A CAUTION AGAINST HUMAN DEPENDENCE.
A SERMON.
DELIVERED
IN ST. PETER'S CHURCH, CHARLESTON,
ON SUNDAY, THE 7th OF APRIL, 1850.
; BY WM. H. BARNWELL,
RECTOR OF ST. PETERS
ON THE OCCASION OF THE DEATH
OF THE
HON. JOHN C. CALHOUN.
PUBLISHED BY RESDEST.
CHARLESTON:
EDWARD C. COUNCELL, PRINTER, NO. 119 EAST-BAY.
1850.
TO THE PEOPLE OF SOUTH-CAROLINA.
DEEPLY AFFLICTED,
BY THE LOSS OF THEIR GREAT STATESMAN,
THIS SERMON PREACHED ON THE OCCASION OP HIS DEATH,
AND DESIGNED,
NOT SO MUCH TO SET FORTH THE VIRTUES OF THE DECEASED,
AS TO INCULCATE THE NECESSITY
OF RELYING UPON THE LIVING GOD,
IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED,
BY THEIR FRIEND AND FELLOW CITIZEN,
YVM. H. BARNWELL.
CHARLESTON, APRIL 13, 1850.
Rev. Wm. H. Barnwell,
Rev. and Dear Sir—Permit us, as members of your congregation,
to express our gratification at your Sermon preached on Sunday last,
in reference to the death of Mr. Calhoun, and to request a copy of
the same for publication.
We are, dear sir,
Yours very respectfully,
CHAS. EDMONDSTON,
JAS. ROSE.
GEO. M. COFFIN,
GEO. A. TRENHOLM,
C. G. MEMMINGER,
CHAS. A. DESAUSSURE,
W. C. BEE,
HOPSON PINCKNEY.
C. T. MITCHELL,
ROBT. A. PRINGLE,
M. W. COLCOCK,
JAS. S. G1BBES.
CHAS. N. HUBERT,
THEO. D. WAGNER.
CHARLESTON, APRIL 15, 1850.
Gentlemen—Yours of the 13th was duly received. It affords me
satisfaction to learn that you were gratified with the discourse refer¬
red to in your communication ; and in compliance with your request
I herewith enclose a copy for publication.
Very sincerely and respectfully,
Your friend and pastor,
WM. H. BARNWELL.
Messrs. Chas. Edmondston, Jas. Rose, and others.
SERMON.
Isaiah, 2-22.—" Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for wherein is
he to be accounted of ?"
The name of this Prophet, Isaiah, literally the Salvation
of God, expresses the chief topics of his predictions—the
coming of the Messiah, and the deliverance it was to accom¬
plish. His disclosures of the birth, person, sufferings and
glory of the Redeemer, are so vivid and full, as to entitle him
to the name of the Evangelic Seer. His vision overleaps time
and space, and places before himself and his hearers, events to
occur in periods and countries exceedingly remote. The general
scope of his writings, was to rebuke the sins, not only of Judah,
but of the ten tribes of Israel and the Gentiles ; to invite per¬
sons of every rank and nation to repentance, by promises of
pardon and peace ; and to comfort the truly pious (in the midst
of all the calamities and judgments denounced against the
wicked) with prophetic assurances of the true Messiah, which in
their distinctness seem almost to anticipate the Gospel History.
The particular prophetic discourse from which the text is
taken, includes the second, third and fourth chapters of this
Sacred writer ; and while the kingdom of the Messiah, and the
conversion of the Gentiles are foreshown in the former part of
it; the punishment of the unbelieving Jews, for their idolatrous
practice, their confidence in their own strength and distrust of
God's protection; the destruction of idolatry consequent to the
coming of Christ; the calamities of the Babylonian invasion
and captivity; together with an amplification of the distress of
the proud and luxurious daughters of Zion, would form a picture
utterly apalling, but for the promises, with which it closes, to the
remnant who shall have escaped, of a future restoration to the
favor and protection of God.
It is in the midst of the minatory part of these prophetic
announcements, that the inspired bard, in the peculiarly para¬
bolic style of Hebrew poetry, which under images taken from
8
things natural, artificial, religious and historical, exhibits things
divine, spiritual, moral and political, utters one of the most
striking descriptions of the abasement of human pride before
the majesty of Jehovah, that the mind of man has ever con¬
ceived and given expression to.
" Enter into the Rock! and hide thee in the dust,
For fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his Majesty.
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled,
And the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down,
And the Lord alone, shall be exalted in that day,
For the day of the Lord of Hosts shall be
Upon every one that is proud and lofty,
And upon every one that is lifted up, and he shall be brought low;
And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up,
And upon all the oaks of Bashan,
And upon all the high mountains,
And upon all the hills that are lifted up,
And upon every high tower,
And upon every fenced wall,
And upon all the ships of Tarshish,
And upon all 'pleasant pictures.
And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down,
And the haughtiness of men shall be made low:
And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
And the idols He shall utterly abolish.
And they shall go into the holes of the rocks,
And into the caves of the earth,
For fear of the Lord, and for the glory of His Majesty,
When He ariseth to shake terribly the earth.
In that day, a man shall cast his idols oj silver and his idols of gold,
Which they made, each one for himself to worship,
To the moles and to the bats\
To go into the clefts of the rocks,
And into the tops of the ragged rocks,
For the fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty,
When He ariseth to shake terribly the earth."
Then, as if to intimate, that God's judgment was provoked
9
by an idolatrous dependence upon human means, he cautions
them against this, in the words before us—
" Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils;
For wherein is he to be accounted off
We have here then, a solemn remonstrance against undue
reliance upon man, based upon his mortality and insufficiency.
And the use to be made of it is, I presume, anticipated by you.
The nation seems to feel afflicted, and our commonwealth
mourns over her departed statesman, like a mother over an
only son. Whatever prejudices may have prevailed against
him, during his life, are apparently, dispersed by the stroke of
that Divine hand, which has removed him from earth; and
those who in the discharge of their public duties, had felt them¬
selves constrained to differ from him most widely, have seemed
to take a mournful satisfaction in proffering their prompt and
decided testimony to the purity of his character, and the great¬
ness of his abilities.
You will not, of course, expect me, either to touch upon
party politics, or to attempt any thing like a eulogy of the illus¬
trious dead. The pulpit is certainly not the expropriate place
for political discussions ; nor is there any disposition on my
part, to interfere at present with the allotted province of others,
by obtruding upon you my own views, either of the great
questions which have agitated the nation, since this distinguished
statesman entered upon public life, or of the course he has
pursued in reference to them.
My object is, only as your Minister, to improve to your spirit¬
ual good, a striking event in the Providence of God, which has
probably occupied more of your thoughts and conversation,
since last we met, than any other subject, unconnected with
your personal concerns.
One who is set as a watchman upon the Towers of Zion,
ought not to be an unobservant or uninterested spectator of
events which engross the public mind. Hoping to influence
for God, as it is his province to do, so far as he may, the wills
of his hearers ; and expecting to accomplish this pious end, by
appeals to their understandings and their hearts ; it is important
10
that he should not only be familiar with the intellectual and
emotional nature of man in general; but that for the timely
inculcation of Divine Truth, he should avail himself of any
insight he may obtain into the particular state of mind and
feeling, which passing occurrences produce, either in his own
congregation or in the community at large. " A word spoken
in due season, how good is it"
That there is needed at present, throughout our Union, a
solemn remonstrance against an undue reliance upon human
abilities, whether to devise plans for thev better government of
mankind, or to carry them into operation, can scarcely be ques¬
tioned ; and if the death of one whose profound political saga¬
city was universally acknowledged, and whose noble, devoted
patriotism has been signally evinced for so long a period, shall
have the effect of turning the confidence of the people from
man, whose breath is in his nostrils, and who in his highest
and best developments of mental power is but little to be
accounted of, to God who liveth forever, and who only is a
present help in every time of need ; the loss, which not only
our native State, but the civilized world, has sustained in this
afflictive event, will be more than compensated.
The Jews, to whom Isaiah's warning was delivered, were
prone to rely upon their alliances with the surrounding Heathen
Nations, the Egyptians, Syrians and Assyrians, instead of con¬
fiding in their own covenant God ; and His jealousy, which is
represented in Scripture, as one of His chief though most terri¬
ble attributes, is thus incessantly exasperated against them.
" The Egyptians," saith He, in a woe denounced against this
practice, through this same Prophet, Isaiah, " The Egyptians,
are men, and not God ; and their horses flesh and not spirit.
When the Lord shall stretch out His hand, both he that helpeth
shall fall, and he that is holpen shall fall down ; and they
shall all fail together."
It can scarcely be charged upon the people of these United
States, that they are inclined to rely upon any foreign
power for aid ; or that they are tempted to forget God, by
entanglements with the affairs of other nations. In this res¬
pect, the counsel of him who has justly been called the Father
of his Country, has been in general complied with; though
a political philosopher who should attempt to trace our
11
last war with Great Britain to its hidden springs, may perhaps
discover some of them in the sympathies, by which the two
great parties that divided the country, had become respectively
attached to France and England, the chief belligerents of the
day.
But whether as a nation, we are not withdrawn from a pro¬
per dependence upon the Almighty, by an extravagant estimate
of ourselves, is a question, which it is to be feared even the
most overweening admirer of our country, would be constrained
to settle against us. Nor is there reason to hope, that the jea¬
lousy of the Great Sovereign of the Universe, will be less pro¬
voked by an estrangement from Him, which results out of an
undue dependence upon talent, education, attainment, expe¬
rience, skill, popular opinion, and our Federal and State Con¬
stitutions, than by those Heathenish alliances which were the
great source of idolatry on the part of the Jews.
Not that these things are unimportant in their place ; or are
not to be often times regarded as the grounds for devout grati¬
tude to God. Who that contemplates with the most sober con¬
sideration, that innate force of the human mind, which inclines
it spontaneously to the easy acquisition of knowledge, or the
successful execution of practical affairs, but must admire its
mysterious power ? And who that witnesses the steady but
almost miraculous results of education, applying as it were
a vegetative principle to the mental faculties, and causing them
to grow, bud, blossom and bear fruit; can fail to appreciate it
highly, as a most efficient instrumentality ? Or who can reflect
upon the immense power derived from knowledge; putting one
man in possession of the experience of ages—or who can turn
his thoughts to the vast advantages of experience ; judging of
men and things, not upon the vague basis of conjecture, but
upon the certain conclusions of one who has tried them—or
who can observe the consummate effects of skill; marshalling
and arranging the substances of matter, or the principles of
nature, or the thoughts of the mind, nay and often the purposes
and actions of men in a wonderful manner 3—Who can take
such a view of these advantages, without being thankful, that
the Ruler of the Universe has bestowed them so largely upon
our fellow countrymen? Or who can notice without awe.
12
the insensible, yet tremendous agency of popular opinion, heav¬
ing like some billow from shore to shore? Or who can
examine the admirably contrived, and beautifully balanced
system of our Great Federal Republic—without regarding it as
a model for all men capable of self-government, and desiring
not only its perpetuity here, but its extension every where? Yet
to one of spiritual discernment, all of these blessing with which
we have been so highly favored by a beneficent Providence,
may clearly appear to have become Idols ;—and it may be
justly said—not only of the more worldly and sensual, but of
the more refined and intellectual and virtuous and patriotic.
" They worship the work of their own hands,
That which their own fingers have made
In the history of nations, as of individuals, there occur criti¬
cal periods, when the most important consequences hang upon
particular acts, which impart to the future its cast and color.
That such a crisis is at hand in our national affairs, seems to
be the general apprehension; and that one, who of all others
was the best qualified in talent, education, knowledge, expe¬
rience, skill, control over popular opinion, and familiarity with
the principles of the Confederacy, to give direction to affairs,
should be struck down in his sphere of high and responsible
duty, just at the time when his services were most needed, and
when too, according to his own calm judgment, as expressed
but the evening before his death, he could accomplish more
good, by an hour's speech, than he had ever done before ; seems
a forcible illustration of the Prophet's warning to cease relying
upon man, whose breath is in his nostrils.
Nor is itprobable that had his valuable life been prolonged, and
health been restored to him, he would have been able to produce
the effect he desired and toiled for. It seems incidental to the
very nature of Republican Governments, that public men of ex¬
traordinary ability and sterling integrity, should be viewed with
jealousy, not only by those whose political views and interests
differ from theirs; but by those who in the main agree with them.
Hence, statesmen of the first order, have been frequently superse¬
ded, by persons far inferior, but from circumstances, more popular.
13
It cannot be doubted, that the deceased, was regarded with the
more jealousy out of his native State, on account of the
unbounded influence, which for so long a time, he had enjoyed
within it. By both of the political parties, he was looked upon
as one who would not hesitate in any public emergency, that
seemed to demand it, to act an independent part. By both of
the sections, North and South, he was regarded as standing
somewhat in the way of some present or prospective favorite
candidate for the Chief Magistracy of the Union. So that
even of him, who had made Government, especially our own
Constitutional Government, his ardent and laborious study;
who had filled with the most signal success, and spotless purity
most of the highest offices of that Government;—who carried
habitually into every duty that he undertook, a lofty enthusiasm,
a comprehensive forecast, an intrepid purpose, and an indefati¬
gable assiduity, even of him so profound, so experienced, so
honored and so efficient, there is reason to think, that many
who could not but admire him, were beginning to say with the
Prophet, wherein is he to be accounted of V
The reciprocal attachment between himself and his native
State, one of the most remarkable features of his character, and
circumstances of his life, should impress with peculiar force
upon her citizens, the necessity of ceasing from man.
True, he never forsook, never betrayed her. Never ceased
to watch over her political welfare, with a sleepless vigilance—
never failed to warn her of even distant danger—never hesita¬
ted to front every foe that assailed her,—and to sacrifice freely
in her cause, every high hope of personal ambition. If ever
there was a Statesman, who in that stem and hazardous, yet
necessary warfare of politics, where so many of the greatest
talents and experience, have suffered themselves to be frightened
from their steadfastness, or corrupted from their integrity, or
enticed from their devotion—if ever there was a Statesman,
who could claim from his constituents entire confidence ; the
voice of South-Carolina, not sobbing as it now is over his loss,
but in the firm and unaltered tones of more than forty years
proud and affectionate reliance, proclaims—this was he. And
yet see the vanity of making man our stay ! His breath flickers
from his nostrils, when most needed to make his last appeal in
2
14
her cause • and into that hall which had been to him the field
of so many intellectual battles—less bloody it is true, but not
less severe and galling than those of the sword—he is brought
forth like a slain, but unconquered hero, stretched upon his
bier.
If there be no impropriety in so applying the touching pas¬
sage of Scripture, it seems to me, our beloved commonwealth
might be personified, as the Royal Minstrel of Israel uttering
that pathetic lamentation over his best earthly friend.
How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle /
0 Jonathan ! thoie wast slain in thine high places.
1 am distressed for thee my brother Jonathan ;
Very pleasant hast thou been unto me.
Thy love to me was loonderful,
Passing the love of women,
How are the mighty fallen.
And the weapons of war perished P
He, does not seem to me, to have studied profoundly either
the nature of man, or the characteristics of the awho is not
ready to acknowledge the vast ascendancy of energy over
numbers, of mind over matter, of virtue over every thing else ;
and glancing back upon the history of our common country,
for the last forty years, and inquiring into the causes of that
immense influence, which our great Statesman exerted; we
shall discover an illustration of these truths, so important, not
only to the political and social, but to the moral welfare, both
of the public and of individuals. Had he been the citizen of a
large and populous State, whose votes in the Electoral College,
might have settled almost any Presidential question ; or had he
been possessed of great wealth, which with shame be it spoken,
exercises but too potent a sway over the people ; or had he con¬
descended to those arts of chicanery, by which popularity is
too often obtained ; we might the less wonder at the almost
magical power, which for so long a time he wielded. But his
native State was comparatively small and feeble—bright it is
true, in the waning prestige of Revolutionary glory, and in
the character of many of her living sons—but yet gradually
15
i
losing her rank in the scale of confederated constellations, as
State after State emerged from the horizon and ascended above
her. His private means were always limited ;—probably, never
more than enough to sustain and educate his family. His
lofty scorn of every thing mean and debasing, kept him aloof
from the petty intrigues of personal and party politics. Yet
what a vast place has he filled in the public history of his
generation, and what a strong impulse has hi^ genius given to
the spirit of his age—that invisible, impalpable, but mighty
influence, which pervades and moulds and in the end, controls
affairs. Whence was this ? Even his enemies will be now
ready to ascribe it to his mind, his energy, his virtue. And
rvhen they say this, they not only place his'character upon the
firmest and loftiest human pedestal ^ but they render involun¬
tarily perhaps, a high homage to the Deity; while they add
force and emphasis to the Prophet's warning. " Cease ye from
man, whose breath is in his nostrils ; for wherein is he to be
accounted off
It would be treason to Natural as well as Revealed Religion,
not to maintain the legitimate supremacy of intellect, will and
benevolence. Fame would be worthless, nay, would be per¬
nicious, if accorded to one who could lay no claim to these.
But God and man, concur in this; that without a mind to
discern duty, and without a purpose to perform it, and above
all without a heart disinterestedly to desire its performance ;
none can be fully qualified for that proper fulfilment of high
and responsible offices, which in all ages and nations entitles
one to the confidence of his contemporaries, and the praises of
posterity. You need not be informed, that God is the author
and preserver of every clear and vigorous mind, of every firm
and energetic will, and of every virtuous and benevolent
emotion. The student of Scripture, and the mere observer of
human conduct, however they differ in other things, probably
agree in ascribing ultimately to the Deity, not only many of the
results of human actions, but much that contributes to the for¬
mation of individual character. Nor can any but an Atheist,
contemplate such a life as that we are noticing, without per¬
ceiving what the deceased himself believed in, the controlling
16
influence of a Divine Mind, and a particular Providence, ful¬
filling all events, and shaping all characters, according to an
infinitely wise and good and fore-ordained plan. To conceive
of a mind like that of the deceased, being constituted by
chance ; or to conceive of his purposes, fraught as they have
been with momentous consequences, being determined without
God; or to conceive of his virtuous principles being formed, and
his kind emotions, being exercised without any control what¬
ever from Him in " whose hands are the hearts of all men as
streams of water would be as contrary to the deductions of
sound philosophy as to the teachings of Scripture. If, in any
piece of complicated machinery, you should perceive a combi¬
nation of powers, directed with force to one end, and that end a
useful one; would you not laugh to scorn the impertinence,
whether learned or simple, which should attempt to convince
you, that natural laws merely, and not mind; accident and not
design; curiosity and not the desire of usefulness, had wrought
such an instrument ? If you beheld a body of troops, composed
of the various kinds of the service, performing with mechani¬
cal, almost noiseless precision, a great variety of military evo¬
lutions ; would you not smile at the childlike simplicity, which
should surmise that, each weapon, and each war-horse, and
each rank and each man, was moved by some magical or some
independent influence ; and not, that there was one command¬
ing mind, who had settled it all at his council board, and was
reviewing his machinery to see how it worked ? And if you
saw a terrible yet grand mass of living valor like this, glowing
to evince its skill, not on mere fields of sport, but on the blood}?"
arena of battle, against those who were conceived to be ene¬
mies*; should you see a large, well disciplined, well officered
army, red-hot for war, restrained in the desired work of destruc¬
tion, or invasion ; and reserved only for purposes of peace and
usefulness; you would wonder at the perverseness, which
ascribed so beneficial and humane, and philanthropic a result,
to any but a good motive on the part of him who originated it.
The wisdom, the energy, the humanity, which would be con¬
spicuous in one who deeming an efficient army, necessary for
the safety of his country—prepares one, and then, when it had
been prepared, advocates Peace ; would command forever the
17
world's admiration. It will be for the eulogist of this departed
son of South-Carolina—with the blood of revolutionary heroes
in his veins—born and living among scenes teeming with tradi¬
tions of British cruelty—bred in habits of hardy independence,
which looked only at the end, and despised intervening obsta¬
cles—entering upon public life at a time when the women of
our country, glowed at the insults which the haughty cross of
St. George, dominant on every wave, inflicted upon the Eagle ;
and when " Free Trade and Sailors' Rights" was the watch¬
word of our very boys—having carried by his immense influ¬
ence, against an old and talented and most respectable party,
the party of Washington himself, the party of the leading minds
in his own native State, measures preliminary to the Declara¬
tion of war with England—having conducted with triumphant
executive ability, in the face of immense difficulties, the hostili¬
ties to a prosperous close—having re-organized the War De¬
partment with wonderful method and efficiency—having con¬
tributed to develope all the resources of the country even at the
expense of the General Revenue, and at the sacrifice of some
of his cherished political theories—having previously favored
the acquisition of new territory—and having just completed the
annexation of Texas, through his jealousy of British interfer¬
ence—it will be for the eulogist of Mr. Calhoun to say how
much credit he ought to receive on the score of philanthropy,
when thus descended, thus trained, thus stimulated to war
with England, by all the associations of the past, and perhaps
all the prospects of personal elevation for the future—he stood
forth in the Senate Chamber—on the Oregon Question—and
against his party—advocated Peace. But 1 refer to the sub¬
ject now, not so much to excite in your minds admiration for
the dead,—though trusting as I do, that the time will come,
referred to by Isaiah in the very chapter before us, when
li Men shall beat their swords into ploughshares,
And their spears into pruning hooks,
When nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
Neither shall they learn war any more.''
I doubt not this instance of wise and strong and humane
2*
IS
forbearance, will beam forth among the brightest of History.
I refer to it, however, for the purpose of awakening gratitude
to God, and cautioning you not to rely upon man, but upon
Him concerning whom the Psalmist has declared—" The
shields of the earth belong unto God ; He is greatly exalted."
To admire the character and conduct of the human instru¬
ment, who under such circumstances, served to protect our
country and Great Britain, nay, our common humanity from
such a war; and yet to withold admiration from that exalted
Being, upon whom that instrument professedly relied, and who,
unquestionably had both prepared him for that crisis, and that
crisis for him ; would be as illogical as irreligious. I do not
say that we have any right to withold from the man, the praise
which is justly due to him for his foresight and firmness and
enlarged benevolence. What, as God's Minister, I claim, is,
that the Chief Supreme Honor of making the man, what he
was, and enabling him to act as he did, be ascribed to Him—
and what I entreat of you is, be persuaded by the very case
before us, to cease from man, for wherein is he to be accounted
of ? Lauded as the humanity of our Statesman was, for act¬
ing so nobly as a " shield " against war with England, and for
attempting to prevent, and bring to a close that with Mexico—
still, when after a life spent, not in the service of the South,
but of the whole Union,—with a frame broken down by Sena¬
torial toils, and burnt out, by the workings of its ardent and
patriotic spirit—with a foresight acknowledged to be almost
prophetic, he implores, with confessions of weakness, which
coming from such a source, ought to have proved overpower¬
ing—one section of his country, to forbear from aggressions upon
the chartered Institutions of the other.—Institutions among
which many of our noblest and best men had grown up,
had lived and died—Institutions which he ha ! proved to
demonstration, were essential to the very existence of the
inferior race subject to them, and without which, he had
conclusively shown, that the prosperity of the whole country,
and the cause of bivilization would be thrown back—when,
with almost dying lips—nay, through the lips of another, for
his own were too feeble for the utterance of his last weighty
charge—he solemnly implored forbearance and the preservation
19
of Constitutional Equality, he is censured even by some of his
political friends, and his enlarged humanity, and conservative
wisdom, misconstrued into, self-interest, and sectional prejudice
by the most generous of his opponents. " Cease ye then from
man, whose breath is in his nostrils ; for wherein is he to be
accounted off
The infinite disparity which exists, between the mind, will
and excellence of man, even in his highest condition, and
those of God, should impress upon all the admonition of the
text.
The human mind is, unquestionably, an object of great inter¬
est, and a source of immense power. When originally large
and strong and fully developed and disciplined, it sets man upon
an eminence only little lower than the angels. It looks intui¬
tively, not only into the nature of things around; but into its
own nature, and aspires to know somewhat of the nature of
God. It analyses, not only material, but immaterial objects.
It investigates, not only the Laws which regulate matter, and
ascertains and establishes the principles of Natural Science;
but it searches with deep and earnest scrutiny, those,still more
hidden laws, which govern the political state, and forms and
arranges the difficult science of Government. None of the
pursuits of the human mind ought to be discouraged or despis¬
ed. But next to Theology, the science of the soul, and Meta¬
physics the science of the mind, Government is entitled to be
regarded as the most noble and dignified study; whether
we view the materials, upon which it works, the mental
powers it demands, or the momentous results that flow from it.
While the Naturalist is classifying the physical world ; inform¬
ing us of the nature and habits and qualities of objects animate
and inanimate which belong to our globe ; the Political Philo¬
sopher contemplates the History of Nations, diving down into
the fundamental, principles, upon which generations of the
human race have been governed, and determining the con¬
ditions upon which rational and intelligent beings, having
emerged from the savage state, have been enabled to live toge¬
ther in harmony, and prosper in Political Union.
When a mind of high order, qualified by nature and educa¬
tion and experience for such a study, puts forth its powers in
20
close application, it is engaged in a work, that tasks it to the
utmost, and the conclusions to which it comes, must be regard¬
ed with great deference, so long as man continues to be the
subject of Government. The welfare of the remotest Nations,
that important welfare which consists in good government, may
be aifected by its labors. In the judgment of mankind, those
minds which have toiled successfully in these pursuits, have
ranked among the highest and noblest. Their abstractions and
theories sway multitudes, long after they are departed. But
compare with the greatest of these, the Divine Mind, and how
infinite the disparity! Conceive, so for as you can, of this Mind
of Minds—Original—Omniscient—One—enthroned in Eternity ;
and planning in the counsel of the Mysterious Trinity m Unity,
the Constitution and Government not of all mankind only, but
of Angels and Arch-Angels—nay, arranging with infallible
precision how fallen men are to be redeemed, and revolted
spirits to be controlled—how innumerable myriads of rational,
free, responsible beings, in Heaven, on earth, and under the
earth, are to be so swayed and directed forever, as to bring most
glory to God, and most good to His elect!
Follow the movements of this inconceivable Mind; see it
inspiring the Prophets, raising up Judges, and Rulers, and
Teachers of Righteousness— see it preparing those who were
to build up and destroy Heathen Kingdoms—making use of
Philosophers, Orators," Poets and Lawgivers—wielding to its
purposes the swords of conquerors,—the enterprize of voyagers—
the ingenuity of inventors, the genius of artists, and the policy
of cabinets—nay, pervading, informing and governing every
other mind in the whole Moral Dominion! Think of this, and
say whether such a Mind may not justly warn you to cease
from all dependence upon created Intelligences, and to trust
implicitly upon its wisdom and counsel.
But the measureless superiority of God's power over all
human energy, should conduct us to the same conclusion.
Not that in the conduct of human affairs, that hidden force,
that power of will is to be despised, which, when it has an end
to accomplish, turns the very elements into its servants, and
converts obstacles into the means of success. Invested with
executive power, this energy of purpose achieves results almost
21
supernatural. Order is educed out of confusion—promptness
supplants delay—vigor expels inertness—prosperity overspreads
the gloomy face of every thing, and that cheerful confidence, so
essential to success, and which grows out of a mutual conscious¬
ness of power, fills every bosom. Such is the effect which a
strong and active will, guided by an intelligent mind, exerts
almost instantaneously upon human affairs.
But how can we compare this with the Almighty power and
irresistible energy of God ? Unseen except in its results—Om¬
nipresent, filling all space at one and the same time—coming
into contact with every being, and every object, every instant;
and giving to all not only thejr motive powers, their inherent
forces, but their very existence—entering insensibly into the
very spirits of men and Angels, and imparting their impulses—
riding Upon the wings of the winds—sweeping onward in the
flames of fire—breathing in the storm—teeming in the vegeta¬
tive principle—working in the laws of gravitation-—flashing in
the electric fluid—operating in every way that can be conceived
of—what limit is there to the power of God? How entire
then, should be our dependence upon him ! How singular to
rely upon man, whose breath is in his nostrils, and whose
energy if not wasted by disease or indolence is utterly extin¬
guished by death ! How strange the infatuation, to trust in man,
and not in God whose power is infinite, incomprehensible, irre-
ristible, universal, perpetual !
But the Divine Goodness, as compared with that of the best
of men, renders still more impressive the warning of the text.
It is not necessary to deny to many whose souls do not seem to
be spiritually renewed, a natural benevolence and kindness, and
an enlarged philanthrophy, which prompt them not only to
fulfil the offices of affection to their friends and families j but
to seek to promote the happiness and welfare of the world at
large. Sacrifices of time, and thought, and ease, and comfort,
and even of influence and personal aggrandizement, are thus
often made, for the service, not of oneself, but of others, stran¬
gers it may be or enemies. The beneficent fruits of human
kindness are chiefly to be seen and felt, in the domestic and
friendly circle; but they are not confined there. There is
often in minds of the highest order, and greatest energy, a
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strong and earnest desire to promote the happiness of all. And
in public measures, which are suspected of being set on foot
chiefly for personal or party purposes, there is often a broad
and deep under-current of good feeling and wholesome benevo¬
lence, which coming from. God, and benefiting man, ought not
to be disparaged. Indeed, without some degree of goodness
and benevolence, a character is exceedingly defective, and
unworthy of confidence. Philanthrophy, true, intelligent, con¬
siderate, warm, yet sober philanthropy, lies at the foundation of
both public and private virtue. Kindness, genuine kindness,
is the social bond of nations and communities, as well as fami¬
lies. Love pure, fervent love, is the badge of Christian disciple-
ship. And thanks be to God !—our earth and our country are
still blessed and adorned with many examples of these benefi¬
cent emotions. But, contrast with them all, not only that now
are, but that have ever been, the goodness and loving kindness
of God ! Is it necessary that I shall dwell upon these ? Need
I do more than simply advert to them ? Are you not as fami¬
liar with my views and feelings on this grand and inspiring,
yet melting theme, as with the names of your friends and chil¬
dren ? What has my ministry been among you, from the first
time it began, until this day ? What is is now? What is it
hereafter to be, but an attempt, earnest, sincere, yet too often
fruitless attempt to exhibit to you the wonderful love of God
as evinced in the gift of His Son ? What theme has been
brought to your notice so constantly, as the amafcing goodness
of God, which beams forth from the doctrine of a Crucified
Redeemer—a Messiah, coming to conquer not by the sword, but
by suffering—a Prince of Peace—preserving and restoring har¬
mony between God and His Moral Intelligencies,—not by
intrigue—not by deception—not by a surrender of any of the
Majesty of the Godhead—or of any of the moral and intelec-
tual privileges of man,—but by a Mediation—based upon his
own sacrificial death, and perfect obedience—a King of Kings—
reigning, not over the mere persons and property, but over the
hearts of his people—a Comforter of the afflicted—teaching
them not to forget their sorrows or drown them in dissipation
and business, but to cast them upon him—a Friend to sinners—
23
assuring them of forgiveness, if they repent and trust in Him—
a Helper to the poor and needy—and despised and injured—
pointing them to his own earthly condition, who though rich1
became poor, that they through his poverty might be made
rich—and promising them if faithful, a seat and crown at his
side on His glorious Throne.
If all that, as God's minister, and your servant for Christ's
sake, I have said to you upon the warranty of the Holy Scrip¬
tures, of the Divine Goodness and Love in Christ, has not satis¬
fied you, of its all-sufficiency, as a foundation for your reliance—
let me then, this day, entreat you, in all the emergencies and
perplexities, whether political, ecclesiastical, social or personal,
that may arise and annoy you—listen to the voice of God
through the Prophet—" Cease ye from man, whose breath is in
his nostrils ; for wherein is he to be account of /"
Whether as a judgment for our public and private transgres¬
sions, God in his Providence means to shake in our hitherto
happy and united country, the Political Heavens and Earth,
as he has done in Europe—and abase before His Majesty here,
as he has done there, the high personages, and offices, which
have been lifting up' their heads against him—it is not for us
to know. At least, let us bear in mind—that in such distress¬
ing agitations—the Rock that we are to get into is the Rock
of Ages—based upon the eternal counsel of God—and shelter¬
ing all who resort to it, by the covenanted Wisdom, Power
and Love, of the one only and true God, the Holy Blessed and
Glorious Trinity ! That the family of the deceased, and all
in our native State, and our whole country, who lament his
removal from earth, may be led to trust in his Great and Ador¬
able Being—is my fervent prayer.