ferve, by way of anfwer, is, that the character of God is perfect. No other, than a character every way perfect, can anfwer what is feen and declared of God in his works of creation, and providence, and in the volume of infpiration. In all thefe, he is declared to be felf-exiftent, independent, and the first cause of all things that exist. In our ideas of perfection in God we unite natural and moral attributes, in the higheft poffible degree. The natural attributes afcribed to Godare rational, intelligent exiflence, fuch as wisdom, knowledge and power, in a much higher degree than any created being is able to conceive. But a being poffeffed of fuch unbounded knowledge, wifdom and power, might be unfpeakably dreadful to creatures, if his moral character or attributes were not good. That the moral character of God is alfo infinitely perfect in holinefs, juftice, goodness and truth we have abundant and ample teftimony both from nature and revela tion. In this view of the natural and moral character of God, he is the fum of all perfection, nothing can ever be added to his knowledge, wifdom or power; or to his holinefs, justice, goodness or truth, and nothing can ever be taken from them, for he is unchangeable. 2. Every thing that exifts, befide God himself, had its origin in him and according to his will: They must then be according to, or agreeable to his wisdom; i. e. agreeable to infinite wifdom, power, holincfs, juttice, goodness and truth. If God acts, he muft act himfelf, or according to his nature. And as all things originate in him, and are brought into existence by him, it is impoffible he should have any inducement to act otherwife, " he cannot deny himself." All the divine operations and counfels of God are perfectly holy. Al poffible things are before him, and he chooses, and cannot but choose, agreeable to his holy nature, that which is beft-should he not choose that which is beft in every thing, it would denote imperfection, it would be acting contrary to his holy nature, he would deny himself, which is impoffible. 3. As all intelligent exiftence is comprehended in God and rational creatures, the holiness of his nature would lead him, in all his acts and difpenfations, to regard the higheft good, happiness and glory of the whole; this must be true be nevolence and impartial goodness. Of the being that does this, we may well fay his name is love. God was acting thus when he gave to creatures his holy law. This law he gave as a perfect rule of duty tending to perfect happiness, and without conformity to it no creature from the very nature of things, ever could, can, or will be happy. This divine law, in no part of it, proceeded from any thing arbitrary in God, he did not in its precepts and penalties have it thus becaufe he would, when he might as well have had it otherwife; but it originated both in its precepts and penalties from the holy and perfect nature of God, and from the reafon and nature of things (for the latter arifes from the former.) Therefore for God to alter this law, which commands us to love him with all the heart and our neighbor as ourselves; or to alter or fet afide the penalties annexed to it, would be to act contrary to his perfect nature, contrary to the reafon and nature of things, contra. ry to the gofpel itfelf, which is net introduced to deftroy but to fulfil this law, to magnify and make it honorable, to reftore finners to aquires, therefore all his fufferings conformity to it, as the only poffi-can make no atonement for pale ble way to make them happy. Yea fins, even though in future he comto alter or change this holy law, inmitted no fin.` any refpect, would be to deny himfelf. Thus our divine Lord faid heaven and earth fhall pafs before one jot or title of it shall fail. The law of God therefore in its precepts and penalties must remain as unchangeable as the nature of God himself. Human laws are changed, and penalties are remitted; but this They finite perfection and glory of his character and law. How amazingly dreadful then is the state of a finner, who has broken the holy law of God! Where is the poffibility of his being forgiven? God is unchangeable, his government is perfect and cannot be altered. Nothing prefents but abfolute and everlasting defpair. God alone is able to fay if there is any poffible way, by which fin may arifes merely from their imperfecbe forgiven, confiftent with the intion were they perfect. would admit of no change, this is the cafe with the law and government This, my fellow-finners, this of God, it is perfect and admits way of forgiveness God has reof no change. vealed, in the gospel of his Son. If God's law, in all its precepts He can be juft to his own charac and penalties, originates from theter, law and government, and yet unchangeable and infinitely perfect nature of God; if all his operations, determinations and government harmonize in forming one uniform, unchanging glorious charafter; then the tranfgreffor of God's law muft look in vain for any change in him, or remiffion of thofe penalties which God views infinitely right. the juftifier of him who believes on his Son. And there is no other name given under heaven among men, by which we can be faved but by the name of Jefus. The queftion may again be afked, How does it appear that fuch a way of forgivenefs and falvation ist effected and wrought out by Chrift, that God can be juft to his charHow can God pardon the tranf-acter, law and government and yet. greffor and receive him to favor, juftify and forgive the finner, who till he has fuffered the penalties of believes on his Son ? his law, and not be inconfiftent with himself? If the finner fuffers the penaltics, when will they end? While he is a finner, and continues to fin, the penalty of the law grows heavier and heavier upon him; for his obligation to love God, and obey his law, can never in any fituation cease. At beft he is but a creature, and if perfectly holy he can render nothing more to God than his due; he can do no work of fupererogation. If under the penalty of the law he can fuffer nothing more than the law re In attending to this all-important fubject, we must obtain all our light from divine revelation-and on this point it is abundantly explicit and full. All that can now be attempted is to arrange fome of the most important and leading ideas, and leave enlargement to the reader. 1. It appears from the facred writings that the divine law does admit of a substitute or public head. In this fituation Adam stood in regard to his pofterity. By divine conftitution they were all involved in his fall, fo that by his difobedi ence many were made finners. And the contrary feems equally plain, that had he obeyed many would have been made righteous. 2. The fcriptures bring into view the compact or covenant of redemption as being voluntarily entered into between the Father and the Son from eternity, and that thofe, who believe, were chofen in Christ even before the foundation of the world. Thus the undertaking to redeem man from fin and mifery on the part of the Mediator, was voluntary and of free choice. 3. The perfon who undertook the work of redemption was the eternal Son of God: No creature let him be ever fo exalted could be equal to the task, for he could do no more than his duty. In the holy fcriptures, all the attributes of the God-head and equality with the Father are afcribed to the Son. fallen; for perfect obedience, to the divine law, is neceffary in order to eternal life and juftification before God, nor can it be difpenfed with. But the fpiritual feed, which Chrift reprefents, are children of the first Adam. They are finners. They are condenmed by the holy law of God. Obedience entitles to life, only where there is no fin: It cannot make atonement and fatisfy the penalty of the law of God. Therefore fomething further than obedience muft be done by the Redeemer or not a finful child of Adam can be faved. The penalty of the law cannot be difpenfed with under the perfect and juft government of God. This the Gad-man Mediator freely fubmits to fuffer. He gave his foul an offering for fin. He was bruifed for our iniquities, the chaftifement of our peace was upon him, and by his ftripes we are healed. When he hung on the cross, light and comfort from the Godhead were withdrawn and he was treated as a finner. This caufed the bitter cry, "My God, My God, why haft thou forfaken me?” 4. When every neceffary preparation was made for the Redeemer to enter upon his work, he took upon him the human nature, and was really man as well as God. God manifeft in the flesh, the brightnefs of the Father's glory and exprefs image of his perfon. He took not upon him the nature of angels, but that nature he came to redeem. As the first Adam had broken the law of God and entailed death upon all his natural feed whofe reprefentative he flood, fo, that in confequence of his difobedience, they all come into the world with a depraved, finful dif pofition and fo under the curfe. The fecond Adam, our Lord Jefus Chrift, obeyed the law of God as the fubftitute or reprefentative This work being completed by of all his fpiritual feed. His obe- the Redeemer the way is opened dience is accepted with God as for the exercife of divine mercy. theirs would have been had they God can be juft and yet the juffinnever finned, or the firft Adam'er of him who believes. But Thus the human nature of the man Chrift Jefus was facrificed ap on the altar of his divinity, which fanctified and gave infinite efficacy to the gift; and to which all preceding facrifices under the Mofaic law pointed. Being a divine perfon united to the God-head his fuffering the penalty gave infinite honor to the holy law of God. I may fay a greater honor than if it had been inflicted in everlasting punishment on the guilty themselves. though the way is open for the exercife of mercy to all who are united to Chrift by faith; yet man being dead in fin has no heart to believe and to love the holy character of God, and unlefs fomething ftill more was done would never receive any faving benefit from the atonement. To remedy this evil and render things pertaining to falvation complete, in confequence of the obedience and death of Chrift, the Holy Spirit is given to renew and fanctify the heart, and apply the benefits of redemption to the foul. The Mediator himself after rifing from the dead afcended to Heaven there to appear in the pref ence of God for us ; 'to afk and receive all that is neceffary to carry on the work of redemption; to fupport and finally bring his people to eternal life. How wonderful is this plan of faving mercy, how harmonious in all its parts! Mercy and truth meet together; righteoufnefs and peace embrace each other. How aftonishing is divine love! How much it has done! Our obligations to love and obey God are unfpeakably increafed, by the way provided, and freely offered to redeem finners. How aggravatedly dreadful the fin, and how black the ingratitude to refufe fuch offers of love and grace! If he that defpifed Mofes's law died without mercy, of how much forer punishment fhall he be thought worthy who treads under foot the blood of the Son of God? ZETA. TO THE EDITORS OF THE CON- AZINE. GENTLEMEN, SINCE the deceafe of the late Prefident Edwards, there have VOL. II. No. 10. been many enquiries why the pub- I am, Gentlemen, &c. JD. D. Prefident of Union ONATHAN EDWARDS, College in Schenectady, was the fon of the late Reverend Jonathan Edwards formerly minifter of the church of Chrift in Northampton, in the Commonwealth of Maffachusetts, and afterwards Prefident of the College at Princeton in NewJerfey, and Mrs. Sarah Edwards, daughter of Rev. Mr. Pierpont of New-Haven. He was the fecond fon of his parents, and was born at Northampton, on the 26th day of May O. S. 1745. However promifing his capacity may have appeared in early childhood, and however ambitious he may have been of excelling at that age when the mind begins to unfold itfelf; this period of his life was attended with a number of fingularly embarraffing circumftances, the tendency of which was to reprefs his exertion, and to difcourage his ambition. In early childhood, he was afflic ted with an imflammatory weaknefs in his eyes which almost entirely prevented his learning to read until a much later period than is common for children in New-England. This weakness refifted maZ z ny and long continued applications; | from any English fettlement. At this place he continued but four months by reafon of the war which broke out between England and until by the fhaving of his head, repeated often, und for a long time, the inflammation in fome degree, abated, and he was enabled to ap-France, and extended itself into their colonies. Whilst he was with the Oneida Indians during this short time, he made rapid progrefs in acquiring their language, and in engaging their affections. They were fo much pleased with his attainments, and his amiable difpofition, that, when they thought their fettlement expofed to inroads from the French, they took him upon their fhoulders, and carried him many miles through the wilderness, to a place which they deemed fecure. After this he never returned to them any more. In the month of February 1760, when he had almost completed his ply himself moderately to the rudiments of learning, and to revive in his anxious parents the hope that he would not be entirely loft to the literary world. During his childhood alfo, the unhappy contest rofe to its height, between his father, and the church and fociety of Northampton, and terminated in their feparation, by the difmiffion of Mr. Edwards. When Mr. Edwards, with his family, removed to Stockbridge, this fon, was but fix years old. In addition to the infirmity in his eyes, new and important difficulties attended him, during his refidence in Stockbridge. There was no fchool in the fettle-fifteenth year, he commenced the ment but one which was common to the Indian children, and the white people and there were fo few of the latter, either in the fchool, or the town, that he was in danger of forgetting entirely the English tongue. Whilft at fchool here, he learned the language of the Mohekaneew, or Stockbridge Indians fo perfectly, that the natives frequently obferved "that he spoke exactly like an Indian." This language he retained, in a good degree, through life, and the public is in poffeffion of fome interefting remarks upon it, which he publifh-ley. ed a number of years fince. As his father intended him for a miffionary among the Aborigines, he fent him, in October 1755, when he was but ten years of age, with the Rev. Gideon Hawley, (now of Mathpee on Cape Cod) to Oughquauga on the Sufquehannah River, to learn the language of the O neida Indians. Oughquauga was, then, at the diftance of about one hundred miles (in the wilderness,) ftudy, of the Latin language, at a grammar fchool in Princeton, in New-Jerfey; and was admitted a member of the College in the fame town, in September of the year following; and in September 1765, He received the degree of Bachel or of Arts. In the year 1763, and whilft he was at College, at a time of general awakening in Princeton, he obtained a hope of his reconciliation to God through Chrift. This was during the Prefidency, and under the impreffive preaching of the late Doctor Fin The following dedication of himfelf to the fervice of God, which was made by him at that time, was found among his papers after his decease. Naffau-Hall, Sept. 17, 1763. "I' Jonathan Edwards, ftudent of the College in New Jersey, on "this feventeenth day of Septemer 1763, being the day before the first |