open shame." The second, which follows, is very sim ilar. "For if we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought wor thy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hate done despite to the Spirit of grace."

These texts have often been supposed to be descriptive of the unpardonable sin; and in this view, they have given great distress to awakened sinners, laboring under a deep sense of their own vileness and the divine displeasure. But there appears to be no reason to understand these passages in this sense. There is a very great dissimilarity between the sins here described, and that which has been described in this discourse. The sins here described appear to be secret sins; but the unpardonable sin can be committed in public only. The sins here described appear to be sins of the heart; but the unpardonable sin is a sin of the tongue. The. sins here described appear to consist in internal opposition to truth and holiness; but the unpardonable sin consists in nothing but blasphemy directly pointed against the Holy Ghost. In short, there is no mention, nor description of the unpardonable sin in these passages, and therefore, there is no ground to suppose, that the Apostle is here speaking to sinners, and warning them against the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Ghost; which consists in ascribing his peculiar operations to the power and agency of Satan. But on the other hand, the Apostle appears to be speaking to

saints, and warning them against the guilt and danger of final apostasy. This is the sin, which he expressly mentions, and which is peculiar to saints. Though sinners may quench the Spirit, stifle convictions, and run to the greatest excess in wickedness; yet they cannot irrecoverably fall away, this side of eternity. Manasseh, Mary Magdalene, and many other loose and abandoned sinners, have been converted from the error of their ways, and brought to genuine repentance. But if real saints should be guilty of falling away from the faith and practice of christianity, they would sin beyond repentance and pardon. Ac cordingly the persons, whom the Apostle addresses in these passages, appear to be real saints; for none but such ever arrived at those high attainments, which he expressly mentions. It is peculiar to saints, "to receive the knowledge of the truth; to be divinely enlightened; to taste of the heavenly gift, to be partakers of the Holy Ghost; to taste the good word of God and the powers of the world to come." Persons of this char acter, may be properly warned of the danger of falling away. It is the language of both the Old and New Testament, that if real saints should renounce religion, they would be infallibly lost. The Prophet Ezekiel says, "When the righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in the sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die." Our Lord says, "If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered: and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned." And Paul says, "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection, lest by any means, when

I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." It appears from these representations, that if real saints should totally apostatize from their faith and profession, they would never be recovered from their apostasy, but eventually perish. And this is the very sentiment contained in the passages under consideration. But some may ask, Is not the danger of saints' falling away, inconsistent with the doctrine of their final perseverance? I answer, No. David was in danger of being slain by Saul, who determined, if possible, to take away his life. And he realized his danger, when he said, "Surely I shall one day perish by the hand of Saul." And there is no doubt but he would have actually fallen by the hand of Saul, if he had not taken peculiar care and precaution, to escape his subtle stratagems and violent assaults. But all the while Saul was pursuing David, and attempting to destroy him, it was absolutely certain, that David should live, and succeed him on the throne of Israel.. For God had anointed David, to be ruler over his people, and had promised to put the reins of government into his hands. So God has promised to keep all true saints from actual apostasy, and to conduct them safely to his heavenly kingdom. But though the power and faithfulness of God be engaged in their favor; yet they must watch, and pray, and take heed, lest they fall. And upon this principle, the Apostle solemnly warns them, in the texts under consideration, not against the unpardonable sin in particular, but against the sin of final apostasy, or a total renunciation of christianity.

2. If what has been said is true, then sinners have no ground to imagine, that they have committed the unpardonable sin, because they have inwardly opposed God, and resisted the strivings of the Spirit. No

inward exercises of heart, however strong and sensible and criminal, ever amount to the sin unto death; which is an external sin of the tongue. Though sin. ners under the strivings of the Spirit, do actually feel enmity against God, and sensibly resist convictions; yet so long as they suppress their feelings, and never utter them in blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, they do not sin unto death. All sinners are totally depraved. They have a carnal mind which is enmity against God, not subject to his law, neither indeed can be. It is their nature, therefore, always to resist the Holy Ghost, and endeavor to stifle convictions. They hate the light, and are extremely unwilling to come to the light, lest their hearts should be discovered, and their deeds reproved. But under the awakening and convincing influences of the Spirit, they are obliged to come to the light; and in this situation, it is as natural for their hearts to rise in direct and violent opposition to God and divine truth, as for a corrupt foun tain to send forth corrupt streams. There are, indeed, no thoughts nor exercises of heart too malig nant for them to feel, in the clear view of their guilt and danger. They may hate their own existence, and wish to be annihilated. They may hate the divine existence, and wish to dethrone and destroy the Most High. But neither these, nor any other internal exercises of the carnal mind, partake of the nature of the unpardonable sin; which essentially consists in blasphemous words, and not in blasphemous thoughts. There is reason to believe, that some persons, who have felt the most malignant exercises of heart, have, notwithstanding, obtained the pardoning mercy of God. It is certain, however, that some eminent christians in appearance, have given this account of themselves; and there is nothing in Scripture nor rea

son, to contradict their account. Though it be extremely criminal to quench the Spirit and stifle convictions; yet there is nothing unpardonable in such inward exercises of heart. Those sinners, therefore, who are conscious of the most malignant feelings towards God and divine objects, have no right to conclude, that they have committed the sin unto death, and put themselves beyond the reach of divine mercy.

3. If what has been said is true, then it is altogether criminal for any to despair of salvation, who have not committed the unpardonable sin. Since God has promised to pardon all penitent sinners, except blas phemers against the Holy Ghost, it must be altogether criminal in any others, to despair of forgiveness, on account of the greatness of their guilt. So long as sinners remain secure and stupid, they are too apt to presume upon the mercy of God; but when they are awakened to attend to their hearts, and to the nature, number, and aggravations of their sins, they are too prone to despair of salvation. They appear to themselves so vile and guilty, that they imagine a holy and just God, must make them completely and eternally miserable. But these apprehensions are altogether groundless and criminal. What if they have cast off fear, and restrained prayer; what if they have walked in the ways of their heart, and in the sight of their eyes; what if they have said to God, Depart from us, we desire not the knowledge of thy ways; what if they have hated instruction, and despised reproof; what if they have resisted the Spirit, and rejected the counsel of God against themselves; yea, what if in reality they are the very chief of sinners; yet if they now heartily repent, and return to God upon his own terms, hè will freely and abundantly pardon. For he makes no distinction between great sinners and small, in the