ment reversed proves this book to be the work of God.

Yet there is a difficulty in presenting this subject in such a manner that it can be appreciated by any other than a student of the Bible, or even to describe it at all, in a treatise or a discourse-the same that there is in describing the features of a beautiful countenance, the exquisite combination of colors in the rainbow, the sweet sounds of a fine-toned instrument of music, or the appalling grandeur of a thunder storm at sea-— either of which must be seen or heard to be understood and felt. Yet there are a few prominent points that may be presented; and this I shall now undertake to do. I observe, then,

1. That, what the Scriptures teach concerning God, commends itself to the reason and common sense of mankind, as being essential to the Supreme Creator and Governor of the Universe. Such are, the unity and spirituality of the Divine Essence or Nature; the Eternity of his being; and the perfection of all his attributes, constituting, together, a Being of Infinite Perfection. I need not specify the passages which teach these things concerning God. They are familiar to every one that is familiar with the Bible. But it must be apparent to all, that these things are essential to God; and that a being, falling in the least degree short of Infinite Perfection, could not be God. I do not assert that this truth may not be discovered by the light of nature; yet the fact that all nations, destitute of the Scriptures, have lost this knowledge of the true God, and that it has only been preserved in the Holy Scriptures, shows that the sa

cred record must be a revelation from God. The light of nature has, by reason of sin, become darkness; and all nations, except such as have been in some way enlightened through the influence of the Holy Scriptures, have no adequate ideas of the nature of the true God. The philosophers of Greece, probably, received their ideas of God from the Jewish Scriptures, which, at an early period, were translated into the Greek language; and whatever correct ideas of God the modern Deists may have, they have stolen from the Christian Scriptures.

2. The Scriptures reveal things which could not be known except by revelation from God; and yet, when revealed, these truths commend themselves to the reason and consciences of men. Such are the facts of the resurrection of the body and the immortality of the soul,-facts, which all the light of nature and of science are incompetent to teach, and concerning which, they have never been able to discover any thing more than "probabilities by conjecture." Such, also, is the provision it reveals for securing the integrity of God's government, while it extends pardon to the guilty. The fact, that God can pardon sin, consistently with his justice, could never have been discovered except by a direct revelation from God himself; for no other being could determine this to be possible; and the fact, that this revelation is accompanied by a scheme which preserves the holiness of God and the integrity of his government, is evidence of its divine origin; this scheme being entirely beyond the capacity of any human being to devise.

3. The Scriptures reveal great facts, so entirely incomprehensible in their nature, as to render the conception of them above the capacity of finite beings. Such is the fact that God subsists in a trinity of persons, while the Divine Essence, or Nature of the Godhead, is one and indivisible. It cannot be shown that this is contrary to right reason; yet it is entirely above the province of reason to comprehend it. That the conception of the idea is above human reason, is proved by the fact that it never has been conceived, except as taught by the Scriptures. The heathen have their "gods many and lords many;" but it cannot, I think, be shown that they have ever conceived the idea of one Infinite Supreme Intelligence, subsisting in a mysterious manner, in a plurality of persons. The fact that this is mysterious and incomprehensible, though often brought as an argument against this doctrine, is in fact an argument in its favor, and in favor of the inspiration of the book which teaches it. If the Bible contained no mysterious and incomprehensible things, it would lose much of its claim to our confidence, as a divine revelation. In a revelation from the infinite God to finite creatures, it is reasonable to expect many facts to be stated, the nature of which are beyond the powers of finite minds. But this doctrine is no more incomprehensible than any thing else that is revealed concerning God. Who can comprehend the eternity of God? Let the human mind stretch its utmost length, backward and forward, and what progress can it make towards the apprehension of a Being who never began to be, and who will never cease to exist? Beyond

the utmost verge of human thought, there still lie the trackless shores of eternity. And who can understand the self-existence of God? Who can fathom the meaning of that ineffable name, "I AM?" What idea can a finite mind form of existence without cause? What idea can we form of a First Cause,— a cause which is its own cause-while we have never been conversant with any thing but second causes ? The very idea of infinity, in its application to any of the attributes of God, is altogether beyond the grasp of a finite mind. Who can tell how God can be present in every place, and have a perfect conception of all things throughout infinite space at the same moment? What idea can we form of power which has no limit but the will of its possessor? And who can fathom the infinite holiness of God? These are divine and glorious mysteries, just such as we might reasonably expect to find in a revelation from the Infinite God. The existence of these sublime mysteries in this revelation also agree with the analogy of God's works, whereby, also, as well as in his word, he has made himself known. The works of creation and providence, from the structure of the smallest insect and the growth of a spire of grass, to the architecture of the heavens and the rolling of the spheres, are full of mysterious and incomprehensible things. We conclude, therefore, that the fact that the Scriptures contain the declaration of facts, the existence of which is neither absurd nor unreasonable, and yet the nature of which is mysterious and incomprehensible, fixes the impress of divinity upon these Scriptures. The very perfection of nature ascribed

to God in the Bible, is evidence, also, of its divine origin; for what finite mind could originate the conception of such perfection?

4. It is an evidence of the divine inspiration of the Scriptures, that they contain a rational and consistent account of the origin of all things.

This cannot be said of the sacred books of the heathen; or of any theory or conjecture based upon any thing else but the Mosaic account. All the accounts contained in the sacred books or traditions of the heathen, are filled with absurd and ridiculous fables; and yet they approach so near to a caricature of the account which the Bible furnishes, as to corroborate it. On the supposition that this account is true, we should naturally expect tradition would teach just what it does. But I have said this account is consistent and rational. It is consistent with the character of God. According to this account, almighty power is displayed in the creation in a most sublime and glorious manner" He spake and it was done, he commanded and it stood fast,"-what more worthy of God? The holiness of God is also equally conspicuous; for, according to this account, all things left the hand of their Creator perfectly good. And what idea can be formed of the origin of all things, more rational and consistent with reason ?

5. It is evidence of the divine inspiration of the Scriptures, that they account, in a rational and satisfactory manner, for the present character and condition of man. If we were left to infer that man was originally created the same sinful being which he now is, and placed in the same wretched condition, it