hath everlasting life:" and, "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren."

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Jesus is not only "the second Adam," but the "Seed of Abraham," also: working out in this latter, covenant, character, a perfect obedience unto death, as well as a perfect atonement by His death. Thus it is, that He has obtained, for believers, an inheritance in "the glory which shall be revealed." Thus it is, that, "He came that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly." Thus it is, that, "they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness, shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ." Thus it is, that, Believers receive "of His fulness, and grace for grace." Thus it is, that, "He which sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one." Thus it is, that, although rejected by a hardened world which will not have this man to reign over it, "God's righteous Servant shall justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities:" and shall be called "THE Lord our RIGHTEOUSNESS." "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous." The Law is brought to the consciences of those who are awakened from Nature's death, that they may know their state of sin, and abound in their offences: for to know the law is to know also the power of sin. "But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord."

Christ is the fulfilled law; as it is written, "Christ is the end of the law to every one that believeth." And, faith, which is the Spirit's work, is the evidence of His indwelling. The "new covenant made with the house of Israel and the house of Judah," is there

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fore, established with all in whose hearts Christ dwells by faith, as an "everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure:" for, thus saith the Lord, "I will give my laws into their mind, and will write them upon their hearts; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more."

CANTO II. STANZA XXXVI.

"In Persons which Design, Perform, Uphold,"

The mysterious revelation of the ONE GOD of the holy Scriptures, in Three Persons, was so explained to my mind, by the following illustration, that I am prompted to insert it here, by the hope that it may be useful to others when brought to an equally anxious consideration of this all-important doctrine.

We may perceive in ourselves three mysterious spiritual principles, by which we exist as reasoning and acting creatures: viz.

Thought, Force, and Life:

and by them the Persons of the Godhead as revealed in the holy Scriptures, are accurately represented. THE FATHER-designing and ordering;

THE WORD-performing and executing;

THE SPIRIT-upholding and preserving: with such perfect oneness that whatever is the property of either Divine Person, is the property of the others also; and God is ONE: an all-wise, omnipotent, and selfexistent Being.

The comfort which this view afforded me when perplexed by the Socinianism of what is called "the

Apostles' Creed,” and the arrogant mataphysics of the "Nicene," and "Athanasian," (in the lurking Arianism of which, a derived Deity, only, is given to the Word and Holy Spirit,) is what I do heartily desire for every simple-minded believer of what is written in the only authentic revelation of the mysteries of the eternal, immortal, and invisible Jehovah.

That is the Christian creed, which is comprehended in the words, "I believe what God has caused to be written; and, in that, the work of creation is not taken from the Word; neither is there any mention made of a "God of God," or "Very God of very God;" nor, I may add, (to whatever belief what is termed "the Christian verity" would compel us), is it therein contained that it is necessary to regard each Person as separately or individually "God and Lord." On the contrary, the Scripture teaches us to regard the oneness of the Persons of the Godhead, as the very essence of Deity in each. Neither could be separately God, any more than Thought, or Force, or Life, could separately be a living, reasoning, and acting Soul. The Father performs by the Word, and lives by the Spirit : the Word designs by the Father, and lives and upholds all things by the Spirit: the Spirit designs by the Father and performs by the Word. It was for the performance of the work of redemption that "the Word became flesh," and was named THE SON: not, "before all worlds," but "in the fulness of time." "When the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons."

Such is the belief which I avow in the face of all the unscriptural" orthodoxy" of man's invention: for I

hold that only to be true belief, which has God's true word for its foundation: and, in this, the creeds to which I have alluded, are, to my judgment, greatly deficient. They evidently intend to set forth the mysteries of revelation in words which shall be more compendious and distinct than the holy Scriptures; but the consequence of a substitution of man's words for God's words must inevitably be the darkening of what is therein revealed, and the consequent substitution of man's thoughts for God's thoughts.

I regard the use of the word "Persons," when speaking of the existence of God without reference to His working, as exceedingly faulty, seeing that it can only be rightly applied to manifestations of God in operation; at which time the Scripture personifies what, when God is "all in all," would be more properly regarded as PARTS of one essence. The Hebrew word ELOHIM has no corresponding expression in English: there is no word whereby Deity can be expressed as plural while it is singular, or as singular while the context shews it to be plural; as Gen. xx. 13. which in Latin would be "Deus errare facerent"-"God THEY caused me to wander :" or Gen. xxxv.7. where again the Hebrew verb is plural-" God THEY WERE revealed to him." Much misunderstanding arises from this deficiency of the language, which cannot be removed by either the words Persons, or Trinity, as adopted by Latin and English theologians: there is often as much of error as of truth conveyed by them. Romaine justly observes that it would have been much better if the Hebrew names of God had been given, with some short explanation, instead of the very inefficient translations in the English version of the holy Scriptures.

CANTO I. STANZA XXXVIII.

“In return He bids thee but rejoice.”

There are two great motives to obedience; Fear, and Love. Fear is the ground of their obedience who see not the complete work of the Saviour: they fear lest they should come short of that obedience to which the promise of eternal life is attached. And they very reasonably fear it, for all men do offend, and come short of performing the Divine will. Thus, "Fear has torment" for whatever hope such persons may have, it must of necessity be subjected to doubts which do utterly make void the Apostle's declaration that it "maketh not ashamed."

But 66 perfect Love casteth out Fear." To them who understand the words, "I will give Him as a Covenant for the people," the work of Jesus is known to be perfect and all-sufficient; and His indwelling, by faith, in the heart, is known to be the fulfilled Law within them.

They do know, therefore, that they can never come short of that obedience to which the promise of the eternal inheritance is made.

But do these latter, therefore, "make void the Law?" Nay, but they, and they only, do "establish the law:" perfectly, in their Head and Representative, even to the satisfaction of infinite holiness and justice; and practically, in a walk and conversation influenced by the constraining love of Him who first loved them, and who died for them that henceforth they should not live unto themselves, or, in their sins, but unto Him who died for them that He might save them from their sins. He who hopes to be saved, may perform a selfish obedience, limited by what he judges to be ne

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