scrupulous, lest they be right eous overmuch, and pursue the present world, with all the passion, with which the seraph strikes the note of praise to his Maker. But when a future world is recommended as an object deserving, at least, equal ardor, they are afraid of offending God by two much zeal. What delirium is this! It is at once, the most common, the most fearful-the most fatal delirium to which man is liable. No matter with how much zeal we strive for perishable riches -but O! 'tis fanaticism, to be zealous after riches that moth and rust cannot corrupt. To be moderate, when seeking present honor, is a violation of the worldling's laws-and the penalty, is the total loss of the object sought; but to be indifferent when seeking the crown of glory, is obedience to those laws, and the reward is-heaven! Miserable delusion! He who serves the world, unless that he may thereby honor God, is chasing a phantom that will lead him to destruction. Religious zeal never prompts to conduct that is indecorous; though a fastidious taste, which pose ourselves to the wiles of the adversary, and dishonor religion. If it was necessary, at the first publication of the Gospel, that its moral tendency should be clearly illustrated, the same necessity yet remains. Christians should still have their conversation honest among those who are without, and calumniate vital godliness: that whereas they are spoken of as evil doers, others may, by their good works, glorify God in the day of visitation. If it is their duty to rejoice in God alway; it is no less their duty to let their moderation be known unto all men. Thus the most cogent arguments will be urged in favor of that system of experimental piety, which is destined in the purpose of God to overturn every system of "philosophy falsely so called," and to prevail from the rising of the sun to the going down thereof, and from the northern to the southern pole. S. S. The following brief comparison of the Calvinistic and Arminian systems is exextracted from the Evangelical Magazine, published in London. AN DOCTRINES COMPARED, condemns Paul as a fanatic, may THE CALVINISTIC AND ARMINIcondemn as indecent the zeal that resembles his. And we are not disposed to deny, that high joys, and even raptures, may exist while the heart is dead in sin. This is enthusiasm -a counterfeit of what really exists in the fervent Christian. When our passions get beyond the control of judgment, and we are transported by feelings of which we can give no rational account, we of course transgress the laws of moderation, and ex [lu a letter to a Friend.] My dear Friend, As one sincerely desirous of being instructed in the good ways of the Lord, you ask in your last, 'Does not the doctrine of the Arminians seem to afford greater hope of salvation to sinners in general, than the doctrine of the Calvinists?' I am well aware that Arminian preachers frequently say, 'That they preach free grace to all; but that Calvinists preach free grace only to a few. They believe, and wish their hearers to believe, that the Arminian doctrine does afford greater hope of salvation to sinners in general, than the Calvinistic doctrine. However, I desire you will impartially consider whether this be not a misapprehension of the matter. I will take the liberty of appealing to yourself, and all others who have had frequent opportunities of attending the preaching of Calvinists, whether their preaching, in general, tends in the least to discourage penitent sinners, who are convinced of their lost and ruined state, to come to Jesus Christ for life and salvation. Do they not most earnestly and affectionately invite sinners of every description to come? Do they not shew, according to the word, that God does not reject any who are wil ling to receive the salvation that is in Christ? Therefore, the doctrine of Calvinists affords the most satisfactory hope of salvation to all who are willing to accept it in God's way. How then does the doctrine of Arminians afford greater hope? Does it afford hope to such as continue impenitent and unwilling to accept of the glorious salvation which is in Christ? Certainly not. Then, I ask again, how does the doctrine of Arminians affords greater hope of salvation to sinners in general, than the doctrine of Calvinists? I desire you will further con sider, whether the doctrine of Calvinists does not afford greater hope of salvation to sinners in general, than the doctrine of Arminians? All the hope the doctrine of Arminians affords, depends on the supposed strength of sinners in general to come to Jesus Christ; for they will not allow that God bestows distinguishing grace upon any one more than another. If they were to allow this, they would allow what would amount to as much as Calvinists understand by election: and, indeed, the hope that depends on the strength of a sinner to.come to Jesus before he is created anew and born of God, is but a very weak one; for man 'is dead in trespasses and sins;he is darkness;'-his 'carnal mind is enmity against God;'-yea, his enmity is such, that he 'cannot come to Jesus except the Father draw him:' therefore, the doctrine of Arminians does not afford the least hope of salvation to any sinner who believes his state to be such as it is represented in the word of God; but, according to the doctrine of Calvinists, myriads of the fallen race of Adam have been given to Christ, and these shall all certainly come to him, and have everlasting life. 'He shall see his seed; he shall prolong his days; and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hands. He shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied.' In a word, the doctrines of Arminians and Calvinists agree in shewing, that God will certainly receive every returning sinner: they agree in shewing, that 'Every one who asketh receiveth, and he who seeketh space of iniquity, or sins of findeth, and to him that knocketh it shall be opened;'-but the doctrine of Arminians does not afford the least certainty that any one will come to ask, seek, or knock: while the doctrine of Calvinists affords the greatest certainty, a certainty founded on the promise and faithfulness of the unchanging God, 'That a people numerous as the morning dew, shall be made willing in the day of his power.' Therefore, judge you, my dear friend, whether the doctrines of Arminians or Calvinists afford the greatest hope of salvation to sinners in general. which is the same thing, he must The doctrine of election (as it J. R. For the Panoplist ON ENDLESS PUNISMENT. SOME persons seem willing to al low, that a long life of wicked. ness, and sins of great enormity, deserve endless punishment, while they maintain, that a short cording to a previous design; or, smaller aggravation do not deserve endless punishment. This is inconsistent. For between the most lasting and flagitious acts of wickedness, and those which are most transitory, and are attended with most palliative circumstances, the difference is only finite; whereas between endless punishment, and punishment limited to whatever space, there is an infinite difference. Hence if sins of the duration of ages, and of the most aggravated nature, merit eternal destruction, so do the most momentary, and the smallest sins.-Justice can, I believe, make a difference in the degree, but not in the duration, of their punishment, who a tone in person for their crimes. O. E. ON THE PUNISHMENT OF SIN. A VIEW of the miseries which sinners endure in consequence of their transgressions, tends to enlarge our sense of the evil of sin, and of the justice of the Deity. The importance of having a correct idea of the greatness of these two things cannot reasonably be denied. Is it not evident, that our sense of sin as an evil, and of divine justice, will be great or small, according as we believe the punishment of sin to be great or small? Now such is the nature of man, that things which he has witnessed long ago, affect him but little, while he is greatly moved with those which are now in his view. This being the case, can it be proved by reason, (I am persuaded it cannot be by Scripture,) that, for the promotion of the two great objects abovemention ed, it is not necessary that sinners, dying impenitent, should be forever tormented in view of the saints in heaven? O. E. ON NATURAL AND MORAL INA BILITY. SOME persons say, that a wish to have religion, or to love the divine character, implies the existence of religion, or love of the divine character. Others deny this, and think they refute the sentiment by saying, that a wish to be in any place is a very different thing from being there;that a wish to be rich is very different from being rich. But this is not a refutation of the former sentiment. We may indeed wish for many things which it is beyond our natural power to obtain, without obtaining them. But it implies a contradiction to say, that we choose a thing which we have natural power now to have, and yet do not have it. If a man at one time loves the world from choice, and at another loves the Deity from choice, I would ask whether he chose to love the Deity before he did love him-whether he chose to love the Deity at the same time that he chose to hate him. The friendship of the world is enmity with God. Q. E. REVIEWS. LIII. Sacred Geography: or a Gazetteer of the Bible. Conraining, in alphabetical order, a geographical description of all the countries, kingdoms.nations, and tribes of men, with all the villages, towns, cities, provinces, hills, mountains, rivers, lakes, seas, and islands, mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, or Apocrypha, including an account of the religion, government, population, fulfilment of prophecies, and present condition of the most important places. By ELIJAH PARISH, D. D. Minister of Byfield, Massachusetts. Embellished with a new Map of the principal countries mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures. Boston: S. T. Armstrong, 1813. EVERY honest and successful attempt to illustrate the Holy Scriptures, and to "render the reading of them more interesting and pleasant," is entitled to the patronage of the Christian public. The work now under re. view we decidedly think of this class. Such a summary of Scripture Geography, till this appeared, was a desideratum in the fami ly library. It has afforded us pleasure to find a blank space, among our books on Sacred Literature, at length filled; and by a literary gentleman whose talents for this species of compilation are already known to the public; and whose retired situation and leisure peculiarly fitted him to execute an undertaking which required so much labor and research. The reasons which induced the author to engage in this work, are thus stated in his preface. "Geography has claimed a place in various dictionaries of the Bible. Why then should it not occupy a separate volume? Who is satisfied with the scanty information, found in those works? To the lov ture Gazetteer be a mental banquet? A ers of sacred Geography may not a scriprespectable and learned writer considers the present zeal to acquire a knowledge of Palestine, among "the signs" of the approaching millennium. He says, "The signs of the times all concur to teach us, that we are fast approaching towards the catastrophe of the great drama. We have seen Palestine, the predicted stage on which Antichrist, with his congregated vassals, is doomed to perish, brought forward in a remarkable manner to public notice." ""* And is it not natural to suppose that a country becoming so interesting to all the world, will be more known, before the grand catastrophe arrives. Soon will Christianity, long banished from the first temples of her residence, long banished from the throues of the Cæsars, in sackcloth wandering in the wilderness, re-enter Palestine in triumph, raise the ruined walls of Jerusalem, rebuild the temple on Mount Zion, and sway the sceptre on the throne of David; yet scarcely any region of the globe is now so little known." With commendable frankness and modesty, the author states, that "so far is he from presum❤ ing, that this first essay is perfect, that he respectfully solicits any suggestions from his readers, which may improve the work. He determines, that no. life be spared, to render it as pains shall be wanting, if his perfect as his abilities permit." This candid confession, and voluntary engagement, would be sufficient to disarm criticism of Faber. |