declares him to be "the figure of Him that was to come." Through his sin death came upon all " them who have not sinned after the similitude of his transgression ;" and through the righteousness of Christ, of whom as the head of a covenant he was the type, the free gift came upon all these to justification of life.

These passages fully warrant the conclusion, that all who die in infancy are saved: they are not annihilated, but their spirits do immediately pass into glory, and their bodies shall be raised at the last day; for " as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." We say, "all who die in infancy;" for there is no ground of distinction taken in these passages: the moral capacity for receiving the principle of faith, and a consequent moral right to all the means of faith, is all that is here required. There is no evidence that any of the children which were brought to Jesus were the seed of true believers; and the argument of the apostle proceeds on the broad scale of universal guilt, and universal redemption. It also follows from hence, that the ground or reason of the salvation of infants, is the infinitely valuable atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is only this one way of acceptance with God: "No man cometh unto the Father but by me." And salvation in every case is altogether gracious: "Not of works, lest any man should boast." The atonement of Christ is an infinitely valuable satisfaction to the government of God, for the sin of man. If the will of God were so, or perhaps it is better to say, if the justice and wisdom of God permitted that it should be so, the application of the benefit might be as extensive as the evil. In the fact of the case, salvation is placed within the reach of all men ; and we think that the inference is plain, both from the passage in the Romans, above referred to, and the general tenor of Divine revelation, that it is bestowed on all who do not, by their unbelief, refuse to receive it. The dispensation of mercy places adults as sinners under a new probation, and requires them to repent and believe that they may be saved; and it refuses salvation only to those who will not believe. The infants who "have not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression," and have not refused to repent and to accept the mercy of the gospel, receive "the abundance of grace, and the gift of righteousness, and reign in life by one, Jesus Christ."

3. There are some recorded instances of faith in this truth, which support the conclusion.

The first is that of David on the death of his child. "He said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, Who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back

again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me," 2 Sam. xii. 22, 23. The consolation of David on the death of his child was strong, as his grief and anxiety were great during its life. His language cannot be understood only of the grave. Gloomy and barren anticipation, indeed, that there should be a reunion between himself and his babe, when their mutual dust should crumble in the same vault! He was persuaded of the separate existence of his child, and anticipated his own; he was convinced of the actual salvation of his child; and, consoling himself with the prospect of his own, he rejoiced in hope of the reunion which should then take place. This hope it was that assuaged the bitterness of the stroke, and sustained his mind under the bereavement.

Another case you have in the Shunamite woman, (2 Kings iv.) whose child, given to her in answer to Elisha's prayers, suddenly died, while he was yet young. On seeing her at a distance, the prophet sent his servant to inquire as to her welfare. In reply to his inquiries, "Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? She answered, It is well." What! well with the child, when she had laid him a corpse on the prophet's bed, and that death the total destruction of being, or involving the eternal condemnation of the departed spirit! Impossible! Who can doubt but she entertained the hope of its separate happiness, as probably she did that of its speedy resurrection?

Such is a brief outline of the argument on which the proof of infant salvation rests. It may afford additional relief to the minds of some, if we proceed to—

II. Examine some of the difficulties which appear to lie in the way of adopting this conclusion.

We mention,

1. The imputation of Adam's sin.

It is unnecessary to enter on any explanation of the mode and circumstances in which depravity and guilt are entailed on the posterity of Adam, through the breach of the first covenant. The doctrine of infant salvation does not deny the imputation of Adam's sin; but it declares that the grace of God frees from the curse, and bestows the capacity for celestial happiness, through the mediation of Christ. Another difficulty arises from,

2. The temporal sufferings and death of infants.

That these are the consequences of the fall, and the expressions of the displeasure of God against sin, is admitted; but it by no means follows, that because infants are involved in some, they must be involved in all the consequences of the first transgression,

since these are now suspended, or permitted, according to the arrangements of the new covenant, as fixed between the Father and the Son. Actual believers suffer in this world, and are subject to death; but theirs is the promise of eternal life: and if there can be no personal faith in infants, uniting them to Christ, there is at least no personal sin to require a personal recourse to the only Saviour. A further difficulty is sometimes felt :—

3. The destruction of the children of the ungodly along with their parents.

Of this there have been many awful instances; as, the destruction of the old world, and the cities of the plain; the case of Korah and his company, &c. But all this proves nothing as to their future condition: the application of the benefits of redemption is altogether a distinct question; and the fact is to be ascertained from wholly different sources. In these instances, the children perished from the earth with their ungodly parents; and that this was necessary to mark the Divine indignation against sin, we cannot question: but when, in other places, God speaks of visiting the sins of the fathers upon the children, he implies their approval of the sins of their fathers. Compare Ezekiel xviii. 1—4, 14—20. A fourth difficulty arises from,

4. The declared necessity of faith in order to salvation.

This is unquestionably required of all who are capable of exercising it it is the indispensable condition of their salvation; the first expression of their obedience to the claims of God in the gospel. But faith does not save the soul; it is the mere instrument which appropriates the salvation that Christ has provided. It is only the fruit and effect of that renovating influence by which the heart is sanctified. The new heart is the essential qualification for heaven; and this is the gift of God, and may be as easily bestowed on the infant as on the man. Some are further perplexed with,

5. The early indications of sinfulness in infants.

That these prove the fact of universal depravity, and shew, that, should life be spared, the character will be unholy and the conduct disobedient to the authority of God, cannot be denied. But it is not so clear to what extent these are criminal. It is not easy to determine how far they are the result of mere animal propensities, and how far of deliberate choice; how far their nature may be understood, and how far they might have been resisted; how far their tendency and effects are contemplated, and how far the application of the saving remedy might have been sought; how far they display the instinctive habit of imitation, and how far they imply inward approval and decided preference. The age, the circumstances, the

moral culture, are all here to be taken into the account, and the insoluble question of the exact period and degree of accountability. must be disposed of, before we can decide. These are questions which God alone can determine. But whilst this difficulty may require us to repeat the statement that the doctrine of infant salvation has to do with those children, only, who are not the subjects of moral obligation, it diminishes nothing from the force of our conclusions. It is not said that infants are free from tendency to evil, or even from apparent acts of sin; but that they are saved through the mediation of Christ, whose sacrifice puts away sin. It is not supposed that, in looking back, we shall be able certainly to trace the presence and operation of regenerating principle; but that God bestows on them, at death, the capacity for celestial happiness, and admits them to it. There may be also mentioned,

6. The silence of the Scriptures.

It is thought that the doctrine is not so fully and clearly taught in express words of Scripture as to render it unquestionable. The supremacy of God is very strikingly manifest in the character of his revelation: the mode which he has taken of making known his will is peculiar to himself. Along with the absence of every thing systematic, there is close connexion and unbroken unity; and with a plainness that commends itself to the feeblest understanding, there is an obscurity and depth which requires the penetrating research of the strongest intellect. This is in accordance with the whole character of the present state-"we walk by faith, not by sight;" and it is so far from furnishing any valid ground of despondency and unbelief, that it ought to lead to increased diligence and confidence. It is surely not for us to prescribe the mode in which God shall make himself known to us, or to specify the degree of light which he shall shed on certain points of great and touching interest it is enough that he has blessed us with a revelation of himself; and we ought thankfully to embrace it as it is, and glorify his name. Perhaps, however, it may have appeared that he has not been so silent on the subject of infant salvation as some have supposed: and how many circumstances are there, in our anticipations of eternity, equally important and interesting with this, about which we know as little, perhaps even less? Yea, if we are to withhold our assent in every case, till every scruple we may feel can be removed, which, of all the great leading doctrines of revelation, is there which would not at once be held in abeyance? It only remains to,

III. Shew the practical influence of this truth.

Let it be viewed generally in its aspect on the moral government of God. It relieves the difficulty connected with the permission of sin. It is truly overwhelming to think of the fall and its consequences, as arising with the knowledge and by the permission of Jehovah. We know, indeed, that sin originated wholly with the creature that the guilt of his disobedience was very aggravated; and that all its effects are natural consequences, and all its punishment impartial justice. We acquiesce in the unfathomable wisdom and unimpeachable rectitude of the Great Supreme: but we cannot cease to grieve over the widely spread desolation, nor to ask, "How can these things be?" Especially are we perplexed at beholding infants involved in the common misery, and subjected to the threatened penalty, death. The revelation concerning their future condition relieves this difficulty. It shews that the case is not

so bad as otherwise we must have concluded it to be; but that amidst the darkness there is light, and along with the most painful displays of his justice, "there is mercy with the Lord that he may be feared.” Every thing which tends to soothe our minds on this point, is practically important; it diminishes the grounds of our unbelief, and strengthens the principles of our faith. Again, it reflects the glory of divine grace. Whether, in strict justice, infants might have been eternally condemned, it is nowise important to inquire: that they are not, but are raised to the participation of eternal life, is the interesting truth which we now contemplate; and in this result the glory of the Divine grace is clearly seen. Not only has it selected as its objects an interesting and numerous class of human beings, but it is seen turning the curse into a blessing, under circumstances which render the grace most conspicuous and valuable. At an early age, ere yet the principles of depravity have had opportunity to develop themselves,―ere the subjects of the curse have felt the disquietudes and griefs which sin occasions, or are conscious of any thing beyond the momentary sense of pleasure or pain,—and just at the juncture when the curse seems most awful, and about to take full effect in their death,—the majority of the immortal sons of Adam are "taken from the evil to come," and put in possession of celestial happiness. This arrangement also illustrates and confirms the declared importance of the mediation of Christ. The grace of God is here seen to be exceeding abundant through Jesus Christ our Lord. Through the efficacy of his obedience and sacrifice, salvation is bestowed on a most extensive scale. They are not a few only, who are eternally benefited by the atonement, but " a great multitude, which no man can number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues."