the fame in all ages? the object the fame. the reasons and motives the fame.

Did

not God shew man what was good, and what his Lord required of him, before the Gospelfyftem had ever been made known? what faid EUSEBIUS Bishop of Cefarea? without controverfy, we are but of late, and the name of chriftians is indeed new, and has not long obtained over the world; yet our manner of life, and the principles of our religion, have not · been lately devifed by us, but were inflituted and obferved, if I may fo fay, from the begin, ning of the world by good men, accepted of God, from thofe natural notions, which are implanted in mens minds.

After he has fhewn this whence it

in fome particulars, he adds,

is apparent, that ought to be esteemed the first and most ancient inftitution of religion, which was obferved by the pious about the time of Abraham, and has been of late published to all nations by the direction and authority of Jefus Chrift. And again, be therefore who forfakes Judaifm, or Heathenifm, and becomes a Chrif tian,embraceth that law and courfe of life, which had been followed by the ancient patriarchs, friends of God; which indeed bad long lain dormant,

dormant, but has been now revived by our Lord and Saviour, agreeably to the predictions of Mofes, and the rest of the prophets. "

Two texts have been

It is very strange, that learned and ingenious men should affect to use such language, and represent the doctrine of eternal life, or immortality, not only as novel, but as the purchase of Chrift; and a purchase made by vertue of a metamorphofis, a divesting himfelf of his divinity. The fcriptures never teach fuch doctrine. forced into the fervice. One, John xvii. 5. where our Lord thus prays, Father, glorify me with thine own self, let me have that which was before the world, with thee.— εixov, wpo Or, let me have that glory which thou defignedst me, of being Lord both of the dead and of the living, and their final judge. It is furely moft natural to understand it of a glory, intended in the plan of the Father: otherwise, our Lord would have pleaded more than his having glorified him on earth, and finished the work given him to do: he muft furely have pleaded more than this, had he had an antecedent

τον κόσμον είναι, παρα σοι.

1

▪ See Dr. Lardner's Credibility, Part II. Vol. VIII. p. 70,

71, 73

cedent actual poffeffion of glory, and equal too with that of the Father. His style would have been altered; and he could not but have afferted a claim of eternal and unalienable right: inftead of profeffing, as he all along does, an abfolute fubordinacy and fubjection to the Father. I have manifefted thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gaveft them me, and they have kept thy word. Not at all like the language of a God with his equal; or, of a God, confcious of an eternal existence with the Father. But verily it is the language of one abfolutely dependent on the Deity; yet, conscious of having executed, with fidelity, the commiffion given him by the Father.

And as to the other text, in Philip. ii. 7.

The emptying, cannot poffibly imply more, than his confent, that the miraculous prefence and power fhould be withdrawn ; which had, till then, fecured him from all violence; but now is fufpended, in order, that he might submit to sufferings and death. He was not greedy to retain that form of God, which had been visible throughout his ministrations. He, who had given fight to the

blind, ears to the deaf, limbs to the maimed, life to the dead, becomes liable to confinement, infult, and torture!

To talk of the principles of our holy religion, ftanding fupreme in dignity, on fuch a fufpicious difputable pillar, as that of a God divesting himself of his divinity! is furely very unguarded, and abfolutely incapable of defence.

a

Mr. Peckard is concerned to remove from the Deift any occafion of supporting his infidelity. He thinks, that an advantage is given, from the orthodox afferting fo ftrenuously a natural principle of immortality. But he does not apprehend danger from his making Jefus Chrift the procurer of a future life and immortality; or, in affirming, that through bis merits, and through him alone, mankind fball awake to a fecond confciousness. And that there is no immortality worth wishing for, but that which has been purchased by the merits of our bleffed Saviour Jefus Chrift.-This writer does not here apprehend any advantage given the infidel! Doctor LAW likewife talks of, a Being of infinite glory and perfection, the image of the invifible God, the first-born

of

See p. 27, 28, 29.

of every creature, and the Lord of heaven and earth condescending to degrade himself from all this power and dignity; diveft bimfelf of every glorious attribute, and appear not only in the form, but real nature of man, and in its most imperfect and forlorn eftate. -Under all the wants and weaknesses; and pains of infancy! That he fhould be content to recover his former qualities again one by one in flow degrees, and mixed with all the infirmities of childhood.

Which aftonishing opinion and reprefentation of the man Chrift Jefus, would strongly perfuade, that chriftianity in its modern, as well, as this writer fais, in its early days, is loaded with the refufe of fyftem, brought in to explain myfteries, or rather to make them in the Gofpel: until that becomes a matter of high fpeculation and refinement; and fuch nice difputes raised about the natures of its author, and the precife modus of their union; i would perplex and confound all the conceptions of the human foul.

as,

This would tempt one to conclude, there is a fafcination hangs over the minds of church-men; elfe furely the Doctor would

have

• Confiderations, &c. p. 290, 291, 292.

i Ibid. p. 245.