the knowledge
of this great "mystery of godliness," the manifestation
of God in the flesh.
We are also commanded to look for " the coming of
the day of God" — the " day of redemption." Chris
tians should desire the " day of God," because Jesus
Christ will then vindicate his Divine glory; he will
openly manifest himself to be " God over all blessed
for ever ;" and they should also desire the " day of re
demption," because they will then enter into the joy
of their Lord,
O what hinders the immediate coming of the Judgment
day 1 What prevents the day of wrath, but the mercy,
and forbearance, and long-suffering of God ! The sin
of the world crieth for judgment, "the earnest expect
ation of the creature waiteth, — the whole creation
groaneth;" "the oppression of the poor, the sighing
of the needy," " the groaning of the prisoner" go up
before God continually 5 the elect of God cry day and
night unto him, " being burthened ;" the redeemed in
heaven cry, " How long, O Lord, holy and true :" and
yet the patience of God endureth daily ! But fearful
will be the long-delayed day of vengeance. What
cannot Omnipotence inflict on its enemies ! Shall we
not then flee from the wrath to come, — flee as those who
feel the ground of their own righteousness sinking beneath
their feet, and who are reaching forward to gain a sure,
a safe footing on the Rock of Ages,
God is said to be the Lord of his anger ; he is the
" God of patience," and therefore he cometh not forth
into judgment with man; but the day of grace will
terminate, even the patience of God will have a period.
" Now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation."
*' The spirit and the bride say, come. And let him
Jhat heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst

ON THE DEITY OF CHRIST. 117
come ; and whosoever will, let him take of the water
,of life freely." " He that testifieth these things saith,
Surely I come quickly; Amen, even so come, Lord
Jesus."

ESSAY III.
OJV PUBLIC WORSHIP.
— 9 -
IF it be acknowledged that there is a God, reason
teaches us that it is our duty to seek his favour, to ac
knowledge our dependance upon him, to praise him for
the blessings of which we are the constant recipients,
and to confess our sinfulness, and to implore the pardon
of our innumerable offences. And this worship should
not be occasional, but continual, the solemn exercise
of every day. If there be one day in which we are in
dependent of the Providence of God, let that day be
passed over without acknowledgment — without prayer —
without praise. If there be one day in which we offend
not, let it not be marked either by confession, or earnest
cry to heaven for absolution. But such a day cannot
be found in the period of the longest life. " Blessed
be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits ;" his
blessings know no intermission ; there is no period in
which we do not partake of his bounty. And who can
look back on the space of but one day, and say, " In
all this I have not sinned." Let then every rising
morning witness the offering up of our sacrifice of praise
and of supplication ; let every returning evening bear
testimony to the fervour of our devotion.
But while the daily exercises of private and of family
devotion should be constantly observed, there is a more

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 119
solemn duty connected with the engagements of the
Lord's day. Public worship is a Divine institution.
It is in the house of God that he is pleased to impart in
a larger measure, spiritual blessings to the souls of men.
" The Lord loveth the gates of Zion, more than all the
dwellings of Jacob." " The Lord hath chosen Zion ;
he hath desired it for his habitation. This is my rest
for ever ; here will I dwell ; for I have desired it._ I
will abundantly bless her provision: I will satisfy her
poor with bread. I will also clothe her priests with
salvation ; and her saints shall shout aloud with joy."
It is here that he has especially appointed to hear prayer.
Among the advantages which result from an habitual
attendance on public worship, we may mention the
restraint which it is likely to put on the indulgence of
depraved habits. The very entrance into an assembly
of men, met together for the service of God, has some
thing in it to awe the mind. When no positive benefit
is experienced, this almost imperceptible check, which
has come silently over the mind in consequence of mere
habit, is not to be overlooked. There are many who
would never think of the soul, of eternity, of their
Maker, of .'their condition on the earth, of their duties,
of their prospects, if they were not in the practice of
going to a place of worship. They would never
hear of those things which belong to their everlasting
peace, did they not hear of them in the house of God.
How many thus come and go, year after year, and
appear in our religious meetings, and sit as the people
of God sit, and are only a generation who have suc
ceeded to those that were rebuked for unprofitable
formality in the days of the prophet Ezekiel ; (chap.
xxxiii. 31.) they hear the word of God, and return to
their dwellings without any perceptible benefit ! Yet
we cannot say how far the mere act of attendance may

120 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
have been beneficial to them ; from how many sins they
may have been preserved ; what salutary check may
have been put on any particular evil propensity ; nor
how far the habit, which amounts in such persons to at
least a profession of belief in the great doctrines of
Christianity, may have operated to produce that regard,
however small, to honesty and truth, and that attention,
however inconstant, to relative duties, which are vi
sible in their deportment. It has a tendency to bring
over the mind some sense of the presence of God, and
to leave an impression, never wholly effaced, of the
account which is to be rendered up to God by all at
the Judgment Day.
There is public provision made in every christian
land for the solemn and orderly observance of the wor
ship of God ; and those who refrain from treading the
hallowed courts of the sanctuary, transgress an express
institution of heaven, and exclude themselves from the
blessings which are there imparted : they undervalue
the spiritual advantages which flow from an attendance
on the sacred exercises of God's house, and slight the
gracious invitations of the Gospel which are there con
tinually proclaimed, and freely offered to all.
The heavenly table is spread, the board is richly co
vered with a spiritual banquet, the heralds of Divine
Wisdom cease not to proclaim that all things are ready ;
persons of every class, and colour, and language, and
nation are pressed to come in; — but, alas, how few
enter to partake of the feast ! The sacred viands are
loathsome to the carnal appetite ; and, although it is
God who sends the invitation, and forgiveness of sins'
and eternal life are the blessings offered, yet by what
vanities, by what foolish trifles are men drawn aside,
and prevented from coming in and partaking of the rich
provision ! With what pleasure do they seize on the

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 121
most trivial incident to divert their attention; how rea
dily do they submit to the slightest hinderance that op
poses their everlasting welfare ! The weakest obstacle
becomes insurmountable ; the most shallop pretence^ a
satisfactory -esercise. " The Word of the Lord is unto
them a reproach, they have no delight in it." O what
madness is this, that men should fall, without one per
severing effort to escape, beneath the wiles of their spi
ritual adversary, that they should make light of those
things which involve their best, their immortal interests !
Great God, dissolve the fatal charm, burst the snare
asunder, that men may discern their true welfare, that
their eyes may be opened to discover their danger, and
their feet be made swift to flee from it ; that their hearts
may be prepared to " hear instruction, and be wise,"
and that they may seek and obtain the " durable riches
and righteousness!"
But it is not the contempt of those only who despise
the Lord's-day, and enter not into " the place where
His honour dwelleth," that we have to lament ; there
is also much indifference and insensibility, much world-
liness and irreverence observable in those whose feet fail
not to tread the habitation qf God's house. The out
ward conduct of these persons shows that in their hearts
they say of the worship of God, " what a weariness is
it !" And even among those who truly fear God, and
in whose hearts are his ways, there is often great defi
ciency in spiritual mindedness, in purity of affection,
in simplicity and sincerity of worship, in devotional
fervour, and religious solemnity.
How many enter the house of the Lord also merely.
under the influence of habit and custom ! They con
tinue through a long series of years to persevere in the
same track, to which they had been habituated duringtheir
childhood and youth: having been trained up in this

122 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
way, they depart not from it. But, alas, commendable
as is the education and nurture of the young in the
"admonition of the Lord," — desirable as it ever is to
see the salutary effects of early restraint, and the pow
erful influence of first good impressions, yet must we
not fear that an unmeaning routine of outward religious
exercises, is the sum of the devotion of many regular
attendants on our places of worship ! They assume all
the postures of worship, they kneel during the hour of
prayer, they rise with the assembly to chaunt the high
praises of God, they take the quiet and attentive at
titude of those who listen with understanding and with
desire to the instructions of the preacher, but there is
something still wanting; and this defect renders the
mechanical service of the body an unaccepted, a vain,
a fruitless service. "Their ear is uncircumcised, they
cannot hearken." The characteristic temper, the de
voted heart, of the sincere and humble worshipper are
evidently wanting. That religious feeling cannot be
found in them which David describes when he says,
" In thy fear will I worship." The " broken and con
trite heart" accompanies not their prayers, to render
them a sacrifice which God will not despise ; heartfelt
gratitude, and a deep feeling and consciousness of un-
Worthiness, accompany not their songs of praise, when
they " offer unto God thanksgiving;" they feel not that
spiritual appetite which hungers for righteousness — for
the bread of life ; they are not excited by that inward
thirst of the soul which causes the spirit to drink in with
eagerness and with delight the words of eternal life-"
the living water ; there is no self-examination, no self-
application of the instructions of the minister.
If our hopes are small concerning the strictly formal,
who observe all the " bodily exercise," all the ceremony
of worship, to the very letter of the institution, but

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 123
who betray an evident want of the " spirit that quick
eneth,"— what shall we say to those inattentive and ir
reverent persons, whose actions manifestly evince that
they " neither fear God, nor regard man." Are there
not in our assemblies, — and when the question is asked,
God grant that those who bear the marks of the chai-
racters about to be mentioned, may discover the con
scious blush of self-conviction, — are there not among
our worshipping assemblies some who betray absolute
indifference to the whole of the service, — -some who sleep
when they should be vigilant against the attacks of their,
spiritual adversary, who sleep during the hour of prayer,
and the period of religious admonition from the pulpit,—
some who trifle, who
" Mark in Chutch-tiine others' symmetry,"
while they should be considering their own ways, and
excluding all vain and busy thoughts ? Such persons
show4hat the care of the soul is the last consideration
by which they are influenced in coming to the house of
God. In vain does the voice of supphcation rise around
the inattentive and drowsy occupants, (for they cannot
be called worshippers) of our sanctuaries. In vain is
the Word of God read, or the way of salvation ex
plained, or the exhortations of the Gospel enforced, or
the "unsearchable riches of Christ" displayed before
those who close their hearts, their eyes, their ears, and
stop up every avenue by which conviction might enter
their minds. Have they then no mercies to supplicate —
no blessings which call for thanksgiving, — need they
not instruction, admonition, warning, promises, en
couragement, and all the quickening operations of the
Word of God ? Yes, verily, their want of all these
things is in common with other men, they stand on the

124 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP,
same necessitous ground as do all the children of Adam j
nay, their wants are greater in consequence of their in
difference and neglect ; their danger is more imminent
because they are careless.
And what shall awaken them ? what shall excite in
their breasts a due regard for their spiritual welfare?
The hand of God must produce the change, the power
of the Most High must pass over them. O may it be
in saving mercy, and not in destroying judgment!
May they hearken ere they fall from their fancied se
curity, into remediless woe, — -may they awake ere they
"sleep the sleep of death!"
Are there then no deficiencies in those whom we hope
to be truly spiritual and devout worshippers ? Do these
never manifest any dullness and lifelessness in the service
of God ? Do they never feel a backwardness to engage
in that exercise, which, of all others, should be most im
portant in their estimation, and which they have found
a thousand times to be both refreshing to their spirits
and profitable to their souls ? We have already alluded
to these lamentable defects and infirmities; and, alas,
who among us has not at one time or another experienced
them all : — do we not too often fall under their dead
ening influence ! We profess to go up to worship God,
to offer a sacrifice pleasing and acceptable in his sight;
but, on reviewing our devotional exercises, how often
are we compelled to say, Good Lord, pardon the defects
of my services — pardon the formality and want of fer
vour in my prayers — pardon the coldness and apathy
of my songs of praise ! Do we not Qften go up to the
house of God without proper motive or aim ; do we not
often continue there without the lively exercise of de
votion, and depart almost without profit ? How often
are we weary of the service of God, heavy and dull,
hard and insensible, wandering in thought, and dis-

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 125
tracted by a thousand worldly cares and vanities? , Do
we rtot sometimes feel a secret pleasure and satisfaction
in our hearts, though we would fain hide it from our
selves, and from God if we could, when we are pre
vented by any lawful impediment from attending on
the ordinances of public worship ? Do we never de
part from the house of God as though we were making
our escape from an irksome task, and a fatiguing re
straint ?
These things ought not so to be. Is it thus that we
can be preparing to enter upon the services of the hea
venly world, where " every day will be a Sabbath, and
that Sabbath eternity ?" If the graces of the Holy
Spirit were lively in our hearts, we should mourn when
secluded from the service of God ; our souls would
weep when deprived of the privileges of the Sabbath,
and we should with earnestness and longing expecta
tion, look for the return of the hallowed seasons, when
we might enter the gates of the Lord with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise. Not only should we then re
gard the worship of God as a duty, and an obligation
not to be dispensed with, but we should covet it as an
honourable privilege, attend to it as a beneficial service,
and whether in public or in private, rejoice when per
mitted to draw nigh unto God.
We shall now proceed to enquire into the privileges
and order of public worship. There are spiritual bless
ings conferred by God in the public worship of the
sanctuary. These are included in the words of David,
when he exclaims, " strength and beauty are in his sanc
tuary," which may be explained as comprehending
whatever is beneficial to the soul.
God is present in the house of prayer. It is in his
sanctuary that he chiefly dispenses blessings to the souls
of men. Often, indeed, we have cause to say, " We

126 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
knew it not ;" we perceived no appearance that denoted
the presence of God; and why? because we entered
with carelessness, without a devotional frame of mind.
It is the spiritual vision that discerns the presence of the
Lord in our worshipping assemblies ; it is by the sen
sible benefit which we have experienced in his service,
that we are enabled to say^ " this is the gate of heaven."
Blessings are here conferred ; and if we are passed by
in the distribution of them, it is because we have un
dervalued them — because we have not sought them.
No spiritual worshipper ever returns from the service
of God as he came to it ; some good is derived ; his faith
is strengthened, or his fears are removed, — his hope is
brightened, or his apprehensions are allayed, — his joy
is animated, or his sorrows are banished, — his desires
are gratified, or his patience is increased.
In the camp of Israel, the manna fell on every day
except the Sabbath, a provision for that day being in*
eluded in the quantity sent on the preceeding day ; with
us a double portion of the Spiritual manna falls on the
Lord's day : blessings for the soul are given every day
to those that ask and seek, but on the Lord's day, the
heavenly boon is more ample, more generally bestowed ;
thousands are fed on this day with the " true bread from
heaven;" the Spirit is poured out abundantly; the in
vitation is universal ; the provision is " enough and to
spare;" the heavenly welcome thus runs, "Eat, O
friends ; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved."
Among spiritual blessings, that operation on the mind
of man by which he is convinced of sin, and returns unto
God by faith in Jesus Christ, and brings forth the fruits
of holy obedience, and which is termed regeneration
and conversion, stands in the first rank. And although
this blessing is conferred by God under a great variety
of circumstances, and by the intervention of various

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 127
means, yet it is fn his house, and by the instrumentality
of preaching, that he is pleased ordinarily to turn men
from the error of their way, and to lead them in the
path of life. The promise made to an attendance on
the preaching of the Gospel, is, that " the ears of them
that hear, shall hearken. The heart also of the rash
shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of the
stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly :" — And
" faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of
God." It is on this account that all the various ordi
nances of public worship are usually denominated
means of grace ; as being the medium through which
Divine and spiritual strength is imparted to the soul.
It is a delightful reflection, and one which experience
warrants us to indulge, that no Lord's day passes
without the conversion of some souls unto God. This
is the day on which multitudes who were "dead in
trespasses and sins," are quickened and raised to the
enjoyment of spiritual life, — the wanderers are brought
home to the fold of the Good Shepherd, — those who
Were afar off from God by the enmity of the natural
heart and by wicked works, are made nigh by the
application of the blood of Christ to their hearts
and consciences, — and strangers and aliens are intro
duced into the household of faith — the church of the
living God, and are made to participate in all the pri
vileges of adoption.
If such be the ease, how is this work of the Lord
proceeding amongst us ? Do the ministrations of each
succeeding Sabbath witness the sincere cry of penitence,
the earnest enquiry, " What shall we do to be saved ?"
Can we note every Lord's day as the period of the con
version of at least one soul " from darkness to light,
and from the power of Satan unto God ?" It will be a
vain distinction that we are classed among the number

128 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
of God's worshippers, and have a place in his earthly
courts, and have the " outward and visible sign" of his
ordinances, unless we are also partakers of the inesti
mable blessings which characterise the assemblies of the
faithful, — unless we have the " inward and spiritual
grace" of the institutions of the church on earth, and
are daily advancing in a meetness for the heavenly
glory. The exaltation which now distinguishes us in
regard to our privileges, will. only serve to make the
depth of our abasement more conspicuous, and more
afflicting, if those privileges be not improved. The
glory which now adorns our sanctuaries in the posses
sion of the pure, unadulterated Word of God, and the
administration of the solemn rites of Christianity, will
depart, and be succeeded by the gloom and the horror
qf everlasting darkness, if that Word is slighted, and
those sacraments perverted and abused.
When God is pleased to make the ministrations of
the sanctuary effectual to the renovation of the sinner,
he not only sets his feet in a right way, but also esta
blishes his goings : not only are his inclinations and af
fections turned into a right channel, but they are also
made to flow on in an undeviating course. The strength
which cometh from God, is not simply a conferring by
one act of grace of a definite stock or supply of Divine
influence ; but it is the " daily bread" by which the
soul is nourished ; the wants of each succeeding day are
met by a continued grant of spiritual strength ; there
is no private reservoir from which a man may take in
dependently after the first bestowment, but each one
drinks of a stream that follows him through the whole
of his earthly pilgrimage ; and therefore the worship of
God becomes a life service; for there is no such thing
as receiving strength once for all. The christian does
not pray for spiritual blessings, and then cease to want

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 129
a further supply; his wants are daily wants, and the
blessings of God are ministered according to the con
stant recurrence of his necessities.
It is this continuance of the worship of God, which
is one great source of joy and gratification to the re
newed soul ; his sentiments correspond with those of
David when he exclaimed in his passionate longing for
the restoration of the communion of the sanctuary,
" How amiable are thy tabernacles, O Lord of Hosts !
Blessed are they that dwell in thy house ; they will be
still praising thee." He often gains in the' service of
the earthly temple, an antepast of the pure and pe
rennial worship of the celestial world. His desires for
that glorious state are increased by the similarity in na
ture, between the enjoyments of this lower court of the
temple, and those of the holiest of all ; and his hopes
of at length attaining to that unspeakable glory, are
animated by the cheering experience of a growth and
advance in the Divine life, by an attendance on the
public and appointed means of grace.
A continued attendance on the worship of God be
comes a duty to the christian, not merely from the
command of God, but also from the advantage which
he derives from the observance. It is not merely in the
light of a duty that he regards this service, he values it
also as a privilege; and thus his obedience has a twofold
security, one arising from the express command and
authority of God, the other from his own spiritual be
nefit. Therefore those who neglect to attend on the
public ministrations of the Sabbath, or whose partial
attendance, and light and trifling demeanour while en
gaged in them, show that their minds are unimpressed
with the. solemnity of the duty, do by their conduct
give so many proofs of their incapacity to enjoy the
heavenly glory. For a meetness for heaven must con-
5

130 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
sist not only in the pardon of our sins, and the justi
fication of our persons by the righteousness and obedi
ence of Christ, but also in a very eminent degree in the
continued weakening of that natural antipathy, which
we feel to every engagement of a spiritual nature, and
in the gradual implantation and cherishing of those
holy dispositions of mind, which will qualify us for the
enjoyment of heaven, and enable us to find a pleasure
in taking part in its employments, as well as in the
participation of its happiness.
Whatever has a tendency to promote this meetness
for the spiritual services, and the exalted felicity of the
heavenly state, will ever be in great estimation in the
mind of a christian ; and among the means which are
effectual in producing this holy temper and disposition,
the public worship of God ranks very high in eminence.
Like those alterative medicines, which insensibly effect a
beneficial change in the constitution of the body, the
sacred exercises of the House of God have a salutary
influence on the soul, softening the hard heart, raising
to the desire of the noblest objects the affections which
are too much set on earthly things, inclining the will
to an habitual determination for God, and making his
fear an abiding and ever-operating principle, and che
rishing and strengthening and establishing that practice,
and those sentiments and dispositions, which are suited
to the proper discharge of all the duties which we owe
to each other, to ourselves, and to God.
Not that these blessed consequences take place ordi
narily without any fluctuation in degree, for they are
scarcely perceptible at some periods of the christian life,
while at others the mind receives great and sensible ac
cessions of light, and power,' and inward consolation,
from the operation of their full and steady force. Were
there no interruptions iu the progress of the renewed

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 131
soul towards heaven, no draw-backs from inward de
pravity and external temptation, the present could
scarcely be called an imperfect state. Yet is there a
sufficiency of benefit derived, and a perceptible increase
made to the stock of christian graces, to keep the be
liever close in his attendance on the place where blessings
of such magnitude are dispensed, and constant in his
application to the fountain whence such living waters
flow. In the christian life, as before stated, the advantages
attending the observance of the worship of God, are
not always uniform. The tide of consolation ebbs as
well as flows ; the benefits derived from ordinances are
not always equal in degree; much dulness and insipidity
is occasionally felt; christians are sometimes in a manner
"detained before the Lord," contrary to their inclinations.
But these variations do not result from any changeable-
ness in God ; he does not dispense the promised aid of
his Spirit in a capricious manner, nor withhold it merely
in the exercise of sovereign power ; they do not pro
ceed from any defect in the means of grace, as if their
virtue was exhausted, and they were unable to produce
for a continuance those interesting and blessed effects,
which attended the earlier periods of the christian's ex
perience. These unhappy fluctuations are the conse
quence of our own departures from God; they may
always be traced to this fatal source. We fi«t forsake
* the fountain of living waters," and then proceed to
"hew out unto ourselves broken cisterns;" and what
can be expected from such a procedure, but that we
should lose that consolation and that vigour in the spi
ritual life, which are produced only by the " river of the
waters of life, whose streams make glad the city of God,"
and by whose verdant banks alone the trees of righfe*
ousness bear fruit, in their season. The light of God's

132 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
countenance is without a shadow, the Sun of righteous
ness shines ever with meridian strength and splendour,
but the transgressions which have gone over our heads,
form clouds, thick clouds, which intercept theiheavenly
rays, so that his face cannot shine upon us. The Word
of God has lost none of its virtue, but is still mighty
and powerful, but our hearts are often made callous by
yielding to the benumbing influence of worldly pursuits,
and are steeled against the reproof and instruction of
the Scriptures, by frequent indulgence in secret declen
sions of heart, or open violations of God's law. We
go not "from strength to strength" without intermission,
in the way to the celestial Sion, because our feet are too
often drawn aside into the devious paths of error and
transgression. As long as the heart is ff right with God," the spirit
will be " steadfast in his covenant." The christian first
becomes a backslider in heart, and then his comfqrts
expire, and his spiritual strength decays. The Word
of God becomes as it were an uninteresting book to him :
he looks into this glass, and considers the faithful re
presentation which it gives of the features of his mind
and of his character ; but, having closed the book, he
goes his way, and " straightway forgets what manner
of person he was.— We are prone to value the gifts more
than the graces of the Holy Spirit. We often look less
for spirituality than for fluency in our prayers : it is not
surprising then that the observance of this duty some
times degenerates into mere formality, and is performed
without the lifting up of the soul to God, and conse
quently without any sensible benefit. If we pray
without fervour, and sincerity, and expectation, we
cannot reasonably complain of disappointment in the
issue of our prayers.
There i§ sometiines 9. winter m the soul of the chris-,

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. * 133
tian ; and then, as in the natural world, all bloom, all
beauty, and growth cease. But as the winter and its
desolating rigours were brought on the earth by the sin
of man, so by his backslidings, which grieve the Holy
Spirit, is the cheering and vivifying influence of the
Sun of righteousness suspended. Comfort and pro
gress in the christian course depend on consistency
of conduct. Increase of faith, hope, and love, is at
no time independent of stability in the ways of God.
As the lofty mountain, whose top so far exceeds the
clouds that " eternal sunshine settles on its head," owes
its eminence, and its serenity, and its security, to the
hold which its broad and ample base takes on the solid
earth ; so the christian, how high soever he may rise in
knowledge, in hope, in enjoyment, is safe in the ten
ure of his superior attainments only so long as he cleaves
to God with purpose of heart, and rests on the founda
tion of his Word, "Jesus Christ himself being the chief
corner stone." Consistency of conversation maintains
peace with God, and this peace produces strength to walk
before him with sincerity and steadfastness. And this
consistency, and this peace, and this steadfastness, are
all promoted by the " strength" which is found in the
sanctuary. The sacred services confirm, establish, and
nourish every christian grace. " Those that be planted
in the house of the Lord, shall flourish in the courts of
our God." " The way of the Lord is strength to the
upright." It is not only the maintenance, but the in
crease of strength ; " The righteous shall flourish like a
fir-tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon."
Self-righteousness and unbelief are the bane of the
christian's peace and strength. Like the leprosy of old;,
which infected even the stones and the timber of the
edifice, they enter in some degree into every religious
service, and follow the christian into his closet and

134 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
into the House of God. Thus if at any time we
have had an enlargement of desires, a freedom of ut
terance before God, and a fervency of spirit in prayer,
do we not sometimes find the popish notion of superer
ogation gaining admittance into our minds ? Have we
not felt puffed up, as though we had in some sort gone
beyond the requirements of the Word of God, and
were more than safe ? And thus we are thrown off our
guard ; we become less vigilant and circumspect, and
the consequence of our self-righteous elevation is a loss
of ground, a retrograde movement in the race that is
set before us. Faith and repentance lead us to look to
Jesus ; self-righteousness and pride draw back our regards
to our duties as forming some part of the foundation of
our trust. Do we never find that neglect or formality
in duty is followed by a distrust of our state, as though
the salvation of Christ were thus rendered imperfect ?
Our remissness should lead us to repentance ; and our
enjoyment in the worship of God should increase faith
and hope in the perfect work of Jesus, as the sole ground
of our acceptance with God.
Cheerfulness and holy joy are important branches of
spiritual worship. An inordinate attachment to the
world often casts a damp upon these enjoyments : and
the weakness of faith often causes us to overlook our
privileges. If our hearts were at all times " right with
God," and our faith steady, we should ever " rejoice
in hope of his glory ;" and believing ourselves to be in
a state reconciliation with God, and having a conver
sation becoming such a state, we should always " serve
the Lord with gladness, and come before his presence
with singing ;" we should " enter into his gates with
thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise." The
holy joy and spiritual strength which we obtained in
the sanctuary, would be the surest guard against the

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.' 135
delusions of the world and the " pleasures of sin, which
are but for a season," because we should find that our
joy was never increased by any participation of earthly
pleasures, but always deteriorated; and instead of
gaining an accession to our spiritual strength by being
conformed to the world, we should find ourselves weak
ened, and thrown back in our heavenly course. We
can look towards heaven only by taking our regards
from the earth.
If we are believers, it is our privilege always to call
upon God as our Father. But how often do we approach *
his throne with slavish fears and suspicions ! How often
do we go to the public worship of God with reluctance !
We think it well when the service is passed over ; and
We often depart without any sensible benefit, because
we have lost confidence towards God . The very service
that should remove these doubts, and this gloom, and
this unwillingness of spirit, becomes itself a part of the
weight that oppresses us. The bounties of Providence,
and the richer blessings of Grace, seem insufficient to
quiet our unreasonable fears. We think of God and
are troubled, instead of being filled with peace. The
awe, and reverence, and fear, with which we should at
all times approach our God, seem to absorb the whole
mind, and leave no place for the exercise of joy, and
confidence. Our faith seems at times to embrace only
the greatness, and power, and holinesj, and justice of
God, and not to have respect at the same time to his mercy,
and love, and grace ; it seems to be " an evidence of
things not seen," less than "the substance of things
hoped for." We deprecate the anger of • God, and
crave his protection, but do not flee to him sufficiently
as a "refuge," and a " hiding-place."
These nrthappy contradictions in the christian expe
rience, proceed from a selfishness of spirit which pervades

136 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
all our religious character. We forget that we have
obligations as well as privileges, and duties as well as
necessities. While we are earnest with God in prayer
for comfort, for the light of his countenance, and the
joys of his salvation, we should also come before him
with rejoicing, and serve him with willing minds, and
"be thankful unto him, and bless his namp." We
should not only desire peace, but "follow after holiness."
Then should we draw nigh to God as sons, instead of
serving him as slaves; we should hail the approach,
and love the continuance of the stated services of Divine
worship. In them we should say, "it is good to be
here;" and after them, our language would be, it has
been good for us to wait upon the Lord. Then the
apostolic command, "Rejoice in the Lord alway,"
would be fulfilled by us with alacrity. Then might we
" rejoice" in the reflection how dear the salvation of man
was in the sight of God, who withheld not his own Son
from death that he might accomplish it, but sent him
forth " that he might destroy the works of the Devil,
and make us sons of God, and heirs of eternal life."
Then might we " rejoice" in the amazing love of the
Son, who gave himself for us, — "rejoice" in his com
passion, his almighty power to save, his pity and his
sympathy. Then might we " rejoice" in the comforts
of the Holy Spirit, who teaches, sanctifies, and en
lightens us. •
And finally we should be glad when it was said to
us, " let us go into the house of the Lord ;" we should
find peace in the hope of acceptance in every service ;
and derive " strength" from the worship both of the
sanctuary and of the closet. And as an encouragement
to cheerfulness, and confidence in our worship, we
should constantly bear in our remembrance that He who
took our nature, and bare our sorrows and our sins, is

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 137
our Mediator with God, that the way of access to the Fa
ther is through him, that we can present all our services
to God in his name, looking for the acceptance of our
praises, and a gracious answer to our prayers, because
he " ever liveth to make intercession for us."
We proposed to consider also the order, which should
prevail in the public service of God's house. When
David in his exhortation to praise God for his greatness
and majesty, observed that " beauty was in his sanc
tuary," he alluded, doubtless, to the grandeur, and
pomp, and solemnity of the Jewish ritual. The costi
liness of the materials, both for the vestments of the
priests, and the furniture of the sanctuary, the gold,
and the precious stones, the incense, and the sacrifices,
the harmony of voices and of musical instruments, and
above all, the presence of God " between the two che«
rubims upon the Ark of the Testimony," constituted
this beauty. But there is also the beauty of order, of
simplicity, and of solemnity, in the service of the
christian sanctuary. There is beauty in what meets the
eye, but it consists chiefly in the spiritual service offered
up by the worshippers. If religious worship be rightly
understood, it will always be considered as a solemn
transaction between God and the soul. It is not merely
a service, in which a number of persons assemble together
to assist in performing a stated ceremony,' but it is a
personal, an individual concern, in which the heart
must take the chief part; it is a service commanded by
God, prompted by the conscience, and discharged by
the soul. "God is a spirit; and they that worship
him, must worship him in spirit and in truth."
It must be a spiritual, a free, a voluntary service.
When the antient tabernacle was about to be erected in
the wilderness, Moses was commanded to take an of?
fering only of such as gave it willingly with their heart.

138 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
Without this freeness of the spirit, the service can nei
ther be acceptable to God nor beneficial to ourselves.
We are required to love the Lord with all our heart,
and soul, and strength ; but this love is quite incompatible
with heartless prayers, spiritless and feeble praises, and
an indifference to the truths of the Gospel. God is
worthy of our most fervent love ; we therefore dishonour
him when our worship proceeds from the mere constraint
of formal custom, or is only the dull, monotonous act
of habit. Where there is sincerity in devotion, there
will be life, and vigour, and earnestness. If we wor
ship God in truth, we shall also worship him with fer
vency of spirit. And if we expect and desire to reap
some advantage from the service of God, we cannot be
heedless and inattentive worshippers. The lowest de
gree of spirituality must be accompanied at least with
attention. Every part of the service is important, because every
part may be profitable to our souls, and for the manner
in which we improve it we are accountable to God.
This accountability is perhaps quite overlooked by many
persons. They go up to the worship of God with a
sort of independent spirit, to perform that service, which,
although they acknowledge it to be a duty, yet do they
discharge, as though it were altogether unconnected
with their obligations to God as his creatures ; it is
with them an insulated service, in no wise related to
their future conduct in this life, or to their future
account in that which is to come.
Some, again, divide the service, making one part es
sential, and another of minor importance. These sup
pose it enough to be in time to hear the sermon, and that
every end of Divine worship is answered in attending
to the instructions from the pulpit. Such persons, it is
to be feared, come to a place of worship, more with a

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 139
wish to be pleased, than with a desire to be edified ;
more for the purpose of approving or disapproving what
the preacher advances, than of trying themselves by
the Word of God, and receiving strength and encou
ragement to press forward in the ways of holiness, and
gaining and strengthening a spirit of prayer. " Praying
is the end of preaching," and a very fit introduction to
it. Timely attendance at public worship is no incon
siderable proof of a right disposition of mind. It pre
vents interruption to others, secures a short pause for
the recollection of the grand object which we profess to
have in view, and is likely to induce a calm solemnity
of spirit, so necessary to profitable and acceptable
worship. There is beauty eminently attending the service of
God, because it is consonant to the original constitution
of our nature. Man was created to serve, and praise,
and glorify his Creator. Herein consists his true free
dom. Unless we feel this service to be onr true liberty,
and discover a real beauty in it, we shall be ready to
account it a weariness, a trouble, a burden, and to
reckon the time spent in it as so much subtracted from
our pleasures, as so much taken from real enjoyment ;
and the duty will be discharged as a penance, and not
as a free-will offering.
If we have innumerable mercies to be thankful for,
then is praise an indispensable part of the worship of
God; if we have blessings to supplicate of infinite
value, and without which our souls must die, then is
prayer a most important branch of public worship ; if
we need doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction
in righteousness, — if faith is essential to salvation, and
comes by hearing the Word of God, then is preaching
an institution of incalculable benefit. And there is a
beauty attendant on the order in which these services
are performed.

140 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
Before we enter on the consideration of the several
parts of the public service of God, we must offer a few
remarks on the simplicity and solemnity which should
characterize every branch of the worship. Human in
ventions in the service of God are strictly forbidden ;
that is, so far as regards doctrines, and the imposing of
any particular ritual on mens' consciences as indispen-i
sably necessary to salvation. No strange incense was
allowed to be offered on God's altar under the law ; (see
Exod. xxx. 9.) and under the Gospel "there is none
other name under heaven given among men whereby we
must be saved," but the name of Christ. There is no
other foundation for a sinner's hope than the death and
righteousness of the Lord Jesus, and " if any man
build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones,
wood, hay, stubble ; every man's work shall be made
manifest ; and the fire shall try every man's work ; —
If any man's work shall be burnt, he shall suffer loss."
So that human inventions cannot benefit the soul, only
so far as they are " gold," or " silver ;" if they cannot
stand the fiery trial of God's j udgment, that is, if they
did not assist the devotion of the worshipper, and add
beauty and solemnity to the order of worship, they will
not profit those who exercised themselves therein ; nay,
such shall suffer the loss of all their useless and unedi-
fying ceremonial.
There is one advantage to be derived from the mul
tiplicity of religious opinions in the world, the greater
opportunity is offered for the exercise of christian cha
rity and candour. But we should be careful to distin
guish between charity, and indifference ; between can
dour, and a total disregard for the truth. A feeling of
common infirmity should induce us to be tender of the
consciences of others, but we should never be indifferent
whether the fundamental doctrines of the Bible be re-

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 141
ceived or rejected. If among the various conflicting
sentiments of professed christians, there be " old wives'
fables," which are to be refused, there is also a " form
of sound words," which is to be held fast ; and if there
be " foolish questions," which are to be avoided, there
are also " damnable heresies," which will bring on their
promoters " swift destruction." The evil in all cases of
difference as to religious opinion is, that men do not
contend so much for the Word of God, as for their own
particular interpretation of that Word ; and often when
they profess to be earnestly endeavouring to maintain
the " faith which was once delivered unto the saints,"
they are only striving to uphold their own opinions.
But if persons were more careful to distinguish between
mere opinions and fundamental doctrines, we should
find all christian communities less tenacious of their own
particular forms and ceremonies of worship, and more
disposed to receive others as brethren on the ground of
their being christians, than of their holding with any
particular set of opinions. The unity of the church,
which forms so essential a part of our Lord's, last prayer
to the Father, consists in having one common foundation
of dependance and trust for salvation, and not in an
agreement in any set form or order of worship ; it con
sists in unity of spirit, and not of ceremonial; in the uni
formity of a holy life and a sanctified heart, and not
in a similarity of external rites ; in conforming to the
will of Christ, and in bearing his image, and not in
complying with the regulations of any particular com
munity, and wearing any peculiar badge or outward
garment ; in being members of Christ's catholic church
of the faithful, and not a member of this or that deno
mination of christians.*
* "Sit una fides universoe ecclesiee, etiamsi ipsa fidei
unitas quibusdam diversis observationibus celebretur, quibus

142 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
Under the Old Testament dispensation, every part of
the ceremonial ritual was particularised with the most
minute and exact detail, embracing even the smallest
circumstances. But there is no Divine command which
can be shown, respecting the ceremonial constitution of
a christian church. We only read of what was done in
this respect by the Apostles and disciples of our Lord;
but we know not what they would have done, in regard
to the establishment of any particular form of public
worship, and many other points now so fiercely disputed,
had they not been prevented by what St. Paul terms
"the present distress" of the pagan and persecuting
times in which they lived. In different countries, among
persons of different habits, various modes of worship
will prevail. The best rule seems to be, The more sim
ple, the more scriptural. But here caution is required,
lest in rejecting what are deemed superfluous shoots and
useless branches, the pruning knife should be used too
freely, and healthy and fruitful boughs be struck off,
and the beauty and produce of the garden of the Lord
be thereby marred and weakened. There is a wide dif
ference between naked deformity, and the tinsel and
frippery of meretricious decoration. Men retain all
the peculiarities of their nature, after they have become
christians '; and they may be much aided in their devo
tions by those forms which, previously to their regene
ration, were nothing more than the mere substitutes for
religion — signs habitually used, with a total disregard
to the tilings signified.
Nothing of human invention should be introduced
into the public worship of God, further than is abso
lutely necessary or beneficial. Nothing should be sanc-
nullo modo quod in fide verum est, impeditur. Omnis enim
pulchritudo filirn regis intrinsecus : illoe autem observations
quee vaiie celebrantur, in ejus veste intelliguntur." Augustine.

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 143
tioned which is meant, or tends merely, to gratify the
outward senses, to please the carnal mind, or amuse the
mere formal and careless worshipper. The " pomp
and circumstance" of Roman worship, were introduced
to attract men from the service of idols, and in conformity
to the prejudices of those who had renounced their
idolatrous worship. Thus the feelings which should
have been banished from the mind, were cherished ;
and that false worship, which should have been opposed
and combated in all its parts, as most odious and abo
minable in the sight of God, was in some degree coun
tenanced and imitated. This was no proof either of
the sincerity of such converts, or of the piety of those
who called themselves ministers of the holy and self-
denying religion of Jesus. For had the former been
true converts, had their hearts been changed as well as
their profession, we may reasonably suppose there
would have been no danger of disgusting and offending
them, with the sudden transition from the gorgeous ser
vice of a Pagan temple^ to the simple and unostentatious
worship of a christian church. And had the piety of
the latter been spiritual and scriptural, they would have
shrunk from the meanness of making any improper
concessions to Pagan prejudices and errors ; or consenting
to any thing which bore the appearance of com
promise. When a great portion of the service consists in rites
and ceremonies of mere human authority, there is but
little room left for the exercise of the internal worship
of the spirit, which is indeed the only valuable part of
the service, inasmuch as it only is acceptable to God,
or profitable to man. Where so much stress is laid on
the outward form, the inward and spiritual grace is
likely to be forgotten and neglected by the great body
of worshippers, who are in danger of substituting an

144 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
unmeaning form, for that worship which is acceptable
only so far as it is performed in spirit and in truth.
With respect to Singing the praises of God in our
religious assemblies, it is a very antient custom, and
has in all ages been considered as an important branch
of Divine worship. And in Scripture it is represented
as constituting a principal part of the service in the
heavenly temple above. Singing seems to be a natural
mode of testifying the cheerfulness of the spirit, and
is therefore very properly introduced into the worship
of God, as the medium of expressing before him the
gladness of our hearts for the blessings of Providence
and of Grace, and of ascribing to Him glory and praise
for his works of creation and redemption. What sight
is more pleasing, than a whole assembly rising to cele
brate the praises of God ; what sounds are more grate
ful, than the harmony of a congregation of christians,
"speaking to each other in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs ; singing with grace, and making melody
in their hearts to the Lord !"
In order to render this service as much resembling
the worship of heaven, as earthly devotion can approach
to celestial adoration, it should consist chiefly of praise
and thanksgiving. The introduction of doctrinal sub
jects, as expressions, of a belief in any particular creedj
(which are more properly enforced from the pulpit,) or
subjects of complaint and lamentation, (which should
form matter of prayer,) cannot perhaps be entirely
avoided, although such subjects do not seem con
sonant to the nature and design of the service. When
the Israelites were in Babylon, they hung up their
harps ; they could' not sing the songs of Sion, in the
land of their captivity. — Is the christian worshipper
under the influence of mournful and desponding feel*
ings of heart ? — is he oppressed by many troubles and

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 145
Sorrows ? let him listen to the advice of St. James, " Is
any afflicted let him pray ?" The same Apostle gives the
direction, " Is any merry, let him sing psalms?" sd
that the subjects of our sacred songs should be an ex
pression of praise, and the christian should make this
the predominant character of his " spiritual son°-s,"
though he be constrained to join in them sometimes with
a heavy heart. We are invited by the psalmist to " sing
unto the Lord, and heartily to rejoice in the strength
of our salvation, to show ourselves glad in him with
psalms, to serve him with gladness, and to come before
his presence with a song." Even the inanimate objects
of creation, sun, and moon, and stars, earth, and sea,
are called upon to join in ascribing praises to the Uni
versal Father. Let our cheerful songs then form a part
of this chorus of joy and gratefulness, and let us mingle
our expressions of thanksgiving, with the united harmony
of heaven above and of the earth beneath; that the
whole creation may offer one hymn of grateful praise
to the common Benefactor of all.
The position of body assumed in this exercise, is also
not without its importance, inasmuch as in some degree
it indicates the spirit of the worshipper, and is either a
help or a hinderance to the devotion. If singing be a
part of the worship of God, then the custom of sitting
during its performance seems unbecoming, because
sitting is not a posture of worship. There is something
peculiarly animating, in the custom of a whole assembly
rising at once to celebrate the praises of God; it has a
tendency to excite the lively and grateful feelings of the
heart, and to bring forcibly to our recollection the na
ture of the service in which we profess to engage.
EveTy one must allow that there should be an agree
ment between the conduct of the worshipper and the
service which he offers ; and it seems natural for an in-
u

146 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
ferior being to rise and stand in the presence of his su
perior. Do the angels sit before the throne of God!
The posture of standing to sing the praises of God, has
always been the custom in the church of God. " Stand
up, and bless the Lord your God for ever and ever,"
was the invitation to the children of Israel, when the
Levites called upon them to praise God. And among
the primitive christians " sitting was ever held a posture
of great rudeness and irreverence;"* the congregation
generally stood even during the greater part of the whole
service of the Lord's day.
In some places of worship, instrumental music has
been introduced to assist the singing of the congrega
tion, and to render it more regular and harmonious.
Where this end is answered, and no other is aimed at,
the use of musical instruments seems free from any rea
sonable objection, and is indeed commendable. But
when the service is thereby transformed into a mere
performance, instead of being a service in which the
spirit and the understanding are unitedly engaged ; and
when a variety of light and airy tunes is introduced
for the purpose of displaying musical talent, or to gra
tify vain and trifling minds, it were far better to return
to the dull but sober, to the obsolete but serious com
positions of Sternhold and Hopkins, chaunted in the
old and simple melodies of our fore-fathers. On this
ground it would be desirable, where organs are used,
to abolish what has very properly been called the " un
seasonable and unmeaning impertinence of a volun
tary." This performance being necessarily unaccom
panied with words, forms no part of the worship. The
congregation are suddenly placed in the situation of an
auditory, listening to the execution of a piece of music,
and the place of worship becomes for a time an arena
* Cave's Prim. Christ, c. 9.

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 147
for the exhibition of the organist, whose sole object
must be to set off to the utmost his skill and knowledge
in the science of harmonics.
The spiritual nature of every part of the service of
God, can never be too strongly urged; and this single,
consideration has led many persons to banish all kinds
of instrumental music from a place of worship. But
surely there is a lawful use of them, and where this is
obtained, they will render a valuable assistance to the
congregation, in the discharge of the delightful and so
cial exercise of singing. The worship of heaven is re
presented in the Apocalyptic vision as consisting partly
of instrumental, and partly of vocal harmony. The
redeemed stand before the throne, " having the harps of
God," while " they sing the song of Moses, and the
song of the Lamb." If it be said that such expressions
are not to be taken in their literal signification, but as
figurative language, used to describe the employments
of the blessed , in condescension to our earthly ideas ;
this is in truth no solid objection against either the law
fulness or the expediency of introducing instrumental
music into our places of worship, but rather an' argu
ment in favour of such a practice ; for that which the
Divine Spirit has not esteemed too gross to be made use
of, in setting forth to our conceptions the nature of the
celestial worship, cannot be judged unfit to be em
ployed in assisting our devotional exercises in earthly
temples. Prayer to God is so essential and solemn a part of
religious service, that nothing which has a tendency to
assist us in the discharge of this sacred duty, can be"
deemed uninteresting and unimportant. It is not in
tended here to enter into any remarks on the nature of
prayer, but briefly to discuss the comparative claims of
extemporaneous prayer, and of precomposed, written

148

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.

forms. One advantage attending the former is supposed
to be a tendency to produce greater liveliness and at
tention in the worshippers, and more fervour and ear-
nestness in the minister; another is that it enables him
who leads the devotion of the assembly,, to suit his pe
titions and thanksgivings to the peculiar character of
the times, to the circumstances of the neighbourhood,
and to such individual cases in his congregation as may
be known to him. So that he can give thanks for mer
cies received, and offer up petitions for blessings that -
are needed, with particular reference to the cases brought >
before his notice; and he that offers praise, or he that
comes with a heavy heart under the pressure of trouble
and sorrow, may feel himself more powerfully induced
to join in the service, when he perceives that his own
personal case is forming the subject of the minister's
address to the Throne of Grace.
These advantages, however, are thought by some
more than counterbalanced by the disadvantages which
attend extempore prayer. Such prayers are always
too brief to comprehend the united interests of a con
gregation, a neighbourhood, a country, the catholic
church, and the whole world. It would require too
great an effort in the officiating minister, to prolong this
part of the service to a sufficient extent to embrace all
these topics with any circumstantial detail. And what
ever care may be employed, it is impossible that a si
milarity of expression should not occur, and a similarity
in the structure of prayers not be visible, ' amounting
almost to the use of a form, without its advantages. ''
Where the prayer is thus necessarily abridged, an undue
length of time is generally devoted to the sermon ; and
many persons are thus led to look on the prayer with
an inferior regard, and to esteem preaching as the
phief part of the service on the Lord's day.

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 149
A written form of prayer is supposed to prevent any
doubt arising in the mind of the worshipper, whether
he can give his assent to the petitions about to be offered
up. When present at extemporaneous prayer, he is
under the necessity of suspending, as it were, the desires
of his soul, till the conclusion of a sentence shall have
put him in the possession of the design of the petitioner,
and enabled him to add his hearty Amen. Prayer is
made in this case more an exercise of the judgment
than of the affections. We cannot at all times be in
circumstances, which will allow us to ascertain the piety
and the sentiments of him, who is to officiate in offering
up the devotions of the congregation ; and without this
previous knowledge, we cannot be prepared to join in
spirit and in truth in, those petitions which are about to
be offered by him, according to the present suggestions
of his mind. The knowledge and prudence of persons
who discharge the sacred office of the ministry, are by
no means always in proportion to their piety. Hence
the minds of the worshippers are not secure from offence,
by the use of improper expressions, too familiar to be
addressed to the Infinite Majesty of heaven and of earth,
or too low to be employed in connexion with subjects
of infinite importance.
In public extempore prayer, every one is subject to
have the train of thought which suggests his petitions,
broken in upon by sudden distractions ; hence we often
hear a sentence commenced, which, from the uncon
nected way in which it is completed, evidently shows
that no precise, no defined petition was clearly conceived
in the mind of the speaker. The awful attributes of
God, and the hallowed appellations by which he is ad
dressed, are sometimes recited so frequently and unne
cessarily, as to bring him that speaks under the charge
of using vain repetitions, and of being guilty of a vio-

150 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
lation of the third command of the Decalogue. It would
be better to make a silent pause, than thus to employ
the titles of the Deity as mere expletives, till we can so
far recover our thoughts as to frame a new petition.
All these evils, and they are not of small magnitude,
are prevented by the use of a form with which we are
previously acquainted. And why may not all the ad
vantages which are supposed to attend extemporaneous
prayer, be enjoyed with the use of a precomposed form,
made comprehensive enough to notice generally all the
afflictive events which befal mortal men, and all the
blessings which a God of mercy is continually dis
pensing to his unworthy creatures ? Every individual
according to his peculiar circumstances, might appro
priate a certain petition, or a certain thanksgiving, to
his own private case, and thus offer to God a lively sa
crifice, attended with an effort of the understanding.
And in extraordinary cases of affliction, or of gracious
deliverance, an individual may be noticed even by
name, as desiring an interest in the prayers of the con
gregation, or calling upon them to join in assisting him
to give praise to God.
The same blessings are supplicated by all christians,
in all assemblies for religious worship, with this differ
ence only, that the same words are not always used by
those who employ extemporaneous prayer ; while those
who adopt a precomposed form, come to God from
time to time, not only with the same desires, but ex-t
press them also in the same language. Let those chris
tians who conscientiously adhere to the former practice,
guard against any want of reverence, against the in
vention of expressions to be put in the place of prayer,
while the heart is dull, and the mind a complete blank ;
against using words, with a secret reference to the ap
plause of those who listen, and thus exalting the gift

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 151
of prayer, to the depreciation of the spirit and grace of
that holy service. And let those who are sincerely at
tached to those forms of prayer, which are venerable for
their antiquity, and beautiful for their simplicity and
solemnity, take heed lest their devotion be no more
than a form, lest they substitute the regular and unva
rying repetition of " sound words," for the power and
life of godliness, and be satisfied with that " bodily ex
ercise" which profiteth not. Let them maintain a con
stant watchfulness of heart, lest their service be only
that drawing near to God with the mouth, which is an
abomination in his sight, because the heart is far from
him — because the soul remains unengaged in the ex
ercise. It may not be improper to notice also the postuTe of
body assumed in prayer. It is the custom in many
congregations for all to stand during this part of the
worship ; and this practice is not without the counte
nance of the early ages of Christianity. But the custom
of standing during public prayer, was observed by the
primitive christians only on the Lord's day ; and then
not from any notion of its being a posture more suited
to the duty than kneeling, but because they esteemed
the Lord's day a day of rejoicing and thanksgiving,
and therefore accounted it improper even to use a pos
ture, which did not seem to imply the gladness of their
hearts. To defend the practice of standing during prayer, by
any expressions of Scripture, which appear to sanction
it, is not a proper mode of defence. The question is
not whether standing be lawful, but whether kneeling
be not a posture more agreeable to the duty. We may
use the Apostle's argument, when writing against an
indecent custom which had gained ground in the Co
rinthian church, and ask, " Does not nature itself teach"

152 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
us to assume the posture of kneeling, when supplicating
the aid of a superior ? How much more, when we are
calling at a set time, and in a solemn manner upon Him
that made us ! Most christians, it is presumed, kneel
in their private devotions ; and no rational objection
can be brought against the adoption of the custom in
public. Some persons have however objected to it as
inconvenient ; but even if this ought to have any weight
when the worship of God is concerned, it does not ap
pear that the inconvenience can apply to any thing but
the dress of the worshippers, which may certainly be
somewhat discomposed by bending the knee ; but this
objection is too frivolous to merit notice. Not only is
kneeling a more natural and becoming posture, but it
has a tendency to induce a degree of solemnity in the
mind ; and it precludes many wandering thoughts and
sinful imaginations, by narrowing the scene in which
the roving eye might wander, in the foolish observance
of the persons and dress of those who compose the as
sembly. Preaching is so important an ordinance in the chris
tian church, that when faithfully discharged, and di
ligently attended to, it is the grand means employed by
the Divine Spirit in turning men from darkness to light,
and bringing them from the bondage of Satan into the
liberty of the children of God. Where there is earnest
preaching, there will generally be attentive hearing.
But many hearers seem to forget the object which they
should have in view, when they listen to the instruction
given from the pulpit ; they seem to expect to be con
firmed in all their preconceived opinions, and are willing
to hear nothing but what exactly tallies with their own
sentiments. They do not go so much to be instructed,
as to be rooted and grounded in certain notions which
they have adopted ; and they will never bear so much

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 153
as to hear these questioned, much less controverted.
Nay, their favourite doctrines must be enforced in
evfery sermon, whether connected with the subject un
der discussion, or foreign to it ; if this is not done, they
charge the minister either with opposing or suppressing
what they call the truth. They require partial exhibi
tions of Divine Truth ; the promises of Scripture must
be largely explained, but the commands are to be passed
over as not of equal force, or they must be selected,
and some only of a particular class enforced. A re
ligion of feelings and notions must form the basis of all
the pulpit. discussions, as the only true theme of evan
gelical preaching ; and every thing of a practical na
ture, must be laid aside as legal and slavish. The in
scrutable deerees of God must be attempted to be laid
open with a daring hand, while a constant interdict is
laid on all the scriptural invitations to sinners to return
to God, on all the free and gracious offers of pardon
and eternal life made to the whole world of mankind,
and on all the commands which require holiness of heart
and of life. The preacher must restrict the number of
the redeemed to such only as agree with them in every
article of their faith, and must learn to consign with ex
pressions of apparent satisfaction, the greater part of
the human race to everlasting perdition. These persons
sit more in the capacity of judges, than in the character
of hearers : they hesitate hot to pass a decided judg
ment on the preacher's faith and sincerity, as well as
on his talents. This arrogance is mistaken by them
for an earnest contending for the faith ; and their dog
matical spirit for a faithful adherence to evangelical
doctrines. It is granted that we are not to listen to a sermon,
with the same reverence with Avhich we receive the Word
of Inspiration, nor to give implicit credence to all that

154 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
is advanced from the pulpit. Christians are commanded
to try the spirits whether they be of God, but they are
to conduct this trial in the christian spirit of humility
and charity, and by the rule of Holy Scripture, not by
their own attainments or notions. An inflexible ad
herence to truth may be maintained without intolerance.
We may discriminate without being censorious, and
judge without prejudice, and decide without bigotry.
Opinions hastily formed and obstinately supported, are
not proofs either of discernment or of piety. We do
not find that the humble andtender-hearted,who are deep
ly convinced of sin — who hunger and thirst after righ
teousness, and whose souls are lively in enquiring " what
is truth," are at any time censorious hearers. They
are too sincere in their pursuit of Divine Truth, and too
sensible of the importance of the salvation of the soul,
and too jealous of their own hearts, to feel themselves
at liberty to criticise the preacher, or to bring his doc
trine to the test of their own judgment. They desire
rather to be instructed and edified, than amused ; and are
disposed to overlook, rather than to magnify the defects
of a preacher.
Fastidiousness in hearers is a mark of diseased reli
gious opinions, or of declension in the warmth and
zeal of that faith which worketh by love. When men
slacken in their religious course, they are apt to rebuke
others very sharply for real or supposed faults and de
fects. Those who are remiss in self-examination, are
prone to become censorious hearers. They look less
into their own hearts, and more into the deficiencies of
the preacher. Self-application, which has justly been
called the only end of hearing, is laid aside ; and they
judge the preacher, instead of trying their own cha
racter by his instructions. If there be ground for men
to bring charges against preachers, the latter have also

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 155
too much cause to retort the charge. With a small al- .
teration, the sentiment of the poet may be applied to
this subject, and we may justly say,
" Ten censure wrong for one Who speaks amiss."
There is for the most part worse hearing than preaching :
ministers are ordinarily more earnest, than their audi
tories are attentive : and defective indeed must that.
sermon be, from which a sincere and spiritually-minded,
person can derive no instruction — no benefit. " The
worst speak something good," and the "true and honest,
heart" will discern that good, and receive it with,
thankfulness. A preacher has a solemn message from God to deliver,
to his fellow-men. Gravity and earnestness should
therefore mark the whole of his deportment, both in
and out of the pulpit. He that can use lightness in
the pulpit, or excite a smile on the countenances of his
hearers, must not complain that he has spent his strength
for nought. The only fruits that can be expected from
such trifling, are indifference, carelessness, and mockery
at sin. Preachers who show by their conduct in life,
that they are themselves unimpressed with those truths,
which they charge on the consciences of men, and un-.
influenced by those things which they profess to enforce
on othprs as all-important, do thwart the very design of
the Gospel, and harden men in their sin, while they call,
them to repentance ; " for the sins of teachers, are the,
teachers of sin." Who can say how much of the open
profaneness of some, and the secret hypocrisy of others,
is chargeable on the unworthy conduct of those who
" minister in holy things," and are themselves unsanc-
tified in heart and conversation !
Too great circumspection cannot be employed by
those, whose office it is to examine and ordain candi-

156 on public Worship.
dates for the ministry. Piety towards God is undoubt
edly the chief consideration, but to this should be added
talent, prudence, and some experience; It is a "wise
regulation, in the Established Church, which allows not
any to preach till they have attained, at least, the age
of twenty-three years; but among other christian soci
eties, the sacred office is too frequently intrusted into the
inexpert hands of youths, whose forwardness subse
quent events have shown to haye been their chief quali
fication. Persons young in years, and younger in
christian experience, who ought rather to be studying
silence in the school of Pythagoras, than delivering
sermons with supercilious authority, are placed in the
pulpit to instruct men in the way of salvation, and are
loaded with the ministerial charge before they have
given any assurance of their own stability. This is the
way to bring the office itself into contempt, on account
of the incompetency of those who attempt to discharge
it. The youth of Timothy, the young Bishop of Ephesus,
ordained by the great Apostle of the Gentiles, is often
adduced in defence of the Custom of allowing youths to
commence public preachers, as soon as they enter on
their studies for the sacred ministry and before they
have received ordination ; but it does not follow that
Timothy was a boy, because St. Paul wrote to him,
" Let no man despise thy youth." And he certainly
possessed extraordinary qualifications for the office of a
minister, to which we may suppose few of our stripling
orators would venture to enforce a claim. Moreover,
we should certainly hear less of our young Timothys,
if we had aged Pauls to examine them, and pronounce
on their fitness for the sacred office of ministers of Jesus
Christ. The solemn consideration that on every Lord's day,

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 157
there may be some in the congregation who are listening
to their last sermon, to whom the Word of God will no
more be addressed, to whom a final offer is made of the
salvation that is by Jesus Christ, should operate with
undiminished force in rousing the preacher's zeal, ear
nestness, fidelity, and affection, every time he discharges
the office of a public instructor. A sense of the import
ance of his message, of the infinite value of the souls of
men, and of the fearful weight of responsibility which
attaches to his office, should discover itself in his lan
guage, his countenance, his gesture. He that preaches
under such impressions, will be unwilling to terminate
his address, till he sees some fruit of his labour, till his
heart is encouraged by beholding in one and another of
his hearers the silent tear of penitence, the earnest anx
iety of enquiry, and the animated countenance of the
humble christian, lighted up with the smile of heavenly
hope. " Take heed," said our Lord, " how ye hear." And
it would be well for hearers to remember whenever they
go up to the House of God, that they may perhaps hear
something which will completely change their character,
and form it in the mould of the Gospel, — that some por- N
tion of the Word of God may come to their hearts and
conscience, " with demonstration of the Spirit and with
power," which will make them wise unto salvation, —
which will give a new and heavenly direction to their
pursuits, — which will fashion and sanctify all their fu
ture conduct, — which will give a fresh and a holy impulse
to their spirits, — which will influence the whole of their
lives upon earth, and extend the consequences of that
influence even into another world, and thus decide their
lot for eternity.
Even the edifice which is set apart for the celebration
of Divine worship, derives an odour of sanctity from

158 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
the holy purpose to which it is devoted. .Wherever the
presence of God is more immediately displayed, the
very ground is holy : " Put thy shoes from off thy feet*
for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground,"
was the first charge given to those in old time, to whom
God vouchsafed to appear. Uncovering the head is
esteemed by us an act of reverence ; but many persons
enter the House of God with less outward respect, than
they would discover on entering the house of a fellow-
creature. In order to avoid superstitious regard for a
building, it is not necessary to fall into irreverence to
wards Him for whose worship it has been erected. It
may be esteemed a mark of good-breeding to enter an
assembly with a light and airy carriage, and with be
coming assurance ; but when that assembly is met to
gether for the worship of the great God, such a deport
ment is profanity. The deepest humility of heart, a
modest countenance, and a reverential deportment,
are necessary when we enter the House of God. Even
the heathen are a pattern to many christians in this re
spect, for they enter the temples of their idols with rev
erence and awe. It is also to be regretted that the good
old custom of assuming a devotional attitude, for the
purpose of a few moments silent prayer, on entering a
place of worship, has grown very much into disuse :,
and the same may be observed of the silent pause for
mental prayer* at the conclusion of a religious service ;
and yet both these customs have a tendency to excite or
to cherish right feelings in the heart. " Keep thy foot,"
says the wise man, " when thou goest to the house of
God." There is yet another service which forms the most
simple, and at the same time, the most solemn part of
the ritual of a christian church-^-the Lord's* Supper.
Whether we consider the awful and affecting circum-

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 159
stances connected with its institution, the final meet
ing of all the Apostles with their Lord, the catas
trophe to which it was the prelude, and the amazing
love and wonderful condescension of Him who left this
charge with his followers, " Do this in remembrance of
me ; " or whether we regard the nature of the ordinance
itself, tending to remind us of the means and author of
our redemption, of the love of Him who when he knew
the price of purchase was his own blood, drew not back
from the dreadful engagement ; or contemplate the or
dinance as wisely adapted to encourage our faith, and,
as a social service, to unite us in the bonds of brotherly
love ; — -in every point of view this is an institution ad
mirably calculated to awaken the most tender sensibili
ties of our nature, and to excite the best and most sacred
feelings of our hearts.
This ordinance, on account of the mystical language
applied to the sacred elements by our Lord, and the
penal consequences attached to the abuse of it as stated
by St.. Paul, as well as the strange and irrational doc
trine of transubstantiation, so generally received in the
time of the papal dominion, has been much neglected
through superstitious and groundless fears, or observed
with ignorant and profane reliance on its virtues as able
to atone for sin, and to secure an " abundant entrance
into the everlasting kingdom" of heaven. This rite
should neither be abused by being put in the place of
Christ, or being made a part of his full and perfect ob
lation and satisfaction for sin ; nor slighted by neglect,
as if it conferred no benefit, and were not obligatory,
because salvation is attainable without it. The true
christian does not desire to reach heaven, with as im
perfect an obedience as is at all compatible with safety ;
but his aim is to do all the will of God, and to observe
every ordinance of Christ. To defend the habitual

160 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
neglect of this institution, on the ground of its not being
indispensable to salvation, is no other than to charge
our Lord with having appointed a useless service, with
having laid a needless injunction on his followers.
What he has commanded, must be important, and,
where circumstances allow, indispensable ; what he has
conferred, must be beneficial ; and a slight, cast on his
appointments, must incur guilt.
It seems that as some have erred in their opinions of
the nature of the Lord's supper, others have erred also
in the administration of this religious rite. It is re
garded by some as so distinct from the other parts of
religious worship, as to belong exclusively to those who
give undoubted evidence of their real conversion to
God ; and not as a means, under God, of producing
renovation of heart. By others it is esteemed as some
thing of so awful and mysterious import, that men are
to be kept from it lest they destroy their souls by eating
and drinking unworthily. No one ought certainly to
approach the celebration of this rite, without close and
impartial self-examination, and preparation, yet it
should not (as it too oftpn is) be abstained from alto
gether, under a mistaken notion of the superior sanctity
required in those who partake of it. Prayer is a solemn
service, and should not be engaged in without great se
riousness and solemnity of mind, and a " true heart ;"
but many who dare not live without dafly prayer to
God, do yet habitually neglect the holy Sacrament,
which is only another branch of religious obligation.
In some communions, the Lord's Supper is restricted
to such as have attained to a certain degree of religious
knowledge and experience ; and the rest of the congre
gation are admitted to join indiscriminately in the other
parts of the service of the sanctuary, without drawing
any line which should separate them into classes,

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 161
leaving it to God alone to distinguish between those who
worship him in spirit and in truth, and those who are
mere formalists in their devotions; and suffering men
to engage in the service so as to derive profit, or to bring
sin on their souls by irreverence or want of sincerity.
It seems reasonable and scriptural that the openly pro
fane, and those who are unacquainted with the very first
principles of Christianity should be excluded from the
sacramental table, till they give evidence of being re
formed in their conduct, and enlightened in their minds.
But why should the door be shut against such as are mor
al in their deportment, and are ready to profess their be
lief that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh ? Why should
not all who have an enlightened desire to participate in
this ordinance, be permitted to share in it ? Many
might find it the means of their spiritual renovation ;
but while the holy communion is under too rigid restric
tions, it is in fact put out of the number of the means of
conversion, and made only the medium of conveying
encouragement and strength to those, who have already
" believed through grace."
Some conference should take place between the minis
ter or persons appointed by the church, and candidates
for communion, previously to their becoming commu
nicants ; and it is a part of the ministerial office, to ex
plain the nature, and enforce the obligations of this
Divine Institution, and to warn men against eating and
drinking unworthily ; but why, as is the case in some
religious societies, should a written document, to be
read publicly before the church, be required from all
candidates, containing, or professing to contain an ac
count of the commencement and progress of their con
version to God ? Many truly pious and sincere persons,
whom Christ has accepted, are kept from his table by
this " ordinance of man." Some are unable to note

162 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
the commencement of spiritual light in their soul, or to
trace the progress of their attainments in Divine Know
ledge ; but they can reply in truth and from the heart
to the question, " Dost thou believe in the Lord Jesus
Christ," 'I believe; may God help my unbelief;'
and their conduct and conversation show that they
have added to their faith — knowledge, virtue, temper
ance, and the other christian graces. Others, again,
feel a backwardness, arising from true humility, to
proclaim openly the state of their minds towards God.
They are ready to give an answer to every man who
asketh of the hope that is in them ; but they cannot
overcome their diffidence, and do violence to their feel
ings, by delivering in a written document as an attest
ation of their faith and sincerity. Christian humility
shrinks back from such publicity, and is of too retired
a nature to say, ' Here am I, receive me.'
It is to be feared also that this regulation may induce
some persons to state more than they have really experi
enced ; an anxiety to be esteemed something more than
mere " babes" in Christianity, may lead to their preparing
a paper, which shall contain, not a faithful statement of
their religious course, but an account calculated to
raise them in the opinion of the religious society to
which they belong. And the injury will not be confined
to those only who are thus admitted to church-member
ship, but many persons who listen to the contents of
these papers, may be led to form very erroneous notions
respecting conversion. They may suppose that a process
similar to what they have heard stated, as the course and
and order of the religious experience of others, must
take place in their own minds before they can conclude
themselves to be christians, or lay an humble claim to
the promises and offers of the Gospel. Thus much
unnecessary distress may be caused in their minds, or

ON PUBLIC WORSHIP. 163
they may be induced to make hypocritical pretensions,
or to sink in despondency.
Besides, what test of sincerity, or of piety, can such
documents be ? They may easily be counterfeited by
the hypocrite ; they may lead the christian of low at
tainments to state more than he has really experienced,
and they may effectually exclude from communion
many useful and devout persons ; but they can neither
promote nor ensure the admittance of such only as
are " born of God," who are christians in deed and in
truth, as well as in outward profession.
To return from this digression to the subject of the
spiritual worship of God, we may observe in conclusion,
that no means of grace will be neglected either by those
who are making the first enquiries after God in a reli
gious course of life, or by those who are standing fast
in their most holy faith. The former need every in
struction and assistance; and the latter stand in need
of constant supplies of spiritual strength to keep their
graces lively. The dispensation of the Gospel brings
relief exactly suited to the case of the one; and the other
finds in the same dispensation, all needful supplies of
grace, plentifully and freely bestowed. By readmg the
Holy Scriptures, by diligent self-examination, by fre
quent meditation on Divine Things, by the converse of
pious persons, and chiefly by attending on the public
worship of God, the christian finds his faith daily
strengthened — his hope increased — his prospects widen
ed — his joys multiplied — his humility increased — his
attachment to present things weakened — his love to ho
liness growing stronger — his holy resolutions fortified —
his zeal animated and wisely directed — his confidence
in God confirmed, and thus, his path is as " the shining
lifht, that shineth more and more unto the perfect
day."

164 ON PUBLIC WORSHIP.
Let every reader put the following questions seriously
to his conscience, at the close of every Lord's day :
With what motive did I go up to the House of God
this day ? If the present should be my last Sabbath, and
I should be favoured with no more opportunities of
worshipping God in his earthly temples, have I so im
proved this day's services, as to leave no sting in my
conscience — no cause of bitter regret ? It is certain
that I am now one Sabbath-day's journey nearer to the
end of my pilgrimage, and to my appearing before the
Judgment-seat of Christ, do I then find in myself an
increased preparation and meetness for the heavenly
glory ?

ESSAY IV.

«»-«-«?

ON PRAYER.

J/V HAT is prayer ? It is the eloquence of misery ;
it is the language inspired by a sense of wretchedness
and want ; it is the cry of a being who feels his help
lessness and danger, to one whom he knows to be able,
and believes to be willing to save him ; it is the desire
of the heart. How does the beggar perishing with hun
ger, implore an alms of those that pass by him ? — How
does the mariner sinking beneath the fierce wave in
sight of his native shore, cry aloud for help ? — How
does the condemned criminal supplicate his judge or
his prince for pardon ? This is prayer.
Prayer is desire : it is earnestness. Without desire,
prayer is but a shadow without the substanci^ a lifeless
body without the quickening spirit; an inanimate trunk
destitute of the heart. What would it profit us, were
we to repeat ever so many forms of petitions in words
only ? We may in this manner say prayer after prayer,
till our lips are weary, and our tongue cleaves to our
mouth, and our breath fails us, and not one request
will reach heaven, because all are unaccompanied by
the desire of the heart. If God be the searcher of
hearts, what greater mockery can there be than to
address him with unmeaning words ? Will He, who is
a Spirit, be satisfied with mere bodily service?
God hears prayer; but without desire prayer is des-

166# ON PRAYER.
tituteof its first and most distinguishing quality. " God,"
says an old divine, "heareth the heart without the
mouth ; but never heareth the mouth acceptably without
the heart." " The Lord is nigh unto all that call upon
him in truth," — " He will fulfil the desire of them that
fear him."
If desire be the heart of prayer, earnestness is also
the eloquent tongue that pleads our cause with God.
The cold words of heartless petitions which fall unheeded
from the lips of the formal worshipper, are also disre
garded by Him to whom they are pretended to be ad
dressed. If we rightly understand the value of spi
ritual things, we shall seek them with corresponding
earnestness. " Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul,"
says the Psalmist ; and when blessings for the soul are
desired, there will ever be a spiritual wrestling for them.
What evidence can there be of sincerity of desire, when
there is no earnestness of supplication ? How earnest
was Jacob to obtain a blessing from the Almighty !
He is represented as wrestling with God, and with ear
nest importunity declaring, "I will not let thee go, ex
cept thou bless me." We are commanded to continue
" instant," or persevering " in prayer." We have
blessings of infinite value to ask of God, and shall we
seek them only with a cold obedience to the Divine
command to continue in prayer ? Shall we not rather
manifest an earnest! and persevering importunity, as
those who feel the importance of the favours which they
supplicate, and who know they must perish unless they
are conceded! "The kingdom of heaven suffereth
violence, and the violent take it by force." What
strong language is this ? Whom does it characterize ?
Not the formal — not the heedless — not the slothful —
not the cold, heartless worshipper ; — no;, "the violent"
are those whose hearts are set upon obtaining the inva-

ON PRAYER. 167
iuable blessings of the Gospel, — who give no sleep to
their eyes, nor slumber to their eyelids, till they have
laid " hold upon the hope that is set before them," —
who regard this world as a passage to another, and
consider time as given them to prepare for eternity, — and
who think no end of their being answered, till they
have obtained a " good hope through grace," that they
shall hereafter receive an " inheritance incorruptible,
and undefiled, and that fadeth not away."
There must be application of mind in prayer. If
our own minds are unaffected by our prayers, how can
we expect that they should have power with God?
David affords us an instance of this application of mind — -
this earnestness, when he declares that his soul thirsted
for God. He felt an intenseness of desire which led
him to seek God early — to prevent the morning light —
to follow hard after God — to wait with longing desire
till the Lord should accomplish all his petitions.
Some persons excuse themselves from, the duty of
prayer by averring that they know not how to discharge
it, that they cannot find words wherewith to offer peti
tions to God. There are doubtless -various degrees of
attainment in the gift of prayer ; but this total inability
which is pleaded, is a proof that the understanding is
yet destitute of spiritual light, that the affections are
yet unsanctified, that the heart is yet unrenewed. Where
the evil of sin is felt, men know how to cry for the
pardon of it. Where the danger which threatens us as
the guilty posterity of fallen Adam, is seen and appre
ciated, words will readily be found to call on God for
deliverance. If we know "the plague of our own
hearts," we shall be earnest, if not eloquent, in beseech
ing God to " create in us a clean heart, and to renew
a right spirit within us." If we possess a spiritual
knowledge of the blessings of redemption, we shall be

±68

ON PRAYER.

importunate in pleading with God for an interest in
them. Words are vain if unaccompanied by desire;
but where a desire is felt, words will naturally follow.
If the mind be instructed in the knowledge of Divine
things, and the heart conceive desires for them, " the
tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak
plainly." However, a readiness of utterance and a How of words
must not be mistaken for prayer. There is a distinction
between the gift and the grace or spirit of prayer ; and the
former may be possessed, if not without, at least with a
very small degree of the latter. He that has only the
gift of prayer, may define his wants with much exact
ness, and offer petitions with a wonderful facility and
great variety and copiousness of expression ; but at the
same time, all this may be only like the regular move
ments of an automaton, that have the resemblance of
life, but not the reality; they are excited by a mechan
ical cause, and cease when that impulse ceases ; they
stop when the spring has lost its elasticity, or the
weight has gone down. There may be gifts which dazzle
both the possessor and the beholders, where there is
none or very little of the grace which humbles^— of the
spirit which enlightens the heart.
Prayer begins in the conviction that we are sinners —
sinners who must perish everlastingly without the mer
cy of God; it is founded on a persuasion that God will
hear prayer, and will send answers of peace ; and prayer
proceeds and grows, and strengthens, on the experience of
God's grace and mercy. No one truly pray s till God has
opened the eyes of his mind to discern his spiritual dan
ger. " Behold he prayeth," is amongst the first evi
dences given of the real conversion of Saul the perse
cutor, into Paul the apostle. Prayer is the natural ex
pression of the heart of every one that is born of the

ON PRAYERj 169
spirit. Prayer is as the breath of the christian, without
which he cannot live ; it is to him as the animating soul
Which God breathed into the nostrils of the first man, and
which gave life, and vigour, and health, to the whole
frame. A prayerless christian is a contradiction in terms ;
for believers are the generation of them that seek God.
Therefore prayer is the best test of character, the surest
mark of spiritual life. It seeks spiritual things, and
cannot thrive in the natural, unrenewed heart. As we
feel disposed to, or averse from this duty, so will be the
growth or the decline of grace in our hearts. "A
praying christian," says one of the early fathers of the
Church, "is in a frame for enduring any thing." He
that continues " instant in prayer," is at the post as
signed to him as a christian warrior; he is on his watch^
tower, and will not be easily surprised by his insidious
enemy — his besetting sin, or by his more open foes — the
world and the devil.
Christians are commanded to put on the spiritual ar
mour of God ; but shieldj and breast-plate, and helmet*
are Vain coverings, and the sword is a useless weapon,
unless we are found " praying always with all prayer."
Prayer buckles on the harness, and instructs us to wield
the sword ; but " restraining prayer, we cease to fight ;"
our shield is laid down, our breast-plate and helmet are
taken off, and the sword falls from our feeble grasp. »
Prayer is an exercise of the mind so spiritual, that
in nothing are we more likely to become remiss and
formal, than in this service. And, therefore, in the word
of God are many exhortations to urge us to this duty, and
many promises to encourage our perseverance in it.
It is enforced by repeated commands; "Ask, and it
shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock,
and it shall be opened unto you." — " Men ought always
to pray, and not to faint."— " Pray without ceasing."

170 ON PRAYER.
"In everything by prayer and supplication let your
requests be made known to God." We have also " ex
ceedingly great and precious promises," to strengthen
our faith, and animate our drooping expectations.
"Thou that hearest prayer," is addressed to God in his
Word, as one of the names by which he is known. " The
eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears
are opeh unto their cry." " Whatsoever ye shall ask
of the Father in my name, he will give it you." — " The
Lord is rich unto all that call upon him." — " Before
they call, I will answer ; and while they are yet speaking,
I will hear." — " He will be very gracious unto thee at
the voice of thy cry ; when he shall hear it, he will
answer thee."
But then our prayers must be offered in faith, and
with understanding. The first act of the mind in prayer,
must be faith in the being of God ; and then faith in
his ability and readiness to help us ; " for he that cometh
to God, must believe that he is, and that he is a re-
warder of them that diligently seek him." Prayer
without faith is a vain oblation, unprofitable to our
selves, and unacceptable to God. When we approach
the throne of grace with a doubting mind, we are but
little better than they who worship an " unknown God" —
without confidence in his power, or hope in his mercy ;
" Let not that man think that he shall receive any thing
of the Lord."
The medium of access to the Father should never be
forgotten by us, when we attempt to pray. Had not
Christ died, there would have been no way in which
we could ever have approached God ; we should have
been forever barred his presence. By the mediation
of Christ we hold spiritual communion with our Maker :
through him the prayer of faith becomes "that con
verse, which God has allowed Us to maintain with him-

ON PRAYER. 171
self above, while we are here below. It is that language
wherein a creature holds correspondence with his Creator,
and wherein the soul of a saint gets near to God, is en
tertained with great delight, and as it were dwells with
his heavenly Father for a short season before he comes
to heaven." Faith is indispensable to prayer: it is the
" tongue that begs pardon ; it is the hand that receives
it ; it is the eye that sees it; but it is no price to buy it.
Faith uses the Gospel plea for pardon, but it is not the
plea itself, that is only Christ's blood."
As this intercourse between God and the sOul cannot
be maintained without faith, so also it cannot be enjoyed
without understanding. In vain will our prayers ex
press fully the things which we need, if we do not also
in some measure understand the value of the blessings
which we supplicate. Can our prayers bring down one
blessing from heaven, if we know not what we ask for ?
Unless we "pray with the spirit, and pray with the
understanding also," we shall but " speak into the air."
The words of our prayer may not indeed be " without
signification," but the understanding will be "unfruitful,"
the heart will not be " edified."
• True prayer is the expression of the heart, and is
therefore a voluntary service. The sincere christian
does not pray merely because he is commanded to pray,
but also because he is inclined to pray. He is not urged
so much by the voice of natural conscience, as by love
to God and love to the duty. He delights to hold com
munion with the Father of his spirit. He enjoys a
foretaste of heaven in the exercise of this duty. But,
on the other hand, prayer is wrung and extorted from
the unrenewed heart. Many who have never bowed the
knee in sincere and humble adoration, and have never
raised one cry of earnest prayer to heaven, while they
were in health, and saw no trouble, are the loudest in

172 ON PRAYER,
calling on God in their misery. They go to Him when
they have no other refuge. Their desire is to be deli
vered from their pains, not from their sins. They desire
that God should take away their sufferings, not their
evil hearts, — that he should renew their bodily strength,
not their souls, — that he should restore them to health
and prosperity, not to his favour and image, the light
of his countenance, and the joys of his salvation. Thus
they cover the deceitfulness of their hearts with a co
vering, but not of the Spirit of God ; a covering too
thin not to be pierced by the all-seeing eye of the Lord ;
a covering too scanty to shield them from the anger of
God. God saith of such characters, " They have not
cried unto me with their heart, when they howled upon
their beds." Their return to God is induced by terror,
and secured only by fear. They yield not themselves
unreservedly to God, but only so much as they are
constrained to do by mere suffering. They are like the
Israelites of old time ; when God visited them for their
sins, and slew them, "then they sought him ; and they
returned and enquired early after God ; and they re->
membered that God was their rock, and the High God
their Redeemer : nevertheless they did flatter him with
their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues;
for their heart was not right with him, neither were
they steadfast in his covenant."
Fear does not, however, always bend the stubborn
heart ; sometimes it hardens it. It often induces a hy
pocritical return to God, but it sometimes strengthens
the daring spirit of rebellion. We find in the Reve
lation, that when the judgments of God were heavy on
" the seat of the beast," men " blasphemed the God of
heaven because of their pains and their sores ; and re
pented not of their deeds."
They that rightly understand the nature of prayer,

ON PRAYER. 173
and regard it as a spiritual service, know that they
cannot perform this duty acceptably to God, nor with
advantage to themselves, unless they receive the aid of
the Holy Spirit. " We know not what we should pray
for as we ought," but the " Spirit helpeth our infirmities."
We read of a " spirit of grace and of supplication,"
which God promises to " pour out" on his people ; and
it is the same Divine teacher, who confirms our faith and
enables us to cry " Abba, Father." " Prayer," says
one, " is nothing but the breathing that out before the
Lord, which was first breathed into us by the Spirit of
the Lord." We may assume the posture of worship at
the set times of prayer, (and so we ought to do, for
that which has not its regular and appointed seasons,
will seldom be performed at all,) but unless the Divine
Spirit excite holy desires in our hearts, the discharge of
this duty will be unprofitable ; for in this, as in every
other religious service, " it is the Spirit that quickeneth,
the flesh profiteth nothing."
Having thus far discussed the nature of prayer, we
shall offer some remarks on the exercise of this duty, in
the public, social, and private acts of worship. With
respect to public prayer, what sight is more pleasing,
more solemn, or more imposing, than to behold a mul
titude of immortal beings, bowing before the same
throne of mercy, confessing their sins to the same Fa
ther, and seeking an interest in the same salvation !
The advantages attending the observance of public
prayer are many. It is calculated to excite every proper
and hallowed feeling in the bosom. God is pleased to
hearken to the united prayers of the church, and to send
gracious answers of peace. " The Lord loveth the gates
of Zion," and hath commanded an especial blessing on
the assemblies of his saints. " The Lord will create
upon every dwelling-place of Mount Zion, and upon

174 ON PRAYER.
her assemblies a cloud, a smoke by day, and the shining
of a flaming fire by night, for upon all the glory shall
be a defence." "Pray," then, "with the most; for
where most pray is heaven."
But let it be remembered, that in public prayer, it is
not every one who is present, and joins with his voice,
that takes a part in the spiritual worship. All may join
in the " bodily exercise," but the church, the assembly
of believers alone pray ; they alone offer the " prayers
of saints," which ascend to God as incense from "golden
vials full of odours."
It is not enough to appear in our accustomed places
at the time of public prayer, and to join formally in
the words of the petitions that are offered, or the praises
that are presented ; our hearts and our spirits must be
engaged in the service. It is to be feared that many
add their amen to prayers, of the meaning of which they
know nothing, and to the very words of which they
have often paid no attention. The sound of their voice is
heard in the assembly, united with the voice of the spiritual
and sincere worshipper, but it reaches not heaven, be
cause it is mere lip-service — because the words are word;:
of vanity. It is to be feared that many say, " Our Fa
ther," who are ignorant of the first rudiments of Christi
anity ; who, instead of being " ready always to give
an answer to every man that asketh them a reason of
the hope that is in them," have really no hope at all ;
and, instead of being of the true " circumcision who wor
ship God in the spirit," " have need that one teach
them the first principles of the oracles of God." They
use the language of those who have received the " spirit
of adoption," but they remain " strangers from the cov
enants of promise." The petitions offered up in public
prayers, may express with eloquent fervour, in language
well-suited to the solemnity, the earnestness, the since-

ON PRAYER. 175
rity of the minds of spiritual worshippers, all the ne
cessities of the body and the soul, which are common to
the children of men, but it is to be feared that they are
" vain repetitions " in the mouths of many persons, who
are present in body, but absent in spirit, — who add to
the numerical amount of the number of our religious
assemblies, but have no' communion in the service. To
such persons the Reformation has brought no benefit ;
they partake indeed of the outward privileges enjoyed in
those countries, where the yoke of papal tyranny has
been broken, but as to any spiritual profit, they are
nearly on an equality with our forefathers, who listened
to prayers offered in an unknown tongue.
It may be profitable for such persons, to give consid
erate answers to the questions which follow. Do you
never utter words in public prayer, or listen, without
any effort of the understanding, or any application of
mind, to words, of the import of which you have no
just conception ? Have you ever considered the solem
nity of the addresses to the Deity, in which you profess
to join every Lord's day, and have your minds been
duly impressed when repeating them ? Have you ever
reflected on the deep self-abasement and godly sorrow
which are expressed in the confessions, and have you
felt a corresponding humility, and holy shame, and true
repentance; for mere "confession is not repentance? "
You are in the habit of confessing yourselves " misera
ble offenders ; " do you feel the extent of your misery ?
Are you convinced that there is indeed no moral sound
ness — no spiritual " health " in your souls by nature,
and do you therefore desire that God would heal you,
and renew a right spirit within you, and restore his lost
image in your souls ; for the mere " knowledge of sin is
not contrition ? " When you hear of the mercy and pity
of God, do you hope in that mercy, and claim that pity,

176 ON PRAYER,
as those "that truly repent, and unfeignedly believe his
holy Gospel ? " When you say, " O God ! make clean
our hearts within us," are you constrained to offer this
petition, because you know the "plague of your own
hearts ? " Do you really believe that you have evil
hearts — 'hearts desperately wicked — hearts that only the
power of God can change and sanctify; and do you de
sire that this spiritual renovation, this new creation
should take place in them ? When you solemnly invoke
the " Father of Heaven," and the " Redeemer of the
World," and the " Holy Ghost/' to have mercy upon
you, are all the powers of your soul engaged in the
awful service ? When you reiterate the cry " Lord have
mercy upon us," — " Christ, have mercy upon us," do
the growing desires after mercy, strengthen in your
hearts, and does the flame of devotion wax brighter and
brighter, as your voice becomes louder and louder, and
your petitions more frequent ? When you pray for deli
verance, and take those awful pleas into your mouth, be
seeching God by the "agony and bloody sweat — by the
cross and passion — by the precious death and burial —
by the glorious resurrection and ascension" of the Lord
of glory, and " by the coming of the Holy Ghost, " —
do your souls long after the blessings so supplicated ? Are
your desires so intense, and is the conviction of your
necessities so deep, that your soul labours to find words
sufficiently expressive of its feelings ? Or do you re
peat these words, because you have been accustomed to
do so from your youth up ; and so the frequency of the
custom, instead of increasing the warmth of your devo
tion, has hardened you against all the deep and serious
impressions which they are calculated to make on the
spirit? If such be the case, think, O think of the dread
mockery of taking these words upon your lips , while
your hearts are unaffected by them !

ON PRAYER. 177
Be not deluded by supposing that your regular, unva
rying attendance on the public prayers, will secure to you
the blessings implored, while you join not in them with
a true and lively faith. You may come and go during
threescore years and ten,and never miss one public service,
and never omit one word of every prayer, and at last fall
short of that heaven, which you vainly hoped to secure
by unmeaning, hypocritical services. What profit is
your ceaseless repetition of forms of prayer to God ?
" Should I accept this at your hands, saith the Lord ?"
One ejaculation from the broken and contrite heart— r
one inarticulate petition from the stammering tongue of
the unlettered, but pious and humble worshipper, is
more acceptable to God, than your unnumbered, but
heartless services : — Nay, while he fulfilleth the desire
of the humble, and heareth their cry, and saveth them,
He rejects your vain, and formal duties ; they are an
abomination in his sight. " He hath filled the hungry
with good things; but the rich he hath sent empty
away." Some persons seem to have fallen into the mistaken
notion that religion, so far as relates to the duties of
prayer and praise which it enjoins, is confined to the
services of the sanctuary ; they never think of daily
renewing in their houses, the worship in which they are
engaged on every Lord's day. But there are the same
arguments for the practice of social or family worship,
that establish the practice of public worship ; the same
authority sanctions and commands both. Is it not rea
sonable that a creature so dependant as man, should
acknowledge that dependance? — that a being so guilty
should implore pardon ? — that one so ignorant should
seek direction ? — that .he who is so destitute should sup
plicate the blessings and favours of which he stands in
need? What is more rational as well as scriptural,
2a

178 ON PRAYER.
than that every morning should be opened and conse
crated with prayer to God, and every evening closed
with devout acknowledgment of the mercies of the day;
and with supplication for continued protection during
the night? "Evening and morning, and at noon, will
I pray, and cry aloud," said David; and evening and
morning ought all the members of every family (where
it is practicable,) to assemble and bow the knee to the
Father of mercies. The members of one family have
common wants, and are exposed to common dangers;
and if one receive a blessing, they all rejoice together ;
should they not then unitedly perform their daily devo
tional exercises ? Such a practice is according to the
will of God ; and it brings many blessings in its train-
It has a tendency to soften the asperities of temper,
and the bickerings which are too often discovered in
families. Those who daily bow the knee to the common
Father of all, are likely to live together as brethren
in unity and love. Those who expect to " form a fa
mily anew, unbroken in the skies," will be careful to
worship God in union on earth. The recalling of the
presence of God to the mind every morning and evening,
is likely to produce a serious and profitable impression
during the day, of his Omniscience and Omnipresence,
and of our accountability; and the recollection that
the God of peace must be worshipped in the evening,
would tend to banish from the heart all " bitter envy
ing and strife," during the day. And thus habitual
devotion would qualify for the faithful discharge of ev
ery duty ; and the conscientious performance of all mor
al and civil obligations, would prepare the mind for the
exercises of devotion.
Under the term social prayer, maybe comprehended
the common practice of professing to ask the Divine
blessing on our daily food. Some persons prefer the

ON PRAYER. 179
custom of silent prayer on these occasions, as being
more favourable to a devotional feeling-, and more calcu-
lated to excite a reverential disposition of mind, than a
few words pronounced only by the head of the fa
mily. But, in some families, the practice is entirely
laid aside ; they eat bread and call not upon God. We
are pensioners upon the daily bounty of heaven ; we
are taught to pray, " Give us this day our daily bread ;"
and when our table is spread with the bounties of Pro
vidence, they should remind us of the Giver, and lead
us to acknowledge with thankfulness and humility, the
mercies which are so free on his part, and so unmerited
on ours. Perhaps the mere form is better than the total
neglect of this custom ; but at some tables, the greatest
levity so closely presses both on the commencement and
on the close of the few words which are hastily uttered,
that there is scarcely an interval left for the exercise of
the smallest degree of attention. It is much to be wished
that the good old practice of craving God's blessing on
our food, were renewed with antient solemnity. There is
no necessity for any great length in the form made use of;
but it is indispensable to the right and acceptable man
ner of discharging it, that it be performed with serious
ness and attention.
There must be religion in the house, as well as in the
church. Vain will be a numerous and regular attend
ance on the public services of the sabbath, while there
are no praying families at home. The very heathen
have always had their Penates, or household Gods, to
which they pay daily worship ; and shall they exceed
us ! Shall they be more diligent in the service of idols,
than we are in the worship of the true God ! Mothers
are seen in pagan countries, teaching infants to clasp
their little hands before senseless idols, and thus causing
thera to acknowledge them as deities, befoie they can

180 ON PRAYER.
speak. Shall not these deluded but zealous idolaters
rise up in judgment, and condemn many christian pa
rents, who have never once taught their children to call
upon God— who have never led them to the domestic
altar — never taught them to seek the favour of the God
of heaven! Alas! on how many dwellings might be
inscribed, ' God is not worshipped in this house/ — l A
house in which prayer is not offered to God ! '
Are any excusing themselves on the ground that they
have no time ? What is time given us for, but to serve God
— but to seek spiritualand everlasting blessings ! "They
that cannot find time to pray," says a judicious and
pious modern writer, " must find time to be sick — they
mustoneday find time to die." Do you plead the claims
of business? What business is so important as the sal
vation of the soul ? Shall not the petty and transient
concerns of time, yield to the momentous, the unspeak
ably important interests of eternity ! Is that time lost
— is it mis-spent, which is consecrated to God, the au
thor of our being — the preserver of our lives — the be-
stower of all our mercies ! Is that business neglected,
which is suspended for a few minutes every day, to give
place to the more serious and weighty engagements to
be transacted between God and our Maker.
Let heads of families remember the awful account,
which they must one day give of the weighty charge
intrusted to them. Every head of a family should be
the priest of that family, to lead the social devotions of
its united members. Heavy is the judgment imprecated
on those who neglect this duty : " Pour out thy fury,"
says the Prophet, " Pour out thy fury upon the heathen
that know thee not ; and upon the families that call not
upon thy name."
Prayer is the distinguishing character of every on#
that is regenerate. It is the appointed medium of com-

ON PRAYER. 181
munication between heaven and earth ; and every chris
tian has so many secret sins to deplore, so many bles
sings peculiar to his own case to supplicate, that he will
gladly avail himself of stated seasons for retiring to his
chamber, to pour out his heart before Him who seeth in
secret. Among primitive believers when the question
was asked, ' Hast thou observed the Lord's day ? ' The
answer was, * I am a christian ; I cannot neglect it.'
A similar reply would be given by every true christian,
were the question put, 'Hast thou prayed to-day?'
He knows too well the value of an access to the throne
of grace, to suffer a day to pass without coming thereto
that he " may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in
time of need." His language is, " as for me it is good
for me to draw near to God." The privilege of prayer
is duly appreciated by those, who " have tasted that
the Lord is gracious." — "At the throne of grace, they
that have nothing, may get all things ; they that deserve
wrath, may obtain mercy ; they that are condemned at
the court of justice, may be acquitted and freed from
all sentences, and may be adjudged to eternal life by
the grace of God in Christ Jesus."
We who are at an infinite distance from God as crea
tures, and at enmity with God as sinners, may yet ap
proach Him by the "new and living way, which he
hath consecrated for us." It is a new way, for it has
been more clearly revealed in these latter days, as the
only medium of access to God, without the intervention
of sacrifices or other ceremonial rites. It is a living way,
because it is the way to life, and is ever open. " Straight
paths" are made ready for our feet, but we unreasonably
put obstacles and hinderances in the way of prayer, and
often make our petitions as though we suspected the
willingness of God to bestow what he has promised.
With a dull and insensible state of mind, we ask for

182 ON PRAYER.
spiritual blessings, more from the conviction that it is
right and proper we should supplicate these things, than
with the earnestness and fervour of those who desire
them, and are impressed with their infinite value and
importance. With difficulty we find words to consume
the time set apart for private prayer ; and our petitions
are rather the invention of the head, than the earnest cry
of the heart. Words, indeed, are not necessary to
prayer ; but " out of the abundance of the heart, the
mouth speaketh ;" and if desires are excited in the heart
— if our heart be "enduing a good matter," our tongue
will be "as the pen of a ready writer."
But many restrain prayer before God ; they never
bow the knee ; they know of nothing for which to pray ;
if one should know their minds, they have not one spi
ritual desire excited in them ; they feel no need — no
want, for which to request a supply ; they feel no bur
den of sin, from which to seek deliverance; spiritual
things have no attraction in their eyes^that they should
seek them, and seek them first, with earnestness and dili
gence. Upon them the command of Christ with respect
to the observance of private prayer, is without effect ;
they never enter into their closet and shut their door,
and pray to Him, that seeth in secret; they never enter
into their chambers and shut their door about them,
that they may commune with their own hearts and
make diligent search.
Are mortal men — are sinners then become so " rich
and increased with goods," that they have "need of
nothing?" Christ himself, the Lord of heaven and
earth, prayed when he appeared in our nature. He
spent whole nights in prayer and devout meditation.
And "the disciple is not above his Master ; nor the ser
vant above his Lord." As he was, so should we be in
the world. By refraining from prayer, we profess to

ON PRAYER. 183
be independent of God ; to want no blessing from Him,
to be able to pass through this mortal life without his
help or favour. O vain man, thy services are unprofi
table to thy Maker ; but without His grace, thou must
perish. And if thou art living in the habitual neglect
of prayer, thou art without God, and therefore without
hope. In the midst of health and prosperity, thou dost
forget to call upon God, and in trouble thou wilt be
afraid to pray to Him whom thou hast contemned. God
is near thee at all times, but thou knowest it not ; pain
and sorrow and distress will cause thee to feel his pre
sence, by the weight of his arm which will smite thee
in anger.
In prayer, as in every other religious service, consistency
of conduct and consolation of mind go ever hand in hand.
" To do justly ; to love mercy ; and to walk humbly with
our God," are indispensable to our being "strengthened
in the Lord, and walking up and down in his name."
We sometimes go to the throne of grace with fear, and
doubt of our acceptance with God ; this may proceed
in part from the weakness of our faith, but it is too often
caused by the unworthiness of our conversation. " If
our hearts condemn us," we lose our " confidence to
wards God" — not only the hope of acceptance with
respect to our prayers, but also the confidence of trust
in His providential care, and of faith in his grace. Our
feet then move heavily in the ways of God ; we are des
titute of true peace in things relating to this life, and
have a very low state of hope in reference to that which is
to come. If we " exercise ourselves daily to have a con
science void of offence towards God and towards men,"
We shall very rarely lose that degree of faith which will
enable us to look up to God as our helper, and to call
upon Him as our Father. The instability of the"dou7
ble-minded man," blasts his fruitfulness and brings a
constant cloud over his comforts.

184 ON PRAYER.
The vigour of our spiritual life, will ever be accord
ing to the manner which the duty of secret prayer is
performed. They who hold no communion with God
in retirement, know nothing of their own hearts ;
they are ignorant of their true character as sinners.
and they know not Christ the Saviour of sinners. More
may be learned on our knees in one half hour of retire
ment from the world, than can be acquired in much
study and controversy. Prayer is a refuge to which we
may flee in every time of trouble ; it yields comfort to
the distressed mind, and peace to the troubled consci
ence; it revives hope in the desponding heart, animates
the drooping spirits, "gives power to the faint, and to
them that have no might it increaseth strength." Great
is the power of prayejr ; it has turned the firmament into
brass ; again it has opened the fountains of heaven,
and brought down the rain ; it has " subdued kingdoms ;
wrought righteousness; obtained promises; stopped
the mouths of lions ; quenched the violence of fire ; "
and raised the dead to life again.
It is great condescension in the Most High to allow us to
speak to him in prayfer, to permit us to bless Him who is
the source of all blessing — to ascribe honour to Him who
is the fountain of all honour. But can we give unto God
the honour that is due unto his name, unless we ap
proach Him at all times with the profoundest reverence?
If man be admitted to an audience with God, shall this
encourage bim to use irreverent familiarity in addressing
his Maker ? Are we never guilty of making use in
prayer of grossly familiar, or careless and irreverent
language ? Studied words and phrases and nicely ar
ranged forms of expression, are indeed unnecessary in
prayer ; but due solemnity and seriousness of mind will
preclude all unguarded language, and will cause us to
take heed that we offend not with our tongue, and so

ON PRAYER. 185
oUr very prayers become sin. Logical method and
grammatical accuracy are not necessary to make out
prayers acceptable to God, but we should guard against
being rash with our mouth," or, " hasty to utter any
thing before God," lest, instead of offering a service
well-pleasing to Him, we incur his anger, and instead
of a sacrifice, offer to God an abomination.
We are very prone to fall into the error of taking the
act of prayer for the end; as if the mere observance of
the duty were sufficient; whereas a watching unto
prayer, a watching in prayer, and a watching after
prayer, belong to the spirit of this duty.
If we are so engrossed by the cares and pleasures of
the world, as to suffer them to encroach on the hours that
should be sacred to the closet, we do not watch unto
prayer. If we brood over the injuries we have re
ceived, and indulge bitterness and malice in our hearts,
we do not watch unto prayer. The Divine command
in this matter is, " Watch and pray," and " first be re
conciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy
gift." When we relax in the christian course, or offer a
feeble resistance to the world, the flesh, and the devil, —
when we grow lukewarm in our affections, or decline in
circumspection, or indulge in any degree in an increased
conformity to the world, or are led away by the "lust
of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life,"
we have ceased to watch unto prayer.
Do we never attend to the duty of prayer, with a se-
Cretintention of having something like a stock of religion
in hand, that may forestall our pardon, and give us
license to indulge in unchristian levity ? This is not
watching in prayer. Are we never chargeable with the
self-righteous notion, of praying in order to atone for
our sins? We commit sin, feel a degree of sorrow,
make confession, pray, and then forget the offence.
2b

186 ON PRAYER.
But does God so forget ? Has he no book of remem
brance ? And although he will keep his mercy for
evermore, and his "covenant shall stand fast with him,"
yet will he not visit our "trangsressions with the rod, and
our iniquities with stripes ? " We are impure in heart,
and unholy in conversation ; but are we not often satis
fied with merely acknowledging this — allowing it — bare
ly stating it, without fervent prayer that we may be re
newed in mind, and may have that truth which God
requireth, wrought in our inward parts ? These things
are not marks of watching in prayer.
We should beware of continuing to pray for those
things, which we have had clear evidence that it is not
the will of God to grant, and respecting which he has
plainly said to us by the voice of his Providence, " Speak
no more unto me of this matter." If we watch in
prayer, we shall so feel our ignorance and blindness,
as to desire the constant teaching of the Holy Spirit to
instruct us as well what to pray for, as how to pray.
We often deprecate real blessings, and importunately
ask for those things which would be very injurious.
We complain where we ought to praise. How often
has God shown us, in the end which he has made, that
what we have named troubles, were mercies in disguise;
that what we have called disappointments, were bles
sings ; and when our hearts have failed us, and we have
been ready to renounce all hope, then God has ap
peared as our Almighty Deliverer, as God all-sufficient ;
and yet every new trial fills us with dismay, we bow
under every fresh burden, and our faith waxes feeble
at every renewed trouble. Mercies bestowed, call for
present gratitude and future trust; but our unbelief
shuts out thankfulness, and prevents confidence; and
thus we go mourning and repining to the throne of
grace, when we ought to raise the voice of thanksgiving,

ON PRAYER. 187
and the song of praise. We do not watch in prayer,
when we approach God with a doubting mind — with a
" peradventure the Lord may hear us." If we had
prayed in faith every time that we profess to have of
fered our supplications to God, what would have been
our advancement in the Divine life !
But we must watch also after prayer. If we are
puffed up on account of our gifts, if we look with se
cret satisfaction on our spiritual attainments, and are
ready to make a secret comparison of ourselves with
others, whom we esteem our inferiors in knowledge and
" spiritual gifts, "- — we do not watch after prayer.
When we have presented a petition to a fellow-creature,
we do not straightway forget it ; we watch and wait
till we have received our request; so should we wait
till God shall hear and answer our prayer. When
we ask for things agreeable to his will, we should wait as
"they that watch for the morning," in full assurance
that though it seem to tarry, yet it will come in due
season. If we do not watch after prayer, and observe
carefully how far, and in what manner our petitions
are answered, we lose many occasions of praising God.
" Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even
they shall understand the loving-kindness of the Lord."
We do not watch after prayer, unless we expect those
blessings which we have supplicated. Former experi
ence should lead us to exercise this confident waiting.
But, alas ! we are slow of heart to receive those very
mercies for which we are importunate with God. We
pray, "Lord, increase our faith;" and yet give way
to doubting and despondency, We ask to be filled
with joy in believing, and at the same time refuse the
^consolation of the Gospel. We call on God to bestow
upon us a " good hope through grace," and to wean
our affections from earthly things, and make us not

188 on pra'yer.
only willing, but desirous to depart and be with Christ ;
and yet we still cling to life with closer grasp, and re
gard its possessions, and its enjoyments, and its pursuits,
with fonder attachment. Though we have many times
taken our fears, our distresses, our anxious cares, and
our unbelief to the throne of grace, and have expe
rienced a joyful deliverance, yet how little is our faith
strengthened — how little is our believing expectation
excitpd! Have we ever found that time to be lost,
which we have spent in prayer ? Never did a christian
on earth esteem those hours to be wasted unprofitably,
which were passed in holding communion with his God :
never did a sinner arrived at the throne of glory in
heaven, regret the hours spent at the throne of grace
on earth. Let this be our encouragement to wait on
God, and to say with the prophet, " I will look unto:
the Lord ; I will wait for the God of my salvation ;
my God will hear me."

ESSAY V.
OX COVETOUSNESS.
1 HE history of Avarice, in its most odious
form, is happily a very brief one. Self-love, in most
cases, is too predominant in the bosom of man, to submit
to all the self-inflicted tortures of a spirit devoted to the
debasing vice of avariciousness. But while examples
of persons, so entirely fallen under the dominion of
avarice, as to obey all its revolting mandates, almost to
the extinction of the first law of nature, and so absorbed
by the sordid desire of adding to their useless heap,
as to punish their own flesh ; while examples of this
kind are of rare occurrence, the spirit of the vice has
gained more ground than perhaps is generally suspected.
Where this vice, "the basest appetite of basest souls,"
sways its iron sceptre, it dries up all the springs of hu
manity ; it deprives man of the dignity of his nature ;
it shuts up the heart. Unlike many other vices, it is
not impaired by time, nor abandoned in old age ; but
it acquires strength as it advances, it grows with the
growth of its victim, and years only serve to add force to
its malignancy and virulence. It is a flagrant sin against
both God and man, for one eminent duty of man, aris
ing from the evident design of God in his creation, is
to assist his fellow-men ; but the miser lives as an insu
lated being, as an individual, who was never placed in
the same relation to God and man as others are. He

190 ON COVETOUSNESS.
draws a circle around himself, which includes his own
wants and selfish gratifications, and which excludes
every benevolent connection with others. He dissolves
every tie of relation ; he cancels every bond of obligati
on, and, as it were, cuts himself off from the species.
Determined to remove every obstacle in the way of ac
cumulating wealth, the miser, as he is emphatically cal
led, possesses a mind debased enough for the commis
sion of any crime, cruel enough for any deed, sordid
enough for any trick of chicanery, or any dishonest
action, insensible to every reproach and invective. He
is irreclaimable. Abundant instances might be adduced
of persons having been reformed and delivered from the
dominion of almost every vice; the most abandoned
characters, the confirmed drunkard — the habitual blas
phemer — the impure — the thief — the hateful liar, have
all renounced their evil courses, and have become val
uable members of society; but, it is not perhaps too
much to affirm, that the annals of the universe do not
afford a solitary instance of the reformation of a man
wholly given up to avarice. This vice cleaves to the
spirit, as tenaciously as the spirit does to the body, and
death only can sever the union.
" Of other tyrants short the strife,
But Avarice is king for life :
The despot twists with hard control,
Eternal fetters round the soul."
Let the miser rake together his heap of pelf — deny
himself all gratifications of sense — torment his own
flesh — rack his bowels — endure hunger and thirst ; death
will soon make him poor indeed. He will not clothe
his shivering body with warm raiment, nor stretch his with
ered limbs on a soft couch; the sepulchre will soon be his
cold bed. " Though he heap up silver as the dust, the

ON COVETOUSNESS. 191
innocent shall divide it." He " shall lie down, but he
shall not be gathered ; he openeth his eyes, and is not;
for God shall cast upon him, and not spare."
There is a disposition in many minds to regard the
vice of covetousness, as consisting only in the griping
and grasping acts of the most sordid avarice. Unless it
exists to an extravagant degree, they cannot perceive its
influence at all. Hence they represent a covetous man as
one who hugs his coffers to his heart, and whose chief
delight is continually to count over his hoard of pelf;
and because they do none of these things, it never en
ters into their thoughts to enquire, whether they are
themselves free from the spirit of the evil.
It would be almost an endless task, to develope all the
secret holds of covetousness in the minds of men. It
assumes so many forms, and appears under such various
garbs and cloaks, that it often lurks in the bosom, un-
perceived even by him who harbours and entertains it.
It is most subtle and insinuating, gliding into the heart,
and imperceptibly hardening it; and as " waters wear
the stones," so covetousness insensibly steals, over the
soul, and gradually, but completely, effaces all the
finest feelings of our nature. It stiffens the arm that
was once put forth to charitable deeds ; it closes the
hand that was wont to be open for the relief of the dis
tressed ; it dries up the tear of pity ; it benumbs all
sympathetic feeling, and, like Medusa's head, trans
forms its votaries into stone. It does not always discover
itself, in an unwillingness to indulge in personal grati
fications : it may reign in that heart, which denies itself
no pleasure, except the exalted one of doing good to
others. Expensive dress, gay equipage, a luxurious
table, are not decisive proofs of a generous and liberal
mind, because even profligate expenditure is not incom
patible with a covetous disposition.

192 On covetousness.
Covetousness often assumes the names and appearance
of those properties, and virtues, which are justly held
in high estimation in the world. Its votaries often call
it diligence in business, economy, prudence, proper
care and forethought for their children. These are
qualities highly commendable ; but unless the heart be
guarded with a jealous eye, covetousness may enter in
with them, and so they will be debased. Blending
with an avaricious principle, they will soon become de
generate in their application. The accursed leaven of
avarice, if once admitted into the heart, will soon assi
milate every principle of human nature to its own ma
lignant features. When touched by this evil spirit, di
ligence becomes sordidness, economy niggardliness, and
prudence meanness.
The spirit of covetousness is not confined to any par
ticular class of persons ; the poor, and the middling
ranks of society, may be under its influence, as well
as those, whose riches are heaped up, and never ex
pended on benevolent purposes. The poor man, who
is discontented with the station which Providence has
assigned him, and who looks with an envious eye on
the possessions of others, is under the dominion of the
spirit of covetousness, as much as the man, whose con
tracted heart denies him the power of enjoying his ac
cumulated wealth, and who, "in the fulness of his suf
ficiency, is in straits." Those who are successfully en
gaged in the common walks of business, or in extensive
mercantile concerns, cannot be too much on their guard
against the encroachments of this evil. The Scriptural
exhortation should be constantly impressed on their
minds, " If riches increase, set not your heart upon
them." It is here that the evil commences; diligence
in business is commendable, and success calls for thank
fulness, but if the heart is set on "uncertain riches,"

ON COVETOUSNESS. 193
then covetousness has entered into the soul, and diligence
is exercised with a wrong design, and success is con
verted into a curse instead of a blessing. Thankfulness
for former mercies, is changed into an inordinate desire
to obtain increasing wealth ; and that prosperity, which
once excited the sincere gratitude of the heart to God,
now serves only to call up the spirit of covetousness.
He who was generous with a moderate share of riches,
becomes unfeeling, sordidly parsimonious, and even an
oppressor; while a competency supplied all his wants,
he gave of that competency to relieve the wants of others,
because he had not then enough to make him covetous;
but as soon as abundance flowed in upon him, it closed
his hand, and "shut up his bowels of compassion;" he
then perverted his wealth to make an idol of it, and ex
changed the love of God, for the love of money ; and
he, who of late acknowledged God in all things, now
makes gold his hope, and says to the fine gold, "Thou
art my confidence."
Covetousness makes a man dexterous in evading the
claims of deserving want, and the demands of every
worthy object on his bounty. It disposes him to raise
objections against a good cause, whenever, for the pro
motion of it, some of his money is required. Looking
through the glass which the spirit of covetousness holds
before his eyes, he thinks he can see satisfactory reasons
for declining to give his support, either on account of
some deficiency in the plan of the object proposed to
his consideration, or some remote evil which may result
from its prosecution. Or if neither of thr,se objections
can be made with any appearance of truth, he will affect
to speak of the superior claims of other objects, which,
nevertheless, he does not intend to assist. All these
excuses are made merely to save his money ; and by
making them, he thinks to clear himself from the charge
2c

194 ON COVETOUSNESSt
of covetousness, and to satisfy his conscience. The
pressure of the times, the claims of numerous charitable
institutions, are often made use of, as pleas to excuse a
niggardly and covetous spirit ; as if national distresses
did not press on all, and as if the calls to support the
many benevolent designs of the age* were not addressed
to all who have ability to contribute.
Some persons speak of the frequent solicitations, that
are made for charitable purposes, as if they only were
the persons required to give of their substance. They
conclude to give to none, because the objects are so
numerous. The necessary expenditure in the family,
and on other unavoidable occasions, is sometimes stated
as an apology for withholding their money, when any
donation for a benevolent purpose, is requested from
rich persons who are under the influence of covetous
ness. But the claims which are made in the shape of
family expenses, and the legal demands of taxes and
parochial rates, are altogether distinct from that which
is due on the ground of generosity and benevolence.
One duty does not destroy the validity of another ; and
justice is never opposed to true charity, because the
latter always foregoes its claims, when in competition
with the paramount duties of the former. Persons of
this description, who do contribute, never give accord
ing to the merit of the object, or the scale of their pro
perty, but only in the meanest proportion, that can
screen them from the imputation of avarice. They
will not commence a list of donations with their own
names, lest they should give too much, that is, more
than they might have surrendered, and yet have escaped
the appellation of a miser : in cases where something
must be given, they wait to see the contributions of
others, and then inscribe thejr own, not according to a
fair computation of comparative ability, but in the

ON COVETOUSNESS. 195
smallest possible amount, and merely as a fee for
the enrolment of their name in the annals of charity.
They give their paltry contribution with many good
wishes for the success of the cause ; and what is this
but saying, " Depart in peace, be you warmed and
filled ; notwithstanding they give not those things which
are needful !"
When the character of a man is generally known, as
a mean and covetous person, the advocates of charity
often endeavour to approach him with that lawful craft
iness, of which the Apostle Paul speaks, and thus to
take him with guile. But Argus had not more eyes,
nor more vigilance, than the ever-wakeful spirit of co
vetousness. As soon as the advocate of benevolence
touches on the confines of a personal application for
money, the alarm is taken, and the churl endeavours
to prevent a direct solicitation of his aid, by anticipating
a variety of reasons, which would justify a positive de
nial on his part. It is very common on such occasions,
to hear the covetous man assert as an apology for not
rendering any assistance, that large sums are owed to
him, which he cannot obtain; but this shuffle, when
stripped of its evasive form, means no more than that
the man has much money at interest on ample securities.
Thus he makes the bulk of his property, which is not
at hand, an excuse for withholding a moderate portion,
which he could at all times dispense. Some of the baser
sort descend to palpable untruth, in endeavouring to
evade the discharge of any duty of charity, and affirm
that they have no money at all- — not even a single shill
ing ; meaning that they have none in some particular
place, in some one bag or coffer ; and thus by mental
reservations, they think to save their money and their
veracity; while, in fact, they are guilty of deliberate
falsehood, invented with more art, and cloaked with
deeper disguise than usual.

196 ON COVETOUSNESS.
The " love of money" is declared by inspiration, to
be " the root of all evil." It has its source in the " pride
of life," which influences the mind in a great variety
of ways. Men do not always desire money, for the
sake of the enjoyments which it will enable them to
procure; this would at least, be rational; but the covet
ous man, if proud and haughty, desires it that he may
outvie his neighbours in sumptuousness and splendour
of appearance ; or if he be of a meaner or more sordid
turn of mind, he then desires it with the prospective
notion of a foolish and empty kind of posthumous
fame, that it may be said of him after his decease that
he died possessed of such and such a sum of money !
Amazing folly ! Shall a man look for pleasure, in the
report that shall be spread abroad of his immense riches,
when he is gone naked to his final account — gone to
answer to his Lord and Judge, for the manner in which
he discharged his extensive trust and stewardship!
What greater inconsistency can be exhibited, than a
being, destined for immortality, in love with a little
heap of shining ore, — willing to risk heaven, for the
sake of aquiring a greater share of this ore than his
fellow-creatures, — having his heart set upon that which
is not — upon that which he knows he must leave, and
that very soon, and for ever! — Man possesses really no
more than he enjoys. This is the criterion of true
wealth ; and therefore the contented poor man is richer
than the self-tormenting miser, who hoards up his pelf,
that he may have the single gratification of beholding
it with his eyes.
Many avaricious persons profess to be deeply impress
ed with the duty which they owe to their children, and
persuade themselves that they are making lawful and
proper provision for them, when they are in fact merely
indulging their own love of money. The saying of the

ON COVETOUSNESS. 197
Apostle, " that parents should lay up for the children,"
is perverted by thousands, who think thereby to justify
themselves in that accursed policy, which leads them
to hoard up for their children the portion of the poor
and destitute. And they are confirmed in their conduct
by the too general approbation of the world ; for such
persons are generally commended as prudent men, and
good fathers. " The wicked boasteth of his heart's de
sire, and blesseth the covetous whom the Lord abhor-
reth." The appeal of the distressed poor, and the cry
of suffering from the hovels of poverty and wretchedness
and from the bed of sorrow and pain, are made in vain
in the ears of those who profess to have so tender a regard
for their posterity, and who are accumulating wealth,
in the presumption of its being enjoyed by their de
scendants. These persons disclaim all connection with
covetousness ; nay, they are loudest in condemning it,
and yet are themselves slaves to its influence. What
debate, what consultation, before they resolve to take
the smallest pittance from their treasures, and thus de
fraud their heirs (so they speak,) by adding one comfort
to the destitute ! Ah, what a delusion is this ! Your
children may not live to possess all the labour that you
have taken under the sun ; or they may spend in riotous
living and profligate courses, the riches kept to their
hurt. They may rush into many follies and vices, from
which they might have escaped, had not your ill-judged
parsimony empowered them to indulge in the wicked
and vain imaginations of their hearts. Thus while you
are naked and poor in the grave, the wealth you have
gathered will be as fire in the bones of your children.
O die not with the curse of the poor on your heads, but
give to the needy that portion of your property, which
God demands in their name, and which he committed
to your charge for this very purpose. Let your chil-

198

ON COVETOUSNESS.

dren be heirs to the " blessing of those that were ready
to perish," and they will be richer, far richer than if
they inherited the most ample estates, subject to the an
ger of heaven.
" If the rich man in the parable, (that parable being
regarded for a moment as a literal fact,) might have
been permitted to send a message to his relatives on
earth, what might we imagine as the first thing, which
the anguish of his spirit would have uttered on such a
message ? Would it not have been an emphatic ex
pression of the suffering, which the wealth he had ador
ed, inflicted on him now, as if it ministered incessant
fuel to his fires ? Would he not have breathed out an
earnest entreaty, that it might not remain in that entire-
ness in which it had been his idol ; as if any alleviation
might in some way arise, from its being in any other
state and use, than that in which he had sacrificed his soul
to it ? ' Send away some of that accursed accumulation ;
give some of it to the cause of God, if he will accept
what has been made an abomination, by being put in
his stead. Send some of it away, if it be but in pity to
him, of whom you surely cannot sometimes help think
ing, while you are enjoying it. Can you in your plea
sures and pride escape the bitter thought, that for every
gratification which that wealth administers to you, it in
flicts an unutterable pang on him, by whose death it has
become yours, and by whose perdition it is so much!'*"
Many indulge in covetousness, while they imagine
they are merely exercising in a proper manner, a pow
er which God has conferred upon them ; they suppose
they have a right to do as they please with what they
call their own. But why has God distinguished thee
from thy poor neighbour, by bestowing on thee the
riches of this world, but that thou mightest " do good,
* Foster's Missionary Sermon.

ON COVETOUSNESS. 199
and be rich in good works." The rich are stewards of
God's bounty ; and if they withhold it from the poor and
destitute, they are unjust towards God, as those are
dishonest towards men, who refuse to pay their just debts.
He who withholds his money till his death, and then be
queaths it to any charitable purpose whatever, does not
make any atonement for his injustice, in having kept
back what he ought to have distributed as a steward—
as an almoner of God's bounty ; for what he gives in
posthumous charity, deserves no praise, because he then
gives what he can no longer retain — what is no longer
his own.
A man may give some of his substance, merely to
pacify his conscience, and may think thereby to have
complied with the command of the Scriptures, and to
have fulfilled his duty to his neighbour. But he falls
short in the best and purest part of the duty, which is
a cheerful bestowment of our aid, with a compassionate
heart and a liberal hand. We are commanded to love
our neighbour as ourselves ; and this is a duty far more
comprehensive, than the churl is willing to allow; for
although the extremely avaricious man may literally
bestow on his neighbour, as much as his own griping
necessities wring from him, in expenditure on his own
person, yet there is a selfishness in his avarice, which
prompts him to add continually to his store, and which
goes not so much into his best actions towards others, as
to be a part of the principle which produced them, and
to constitute his droppings of money a benevolence.
He that gives, but does it grudgingly, does not act up
to the spirit of the Divine precept. — And, again, rich
men are commanded to be " ready to distribute; willing
to communicate ;" but if they give of necessity, and
only in the scanty proportion which their covetousness
assigns to the command of God, they fall short in the

200 ON COVETOUSNESS.
required principle and motive, and their gift is not a
sacrifice well-pleasing to Him, who " loveth a cheerful
giver," but only an unwilling offering to necessity, per
formed grudgingly and with an improper aim.
If men wish to know whether they are under the con
trol of this basest of passions— the love of money for
itself, let them sincerely and conscientiously enquire,
whether in hoarding up their wealth, they do it out of
disinterested love for their heirs, (from whom they can
not withhold their riches but for a time,) or whether
they keep it as a defence— as that which, in the absence
of virtue, procures them respect and consideration among
men,— as the grand and chief distinction in this life, —
as the end and object of their existence on the earth.
The hoardingup of money must proceed from one of these
causes. If it be from disinterested regard for those that
are to inherit his wealth, it is strange that such a feeling
never prompts the covetous man, to dispense some por
tion of his hoard to his needy relatives, while he is living,
and thus to put an end to the calculations, which their
poverty causes them to make on his long-expected, and
wished-for death. Alas ! we need not hesitate in de
ciding the motive by which the avaricious man is actu
ated. Who is there that heaps up treasure with the
thought of leaving it ? What covetous man toils to in
crease his hoard, with any secret reference to the benefit
of his heirs ? It is the idea of possessing, of retaining,
and not of leaving or distributing his wealth, that ex
cites the avaricious man. O what good might rich
persons do, if they would act on this simple consider
ation, If I give such and such sums to certain objects of
charity, I shall not deprive myself of one comfort; rtor
zcill my heirs know of the deduction from my property, if
I leave no memorandums of the expenditure.
While instructing the covetous man, in the means and

ON COVETOUSNESS. 201
the obligation of doing good according to his ability, it
may be proper to make a few remarks on charity. Per
haps more has been said, and less felt on this subject
than on any other. Reasoning upon the duty, and ac
knowledging its universal obligation, are put in the
place of discharging it ; and many excuse themselves
by various reasons, from the performance of that which
is nevertheless said to be the duty of all. The truth is,
there is too little self-denial in most persons, who are in
fluenced by a charitable feeling ; and for the rest, they never
reflect on the relief which their superfluous comforts and
luxuries would confer on the destitute. How many are
perishing for lack of those things, which are by many
consumed in waste and riot. How many poor widows
are compelled to subsist on a weekly allowance, amount
ing, in many cases, to less than a tenth part of what
is consumed by a few convivialists at one entertainment.
That wine which is drunk by those who are neither
thirsty nor infirm, would save some languishing son of
poverty from the grave. And let not those, who do
not add drunkenness to their thirst, and against whom
the charge of profligacy cannot be brought, think to
shelter themselves from leaving undone, what was obli
gatory on their part towards the poor, by the plea of
managing their affairs with prudence and discretion ;
they also consume much in useless expenditure, either
on dress or furniture, if not on the dainties and gluttony
of the table, which, if judiciously distributed, would
bring down upon them the blessing of the fatherless, and
make the widow's heart to sing for joy.
Again, let no one excuse himself by averring, that
he knows not of any who are in extreme poverty or
distress, and that the recital of such cases never meets
his ear. Although Cain renounced the charge, yet we
are to a certain degree our brothers' keepers. Ought
2d

202 ON COVETOUSNESS.
we not to enquire into our neighbour's poverty ; — Ought
we not to enter the hovels of wretchedness, and suffer
the sight of misery to make way to our hearts, and
make our hands active, and our feet swift to dispense
the relief that is in our power ? The obligation to this
duty is not according to our pecuniary ability, but it
is binding on all ; those that have not money or food to
bestow, have yet the tear of sympathy to shed, — may yet
speak a kind word. How many of the deserving poor
and needy are too modest to make their cases known ;
how many have no opportunity of telling their troubles
and sorrows, to such as have power to relieve them.
Instances are not wanting, of persons falling into fatal
diseases, solely because they have not had sufficient
nourishment for their bodies, and this too within the
reach of houses where plenty reigns. And yet the pro
prietors of these houses would think themselves slandered,
by a charge of cruel inattention to the wants of the neigh
bouring poor ; they would repel the accusation of being
unfeeling and hardhearted. But does not blood lie at
the doors of those, who suffer such things to take place
within the range of their ability to prevent them, and
even under their windows without any enquiry ? — " If
thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death,
and those that are ready to be slain ; if thou sayest, be
hold we knew it not ; doth not He that pondereth the
heart consider ? and He that keepeth thy soul doth He
not know it ? and shall not He render to every man ac
cording to his works ?" — " He that giveth unto the poor
shall not lack ; but he that hideth his eyes shall have
many a curse."
Among the fruits of covetousness, there is none more
hateful and injurious, than that which induces men to
make a regular and even barter, between the wages
which they allow their servants, and the services per-

ON COVETOUSNESS. 203
formed by them. So that as soon as infirmity, or
sudden illness, unfits the servants for the discharge of
their accustomed duties, they are dismissed by their
employers as useless and having no further claim on
them for support or assistance. There is no species of
ingratitude more detestable, than that of discarding old
and worn-out servants, who have spent their youth and
strength in service, and whose very life, as to the vigour
and comfort of it, has been the price of a large share of
the conveniences and enjoyments of their masters.
Where there is sufficient property, it is doubtless the du
ty of a master to continue to afford either entire support,
or occasional assistance, to worn-out servants, and not
to cast them aside, as is done with an old and useless
piece of mechanism, which was constructed solely for
the use of its proprietor,
A truly-grateful mind retains a thankful remembrance
of kindnessess, by whatever persons they may have
been performed, whether by equals, or by those who
moved in the humble rank of servants. A regard to
justice also, as well as a feeling of gratitude, will
prompt a generous master to secure, not merely the
subsistence, but the comfort of his worn-out servant,
who has not only faithfully discharged the terms of the
contract, which assigned his portion of labour during
his servitude, but has also largely promoted the conve
nience and advantage of his employer; and has contri
buted to these ends in a thousand ways, which could not
be required of him nor exacted in the shape of duties,
but which sprung from an honest principle and a kind
neart, — A period of long and faithful service, amounts
in fact to an equitable claim of adoption into the family
of a wealthy master, so far as relates to the duty of that
master, to provide for his household, and to cherish
them in sickness or distress. — A man of true liberality

204 ON COVETOUSNESS.
and strict honesty, always feels this obligation, and acts
according to it ; but the selfish and niggardly need to
be put in mind of what they owe to others, and to be
urged to the performance of a duty, to which their co
vetousness indisposes them.
Such is the treacherous influence of covetousness,
that it even induces its decided votaries, to presume
that they are the faithful servants of God, — that they
are among his favoured people, even while they are
yielding themselves up to the full influence and sway
of thataccursed principle. This is to deny the Scriptures,
and to contradict the Word of God ; for has he not said,
" Covetousness is idolatry ; " and is an idolater a par
taker of his Spirit ? When the Scriptures pronounce
covetousness to be idolatry, they do not mean that mo
ney is worshipped in the same way, in which Pagan
nations pay their adoration to senseless idols ; but that
the very essence of the sin is found in the vice of covet
ousness, because it withdraws from God, and places on
a created good, those affections which are due only to
the Supreme Being. Whatever assumes that place in
the heart, which God alone should hold, — whatever is
trusted in as a defence with that reliance, which should
be placed only on God, is an idol ; and the heart which
yields to it those alienated affections, and builds on it
that false trust, becomes the residence of an idol, and
not " the temple of the living God." With what reason
then can a man, who is living under the influence of the
base spirit of covetousness, claim the appellation of a true
christian, or the holy relation of an adopted child of
God ; for " what agreement hath the temple of God with
idols ? "
Men of wealth and influence are often encouraged in
this great mistake, by the homage which is paid to them
on account of their property. They remain ignorant

ON COVETOUSNESS. 205
of their real character, and imagine that the deference
which is paid to their opinions, and the outward respect
which is shown to them, is the expression of deserved
«steem — is a tribute due to their merit. The reason
that wealth is so much coveted, and the possessors of it
so much regarded, is that we are apt to forget that it is
conferred by God, and that there is a great responsibility
attached to the possession of it. We look upon it too
much as the fruit of industry and ability, or the mark
of superior worth, and so exalt the wealthy man in our
estimation on account of these qualities, although he
may be entirely destitute of them. No man is treated
with respect and consideration, on account of possessing
a robust constitution, or a strong and vigorous body,
in the absence of wealth, although far superior to it ;
because we see at once these advantages to be the gifts
of God ; we acknowledge that he distinguishes whom
soever he pleases with the bestowment of them, and
that no merit is due to the possessor, merely because he
enjoys them. Let us do the same in respect of the out
ward circumstances of the estate, and then the possession
of great riches will be viewed in connexion, not only
with the ability which they confer, but also with the
obligations which they impose of doing good.
But money is made too much a distinction, and so it
has ever been in all highly civilized nations. The
question asked in the time of the Roman satirist, still
occurs in our hearing every day;
"  Quot pascit servos ? Quot possidet agri
Jugera?"
As soon as a stranger is spoken of, as claiming any
share of our notice or regard, the enquiry turns imme
diately on his wealth ;
"Protinus ad censum; de moribus ultima fiet
Quoestio."

206 ON COVETOUSNESS.
How many are there, who, having no other superiority,
than what is conferred by abundant riches, look down
with contempt, in the pride of that sordid distinction,
on the poorer and more respectable part of the com
munity. The consciousness that the man of integrity,
or of cultivated mind, must, if poor, come to them for
assistance, gives them a notion of superiority ; and
knowing that the virtuous, or the intelligent poor man,
can scarcely struggle through the world in the midst of
embarrassment and perplexity, their envy of superior
worth, or superior mental faculties, is changed into a tho
rough contempt of every thing which is not either gold
or silver.
It is money which adds weight to a preacher's doc
trine, gives currency to a man's sayings, carries conviction
into the breasts of a man's audience, or at least silences
all objections. " The poor man's wisdom is despised,
and his words are not heard."
"Rara in tenui facundia panuo."
If a poor man exerts himself in promoting any laud
able object, he is often called a busy-body ; — he there
touches upon the prerogative of the rich, who though
they claim the field of usefulness, yet are not always
found in the career of benevolence. If a person in
inferior rank, be particularly active in attempting to do
good, his name is often quoted by the purse-proud and
niggardly, with the addition of a sneer or a laugh, and
all this, because having no means of his own to accom
plish his benevolent plans, he aims to convince rich
men of their duty, and to put them into a way of ful
filling the end, for which God has bestowed wealth
upon them.
What is more frequent, than to hear some rich per
sons reprove the conduct of others in humbler circum-

ON COVETOUSNESS. 207
stances, for exercising liberality beyond their resources.
It must be allowed that such liberality is not to be com
mended ; it is contrary to prudence, and sometimes,
perhaps, to justice also. But it is a noble principle;
it manifests a kind soul — a tender heart; and it is
emphatically the failing (if it be one) of those, who
possess but very limited means of performing the liberal
things, which they devise. These are the persons, who
are found ever most ready to minister of their substance
to the necessitous. The rich seldom give too largely,
though many of them give without discretion. The
curb of prudence is seldom required to check the hand
of the wealthy man, lest he should drain the reservoir
of his bounty, by too lavishly pouring forth its streams.
The outcry against this imprudent bounty of those who
are in straitened circumstances, is raised by many wealthy
persons, to cover their own niggardliness with the fair
name of prudence ; and because, when the scanty re
sources of the poor liberal man fail, they are in danger
of being called upon to open their own purses. And
yet it is but right that they who give not to the poor,
should give to him, who has dispensed all his substance
in charitable purposes.
When the failings of a wealthy man are spoken of, it
is with every extenuation that can be made ; or they are
palliated by the application of softer terms than ought
to be used in characterising vice : his avariciousness is
termed closeness; and if he be a profligate, who has
descended in his vicious career, to the lowest gradation
of baseness, and treachery, and deceit, he is called a
gay man; and the severest reproof that is applied to
the mention of his vicious courses is, ' What a pity he
does not act otherwise.' But the failings of the poor
man are too often blazoned with exact, and unnecessary,
and cruel enumeration. Epithets denoting villainy and

208 ON COVETOUSNESS.
worthlessness, are unsparingly heaped upon him ; and
he is accounted almost unworthy of commiseration.
What is more common, than to hear the case of some
unfortunate man of the strictest integrity and good faith,
lamented by those, who never put forth a helping hand,
to save him from sinking in the wreck of all his little
worldly property. Pity is cheap ; and it is too often
put in the place of generosity. A very common delusion
arises from the notion that persons have liberal minds,
and are free from the dominion of covetousness, because
they are always ready to wish well- to others. Few are
more ready to express their benevolence in words, than
the covetous, because this is a cheap and easy method
of pacifying their consciences.
The foregoing remarks are not intended to be applied
generally to rich persons. God forbid that such a
statement should give a faithful representation of all
who possess wealth, either in competence, or abundance 1
Who is there that cannot name several persons, that are
as distinguished for their beneficent actions, as for their
extensive property ? The writer has the happiness of
knowing many such characters. And the age in which
we live, is certainly marked by the unwearied exertions
of benevolence, in the cause of enlightened philanthropy.
The intention of the writer is not to depreciate the cha
racter of the wealthy, but to expose the secret holds of
the spirit of covetousness, to detect its multiplied di
versity of appearance, to lay bare its hideous features,
and show some of its hateful consequences.
Let the covetous man be satisfied with the distinction
which arises from his wealth; let him quiet his conscience
with the soothing reflection, that no man condemns
him, save those who have not the same share of money,
whose opinion in his estimation is beneath notice - but
let him also recollect, that the decisions of heaven are

ON COVETOUSNESS; 209
hot according to man's judgment, and that there is an
unchangeable decree concerning him gone forth from
the Eternal, and registered in his written Word.
When it is affirmed that avarice contains in it the seeds
of every vice, no more is advanced than can be readily
proved ; for the love of money is the predominant feel
ing in the breast of the covetous man, and this love is
the " root of all evil." He is hurried on by it in all his
pursuits ; he has given himself up to it ; it has taken
complete possession of him ; and if no means which may
be called legal, could be found by which he might in
some degree gratify this sordid propensity, it is not to
be supposed that he would hesitate to commit robbery,
or even murder, to effect his purpose. " There is not a
more wicked thing than a covetous man; for such a one
setteth his own soul to sale."
The covetous are ever on the watch, to put any thing
in the place of practical beneficence. Some of this
stamp may be found who will readily acknowledge that
God is the Giver of all their possessions, and who pre
tend to express much thankfulness to Divine Providence,
that they have never wanted the necessaries of life.
This hypocritical cant is only a piece of deceit, whereby
they think to cloak the spirit of covetousness, which
predominates in their hearts; for if they truly acknow
ledged the hand, that bestows all their wealth, they
would also acknowledge the government of God over
that wealth, as well as over their mind and person.
But the covetous man thinks himself accountable to no
one, for the use which he makes of his riches ; he es
teems himself, whatever his professions may be, absolute
and independent master of all his possessions. The
spirit of covetousness never forsakes him. He does
every thing with a secret reference to his money. What
ever he undertakes, thinks, or purposes, or discourses
2e

210 ON COVETOUSNESS.
of, this feeling comes in for its share in all his induce
ments, motives, apprehensions, and desires. Ask him
to engage in any pursuit, he refers to this spirit, and
acts agreeably to its decision. Solicit him to do a kind
action, his mind instantly recurs to his money, and ac
cording to the dirty, grovelling sentiment, which such
a consideration awakens in his breast, will be his answer.
Ask a rich but covetous person for the merest trifle, in
behalf of the most worthy object, and you alarm the
base principle within him, which is ever suspicious and
wakeful. Fearing to be over-reached, or to part unad
visedly with that which is the soul of all his sordid
pleasure, and which he looks upon as the root of his
very existence, he demands time to consider of your
request ; he is not to be surprised into a generous action,
even of the cheapest kind. He is at all times in his
stronghold. The covetous principle recurs to him tit
every turn ; he looks on all things through this medium ;
he speaks as this spirit gives him utterance ; he acts in
obedience to its movements on his soul. And if at any
time he is prevailed upon to open his clenched hand, his
heart goes not with the scanty pittance, and his gift
confers no obligation, because it wants that promptitude
which is the soul of generosity.
The respect which is paid to those who are in pos
session of great wealth, and which is not withheld even
when there are no moral qualities in the possessor to
procure esteem, is one great cause of the vice of covet
ousness being so general. No expression of outward
respect is refused by the generality of persons, towards
notoriously griping and niggardly characters ; and yet-
these characters are violators of the laws of God, and
enemies to society, in one of the most attractive and
distinguishing features of its constitution. Covetousness
in Scripture is called idolatry, the most hateful sin in the

ON COVETOUSNESS. 211
sight of God ; and the covetous man defrauds his poor
neighbour of that portion, which God had placed in
his hands in trust for the children of want. Were this
vice as disreputable in society, as some others which
partake in fact of less guilt towards God, and are less
injurious to man ; and were the rich defaulter, in every
case of moral delinquency, treated with the same se
verity as is shown towards the poor culprit, we should
meet with less frequent, or, at least, less flagrant in
stances of the effects of covetousness. But, can we
expect that such a state of society will ever arrive, when
riches without merit will not be able to purchase regard ;
when only men of integrity and usefulness, will be
called respectable; when covetousness will be seen in
its true light by all, and its votaries be shunned as
violators of one of the first duties of humanity — as en
emies of their species ; when " the vile person shall no
more be called liberal, nor the churl said to be boun
tiful ?"

ESSAY VI.

a 0 m
ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. a Q m
'' KNOW THYSELF," is a maxim of twofold
authority ; it comes to us indeed from the mouth of the
Grecian sage, so far as relates to the conciseness and
form of the expression, but it has a higher sanction from
the Word of" God. The scriptural commands, either
implied, or expressly given, which relate to this im
portant attainment, are very numerous: "Commune
with your own heart." — " Examine yourselves whether
ye be in the faith; prove yourselves." — "Keep thy
heart with all diligence." — " Ponder the path of thy
feet." A knowledge of our own character is necessary
in the affairs of the present life, but much more in those
which are connected with the eternal state. The want
of it has led many persons to intrude into situations,
which they were not at all qualified to sustain. A man
may easily know more of the duties of any particular
office, than of his own competency to perform them.
Few persons know much of what is in their hearts, ex
cept those who have experienced great vicissitudes of
pondition, and have been at the same time in the habit
of close observation on their own character.
Circumstances often educe those evil and depraved
passions, which lurked in the heart unknown, and un
suspected, because unexcited. Many persons have for
p, lqng period maintained a high reputation, while they

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 213
lived in a condition, which was free from the excite
ment of any peculiar trials or temptations ; till a change
of situation has suddenly exhibited their true character,
by discovering those evil propensities, which before lay
dormant and unheeded in their hearts, but which being
roused, are brought into action in all their force and
malignity. This consideration should restrain our harsh
judgments in such cases, because we are ourselves ex
posed to become examples of the same depravity. We
are unable to judge of the guilt of other persons' con
duct. We know not what force has been superadded
to the temptations by which they have been assailed, on
account of the peculiar state of their minds at the time
when they fell. We know not the invincible ignorance
under which they may have laboured, nor the darkness
which prejudices of early education, or the contagion
of bad examples, may have brought over their under
standings. God only can pronounce on the degree of
moral criminality, which attaches to any person ; because
He only knows the state of their hearts and minds at
all times. Have we not a thousand times planned and
purposed many evils, from which we have been re
strained by the Providence of God, but the guilt of
which lies on our souls, being imputed to us by that
holy law which judges the secrets of the heart, as well
as the outward conduct of the life ? It is more than
probable, that many of our secret sins, for which we
have felt but little remorse, which we have completely
cloaked from the world, and which, if known, would
not perhaps bring upon us any severe reproaches from
man, nor cover our faces with shame, are notwithstand
ing more grievous to the Holy Spirit, more hateful in
the sight of God, and render us more guilty before
Him, than some of the more flagrant and open trans
gressions of others, whom we have condemned with un
sparing indignation.

214 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
The universal weakness and depravity of man, and
his liability to fall beneath the force of temptation, pre
clude for ever the possibility of justification by our own
righteousness ; because if we have not been guilty of
the actual commission of many gross and flagrant sins,
yet the seeds of all evil are at all times in our hearts,
and the opportunity and temptation of peculiar circum
stances are alone wanted, to bring those evils into ex
ercise. Thus, according to the reasoning of the Apos
tle, " every mouth must be stopped, and all the world
become guilty before God," " that no flesh should glory
in his presence ;" " for there is no respect of persons
with God." The oft-cited case of Hazael, proves that
men know not their own hearts ; and that he who acts
his part well in an inferior station, and is a useful mem
ber in the lower gradations of society, may become in
a more exalted rank, a pest as odious and destructive
as his influence and power are extensive. Even Nero
when young, was susceptible of the tender feelings of
humanity ; and he who became afterwards the plague
and curse of his nation, gave at one time fair and hope
ful evidence of becoming the father of his people.
Want of self-knowledge leads to much self-deception.
The covetous man is often so far deluded, as to esteem
himself liberal and generous ; and if any persons, who
have at any time been under his control and direction,
become prosperous and useful members of society, he
does not hesitate to take the credit of such a result to
himself, although he neither intended such an end, nor
promoted it with his own aid and bounty. Did we
know more of our own character, we should not be so
often overcome by those temptations, into which we
presumptuously run with a fond reliance on our own
supposed strength. A thousand defeats do not serve to
make us wiser ; we are daily vanquished by the same

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 215
besetting sins, and yet are prone to forget the defeat,
and incautiously to place ourselves again and again in
the same perilous situations, and to venture again sin
gle-handed to the combat ; instead of looking up to
God with a confession of our weakness, and cryino- to
Him for help and strength, to enable us to fight the
good fight of faith, and to resist with success the covert
designs, and open attacks of our spiritual adversaries.
It is a common delusion of the human heart, to enter
on many pursuits without due inquiry into their nature
and tendency, through fear that such an inquiry would
either induce us to relinquish the favourite object, or
bring us under the guilt of doing violence to our
conscience, by continuing to follow that course, of the
unlawfulness of which, we have obtained undoubted evi
dence. The guilt of any wrong course is proportioned
to the information which we might have acquired by
diligent search, respecting its conformity to the will
of God, or its tendency to injure our spiritual welfare ;
and not in, proportion to that degree of information,
which we choose to procure. There is a certain degree
of christian liberty in this case, which is often misunder
stood, and stretched far beyond its proper extent.
When St. Paul was instructing the Corinthians in the
nature of christian liberty, he allowed them, when sit
ting at the tables of unbelievers, to eat whatever was
set before them, without any unnecessary inquiry as to
the designation of any part of the food, by him that-
provided the entertainment, on the principle that " the
earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof;" and
therefore whatsoever was set before them of the creatures
of God, was to be received with thankfulness, and
would be attended with the Divine blessing. The prin
ciple here recommended, is often abused. We often
engage in many things, without any examination of their

216 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.'
nature and tendency, either for conscience' sake, orfof
God's sake ; and often persist in our ways, even after
circumstances have plainly said to us, " This is offered
in sacrifice unto idols."
We may neglect many duties on account of oiir igno
rance with respect to the nature and extent of the talents
committed to us, or the obligations under which we lie
to " Occupy" them to our own improvement, to the good
of others, and to the glory of our Maker. Therefore
the knowledge of ourselves, of our characters and duties,
and of the particulars of our condition, is most import
ant, and should be the Object of our daily study. The
true extent of our duty is not limited by those parts of it
only, which are so prominent as to force themselves up
on our attention ; but it is according to what we may
know, if" we inquire with diligence and earnest desire, and
to what we m;iy perform, if we are resolute in our endea
vours, and constant in seeking from God that assistance,
of which we stand in need. We should ever remember
that He " with whom we have to do," and who will be
our future Judge, knows exactly our situation, and all
the opportunities which it affords us of doing good ;
He sees at all times our deficiencies, and the extent and
nature of all the obligations connected with our circum
stances, in all their parts, and in all their bearings.
It is however in a religious point of view, that self-
knowledge is most important ; because a mistake in the
estimation which we make of our own character in the
sight of God, may lead us to a loss of the greatest magni
tude, and also irreparable. A false notion of security
prevents persons who are exposed to danger, from mak
ing use of the only means of deliverance. How can a
man endeavour to regain the favour of God, unless he
first apprehend that he has lost that favour, and conse
quently incurred his anger ? He who has become crun-

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 225
it is, to go out of this world, ignorant of the next, — to
take blindfold a step which can never be retracted !
And if you might have known of the things which be
long to your peace, and would not ; — might have at
tended the public instruction of the ministry, and would
not, — might have been told of the way of salvation, and
would not hearken, — how greatly will your guilt be
aggravated ! If they who knew not their Lord's will,
shall be punished, what shall be done to them who re
fused to know his will — who despised his authority ! If
they shall be judged, who had no law, what shall be
the end of those who have the law, but heed it not ;
who have the will of God declared to them, but set it
at nought ! Precious as is the blood of Christ, it will
not be sprinkled on those, who wilfully and obstinately
persist unto the end, in their ' rebellion against God !
Powerful as is the mediation, prevalent as is the inter
cession of Christ, they will be of no avail to those who
die impenitent !
But a deficiency of self-knowledge is not confined to
those only, who are ignorant of their own character as
sinners, there are many persons who have attained to
such a knowledge of themselves, as to perceive that
they fall under the condemnation of the law of God, in
very many instances. They are not sufficiently acquaint
ed with the spiritual nature of the Divine law, to dis
cover that they are unable to fulfil its requirements,
which are " holy, just, and goc-d," and are therefore
cut off from all pretensions to salvation by the works of
the law ; nor are they sufficiently acquainted with their
own hearts, to be convinced that in them "dwelleth no
good thing,"— that they are " very far gone from ori
ginal righteousness, and are of their own nature in
clined to evil;" yet they are so far convinced of sin, as
to be desirous of obtaining pardon, but they do not
2g

226 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
seek it in the way in which it is offered in the Scriptures ;
they are so far aware of the deficiencies with which they
are chargeable, that they endeavour to procure a righte
ousness to justify themselves, but not that "righteousness
which is of God."
Repentance is a duty of universal obligation, be
cause " all have sinned, and come short of the glory of
God ;" but the self-righteous exalt repentance into the
place which Christ should hold in their hearts. They
mistake the conditions of salvation, for the cause and
purchase ; and those religious services, which are only
the means of grace, they use as mediators, by which,
the favour of God is to be procured. They are so little
acquainted with the nature of the finished work of Christ,
that they regard it rather as the means by which
God is made willing to be reconciled, than as the
sole purchase of a complete reconciliation. All that
Christ has done, is in their estimation, to put men in a
way of being saved by their own duties and efforts ;
they do not trust in Him, as that Redeemer whose blood
was shed to atone for their sins, and to procure their
pardon; whose perfect obedience was necessary to jus
tify them before God; whose continual intercession ren
ders their prayers and praises acceptable to God, and
dispenses all their blessings ; and whose Spirit alone can
renew their hearts, produce faith in their souls, enable
them to show forth good works, and prepare them for
the enjoyment of the heavenly glory.
Men are naturally prone to self-righteousness. The
first covenant is so rooted in the nature of man, that he
must be taught of God, and spiritually renewed, before
he will submit to, and cordially embrace the Covenant
of Grace. The law is written in the heart of man with
indelible characters. Aware that at his first creation,
he had power to obey his Maker with perfect obedience,

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 227
man still cleaves to the same method of acceptance with
God. Till he is divinely illuminated, he does not per
ceive that the law is binding on his conscience, and
takes cognizance of the secrets of the heart; that no
obedience can be accepted by God, unless it be perfect,
and that the law makes no provision for the smallest
offence ; for " whosoever shall keep the whole law, and
yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." The least
violation of its commands, even an obliquity of the will,
brings the offender under its heavy denunciations, and
precludes for ever the possibility of salvation by works.
Its terms are most extensive, and its sentence irreversi
ble ; " Cursed is every one that continueth not in all
things, which are written in the book of the law to do
them." When a sinner is first convinced of sin, he generally
" goes about to establish his own righteousness, being
ignorant of the righteousness of God." So when the
man in the Gospel came to our Lord for directions how
to be saved, he came as one who was in earnest about
the salvation of his soul, for we read that he came run
ning; but the sequel shows it was in a self-righteous
spirit that he made the application, when he said,
" What shall I do, that I may inherit eternal life."
He thought himself able to observe perfectly the com
mands of God ; for when Jesus rehearsed the duties of
the second table ^of the law, he professed to have ob
served all these from his youth ; but notwithstanding
all his boasting, he had not yet learned self-denial ; and
therefore our Lord, who " needed not that any should
testify of man, for he knew what was in man," seeing
the undiscovered evil that lurked in his heart, and that
covetousness was his besetting sin, charged him to sell
all his possessions, and give alms unto the poor, and
take up his cross and follow him ; " And he was sad at

228 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
that saying, and went away grieved." Lacking this
one thing, he was destitute of all ; having failed in one
point, he forfeited all claim to a righteousness of his
own procuring. Again, when the Jews asked Jesus in
the same spirit what they should do, that they might
"work the works of God," Jesus said unto them, "This
is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he
hath sent."
Indeed the whole design of Scripture is to show us
our real condition, and to discover to us the wise and
merciful provision, which God has made to meet all our
wants and necessities. The whole plan of redemption
is contrary to the wisdom of man ; God has there con
founded "the wisdom of the wise," and brought "to
nothing the understanding of the prudent." All the
doctrines of the Gospel tend to humility ; and the doc
trine of the Cross is most humbling. The proud and
self-righteous Pharisee, who is wise in his own conceit,
is offended at the self-denying and abasing terms of the
Gospel ; he wishes to retain his fancied works, and
thinks to recommend himself to God by his supposed
holiness. But he will never attain to the favour of God,
till he has laid aside all boasting, and has learned to
account those things, which he once highly esteemed,
as vile and as loss, that he may " win Christ, and be
found in him, not having his own righteousness which
is of the law, but that which is through the faith of
Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith."
It is hard for him to renounce those false reliances, on
which he had built all his fond hopes of salvation ; he
cleaves to his own deeds as the ground of acceptance
with God, and listens not to, or does not understand
what is addressed to him by the Faithful and True
Witness, " Thou sayest, ' I am rich and increased with
goods, and have need of nothing,' and knowest not

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 229
that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and
blind, and naked."
The endeavours of the self-righteous to procure their
own salvation, will be fruitless to themselves, and they
tend also to rob God of his honour. Grace is the golden
thread, that runs through the whole tissue of the work
of human redemption ; but the self-righteous sully its
beauty, by covering it with the dross of their own sup
posed merits. He that seeks salvation by the works of
the law ; that is, he that aims either partially or wholly,
at being his own Saviour, is doubly accursed; first,
for his presumption, "Cursed be the man that maketh
flesh his arm ;" and secondly for failing in his under
taking, "As many as are of the works of the law, are
under the curse;" that is, they are subject to the con
ditions of the first covenant, which required perfect
obedience, and condemned all who fell short of it in
the smallest degree.
Besides, " if righteousness come by the law, then is
Christ dead in vain." If man could save himself, why
was his redemption purchased at the amazing expense
of the blood of the Son of God ! He that seeks to save
himself, does in a manner pronounce the wisdom of
God to be foolishness, in planning the work of redemp
tion ; and the power of God to be weakness, in execu
ting that work ! Mark then, the impiety, the blasphe
my, as well as the folly of self-righteousness.
A man may be so far impressed with a sense of the
importance of religion, as to attend to the outward ser
vices of it with exactness. The power of natural con
science may influence him so far, that he may be
blameless as to the " form of godliness," but remain
destitute of its power. Being deeply convinced of the
value of the soul, and the solemnity of an unseen eter
nity, he may join himself to the people of God, and

230 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE,
become an outward member of Christ's visible church on
earth ; but though in the sheep-fold, be hath not enter
ed by Christ the door, he hath come in by some other
way. He may even exceed many sincere believers in ex
ternal morality, but his heart is unenlightened ; all that he
does, which is in itself good, proceeds from a wrong
motive, and he has a wrong aim in view constantly ; so
that the nature of his works is changed, and instead of
being well-pleasing in the sight of God, as the fruits of
faith, they become an abomination, because they are
intended to derogate from the glory of the redemption
which is by Christ Jesus. Sanctification does not con
sist in a mere attendance on the outward services of re
ligion — the public worship of God's house. These things
do not profit by themselves ; they do not impart any
holiness to those who engage in them : but on the con
trary, if they touch them with unhallowed hands, or
take them on feigned lips, they contaminate and pollute
them. The backsliding Jews of old, fell into this error,
of substituting the form for the power of godliness, — of
putting the attendance on holy duties, in the place of
holiness of heart and conduct. That which is good in
itself, cannot make another so, without the aid of Divine
influence ; and therefore a formal and strict attendance
on the mere profession of religion, can neither justify
nor sanctify ; but on the contrary, those who are un
clean and impure in heart and practice, defile these
good and holy things. " Thus saith the Lord of Hosts,
Ask now the Priests concerning the law, saying, If one
bear holy flesh in the skirts of his garment, and with his
skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any
meat, shall it be holy ? And the Priest answered and
said, No. — If one that is unclean, touch any of these,
shall it be unclean ? And the Priest answered and said,
itshall be unclean. — So is this people and so is this nation,

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 231
befoTe me, saith the Lord and so is every work of their
hands, and that which they offer is unclean."
As self-knowledge leads to humility, so the want of
it makes men proud and conceited. Pride is at the root
of all evil in the human heart ; and as the heart of the
self-righteous man is unrenewed,, pride reigns there in
all its strength. " Learn of me," is a lesson of our Lord's
which he has never received. Puffed up with pride, on
account of imaginary attainments, he looks down on
others with contempt. Like the Pharisee of old, he
trusts in himself that he is righteous, and despises others;
like him too he gives God thanks that he is not as other
men are, and vauntingly enumerates the long catalogue
of his outward services, and on these he builds his self-
conceit, and his contempt of other men.
" By the grace of God, I am what I am," said the
eminent Apostle Paul. He ascribed every thing in his
character that was conformable to the Divine Will, to
the " Father of Lights," from whom alone cometh "ev
ery good and perfect gift." Not so the self-righteous ;
he " sacrifices unto his own net, and burns incense unto
his own drag ; " he saith with respect to his obedience,
his religious services, his alms, ' Are not all these the
work of my own hands ? ' He does not stand on the same
ground as the humble christian, and therefore he dis
dains him ; he has no feelings in common with him ; he
partakes in no manner of the same spirit ; he never
knew what it is to have a broken and contrite heart, and
to cry out from deep humiliation of soul, "God be mer
ciful to me a sinner/'
Humility is a grace which he knows not how to feign;
he does not understand its nature, having never felt its
operation : it is a temper of mind far beyond his mark,
— it is the mind of Christ, and the eminent work of the
Holy Spirit in the souls of the regenerate, and therefore

232 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
is not among his catalogue of virtues. He has in
deed a pretended humility, which consist* in words
only; he will call himself a "miserable offender," and
say "there is no health" in him, but in his heart he
thinketh far otherwise. Even in his acknowledgements
of dependance on God, pride discovers itself; as in the
case of the Pharisee before-mentioned, he will thank
God for the good which he fancies to be in himself, but
then he subjoins to this professed thankfulness, the
proud self-gratulation, that he is " not as other men
are." He is loud in condemning any that have fallen through
the power of temptation, and delights to proclaim a-
broad the failings of his neighbour, that the eyes of
men may be turned to his own superior sanctity. Proud
of his own imaginary strength and integrity, he knows
not how to make that allowance for the trespasses of
others, which a feeling of common weakness and infir
mity, and a liability to the same temptations should
teach him to make. Christians are commanded to re
store any one who is overtaken by a fault, considering
themselves, lest they also be tempted; but as the self-
righteous man is a stranger to that struggle between the
flesh and the spirit, which is maintained in the hearts
of all that have received the renewing and sanctifying
influence of the Holy Ghost, he fancies himself able to
overcome any trial, and withstand any seducement to
sin. Elated with this self-confidence, he unfeelingly
publishes abroad his brother's offences, joins in the per
secuting laugh and sneer, and points the finger of scorn
and contempt. He says to his offending brother,
"Stand by thyself; come not near to me, for I am ho
lier than thou."
This spirit is more common than may at first be ima
gined. In fact we can scarcely converse with any one

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 233
on the character of others, but some failing will be no
ticed, either to bring them down to the levelof pur own
character, or in a way which evidently shows, that the
reprover considers himself free from a similar charge^
and wishes to be so esteemed. What heart is not con
scious of this failing in some degree ? Just as in the
case of the decease of any person in the neighbourhood,
all are ready to assign some peculiar, reason for his dis
solution ; some disease is named, from which they ac
count themselves exempt; some family complaint is
mentioned as the cause ; or it is attributed to a particu
larly dangerous occupation, or to an injurious course of
life ; and whatever cause is assigned, the intention is too
apparent, namely — a willingness to conceal from them
selves their own mortality, and vainly to presume that
they shall not fall by a similar calamity. One boasts
of his good constitution ; another tells us of the long
life of his ancestors ; some recount the precautions which
they take against disease ; others rely on their temper
ance, or healthful occupation. So in cases of the faults
and sins of others, they are mentioned with a secret in
tention of asserting our own innocence, as to the parti
cular delinquency spoken of; the weakness of others is
introduced to set off our own supposed strength ; and
even while we enumerate the faults of others, without
any addition of censure, there is a secret comparison
drawn in our minds, betweem them and ourselves ; and
pride, that corrupt principle of our depraved nature,
enjoys a close gratification in the persuasion that we are
not surpassed by others.
The self-righteous person is confident. He feels no
misgivings of heart, lest he should at last fall short of
the heavenly rest. He has no anxious doubts and fears
concerning the genuineness of his faith, and the sincer
ity of his repentance, or whether his love bears the marks
2 11

234 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
of that heavenly grace, as they are set down by the
Apostle. Self-conceit prevents reflection, and blinds
him to the error of his ways, and self-will leads him for
ward in the road to destruction. Did he consider his
ways, it would be the first step towards conviction and
reformation. A suspicion that something might be
wrong, would lead him to say, " What have I done ? "
— "I thought on my ways," says David, " and turn
ed my feet unto thy testimonies."
Again, he is offended at the humbling doctrines of
the Bible. The fall, and consequent depravity of man,
the utter wickedness of the human heart, the inability
of man to restore himself to the lost favour of God, the
doctrine of salvation by free-grace, and the necessity of
the teaching of the Holy Spirit, though so plainly de
clared in Scripture, are so many stumbling-blocks to
his pride. " Lord, what is man, that thou takest know
ledge of him," is a reflection that never entered his
mind. He thinks much of what he calls the dignity
of human nature, and he is highly offended with the
faithful minister of the Gospel, who, disregarding the
pride of man insists on the plain statements of the Bible,
and grounds all that be advances on the Word of Eter
nal Truth. When such a minister declares in the lan
guage of Scripture, "There is none righteous, no not
one, they are all gone out of the way," the self-righteous
man replieth in his heart, " I am clean without trans
gression ; I am innocent, neither is there iniquity in me."
When the preacher insists in the words of the prophet,
that " the heart is deceitful above all things and despe
rately wicked," he replies, " thou speakest falsely ; the
Lord our God hath not sent thee to say" thus and thus.
When he hears it advanced that " we are all as an un
clean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy
rags," he thinks within himself that he is righteous, and

ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE. 235
saith, " I have made my heart clean, I am pure from
my sin ;" 1 have whereof I may trust in the flesh.
But what will be the end of self-righteous delusions ?
Not to be at all convinced of sin, and to seek salvation
by a false way — by our own works or deservings, will
have the same fatal termination. By the former, the
victim of carelessness is prevented from seeking deliver
ance ; by the latter the deluded Pharisee is led to seek
it in a way in which it can never be found, a way which
adds to bis former guilt, and seals his perdition. We
will suppose that the self-righteous person has succeed
ed in establishing a righteousness, which he presumes
will abide the trial of God's just judgment; the veil
which has concealed his real character from himself, has
been so nicely woven, and so exactly adapted, that the
light of truth has not penetrated through it to reach his
heart. He dies. Where is now his hope ? At the bar
of God his mask falls from him ; he appears without
disguise before Him that trieth the reins. " Terrors
take hold on him as waters ; — for God shall cast upon
him and not spare." He was proud and self- conceited
on earth ; therefore he shall not be " hid in the day of
the Lord's anger." He shot bitter words as arrows,
against his brother, who fell in the hour of temptation ;
he spared not, but was merciless, therefore God shall
judge him out of his own mouth, and shall reward him
even as he hath dealt to others, even double unto him,
according to his works. His pretended fear of God was
" taught by the precept of men ; " his 'sacrifices multi
plied his transgressions ; he was {' stout-hearted," and
without all fear as to the issue of his ways ; therefore
will God " come near to him to judgment," and " be a
swift witness against" him. He made his forehead "as
an adamant, harder than flint," but now he shall be
ashamed of his. former boastings and dependance ; he

236 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
shall be utterly confounded, yea, he shall sink into
" everlasting contempt." His self-righteous spirit was
offended at the humbling doctrines of the Gospel ; and
now shall he be judged according to bis own works, and
will be found far from righteousness. He rejected a
free salvation offered by the grace and mercy of God,
and now, " He that made him, will not have mercy on
him, and he that formed him will show him no favour."
The worst of all delusions, however, because the
most injurious, arising from a want of self-knowledge,
is the "lying spirit" which enters into the hearts of some
persons, persuading them that they are the peculiar fa
vourites of heaven, because they have adopted certain
doctrines into their religious creed ; and that they shall
assuredly reach heaven at last, by virtue of the sure de
crees of God, although their conduct is such as to show
too plainly, that they have no fear of God before their
eyes. They have renounced all hope of salvation by the
works of the law ; but they have also renounced all mor
al obligation ; they speak of Jesus as the only Saviour,
but in their lives, they are "the enemies of the Cross of
Christ." Their only inquiry respecting the religious
character of others is, » What are their opinions ? ' Our
Lord has said, " By their fruits ye shall know them ; "
but these persons, as if more acquainted with the human
heart, consider such a test as indecisive. They speak
of others, whose conduct and conversation are becoming
the Gospel, as possessing the mere skell of morality, if
their creed do not exactly correspond with the system,
which they have laid down as the only orthodox faith.
Every deviation, however small, from this system, is
by them accounted a mark of reprobation. They have
a vocabulary current among them, and whosoever fails
in the due pronunciation of their "Shibboleth," is re
garded as under spiritual darkness. — All. places are to

ON SELx^KNOWLEDGE. 237
them alike fit for the discussion of religious subjects,
you may hear them reasoning high of
<eFix'd fate, free-will, fore-knowledge, absolute,"
in the market, at the inn, amidst the noise and clamour
of business, or the songs and profane mirth of the drunk
ard. The liberty wherewith Christ hath made the
christian free, they esteem a permission to follow the
suggestions of a depraved heart. Accordingly they re
frain not their lips from evil, nor their hands from deeds
of violence ; and yet they account themselves the exclu
sive favourites of heaven, because they profess to mag
nify and exalt the grace of God, while they are in fact
insulting his mercy and long-suffering. Conscious that
they are deficient in that personal holiness, which the
Word of God requires in all the faithful followers of
Christ, they fly to the notion of imputed sanctification,
and make this a part of the work of Christ for them,
instead of the work of the Holy Spirit in them.
They listen to the instructions of the pulpit, to as
certain in what rank the minister may be classed, whe
ther among the darkling slaves of legal bondage, or
among the great preachers of sound, enlightened doc
trine. They approve of a preacher who will establish
them in their notions, rather than induce them to think
soberly of themselves, and examine their hearts with
godly jealousy, — one who condemns with an unsparing
sentence, nearly all other labourers in the ministry, or
slily insinuates that the number of truly evangelical
preachers, amounts to only two or three, at most, in
cluding himself, — one who is merry in the pulpit, and
deals in conceits and jests, and with daring judgment
consigns at least ninety- nine parts of mankind out of a
hundred, to everlasting perdition; while with bold ef
frontery, he congratulates himself and his partizans, on

238 ON SELF-KNOWLEDGE.
being of the small number that shall be saved. To
meet the approbation of such hearers, a preacher must
give partial statements of Divine Truth ; he must con
fine himself to a few doctrines, but never allude to a
holy life ; he must preach faith without works, and works
never; he must introduce fanciful interpretations of
scriptural language, and, under pretence of spiritual
izing every subject, make the strangest and most per
verted application of detached portions of the ceremo
nial, historical, or genealogical parts of the Bible. He
must so speak of the final perseverance of the saints,
that his followers may assure themselves of being of the
number ; but he must avoid making any allusions to the
cautions of Scripture against self-deception ; and more
especially must he carefully suppress those salutary ad
monitions, which relate to drawing back unto perdition,
falling away, and turning from the holy commandment.
And when he speaks of the final judgment, he must
confine himself to the gathering together of the elect,
the making up of the jewels of the Lord, &c. and by
no means mention the rule by which the decisions of the
Great Day will be guided, although Christ has himself
assured us that all men shall be judged "according to
their works," and shall " receive the things done in the
body, whether they be good or bad." His grand object
must be to persuade his hearers to believe that they are
elected to eternal life, and may therefore be at ease in
Zion ; that they are chosen to salvation, and may there
fore leave all concern about the matter, and be at rest.
He must tell them plainly that there is one law for them,
and another for those whom ,they term the reprobate ;
or rather that the non-elect are under the yoke of the
law, and every obligation to holy obedience, (which
nevertheless they cannot fulfil) but that themselves are
the privileged children and heirs, and are therefore free

ON SELj£l&?0~\VLEDGE. 239
from all restraint, and at liberty to live as they please,
being secure in their irreversible title to the heavenly
inheritance !
These persons charge all their sin on Satan, or on the
"old man" which abideth in them, and thus excuse
themselves from all responsibility ; not considering that
Satan can only tempt, and not force us to commit sin ;
and that it requires a considerable degree of attainment
in self-knowledge, to be able to distinguish between the
remains of in-dwelling sin, and the fruits of sin still
having dominion over us, so as to affirm with spiritual
discernment, " It is no more I that do it, but sin that
dwelleth in me." To charge our transgressions on causes
over which we have no control, and so to renounce our
accountableness to God, is the way to abolish all godly
sorrow for sin, and to substitute an exoneration of our
selves from blame, for true repentance. And there
cannot be a more blasphemous perversion of a glorious
truth, than to think lightly of sin, because "the blood
of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin ;" and, because
his atonement included every transgression, not to care
how many we add to the number!
We should be ever on our guard against the delusion
of receiving the consolations of the Scripture, without
an inquiry whether we possess the evidences of being
the characters, to whom these consolations are addressed.
The call of the Gospel to repentance and faith is general,
it is made to all ; but the precious promises of the Gospel
are addressed to particular characters. All are invited
to come to Jesus, but it is only those who do come with
repentance, and humility ,kand earnest desires, that are
accepted. All are commanded to believe, but it is only
to those who do believe, that Christ is truly precious.
He is the life ; but it is only to those who are renewed
by his Spirit, and who put all their trust in Him.

240 on sELF-iiYWLiisc:?,
Many mistake their own characters; they misinterpret
the"Scriptures, and misapply the promises. They take
to themselves that consolation, for the appropriation of
which they have 110 evidence — no warrant. They mis
take their deadness and indifference, for the " peace of
God which passeth all understanding." They mistake
their presumption, for the faith which is "of the oper
ation of. God ;" and their groundless confidence, for a
"good hope through grace." They stifle the voice of
conscience, crying, " Peace, peace," till " sudden de
struction cometh upon them ;" and thus they flatter and
deceive themselves, till in eternity their eyes are opened
only to wonder and perish !
We are exposed to danger on all sides, because of
the corruption and depravity of our hearts. When we
hear of salvation by grace, we are prone to fall -into
that most awful perversion and abuse of Divine mercy,
to continue in sin "that grace may abound," or the
equally dangerous error, of indulging in sin because
grace abounds, making that an inducement or encou
ragement to evil, which should be the most powerraT
motive to urge us to follow after holiness, and to hate
all sin. Again, when we read that the decisions of the
judgment-day will be given according to the works of
men, we are exposed to the fatal error of self-righte
ousness. The Word of God must be read, not in de
tached parts, but as one connected whole; for "no
prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation."
If we read the Bible carefully we shall find that decla
rations of grace, and cautions against sin, are ever joined
together. Every commaruLkriplies a promise ; and ev
ery promise is connected in its accomplishment with the
observance of a command. We are commanded to
" work out our salvation with fear and trembling," but
the gracious assurance is added, that it is " God that

ON sf£F-KNOWLEDGE. 24l
worketh in us, both to will and to do of his good plea
sure. ' All the exceedingly great and precious promises
of the Gospel, are made to corresponding dispositions
of mind. Pardon is offered, but only to the penitent 5
the mercy of God is from everlasting to everlasting, but
only on them that fear him ; grace is given, but only to the
humble ; advantage shall result from every event, whe
ther afflictive or joyous, but only to those that love God;
everlasting life, and a crown of glory are promised, but
only to those that believe and endure unto the end, be
ing faithful unto death.
^The Word of God is full of the plainest declarations,
that pardon of sin can be obtained only through the
"blood of sprinkling" — the "blood of the everlasting
covenant "—the "blood of Jesus Christ," and that jus
tification can be procured only by the imputation of
the " righteousness of God ; " that " there is none other
name under heaven given among men whereby we must
be saved," but the name of Jesus ; and that "he that believ-
eth not the Son shall not see life." But the same Scriptures
also inform us, that " without holiness no man shall see
the Lord';" and the people of God are called "the
people of his holiness;" and numberless are the ex
hortations of the apostles to obedience, to sanctification,
to the renunciation of the very appearance of evil, to
the pursuit of every thing that is " true, honest, just,
pUre, lovely, and of good report." If we are called,
it is "with a holy calling;" and Jesus is a Saviour
from sin. If he died to procure the pardon of all our
sins, and to purchase heaven for us, he died also " that
he might redeem us from all iniquity" — from the world,
the flesh, and the devil, and "purify unto himself a
peculiar people, zealous of good works."
Though we are not under the law, as was Adam at
his first creation, yet we are not " without law unto God."
2i

242 On self-knowledge.
All its requirements are binding upott us, as a rule of
life. The law is to be fulfilled in us, by the commu
nication of the sanctifying grace of the Holy Spirit,
that holiness may be perfecting in us progressively while
on the earth, to prepare us for the perfection of our
Sanctification in heaven. Christ "came by water and
blood," to signify the necessity of sanctification, as well
as of patrdon and justification. Tile Scriptures afford
not the smallest encouragement to any, to expect sal
vation without personal holiness. A hope that is in
dulged without this indispensable requisite, is a false
hope ; for he that hath the true " hope in him, pUrifieth
himself, even as he is pure." Faith is dead, unless
there be added to it "virtue^ knowledge, temperance,
patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, charity." The
promises are given, not to encourage us in carelessness
of conversation, but that by them we " might be parta
kers of the Divine nature, having escaped the corrup
tion that is in the world, through lust." " The objects of
faith revealed, are not merely speculative, to be con
ceived, and believed only, as true, or to be gazed on in
an ecstasy of wonder, but are mysteries of godliness
that have a powerful influence on practice."
In conclusion, be it remembered that we need not re
main ignorant of our true character, while we have the
test of Holy Scripture, whereby to try and examine our
selves. We may ascertain whose we are, by consider
ing whom we serve. " Know ye not that to whom ye
yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to
whom ye obey, whether of sin unto death, or of obedi
ence unto righteousness ? " We may know whether the
path in which we are proceeding, will lead to " indig
nation, and wrath, tribulation, and anguish," or to
"glory, honour, and peace," if we consider our. ways,
and listen to the voice of conscience. If we are living

on self-knowledge, 243
in habitual forggtfulness of God, we cannot, claim his
nrqtfection and blessing, as our Father and Friend. If
ourSl|ves are not conformable to his Holy Word, we
W^y s^»^at we hope to go tojheaven at last, but there
is no good foundation for such an expectation. And
indeed the marines in which this \hope is mentionedj by
many persons, prov.es that they have, no desire for hea
ven on its own account, but merely a preference for
such a termination to their worldly career, because they
are certain that the alternative is hell. They look for
ward to it with the same sort of apathy, with which they
endure the occasional service of God upon earth.
" By grace we are saved through faith," but the gen
uineness of that faith will be determined by its fruits ;
and the day of judgment will finally decide, and eter
nally separate, between those who draw nigh to God
only with their lips, while their he&rts are far from Him,
and those who worship Him "in spirittjaA^flprfh;''— ?-
between the hearers and the doers of the word ; — be
tween, the righteous and the wicked ; — between him that,
serveth God, and him that serveth him not." Then
shall the true characters of men be thoroughly ascertained
by themselves, and disclosed to others ; — not to give
them longer space for repentance — not to allow them
another state of probation — not to offer them the assist
ance and teaching of the Divine Spirit, but to pronounce
the final sentence of the Judgment, according to the
state in which death dismissed each individual into the
world of Spirits !
Men may delude themselves by vainly supposing,
that if they hide the worst of their situation and charac
ter from themselves, they shall escape condemnation.
Many are desirous on this false principle, to remain ig
norant of spiritual things, and of their own character,
vainly supposing that the less they are informed on

244

ON 'SELF-HNQWL>f,DGE. ^
, . ': '"' V
tuer-'- points, the fos they shall .iwve to answer &i t&
God. Bui ibi'S kind of cono-.-alment will only aggravate,.
thf-irgnib, and -inbreas't'" their,; horror and -n/aa^jjrit,
*{ in the day when <God *baii jot'sg^ the secretg-'ot merfc
by -Jesus Christ- -(I;W God sb,:'.]- bring', every wen'c
infoi judgment, with every secret tb$f|L whither it be
good, or whether it lie $vil." f

F/.NIS,

rRIKTEU BY Jtt-,..«MITH>. BRAJMTHi-E-