most certain way of arriving at, the truth. This is the kind of appeal, which, with the good bleffing of God, I propofe to make in the following difcourfe: wherein if I fail of fatisfying our accufers of the goodness of our caufe, I trust that I fhall at least be able to convince any impartial obferver, that in declining the doctrine of abfolute predeftination we do not act under the influence of fome rafh and groundless prepoffeffion; but that, if our opinions are erroneous, they appear to be fo well established on the declarations of Scripture, as that we may reasonably believe them to be fcriptural truth; and that we are therefore far from deferving that afperity of reprehenfion and thofe opprobrious appellations, wherewith we are branded for entertaining them.

I. My first object will be to fhow, that the Calviniftic doctrines are incompatible with the notions, which the Holy Spirit gives us in Scripture, of the attributes and moral govern, ment of God.

But here, before I proceed, I wish to obviate an objection to our opinions, which our accufers attempt to establish on the fame bafis, on which we propofe to establish our opinions themselves. We are told, that "to imagine

• Hawker's Zion's Pilgrim, p. 158, 159.

"our acceptance or refufal of grace to be the "refult of our own pleafure, is to take from "God his omnipotence:" "to fancy that our "improvement or mifimprovement of grace ❝ will render it effectual or the contrary, is to "take from God both his wifdom and his "glory;" and "to believe after what God "the Father hath given, and God the Son "hath accomplished, for the falvation of his

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people in a covenant way, that fouls, re"newed by God the Holy Ghoft and called "with an holy calling, may yet finally perish;

this is bringing down redemption-work to "fo precarious and uncertain an iffue, as must "leave it altogether undetermined whether a fingle believer fhall be faved or not. And

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this throws to the ground the diftinguishing "character of God's immutability." But how do we infringe God's omnipotence, by fuppofing, that it is of our own will either to reject or accept his grace, when we believe that the exercife of our will is folely the confequence of his permiffion, and of his not choosing to overrule it, and to diveft us of the responsibility of moral agents? How do we impeach his wif dom, abridge his glory, or fake his immutability, by fuppofing, that our falvation, inftead of being fixed by an abfolute irrespective decree, is fufpended on our voluntary fulfilment of certain conditions; when at the fame

time we humbly confefs, that with that infallibility, wherewith he forefees events that are contingent to man, he certainly foreknew, that forne would, and who they were that would, obferve the conditions: that with that immutability, wherewith he delights to reward virtue, he predeftinated to life thofe of whom he foreknew that they would be faithful: and that the whole glory of the victory of those, who perfevere, is to be afcribed to the free mercy of the Father, to the meritorious facrifice of the Son, and to the preventing and asfifting grace of the Holy Spirit?

In fact, the fuppofition of conditional and refpective election is, in this view of the fubject, as innocent of infringing these attributes of God, as is that of unconditional and irrefpective election. When therefore it is demanded of us by the advocate of moderate Calvinifm, "Had not the glorious Being, who "created the world, a right to create it for "what purposes he pleased? And has he not "the fame right to govern his own world ac

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cording to his pleasure? And if his perfec❝tions are infinite, must he not act in conformity to these perfections; and must not his purposes be affuredly accomplished; and "muft not all his creatures, in one way or "another, be the means of their accomplish"ment? Is not his the kingdom, the power,

"and the glory? Has he not told us, that his "kingdom ruleth over all; that he worketh "all things after the counsel of his own will; "that he doeth according to his will in the "armies of heaven, and among the inhabitants "of earth; and that none can stay his hand, "or fay unto him, What doeft thou?"— When, I fay, these questions are put to us in fupport of the affertion, "that the fundamen"tal principles on which Calvinism refts are "incontrovertible," I apprehend them to be either altogether irrelevant to the fubject, or elfe intended to infinuate against us an invi dious and an unwarrantable charge. Each fyftem is founded on the fovereign will of the Almighty. By the Calvinift it is fuppofed, that God chofe to pass certain abfolute decrees, and formed and difpofed his creatures for their accomplishment: our hypothefis represents him as no lefs "working after the "counfel of his own will;" as choofing, in his fovereign power and authority, to form his creatures with a freedom of will and action; foreknowing, in the plenitude of his wifdom, what would be their conduct; and immutably framing his decrees according to his foreknowledge. So that, notwithstanding the remark, which has been ascribed to a royal Cal

Overton, p. 355.

vinift in former times, that "if he did not be"lieve abfolute predeftination, he could not "believe a Providence;" we apprehend that it is to represent the Almighty acting upon a plan, as much when it proceeds upon a knowledge of what ufe his creatures will make of his gifts, as when it is founded on his own abfolute and overruling decree.

As these attributes of the Deity then remain unaffected by the doctrines, which we are maintaining, I proceed to show, how grievously others are affailed by the doctrines, which we combat. It was faid with keen, but not unmerited severity to a Calvinist in former times, "While you are so careful to re"ferve to the Almighty a power to damn even

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poor humbled and prepared finners, you "feem to be more tender of his fovereignty, "than of his goodnefs, mercy, or justice."

1. “Justice and judgment," fays the Pfalmift, "are the habitation of thy throne." "He "is a God without iniquity," fays the Jewish lawgiver; "juft and right is he." It is ac-.. cordingly attributed to him as an effential property of juftice, throughout the Scriptures; in

King William the Third. See Toplady on Predeftination, Pref. p. 11.

• Result of False Principles, by Dr. Womack, p. 72. f Pfalm lxxxix. 14.

Deut. xxxii. 4.