tioned zeal, whether churchmen or dissenters, to lament the decay of religion, the contempt of the gospel and gospel ministers, the open profanation of the Lord's day, the little frequenting of ordinances, the increase of infidelity, and in a word, everything that spoils the public decorum as to religion, or that serves to lessen that weight and influence which they apprehend their religious character or office entitles them to in the nation. Yet one might as well quote the Alcoran to these same people, as talk to them of continuing steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. The commands of Christ have no manner of weight with them against tradition and reputable custom. Christ's new commandment of love is odious to them. Should they be put in mind of the express and particular law of Christ, If thy brother trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone, &c.; they will answer, it is impracticable as matters now stand.

Though the apostolic decree, which declares the peculiar precepts of the Mosaic law, that served to distinguish the Jews from other nations, to be no way binding on believing Gentiles, with equal force and clearness of expression enjoins such Gentiles abstinence from blood, as a thing necessary for them to observe; yet our devoutest preachers, when lecturing on that decree, with solemnity equal to their impudence, take upon them to pronounce the enjoined abstinence to be a thing indifferent. The reason is, they regard the bare authority of Scripture no more than an old ballad. Yet the same men can show the warmest zeal against the stage.The reason is, the frequenting of the stage interferes with the respect and attendance due to the pulpit, and the venerable personage who fills it.

Let mention be made of the particular expressions of love which the apostles enjoined the first Christians, and the devout people with their teachers will scoff at them. Put them in mind of that law wherein Christ calls his disciples to lay up their treasure, not on earth, but in heaven, by giving to the poor, adding this reason, For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also; they will readily answer, that Christ, far from forbidding to lay up treasures on earth, only forbids us to set our hearts on them. Thus they burlesque the reason given by Christ, and make him to say, "For where your heart is, there will your heart be also; or where you put your treasure, there your treasure will be." And herein they imitate their predecessors, the Pharisees,

who though they gave much alms, yet derided Christ's doctrine against covetousness.

And thus might I speak of every precept of Jesus Christ, that has nothing but the weight of his authority to enforce it; yet if any one presumes to trespass so far on the public decorum, as frankly to profess himself an unbeliever, the devout people will be apt to stare at him as a kind of monster. But whatever dislike they have to what they call infidelity, they hate the ancient gospel much more.

Not a few possessed of the last mentioned zeal are keen for persecution, so soon as it shall be inth eir power, and complain greatly of the toleration granted by the present government. These act a consistent part in declaiming bitterly against everything that opposes their wished-for uniformity. But why should the lovers of our present happy government, the friends of toleration and public liberty, murmur at the natural consequences of that liberty? But more especially, why should Christians complain whatever shape the world puts on, while they have liberty to follow their own religion? Is it not their business to live quietly; to pray for, and do good to all men as they have opportunity; to upbraid none, to glory over none, and to hate even the thought of pluming themselves over any of mankind on account of their religious devotion? Thus they will best recommend their religion to the attention of others. Thus they will imitate him, of whom it was said, He shall not strive, nor cry, neither shall any man hear his voice in the streets; a bruised reed shall he not break, and smoking flax shall he not quench, &c.— Two very fit emblems for the appearance of his kingdom in the world.* I may add here, that it is a common thing with religious people to make a great noise about Divine judg ment impending over the nation for the sins of others, not considering that the wrath to come is chiefly pointed against contempt of the ancient gospel, which takes place no less among the stricter than among the looser sort.

A light or lamp, and a rod or sceptre, are frequently used in Scripture as signs of royal power and dominion. And no signs could be more fitly chosen for the outward weakly appearance of such power. than a bruised reed for a sceptre, and a smoking wick or lamp apparently ready to die away, and be extinguished. Agreeably to this, we find that the enemies of Jesus, decking him with the mock ensigns of royalty in order to insult his pretensions, gave him a reed for a sceptre, and carrying their insult to the greatest extremity, took the reed out of his hand and smote him on the head. But the day approaches when the bruised reed shall become a rod of iron, and the smoking flax a flaming fire, and all other kingdoms and establishments be quenched as tow.

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Many are the little singularities of parties, by which the attention of men is drawn away from the common faith. And indeed they cannot be too lightly esteemed in comparison of the great end for which Christ died.—Some, who do not profess Popery, maintain that Christ died to consecrate an order of Priests, to offer certain unbloody eucharistical sacrifices to propitiate for daily sins, and must be influenced accordingly in their religious practice.-Many devout persons in Scotland are taught to think, that Christ died to purchase for the ple inhabiting a certain district called a parish, a right to claim from the British government fifty, sixty, or a hundred pounds sterling yearly, to the man they choose for their minister. And, though it is well known, that the British government hinders no people to choose their own minister, nor to feed and clothe him in the best manner they can; yet many are taught to consider it as a heavy grievance to be deprived of the forementioned right: yea, this is the chief thing understood in the noted phrase, The rights of the Lord's people. Thus they are taught to think and speak disrespectly of those in power, contrary to all the rules of the gospel. And thus they are taught to think impiously of Jesus Christ, as if it were in the power of any potentate on earth to deprive Christ's people of any right he died to purchase for them. Many think Christ died to authorize persecuting oaths or covenants, among whom even the friends of Aspasio make a distinguished figure. In a word, whatever side religious people take in politics, or whatever party designs they are engaged in, they are apt to suppose that they are promoting some end for which Christ died.

Mistakes about the character of Jesus Christ are attended with the like practical errors. Various parties, of the same temper with those who opposed him at the first, have found it convenient to patronize their favourite designs with his sacred name, by perverting, some one, some another part of his history. Yea, not to stay upon lesser instances, bloody and deceitful men have bound themselves by solemn covenant to the most impious in humanity; and pretended they were herein following Jesus Christ, who drove the buyers and sellers out of the temple. And though Jesus Christ made Pilate well understand that his kingdom no way interfered with that of Cæsar; yet many preachers, with great vehemence, oppose the headship and sovereignty of Christ to the supremacy of the King of Britain. Thus if times and circumstances allowed, they would patronize rebellion with the sacred name of Jesus. Here I must declare myself at a loss to understand how a friend

of public liberty, and of our happy constitution, should in a book, intended to recommend the imputed righteousness, or the character of Jesus Christ, direct us to learn holiness from men who declare their aversion to toleration, and so to humanity, and at the same time a sacred regard for persecuting oaths, from men who would make Jesus to be what the Jews accused him for, and at the same time lead us to follow a Messiah altogether such as they desired. Mr. Boston, I own, seems to have been so much taken up in teaching his people to establish their own righteousness by acts of faith, that he insisted less on the covenanted uniformity, with the several political uses for the Messiah, than some others of his class; but Mr. E. Erskine, in his sermons, shows his zeal abundantly for a Jewish secular Messiah in all respects; yea, he carries the matter so high, that in his sermon, entitled, The Kingdom of God Within the Soul of Man, he warmly commends, as worthies, those who, in the last century, chose rather to die than say, God save the King.

The popular preachers of Scotland are presently doing the best they can to infuse their spirit into England. Witness a late performance published by one of them, entitled, England's Alarm, &c. And they take care to propagate their appropriating faith in the closest connection with their impious principles of inhumanity. And, indeed, they so far judge right; for nothing is more cruel and inhuman than spiritual pride.-One would think that these gentlemen of Scotland, might easily enter upon a treaty of alliance with the followers of Mr. Hutchinson, in England, could they only come to some mutual agreement or forbearance about a few trifling questions relating to Presbytery and Prelacy. But it is happily so ordered by Providence, for the benefit of mankind, that their common enemies are often easily divided by very trifling circumstances; and however much they howl, pray, and groan forth their sorrow at the public divisions in religious matters; yet they are so infatuated, that all their machinations serve often rather to widen than to heal these divisions.

I SHALL here take some further view of the progress of the popular doctrine in England, as also of the counterfeit grace, which may justly be considered as the capital characteristic of that doctrine; even as the true grace of God is the grand characteristic of the apostolic gospel. The counterfeit grace corresponds with the preliminary faith formerly noted. And the purpose it serves for is, to prepare and qualify men for, or

to make them deserving objects of saving grace; that is, it serves to qualify some men beyond others for being benefited by the great work of mercy and grace finished by Christ on the cross, where alone the saving grace of God is manifested. This preliminary grace, however much it has been christianized, is at bottom the same thing with that divine aflatus, influence, or energy, by which it was supposed philosophers and heroes of old became good and great men. When the writings of any eminent preacher of this grace are published after his death, the editor commonly takes care to usher them into the view of the public with high encomiums on the piety of the author, as being desirous to make us understand, that he led a life of very intimate communion with the Deity, so could not fail to have been admitted far into his secret counsels. Thus their writings come abroad to us with a sanction or authority not unlike what attended ancient legislators, when they emerged to the view of the public from some cave or grotto, where it was supposed they had been for a long time intimately conversing with some male or female divinity.

But we are not to imagine, that the preachers of this grace are content with the prospect of being worshiped after death. They generally incline to leave their editors or gentlemenushers as little to do as possible. They take care to make it a principal part of their doctrine to preach up their own excellency, and make the people understand, that they have an uncommon intimacy with the Deity, and are the canals of his favours to men.

But this is not all: They are also careful to magnify the testimony of some spirit, which they call the Divine Spirit, above the written testimony of God in the Scripture. I do not say they magnify it expressly in opposition to the written word. This would never do; for the credit of the Scripture must still be maintained, so as it may remain as a proper foundation and ground-work for all their artifices. They generally agree with the more cautious of the people called Quakers, in maintaining, that this inward witnessing spirit must never flatly contradict the outward testimony of the written word, while yet it may give evidence beyond and above that word.

To sum up what has been said, a popular preacher may pretty easily be distinguished by these three marks, viz. by his preaching the counterfeit grace above described, by his aggrandizing his own person in lofty strains, and by his magnifying the testimony of some spirit above the Scripture. Yet any one of these is sufficient to darken one's mind, and to dis