God, by the infpired teaching of his fervants, has pofitively revealed, or declared, to be the cafe, That He was in Chrift Jefus, reconciling the world unto himfelf. Here, then, is the grand article of our faith, on which the hope of Chriftian glory reits; and this (however wonderful the mystery) we muft believe. Great, in truth, faith the apostle, is the mystery of Godliness or of man's redemption.) The pride, ignorance, and perverfenefs of men, indeed, ever have been fo notorious, that many fuppofe themfelves excufcable for difbelieving every thing, but what they pofitively behold with their outward fenfes; and we find this fad degeneracy of nature carried to the greatest length, even in the conduct of one of Christ's own difciples, on which occafion our bleffed Mafter exalts the value of faith, in the directeft terms: Thomas, because thou haft feen me, thou hatt believed, bleifed are they who have not feen, and yet believe.

"Nor, in fact, can any thing be more abfurd, prefuming, or dangerous, than to encourage an unbelief of God's ways or dealings, because they are myfterious. For what is all nature but a mystery? And if we will believe nothing but what we thoroughly underftand, we may even deny the evidence of our fenfes. For, as our Lord il luftrates the way of the Spirit of God upon the minds of men, by the pla neft of comparifons; fo may we as well deny the power of the wind, or air, because we know not whence it cometh, or whither it goeth; or the genial virtue of the fun upon the earth, because we cannot fee minusely how it operateth on various matter (though the effect of both declare the power of their caufe to demonftration) as to doubt the truth of God's wonderful revelations of Himself, because we do not thoroughly comprehend his feveral difpenfations and methods of acting, and how these things can be. Marvellous, no doubt, are the manifold myfteries of God's love to man, and to the full as much above his prefent fhallow abilities completely to account for, as is the clear and perfect knowledge of God's triune nature, or the doctrine of the Trinity. As for example, the incarnation of the Son of God; the neceffity and all-fufficient propitiation of his death; the fecret power of his miracles; the astonishing exertion of God's mercy, in order to fatisfy his juftice; the creation of this world and all things in it; the kingdom of Satan; the kingdom of grace; thefe are among the ftupendous myfteries which even the angels defire to look into; and, if they are too hard for them, fhall we, that are made lower than they, on purpofe to be crowned with glory through faith in the truth, and power of God, fhall we start alide, and forfeit all our happiness, because thefe deep things of God elude the flender powers of human reafon? And, if with all the furpring faculties, with which the Creator hath endowed his creatures: if, after all our learning, ftudy, induftry to cultivate thofe gifts, and the experience of ages, added to the utmoft penetration of the brightest genius or capacity, the commoneft operations of the animal and vegetable world exceed our knowledge, and lead us to adore and magnity the wifdom of the Almighty Author, whofe ways are paft finding out is it at all furprifing, that we fhould be incompetent to judge, or reafon, upon what the human eye hath never feen, nor ear heard, nor can enter into the heart or imagination of a mere mortal creature

to

to conceive? Is it a rational plea for infidelity, that we do not exactly comprehend the myttery of the Holy Trinity, the particular manner of the existence of the three perfons in the Divine Nature? Surely, none who have any becoming fenfe of their own deplorable imperfections at the very beft, but wil confefs their infufficiency for these things, and humbly exclaim with the Pfalmift, cxxxix. 6. Such knowLage is 100 wintrful for me, it is high, I cannot attain unto it; or, with holy Job, xxxiv. 32. That which I fee not, teach Thou me to bebeve. For thus is the Almighty reprefented to argue with this upright fervant, xxxvi. 14. Ha ken unto me, ch Job, fland fill, and confider the wondrous works of God. Thus did the wifeft and best of men fubmit their ruth-light of reafon to the dazzling blaze of divine intelligence! Thus did the Mot High vouchfafe to argue with the fons of men, even concerning his fublunary wonders; how then, without impious arrogance, and excefs of folly, fhall we dare to difpate the propriety and fecret relations of heavenly things?" P. 200.

The poffible confiftency of an incomprehenfible doctrine with right reafon, is then demonftrated, in reply to the third queftion, with equal plainnefs and ability.

"The most perfect religion, then, is only another name for the beft reafon, improved to its highest degree of excellence, and the fublimeft reafon, which is only the union of truth and good sense, will lead us naturally to Revelation: for reafon is modeft, and knows its sphere; reafon does rever oppose the value of myfteries; nor do myfteries contradi reafon, in the genuine meaning of the word; on the contrary, reafon teaches us, by daily experience, that, as our capacities are finire, or bounded, and the perfections of the Deity infinite, or unbounded, the latter muft confequently be above our reach. And, as natural light did never yet (in the mind of a truly wife man) pretend to equal the Divine light, fo there can be no juft ground from reafon, to difpute or disbelieve a doctrine, which we. have all imaginable caufe to think has been propofed to us for the wifft ends; although we find our prefent faculties are not sufficient to conceive the manner.

"As far as God has thought proper, or needful, he has vouchfafed to lead our reafon to admit the certainty of his Revelation, even upon this difficult subject; and this appears molt eminently, in the very words of the verte that follows my text, where, by a comparison that is level to reafon, and drawn from the customs of mankind, He condefcends to add, that, as the Three Perfons in the Trinity bear record in heaven, as to this particular defcription of the nature of God (viz. the Father, by whom the defign of our falvation was formed, and who revealed it fo early to the prophets; the Son, or Divine Word, whofe great bufinefs it was by fuch wonderful humiliations, and fufferings, to bring it into execution, and complete it; and the Holy Ghoft, who feals it, and applies it to believers) and that as thefe three are one, in the agreement of their teftimony, fo are they like wife in the perfection of their nature; and each worthy of fuch divine honours as cannot be communicated to any creature: and thus in all disputes about human affairs, as the pofitive teftimonies of two or three

I

three credible witneffes, is thought fufficient to determine the truth, in any court of justice, and the Jews allowed it by their own law to be fo; fo there are three on earth who bear witness to this truth; 1. the fpirit fent from above, by its fanctifying and miraculous operations, which gave witnefs by a voice from heaven, that Chrift, the Saviour of the world, was God's beloved Son; 2. the water of baptifm, to which facrament he vouchfafed to fubmit; and, 3. the innocent blood he fhed upon the crofs, when both blood and water iffued from his fide, and proved his death by the feparation of those fluids. Now the reprefentation of this is still continued in the facramental wine; and both thefe facraments are intended through all ages to preferve the memory of these furprizing facts. These three, then, do equally agree in one proof, and join to promote the fame end, by eftablishing the Gofpel in the world. And the apoftle infers this pofitive duty from the above, as an act of faith, that if we receive the witness of men; if our reafon and fenfes convince us of one truth, the witnefs of God (this exprefs Revelation of the things that concern himfelf) is greater, and ought, by ftronger confequence, to command our faith in his word. For furely, if the teftimony of two or three men be thought fufficient to give credit to any matter of fact, in all earthly courts, the teftimony of that God, who cannot lie, or poffibly deceive us, muft be of greater force to confirm belief in us. But, to leave us without excufe, for want of all-fafficient evidence, the apoftle adds, that this is the witnefs of God, even that which he hath teftified of and by his Son*." P. 204.

Two discourses on Harvest, which occupy a middle place in this collection, prefent a very favourable picture of the author's benevolence, and his faculty of ftriking out religious inftruction from all the occurrences of human life. We cannot deny ourselves the pleasure of adding to the extracts already made, an admonition of this writer upon the poflible abufes of a plenteous harvest.

"Beware then, my friends, left, at this plentiful feafon, when the vallies should laugh and fing, upon a principle of grateful joy on your part, and labour be rendered eafy, by a chearful heart in them that ferve you; beware, I fay, that no lurking fpirit of greediness, that no want of fellow-feeling, interfere with this pleafing defcription of the Pfalmift. O! beware, left inftead of joy and gladnefs, fighing and mourning, fhould enter into your fields! left the difconfolate widow, or the needy children of the poor, fhould be deprived of the expected comforts that the overflowing of plenty doth providentially yield them at this particular feafon; and lett miffing the gleanings of your fruitful lands, their forrowful complaint fhould reach the ears of Him, who pitieth the poor, and lifteneth to the cry of the helpless

Though we have cited this paffage, to exemplify the ftyle of this author's reafoning, we think it a very material objection to his arguments, that he has founded them on a text fo much controverted as John v. 7.-This fhould have been avoided.

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BRIT. CRIT. VOL. VIII. OCT. 1796.

Rev.

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and oppreffed. And, particularly, at this time, I would recommend a merciful delay in turning your cattle into the fields too foon*, before the poor have got the utmost benefit of their accidental harveft, left there be spoil and wafte, of what has ever been defigned by the appointment of God's providence, for the occafional fuccour and fupport of the needy; but let the poor, I fay, have every poffible advantage firft, that their fcanty circumftance requires, and the God of nature hath allotted them. You would do well to recollect also, that even under the late fore neceffities of the multitude, you reaped an occafional and extraordinary profit. I do not fay that any particular perfons here prefent were the caufe of their wants; but, wherever the caufe originated, every poffeffor of grain was eventually benefitted. And this thould afford another argument for every kind of mercy and indulgence towards your fuffeting brethren. For, pray let me afk, for whom do they toil? for whom do they wafte their ftrength and wear out all their lives? to whom are you indebted for the preparation of your lands, and for the fecuring the produce of them, but to the affiftance of the labourer? Or, if it pleafes God at any time, to fuffer fuch a temporary fcarcity, as in the nature of things must be feverely felt by the indigent; who (in the name of common fenfe) can be fo much bound by every principle of gratitude to God, and humanity to man, by every plea of reafon and justice, to relieve the diftreffes of the poor man, as they who live, who profper, who often are enriched by the fweat of their brow? Depend upon it, my brethren, God per mits fuch occafions to try us; to afford judgment against us out of our own mouths, if we continue hard-hearted to the afflicted, and ungrateful to Him for the numerous undeferved benefits we receive from his hands: and, doubtlefs, to reward us likewife with the bleffed expectation of good and faithful fervants, if fo, we prove ourfelves to be juft ftewards of his manifold gifts and graces. I do, therefore, moft earnestly admonish you, my friends, to forbear the cruel and wicked practice of depriving the poor of their right, by preferring the feeding your cattle to the feeding your fellow-creatures, left you fhould draw down the judgment of heaven upon you for fuch unfeeling conduct. The benefit of gleaning to the poor, is a cuftom of as old a date as any we read of, it has the fanction of divine command. Thus we read in Levit. xix. 9, 10. When ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not gather the gleanings of thy harveft. Again, Deut. xxiv. 20 and 21. When thou beatest thine olive-tree, thou shalt not go over the boughs again; when thou gathereft the grapes of thy vineyard, thou fealt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the ftranger, the fatherlefs, and the widow. And attend to the confequence of fuch liberal, merciful conduct, that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thy hands, therefore I command thee to do this thing. And it would help greatly to humble and foften thofe who are unhappily otherwise difpofed, to confider alfo, the reafon God gives for their obfervance of this law, Thou shalt remember that thou waft a bondman in Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee thence; the application of which remembrance may be justly made to many in thefe times, to any whom God has raised from a low eftate in life, and bleffed their in

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very faulty fentence.

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duftry with fuccefs. They fhould remember, that fome belonging to them, were once in the fame humble ftate of neceffity; and that, as the fame hand that raiseth can bring down again, fo they, or their pofterity, may, in time, be reduced to as flender circumstances again, as their poor neighbours; and, therefore, gratitude and mercy fhould go hand in hand to engage the loving-kindness of the Lord to conti nue his bleflings to them." P. 234.

This volume clofes with a funeral Sermon, in which all the zeal of a strenuous divine is employed to caution his flock, against a life of iniquity, and the miferable prefumption too: often indulged, of a death-bed Repentance. Upon the whole, we commit, with fatisfaction, this ufeful volume to the public eye. Our opinion of its author has already been delivered, with little referve, on a previous occafion. The perufal of thefe fermons has refreshed our recollection of Sir Adam Gordon, and encreafed our refpect for his industry and his talents. He feems to have cultivated, with equal fuccefs, thofe effential qualities in a parochial minifter, of foundness and fimplicity. We are willing to hope, that fo amiable an example will not want its imitators among thofe who poffefs those ineftimable requifites, a faith fupported by Scripture, and a zeal according to knowledge.

ART. XIII. Mifcellaneous Works of Edward Gibbon, Efq. With Memoirs of his Life and Writings, compofed by himself. Illuftrated with Notes and Narrative, by John Lord Sheffield. 2 Vols. 4to. 21. 10s. 21. 10s. Strahan. 1796.

THEY who are at all inclined to the weakness of guiding their opinions by perfonal authority, may think it, perhaps, an important queftion, what were the final fentiments of this celebrated hiftorian on that religion, which, in his principal work, he attacked at once infidiously and inveterately not reflecting, that where the paffions have fo evidently engaged in a speculative question, there is little hope that the reason will recover its power of impartial examination; or, that when a man of a certain age has formed and published his opinions on a matter of fo much confequence, he will go over the ground again with a candour fo pure, as to be prepared to own himself miftaken. Such candour the heart-fearching principles of chriftianity alone can infpire, and how shall her adverfaries obtain it? It has been faid of the hiftorian of the decline of Rome, with great juftice, and by a man far removed from bigotry, that he often makes, where he cannot readily find an occafion to infult our religion; which he hates fo cordially, that he might feem to revenge fome perfonal injury." Whatever the fecret offence might be, which, perhaps,

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the