without exception, the fame by nature and practice? He knows how to take vengeance on their inventions, and yet not utterly take away his loving kindness, nor fuffer his faithfulness to fail. Let not the first-born think that they have an exclufive right to all the promifes, which are Chrift's property, and theirs in ufe only for his fake. He may give the fecond-born children in due time to drink of thefe wells of falvation alfo, and fo' feed them and lead them to fountains of living water, and wipe away all tears from their eyes, and that without any prejudice to the heirs of promife, whofe glory and felicity fhall be thereby greatly enhanced, Rev. vii. 17. Let them not then be now like too many heirs among men, who look with an invidious eye on the younger branches of the family, and are too feldom difpofed to do them juftice; for the fame reafons do not hold in both cases; as here the acceffion of the second-born to their own lot, will prove also an acceffion to the inheritance and felicity of all the elder brethren; so that every ground of jealousy, which is fo ftrong in the prefent ftate, shall be eternally excluded. I have dwelt the longer on these things, because where we are averfe to believe, we are dull of understanding, and flow of heart, as experience, alas! shews. Permit me to afk, Can it be reasonably fuppofed that the Lord will continue without end what he deems his strange work, to which he is unwillingly brought, and yet disconti ue, after a certain period, and that as long as he shall exift, the exercife of an attribute in which he delights, and which greatly tends to exalt him, though millions of very proper objects of mercy, if extreme mifery can make them fo, always prefent themselves to his view? This is far from being likely. What our Lord says of the two debtors, one of whom owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty, deferves attention. "And when they had nothing to pay, be frankly forgave them both," Luke vii. 42. No difference in point of guilt or mifery can make any difference with God. Nay, he is moft glorified and loved where moft is forgiven; and why should we not allow him to forgive as frankly at the restoration the five hundred pence debtors, as he does now the others, fecing they are equally unable to pay? Simon was conftrained to own, that he who had moft forgiven him would love most; and how great shall their love be who are brought out of the great tribulation! But to proceed,

Hath the mouth of the Lord faid, that "his glory shall be revealed, and that all fir shall fee it together," Ifa. xl. 5.-that all flesh shall come to him as the God who heareth prayer, Pfal. lxv. 2.—that it shall come, that he will gather all nations and tongues, and they shall come and fee his glory, Ifa. lxvi. 18. And shall this never be accomplished? Has it no reference to all flesh, as exifting in every age; and to all nations, from the beginning to the end of time? Impoffible, if the common doctrine be true. But the fpirit knows his own mind beft, and he teaches us to believe, that all nations whom God has made shall come and worship before him, in confequence of having feen his glory, Píal. lxxxvi. 9. This is an indispenfible characteristic of all the nations that ever did, that now do, or hereafter shall exift. The phrafe all fesh des notes, in its moft limited acceptation, all mankind: “ All flesh died that moved upon the earth," Gen. vii. 21.—" all flesh had corrupted his way upon the

earth-the end of all flesh is come before me," Gen. vi. 12, 13. And we find Jehovah called " the God of the fpirits of all flesh," Num. xxvii. 16. “And the voice faid, Cry, all flesh is grafs-furely the people are grafs," Ifa. xl.— Shall all nations, in the largest and fullest fenfe, and all flesh fee the glory of God together, (which imports enjoying it) and come to him as the hearer of prayer, and the object of all religious worship; and will any man take it upon him to prove, that all this is accomplished to the full in the elect, who are but one nation and not many, and in refpect of them all but a little flock? It is very customary with man, in a fit of generofity, to make large promises; but when the performance is folicited, they dwindle almoft into nothing, and disappoint the hopes to which they gave birth. Not fo, however, the promises of the Almighty, though many would fo explain and understand them: for the more they are grafped, inftead of being found air, the more fubftantial and confolatory will they be found. Let not men prefume to fet up any doctrine as a ftandard, to which they are to reduce the plaineft texts in the Bible, though at the expence of perverting them from their natural and obvious meaning; the too common mode of expounding scripture, which cuftom has now fanctioned, by the touch of her magic wand, and for which the clergy in general ftrenuously

contend.

Is it promifed, or foretold, that all the kindreds of the nations fhall worship before Meffiah ;-that all they that go down to the duft fhall bow before him, or do him homage, Pfal. xxii, 27, 29. that all the earth,, or all its inhabitante, fhall worship him, and fing unto him, and to his name, without our being at li berty to restrict this to any period, as the extent is clearly afcertained above, Pfal. Ixvi. 4. that all kings fhall fall down before him; that all nations fhall serve him, and call him blessed, Pfal. Ixxii. 11, 17. that he will deftroy the veil that is over all nations, and make a precious feaft for all people, Ifa. xxv. 6, 7. that all the kings of the earth fhall praife him, when they hear the words of his mouth, and that they shall fing is his ways, Pfal. cxxxviii. 4, 5. that all dominions, (margin) all rulers, fhall ferve and obey him, Dan. vii. 27. is all this, and much more to the fame effect, promifed in fcripture; and can it be unreasonable to lock for the accomplishment, as extending beyond the very limited line of the church of the firft-born, feeing it cannot be proved that all this fhall be ever fully realized within the narrow precincts of that facred incl fure.-We are farther told, Pfal. xxii. 29. that all they that are fat upon earth fhall eat and worship. The fat on earth muft intend the rich and opulent, who have hitherto in general been fonder of any thing than worshipping God. The cating with which that is connected must be fpiritually underflood, and the period when both fhall take. place may be learned from the context. It is promifed that a feed fhall ferve Meffiah, that it fhall be accounted to the Lord for a generation, or, as in the metrical verfion, be reckoned as fuch in all ages. Thefe appear to be the ele, of whom it is promised, that they fhall come and declare his truth and righteoufnefs to a people that shall be born, that he hath done this; or, as fome render it, whom the Lord hath made, or fhall make, referring to the people who fhall be born, when the feed, or generation of the righteous, fhall be completed.

Here the elect are acting in character, as priests confecrated to the fervice of God. Upon the common fyftem, where fhall we find a people to be born, after the elect are all gathered together, in their refpective ages and countries, and made up as a generation, or holy nation to the Lord? Whence are they then to come to deliver his righteoufnefs to the people to be born, if not, as John tells us, in the New Jerufalem, that fhall come down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

We read alfo of the coming of the nations to worship before God: "All nations whom thou haft made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and fhall glorify thy name," Pfal. lxxxvi. 9. God hath made of one blood all the nations that dwell at any period on the face of the earth, who shall come and worship before him. The dead that go down to the pit of the (econd death cannot praise God, nor hope in his mercy, till he fhew wonders to them, and raise them up to praise him. Then only fhall they come and worship before him, and glorify his Dame, which is a wonderful work, that will manifeft God to be great in mercy, and the only true God. When all the nations that he has made shall come and worship before him, while feated upon his throne in the New Jerufalem, reigning before his ancients or elders gloriously, many things in his word and conduct that are now dark and veiled, will be feen in the brightnefs of his fhining, and fill faints and angels with joy unfpeakable and full of glory.-Thefe things are fo much out of the common road of our mode of thinking, that men will not believe them, though declared upon divine authority, and weary themselves to invent objections against them. Chrift was crucified as an impoftor, not for want of evidence of his divine miffion, though more was ftill infifted on ; and the fame thing holds with the truth of his word.

When our Lord is called the first-born of every creature, and the firft-born, or firfl-begotten from or of the dead, that in all things, or among all things or beings, he might have the pre-eminence, Colof, i. 18.; and when we attend to the privileges and truft of the firft-born of old, as types of Mcffiah, are we not confirained to own a relation or brotherhood between him and all his works, in one form or other, whether these be living or dead, and that the rights and of. fice of an elder brother, relative to them all, devolves on him in his mediatory character? Will he never discharge that truft with refpect to the far greater part of them? Hath he neither offered facrifice, nor made interceffion for them, though the first-born, or high-prieft of the dead, without exception? In Pfalm 88 h, where a greater than Heman the Ezrahite be traced, may find him intercecding for the dead: "Wilt thou fhew wonders to the dead? Shall the dead arife and praise thee? Shall thy loving kindness be declared in the grave, or thy faithfulness in deftruction? Shall thy wonders be made known in the dark, and thy righteoufnefs in the land of forgetfulness?" ver, 10, 11, 12. Each of the fe qneftions amounts to an affirmation. Wonderful as the things contained in them are, they are eafy to him who has made all things by the word of his power, and fhall hereafter make all things pew. He is faid to quicke all things, and to be appointed beir of all things. Who would envy him the poffeffion of his own, or difpute against it?

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The variety of expreffion ufed in these verfes, applies to the dead of every defcription, and especially to thofe of them whofe cafe is the moft deplorable and hopeless. If our Lord excludes none of the dead, if he is the Lord and the Prieft both of the dead and the living, which he declared to be, what are we, that we should exclude any of them from the benefit of his mediation? May he not be allowed to be the refurrection and the life commenfurate to the deftruc. tion of every death; fince there is much in his word to authorize this, and no-. thing, properly understood, to forbid it? However harfh it may appear to us, one clause of the above, literally rendered, would be, "Shall thy loving-kindnes be declared in hell?” The term is often fo rendered in the text, and on the margin; and it is not without reafon the Spirit of God has made choice of the fame word, to denote the ftate of the body after natural death, and the ftate of future mifery. Viewing our Lord's interceffion in this extent, what an acceffion of importance and glory does it acquire? To this perfectly agrees the next claufe," Shall thy faithfulness be declared in deftruction?" another term expreffive of the second death, which is called everlafiing deftruction, or the deftruc tion of an unknown period or age, as it might be rendered. If God fpeaks of the dead of every fort, under the fame general terms, and alfo of their different flates, what right have we to divide them, and to limit. his faving work to this or that class of them, feeing our Lord ever liveth to make interceffion for them; whence he is able to fave to the uttermof, to perfection, or completely, all that come to God by him? Heb. vii. 25.

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That early error which sprung up in the church of Corinth, the denial of the refurre&ion of the dead, prevails with the bulk of Chriftians ftill. "How fay fome among you, that there is no refurrection of the dead?" I Cor. xv. 12. Why fhould it feem a thing incredible to any, that God fhould raise the dead every fense? for he is as able to fhew wonders to the deal, in the grave of the fecond death, as in any other, and to raise them up to praise him. Admitting. this, what a glorious and confiftent view does it give us of the divine plan, compared to that partial and mutilated scheme which is obtruded on the world in its place? But the latter is of man's framing, and it is therefore a beloved idol, which men believe and worship, as the South Americans are faid to have worshipped the devil in fome of their temples, in order to efcape his vengeance. Whatever is of God is like himself, and can be feen only by the aid of his own light. Before it triumph in the world, it is fure to be treated as he was who came to bear witness to the truth, even to be crucified as an impoftor, and that as he was, by his profeffed people. Owing to the above, or fimilar motives, the common doctrine can number among her zealous advocates, votaries of Bacchus, of Venus, and Mammon, and alfo mere formalifts, and perfons who fear not an oath. But few confider or practically believe what eternity is.

Since Peter speaks of the reftitution, or restoration of all things, as a truth which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets fince the world began, Acts iii. 21. Since Paul declares, that the creation, even the whole creation, the fons of God excepted, will be delivered from vanity, and the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of God's children, Rom. viii. 21. and

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Let. IV. fince John tells us, that the glorious perfon whom he law in vifion fitting on the throne, faid, "Behold I make all things new." Rev. xxi. 5. and fince we have clear figns of the times referred to in each context, which perfectly agree together, are we blame-worthyr deeming the reftitution of all things a divine work of great importance, for inquiring into its nature, times, and extent, and for making the beft ufe of the light the Spirit has given us for that purpofe? If the work and the figns of the times or feafons for performing it, mentioned by these three facred writers, are found to agree, upon examining the context, are we not justified in concluding that one and the fame glorious work is intended? Surely it is more fafe and honourable to follow fuch guides, than thofe who now profefs to be their fucceffors, who claim an authority over their brethren's faith which they never claimed, and exercise a power over them which they never exercised, that of judging and condemning them without the forma lity of a trial.

It refts with those who deny the restoration to prove, That the reftitution of all things fhall not be a reftitution of all things, that only a very few things are intended-that the delivery of the whole creation from the bondage of corruption, with the exception only of the children of God, who fhall be previously delivered, fhall not be a delivery of the whole creation and that the making of al things new, however folemnly announced as a true and faithful faying, fhall never prove a renovation of all things-that former things, with the far greater part of God's intelligent creatures, fhall never pafs away. They muft prove, that these, and the like univerfal phrases, which have no figure or ambiguity in the language, muft be divefted of their univerfality, and.compreffed in a diminishing machine, fo as to reduce them to the standard of the common fyftem. If they can do this by clear fcripture evidence, that fyftem will be tenable, and the doctrine of the final reftoration of all things overturned, though not much to the credit of the confiftency of the facred writings. Some people's faith, in the eternal damnation of their fellow creatures, is firmly rooted indeed, when fuch confiderations cannot move it. But it is a miracle if it can reft, not in the wifdom of man, but in the power of God, after all that the oracles of truth fay to fupport the oppofite fyftem. Referving farther proof of the final restoration to a future opportunity, and praying the wisdom from above may enter into our heart, and knowledge be pleasant to our foul; that difcretion may preferve us, and the understanding of the holy keep us, to deliver from the way of thofe who leave the paths of uprightnefs, to walk in the ways of darkness, Prov. ii.

I remain,

Dear Sir,

Yours to ferve you in the truth, &c