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and at the same time he knows it might be otherwise; or, in different terms, God knows all things, and man is a free-agent; for if he be not free, he cannot be said to act at all, but is merely passive, or acted upon; and every sen'sible person knows that a necessary agent implies 'a contradiction.' Man is a free-agent? I should be glad to know wherein his free-agency consists. He is estranged from the womb, and goes astray as soon as born, speaking lies; he commits sin, and is the servant of sin; the strong man armed keeps possession of the palace; the prince of the power of the air worketh in the children of disobedience. They are in the snare of the devil, and taken captive by him at his will; they are holden with the cords of their sins; they are corrupt trees, and cannot bring forth good fruit; the tree is corrupt and the fruit corrupt; every imagination of the thoughts of his heart is evil, Matt. xv. 19. "How can ye, being evil, speak good things?" If this be true, where is the free-agency of these bond-children? their mother is called the bondwoman, and they are in bondage to the law, to sin, and to Satan; then where is their liberty? according to Peter it is only to be found in their words: They speak great swelling words of vanity; but then the lust of the flesh and much wantonness actuates them, for they are said to allure through that; and while they promise others liberty, themselves are the servants of corruption, 2 Peter ii. 18, 19.

It is true, a sinner pursues the lust of the flesh with freedom of will, because he loves it; but even then the devil is his master, for he works in him or actuates him to disobedience; and if at any time conscience gripes him, and he binds his soul with vows and promises never more to give conscience such a claw against himself, as Mr. Skinner has often done, yet even then the sinner finds the strong man armed to be stronger than all his vows; the devil exerts his power, and drives him contrary to his inclination, vows, and conscience: this is called captivity, or being taken captive by the devil at his will. How can man be free that has got so many masters? He wars after the flesh, is a servant to sin, and a captive to Satan; and is in a threefold bondage: he is in the strong hold of Satan, the yoke of the law is upon his neck, and he is bound with the chains of guilt; and every transgression adds to the weight, -I may here retort upon Mr. Skinner in his own words, every sensible person knows, that a free agent, possessed, ensnared, and led captive by the devil, implies as great a contradiction as a necessary agent.

The most stanch advocates for free-agency are the Atheists, Deists, and Papists, or Arminians. Among the latter class this author intends to cut a figure he is a free-agent, a free-thinker, and he is not ashamed to call the productions of his pen free thoughts; yet there is a bridle in his jaw causing him to err, notwithstanding his

freedom; and I defy him ever to preach the truth or think aright, unless the grace of God bring into captivity all his thoughts to the obedience of -Christ. But we go on.

'It is said, that Christ was delivered by the determinate council and fore-knowledge of God; that Herod, Pontius Pilate, the Gentiles, and Israel, were gathered together to do what God's ' hand and council determined to be done; and it is said they did it with wicked hands; and if so, they were not necessitated to act as they did: ' for if it be supposed that God's command, Thou 'shalt do no murder, remains invariably the same, and at the same time that God laid the crucifiers of Christ under an absolute necessity to violate his command, it follows that God approves and disapproves; than which there cannot be a more direct and absolute contradiction.' To which I answer, What God in his council from eternity predetermined to be done, must, according to his will, and the prophecies revealed from thence, be fulfilled in time. The devil, as well as the sinner, goes about continually seeking, not whom he will, but whom he may, by divine permission, devour, 1 Peter v. 8; but the devil and the sinner are both in the ruling hand of God: he knows the carnal mind is enmity against him, not subject to his law, nor can be, and this discovered itself plain enough against Christ in the Jews; and so it does in all the bond-children against his elect to this day; but then there is a restraining power

on them, and without God's permission they cannot go on; shall there be evil in a city, and shall not the Lord do somewhat! Amos iii. 6. The Jews despised Christ, and for envy they delivered him to Pilate; but it was God that delivered him into the hands of those sinners, and gave Pilate power against him. They all stood ready for the work, but it must be done at God's appointed hour, and according to his fore-determinate council. Herod sought to slay him as soon as he was born, and killed two thousand infants, to make sure to kill the right: but all in vain, his hour was not yet come; but when it was come, God gave them up to all the rage of free-agency, but they did not act without the influence of their old master; their free-agency in this matter was under the infernal influence of the devil; the hour was theirs, the actuating power was Satan's: "This is your hour, and the power of darkness." But it is plain that the rage of the Jewish free-willers, the cruelty of Herod, the injustice of Pontius Pilate, and the power of the devil, in hurrying Christ's death, was all appointed, permitted, directed, and overruled by God. God delivered up his own son, he gave the Jews their hour, he let the powers of darkness loose, he limited and superintended all their work; so that it was done according to the determinate council and fore-knowledge of God. “Then saith Pilate, Speakest thou not to me? Knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have

power to release thee? Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power at all against me except it were given thee from above. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world." Thus the son of man truly went as it was determined, Luke xxii. 22; and he went as it was written of him, Matt. xxvi. 24; notwithstanding the determination of Pilate, which was, to let him go, Acts iii. 13. In short, the death of Christ was pre-determined and immutably fixed by God; and the free-agents that killed him, with respect to themselves, acted voluntarily in conjunction with the devil; God left them to their free-agency, only overruled it so that it should be done according to his fore-determination, and stopped them when that was done, or else they would have gone a great deal further.

The free-thinkers in Nazareth, when they heard Christ preach the sovereignty of God's grace in calling lepers and widows of the Gentiles, while the lepers and widows of Israel were neglected, were provoked to that degree that they tried to throw him headlong from the brow of the hill. They would have broke his neck then if they might; but he was not to die so, nor was his hour come. The free-agent disciples that crossed the sea of Tiberias after him, when he told them no man could come to him except the Father drew him, were so highly provoked, that they left him with disdain, and walked no more with him; as all other free-thinkers will do, if free

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