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lusts, and walks after his own counsels." (Psalm 81.) "Even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind." Then may be seen in him the hardening

(Rom. 1, 28.)

of the heart.

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The hardening, not of a benificent

Creator, but of the Prince of this world, Satan. For as saith St. Paul, "If our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost in whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." (2 Cor. 4, 4.) The restraining influence of better and holier thoughts having ceased, their impression left upon the mind becomes more and more faint, until at length effaced altogether, or at least so nearly effaced, that if a compunctious recollection intrude, he only the more "sets his face as a flint" in stiff-necked rebellion.

Not thus, however, does man escape from God's power, even when self-excluded from his mercy. Still does omnipotence oppose a barrier beyond which the sinner may not pass, turning the very wickedness of men to the purposes of his own will, and converting it into an instrument for the punishment of evil doers: or, as in the case of Pharaoh, to shew forth and declare that Divine power, which is calculated to bring conviction to generations present and to come. "Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee, the remainder of wrath shalt thou estrain." (Psalm 76, 10.)

Now to proceed. To the Thessalonians the like predestined purpose of salvation, through faith, is proclaimed by the Apostles, "God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation, through sanctification of the Spirit, and belief of the truth; whereunto He called you by our Gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." 2. Thess. 2, 13.

To Timothy he writes, "Who (God) hath saved us and called us with an Holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began." 2. Tim. 1, 9. Grace is here shown to mean graciousness of purpose, unbought, unmerited mercy, in contradistinction to any claims or merits on man's part, as arrogantly and pharisaically set forth by the Jews.

To the Galatians the same universal truth is stated, "The Scripture foreseeing that God would justify the Heathen through faith, preached, before, the Gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed." Gal. 3, 8.

Can anything be more universal or less exclusive, than Scriptural Predestination as thus explained by the Apostle to the Jews? For while the Gentiles "hardly believed for joy" the glad tidings, and so required reiterated assurance, that God's equal justice had from eternity comprehended all mankind in the same covenant

of salvation, through Christ, yet to the Jews was this fact especially and earnestly insisted on. There is an evident and anxious desire throughout his task, to temper the bitterness of their feelings. He could not conceal that the hour of retribution had come upon them, but he strives to convince them, that the participation of the world at large in God's favour was always His predestined purpose, and therefore no addition to their punishment as if it were some new thing. "Brethren my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved, for I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge, for they, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." Rom. 10. And Him they had scoffed at, and crucified, and desired that His blood might be upon them and upon their children. But adds the Apostle, "They also, if they abide not in unbelief, shall be graffed in, for God is able to graff them in again." Rom. 11.

If it be strange that from materials and passages such as these, the gloomy and fatalist structure of Calvinistic predestination could be raised, a theory alternating between presumption and despair,—as little ground does there appear to warrant any personal or exclusive application, in the word "Elect," or "Elec

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tion." The word occurs frequently, but no where more strikingly than in the 1st Epistle General of St. Peter, "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God." In this passage the word Elect which is so much relied upon by some, and which commences the second verse, should, in strictness, be placed in the first. The literal translation from the original Greek, as will in a moment be seen, runs thus, Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia." It is immaterial, however, in which verse the course of translation places the word Elect, it applies, grammatically and indisputably to "Strangers"-Elect strangers, scattered over various countries, of whom St. Peter could have known nothing except that they were professed converts, or believers in the Gospel, as then promulgated. So far therefore from favouring any view of " particular election," so sweeping an address can but show, that the "Elect according to the foreknowledge of God," are true Christians of all times and nations. He who knows all things, knew that the seed of His word would not be without fruit. As the rain cometh down and the snow, from Heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater; so shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth; it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. (Is. 55.)

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While therefore "The Gospel of God" is thus preached freely," and to the whole world, "to all who have ears to hear," declaring that The Lord is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." (2. Peter, 3.) Should we not Beware lest any man spoil us through philosophy or vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. (Col. 2, 8.). And therefore we will now proceed to enquire how the Calvinist is justified in limiting Divine mercy to a certain few as being the "Called," and whether there are grounds for attaching any mysterious sense to that word; any especial and peculiar operation of the Holy Spirit upon the mind of one man in preference to another? I know of no passage in Scripture that warrants our expectation or belief in such a species of miraculous conversion. It would rather seem a law of Providence, rare in its exceptions, to leave man to the free exercise of the reason with which he is gifted, and the advantage of those divine aids of revelation for the due use of which we are responsible, and which are equally and beneficently open to all. Our Creator, in justifying His ways to man's comprehension, by the mouth of His prophet Isaiah (5 chap.) likens His government of the world to the completeness of a Vineyard, supplied with every thing needful, and then calls us to our duty by the question,.

What could have been done more to my Vineyard that I have not done in it. Wherefore when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes ?" And

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