exceeding the apostles and evangelists in success, with respect to conversion work, that he declares "the Lord has not given you an heart to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear unto this day," Deut. xxix. 4; and calls them a perverse generation, a nation void of counsel, and children in whom is no faith, Deut. xxxii. 20. And we know that their carcases fell in unbelief twenty thousand together. Yea, and the Jews for rejecting of Christ and cleaving to Moses were destroyed by infinite numbers, and with an infinite destruction; and a Pharisee, who is the greatest advocate for the law, is farther from the kingdom of God than publicans and harlots; and if Moses be but read the vail is upon their hearts, nor can it be taken away till they turn to the Lord.

No fruits are brought forth under the law but wild grapes, wild figs, untimely fruits, dead works, mercenary and eye service, and fruits unto death; and all spring from the base principles of slavish fear; done to get a name or to be seen of men, to merit heaven, and bring God in debtor to them : their works spring from the fear of a condemned criminal, which is the worst of roots, and are directed to self, the worst of ends; hence Israel is said to be an empty vine, not united to Christ the true vine, therefore he brings forth fruit to himself, Hosea x. 1; whereas the Christian finds that from God is his fruit found, Hos. xiv. 8; and instead of bringing forth fruit to himself he must deny himself daily.

With respect to its usefulness to instruct the children of God, it may be answered, believers are not without teachers; the Lord their God teaches them to profit, Isaiah xlviii. 17. He teaches them by the Spirit of love, 2 Tim. i. 7; to love him, Deut. xxx. 6. Yea, and they are taught of God to love one another, 1 Thes. iv. 9. Christ, the great prophet of the church, teaches them also. It is not now, remember the law of Moses my servant, but it is, "this is my beloved Son, hear ye him." "All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children." The Spirit of God, "the anointing which ye have received of him, abideth in you; and ye need not that any man teach you [if he be a minister of the letter, or one that brings rules of life from the snares of death]: but, as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is true, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him," 1 John ii. 27. The grace of God, that bringeth salvation, teaches them to deny ungodliness and worldly lust, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world, Titus ii. 11, 12. The believer's own reins, when God tries him, instruct him in the night season, Psalm xvi. 7. "The heart of the wise, [being a new heart, which contains a new spirit,] teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips." Thus the children of God are not without teachers, nor yet without divine and infallible teachers. And I would to God that the saints would attend a little more to their di

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vine teaching; they would not stumble upon the dark mountains, be tossed about with every blind guide and wind of doctrine, and go hood-winked, groping for the wall at noon-day, as numbers of them do. But, alas, alas! instead of searching the Scriptures, as they are commanded to do, which are able to make them wise to salvation, through faith that is in Christ Jesus, they load their shelves, and stuff their heads with the notions of what are called the fathers; when, if they would try them by God's standard, they would find that not one half of their notions would stand the touchstone of God's word. If believers were to go to the great infallible Head and Prophet of the church by humble prayer, they would find their judgment better informed, their thoughts more established, and their hearts more firmly fixed, than ever they will be by reading a thousand folio volumes of such mongrel divinity, dashed with whole bowls of popery; where you may hunt for seven years and never find one page that can, in the strictest sense, be called the everlasting gospel.

There are libraries, consisting chiefly of ancient books, that cost fifty thousand pounds, and I would not go fifty steps to call them all my own if stripped of that despised book called the Bible, and a few more that I could name, which were written by our own divines. I am fully persuaded that every believer may get divinity more pure from adulteration, more powerful, more satisfactory, more establishing, by humble prayer to Christ

Jesus, in one hour, than ever he will get from all those authors that are called the fathers, who were as blind as bats, and their writings as full of confusion as a gentleman's garret is full of lumber. "If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God, who giveth liberally and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”

It is when men get cold to God; dead to study; powerless and faithless in prayer; shy of the Lord; at a distance from his throne; and beneath heavenlymindedness, and void of heavenly meditation; that they fly to these fathers instead of flying to the Father of eternity, where wisdom, mercy, and comfort may be got; for he is "the Father of mercies, and God of all comfort;" and I know that he will withhold no good thing from them that walk uprightly, Psalm lxxxiv. 11.

As to the letter of the ten commandments being an infallible rule of direction, is answered thus; they lead to the unity of God; that law prohibits idol worship and all covetousness, and commands love to the neighbour; but we are neither to serve God nor worship God in the oldness of the letter; he will be worshipped in spirit and in truth, and served in the newness of the spirit also: it is he that caused the light to shine out of darkness, that shines into our hearts, and gives us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. God's worship, and God's service, are to be performed under the Spirit's influence;

"God is a spirit, and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." Although the law forbids covetousness, the power of it will never make any man hate it; "the law is weak through the flesh;" the law of unfeigned faith, that works by love out of a pure conscience, will make a man hate covetousness. 66 Pray for us," says Paul, “for we trust we have a good conscience in all things, willing to live honestly."

God has not left his people without sufficient directions, nor yet without a director. "In all thy ways acknowledge God, and he shall direct thy paths." Wisdom is profitable to direct; "I will direct their work in truth," says God; " and I will make an everlasting covenant with them," Isaiah lxi. 8. "It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." "I will instruct thee, and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. Be ye not as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding," Psalm xxxii. 8, 9. "I will bring the blind by a way that they know not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known; I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight: these things will I do unto them and not forsake them.”

Sending the citizens of Zion to Sinai for rules of life and direction, is a contempt of mount Zion, and of the heavenly Jerusalem, to which the Spirit of God leads all believers, Heb. xii. 22; and is no less than a contempt of the King of saints, whom