change for the better amongst his countrymen were greatly strengthened. His look is described as being most piercing and difficult to endure, his strength of body extraordinary, and his power of understanding rare. Persons of vicious habits fled from his presence, but the honest sought his company. For several years he was a teacher in a school about eight miles from his native place. As a schoolmaster he was rather severe, and kept his pupils in strict order; he was, however, very friendly to those whose character he approved of, and in confidential conversation, he occasionally disclosed the thoughts of his heart, whereby it was evident that the impression which his former sickness and visions had made on his mind had not been effaced.

In the year 1843, he had a school in a village called “Water-lily,” about ten miles from his native place, being engaged as teacher by the Li family, In the 5th month of that year, his cousin Li, whilst looking into Hung's bookcase, happened to take out from amongst his books the work entitled "Good Words for Exhorting the Age," and asked Hung what these books contained. Hung answered, that he did not know their contents; but that the books had been presented to him when he once attended the examination at Canton. Li asked permission to take the books home and read them at his leisure, which Hung readily granted. The author of this work, which was subsequently destined to exercise a great power over Hung's mind, was a Chinese convert of Dr. Milnes, one of the missionaries in China. His name was LiangAfah; his employment was a type-cutter, and whilst at Canton he had frequent opportunities of hearing Dr. Milnes read and expound the Scriptures. He asked questions of Dr. Milnes respecting the doctrines of Christianity, and at length became a convert, and was baptized. After this he took the name of "Student of Virtue," and devoted himself to the cause of Christianity. He wrote the work above-mentioned, which, as it was written by a Chinese, was more readily sold and read among the people. The work consists chiefly of extracts from the Bible, and of treatises and articles founded on the teaching of Scripture, but adapted to the peculiar genius of the Chinese. It is in nine small volumes, and the reader may form some idea of it by some knowledge of its contents, which we here subjoin :

Vol. I. is entitled "A true account of the Salvation of Mankind." Section I. "A paraphrastic Version of the 1st chapter of Genesis. 2. "An Exposure of the Idolatry of China." 3. "The 1st chapter of Isaiah." 4. "The 5th, 6th, and 7th chapters of Matthew."

These are the contents of the first volume. The second is entitled"Follow the True and Reject the False." Section 1. “Discourse on John, iii. 17." 2. "On Matthew, xxxix. 23." 3. "On seeking to familiar spirits and wizards-founded on Isaiah, viii. 19.” 4. “On Regeneration; founded on John, iii. 1, 21.

These contents of the first two volumes will serve to give the reader some idea of the work.

Hung's cousin, Li, after having read the books, returned them to him, and said that their contents were very extraordinary and differed greatly from Chinese books. Hung then took the books, and commenced reading them closely and carefully. He was greatly astonished to find in

these books the key to his own visions, which he had had during his sickness, six years before; he found their contents to correspond in a remarkable manner with what he had seen and heard at that time. He understood the man who had instructed him and assisted him in exterminating the demons to be Jesus, the Saviour of the World. The demons were the idols, his brothers and sisters were the people in the world. Hung felt as if awakening from a dream. He rejoiced to have found in reality a way to heaven, and sure hopes of everlasting life and happiness. Learning from the book the necessity of being baptized, Hung and Li, according to the manner described in the book, and as far as they understood the rite, now administered baptism to themselves. They prayed to God, and promised not to worship evil spirits, nor to pursue an evil course of conduct, but to keep the divine commandments. They then poured water upon their heads, saying, “Purification from all former sins, putting off the old, and regeneration." When this was done, they felt their hearts overflowing with joy, and Hung composed the following Ode on Repentance:

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"When our transgressions high as heaven rise,

How well to trust in Jesus' full atonement !

We follow not the demons, we obey

The holy precepts, worshipping alone

One God, and thus we cultivate our hearts.
The heavenly glories open to our view,
And every being ought to seek thereafter.
I much deplore the miseries of Hell.

Oh, turn ye to the fruits of true repentance!
Let not your hearts be led by worldly customs."

They thereupon cast away their idols, and removed the tablet of Confucius, which is generally found in the schools, and is worshipped by the teacher as well as by the pupils."

From having diligently studied these books, Hung was convinced, especially as he found them to coincide with his visions, of his being appointed by God to restore the world, that is, China, to the worship of the true God::

"These books," said he, "are certainly sent purposely by heaven to me, to confirm the truth of my former experience; if I had received the books without having gone through the sickness, I should not have dared to believe in them, and on my own account to oppose the customs of the whole world; if I had merely been sick, but had not also received the books, I should have had no further evidence as to the truth of my visions, which might also have been con sidered as the mere productions of a diseased imagination."

"Then he raised his voice, and spoke in a bold manner :—

"I have received the immediate command from God in His presence; the will of Heaven rests with me. Although I should meet thereby with calamity, difficulties, and suffering, yet I am resolved to act. By disobeying the heavenly command, I should only rouse the anger of God; and are not these books the foundation of all the true doctrines contained in other books ?"

"Under this conviction, Hung, when preaching the new doctrine to others, made use of his own visions and the books, as reciprocally evidencing the truth of each other. He revered the books highly, and if any one wished to read them, he urgently told him not to alter or

mark them in any manner, because,' said he, it is written therein, (Psalm xxxiii. 4.) Jehovah's Word is correct.'"

From this period Hung entirely devoted himself to the cause of reformation in China. He commenced his missionary expedition, and by his persuasive power and influence converted many to the acknowledgment of one Almighty God, and to the necessity of keeping His Divine precepts, in order to please and love Him. He also induced the converts to destroy all the images and the idols, and to persuade others, as far as possible, to do the same.

In 1845 and 1846, Hung remained at home, and was teacher of a school as formerly. During this period he wrote several essays, discourses, and odes, on religious subjects, namely:-" An Ode on the Hundred Correct Things;" "An Essay on the Origin of Virtue for the awakening of old Age ;" another, entitled "Alter the Corrupt, and turn to the Correct." To all of these productions he afterwards made considerable additions, and they were printed at Nanking. Although there are many dialects in China, yet the one written language is read throughout the Empire. This is a very great advantage to the propagation of Truth.

Hung, about this time, disclosed to his friends the secret thoughts of his heart, and his hatred against the Manchoo people, saying:

"God has divided the kingdoms of the world, and made the ocean to be a boundary for them, just as a father divides his estate among his sons; every one of whom ought to reverence the will of his father, and quietly manage his own property. Why should these Manchoos now forcibly enter China, and rob their brothers of their estate?"

"At a later period he said,—

"If God will help me to recover our estate, I ought to teach all nations to hold every one its own possessions, without injuring or robbing one another; we will have intercourse in communicating true principles and wisdom to each other, and receive each other with propriety and politeness; we will serve together one common heavenly Brother, the Saviour of the world; this has been the wish of my heart since the time when my soul was taken up to heaven."

"About this time he dreamt that a red sun was put into his hand; and when he awoke, he made the following verses :—

Now that five hundred years have passed

The true sun moves in sight;

And how should these poor glow-worms dare

To rival it in light?

On its suspense in heaven's arch

All vapours disappear;

And as it shines, demons and imps

Are hidden out of fear.

The north and south, the east and west,

To it their homage pay,

And hosts of the barbarian tribes

Are yielding to its sway.

The stars by its great splendour in

Obscurity are hurled;

And its pure brilliant rays alone

Illuminate the world."

These verses are indicative of true genius, and the sentiments are

according to correspondence.

Soon after this period, Hung became acquainted at Canton with the Rev. T. J. Roberts, an account of whom we inserted in this Periodical last year, p. 415.

The burden of Hung's preaching may be comprised in the following

sentences:

"Keep the holy commandments, worship the true God, and then at the hour of departing heaven will be easily ascended."

"If you cleave to worldly customs and believe in devils, you cannot ultimately avoid hell."

"Those who believe in God are the sons and daughters of God; wheresoever they come, they come from heaven; wheresoever they go, they go to heaven."

The followers of Hung are called God worshippers, in opposition to idol-worshippers; they soon came into collision with the populace and the mandarins, or with the Imperial authorities, and hence the attempt to reform the religion of China has taken a political as well as a religious turn. It would appear that the people were ripe and ready for a change. Hung's followers have increased into a mighty army, sweeping everything before it. In its beginning, like the small snowdrift at the top of

the mountain, it has increased, as it advanced, into a tremendous avalanche which carries everything before it. Its religious principles are, to establish the worship of the one God, to acknowledge Jesus as the Saviour and as the Great Teacher, the Bible as the source of religious knowledge; to base religion on the life and practice of the Divine Commandments, and to banish opium and intoxicating drinks from the country. Its political principle is to abrogate the Manchoo or Tartar dynasty, and to establish on the throne a monarch from their own people, who shall not be an idol-worshipper, but a worshipper of the true God. This great change amongst nearly one-third part of the population of the globe is now in progress, and may "He who is the True God and Eternal Life" conduct it to its proper destiny!

MARRIAGE, ITS ORIGIN, ITS NATURE AND ITS LAWS.

FOR some time past the subject of Marriage has been much considered. The question, "whether a man may marry the sister of his deceased wife," has brought marriage prominently before the public, and many persons have written and spoken much about it. Hence it may not be an unsuitable occasion for us to say something on this subject, especially as the various denominations have been solicited to express their opinions on the question which now, to a considerable extent, occupies the attention of the public.

[Enl. Series.-No. 18, vol. ii.]

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That marriage is a most holy institution, and that, in its origin it is divine, cannot be doubted by those who believe the Word of God, and who have any elevated views of what man is, as "an image and likeness of his Maker." True marriage is the union of two minds, of one man and one woman, which is a spiritual union; and all spiritual union descends from heaven. Hence true marriage, or real conjugial love, comes from heaven, and its origin is from the marriage of Goodness and Truth there. The marriage of Goodness and Truth in heaven is from the Lord, and descends from the Divine marriage itself, which is the union between the Divine and Human Natures in His own divine Person, and also between the infinite divine Love and Wisdom which form the divine Essence itself, Nothing, therefore, can be more holy, in its origin, than marriage. Hence it is, that in the Scriptures, the Lord is called the Bridegroom and Husband, and the Church the Bride and Wife; and, on the same account also, heaven itself is compared to a marriage. We need not here quote passages to prove this, as every person who has read the Scriptures with any degree of attention is abundantly aware of the fact. Hence it was that the Apostle, when exhorting husbands and wives to love each other, says,—" This [namely, the love between husbands and wives] is [or involves] a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the Church." (Ephesians v. 32.) By this the Apostle plainly shews that marriage, when seen as to its origin, is most holy, and, that it is a living type of the union between the Lord and His Church.

The nature of marriage, seeing that its origin is so holy, will be found to be eminently spiritual, and is as much exalted above the instinctive sexual intercourse of animals, as the nature of a regenerated man is elevated above that of a brute. We cannot, indeed, form too high ideas of marriage. Not only does human society depend for its stability, constant improvement, and happiness, on the sanctities of marriage, and on their being kept by every possible means inviolate and untarnished with even the slightest idea of impurity; but the estimation in which the sacred bonds of marriage are held is a criterion to judge of the state of the church which exists amongst the community, and of the degree of regeneration to which the individual man may have attained. One great reason why the church of the New Jerusalem, as it advances, will shine forth with peculiar loveliness and beauty, and be actuated with a purer and more elevated Love and Truth than any former church, is the holy and spiritual estimation in which it will hold the idea of marriage, and generally the sacred relationship which exists by creation, between the sexes. We need not