All is holiness-perfect holiness-without a single interAll is light-without a shade of We see now through a glass

ruption or temptation. darkness or confusion.

darkly, but then face to face-without the fear of mistake or the dread of error. And all is love-without a single alloy. Dwelling in the presence of love itself, the saints shall reflect the glorious image of Jesus, and be replenished with that unbounded and expansive charity which is the bond of perfectness. Controversy shall have no entrance there, because it will not be required. Now we are often called to contend for the faith, because there are those who would corrupt or destroy it. But there we are called to repose in love, because the jarring strife of time has no place in the New Jerusalem.

Or do we inquire concerning the citizens of that heavenly city. They are the blessed company of the elect of God, from all nations, tongues and kindred-the immense multitude whom no man can number-out of great tribulation-whose sins are washed away in the blood of the Lamb! Glorious company! patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs-yea, all who ever loved our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Surely we may well long to be with them in their noble employment and perfect holiness? But best and chief of all, Jesus is there!—the Mediator of the New Covenant--the Prince of Peace-the Redeemer of Manthe Saviour of his Church-His beauty eclipses all-His glory is the centre of attraction. "Behold, he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him." On his vesture is written the title of supremacy, "King of Kings, and Lord of Lords." And in his name is contained all that can inspire the song of gratitude-" the Lamb of God," who redeemed us to God by his own blood. And all this is eternal and unchangeable; not the fear of interruption, nor the most distant prospect of dissolution.

It is an eternal weight of glory-it is an incorruptible
crown-a kingdom that passeth not away.*

My friends and brethren, our hearts desire and prayer
to God is that you may be saved, and that his Spirit may
so guide you into all truth; that in life, and death, and
throughout eternity, you may enter into the meaning of
that glorious aphorism-" Christ is all and in all.”

See Appendix, C.

END OF THE SERIES.

APPENDIX.

A.

In my tract on the Trinity, I have refused the exclusive assumption of the title "Unitarian," by those who deny the doctrines of the Trinity, because it seems to imply, that they only hold the truth of the Unity of the Godhead -which is contrary to fact. In this Sermon, I use the term in compliance with custom, and because adopted by the rest of my brethren, and not because I conceive it properly applied.

B.

Simpson's Essay against the eternity of future punishments has been cited by Dr. Priestley, Grundy, and other Unitarian writers, as perfectly satisfactory. I have perused the essay with attention, and referred to many of his criticisms, and I must say, that with a great show of fairness and learning, it appears to me destitute of both. He first lays down his own rules of interpretation, and then makes his arrangement of passages to square with these rules. Thus alwv and alwvios are quoted in all the passages descriptive of the future punishment of the wicked-p. 6. But in order to reduce them to his own measure, he gives us four classifications of alwv and alwvios. 1. Where they are applied to this present life. 2. Where they are used for past limited duration. 3. To future limited duration. And, 4. Where they are used to signify duration without end. In the third class he inserts many texts that may be fairly debated.-Mic. iv. 7; Eph. ii. 7; and Jude v. 25. In the fourth class, he gives many on the eternal happiness of the righteous, and excludes the state of the wicked in the most arbitrary manner. In this way, any system may be supported, and any truth denied.

As a specimen of his criticism, I may refer to his remarks on 2 Thess. i. 9, where he is anxious to do away with the force of oxelpov aiwviov, he tells us this should be rendered "death for the age from the presence of the Lord;" and then he quotes from Chandler, to show that oλepos means not the entire extinction of the thinking principle, but only an entire extinction of that life which they receive by the resurrection, or by the re-union of

soul and body." If he or Chandler had studied the whole chapter, they would have found that this could not be the meaning, for it speaks of the punishment of the wicked who are alive at Christ's Second Coming, and not the risen wicked.—see v. 8. Oxe@pos, he states, never means, in the Septuagint, annihilation, and Schleusner is quoted as saying that it literally means "homo perniciosus;" but they forgot to add that his next meaning is-pernicies, exitium, interitus, and these are as strong as needs be. We never contended that oλepos should be rendered annihilation, but, with Schleusner, "punishment," which is explained in the text to be-"destruction or banishment from the presence of the Lord," and this will constitute the severest punishment.

Simpson is then anxious to lessen the weight of the adjective alwvios, and because it does not always mean everlasting, he concludes it cannot be so understood in this passage!—the only reason given is that oλe¤pos does not suppose annihilation, and, therefore, alwvios must be limited—p. 41. If this be sound criticism, we must confess that we must put out of sight all the usual rules of critical deduction, and go to the Arian schools to find out the method of bending texts to our own fancies. The whole passage declares the awful separation of the quick at Christ's coming, the righteous are glorified, and the wicked are banished from Christ's presence, and as far as the text goes it excludes any idea of change in their respective states.

C.

I have not, in this Sermon, touched upon the idea of annihilation, because it is not held by Unitarians, but strongly opposed by them. It is, indeed, so directly contrary to Scripture, philosophy and good sense, that the only wonder is, how any individual, professing to reverence the Bible, could be found to broach such dangerous views. A few words on it may be needful and useful. I need not dwell on the philosophy of the assertion, that the wicked shall be annihilated, because it is contrary to all our notions of spirit or of matter. The schools, I believe, are unanimous in denying the destruction of matter. It is transmuted and remodelled, but not annihilated. The advocates of the opinion refer us to the Scriptures, and maintain that it is revealed by God, and, therefore, to be received. Eternal life, they say, is God's gift, and no longer continued to man as a part of his being; hence the righteous enjoy life for ever as the boon of God; whereas, the wicked are utterly destroyed, and do not exist in the world to come, because life was forfeited by sin. If they meant Eternal life in the sense of Scripture,-as synonymous with glory-the first part of the assertion would be true-but if they intend continued existence—we deny that the Scriptures exclude the wicked from it but every where hold it out as their miserable portion.-President Edwards, with his usual clearness, has summed up the Scriptural arguments against it. I will, therefore, merely give a synopsis of his arguments.

1. The Scriptures every where represent the punishment of the wicked as implying extreme pains and sufferings; but a state of annihilation is no pain at all.

2. Scripture and reason lead us to suppose that the wicked hereafter will be sensible of their misery, and of the cause-viz.-the infliction of divine justice for the breach of the divine law; but, if annihilated, they could not know that God will be just in his punishment, or that they receive the due rewards of their sins.

3. The Scriptures constantly teach that the wicked will suffer different degrees of torment, according to the different aggravations of their sins. This is utterly inconsistent with the idea of annihilation, in which there can be no degrees, but is the same thing to every one who is the subject of it.

4. The Scriptures are express that the eternal misery of the wicked will consist in sensible misery, and not in annihilation. They are said to weep, and wail, and gnash with their teeth, which imply real existence. They are said to have no rest day nor night, and to be tormented with fire and brimstone for ever and ever (Rev. xx. 10;) but annihilation is a state of resta state in which not the least torment can possibly be suffered. The spirits of ungodly men, when they die, are said to be in torment, (Luke xvi.) much more when they are raised up to receive the full reward of their deeds; whereas annihilation would free them from agony and sorrow, and put an end to their misery.

*

*See further "The Eternity of Hell Torments," a Sermon by Jonathan Edwards, Edinburgh, 1826.

LIVERPOOL: PRINTED BY H. PERRIS, CHURCH STREET.