the fame part with this fupernatural revelation, as I formerly did with the light of nature. When I reflect, where all my own wisdom, and that of the greatest fages landed me; and that, in the height of my wifdom, I turned out the greatest fool; I am now fully fatisfied, that my fafeft and wifeft course is, fimply to believe just as I am told, and fubmiffively to do juft as I am bidden, without murmuring or difputing. However foolifh then my rule of faith and practice may appear in the eyes of the WISE, and however weak in the eyes of the DEVOUT, I find myself kept in countenance by the apoftolic maxim, The foolifbness of God is wifer than men, and the weakness of God is fronger than men.

ON THE WORD OF GOD.

And the glory of the LORD fhall be revealed.

ISA. xl. 5.

(Continued from page 36.).

Пwoi

IT is of the utmost importance to an intelligent

creature to know the character of Him to whom he is accountable for his actions, and before whofe tribunal he must one day stand. And as this knowledge is a fource of the happiness peculiar to an upright being, fo the want of it conftitutes a large part of that mifery which is ever the companion of fin. Accordingly, throughout the Scriptures, the power of fin and the power of darkness are reprefented as one; and man is charged alike with rebellion against the law of

God,

God, and with ignorance of his great name. The witnefs which God has borne in the works of creation to his power, his providence, his goodness, and his glorious majefty, would furnish an upright creature with fufficiently juft and fublime conceptions of the Supreme Being, to fill his foul with reverence and admiration, and to engage him to love the LORD his God with all his heart. These notices have uniformly been ineffectual with men, and have served only to leave them without excufe: because men by nature are under the influence of a depraved and darkened mind; and therefore the information derived from thefe fources, far from leading them to understand and feek after God, awakens the fears of guilty confcience; caufes them to exclude offended Deity as far as poffible from their thoughts; and ftirs up hatred against Him, where their efforts to do fo fail of fuccefs. Now that WORD of which we speak, makes known the Deity in a character which SINNERS can behold without any impreffion of terror, can even contemplate with delight; and fo prefents that whereby they may be brought near to God, may learn to love Him, as they ought, and in fellowship with Him may find permanent enjoyment. Moreover the WORD of GOD not only has this tendency, but also effectually worketh in them that believe, being unto fuch the power of God unto falvation, or the means which He employs to bring them to the knowledge and love of Himfelf. Thus does revealed truth fupply all that is wanting in the voice of nature fince it exhibits a character of God which a SINNER can love, and is rendered fufficient to produce its proper effect by the divine power which opens his mind to its reception. The WORD then ap

pears

pears altogether worthy of HIM from whom it comes, and fuitable to those to whom it is fent, in having for its fubject-matter the character of the One Only Living and True God, as exhibited in the perfon and work of the Lord Jefus, Chrift.

Amongst those attributes which constitute the character of Jehovah, Holiness, Juftice, and, Mercy, are thofe which fo intimately involve all our conceptions of Him, that to them may be reduced all these his moral excellencies which he has been pleased to reveal. Moreover, as they are alfo those which men, as finners, are most concerned to know, and yet for the manifeftation of which the works of nature are leaft fufficient; fo the revealed word exhibits thofe to us with peculiar frequency and emphasis; directing us, from firft to laft, to HIM who is fo pure as to abhor all manner of fin, and fo righteous that he will not pafs it by, as having nevertheless provided a falvation for finners, as having become HIMSELF the juftifier of the ungodly. Up-. on these grounds we conceive that the fubject. will not be confined within undue limits, though we enlarge only upon the Holiness, Justice, and Mercy of God.

In the first place, the WORD of God reveals his Holinefs. Many are the affurances which his own mouth has given, that He is altogether at a distance from fin: fo exceedingly glorious in holinefs, that he looketh down from his habitation upon the finest works of his hands, and though he declares them very good, confidering the limits of creature excellence, yet in the view of Himself He pronounces them unclean. The heavens are not clean in his fight, and he chargeth his angels with folly. The most exalted of creatures are

hable to be corrupted, but the Creator is The Holy One who cannot even be tempted of evil. Refponfive to thefe declarations are the praises of his faithful fervants, who one and all acknowledge this his glory; and are never engaged in more fublime or blifsful occupations, than while they cry; Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty.

Further, the Holiness of God is expreffed in the law which he has given to his intelligent creatures. That law, while it is the tranfcript of his own spotlefs mind, is in itself holy, and just, and good. It speaks in a tone of unyielding authority to every accountable being; demands no lefs than the fubmiffion of thought, word, and action to its guidance; points to the True God as the fupreme object of veneration and love; and calls for unceafing and univerfal obedience as his unalienable right. In the fame point of view we muft confider the numberless declarations of Scripture concerning God's love of holiness and hatred of fin throughout his creation, as fo many atteftations to his own intrinfic purity; fince whatever is pleafing in his fight in any degree; muft more or lefs resemble the fource of his fuperlative delight, that unlimited excellence of which He is conscious in himfelf.

We may also discover the holiness of God, in the Bible history of the ways of his providence, during that period in which he revealed himself to the Jews as their political fovereign, and as the dispenser of present rewards and punishments. In those ways may be traced fuch a connection established between holiness and happinefs, as marks his concern for the interefts of the former, and fhews him to have been exceed

ingly zealous for all that was fuitable to a people fet apart for his fervice, and called to be witneffes of his name.

But the greateft difplay of this perfection of Jehovah is given us in his work of the falvation of finners. Like all his other glories, it fhines with brightest luftre in the atonement of Jefus, and the bleffed effects refulting from it. When we confider the way in which this falvation has been provided, by the Son of God becoming the object of the Divine displeasure in the stead of those who muft elfe have fuftained it themfelves; we fee how holy a God is our God; how irreconcileably oppofed to fin; how inflexibly determined to mark it with indignation whereever it appears. His love to finners, though it paffeth knowledge, would not change his mind with refpect to their fins, that he should wave his juft deteftation of them; but it caused those fins to meet upon the Lord Jesus Christ, that the throne of his grace might be established in the habitation of his holiness. Again, while we obferve the way in which this falvation is now carried on, in the prefent effects of the atonement upon those who have been made partakers of it; we behold God implanting his Spirit of holiness in their minds; making all things new within them; purifying their hearts by faith; and fo effectually revealing to them his own spotless character, that they, beholding as in a glass his glory, are changed into the fame image. Finally, if we look forward to the confummation of this work in the realms of glory, and follow the redeemed, till they stand without fault before the throne of God; there we see that the perfect work of the Divine grace is alfo the triumph of the Divine holiness: while unfpeakable happiness is

the