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3. That a Committee be form- | have done evil, unto the refurrec tion of damnation.' He will fay unto fome, Depart ye cursed, into everlafting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels,-and thefe fhall go away into everlasting punishment.'

ed for taking into confideration the best means by which a Periodical Publication, fimilar to the Evangelical Magazine, could be formed and conducted in France. 4. That an application be made for fix fuitable perfons to be fent over to England, to receive inftructions under the patronage of our Society, with a view to the exercise of the Proteftant Miniftry in France.

5. That an Address from our Society to the Proteftants in France, tending to call forth their exertions in the cause of the Redeemer, be formed by the Com⚫mittee of Correspondence.

6. That the Rev. Samuel Tracy be appointed the Agent of our Society in Paris, for fix months to come; and that he be confidered as having acted in that capacity from the commencement of his arrival in that city.

(Signed by order of the Committee.)

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The question fuppofes, that fome men will be left of God to go on in fin and perish. This is confirmed by the holy fcriptures. Our Lord hath faid, Wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to deftruction, and many there be which go in thereat because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.' They that have done good, fhall come forth unto the refurrection of life, and they that

It is not from any inability in God to renew and fave all, that any are left to perifh in their fins, for all hearts are in his hands, and nothing is impoffible with him. He hath mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.' Nor are any left to perish, through a defect in his benevolence. God is love.' His benevolence is rendered un. queftionable by the gift of his Son, the provifion of an infinite atonement, and his direction that the offers of falvation fhould be made thro' all the world, unto every creature, without limitation, and by fuch an administration of government as produces the higheft poffible happiness in the univerfe. There can be no want of goodness in God. There is none good but one, that is God.' It furely can be no reafonable objection to his goodnefs, that when mankindreject Chrift, and his great falvation, freely offered, and affectionately urged upon them, God does not in every inftance fubdue their obftinacy, and make them willing in the day of his grace. And it fhould be kept in mind, that this is the real state of men. They all begin to make excufe, when called upon by the meffages of grace. Chrift faith, Ye will not come unto me that ye might have life.' We ought rather to admire the wonderful benevolence of God, in reclaiming and faving any, after such abuse, and fuch a difcovery of the extreme depravity of the human heart, than to harbor any jealoufies of his good

nefs because he does not compel | all to come in. There is a wide difference between offering falvation to finners; and by an almighty act difpofing them to receive it, after they have deliberately and ungratefully rejected the offer. It would have been a glorious expreffion of benevolence in God to have done the former, tho' he had not seen fit to have done the latter.

But if we were unable to affign any reafons why God leaves fome to perish, it would fill be arrogance in us to conclude that there were not fufficient reafons. It would rather become us to acquiefce in the language of our Lord. I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou haft hid thefe things from the wife and prudent, and haft revealed them unto babes, even fo, Father, for fo it hath feemed good in thy fight.'-Tho' we can by no means fathom the counfels of God, nor pretend to know all the particular reasons of this inftance of his adminiftration, yet fome valuable ends, which are anfwered by it, may be clearly feen. A few will be here mentioned.

There is no room to question the right which God has, even after an atonement, to leave fome to perish; and in fuch circumstances, a difplay of juftice is peculiarly ftriking, and expreffive of God's holinefs. Thus God is willing to fhew his wrath, and make his power known, on the veffels of wrath, fitted to deftruction: and all the inhabitants of heaven will fay, true and righteous are thy judgments, and will cry Alleluia, when the fmoke of their torment afcendeth forever and ever.

2. God, by leaving fome to perish, teaches his creatures that he will have his grace respected by them.-Mankind have placed themfelves, by rejecting Chrift, in very different circumftances from those they were in before grace was offered and refused. They are now guilty of fin, not only against the law of God, but alfo against the difpenfation of his wonderful grace. This renders it fuitable that they should be viewed in a very different light, and be treated accordingly. Their fins against the tranfcendant glory of divine grace, are not only an infinite aggravation of their guilt, but they form a new species of wickedness, diftinct from their disobedience to the law of God, and of a nature more base, ungrateful and malignant. It is fuch a kind of wickedness as the fallen angels never committed, and as never be

1. By leaving fome to perish in their fins, God makes a moft full and impreffive manifeftation of his juftice, greater than could have otherwife been effected. It is true, that the abhorrence of God towards all fin, and his regard to the divine law, have been fo mani-fore appeared in the universe; for fested by the atonement of Chrift, that the justice of God would not have fuffered, tho' all had been faved; but then it would not have been manifefted in God's dealings with this finful world, for it cannot be truly faid, that the fufferings of Chrift were due to him, or that they were a manifeftation of diftributive juftice.

none ever before finned against redeeming mercy, and the offers of a gracious pardon for rebellion againft God. It is therefore a fpecies of fin, which never had been punished, fo as to manifett God's peculiar abhorrence of it. Difobedience and rebellion against the law and authority of God, had been punished in the fallen

angels. Their fufferings declare the wrath of God for that defcription of fin, but not for fins committed against redeeming love. For the fame reasons for which it was neceffary and fuitable, that the fallen angels fhould fuffer for their rebellion, that the law of God might be respected; it seems proper, that there should be examples of God's peculiar difpleafure at unbelief, that the grace of God might be refpected by his creatures. It was fuitable in the eyes of infinite wifdom and rectitude, that this fhould take place. This ferves to exhibit the dignified nature of the difpenfation of grace, and fhows that tho' God is gracious and merciful, he is not regardlefs of himfelf, nor of his mercy; but will be refpected, and will have his grace refpected by his creatures.

carnal heart is fo inimical to God, that it can never be fubject to his law.

As this fhows the extreme malignity of a finful fpirit, and its irreconcilable averfion to any propofals, which a holy God can make, it very greatly illuftrates the juflice of God, in dooming evil angels, as well as men, to never ending mifery. It becomes evident, that their hearts are fuch that they never could be reclaimed, but by the all conquering and irresistible power of God, and that they are fit only to be configned to hopeless mifery.

4. God in leaving fome finners to go on in their wickedness and perifh, makes a moft glorious difplay of the prerogative of divine fovereignty, beyond any thing of the kind which had ever before been fet in the view of his creatures. He exercises, before the eyes of all intelligence, his fovereign right to difpofe of finners as he pleases, for the purposes of his own glory, either as veffels of mercy, or of wrath. This had never before been exhibited by example. This is a striking manifestation, that God confiders the finner as having forfeited all good

3. The unyielding nature of a finful fpirit had never before been afcertained, by actual experiment, and clearly exhibited to creatures. The fallen angels never had the offers of mercy, and it was not known to creatures, that they were fo utterly depraved, but that the offers of grace and motives of infinite importance, mighthave pre--as being in the hands of a rightvailed on them to have returned to God; and fo the juftice of God in their punishment could not be feen in its full strength and luftre. But the offer has been made to man, and motives of infinite weight have been prefented and it is now afcertained by actual experiment, in the cafe of thofe under the inftructions of the gofpel, who are left of God to go on in fin, that a finful fpirit is too obftinate to be reduced by any motives, or of fers of pardon and acceptance. The implacable nature of fin is made clearly manifeft. It is no It is no longer queftionable whether the VOL. III. No. 11.

eous Judge, and that he himself is under no kind of obligations to fpare him. He may therefore ufe him in any way that shall be moft for his own glory and the good of his kingdom, either as an example of juftice or of grace. This fovereignty is alfo further manifefted, in giving fome the offers of mercy, while a knowledge of the gofpel is withheld from others. In all this the language of his proceedings is, Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the fame lump, to make one veffel to honor and another unto dishonor?” If God renewed all, this gloriova Ggg

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difplay of divine fovereignty would not have been made.

5. Another valuable end which is obtained by God, in leaving fome to go on in fin and perifh, is the peculiar difplay which this makes of the riches of his grace to those whom he renews, and chooses to be the veffels of his mercy.—If God had renewed and faved the whole of mankind, it might never have been fo ftrongly felt by creatures, that there was no kind of obligation on God to the finner, to convert him; and that he was at perfect liberty, even after an adequate redemption had been provided, either to apply it or not apply it, to the falvation of the finner, as fhould appear good in his fight.

Nor could this grace have appeared to fuch advantage, had all been faved, for want of the ftriking contrast exhibited in the different treatment which the veffels of wrath, and of mercy, refpectively receive from the hand of God. This idea appears to have deeply impreffed the mind of the apostle Paul, when he said, "What if God, willing to fhew his wrath and make his power known, endued with much long-fuffering the veffels of wrath fitted to deftruction, and that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of his mercy which he had afore prepared unto glory." Ifaiah alfo gives us the fame idea from the mouth of God. "And it fhall come to pafs, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, fhall all flesh come to worship before me, faith the Lord. And they fhall go forth, and look upon the carcafes of the men which have tranfgreffed against me; for their worm fhall not die, neither fhall their fire be quenched, and

they fhall be an abhorring unte all Refh."-Thus the diftinguifhing exercife of grace makes a peculiar difplay of the riches of divine mercy, towards thofe who are faved.

From the whole it is conceived, that it is made plain, that the atonement is infinitely full-that God in his invitations to finners, and in his folemn declaration, that he hath no pleafure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live, is confiftent with his leaving fome to go on in fin and perifh-And that there are reafons which may be affigned why God does not convert and fave all the human race: Particularly, that the punishment of unbelief, which is a new and peculiar fpecies of wickednefs, might be exemplified-the juftice of God be more fully mani fefted-that by the exhibition of the unyielding nature of fin, the juftice of God in the endless punifhment of evil men and angels might be seen in its true glory— that the fovereignty of God, and the dignified manner in which he exercifes his grace might be known -and that the exceeding riches of his grace towards the redeemed, might appear as they are.-In all thefe refpects, God illuftrates his own glorious perfections, in the view of his creatures, and enriches them with the knowledge of him. felf, by leaving fome to go on in fin and perish; and in proportion as he brings himself into view, he adds to the everlasting bleffednefs of his whole kingdom. The wifdom and goodness of God are alfo displayed, in adopting a measure calculated to produce fo many valuable ends, and creatures are effectually taught the firmness and ftability, with which the Moft High proceeds in his administra

tions of government.-These are great and valuable ends, which we see are anfwered by the fovereign difpenfations of grace and juftice among men. So many

way and live. Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Ifrael?'

reafons for this way of proceed. An explanation of the eleventh chap

ing are made known to us; perhaps more may be seen by a fufficient attention to the fubject, and probably many more will be

ter of the Revelation. [Continued from page 388.]

PART II. ROCEEDING to the pro

difcovered by the people of God, pofed explanation, and mak

ing only thofe very concife and general obfervations which fhall be fuppofed fufficient to illuftrate and confirm the fubjects fuggefted, we have, ver. 1. the direction of the angel, Rife, aud measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.As the fubjects contained in this chapter, and generally through the whole book are expressed in figurative terms, it is of peculiar importance juftly to conceive the primary import of them, and then to accommodate this to the fubject propofed, which will communicate to us their true fignification. Is it not well known, that the temple was an edifice erected in Jerufalem for the worship of God according to his own appointment? The altar was an appendage to the temple, and ef fentially neceffary for the perform.

in the world to come. But how many reasons God has for thefe proceedings, no finite creature can determine. Canft thou by fearching find out God, canft thou find out the Almighty to perfection? Finally; the things which have been noticed, in attending to this important queftion, are calculated to imprefs our minds with the infinite mercy of God, in producing an all-fufficient atonement, and freely offering falvation to us all-with our infinite obligations to Jefus Chrift, for the things he has done and faid to purchafe mercy for finners-with the awful wickednefs and inexcufableness of the impenitent and unbelieving, whofe blood must be upon their own heads-with the mercy of God, in reclaiming any from their obftinate perverfenefs, to himfelf-with the iadifpenfible duty of all who hear the gofpel, to repent and believe without de-ance of the temple fervice. Here lay-with the reasons which finners have to tremble at their guilt and danger and with the peculiar obligations of thofe whom God has renewed, and adopted into his family, to admire diftinguishing grace, and be conftant and zealous in his fervice. And let the world admire the compaffion, and obey the gracious exhortations of God, who fays, As I live, faith the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his

the facrifices were offered, and devotional exercises attended. In the temple the priests taught the people out of the book of the law, and Chrift preached the gofpel of the kingdom. The temple, at the dedication of it, was filled with the glory of God. This was the place of his moft gracious refidence. Here he manifefted himself, heard the fupplications and received the praises of his people. For these reasons it was called holy, and mount

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