as here ftated, I should have allowed it fome weight; and therefore looking on it as material, I did literally "search the scriptures," and throughout could find but that one inftance in which Mr. Lindfey has exemplified the rule. It is the benediction of St. John in the Ift chapter and 4th verfe of the revelation, "Grace be unto you, and peace from him which was, and which is, and which is to come, and from the feven spirits, which are before his throne; and from Jesus Christ," Rev. i. 4, 5. And here it must be granted, that unless the seven spirits be God also, the junction of the name of Jesus Christ is not a proof that he is God; but I may poffibly furprize Mr. Lindsey by an assurance that these feven spirits alfo are God; and this is a pofition eafily explained to any man who remembers that "Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord *;" "The feven spirits are the eyes of the Lamb † ;" and grace, in the eyes of the Lamb, is furely a bleffing devoutly to be implored, when we confider who that Lamb is, even our Lord Jefus Chrift himself, "the Lord of Lords ;" and when we reflect on the advantages that accrued to Noah from his having found favour in his eyes before. According to Mr. Lindfey's mode of arguing, we might as well declare that St. Paul meant to diftinguish between God and the hands of God, when he says, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God," Heb. x. 31. For, if these terms be other than different appellations of the fame Being, I will then allow that to find grace from God, and from the eyes of God, have likewise diftinct meanings.

David has prophetically faid, "the Stone, which the builders refufed, is become the Head-Stone of the Corner," Pfalm cxviii. 22. St. Peter applies this prophecy, and teftifies to the Jews, concerning "Jesus Christ of Nazareth,

Nazareth," saying, "This is the Stone which was fet at nought of you builders, which is become the Head of the Corner," Acts iv. II. He bears also the fame testimony in his ift general Epiftle, 1 Peter, ii. 7; and St. Paul likewife, referring to the fame prophecy, calls "Jefus Chrift the chief Stone of the Corner," Eph. ii. 20. By the mouth of Ifaiah, "Thus faith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a Foundation, a Stone, a tried Stone, a precious Corner-Stone, a fure Foundation: he that believeth, shall not make hafte," * Isaiah xxviii. 16. This prophecy alfo the fame apoftles apply to our Lord; St. Paul, in his Epiftle to the Romans, ix. 33; and St. Peter, in his ft Epiftle general, saying, concerning Jefus Chrift, (to whom we are called upon to come, as unto a living Stone) "Wherefore, also it is contained in the fcripture, Behold I lay in Sion a chief Corner-Stone, elect, precious; and he that believeth on him, shall not be confounded," + 1 Peter ii. 6. Now this Head-Stone, which is elect, and precious, and a fure Foundation, is indifputably Jefus Christ: but we are presented with it again, and in a vision see brought forth with fhoutings," and prophetically laid as a Foundation, Zech. iv. 7. But upon this Foundation - Stone we find, that," upon the Stone fhall be feven eyes," Zech. iii. 9; and "those seven, they are the eyes of the Lord which run to and fro through the whole earth," Zech. iv. 10. Here is an exact coincidence of numbers, and Jefus Chrift is, here alfo, in the Old Teftament, in direct terms called the Lord, whofe eyes run to and fro upon the earth. But Hanani the feer, fspeaking to Asa, king of Judah, in the language of infpiration, fays, concerning the Lord God, "the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to fhew himself strong in the behalf of C: c 2

it

them

* + These two paffages are the same in the Greek, St. Peter having here made ufe of the feptuagint verfion, ὃ πιςεύων ἐπ ̓ ἀυλῷ ἐ μὴ καλαισ xud, Isaiah xxviii. 16. 1 Peter ii. 6.

them," or as in the marginal tranflation, "ftrongly to hold with them," "whofe heart is perfect towards him," 2 Chron xvi. 9. Is not the Godhead of Jefus Christ conclufively proved here? and is not grace in thofe eyes, which ftrongly hold with them whofe heart is perfect towards him, to be folicited for by prayer?" The "The ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and he ponders all his goings," Prov. v. 21: “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good," Prov. xv. 3, "Neither is there any creature that is not manifeft in his fight: but all things are naked, and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do," Heb. iv. 13. "The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous," 1 Peter iii. 12. "The eye of the Lord is upon all them that fear him: upon them that hope in his mercy to deliver their foul from death," Pfalm xxxiii. 18. Seeing then that "he that fearcheth the reins and the hearts," Rev. ii. 23, fhall "come quickly; to give every man according as his works fhall be," Rev. xxii. 12; that "the Son of man fhall come in his glory, and all the holy Angels with him," Matth. xxv. 31; that the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his Saints," Jude 14, "then fhall he reward every man according to his works," Matth. xvi. 27, why are we not importunately to feek for grace of the feven fpirits that are before his throne, which are the eyes of the Lamb of the seven eyes upon the Foundation-Stone, which are the eyes of the Lord God, that run to and fro throughout the whole world, to shew himself strong in behalf of them, whofe heart is perfect towards him? and thus address him?" Even fo, come Lord Jefus," Rev. xxii. 20;" "The Lord my God fhall come, and all the Saints with thee," Zechariah xiv. 5, "Thine eyes are open upon all the ways of the fons of men, to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings," Jeremiah xxxii. 19, and xvii. 10.

This is the only benediction against which the specified charge is brought, and I hope I have fhewed its inability to affect the Godhead of our bleffed Lord: had it been proved I should have allowed it an argument, as it is true that God alone is the fountain whence grace and mercy can flow, and from which alone the apoftles, with the Spirit of truth, could seek to draw them. But furely if the names of other Beings be found joined with that of God in the performance of actions, of which other Beings are capable, it can never be admitted an argument against the divinity of Chrift, whose name is often found joined with God, and invoked to perform actions of which God alone is capable. To Timothy St. Paul fays, "I charge thee before God and the Lord Jefus Chrift, and the elect angels," 1 Tim. v. 21; and on this paffage Mr. Lindsey makes the fame obfervation as that above, faying, "The angels being here joined with God and Chrift, fhews that when God is joined with other Beings in the moft folemn manner, no equality can be inferred from fuch a conjunction;" Apology, p. 107. Now I deny that God is in this inftance joined with other Beings in the moft folemn manner, the conferring of a charge upon Timothy was an act of which every Being, upon whom God had beftowed the powers of difcernment, was a proper and competent witness before whom he should confer it, and therefore, had the apostle joined man and every intelligent nature to the name of God, and of Jefus Chrift, and the elect angels, it could not in the leaft derogate from the dignity of God, or ever be interpreted as conferring upon them a claim to Godhead. That it fhould argue against Chrift's divinity, it is necessary to fhew that it proves too much, and therefore nothing; and that too-much, which it is fuppofed to prove, is, that the angels are God alfo: But does any fuch confequence follow,? Certainly not; and therefore this most folemn conjunction

cannot

cannot impeach the divinity of our Lord. I do not defire the aid of this verse in proof of our Saviour's Godhead, there being no greater power called into exercise than that of witneffing a charge to which the witness of God will add folemnity indeed, but which is an acț that he has given power to inferiour natures to perform. "Ye are my witneffes, and God alfo," 1 Theff. ii. 10, fays St. Paul: now which does this most folemn conjunction of God and the Theffalonians prove, the Theffalonians to be God, or God a Theffalonian? Neither one nor the other; for the conduct of Paul, which he called upon God and them to teftify to be just and holy, was performed equally before God and them, and they being endowed with adequate faculties, were therefore equally competent witneffes of it. But with refpect to the paffage before us, the apostle, about to fend forth a preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and recommending perfeverance and conftancy in "the teftimony of our Lord," has, with peculiar accuracy, felected the witneffes to his charge to Timothy; remembering that Jefus Chrift, coming to judgment, is to be attended by the holy angels, who are confequently on that day, when all flesh fhall be affembled before God, to be witnesses to the manifeftation of all the hidden things, and the counfels of all hearts, before them therefore Paul has judiciously chosen to give his charge, as in their prefence Timothy well knew he should in the end render an account of his apostleship, and, according to the difcharge of his holy function," have praise of God," or "be made a spectacle to angels," 1 Cor. iv. 9; for Jefus Chrift has himfelf faid, "whofoever fhall confefs me before men, him fhall the Son of man alfo confefs before the angels of God," Luke xii. 8, &c.

I have now brought to an end, not indeed the whole of the evidence of our Saviour's divinity afforded by the fcriptures,