justly might he have said to the Sword, "Go through the very heart of this land," or to the Pestilence, "Arise and devour." Let us acknowledge this, and confess that "it is of the LORD's mercy, that we are not consumed," as a nation, and that each of us is not cast as a JONAH into the sea of God's judgments, for the sport of Satan, that great Leviathan.

4. But, above all, let our humiliation and confession, our acknowledgment of our aggravated guilt, and condemnation of ourselves, be attended with a visible reformation. We cannot mend the whole land, I grant; but let each of us, through the grace offered us this day, mend one at least; and let every head of a family vow before God, that, let others do as they will, yet " he and his house will serve the LORD." Fasting, without reformation, is but abomination. Turning from our wicked way, and doing that which is lawful and right, through the grace of JESUS CHRIST, that we may save our souls alive, is the very soul of repentance; and repentance is the very soul of fasting. So that take repentance from fasting, or take reformation from repentance, and there remains nothing but detestable formality and abominable hypocrisy.

5. Not only cease to do evil, but learn to do good. You never will, you never can, leave off serving Mammon, and the flesh, unless you give yourselves up wholly to the service of the living God. You may have good desires, yea, and good resolutions too;-but till you come to make it the main business of your life to seek and serve the LORD, in spite of the world, the flesh, and the Devil, I take heaven and your conscience to witness, that I warn you this day of the consequence. Your resolutions will never come to any thing, and you shall surely die in the iniquity you have committed. Therefore, that this may not be your lamentable case, give all for all; the praise of men for the praise of GOD; earth for heaven. Sell all, to buy the pearl of divine love. Sell all to get the knowledge of Him who says, "Except a man deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me, he is not worthy of me; he cannot be my disciple."

6. Lastly; As you tender the prosperity of the King, the good of our Church, and the welfare of our country;—as you would not bring a private curse upon yourself, your house, and your dearest friends ;as you value the honour of Almighty God, and dread his awakened wrath ;-as you would not force him to make our land a field of blood, or to break the staff of our bread, and send famine, pestilence, Popery, or some other fearful judgment, among us ;-I pray, I beseech, I entreat each of you, my dear Brethren! as upon my bended knees, in the name of our LORD JESUS, and by those bowels of divine mercy against which we have madly kicked in times past, and which, nevertheless, still yearn over us,-I entreat you not to rest in outward humiliation and reformation. Christians must go

one step beyond the Ninevites. O seek then, with all true Christians, a righteousness superior to that of the Scribes and Pharisees. Seek it in CHRIST. Never rest, till you are sure of your interest in Him, till you feel the virtue of his blood applied to your heart by the power of his SPIRIT. Without this, all the rest will stand you in little stead. It is the blood of the true Paschal Lamb, sprinkled upon our souls, that makes the Destroyer sheath his flaming sword, and pass over the protected heads of true believers. O get an application of this blood; get this seal of the living God upon your heart; and then, marked unto the day of redemption, safe in your SAVIOUR'S wounds, and rejoicing even in the midst of tribulation, you will experience the truth of what DAVID says, (Ps. cxii.) "Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness. Surely he shall not be moved for ever He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD. His heart is established; he shall not be afraid, until he see his desire upon his enemies,"-sin, death, hell, and the grave. May this be our happy lot, for CHRIST's sake! Amen!

EXTRACTS FROM ARMINIUS'S FIRST ORATION ON
THEOLOGY.

[WE embrace the earliest opportunity of presenting to our Readers a specimen of the English Translation of the Works of the justly celebrated ARMINIUS, which is now in course of publication. The passages selected for this purpose are taken from the First of the Inaugural Orations, pronounced by him on his election to the Chair of DIVINITY-PROFESSOR in the University of Leyden. Various illustrations and amplifications of the important topics, so ably discussed in these Extracts, we have been obliged to omit; hoping that the theological student will not fail to consult the entire Oration, which well deserves a careful perusal.-EDITOR.]

On the OBJECT of THEOLOGY; both LEGAL, or that which has reference to Man's primeval state,—and CHRISTIAN, or that which respects GoD in the character of the SAVIOUR of fallen man.

"God is himself the OBJECT of Theology. The very term indicates as much for THEOLOGY signifies a Discourse or reasoning concerning GOD.

"THREE CONSIDERATIONS of this matter offer themselves to our notice: The FIRST is, that we cannot receive this object in the infivity of its nature; our necessity therefore requires it to be proposed in a

manner that is accommodated to our capacity.-The SECOND is, that it is not proper, in the first moment of revelation, for such a large measure to be disclosed and manifested by the light of grace, as may be received into the human mind when it is illuminated by the light of glory, and (by that process) enlarged to a greater capacity for by a right use of the knowledge of grace, we must proceed upwards (by the rule of divine righteousness,) to the more sublime knowledge of glory, according to that saying, 'To him that hath shall be given.—The THIRD is, that this object is not laid before our Theology merely to be known, but, when known, to be worshipped. For the THEOLOGY which belongs to this world, is PRACTICAL and through faith: THEORETICAL THEOLOGY belongs to the other world, and consists of pure and unclouded vision, according to the expression of the Apostle, 'We walk by faith, and not by sight; ' (2 Cor. v. 7.) and that of another Apostle, "We shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." (1 John iii. 2.) For this reason we must clothe the object of our Theology in such a manner as may enable it to incline us to worship GoD, and fully to persuade and win us over to that practice.

"But that man may be induced, by a willing obedience and a humble submission of the mind, to worship God, it is necessary for him to believe, from a certain persuasion of the heart,-(1.) That it is the will of God to be worshipped, and that worship is due to him:-(2.) That the worship of him will not be in vain, but will be recompensed with an exceedingly great reward :-(3.) That a mode of worship must be instituted according to his command.-To these three particulars ought to be added, a knowledge of the mode prescribed.

"Our Theology, then, delivers three things concerning this object, as necessary and sufficient to be known in relation to the preceding subjects of belief.-The FIRST is concerning the nature of GOD.-The SECOND Concerning his actions.-And the THIRD Concerning his will.

"(1.) Concerning his nature; that it is worthy to receive adoration on account of its justice; that it is qualified to form a right judgment of that worship, on account of its wisdom; and that it is prompt and able to bestow rewards, on account of its goodness and the perfection of its own blessedness.

(2.) Two actions have been ascribed to God for the same purpose; they are CREATION and PROVIDENCE. (i.) The Creation of all things, and especially of man after God's own image; upon which is founded his sovereign authority over man, and from which is deduced the right of requiring worship from man and enjoining obedience upon him, according to that very just complaint of GOD by MALACHI, (i. 6,) "If then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear?"-(ii.) That Providence is to be ascribed to

God by which he governs all things, and according to which he exercises a holy, just, and wise care and oversight over man himself and those things which relate to him, but chiefly over the worship and obedience which he is bound to render to his God.

(3.) Lastly, it treats of the will of GOD expressed in a certain covenant into which he has entered with man, and which consists of two parts: (i.) The one, by which he declares it to be his pleasure to receive adoration from man, and at the same time prescribes the mode of performing that worship; for it is his will to be worshipped from obedience, and not at the option or discretion of man.(ii.) The other, by which God promises that he will abundantly compensate man for the worship which he performs; requiring not only adoration for the benefits already conferred upon man, as a trial of his gratitude; but likewise that He may communicate to man infinitely greater things to the consummation of his felicity. For as he Occupied the first place in conferring blessings and doing good, because that high station was his due, since man was about to be called into existence among the number of creatures; so likewise it is his desire that the last place in doing good be reserved for him, according to the infinite perfection of his goodness and blessedness, who is the Fountain of good and the extreme boundary of happiness, the Creator and at the same time the Glorifier of his worshippers.

"Our Theology is chiefly occupied in ascribing to the One True GOD, to whom alone they really belong, those attributes of which we have already spoken,—his nature, actions, and will.-For it is not sufficient to know, that there is some kind of a NATURE, simple, infinite, wise, good, just, omnipotent, happy in itself, the Maker and Governor of all things, that is worthy to receive adoration, whose will it is to be worshipped, and that is able to make its worshippers happy. To this general kind of knowledge there ought to be added, a sure and settled conception, fixed on that Deity, and strictly bound to that single object of religious worship, to which alone those qualities appertain. The necessity of entertaining fixed and determinate ideas on this subject, is very frequently inculcated in the sacred page: 'I am the LORD thy GOD.' (Exod. xx. 2.) I am the LORD and there is none else.' (Isa. xlv. 5.)

"Our Theology, moreover, distinguishes and points out the true Deity, even by a most appropriate, particular, and individual mark, when it introduces the mention of the persons who are partakers of the same Divinity; thus it gives a right direction to the mind of the worshipper, and fixes it upon that God who is the Father of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. This was manifested with some degree of obscurity in the Old Testament, but with the utmost clearness in the New. Hence the Apostle says, 'I bow my knee unto the FATHER of our LORD JESUS CHRIST.' (Eph. iii. 14.)-All these remarks are com

prehended and summed up by Divines, in this brief sentence, That GOD must be invoked, who has manifested himself in his own word.' "But the preceding observations concerning the OBJECT of Theology, properly respect LEGAL THEOLOGY, which was accommodated to man's primeval state. For while man in his original integrity acted under the protecting favour and benevolence of a good and just GoD, he was able to render to God that worship which had been prescribed, according to the law of legal righteousness, which says, This do, and thou shalt live; he was able to love with all his heart and soul' that Good and Just Being;-he was able, from a consciousness of his integrity, to repose confidence in that Good and Just One; and he was able to evince towards him, as such, a filial fear, and to pay him the honour which was pleasing and due to him, as from a servant to his Lord. GoD also, on his part, without the least injury to his justice, was able to act towards man, while in that state, according to the prescript of legal righteousness, to reward his worship according to justice, and, through the terms of the legal covenant, and consequently of debt,' to confer life upon him. This GoD could do, consistently with his goodness, by whose advice and instigation he promised that life; and consistently with his justice, which required the fulfilment of that promise. There was no call for any other property of his nature, which might contribute by its agency to accomplish this purpose: No further progress of Divine goodness was necessary than that which might repay good for good, the good of perfect felicity, for the good of entire obedience: No other action was required, except that of creation, (which had then been performed,) and that of a preserving and governing providence, in conformity with the condition in which man was placed: No other volition of GoD was needed, than that by which he might both require the perfect obedience of the law, and might repay that obedience with life eternal. In that state of human affairs, therefore, the knowledge of the nature described in those properties,—the knowledge of those actions, and of that will,— to which may be added the knowledge of the Deity with whom they truly agreed, was all that was necessary for the performance of worship to GOD, and was of itself amply sufficient.

"But when man had fallen from his primeval integrity through disobedience to the law, and had rendered himself a child of wrath,' and had become devoted to condemnation, this goodness mingled with legal justice could not be sufficient for the salvation of man. Neither could this act of creation and providence, nor this will, suffice; and therefore this Legal Theology was itself insufficient. For sin was to be condemned if men were absolved; and, as the Apostle says, (in the eighth chapter of his Epistle to the Romans,) it could not be condemned by the law. Man was to be justified: VOL. I. Third Series. APRIL, 1822. 2 E