the world, to superstitious belief. Any unusual appearance, or occurrence, alarms by its novelty, and leads them to attribute it to some invisible being, spirit, or ghost. Such is the religion of nature the primitive religion of un"instructed mankind!" What, then, becomes of the boasted wisdom of modern Deists? They owe it all to that revelation which, being diffused all around them, has imperceptibly instructed them in the knowledge of those truths which, though reason could not discover, their reason approves of, after they have been revealed to them.

But if it were possible for one individual or two, by long and diligent study, to come to the conclusion that there is only one Supreme Being, yet this knowledge could be of no use to the discoverer-he could proceed no further; he could not ascertain the extent of the divine knowledge, power, or goodness. He could not say whether this Being made the world, or whether the world existed from eternity; whether the effects of nature are under his controul, or whether they are the results of certain laws or principles which have existed from eternity, independently of the power of this Deity. He could not determine whether this Being interests himself at all in human concerns, or whether he reposes in a state of tranquillity and perfect indifference. Revelation teaches that God knows our thoughts; and that he hears the secret prayers even of his children-that he is a Being "that trieth the reins and the heart." What is there in nature that can lead any mind to the discovery of this great truth, the most important in the book of Christianity; a truth, the consideration of which leads us to that strict sincerity of heart which men of the world, and hypocrites in religion, never regard; and which, it will hardly be supposed, can influence the even conscientious unbeliever? Revelation teaches that God can direct all things into what channel he pleases; that nothing happens without his permission; that he can make, and unmake; that he can give sight to the blind, or take it away from those who possess it; that he can destroy life, and restore it again; and, in short, that there is no limits to his power. But what is there in nature that can lead any mind, however strong or penetrating, to these important conclusions? and did any mind, unassisted and uninstructed by revelation, ever arrive at these truths? On the contrary, we find nothing but the most wretched and absurd systems among those who studied the works of nature, to find out God. The more they studied the subject, the more they were involved in horrible imaginations,

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and in darkness, that might be felt. Their system of morals, too, was so depraved, that it cannot be named among Christians. This was the effect of their ignorance of God; and I maintain, that the great and only object of revelation was, and is, to make men know the existence and nature of God; and his future intentions to those who obey, and to those who disobey him ;-and I further maintain, that no human mind ever did, or ever could arrive at this knowledge, unassisted by revelation; and therefore this revelation was absolutely necessary to the happiness of mankind. Whether men attend to it or not-whether they make a happy use of it, or pervert it to the worst of purposes, is another question, which has nothing to do with this fact, that it was necessary to make known to us the existence and attributes of the Deity. There is no medium between atheism and christianity. Some profess to believe in a God without assistance from religion-but it is evident they are deceived. They owe their belief to the prevalence of that religion-they owe it to education. The unanimous testimony of all history is against any other conclusion. There are others who profess at once to be atheists. These are the most consistent. Rejecting revelation, they find themselves under the necessity of being atheists-or sceptics at most.

It appears that the first inhabitants of this earth were taught the existence of God by God himself. As mankind increased and separated, and spread in different directions, they carried with them this great truth; but being left to themselves, and seeing innumerable effects, whose causes they were not able to discover, they fell into idolatry; and when once they began to make invisible agents, there would be no end to the number of them: every river, every grove, every star, and every faculty of the mind would have its deity. But they still retained the belief of one Supreme Being, who was the God of gods. In the Grecian mythology Jupiter is acknowledged for the greatest of all the gods; and is styled by Homer king, or father of gods and men. The Hindoos also believe in the Supreme Being who existed from all eternity; they then add, that he resolved to produce other gods, some male and some female :-and when once men had given way to their imaginations, there was no end to their monstrous inventions. The Jews alone were preserved from these dreadful evils by the interposition of the Deity himself. But if we do not admit that the Jews were instructed by God--or in other words, if we do not admit the general truth of their history, then how can we account

for the indisputable fact that they were preserved from idolatry, and all its impure rites, at a time when all other nations, and those nations infinitely superior to the Hebrews in all other respects, were plunged into the depths of the most horrible superstition.

Sandon, near Royston.

G. G. F.

THE RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD OPPOSED TO THE DOCTRINE OF THE IMMORTALITY OF THE SOUL.

ESSAY V.-THE SCRIPTURAL EVIDENCE.

"All those fine spun notions of the immateriality of the soul, and all the artificial deductions from that principle, teach nothing but the art of blowing scholastic bubbles, which will certainly go peaceably to their rest, without the least detriment, either to sound learning or true religion."Archdeacon Blackburn.

THE first department of our scriptural examination of the present subject we concluded in our last number; that which will occupy the present Essay, will form the second division; namely, that the apostles of Jesus, on some occasions, appear to sanction, by their language, a belief in the doctrine of the immortality of the soul; and while the passages which are assumed to aid this position are not numerous, they are yet deemed by our opponents to possess rather a formidable character; such an estimation of them, however, is caused principally by the disregard of a rule which is indispensible in scriptural, or indeed in any other criticism—that of viewing literal expressions as such, and figurative ones as figurative, and at all times allowing plain and definite passages to illustrate those which may be, from various causes, less so; thus to ensure, in all obscure or controverted cases, the best exposition of such by a reference to the work itself. The applicability of these remarks to our subject, will be seen upon a reference to the New Testament, in which the principles and genius of the christian religion are often designated as "LIFE" or SPIRIT;" and such as embraced the advantages connected with that system, are

said to to have "passed from death" (a state of condemnation) "unto life," (a state of pardon)" from the power or influence of Satan" (of worldly pursuits or principles) “unto "God;" of the principles which Jesus delivered, it is said, "they are spirit and they are life." (John vi. 63.) And to those who embraced such, there was 66 пош по соп"demnation to them which are in Christ Jesus," (in christianity) "who walk not after the flesh," (the principles of the world)" but after the spirit ;" (principles of christianity,) Rom. viii. 1. The power of man is also contrasted with that of God-the one, it is shewn, may destroy our present existence, but that God, besides that, can also "take away" the hopes and rewards of the gospel; thus, the apostles of Jesus are exhorted not to fear man, whose greatest effort could only destroy their body, or present life; but rather to fear him, whose power extended equally over their future, as well as their present existence; and who, besides annihilating their body, could likewise withhold that future life (or soul) which the gospel had promised to them, and over which, man's power and influence could not extend. Thus, also, in the free use of figurative language, Jesus exclaims to the multitude," Verily, verily, I say unto you, except ye eat the flesh of the son of man and "drink his blood, ye have no life (no spirit) in you; whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life; whoso eateth me, even he shall live by me." (John vi.) It is clearly here the principles of christianity, which they were exhorted to eat and to drink; and which, by such eating and drinking, believers (and believers alone) had then within them the life," or "spirit," thus designated. So also the apostle Paul, when writing to the Corinthian church, at a time when it was disordered both in discipline and morals, addresses its members as "God's husbandry; ye are God's

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building, ye are the temple of God-the SPIRIT OF god "dwelleth IN YOU." And the same writer still more strongly urges upon them, that they should flee from every sin, and that they should bend all their energies to the performance of the will of God, because their "body_was "not for fornication, but for the Lord, and the Lord "for the body-what, know ye not that your bodies are "members of Christ?" And therefore purity, as well as perfect devotedness to godly principle, both of their“ souls,”

minds" and "bodies," (i. e. the whole of their energies) was indispensable; thus using for the purpose of increased impressiveness, a mode of amplification frequent in the

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scriptures, as in the instance of Jesus when explaining to the lawyer that to love God was the greatest commandment, he adopts this beautiful and forcible mode of expression, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, "with all thy SOUL, with all thy mind, and with all thy "strength," that is, with a perfect devotedness of mind; and not as our adversaries, were they consistent, would and must contend, that they were firstly, to love God with all their hearts; secondly, with all their souls; thirdly, with all their minds; and fourthly, with all their strength; which, though distinct and independent of each other, were yet parts and parcels" of the same man; and, in addition also to such inevitable consequences, resulting from the avowed principles of immaterialism, we contend, that if because of the occurrence of the mere words "soul" and " body," even in the admitted instance of the description being of but one and the same person, that we are therefore, and as a matter of necessity, to allow that there are two natures in man; then we hold, that, in addition to the cases already quoted, and upon the same principles of scripture criticism, Paul teaches not two but three natures; for he acquaints the Thessalonians that he " prays God your whole SPIRIT-and SOUL--and "BODY be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord "Jesus Christ" (1 Thess. v. 23) so that here we submit, the hypothesis of our adversaries is materially weakened, and that too, upon their own shewing; for if this and similar passages, are of weight to them in the present controversy, they can only be esteemed so by their consistency with that which they are brought to support; but it is evident, that, if they prove anything for that doctrine, they prove too much, by dividing man, not into two, but three distinct natures, a BODY SOUL-and SPIRIT. Other most important passages too, of Paul's exhortations and reasonings, must, if the interpretation of our opponents be admitted, suffer a like perversion, so that believers at Corinth must have had literally within them the Holy Ghost, (which the same parties tell us is a part of the Godhead,)" for your bodies 66 are the temples of the Holy Ghost"-(Holy Spirit, referring to the possession of spiritual gifts, which, in the apostolic age, were conferred only upon believers; and, in connection with such gifts, what may be esteemed the "fruits of the "spirit," or devotion of mind to christian principles was that "spirit," or "life," or "soul," which they possessed) WHICH IS IN YOU, which ye have of God, for you are not your own, you are bought with a price; therefore, glorify God "IN YOUR BODY, and IN YOUR SPIRIT, which are God's ;"

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