mercy to the traitor, if providence had removed him out of the world, either by his own hands as the inftrumental caufe, or fome other way, before he had ever feen God manifeft in the flesh. 6 But Dr. H. gives a fad detail of the dreadtul things Judas fuffered in this world. Judas,' he fays, was a notable fon of 'perdition, fignally fo, a moft miferable, loft, condemned finner, until his death; in perdition until that moment, even until foul ' and body were feparated; until then a fon of perdition in an 'extraordinary degree.'* Judas was loft in an awful manner; 'he was loft as an apostle of Chrift; loft as to all fervice in this 'world; loft with regard to all his comfort on earth; loft as to all hope to fupport his own foul here.' Judas went to his own 'place, to a very horrible and ignominious death, in awful anguifh and utter defpair. He indeed met with an awful and aggra 'vated damnation, in the higheft fenfe of the term.'+ Dr. H. feems to want words to exprefs this highest and most awful damnation, Judas fuffered in this world. But this damnation or curfe, in the higheft fenfe of the term,' which fell upon the fon of perdition, must be included either in the law or the gofpel. The Doctor fays, the gospel knows nothing at all of mifery, or torment, or the punishment of any mere 'creature.' But he muft now grant that the gospel makes provifion, or leaves room for the curfe of the law to take hold of impenitent finners. And then it will follow that the curfe of the law, though wholly done away as to believers, is in full force againft unbelievers. Or at least it was in full force against Judas. It will alfo follow that the gofpel delivers over tranfgreffors, or at leaft it did deliver over one obftinate tranfgreffor, to the curfe of the law. Whether a curfe be contained in the law or the gofpel, it is equally against the Doctor. His fcheme, however, fhall answer for itself. What God will in fact do with mankind,' fays he, as united to a mediator, - Or how, in very deed, God hath promifed to deal with man, ' in that union with the second Adam: What his condition fhall certainly be, in this life, and in the life to come. This I call 'pure gofpel.' The gofpel therefore he calls the voice of fact. 'What God will in fact do with mankind, as united to a media'tor.' By this he means all mankind; for he receives the me'diator to be in equal connection with all human nature.' Whatever therefore is fact, or whatever takes place in the courfe of providence, in this life, and in the life to come,' is the language or fulfilment of pure gofgel.' But the curfe, or, which is the fame, damnation in the highest fenfe, came on one of the hu + P. 26. ** P. 189, 190. I † P. 262. man man kind. This is declared by Dr. H. to be a fad. Therefore a curfe is contained in the gofpel. Thus far the Doctor's interpretation of the gofpel. At one time, it knows nothing at all of the mifery of any mere human creature. At another, Dr. H. is in want of words to exprefs the height of the curfe, which does in fact fall on one mere human creature. Furthermore, according to Dr. H. what enhanced Judas' wickednefs, above all things, was his living and dying in oppofition 10 the bleffed truth' of univerfalifm. He had an opportunity, if any of the human kind ever had, to learn this doctrine. But he died in awful anguish and utter defpair, loft as to any hope to fupport his foul here.' This obftinate and perfevering oppofition to the doctrine of univerfal falvation, if the Doctor's words are true, greatly enhanced his fin. The Doctor often labours to fhow the aggravated wickednefs fuch are guilty of, as do not embrace his fcheme. And he fays,, a man is always miferable in this world, in proportion to the degree of wickednefs that governs him.'* Had Judas therefore never heard of the name of Jefus, or had he known nothing of the gofpel, he could not have been guilty of fuch aggravated fin, neither could he have been fubjected to fuch exquifite torment. So that the gospel eventually proved a vafl evil to the fon of perdition. It certainly was, as Dr. H. fays, the greateft poffible evil to him here in time, and a partial evil or curfe to him to eternity; if we allow a privation or partial privation of happinefs to be an evil. It will here be objected: Judas is perfectly contented with his degraded lot in heaven; being wholly freed from pride and eve ry impure emotion of heart; being perfectly holy, and of course completely happy. It will, notwithstanding, forever romain a truth that Judas would have efcaped thofe inexpreffible evils here. in time, and enjoyed greater degrees of happinefs in eternity, had he been all his days wholly fhut out from the direct knowledge of the gofpel this must be granted on the ground of univerfalism. And on the fame ground, must be granted what the apoflle Peter fays, to have its import without end: It had been better for them not to have known the way of righteoufnefs, than, after they have known it, to turn fromileholy commandment delivered unto them.' And Dr. H. fays that there will be, among the redeemed in heaven, great and everlafting deftruction. Thefe are like to be made, however, not in favour of every one who is moft peculiarly under the bleflings of the gofpel.' Here it will be objected: The gofpel is in itself the greatest * P. 234 bleffing bleffing; freely tendering all poffible good to wretched men. And those that obey it reap the bleffing, without any intermixture of evil. While on the other hand, fuch as abufe its privileges fuffer the juft defert of their crime. Hence, it is the fin of men and not the gofpel, that occafions all the evil men fuffer. This objection virtually fuppofes the gofpel to be in itfelf a bleffing; the greateft poffible outward bleffing, having a tendency to make all men confummately happy. But, at the fame time, it makes provifion for the juft punishment of fuch as wantonly abufe it. Therefore, the gofpel when rightly improved becomes truly a bieffing, to fuch as rightly improve it. But when abufed it eventually proves a curle; or it is the occafion of the greateft curfe to fuch as abufe it. But this, if the point be fettled as to the just defert of fin, is giving up the whole matter in difpute It will again be objected: Judas, though he endured fuch amazing fufferings here in the body, and his foul went to the lowest place among all given to Chrift,' will, notwithstanding, be completely happy forever. Whereas, had it not been for the interpofition of the Redeemer, and the revelation of the gospel, he must have been everlaftingly miferable in hell. The golpel therefore has proved, on the whole, a very great bleffing to ju. das. In anfwering this, the Doctor utterly reprobates the idea of the divine Being's forming a fyftem which is on the whole good, or good and glorious in the main.' He utterly abhors the idea, that a Being unlimited in his perfection fhould form a fyftem as good as he poffibly could, according to the nature of things. Whence,' fays he, does the nature of things originate? Certainly from God and his attributes only. For in that period of duration when there was nothing exiftent but God, where was the nature of things, or the neceffity of nature, but in God only? To fup'pofe there was any limitation upon the eternal Being, when no other Being did exift, is to fuppofe that his own unlimited attri butes did limit, and fet bounds to his conduct, or the emanations of his infinite love and benevolence. It is to fay, that God 'would have done better if he could; but that he could not: 'He acted out himself with as much kindness as he could, and 'wifhed to have been more kind, had it been poffible in the nature of things; that is, in the nature of his own perfections, which gave nature to all things elfe: That his infinite wifdom power and love, could do no better than to exhibit a fyftem glo. rious in the main; but at the expenfe of the unutterable, end lefs lefs mifery of countlefs myriads of his own offspring. This lays a limitation on the Moft High, arifing from his own attributes; 'because thence flows the whole nature of things, as their nature cannot flow from non-entity.'*+ This very plaufible argument, here deduced by our author to difprove future punishment, does clearly argue the fyftem formed by the divine Being, to be in every fenfe unlimited : Or fuited not only to the highest good of ra tional creatures in general, but to the higheft good of each individual. And this the Doctor further confirms, in these words: All the evil of every kind that hath exifted, or fhall exift is 'real good in the whole connection; not only to the fyftem in general, but to every individual in it, capable of rational happiness. + From thefe quotations and other things in his book, Dr. H. this argument, drawn from the divine attri appears to improve butes, as a ground work on which he very much builds his fcheme. Agreeable to Dr. H. therefore, as the attributes of Deity are unlimited, fo the fyftem of rational created beings cannot be con. fidered as limited, or good in the main, neither in a collective nor individual fenfe. But the higheft good of each individual muit be promoted and fecured, as well as the higheft good of the whole. And even in fuch manner as that all the evil of every kind ‘that hath ever exifted, or fhall exist, is real good in the whole con'nection; not only to the fyftem in general, but to every indi'vidual in it, capable of rational happiness.' To fay then, as the above objection does, The gofpel was, in a partial view, or in the main, a bleffing to Judas, is a direct contradiction to one of the Doctor's leading principles. And however he may plead, that Judas could not have been faved had it not been for the interpofition of the Mediator, but must have been miferable without end; yet he muft grant it would have been far better for the fon of perdition, had he been all his days involved in pagan darkness. Why then did not the unreftrained power, wifdom and goodness of God' confine Judas, in fome dark corner of the earth? And how is all the evil of every kind that hath ever exifted, or fhall exift, a real good to every individual;' if the fon of perdition, after he has fuffered damnation in the highest fenfe,' be degraded to the loweft feat in heaven? He was elected, by the Saviour himfelf, a candidate for one of the highest feats in hea But if he was loft,' as Dr. H. fays, with refpect to the ven. . 6 proper P. 296, 297. In this fpecious way of arguing, Dr. H. might as well go on to prove the created fyftem to be infinite, becaufe God is infinite. Ethan Allen at tempus to prove that creation is eternal, because God is eternal. See Oracles of reafon + P. 298. under the head of creation's being eternal. proper feat of one of the twelve apoftles in the world to come, and with respect to that dignified lot, in this world, which Mat thias took in his place,'* and appointed to the lowest place among all given to Chrift; certainly he was loft with refpect to a very great degree of eternal happinefs and glory. His fall was great indeed. Indeed if he fell from the highest to the lowest feat in heaven, as is exprefsly aflerted he did, this does as truly break in upon our author's unlimited plan, as though he had falten to the lowest place in hell. When one falls from ten degrees of happinfs, the fall is as great as when another falls ten degrees lower in mifery. But when one falls ten degrees lower, either from happiness or into mifery; by the fame rule he may fall twenty, provided he deferve thus to fall. If one falls, however, ten degrees, there must be a firm foundation on which he can reft, to prevent his falling fill lower. If therefore, Judas by tranfgreffion fell' from that exalted ftate of happinefs, if he fell to the loweft ftate of happiness, Dr. H's firm foundation utterly fails. And we can fee no reason why he should not fall to the lowcit place of endless torment, or to his full defert of in. If he has received one half of the reward of his iniquity, or what bears a ftriking likenefs to it, what reafon can be given why he fhould not receive his full reward? If the all-atoning blood of Jefus, from which Dr. H. would argue every thing, and of courfe prove nothing; if this, or if the unlimited emanations of divine love,' did not prevent Judas'falling thus far; what could prevent his plunging ftill lower, even to the full reward of his deeds done in the body? It is granted that the fall of any rational creature, either to lower degrees of happinefs, or to greater degrees of mifery, is inconfiftent with unlimited goodnefs, unlefs fuch fall can answer, proportionably, a valuable end; and unless the creature so falling juftly deferves it. The fall of the Jews was the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles.'t Unlimited goodnefs required this awful event, as it related to the Jews; to bring about, however, this moft valuable end relating to the Gentiles. If therefore, the unlimited Being can accomplish the best of purpofes, by fending temporal judgements on part of our race, and that for a long fucceffion of ages; doubtlefs the fame Being can accomplish the highest valuable end, by fending endless curfes on part of mankind. It is limiting the holy One of Ifrael to fay he cannot; efpecially as he has exprefsly declared, he will thus inflict endlefs curfes. That fcheme is limited above all others, which fuppofes evils, either temporal or eternal, |