self that office, and equally as hard to apply one text for the restoration of devils, seeing the Almighty says, "Unto you, O men! I call, and my voice is to the sons of men." They must therefore say, with Saul the king, I forced myself into this office.'

I believe that these advocates for devils do not allow Satan that share of serpentine wisdom which the scriptures apply to him; for, if Christ is to restore all things, both devils and damned souls, to the favour of God, the devil must be a mere fool to tempt so many saints to blaspheme the Saviour; and a greater fool still to wish to destroy him from the pinnacle of the temple; for, if Satan could have destroyed the great Restorer, what would become of his restoration? This doctrine, contrary to the doctrine of Christ, represents Satan as divided against himself; and, if so, either his kingdom or his restoration must fall: Satan must be divided against himself, or else be ignorant of this mystery of his restoration; and, if the devil be ignorant of it, it is a mystery to me where these advocates for the devil got it.

I believe that man must be a master of arts who can fix any time, either in the purpose of heaven or in his own brain, when the devil's everlasting chains under darkness are to be broken; when the punishment with everlasting destruction from the presence of God is to have a period; when those who shall awake to everlasting shame and contempt are to be glorified; when the eternal law

is to be repealed; when the jots and tittles of it are to fail, and the Saviour's words pass away; when the irrevocable decree of reprobation is to be displaced; when the eternal damnation that Christ speaks of is to cease; the sentence which is passed be recalled; the gulph fixed be removed; the smoke which ascends for ever and ever blow over; and when those to whom Christ says, "Where I am ye cannot come," are to come where he is; and when this device and knowledge, that is fetched from the grave and hell, is to take place.

I believe that he had need be a master of languages and a master of arts too, who dreams of times and periods after the destruction of the world, seeing all beyond is vast eternity.

I believe that the forger and defender of this doctrine of the devil's restoration, and the power which authorises and influences this sort of intercessors, is the father of lies himself, who keeps possession of these his advocates and his goods in peace; but, should grace reach their hearts, and the hour of temptation follow that, after they have been winnowed in Satan's sieve, as Peter was; buffeted by the devil, as Paul was; or have their goods, family, body, and soul, smitten by him, as Job had; they would soon quit, if they did not curse, their office; for they would find work enough to make their own calling and election sure; and consequently would leave the devil to plead his own cause, and say, with Paul, We are not igno

rant of Satan's devices; and counsel others to have no fellowship with devils.

I believe that the Pope, who is the founder and upholder of purgatory, received, agreeable to scripture, his seat, power, authority, and doctrine, from the devil himself; and I believe those that are trading with the doctrine of devil's restoration received their lies from the same father.

I believe that the apostles' doctrine is daily fulfilling, which saith, " In the latter days many shall depart from the faith." And I believe that our modern hypocrites are awfully fallen from the honest confession of their ancestors. The ancient hypocrites were afraid, and said, "Who among us shall dwell with devouring fire? Who shall dwell with everlasting burning?" But our stage-players intimate that they were in great fear where no fear was, for that there is no such thing as everlasting burnings.

I believe that the confession of the ancient hypocrites in Zion contained the words of truth and sound doctrine; that there really are such things as devouring fire and everlasting burnings, where the wicked shall go, as the Saviour says, "Depart from me ye cursed, into everlasting fire," that is, into hell; into the fire that never shall be quenched;" where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."

I believe that those who ascertain the death of this never dying worm, and the going out of this

unquenchable fire, have not properly considered either the fire or the fuel. "Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large; the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it,” Isai. xxx. 33. When all the withered branches of fallen Adam are cast into this Tophet, all the vessels of wood and of earth, which Paul calls vessels to dishonour, together with every corrupt tree, and every fruitless figtree, made to be taken and destroyed, and the breath of Almighty God kindling in these thickets of briers and thorns, we may well say, with the prophet, that this funeral pile consisteth of fire and much wood; and that man had need be a master of languages who resolves the Saviour's question upon this subject; "If they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?"

If the words everlasting destruction, tor mented for ever and ever, eternal damnation, &c. have no other meaning than for a limited time, I believe that eternal life, everlasting love, everlasting salvation, and shining in the glory of God's kingdom for ever and ever, must have a limited time also; and the everlasting God, the eternal God, who lives for ever and ever, may cease to exist at some certain period too: The words which aver the eternal existence of God fix the eternal salvation of the elect, and the everlast ́ing doom of the damned; therefore, if this gaol

delivery for devils could be proved, there is nothing certain, for the very kingdom of heaven might be moved. A ground of hope in the depths of hell would make the pillars of heaven tremble.

I believe that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God; and that suffering under the curse of the law in hell can by no means be called obedience to the precepts of the law, any more than condemned sinners cursing their king and their God can be said to be fulfilling all righte

ousness.

I believe that no men are so proper to carry on the public business of spouting and disputing about the glorious mysteries of God, in the assemblies of the wicked, as those who have had their enmity stirred up, their rage inflamed, their consciences seared, and who have received a savour of death unto death, by sitting under the gospel. These men move in their proper element; for they were of old ordained to this condemnation. But for men that have any reverence of God, conscience towards him, knowledge of the truth, or love to it, to tempt God, and grieve his Spirit by attending upon the scorner's chair, and frequenting the assemblies of hypocritical mockers, act quite out of character, and will make a deal of hard work for conscience another day. God tells us to let the potsherds strive with the potsherds of the earth. These pitchers, that have been broken at the fountain, and are to be sunk in the pit, can never be of any use to God's elect. Men, whom