"God looked upon the earth and behold it was corrupt; for "all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth." "The imagi"nation of man's heart is evil from his youth.' "Who can "What is bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one." "man that he should be clean? And he that is born of a woman, "that he should be righteous? Behold he putteth no trust in his "saints; yea the heavens are not clean in his sight. How much more abominable and filthy is man, who drinketh iniquity "like water!" "How can man be justified with God? or how (6 can he be clean, who is born of a woman?"" "The Lord "looked down from heaven upon the children of men," (or of Adam, "to see if there were any that did understand, and seek "after God. They are all gone aside, they are altogether become filthy, there is none that doeth good, no not one," "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.' "Lo, this have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they "have sought out many inventions." "He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool." "The heart is deceitful above all things, "and desperately wicked; who can know it?" Is there no intimation in these texts of man's depravity? of any material alteration since God created him in his own image, and pronounced him very good? Is there no preparation made for the full declaration of the doctrine by the apostle," By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for "that all have sinned:" "By one man's disobedience many became "sinners? &c." Can stronger and more unqualified language on the subject be used by Calvinists? And, if this doctrine belong to the tenets of Calvinism, in giving an historical account of these tenets, ought this most important part of the history to have been wholly kept out of sight? 2. Free will, special grace, or regeneration. "The Lord thy "God will circumcise thy heart, and the heart of thy seed, to "love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy "soul, that thou mayest live." Compare this with what had been before spoken; "The Lord hath not given you a heart "to perceive, and eyes to see, and ears to hear unto this, day." "That he may incline our hearts unto him to walk in Gen. vi. 6, 12, viii. 21. 3 Ps. xiv. 2, 3. li. 5. 5 Ec. vii. 29. Rom. iii. 9-20. 2 Job xiv. 4. xv. 14-16. xxv. 4. 4 Prov. xxviii. 26. 6 Jer. xvii. 9. Deut. xxix. 4. xxx. 6. "The Lord hath your filthiness "his ways, and to keep his commandments." "heard the desire of the humble; thou wilt prepare their heart "thou wilt cause thine ear to hear." "Create in me a clean heart, "and renew a right spirit within me." "I will put my law in "their inward parts, and write it in their hearts." "I will give "them one heart and one way that they may fear me for ever.' I "will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them; " and I will take away the stony heart out of their flesh, and give "them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in my statutes, and "keep mine ordinances and do them." "I will sprinkle clean "water upon you, and ye shall be clean; from all "and from all your idols will I cleanse you : a new heart also "will I give you, and a new Spirit will I put within you; and I " will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I will "give you a heart of flesh; and I will put my Spirit within you, "and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my "judgments and do them." "I will pour out upon the house of "David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of "grace and of supplications: and they shall look to me whom they "have pierced, and they shall mourn." "Is there no intimation, in these scriptures, of special new-creating grace taking the lead in the change of character predicted or promised? Is there nothing on which our Lord might properly ground this question to Nicodemus, concerning regeneration, "Art thou a teacher of "Israel, and knowest not these things?" Is there nothing parallel to the apostle's declaration?" It is God that worketh in us both "to will and to do, of his good pleasure?" And ought this wholly to be passed over in the history of the doctrines Low called Calvinistic? 3. Justification by faith. Abraham "believed in the Lord, "and he counted it to him for righteousness." "Blessed is he "whose transgression is forgiven, and whose sin is covered: "blessed is the man to whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity."" "If thou, Lord, shouldst mark iniquity, O Lord who shall stand? "But there is forgiveness with thee." "Enter not into judg"ment with thy servant; for in thy sight shall no man living be "justified.""" Surely shall one say, In the Lord, have I righte 1 Kings vii. 5, 8. 3 Jer. xxxi. 33. xxxii. 39. 5 Ez. xxxvi. 25.-27. Zech. xii. 10-14. 2 Ps. x. 17. li. 10. 4 Ez. xi. 19, 20. 6 Gen. xv. 6. John viii. 56. Rom. iv 1-5. 9-25. Gal. iii. 6—29. Heb. vi. 13—18 xi. S—17 Jam. 1i. 23. 7 Ps. xxxii. 1, 2. Rom iv. 6—8. Ps. cxxx. 3, 4. cxliii. 2. "ousness, and strength." "In the Lord shall all the seed of "Israel be justified, and shall glory." "By the knowledge of him "shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their "iniquities.” ' ( That we who know thee now by faith.'” “This is "life eternal to know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, "whom thou hast sent."") "I will raise up unto David a righ"teous Branch; and a King shall reign and prosper; and shall "execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah "shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is the "name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD Our righte"OUSNESS. ." "To make an end of sins, and to make reconci"liation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness." "But the just shall live by his faith :" or, "The just by his faith "shall live."""Take away the filthy garments from him and "to him he said, Behold I have caused thine iniquity to pass 46 away, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment." "Ifthen justication by faith (except as explained in a certain manner by Anticalvinists,) must be considered as a tenet of Calvinism, these clear intimations in the Old Testament, especially as connected. with inspired comments on them in the New Testament, ought not to have been passed over in the history of those tenets. 66 4. The divine decrees, with election, &c. "God sent me be"fore you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives with great deliverance; so now it was not you who sent me hither, but God." "As for you, ye thought evil against me: "but God meant it for good." " I am sure that the king of Egypt "will not let you go: no, not by a mighty hand." In very deed "for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my pow 66 er and that my name may be exalted throughout all the earth.” 10 "The Lord had appointed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the Lord might bring evil upon Absa"lom." "11 "I know that God hath determined to destroy thee; "because thou hast done this, and hast not hearkened unto my "counsel." "12 "He is of one mind, and who can turn him? and "what his soul desireth even that he doeth. For he performeth "the thing that is appointed for me; and many such things are Is. xlv. 24, 25. liii. 11. 2 Col. Epiphany. 3 John xvii. 3. 4 Jer. xxiii. 5, 6. xxxiii. 15, 16. 1 Cor. i. 30. 2 Cor. v. 21. 2 Pet. i. 1. 5 Dan. ix. 24. Rom. iii. 21-26. 7 Zech. iii. 4. Gal. iii. 26, 27. 11. Heb. x. 38. 8 Gen. xlv. 6-8. Acts ii. 23. iv. 28. 10 Ex. iii. 19. ix. 16. Rom. ix. 17, 18. 12 Sam. xvii. 14. 1 Thes. i. 9. 1 Pet. ii. 8. 132 Chr. xxv. 16. Luke. xii 22. "with him." "The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen "to nought; he maketh the devices of the people to be of none "effect. The counsel of the Lord standeth for ever, and the thoughts of his heart to all generations." "There be many "devices in the heart of man nevertheless the counsel of the "Lord that shall stand." "I know that whatsoever God doeth "it shall be for ever; nothing can be put to it, nor any thing "taken from it." "A remnant shall return. The consumption "decreed shall overflow with righteousness. For the Lord God "of hosts shall make a consumption, even determined in the "midst of all the land."" "The Lord of Hosts hath sworn, saying, Surely, as I have thought so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed so shall it stand." "For the Lord of hosts "hath purposed, who shall disannul it? and his hand is stretched 66 out, who shall turn it back ?" "Hast thou not heard long of ancient times how I have 66 " 997 ago how I have done it; and "formed it? Now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldst "be to lay waste ruinous cities into desolate heaps; therefore "their inhabitants were of small power.' "Declaring the "end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things "that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and "I will do all my pleasure.' "I have spoken it; I will "bring it to pass; I have purposed it; I will also do it." "Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, and the Lord "commandeth it not? Out of the mouth of the Most High pro"ceedeth not evil and good?"" "Thus saith the Lord God: "It shall also come to pass, that at the same time shall things "come into thy mind, and thou shalt think an evil thought; and “shall say, &c." "Art thou he of whom I spake in old time to my servants the prophets of Israel, that I would against them?" 10 "He doeth what he will in the armies of "heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" "the end of the war desolations are determined." "And that "determined shall be poured upon the desolate." "He shall prosper till the indignation shall be accomplished: for that that "is determined shall be done."" This is a part of the history of Job. xxiii. 14, 15. * Ps. xxxiii. 10, 11. Eph. i. 11. 3 Prov. xix. 21. 4 Ec. iii. 14. 5 Is. x. 22, 23. Rom. ix. 27, 28. 6 Is. xiv. 24-27. 7 Is. xxxvii. 26, 27. 8 Is. xlvi. 10, 11. 9 Lam. iii. 37, 38. 66 1 10 Ez. xxxviii. 10, 17. bring thee "Unto 11 Dan. iv. 35. ix. 26. 27. xi. 36. the doctrines now called Calvinistic, in respect to the de IG Concerning personal gratuitous election to eternal life, ed satisfactory documents may be expected. The ages precedhe the fulness of time for the appearance of the promised Mess exhibited divine truths principally under types and shadowpie and the election of Abraham, and of his descendents in him s be outwardly" the elect and chosen people of God," was Es shadow of " our election in Christ, from the foundation of dyr "world," to be truly and spiritually his people, his worshippe his children: "a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a hote "nation, a peculiar people." Yet the very circumstance de one people being chosen, not for their righteousness, but be cause of their natural relation to chosen Abraham, to the enjo ment of very valuable religious advantages, which were withhel from other nations, not more undeserving than they, is not only an outward shadow of our election in Christ, and for his sake as his seed by regeneration, not for our works, to spiritual and t eternal blessings; but it is an instance and example of the divine sovereignty, in conferring undeserved benefits on some and not on others, according to the "good pleasure of his will;" in a manner which many declaim against, as "respecting persons." -In attempting, however, to prove that the history of the tenets now called Calvinistic ought to begin with the very first revelation which God made to fallen man, even as to personal gratuitous election to eternal life; I hope to adduce a few intimations, which (especially with the divinely inspired comments on them in the New Testament,) may be thought worthy of peculiar notice in this argument.--The election of Israel, as a nation, in Abraham, it is allowed, was only to outward advantages: but was not the choice of Abraham, "the father of the faithful," personal, gratuitous, and to eternal life? That it was personal, cannot be doubted. "Look unto Abraham your father, and "unto Sarah that bare you; for I called him alone, and blessed " and increased him." It is also evident that it was gratuitous: "Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nahor; "and they served other Gods: and I took your father Abraham, 1 Is. li. 1, 2. |
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