FROM THE LIBRARY OF 
 REV. LOUIS FITZGERALD BENSON, D. D 
 
 BEQUEATHED BY HIM TO 
 
 THE LIBRARY OF 
 
 PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 
 ht< 
 
 BfZ>6 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2013 
 
 http://archive.org/details/univstoraOOwinc 
 
THE 
 
 UNIVERSAL RESTORATION, 
 
 EXHIBITED IN 
 
 FOUR DIALOGUES 
 
 ^3 IS 
 
 BETWEEN 
 
 A MINISTER AND HIS FRIEND; 
 
 COMPREHENDING 
 
 The fubftance of feveral real converfations which the author 
 had with various perfons^ both in America and Europe, 
 
 ON THAT INTERESTING SUBJECT, 
 
 CHIEFLY DESIGNED 
 
 Fully to ftate, and fairly to anfwer the mod common 
 objections that are brought againft it from 
 
 THE SCRIPTURES. 
 
 A NEW EDITION. 
 BY ELHAN AN 'WINCHESTER. 
 
 To this Edition is prefixed, 
 
 A BRIEF ACCOUNT OF THE MEANS AND MANNER OP THE 
 AUTHOR'S EMBRACING THESE SENTIMENTS, 
 
 Intermixed with fome 
 SKETCHES OF HIS LIFE 
 
 DURING FOUR YEARS. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 PRINTED BY T. DOBSON, AT THE STONE-HOUSE, 
 
 NO. 41, SOUTH SECOND-STREET. 
 
 M,DCC,XCII 
 
FROM THE 
 
 CRITICAL RtfVIEW r 
 
 For September, 1788. 
 
 " OUR Author, with great candour and extenfivc 
 u knowledge of the fubjecl, difcufTes the doctrine of eter- 
 " nal punifhments. He thinks that there will be a period 
 " when every finner will be reftored to the Divine favour. 
 " This doctrine is perfectly confident with the benevo- 
 " lence of the Deity. It is fupported by many wife and 
 <f good men ; nor is there any reafon to fuppofe that it will 
 *' be perverted to ferve the purpofes of vice and immora- 
 «* lity. Mr. Winchefter, in his defence of it, fhews much 
 «' charity, much humanity, and no little fhare of learning. 
 <f The fifth Dialogue alone, which relates to the defign 
 '* and tendency of punifhment, might furnifh fome little 
 tf foundation for a difference of opinion ; but, in a quefti- 
 il on fo greatly above human attainment, the mind would 
 »' be loft in the enquiry, and not greatly benefited by the 
 fl difcuflion. The queftion of the univerfal Refloration, 
 ** mud be examined as Mr. Winchefter has done, by the 
 *' word of God, as revealed at different times, and parti- 
 u cularly in the Gofpel." 
 
 N. B. A com'iderable part of the fifth Dialogue, being 
 printed in the Leisures on the Prophecies, is left out of 
 this edition, and the remaining part is included in the fourth 
 Dialogue. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 TO THE READER. 
 
 AS I now prefent my Friends and the Public 
 with a new edition of the Dialogues on the 
 Universal Restoration, which by many has 
 been long defired, perhaps it may be acceptable to 
 fome for me to give a brief account how I came 
 firit to the knowledge of this part of the counfel 
 of God, which I have not fhunned freely to de- 
 clare, both by word and writing, as I have found 
 opportunity and neceffity. 
 
 I think it was in the beginning of the year 1778, 
 being in South Carolina, upon the River Pee Dee, 
 where I was at that time Minifter, that I called to 
 fee a friend, who firit. put into my hands that va- 
 luable book written by Paul Siegvolk, and which 
 is called The Evcrlajl'ing Go/pel, of which I have 
 lately publifhed a new edition. I was defired to 
 tell what it meant to hold forth, as my friend 
 could not tell by any means what to make of it 
 on the account of the fmgularity and ilrangenefs 
 of the fentiments therein contained ; although the 
 language is very plain and clear, and by no means 
 dark, myftical, or obfeure. 
 
 I opened the book as I was defired, and dipping 
 
 into it here and there, for half an hour perhaps, 
 
 was very foon able to tell what the Author aimed 
 
 at, viz. that there would be a final end of fin and 
 
 a 2 m f er yy 
 
iv PREFACE. 
 
 mifery, and that all fallen creatures would be refored, 
 by jfefus Chrijl, to a fate of holinefs and happinefs, 
 after fuch as were rebellious had fuffered in proportion 
 to their crimes. I had never feen any thing of the 
 ibrt before in all my life ; and I fcemed frruck 
 with feveral ideas that I glanced over, fuch as 
 the in con Men cy and impoiTibility of both good 
 and evil always exifting in the univerfe ; and ef- 
 pecially his obfervations upon the word eternal or 
 everla/lingy fhewing that it was ufed for what ne- 
 ver had a beginning, and would never have an 
 end, as the being and perfections of God ; and 
 that it was alfo applied to things which had a be- 
 ginning, but fhould never have an end, as the be- 
 ing and happinefs of the righteous ; and, that it 
 was alfo frequently ufed to exprefs things, times, 
 and feafons which had both beginning and end. 
 which he therefore called periodical eternities, and 
 gave a great number of inftances of this fort, 
 which could not be denied ; and he contended 
 that the everlafing punifhment threatened to the 
 wicked, did not belong to the firit, nor to the 
 fecond, but to the third clafs of thefe durations. 
 But as I was only defired to tell what the au- 
 thor meant, when I had fatisfied my friend in that 
 refpect, I laid the book down, and I believe, we 
 both concluded it to be a pleafant ingenious hy- 
 pothefis, but had no ferious thoughts of its being 
 true ; and for my part, I determined not to trou- 
 ble myfelf about it, or to think any thing more 
 of the matter. And as the book had been fent a 
 confiderable diftance for my friend to read, I fup- 
 pofe it was foon after fent back ; for I faw it no 
 more, nor heard any thing farther about it. The 
 The following fummer I went a journey into Vir- 
 ginia, 
 
PREFACE. v 
 
 giuia, and happening to mention the fubjecl to a 
 minifter there, he told me that a few years before, 
 it had been a fubjett of controverfy in the public 
 papers, between a clergyman, who defended, and 
 a gentleman of the law, who denied the proper 
 endlefs eternity of puniftiment ; and he told me 
 that this gentleman who denied it, had advanced, 
 that the translators of the Bible had rendered the 
 \ery fame Greek word, by very different Englilh 
 words, fometimes rendering it for ever, and fome- 
 rimes world; and that if they had always uni- 
 formly rendered it by one Englifh word, it would 
 have been evident to all readers, that no argu- 
 ment for endlefs mifery, could have been drawn 
 therefrom. I was told alio while I was in Vir- 
 ginia, that a clergyman of the epifcopal church, 
 had a few years before, given out that he had 
 fome wonderful thing to make known to his hear- 
 ers, which he would preach upon fome Sunday, 
 but did not mention when. This railed the pub- 
 lic curiofity, and great numbers attended his 
 place of worfhjp in hopes of hearing what this 
 wonderful thing might be ; but for a conjidera- 
 bie time the matter was undifcovered. But at laffc 
 he gave out, that on the next Sunday he would 
 open this great fecret. Vaft numbers of people 
 flocked to hear what it could be ; When he came 
 to declare what it was, behold ! it was a wonder- 
 ful piece of news indeed, fuch as had never been 
 heard before in any pulpit in Virginia. It was 
 nothing fhort of the doctrine of the Refloratim. I 
 think, to the befl of my remembrance, they told 
 me, that he opened and enlarged upon it for two 
 Sundays, and never preached any more, being 
 immediately after feized with fickneis, which ter- 
 a 3 minated 
 
vf PREFACE. 
 
 minated in bis death. And this was generally 
 dteemed as a judgment that fell upon him for 
 daring to preach fuch a wicked, falfe, and da 
 reus opinion ; and that God cut him or? from the 
 land of the living, to teitify his difpleafure a- 
 gainfc him ; and to terrify others from daring to 
 follow his example, or believe his fentirr.. 
 But perhaps this might have been ibme worthy, 
 
 ed, pious man, who had long concealed 
 grand truth in his heart, and had derived much 
 :_-£lion therefrom, and longed to proclaim it 
 to others, for their good. And at iaft, notwiths- 
 tanding the oppefition that he might expect, re- 
 folved fo to do; and accordingly was ena: 
 jofl before his time came to depart out of this 
 world, to bear a faithful tefUmony to this moil: 
 grand and important of all God's purpofes. And 
 having performed his duty, his mafter called him 
 to receive his reward, and gave him the glorious 
 plaudit of, ' Well done, thou good and faithful 
 fervant ; — enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.' 
 As for the vain judgments of men they arc 
 to be regarded. ' For they know not the thoughts 
 of the Lord, neither underftand they his counie!.' 
 ■ But the fouls of the righteous are in the hand of 
 , and there (hall no torment touch them. In 
 the fight of the unwife they feemed to die ; and I 
 departure is taken for mifery. And their going 
 from us to be utter deftructicn ; but they are in 
 :-. For though they be punifhed'in the fight 
 of men, yet is their hope full of immortality. And 
 having been a little chaftifed, they mail be greatly 
 rewarded ; for God proved them, and found them 
 worth v for himfelf. A gold in the furnace hath 
 , and hath received them as abi 
 
 offering. 
 
PREFACE. va 
 
 tag* And in the time of their \ ifitador., th e y 
 
 iliall fhme, and run to and t: ;, like (parks among 
 
 (tubble. They (hall judge the nations, and 
 
 dominion over the people, and their Lord 
 
 ... .k reign for ever. The;, that put their troll in 
 
 him (hill uaderftand the truth \ and filch as be 
 
 in love (hall abl h with him: for grace 
 
 : v is to :.'.- :air.:~, aad be /..:' care I r 
 
 his elecl.' < But though the ri .- 
 
 I with death, < \ in reft. 1 
 
 lam apt to think tb that this mintfter 
 
 was one of uncommon faith aad love, and as he 
 believed God, lb he lo\ci mankind, and wi 
 them to know the amazing riches of their Ke- 
 rens love towards them: and when he had 
 openlv delivered this teftimony, he was called to 
 his reft. 
 
 Indeed if the enemies of this doctrine had been 
 >, I ihoLiid have died and gone to 
 hell long ago-, for no (boner was it known I had 
 embraced it, but fome gave out that I would 
 live a year ; but I have already lived eleven. One 
 y old friends defii ed me to take particular no- 
 tice of what he (aidj which he expreiled inthefe 
 
 iu. In fix 
 this time, you will turn Deiii, and deny all - 
 vealed religion: an I in twelve mouths you will 
 turn. r-the being of God. ndo^. 
 
 yon-keif to all kinds of open wickedneis.' Blc 
 be God, this has alio proved falle. And they ge- 
 neraily ieemed to agree to pre jhefy certain do- 
 nation to me whenever I ih art out of this 
 world. But I truft this is equally falfe, ■ F •: 1 
 f whom I have believed, [or :vi:[:;d, an 
 
 perl . 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 perfuaded that he is able to keep that which I have 
 committed unto him againft that day.' 
 
 But to return to my narrative, 
 
 Sometime after I returned back to Smith-Caro- 
 lina, a Phyfician with whom I had been acquaint- 
 ed in Virginia> came to live in the pariah where I 
 was minifter ; and among his books I found the 
 Everlajling Go/pel, by Paid Siegvolje j this was the 
 fecond copy that had fell in my way, and 1 read 
 a little more therein, but as yet had not the lead 
 thought that ever I mould embrace his fentiments ; 
 yet fome of his arguments appeared very conclu- 
 sive, and I could not wholly make them off, but 
 1 concluded to let them alone, and not invefli- 
 gate the matter -, and therefore I never gave the 
 book even fo much as one curfory reading, till 
 with great difficulty I procured one in the city of 
 Philadelphia, more than two years afterwards. 
 
 In the year 1779, I found myfelf much ftirred 
 up to exhort my fellow creatures to repent, be- 
 lieve, and obey the Gofpel, and began to adopt 
 a more open and general method of preaching 
 than I had ufed for fome years before ; having 
 been deemed one of the moil confident Calvinifls 
 upon the continent, much upon the plan of Dr. 
 Gill, whom I efteemed almofl as an oracle. But 
 now my heart being opened, and viewing the 
 worth of fouls, 1 felt great compalTion towards 
 them, and invited them with all my might to fly 
 for mercy to the aims of Chrift, who died for 
 them, and who was willing to five them. I was 
 gradually led into this way of preaching, without 
 Confidering any thing about its confiftency with 
 Ariel calvinifm, but finding myfelf very happy, 
 :md comfortable in my own mind, and that this 
 
 method 
 
PREFACE. ix 
 
 method of preaching was highly nieful, I conti- 
 nued to go in the fame courfe. 
 
 About this time I began to find uncommon de- 
 fires for the converfion and falvation of the poor 
 negroes, who were very numerous in that part of 
 the country ; but whom none of my predeceffors, 
 that I could learn, had ever taken pains toinftruct 
 in the principles of Chriftianity ; neither had any 
 fingle flave, either man, or woman been baptized 
 until that fummer, in the whole parifti (which was 
 very large) that I ever heard of. 
 
 The prejudices which the flaves had againfl 
 Chriftianity, on account of the feverities practifed 
 upon them by prof effing Chriftians, both minifters 
 and people, might be one principal reafon why 
 they could not be brought to attend to religious 
 inftrucYions. But they had no prejudice againfl 
 me on that fcore, as I never had any thing to do 
 with flavery, but on the contrary condemned it ; 
 and this being pretty generally known, operated 
 fo upon the minds of thofe poor creatures, that 
 they mewed a difpofition to attend my miniftry, 
 more than they had ever fhewed to any other. 
 But (till I never had addrefled them in particular, 
 and indeed bad hardly any hopes of doing them 
 good. But one evening feeing a great number of 
 them at the door of the houfe where I was preach- 
 ing, I found myfelf conftrained as it were, to. go 
 to the door, and tell them, That Jefus Chrift 
 loved them, and died for them, as well as for us 
 white people, and that they might come and be- 
 lieve in him, and welcome. And I gave them as 
 warm and prefling an invitation as I could, to 
 comply with the glorious gofpel. This fhort dii- 
 coyrfe addrefled immediately to them, took great- 
 a r er 
 
x PREFACE. 
 
 er effect than can well be imagined. There were 
 about thirty from one plantation in the neighbour- 
 hood prefent; (befides others) thefe returned 
 home, and did not even give fltep to their eyes, 
 as they afterwards informed me, until they had 
 fettled every quarrel among themielves, and ac- 
 cording to their form of marriage, had married e- 
 very man to the woman with whom he lived •, had 
 relfored whatever one had unjuftly taken from a- 
 nother ; and determined from that time to feek 
 the Lord diligently. From that very evening they 
 began conftantly to pray to the Lord, and io con- 
 tinued ; and he was found of them. I continued 
 to inilrucl: them, and within three months from 
 the firft of June, I baptized more than thirty 
 blacks belonging to that plantation, befides as 
 many others, as in the whole made up one hun- 
 dred, of which fixty three were men, and thirty- 
 feven were women, all which were born in Afri- 
 ca) or immediately defcended from fuch as were 
 natives of that unhappy country. 
 
 My preaching was not only ufeful to the poor 
 flaves, but alfo to great numbers of the white 
 people, of whom 1 baptized upon profeiTion of 
 repentance and faith in Chrifr, about one hundred 
 and thirty-nine perfons within the lame fpace. 
 This was a fummer of great fuccefs, and I mall 
 remember that happy fcaibn with pleafure while 
 1 live. This fummer I received fome farther dawn- 
 ings of the day of the general Reftoration in my 
 mind, for upon confidering feveral Scriptures, fuch 
 as thefe, * He fhall fee of the travail of his foul, 
 and fhall be fatLsficd *, by his knowledge mall my 
 righteous fcrvant juftify many: for he fhall bear 
 their iniquities,' Ifai. liii. 1 1. * After this I beheld, 
 
 and 
 
PREFACE. xi 
 
 lo, a great multitude, which no man could num- 
 ber, of all nations, and kindreds, and peoples, 
 and tongues, flood before the throne, and before 
 the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms 
 in their hands' Rev. vii. 9. I became fully per- 
 fuaded that the number of the finally faved would 
 equal, if not exceed the number of the loft. And 
 I was fo forcibly imprefTed with this new and very 
 joyful difcovery, that I not only converfed in that 
 {train privately, but boldly preached it in the con- 
 gregation, which generally confifted of nearly a 
 thoufand perions upon Sundays. Some of the 
 people to v. horn I had mentioned fomething re- 
 lpecYmg the fentiment, thought that I was going 
 at once to declare myfelf in favour of the general 
 RtJJoraikfi. But that was as yet far from being 
 the cafe *, though fome of the arguments which I 
 had glanced upon in that book, the Everlajling 
 Go/pel, would frequently prefent themfelves to my 
 mind in fuch a forcible manner that I could 
 fcarceiy withftand their evidence. 
 
 In the month of September I left South-Caroli- 
 na, on a vifit to my friends in New England, in- 
 tending however to return to my people again ; 
 but to prevent their being left deftitute, I procur- 
 ed the Rev. Mr. Botsford to come and fupply them, 
 upon this condition, that whenever I mould re- 
 turn, he mould refign the congregation to me a- 
 gain, if I required it. But he has remained the 
 conftant Pallor ever fmce. I then travelled (low- 
 ly through the continent, preaching to the peo- 
 ple, and converling with my friends, to whom 
 fometimes in private I propofed fome of the argu- 
 ments in favour of the general Rejloraticn, which 
 I had read in the Everlafting Go/pel y on pur pole 
 
 to 
 
xa PREFACE. 
 
 fee what anfwers they could give ; and this I did 
 efpecially to able minifters ; but to my iurpriie 
 often found them quite at a ftand, not knowing 
 what to lay. And fome were almoft overpower- 
 ed, with even the weak manner in which I was 
 capable of holding forth the arguments in favour 
 of the Ref oration. And oftentimes the anfwers 
 that fome of the greateft men gave, were fuch 
 as tended to increafe my doubts reflecting endlefs 
 tnifery, rather than to remove them. I remember 
 once, that I afked the Rev. Mr. Mannings Prefi- 
 dent of Rhode- If and College, and who was at 
 that time one of my dear eft friends, what was 
 the ftrongeft argument that he could ufe in favour 
 ©f the doctrine of endlefs mifery ? He anfwered, 
 That it was the nature- of God, to lay the great- 
 eft; poiTible reftraint upon fin, and therefore he 
 had threatened it with endlefs punijhmenty as the 
 higheft reftraint he could poffibly lay upon it. 
 This argument is anlwered in the third Dialogue. 
 Thus after much feeking I could find no fatisfac- 
 tion in the matter ; but ftill my doubts increafed. 
 Notwithftanding, I withftood the doctrine of the 
 Ref oration with all my might, and fometimes preach- 
 ed publicly againft it with all the force I could muf- 
 ter. Yet there was fomethingin its favour that gained 
 gradually upon my mind, and fometimes brought 
 me to be almoft willing to embrace it. I plainly 
 faw that it would reconcile almoft, if not quite, 
 all the difficulties of other fyftems ; and I thought 
 if 1 fhould ever receive it, 1 mould be able to preach 
 much eafier, and more freely than ever, and with 
 far greater fatisfacTion, which by experience, I 
 have fince found to be true. The ideas were fome- 
 times fo tranfporting to me, even while I profeffed 
 
 to 
 
PREFACE. xiii 
 
 to oppofe the fentiment, that I have been conftrain- 
 ed to fet them forth in the moft fublime manner 
 that I was able ; and fometimes fo as actually to 
 bring them who heard me converfe upon the fub- 
 ject to believe and rejoice in the Univerfal Rejlora- 
 tion, while I thought myfelf an oppofer of it, and 
 only propofcd the arguments in its favour to fee 
 what effect they would have on fuch who never 
 heard them before. And I was often carried 
 away before I was aware, even while I intended 
 only to let my friends hear what might be faid. I 
 remember once, while I was at my father's table 
 in the year 1780, that I mentioned the doctrine of 
 the Reftoratioti, and finding that none in company 
 had ever fo much as heard of fuch a fcheme, I 
 began to hold it forth, produced many arguments 
 in its favour, brought up many objections, anfwer- 
 ed them in fuch a manner as aftonifhed all prefent, 
 and I was amazed at myfelf, I fpoke with fo much 
 eafe and readinefs as I had hardly ever experienced 
 before on any occafion. Nay, I was fo much ani- 
 mated with the fubject that I faid, That I did not 
 doubt but that in fixty years time, that very doc- 
 trine would univerfally be preached, and generally 
 embraced in that very country, and would certain- 
 ly prevail over all oppofition. 
 
 This difcourfe made a greater impreffion upon 
 the minds of thofe who heard it, and upon my 
 ov/n alfo, than I intended ; and though I after- 
 wards ufed the beffc arguments I could in favour 
 of the common opinion, yet I found them ineffi- 
 cient wholly to remove the effects of what I had 
 before faid. 
 
 After fpending about twelvemonths in the moil 
 delightful manner, conftantly journeying and 
 
 preaching 
 
xiv PREFACE. 
 
 preaching with great fuccefs, to vail multitudes of 
 people in my native country, I fet off with inten- 
 tion to return towards South-Carolina. On the 
 way I tarried fome time at the houfe of the Rev. 
 Mr. Samuel Waldo, in Pawling' s PrecinB, ftate of 
 New-Tor!:, whofe kind and friendly behaviour to- 
 wards me I remember with pleafure, and mention 
 with gratitude. I had a great deal of very agree- 
 able converfation with him upon the matter, and 
 he did not ieem to oppofe the ideas hardly at all ; 
 but only gently cautioned me againft receiving any 
 thing erroneous. He is a man of a moft excel- 
 lent ipirit, and his family was upon the whole the 
 moil delightful, agreeable, and happy family that 
 I ever knew. While I was at his houfe one of his 
 children, then about twenty years of age, feemed 
 fully convinced of the truth of the doctrine, by 
 liftcning to our converfation, and was filled with 
 great joy at the idea. Several religious men who 
 were on a journey, lodged at the houfe while I 
 was there, got a hint of the matter, and wifhed 
 to hear all that I could fay in defence of it •, I ac- 
 cordingly gave them fome of the principal argu- 
 ments in its favour, and obviated fome of the moft 
 capital objections that could be brought againft it ; 
 and I afterwards overheard them wifhing that they 
 had not been fo curious as to have enquired fo far 
 into the fubject, for they could not refill the argu- 
 ments, although they feemed relblved to treat the 
 fentiment as an error. 
 
 In this Hate of mind, half a convert to the doc- 
 trine of the Bejloration, I arrived in the city of 
 Philadelphia, on the 7th of October, 1780. I in- 
 tended to have left the city in a few days, and to 
 have gone on towards South-Carolina, but the Bap* 
 
 lift 
 
PREFACE. xt 
 
 tift church being deititute of a minifter, they in- 
 vited me to flop and preach with them, to which 
 I was at length perfuaded, and for fome time I 
 was much followed, and there were great additions 
 to the church. The congregations increafed in 
 fuch a manner, efpecially on Sunday-evenings, that 
 our place of worihip, though large, would by no 
 means contain them ; at length leave was afked by 
 fome of my friends for me to preach in the church 
 of St. Paul, in that city, which was granted. 
 This was one of the largefl houfes of worfhip in 
 Philadelphia, and equal in bignefs to moft of the 
 churches in London. 1 think I preached there about 
 eighteen fermons, and generally to very crowded 
 audiences, frequently more than could poilibly get 
 into the houfe ; moil: of the clergy, of every de- 
 nomination in the city, heard me there, and many 
 thoulands of different people. I am inclined to 
 think, that 1 never preached to fo many before nor 
 fince as I did fometimes in that houfe, and with 
 almoil: univerfai approbation. But now the time 
 of my trouble and catting down came on, and thus 
 it was. 
 
 Soon after I arrived in the city I had enquired 
 of fome friend for The Everlajling Gofpel, which 
 I could not light on for fome time, but they lent 
 me Mr. Stonehoufe's book upon the Rejlitntion of all 
 Things, which I had never feen nor heard of be- 
 fore -, this very learned work I read with great 
 care, and his reafoning, arguments, and fcripture- 
 proofs feemed to me entirely fatisfaclory. 
 
 The friends who procured me the works of Mr. 
 Stonehonfe, were concerned at my having an incli- 
 nation to read any thing upon iuch a fubjecl ; ne- 
 verthelcfs, though there were ieveralof them with 
 
 whom 
 
xvi PREFACE. 
 
 whom I converted pretty freely upon the matter, 
 and who knew of my reading Mr. Stonehoufe's 
 works, yet they behaved in fo friendly a manner 
 towards me, that they never mentioned a word of 
 it to any, until by other means it come to be known 
 and talked of. 
 
 In the houfe where I lodged, when I firft came 
 to the city I had, in the freedom of converfation, 
 and with fome appearance of joy, exprefled myfelf 
 in general terms upon the fubject, but always in 
 the exact words of Scripture, or in inch a manner 
 as this, viz. That I could not help hoping that 
 God would finally bring every hiee to bow, and 
 every tongue to fiuear : and that at the name of Je- 
 fus every knee Jhould bow, of things in heaven, and 
 things in earth ; and things under the earth; and 
 that every tongue fhould cotifefs Jesus Christ to be 
 Lord to the glory of God the Father. And that I 
 hoped, that in the dijpenfation of the fulnefs of times , 
 he might gather together in one all things m Christ, 
 both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, 
 &c. 
 
 Such paiTages as thefe I mentioned in this man- 
 ner, hoping that they would be fulfilled. The 
 people of the houfe feemed furprifed, and afked 
 me if I believed fo: I anfwered, ( That fometimes 
 I could not help hoping that it might be fo.' I 
 could hardly have imagined among friends, that 
 any danger could have arifen from my expreffing a. 
 hope that the Scriptures were true. 
 
 However thefe falfe friends told a minifter, 
 whom for a number of years I had efleemed as my 
 beft and moft intimate friend, that I was turned 
 heretic, and believed the doctrine of the Univerfal 
 Rejloration, and dcfired him to convince me. Some 
 
 time 
 
PREFACE. xvii 
 
 time after he met with me in the ftreet, and in a 
 very abrupt manner told me, that he had wanted 
 to fee me for fome time, that he might give me a 
 piece of his mind *, that he had been informed by 
 iiich a perfon, that I was inclined to the do6trine 
 of the Umverfal Rejloration^ and then, inftead of 
 ufing any argument to convince me, or taking any 
 method for my recovery, added this laconic fpeech, 
 ' If you embrace this fentiment, I fiiall no longer 
 own you for a brother.' And he has hitherto been 
 as good as his word, having never written nor 
 fpoken to me from that day to this ; and when I 
 have fince offered to fhake hands with him, he has 
 refufed ; and yet he was one whom I efteemed 
 above any other on earth, as a hearty, fincere, 
 long-tried, and faithful friend. If my intimate 
 friend treated me in fuch a manner, what had I 
 not to ex peel: from my open and avowed ene- 
 mies ? 
 
 I now forefaw the florin, and I determined to 
 prepare for it, not by denying what I had faid, 
 but by examining and determining for myfelf, 
 whether the fentiment was according to Scripture 
 or not. If I found that it was not, I was deter- 
 mined to retract, but if it was, to hold it fait, let 
 the confequences be what they might. I had now 
 no time to lofe, I expected in a fhort time to be 
 called to an account, and examined refpecting this 
 doctrine, and obliged either to defen d or deny it ; I 
 was already too well perfuaded that it was true, to 
 do the latter without heftation, and yet not fuffi- 
 ciently for the former. For this purpofe, I (hut 
 myfelf up chiefly in my chamber, read the Scrip- 
 tures, and pra)edto God to lead me into all truth, 
 and not fuffer me to embrace any error 5 and I 
 
 think 
 
xviii PREFACE. 
 
 think that with an upright mind, I laid myfelf 
 cpen to believe whatever the Lord had revealed. 
 It would be too long to tell all the teachings I had 
 on this head •, let it iuffice, in fliort, to fay, That 
 I became lb well perfuaded of the truth of the 
 XJniverfal Ke/hration, that I was determined never 
 to deny it, let it coft me ever fo mu<_h, though 
 all my numerous friends mould forfike me, as I 
 expected they would, and though I mould be dri- 
 ven from men, and obliged to dwell in caves or 
 dtens of the earth, and feed on wild roots and ve- 
 getables, and fufFer the lofs of all things, friends, 
 wealth, fame, health, character, and even life itfelf. 
 The truth appeared to me more valuable than all 
 things, and as I had found it, I was determined 
 never to part with it, let what would be offered in 
 exchange. 
 
 I had now formed my refolution, and was de- 
 termined how to aft when the trial came. Hitherto 
 I had faid nothing about the ReJIoraiion in public, 
 and but little in private ; but I preached up the 
 death of Chrifl:, and falvationfor mankind through 
 him, without reitriftion. This free manner of 
 preaching gave otFence to fome, who came to hear 
 me no more. On the evening of the 2 2d of Janu- 
 ary 1 78 1, a number of the members of the church, 
 who had heard that I held the deftrine of the 
 Reft oration, met me at a friend's houfe, to afk me 
 the queftion, Whether I did or. not ? I acknow- 
 ledged that I did, but did not wifh to trouble any 
 body with my fentiments. They defired me neither 
 to preach them in public, nor to converfe of them 
 in private. I told them, That if they would pre- 
 vent people from afking me, I would fay nothing 
 upon the matter \ but if people afked mc concern- 
 ing 
 
r R E F A C E. xix 
 
 ing my fentirnents, I could not deny them, and if 
 they wifhed to know the reafons, I mu-fr, inform 
 them. And thus the matter was to reft ; but fome 
 that v/ere prefeut, wifhed to know the foundation 
 or my fentirnents, others oppofed it, not wifhing 
 to hear any thing in its favour. At length it was 
 agreed that I might read the pafTages of Scripture 
 upon which I judged the doctrine of the ReJIora- 
 tion to be founded, but rnufr. not add a fmgle word 
 of explanation on my part, and on their parts they 
 were not to afk any queftions, or make the leafi 
 oppofition, for if they did, I infilled upon the li- 
 berty of defending. 
 
 Accordingly I took the Bible, and read many 
 pafTages in the Old and New Teltaments, which I 
 judged to contain the doctrine •, and the very read- 
 ing of them convinced feveral of the company of 
 the truth of the Rejloration. There was nothing 
 farther took place at that time : we parted with a 
 mutual agreement ; I was not to preach it in the 
 pulpit, nor to introduce it in converfation, but I 
 would not be obliged to deny it, when afked, nor 
 to refufeto vindicate it, if oppofed: and on their 
 parts they were not to fpeakof it to my prejudice, 
 but to endeavour as much as pcdible, to keep the 
 the matter clofe, and fo we parted. But notwiths- 
 tanding all the pains that could be taken, the 
 matter got abroad, and feveral came to difcourfe 
 with me on my principles, to whom I gave fuch 
 reafons as I was able for what I believed. A lit- 
 tle after this time, I met with another copy of the 
 £vcrl i r/li;;g Gcfpel, which I then read through with 
 attention for the ririt. time, and found much fatis- 
 facTion •, the arguments and Scripture proofs 
 therein contained, feeraed to me fufficient to con- 
 vince 
 
xx PREFACE. 
 
 vince all that would read with candour and atten- 
 tion. 
 
 I ftill continued to act only on the defenfive, not 
 preaching upon the fubject, nor going about to 
 private houfes to make intereft in my favour ; but 
 if any came to me and wiflied me to difcourfeupon 
 it, I would not refufe ; and thus a number were 
 convinced of its truth, while others violently op- 
 pofed it. And thus matters continued until the 
 latter end of March. Having heard that the Ger- 
 man Baptifts in Germantown, about 8 miles from 
 Philadelphia held the doctrine of the Reparation, I 
 had appointed to fpend the firft Sunday in April 
 with them ; and this engagement had been made 
 fometime. J lift as I was ready to go out of the 
 city on Saturday, I found that fome of the mem- 
 bers of the Church had privately fent into the 
 country, and collected a number of the ablefl: mi- 
 ni Iters, who were arrived in the city on purpofe to 
 debate, I gave them the liberty of my pulpit as 
 they pleafed for the next day, aud went out of the 
 city to go to Germantown ; and took that opportu- 
 nity to go and vifit that ancient, venerable, and ex- 
 cellent man, Dr George De Benneville, who receiv- 
 ed me in the molt kind, open, and friendly manner ; 
 and his converfation was molt highly edifying to 
 me. Afterwards I went to Germantown % and 
 lodged there all night, ready to preach the next 
 day. As foon as my enemies in Philadelphia found 
 that I was gone out of the city, they fpread a re- 
 port that I had fled to avoid an interview with 
 thefe minifters, who had come on purpofe to con- 
 vince me. Nothing could have been more falfe, 
 than fuch a report, for I had been engaged to go 
 to Germantown, on that day, for feveral weeks 
 
 before- 
 
PREFACE. xxi 
 
 beforehand : I knew nothing of thefe Minifters be- 
 ing fent for until they came to town j and I had 
 no fear but I fhould be able, by God's afliftance, 
 to defend the cauie before them •, and befides, I 
 had appointed to return on Monday, and did re- 
 turn accordingly. The whole Church met, both 
 my friends and my oppofers, and thefe Minifters 
 met with them. I was called to attend a funeral 
 at the time, and was at the houfe of mourning, 
 when a ^effenger was fent in hafte, to defire my 
 immediate attendance at the meeting without any 
 delay. I fouod that thofe who were my enemies 
 in the aiTembly, had been greatly vaunting over 
 my friends, becaufe I was not prefent. They faid 
 I had abfeonded merely to avoid a debate, in which 
 I was fure to be confuted, as here was an oppor- 
 tunity that might never prefent itfelf again j and 
 feven wife, able, and learned Minifters had aiTem- 
 bled on purpofe to difpute with me, but that I had 
 gone, and left my adherents in the lurch, from a 
 confeioufnefs that I was not able to defend my 
 caufe ; with abundance more to the fame purpofe. 
 My friends, on the other hand, told them, That 
 I was afraid of nothing but fin, and that they 
 doubted not of my being able and willing to dif- 
 pute with any one of the gentlemen, or all of them, 
 one by one, if they chofe it. O, no •, they repli- 
 ed, they knew better than that, I was gone out of 
 the way on purpofe, where I could not be found. 
 My friends told them, That if there was a vote 
 paft in the afTembly that I fhould difpute with any 
 ©ne, they would engage that I would be among 
 them in a few minutes. It was accordingly una- 
 nimoufly voted, that I fhould difpute with the 
 Rev. Mr. JBoggSf upon my fentisnents, in the pre- 
 
 fence 
 
xxff PREFACE. 
 
 fence of thefe Minifters, and of the whole aflem- 
 bly. But when in a few minutes I came in, and 
 took my place, what diiferent countenances ap- 
 peared in the congregation ? All my friends were 
 highly pleafed, and the others were as much con- 
 founded and difappointed, at feeing me come in fo 
 chearfully and quickly, after they had made them- 
 felves fo fure, that I would not come. But fure- 
 ly, I might have been looked upon with pity ; 
 alone to anfwer for myfelf, no one to fupport me ; 
 while my antagonifts were feven of the ableft Mi- 
 nifters that could be obtained. I felt, however, 
 that inward compofure, from a confcioufnels of 
 having acted uprightly and fincerely in the whole 
 affair, that even caufed my countenance to appear 
 eafy and chearful. 
 
 The vote was then publicly read, and I ftood 
 up, and declared my readinefs to comply with what 
 was required. The worthy gentleman who was 
 chofen to difpute with me, then rofe up, and faid 
 thefe words, ( I am not prepared to difpute with 
 Mr. Wincheftery I have heard that he fays, That 
 it would take fix weeks to canvafs all the argu- 
 ments fairly on both fides ; and I fuppofe he has 
 been ftudying upon the fubjecr. for a week or more, 
 and I have not ftudied it at all \ and therefore I 
 muft beg to be excufed.' 
 
 When I found that he, and all the red: wholly 
 declined difputing with me, I begged liberty to 
 fpeak for two hours upon my fentiments, and lay 
 them fairly open, and the ground upon which I 
 maintained them. But this was denied me ; I 
 then defired them to give me one hour for this 
 purpofe \ but this was alio refufed. One of the 
 Minifters got up, and faid, That their bufinefs 
 
 was 
 
PREFACE. xxlii 
 
 was not to debate with me, but to afk me, whe- 
 ther I believed the Reficration of bad men and 
 angels, finally to a ftate of holincfs and happinefs, 
 &c. 
 
 But if they did not come to difpute with me, 
 why was the vote pafTed by their party, as well as 
 by my friends, that I lhould difpute with them ? 
 This fpeaks for itfelf. The minifters infilled upo«i 
 putting the queflion to me, Do you believe the- 
 doctrine of the Univerfal Reftoration P. My friends 
 objected to my anfwering the queition, unlefs I 
 might be allowed to vindicate my fentiments. But 
 I laid, That I did not fear any ufe that could be 
 made of my words ; that I had always freely con- 
 fefTed what my thoughts were, when afked ; and 
 therefore I told them, that I did heartily believe 
 the General Re/ioratioti, and was willing to defend 
 it. The gentleman that was chofen to difpute with 
 me, then aflced me, whether I thought it flrange, 
 confidcring my change of fentiments, that there 
 mould be fuch a noife and uproar made upon the 
 occafion ? &c. I told him, That I did not think it 
 flrange at all j and gave him a little hiflory of the 
 affair, and how the matter came abroad, through 
 the treachery of fome whom I had efleemed as my 
 friends ; that when I mentioned it to them I was 
 not fully perfuaded of it myfelf, and perhaps ne- 
 ver might have been, if I had not been oppofed 
 and threatened ; that I never had intended to trou- 
 ble the people with my fentiments, but was willing 
 to live and die with them, if they could bear with 
 me ; but that I could not ufe fo much deceit, as 
 to deny what I believed, when afked by any one - 9 
 that I never had yet done fo, and by the grace of 
 God never would, let the conlequences be what 
 
 they 
 
xxir PREFACE. 
 
 they might. What I faid was in the prefence of 
 all my accufers, and none of them could contra- 
 dict me, nor had aught to lay to my charge, ex- 
 cept in this matter of the Gofpel of my Saviour. 
 My difcourfe took fuch an effect upon him, that 
 he then publicly declared, that my behaviour in 
 the whole affair had been as became a man and a 
 chrijlian, and that no one could accufe me of any 
 improper conduct. I flood fometime, and as none 
 appeared to have any thing farther to fay to me, I 
 took my leave, and went out. He accompanied 
 me to the door, and told me that he would write 
 to me upon the fubject ; but whatever was the 
 reafon, he never did, nor have we fpoken together 
 fince. 
 
 The Minifters then advifed the people to get an- 
 other Minifter \ but my friends being numerous, 
 infifted it fhould be fairly determined by the fub- 
 fcribers at large ; but this the other party would 
 not agree to. Several very fair offers were made 
 by my friends to them, but they refufed them all ; 
 and finalfy, by force they kept us out of the houfe, 
 and deprived us of our part of the property, which 
 was at laft confirmed to them by law, though I 
 think unjuftly, as we were the majority at firfl ; 
 but they took uncommon pains in carrying about 
 a protejl againfl me, to every member of the church, 
 both in the city and in the country, and threaten- 
 ing all with excommunication who would not fign 
 it 5 by which fome were intimidated, and by thefe 
 and other means they ftrengthened their party. 
 But on the other hand, I took no pains, either to 
 profelyte people to believe my fentiments or to make 
 my party ftrong. But I believe near an hundred 
 of the members fuffered themfelves to be excom- 
 municated 
 
PREFACE. xxv 
 
 municated rather than to fign the protefl againfl me, 
 
 and the doctrine that I preached. When we were 
 
 deprived of our houfe of worfhip, the truflees of 
 
 the Univerfity gave us the liberty of their hall, 
 
 where we quietly worshipped God for about four 
 
 years, until we purchafed a place for ourfelves. 
 
 But to return. After this meeting of the Minif- 
 
 ters, the whole affair was open, and I found my- 
 
 ielf obliged to vindicate the doctrine which they 
 
 had condemned unheard, not only in private, but 
 
 in the pulpit. Accordingly, on the 2 2d day of 
 
 April, I preached a fermon on Gen. iii. 15. in 
 
 which I openly afTerted the doclrine of the Final 
 
 and Univerfal Refloration of all fallen intelligences. 
 
 This was publifhed by particular defire, with a lift 
 
 of the plaineft Scripture pafTages in favour of the 
 
 doctrine ; and a number of the moft common and 
 
 principal objections, fairly ftated, and anfwered. 
 
 This was my firft appearance in the world as a 
 
 profe writer, which was what I never expected to 
 
 be, and probably mould never have been but for 
 
 this occafion ; ftill lefs a writer of controverfy, to 
 
 which I had naturally a great averfion. 
 
 After I had preached this fermon, I had the 
 Chevalier Ramfeys Philofophical Principles of Natu- 
 ral and Revealed Religion put into my hands j I 
 read the fame with great pleafure and advantage, 
 and I mull acknowledge it to be a work of great 
 merit, and I have reafon to blefs God that ever I 
 had opportunity of reading it. I can heartily re- 
 commend it, as one of the beft works in our lan- 
 guage j and 1 muft fay, that in moft things I fully 
 agree with that very intelligent author. On the 
 fourth day of January 1782, I preached the fer- 
 mon called, The Outcajls Comforted; from Ifaiah 
 b lxv 
 
xxvi PREFACE. 
 
 lxvi. 5. to my friends who had been caftout, and 
 excommunicated, for believing this glorious doc- 
 trine. This was foon after printed, and the next 
 year it was republifhed in London, by the Rev. 
 Mr. Richard Clark, and was thefirftof my works 
 ever printed here. 
 
 I have thus given a brief, plain, and fimple ac- 
 count of the means that have brought me to think 
 and write in the manner that I have done, and 
 which account may be confidered as an hiflorical 
 fketch of nearly four years of my life. 
 
 I have every year fince printed and publiihed 
 fomething, which I judged might be ufeful to my 
 fellow-creatures *, but as my works are in the hands 
 of molf of my friends, it is not necefTary to give 
 a particular account of any of them here, except 
 this book of Dialogues oti the XJniverfal Rejloration. 
 I have had many difcourfes with various perfons 
 upon this fubject, and many objections have been 
 propofed to me, which I have endeavoured to an- 
 iwer •, and I can truly fay, that thefe difcourfes, 
 their queftions, and my aniwers, their objections, 
 and my folutions, form the bulk of thefe Dialogues. 
 I have endeavoured to give all the poflible force to 
 their objections, and if any of them are weak, I 
 can a(iure the Public, that I have not made them 
 fo (as fome have infinuated) merely that I might 
 be able to anfwer them, but the weakeft of them 
 have been propofed to me, and I have fairly fet 
 down the mod powerful that I ever heard, gene- 
 rally in the very words in which they were ad- 
 dreiTed to me, whether in converfation, or by let- 
 ter •, and I am willing if ftronger objections can 
 be made, to put them in the place of thofe which 
 I have fet down, or add them to the number ; and I 
 1 have 
 
PREFACE. xxvii 
 
 have in this new edition added a few, which I have 
 heard fince the work was firft published, and ef- 
 pecially one which was fent me by a venerable 
 Minifter, from America, and which 1 have largely 
 anfwered. 
 
 I have the fatisfaftion of knowing not only 
 that thefe Dialogues have been well received, but 
 that they have been the means of bringing many 
 perlbns to the belief of the truth of the Univerfal 
 Refloration, and have flrengthened and confirmed 
 others, as will plainly appear from the following 
 extracts of letters, which I have received from 
 feveral Minifters in different parts of the kingdom, 
 fince their publication. 
 
 Wijbich, Oclober 16, 1 788. 
 1 Dear Sir, 
 
 * I AM perfuaded your knowledge of 
 the world and its inhabitants, hath long fince 
 taught you to be familiar with the addreffes of 
 perfons unknown to you ; and I have formed that 
 opinion of you, that your candour will admit, 
 and your generous mind rejoice to hear, that a 
 perlbn, though unknown to you, is convinced 
 that God hath gracious defigns towards univerfal 
 man. I am that perlbn, Sir. For fome time paft 
 I have entertained doubts with refpect to the eter- 
 nity of hell torments. My doubts principally arole 
 from the confideration of the vaft difproportion be- 
 tween momentary crimes, committed in this fhort life, 
 and the fuffering infinitude of puniihment : yet ma- 
 ny difficulties lay in my way that I did not know 
 how to remove, and I continued thus embarraflcd, 
 until a fhort time fince I had the happinefs to meet 
 with your Dialogues on the Univerfal Refloration, 
 b 2 which, 
 
xxviii PREFACE. 
 
 which, I thank God, have helped me much. My 
 ardent prayer is, that the truth may fpread, that 
 the word of the Lord may run and be glorified. 
 
 * My good friend, Mr. F , fhewed me your 
 
 letter to him, by which I fee your readinefs to ferve 
 the caufe of our great Head, Chrifl Jefus, and 
 your willingnefs to vifit the country, provided the 
 way is open. Now, Sir, 1 can only fay, That 
 my houfe, and my heart, and my pulpit wiil be 
 all open to receive you, provided you will vifit us 
 in this part of the world. 
 
 « I remain, with the utmofl refpecl, 
 Dear Sir, 
 Your fincere friend, 
 
 Henyr Poole.' 
 
 c Dear Sir, 
 
 ' THOUGH perfonally unknown, have 
 taken the liberty of addreffing you with a few lines. 
 I was lately in London, and called to fee you ; but 
 was told you were out of town. Have for fome 
 time had the pleafure of reading your Dialogues, 
 much to my latisfaction. 
 
 ' The fubjecl of Univerfal Refutation has for ma- 
 ny years engaged my thoughts at times, and often 
 appeared in an amiable light to my mind. It is a 
 fubjecT: that redounds to the everlafting honour of 
 God, and the everlafting felicity of the rational 
 creature, who, when delivered from mifery, mall 
 be fully fenfible of the obligations due to the De- 
 liverer, and confequently, fhall naturally be en- 
 gaged in the great and delightful work of praifing 
 
 and 
 
PREFACE. xxix 
 
 and honouring both the Author and Accompliftier 
 of the great falvation. 
 
 c My residence is at Lynhurfl, in the New Fore/}, 
 Hants > where I am paftor over a little church of 
 General Baptifts, of which denomination I am in- 
 formed yon arc \ but be that as it may, it is no 
 fmall pleaiure to me to find men, of whatever de- 
 nomination, vindicate the goodnefs of God, in the 
 manner it is done by the doctrine of Univerfal 
 Rejloration. 
 
 * Should inclination or leifure ever favour your 
 coming this way, I know not who I fhall be 
 more happy to fee and enjoy. Permit me to fub- 
 fcribe myfelf, 
 
 f Your affectionate brother, 
 In the Gofpel of univerfal love, 
 Adam Aldridge.' 
 
 LyndhurJ}, December 4, 1789. 
 
 s Tork } March <5, 1790. 
 
 # Rev. and dear Sir, 
 
 * I HOPE you willexcufe the freedom 
 I have taken in writing to you. 
 
 * I have for feveral years embraced your fenti- 
 ments, and have often flood up in defence of them. 
 
 • I have frequently met with learned and can- 
 did men, who have given me much fatisfaction in 
 this important fubject. When your Dialogues 
 were publiihed, I procured and read them with 
 the greateft avidity. I found the fubject handled 
 much to my mind. The ftrongeft objections raif- 
 
 b 3 ed 
 
xxx PREFACE. 
 
 in all their weight and importance, and anfwered 
 clearly and candidly. I read the book, over and 
 over, with frefh pleafure and fatisfa&ion. I fludi- 
 ed the arguments, treafured them up in my me- 
 mory, and determined to become a defender of this 
 part of truth. My heart burnt in love to God 
 and mankind. I found exalted views of God, 
 raifed exalted flrains of gratitude and praife. It 
 was one of the flrongeft and moil attracting views 
 that ever I met with fince I knew the Saviour's 
 love. I foon entered the field, and was obliged 
 to prove my armour againft the ftrongeit objec- 
 tions, backed with prejudices almofl of an invin- 
 cible nature. When I was hard put to it, I had 
 recourfe to your Magazine, and from thence 
 brought forth new pieces of artillery. You will 
 eafily fuppofe I had many trials from perfons of 
 different difpofitions. By perfuading feveral of my 
 acquaintance, Minifters of the Gofpel, to read over 
 your book, I became an inflrument of winning 
 them over to the truth. 
 
 « One of my brethren in the miniflry protected 
 much againft our notions, and declared he would 
 never believe them. Knowing him to be a fenfible 
 man, and one who might be wrought upon by the 
 force of truth properly ftated, I uled feveral argu- 
 ments to perfuade him to read the book. At length 
 he confented, and faid, that he would do it to 
 oblige me, but was determined not to believe it. I 
 told him, it would fatisfy me for him to give it a 
 candid reading. 
 
 « When we met again, I began to enquire what 
 he thought of the book. He paufed a little, and 
 then freely acknowledged the effect that it had 
 had upon him — He frankly declared that his refo- 
 
 tion 
 
P R E F A C E. xxxi 
 
 tion was juft the fame, as though he had refolved 
 to look up to the Heavens when the fun fhone 
 at noon, and not to believe that it fhone. I have 
 fecretly engaged feveral, and find when they are 
 fenfible, candid men, they fall in with your fenti- 
 ments at once. 
 
 < I am acquainted with about half a fcore Mi- 
 nifters, who firmly believe and heartily embrace 
 the doctrine ; befides many private chriftians of 
 different denominations. Mofl of us Miniflers, 
 who fall in with your fentiments, are afraid of 
 confefling them publicly, for this reafbn, our peo- 
 ple would thrufl us out of the fynagogues, and 
 we and our families might fuffer thereby. For 
 my own part, I am determined to ftand by this 
 truth, whether I can continue my place among the 
 people where I am or not. Rather than give up 
 this (through grace) I would give up life. 
 
 1 I have fo much zeal in my heart for the con- 
 firmation and eftablifhment of this truth, that I 
 would, were it in my power, gladjy profelyte 
 all men to embrace and enjoy the benefit of it. 
 
 1 I hope you will mufler up all your refolution, 
 and ftand forth boldly again in vindication of the 
 caufe of truth, and the moft glorious and moft ne- 
 glected part of that truth that all men ought to 
 embrace. I fear left the enemy (hall caufe a fhout 
 of triumph if you refufe again to engage, and do 
 not come forth to the help of the Lord againft 
 the mighty. Pleafe to inform me if you want any 
 help where you are •, I have fome little for- 
 tune, and would engage in promoting the work 
 of God, without being wholly dependent on any 
 people. 
 
 b 4 < Direct 
 
xxxii PREFACE. 
 
 • Direct: to J. P. at Mr. John Brown's Bookfeller, 
 Pocklington, York/hire. 
 
 « Sincerely praying for the fuccefs of your la- 
 bours, and your welfare of body and mind, 
 
 « I am in truth, your affectionate friend, 
 
 And fervant in Christ Jesus/ 
 
 € Ayle/bt/ry, September lid, 1790. 
 
 « Rev. and dear Sir, 
 
 * AN anxious defire of a more intimate 
 acquaintance with you induces me to take this li- 
 berty of writing to you, hoping you will excufe 
 my freedom ; undoubtedly it will appear ftrange, 
 that one you never law nor heard of, mould take 
 inch liberty. But as a foe to flattery, I juil 
 give you this fhort account of my firir know- 
 ledge of you 5 which was only by the hearing of 
 the ear. 
 
 c Something more than a year ago, I was told 
 that there was a preacher juft come to London, an 
 American by birth, who had undertaken to preach 
 an Univerfal Rejloration to loft fouls. Ab it was 
 new to me, I was much furprifed at this frrange 
 account, and I thought and faid, (though with 
 Ibme degree of candour) that I looked upon it to 
 be fome one that could not dig, and was afhamed 
 to beg, fo to procure a living he had written this 
 book. Here 1 refted for fome time, thinking that 
 much hurt would be done thereby ; till the laft 
 time I faw Mr. Atkins, (who I understand is now 
 in connection with you) he gave me fome further 
 
 account 
 
PREFACE. xxxiii 
 
 account of you and your doctrine. But I could 
 not underftand it from his account •, yet he perfifted 
 I mould believe it, if I was to read your Dialogues. 
 I told him I would give them a fair reading, if I 
 could fee them. Still I entertained the fameftrange 
 idea as before. The next account I had was from 
 a young man of Berkhampjlead, who came to fee 
 me, and in our difcourfe, I faid, t Some of your 
 people have imbibed a new doctrine, I hear.' He 
 faid, t Yes, and I verily believe it a truth.' I was 
 now more furprifed than before ; but he faid, if I 
 was to fee it he had no doubt but I mould believe 
 it alfo. < Well,' faid I < if I could fee the book I 
 would lay prejudice afide, and give it a fair read- 
 ing, let it be what it may/ He very kindly told. 
 me, that as foon as he could get it home, (for he 
 had lent it to a friend) he would fend it to me. I 
 thanked him, and promifed to read it impartially, 
 knowing that where party fpirit reigns, blindnefs 
 takes place. 
 
 « According to promlfe, he fent the book : and 
 as I had done before, I now laid the matter before 
 the Lord, with this petition, that he would not 
 fuffer me to be milled, or wander out of the way, 
 as I knew that he knew my defire and intention. 
 I was delivered from fear, and with candour and 
 confidence I began to read my new book, and to 
 my great aftonifhment, yet to my greater joy, I 
 found what I had many times wiftied for fecretly 
 in my heart, namely, the poflibility of a releafe 
 for thofe poor fufFerers, and not only fo, but like- 
 wife the certainty of it ; for as I read on, I could 
 not but fee, that it was the determination of Je- 
 hovah to make all men, as his creatures, happy 
 in himfelf. O with what eyes did I now view the 
 b 5 Deity, 
 
xxxiv PREFACE. 
 
 Deity, and what ideas did I entertain of him to 
 what ffiad ever done before! (though I was on 
 the general plan) O how my foul was filled with 
 love ! what gratitude did I feel to that God, who 
 I now faw fo loved all his creatures, as to give his 
 only Son to die, with a pure defign to glorify him- 
 felf in the falvation of every foul ! I now faw him 
 a God of love indeed, but it is out of my power to 
 tell fully the happy efFecl it had, and has now up- 
 on my mind ; but it is fomething like what I expe- 
 rienced, when the Lord firfl fet my foul at liberty ; 
 as I was then fwallowed up, as in the vifion of 
 God. But the bignefs of this meet is not fuifici- 
 ent to tell you all I could wifh, but I trull: I mail 
 fee you in perfon, as I mould efteem it a privilege 
 indeed to hear you preach, and to converfe with 
 you, and I fully intended coming to Louden about 
 laif May, on purpofe, but as I had already a large 
 family which, through the blefling of God, I main- 
 tain with my labour -, finding it likely to increafe, 
 I could not well fpare time to come, or I had 
 been with you at that feafon, as I had nothing 
 elfe in my way to hinder. Mr. John Holder , of 
 Tring, an acquaintance of mine, has lent me a few 
 little tracls of yours, which I am now reading 
 with pleafure and profit, and he has kindly offer- 
 ed himfelf to accompany me at any time that I 
 fhall appoint to come and fee yon, but the fame 
 difficulty is now in the way as before. If ever 
 Providence mould open a way, I fhall gladly em- 
 brace the opportunity. Though I have nu doubt 
 of the truth of the doclrine of the Refloration, 
 as to myfelf, I have never fpoke of it in public as 
 yet, not knowing whether that may be the beff, 
 way to make this glorious falvation known ; but I 
 
 have 
 
PREFACE. xxxv 
 
 have fpoke to feveral of the people in private, thole 
 whom I judged to have the beft underftanding, 
 and the moft candour ; and molt of thefe feem to 
 be glad at the news, and my own wife in particu- 
 lar embraces it with all thankfulnefs, and joins 
 with me in love to you and yours. (Though very 
 ill at this rime.) If it will not be attended with 
 too much trouble, pleafe to fend me your Dia- 
 logues y bound, by the Aylejlury ftage coach. I 
 have given the coachman an order to pay the ex- 
 pence. As I ftand like yourfelf (in this refpect) 
 unconnected with any party, (though I was with 
 Mr. Wejleys people twelve years,) I am now free, 
 I fruit from bigotry and prejudice, open to con- 
 viction, and willing for inft ruction. A few lines 
 from you will be gratefully acknowledged, and 
 thankfully received, by your affectionate, though 
 molt unworthy, may I fay, brother in Chrift, 
 
 ' Thomas Higgins.' 
 
 P. S. 'I pray God of his mercy to give you all 
 the wifdom that you need, to make this great fal- 
 vation more fully known, as I believe he hath raif- 
 ed you up for this purpofe, and that a double por- 
 tion of his Spirit may red: upon you, and that 
 your labours may be crowned with more abundant 
 fuccefs, till the Sun of Righteoufnefs is feen in 
 his full ftrength, and with all his ability to fave. 
 
 ' Direct to Thomas Higgins, Aylejlury, Bucks* 
 
 I take the liberty of publifhing thefe Letters,, 
 with the names and places of abode of the writers,, 
 as a kind of beginning of that general acquaint- 
 ance 1 which I fhould wifh to fee take place among 
 
 all 
 
xxxvi PREFACE. 
 
 all the friends of this doctrine in thefe kingdoms. 
 I know feveral other Minifters in England, who 
 believe and preach the Univerfal Rejloration, and I 
 trufl their numbers will increafe. In America, 
 where I once flood almoft in thefe views alone, 
 (among thofe who fpeak the Englifh tongue) there 
 are now many who tefrify this Gofpel of the free 
 univerfal grace of God, and they have formed a 
 connection of focieties on this plan, who meet by 
 their reprefentatives in convention yearly, at Phi- 
 ladelphia, and I could wifh a plan of the fame na- 
 ture might be adopted in this country. If any 
 thing that I have fpoken or written may be of ufe 
 to my fellow creatures, and may tend to promote 
 the glory of God, and the intereft of the dear 
 Redeemer in the world, I fhall have the fatisfac- 
 tion to reflect, that I have not wholly lived in vain. 
 
 London, April 2> 1792° 
 
 Contents 
 
Contents of the Dialogues. 
 
 DIALOGUE I. 
 
 \JbJECTION.— That the words everlajl- 
 ing, eternal, &c. are applied to the punifh- 
 ment of the wicked 2 
 
 Anfwer. — Thefe words are but feldom appli- 
 ed to the mifery of the wicked ; being con- 
 nected therewith only twice in the Old 
 Teftament, and but fix times in the New 5 
 and are full as often conne&ed with things 4 
 and times that certainly have had, or will 
 have an end, as they are with the mifery 
 of the wicked ; which cannot therefore be 5, 
 certainly inferred from thofe words being 
 applied to it. The word forever, from 
 which the word everlajiing is derived, is 
 frequently ufed in a limited fenfe ; more 
 than fifty pafTages of Scripture referred to 
 where it is evidently ufed in that manner <> 
 
 Objection. — But the words for ever and every 
 are applied to the mifery of the wicked \ 
 three inftances of which ara produced, 
 which are all that can be found — 10 
 
 Anfwer. — This is a very flrong phrafe, and 
 would be judged unanfwerable, bat for 
 certain considerations. 10 
 
 I If the phrafe forever a?id ever intends any pe- 
 riod or periods longer than the word 
 forever, then there muft be a proportion, 
 and coniequently both muft be limited 1 1 
 
xxxvili CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 2 This phrafe as applied to future mifery can- 
 not intend endlefs duration, fince a time 
 will come, when death, pain, and for- 
 row (hall be no more 1 1 
 
 3. It is more than probable that the lake of 
 
 fire, in which the wicked will be pu- 
 nifhed with the fecond death, will be 
 the earth dilTolved by the general con- 
 flagration ; and that the new earth will 
 be formed out of the fame mafs, and 
 confequently the lake of fire fhall at 
 laft be no more 1 2 
 
 4. There will come a total ceffation of night 1 a 
 
 5. The fame words are ufed full as often, if 
 
 not oftener, for periods that mull come 
 to an end, as they are for the ages of 
 future mifery 13 
 
 6. Unlefs we allow this phrafe, however 
 
 flrong, to intend ages and periods, we 
 fhould let the Scripture at variance with 
 itfelf, neither would it be poiTible to re- 
 concile feveral palTages that are men- 
 tioned 14 
 
 Objection. — Forever when applied to things 
 of this life and world may end, but being 
 applied to things of another itate mufl mean 
 
 endlefs, 15 
 
 Anfwer. — The word forever applied to fpiri- 
 tual things, and circumftances of ano- 
 ther ftate muft not be alw.iys underftood 
 
 to mean endlefs 15 
 
 Objection. — But does not the phraft forever 
 and ever, in the New Teftament always in- 
 tend endlefs ? 1 6. 
 
 Ani'wer. — It doth not. An undeniable in- 
 
CONTENTS. xxxix 
 
 Page, 
 fiance brought in proof, to which feveral 
 
 more might have been added 1 6 
 
 Objection. — But is not the Scripture chargea- 
 
 able with a defign to miflead men in thefe 
 
 words when applied to future mifery, un- 
 
 lefs they intend endlefs duration ? and does 
 
 the limiting thefe words accufe Chrift of 
 
 duplicity and deceit in his threatenings ? 16 
 
 This anfwered, by fhewing that the Jews 
 
 might make the fame objection againft 
 
 the whole fyftem of Chriftianity, which 
 
 puts an end to the difpenfation which is 
 
 tailed everlafling 1 7 
 
 The Hebrew word rendered everlafling, 
 properly intends a hidden duration, or 
 
 period, but not endlefs I f 
 
 Objection. — The fame word everlafling or e- 
 ternal is in the very fame verfe applied both 
 to the mifery of the wicked and to the hap- 
 
 pinefs of the righteous 19 
 
 Anfwer. — The very fame word is in other 
 places applied to very different things, and 
 whole natures and durations are entirely 
 
 diifimilar 20 
 
 The kingdom given by the Father to Chrift 
 mall end, and fo alfo the kingdom giv- 
 en by Chrift to his faints {hall end j but 
 this fhall not diminish the glory of 
 Chrift, nor endanger the happinefs of 
 the faints. If the kingdom of Chrift 
 and his faints fhall end, then certainly 
 much more the kingdom of Satan 21 
 
 Objection. — But upon the fuppofition thai 
 the doctrine of endlefs damnation was true, 
 in what manner might one expect it to be 
 
xl CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 expreft in the Bible ? 22 
 
 Anfwer. — If it was true, there could be no 
 promifes, intimations, or even diftant hints 
 to the contrary. And it is therefore fhewn 
 to be falfe by a number of pofitive proofs. 
 If there were not promifes and intimations 23 
 of the General Refloration in the Scripture, 
 the doctrine of endlefs damnation might be 
 then concluded to be true, however dark > 
 but the endlefs happinefs of the righteous is 26 
 fet forth in much ftronger language, and 
 with more abundant force of expreffion. 
 As for inflance, St. John, who never 
 applies the word ever lofting and eternal 
 once in all his writings to the mifery of 
 the wicked, ufes the word far oftener in 
 his Gofpel alone, as connected with the 27 
 happinefs of the righteous, than it is ufed 
 in the whole Bible to exprefs the mifery of 
 the wicked. And there are many ftrong 
 and powerful expreiTions made ufe of to 
 exprefs the duration of happinefs that are 
 
 never applied to mifery 28 
 
 The endlefs happinefs of the righteous 
 {lands upon fuch foundations that can 
 never he overthrown or deftroyed ; fuch 
 as their indiffoluble union with the ori- 30 
 ginal fource of life and happinefs ; their 
 being heirs of God, and joint-heirs with 3 1 
 Chrift, and the promife that they {hall 
 live becaufe he lives ; and his life is tru- 
 ly endlefs 3 1 
 
 Objection. — That fince the wicked have cho- 
 fen evil and perfevered in it through life, 
 it is become a fixed habit in them, from 
 
CONTENTS. xli 
 
 Page, 
 which it would feem as impoflible to re- 
 claim them, as to draw off the juft from 
 their attachment to God and goodnefs 32 
 
 Anfwer- — This reafoning founded upon the 
 old pagan fyftem of good and evil being 
 two eternal co-exifting principles 33 
 
 All men are God's creatures, and therefore 
 he will not contend for ever, nor be al- 
 ways wroth with the fouls that he hath 
 made ■ — 34 
 
 Satan's kingdom and all evil (hall be deftroy- 
 ed, and therefore endlefs mifery cannot have 
 the fame permanent foundation as endlefs 
 happinefs 35 
 
 Two things diametrically oppofite to each o- 
 ther cannot both exift together to all e- 
 
 ternity 35 
 
 Inferences drawn from the foregoing in fa- 
 vour of the endlefs continuance of the 
 life of the righteous, and which prove 
 that the iiate of fin and mifery fhall end 37 
 
 Objection. — Bnt dues not the word all fre- 
 quently intend a part only ? 38 
 
 Anfwered. — By giving certain never-failing 
 rules, whereby it may be known when the 
 word all means ltrictly «//, or the whole 
 univerfally without any exception-, con- 
 firmed by plain inftances out of St. Paul's 
 writings 38 
 
 Objection. —That perhaps by all things be- 
 ing put under Chrift, nothing farther may 
 be meant than their being brought into a 
 ftate of forced fubjection, or made fubject 
 to his controul 40 
 
 Anfwer.— They are now put under him in this 
 
xlii CONTENTS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 refpect, but they are not yet put under 
 him in the fenfe that they (hall be, which 
 implies a ftate of willing fubjection 40 
 
 The word many, frequently means all 42 
 
 All things were created 'by Chrift; all rebel- 
 lious beings (hall hzfubdued by him, and 
 all without exception (hall be reconciled 
 by him, and through him to God — 43 
 
 dialogue 1. 
 
 Objection. — Of the worm that dieth not, and 
 the unquenchable fire, five times threaten- 
 ed by our Lord Jefus Chriftin one pafTage 46 
 Anfwered. — By reference to the words in the 
 prophecy of Ifaiah, to which our Lord pro- 
 bably alluded 47 
 
 Paflages from the prophets brought to mew 
 a literal accomplifliment of the original 
 
 words 48 
 
 The dreadful threatenings of future mifery 
 to the wicked, implied in thofe words of 
 our Saviour. They fhall be publicly 
 punifhed and tormented in the lake of 
 fire, which is the earth in its melted or 
 
 diflblved Hate 49 
 
 Neverthelefs, there fhall be a new creati- 
 on of the earth, and fo the lake of fire 
 
 fhall ceafe 50 
 
 Many inftances of fires mentioned in Scrip- 
 ture, of which it was faid, they pall not 
 be quenched, which yet have cealed long 
 
 ago 52 
 
 And of thofe fires whofe fmoke is faid to 
 afcend up for ever 55 
 
CONTENTS. xliii 
 
 Page. 
 
 Things contrary are often predicted of the 
 fame places and people, and muft. be 
 understood as occurring at different 
 
 times 56 
 
 Our Lord's words of every one btmgfalted 
 
 with fire confidered $6 
 
 Objection. — All the fires above-mentioned 
 were on earth, and in time 5 but the fire of 
 hell, being in eternity, can never go out, 
 or ceafe to burn to all endlefs duration 57 
 Anfwer. — Thofe fires on earth that were 
 never to be quenched did not continue to burn 
 as long as the earth remained ; and, there- 
 fore there is no neceffity of granting that 
 the fire of hell fhall burn to all eternky 57 
 Punifhments belong only to the ages of ages 
 before Chrift fhall have delivered up the 
 
 kingdom to the Father 58 
 
 Objection. — The blafphemy againft the Holy 
 
 Ghofl fhall never be forgiven, &c. — 58 
 Anfwered. — 1. By fhewing what this fin is, 
 &c. - - 6\ 
 
 2. All that bears the name of death fhall 
 be deftroyed, and all forrow, crying, 
 and pain, mall ceafe and be no more 64 
 
 3. Where fin abounded grace fhall much 
 more abound 66 
 
 Objection. — The deplorable cafe of Efau — 68 
 Anfwer. — He loft the birth-right, and the pe- 
 culiar privileges that belonged to the firft- 
 born, but yet he had a blefTing from his 
 father of a lower degree - 69 
 
 The great difference between them was 
 more fulfilled in their pofterity than in 
 their own perfons - - - 69 
 
Xlir CONTENTS, 
 
 Page. 
 
 Love and hatred are fometimes only com- 
 parative, and not pofitive terms, and on- 
 ly imply a preference of one to the other 69 
 Objection. — The great gulph between the re- 
 gion of happinefs and mifery is impaflible 69 
 Anfwer. — Chrift has parted it, when he went 
 and preached to the ipirits in prilon, who 
 were difobedient in the days of Noah 70 
 
 This proves a ftate of confeious exiitence 
 
 after the death of the body — 73 
 
 The rich man feems to have had compaf- 
 
 fion towards his brethren - - 79 
 
 The Scriptures constantly hold out punifh- 
 ment in proportion to the fins committ- 
 ed in the prefent life - - 80 
 Objection. — The cafe of Judas, of whom Je- 
 fus faid, « Good were it for that man that 
 he had never been born* - 81 
 Anfwer. — 1. This was a proverbial faying 81 
 
 2. Both Job and Jeremiah curfed the day 
 of their birth, and wifhed they had ne- 
 ver been born, only on the Kcount of 
 wordly and temporal calamities, al- 
 though they had no fear of eternal dam- 
 nation, or any future puniihment 82 
 
 3. Solomon declares an untimely birth to 
 be far better than the longeft and mofl 
 profperous life of one whofe foul is not 
 filled with good, and who hath no burial 88 
 
 4. If Judas had died before he was born 
 he would have efcaped all earthly trou- 
 ble, and future mifery, and would have 
 been immediately happy - 89 
 
 5. The nation of the Jews as much rejected 
 and doomed to woe as Judas, and yet 
 
CONTENTS. xl* 
 
 Page. 
 
 the final intention of God is to have 
 mercy upon them all. - 90 
 
 DIALOGUE III. 
 
 Objection. — That the doctrine of the Refto- 
 ration tends to licentioufnefs, and is calcu- 
 lated to encourage the wicked to a continu- 
 ance in their evil ways, &c. - 93 
 
 Anfwered. — Firft, by (hewing the principles 
 upon which the doctrine of the Reftorati- 
 on is founded - "95 
 
 1. God is the Creator of all - 95 
 
 2. His benevolence is univerfal - 96 
 
 3. (Shrift died for all without exception, 98 
 Objection. — That Chrift did not die for all, 
 
 t>ecaufe he did not pray for all - "99 
 Anfwer. — This objection is entirely ground- 
 leis ; for, though in one place he prays ex- 
 clufively for his apoftles, yet a little after 
 he prays for all that mould believe on him, 
 through their word 5 and, finally, that 
 the world might come to believe and know 
 that he was the true Mefliah ; which fhall 
 be the cafe when all believers fhall btone 9 
 as the Father and Son are one - - ico 
 
 The death of Chrift for all men is fo far 
 from encouraging licentioufnefs, that it 
 is the ftrongeft of all motives to induce 
 them to love and obey him - 1 02 
 
 4. Another of the firft principles on which 
 the doctrine of the univerfal Reftoration 
 is founded, is the unchangeablenefs of 
 God - .- - - i©4 
 
xlviii CONTENTS. 
 
 Page, 
 dcr it probable that many are reclaimed 
 in a future ftate - - 132 
 
 5. That the intention of God is not fo much 
 to reftrain fin, as to fhew its enormity ; 
 and, finally, to deftroy it out of the u- 
 niverfe - - - - 132 
 
 6. If the doctrine of the Reftoration mould 
 be abufed, that can be no argument a- 
 gainft it, as the Gofpel itfelf has been 
 perverted, yet is the greateft blefling to 
 mankind - - - 132 
 
 Therefore it is evident that this glorious 
 doctrine cannot juftly be charged with 
 the leaft tendency towards licentioufnefs 133 
 Objection. — It would not be prudent in God, 
 even if he intended finally to reftore the 
 wicked, to let them know his gracious de- 
 figns beforehand ; it is time enough to let 
 them know his gracious purpofes towards 
 them, when his former threatenings have 
 failed of their effect, but not before 133 
 
 Anfwered. — God has thought it the abound- 
 ing of his wifdom and prudence to make 
 known to his faints this myftery of his 
 will, even his purpofe to rehead ail things 
 in Ch rift. This difcovery is chiefly intend- 134 
 ed for the comfort and fatisfaction of the 
 good, and not for the encouragement of 
 the bad - 135 
 
 God has frequently mixed promifes of great 
 mercies with threatenings of terrible 
 judgments -, yet his threatenings are not 
 thereby weakened. - - 136 
 
 Objection. The doctrine of the Reftoration 
 feems not very plainly revealed in the Scrip- 
 
C O N T E N T S. xlix 
 
 Page. 
 
 turc, or it would not have been fo long 
 hidden from fo many great and good men 138 
 
 Anfwer. — Things that have been plainly*%e- 
 vealed, have been Itili hidden from great 
 and good men ; as the death and reiurrec- 
 tionof Chrifl - - 138 
 
 As alfo the calling of the Gentiles - 141 
 
 Qucftion. But how comes this man to know 
 better than all the world ? &c. - 142 
 
 Anfwered. The charge denied. Many have 
 known, believed, preached, and defended 
 it - - - 142 
 
 The doctrine of endlefs mifery is one prin- 
 cipal caufe of the difagreement among 
 Chrifrians - - - 143 
 
 DIALOGUE IV. 
 
 Objection. Chrift. threatens the Jews that 
 they mould die in their fins, and that they 
 could not come whither he went - 149 
 
 Anfwer. Our Lord told his difciples them- 
 felves that whither he went they could not 
 come, that is, then, as afterwards ex- 
 plained - - - - 150 
 
 2. There are blelTings promifed in Scrip- 
 ture to all Ifrael, without exception. 150 
 
 3. Thofe that have been rejected and cafb 
 off fhail at lad return and be received- 151 
 
 Objection. — That theblcflings pror&ifed only 
 refpect thole that (hail be found alive on 
 the earth at a certain time 
 
 Anfwer. — The inhabitants of Sodom, Sama- 
 ria and Jerufalejn with their daughters, or 
 
 11; 
 
59 
 
 1 C O N T E N T S. 
 
 Page, 
 neighbouring cities, fhall all be reftored, 
 though deftroyed long ago - - 152 
 
 2. That all things are given to Chrift with- 
 out exception •, and that all that are giv- 153 
 en fhall at laft come to him in fuch a 
 manner as not to be call: out. From 
 ■which premifes, the univerfal Reftora- 154 
 ration is inferred, and proved to be cer- 
 tainly true - - - 155 
 Objection. — God fware in his wrath that the 
 
 Ifraelites fhould not enter into his reft 
 Anfwer. — The reft was the land of Canaan, 
 being typical of the time of the Millenium, 
 or ChriiVs reign on earth, and not of the 
 ultimate ftate of happinefs - - 160 
 
 Objection. — There are ibme of whom we 
 read, That he that made them will not 
 have mercy upon them, and he that form- 
 ed them will fhew them no favour 161 
 Anfwer. — Thefe words muft necefTarily be 
 underftood with ibme limitation, and refer 
 to a particular feafon, when they fhall 
 have judgment without mercy, but final- 
 ly mercy fhall rejoice againft judgment 161 
 This proved to be the true intent of the 
 text, by a number of paflages where 
 abfolute judgment without the leaft fa- 
 vour is threatened; but which threat- 
 enings are immediately fucceeded by 
 promifes of the richeft bleflings 164 
 Objection. — That the wicked fhall never fee 
 
 light - - - - 164 
 
 Anfwer. — Not until fubdued or overcome, as 
 
 the words ought to be tendered - 164 
 
 Objection. A great ranfom cannot deliver 
 
C O N T E N T S. ii 
 
 Page, 
 thofe who are taken away by the ftroke of 
 God - - -165 
 
 Anfwer. The great ranfom cannot intend 
 the blood of Chrift, the power of which 
 is unlimited, but gold and all the forces of 
 ftrength, riches, wifdom, &c. none of thefe 
 can deliver their pqfTeflbrs from death 165 
 
 Objection. — Solomon fays, That there is no 
 work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor 
 wifdom in the grave -, and that in the place 
 where the treefalleth, there it mail be 167 
 
 Anfwer. — The flrft part of this objection re- 
 fpects only the ftate of the body in the 
 grave, but cannot be brought to difprove 
 the confcioufnefs of the foul in the leparate 
 ftate, the refurrecYion of the body, a fu- 
 ture ftate of exiftence, or the final Reftora- 
 tion - - - - 1 63 
 
 The fecond part of this objection has not 
 the leaft relation to the fubjedt ; but be- 169 
 longs to quite another matter. But if it 
 related to the death of the body, (as it 
 does not) it would be no real objection 
 to the Reftoration - - 171 
 
 Objection. — The living have hope, but the 
 dead have none, their love, hatred, envy, 
 &c. are perifhed - - 172 
 
 Anfwer. This belongs to the preient life, 
 and to the ftate of the body in the grave ; 
 but forms no objection againft the Reftora- 
 tion - I7 2 
 
 Objection. Our Saviour has faid, The night 
 cometh when no man can work - 173 
 
 Anfwer. Our Lord was diligent in his work, 
 c 2 
 
lii CONTENT S. 
 
 Page, 
 and we ought to be fo in our labours on 173 
 earth, to which death will put an end. But 
 this can form no objection to the final Re£- 
 roration, as that is an event, which will be 
 Subsequent not only to death, but to the 
 resurrection, and to a future State of punish- 
 ment according to the deeds done in the 
 body - - - 174 
 
 Objection. Many terrible palTages of Scrip- 
 ture brought to prove the destruction and 
 future mifery of the wicked - 1 74 
 
 Anfwer. The Scripture., are an unanfwera- 
 ble objection to thole who deny a future 
 ftate of retribution, but not fotothe Scrip- 
 tural doctrine of the general Restoration 177 
 Oblervations made upon thofe awful and 
 
 fhiking paifages - - 177 
 
 The moft terrible threatenings clofe witfci 
 
 gracious promifes - - 178 
 
 Tliis particularly inflanced in the prophe- 
 cy of Ezckiel, where the threatenings 
 denounced are numerous and very Se- 
 vere, but commonly clofe with the gra- 
 cious declaration, And they (hall know 
 Jehovah; or Some fimilar expreilion 179 
 Queftiop. But does not punifhment harden 
 and inflame, inftead of Softening and 
 Subduing the criminals ? - 180 
 
 Anfwer. Punifhment to a certain degree pr< •- 
 duces the former effects, but in greater de- 
 grees and longer continued produces the 
 ' latter - - - - 180 
 
 This illuftrated by a true ftory 182 
 
 Different degrees of the Same things pro- 
 duce quite contrary effects - 184 
 
CONTENT S. ffii 
 
 Objection. The deplorable eftate of wicked 
 men, their averfion to good, their love of 
 vice, their hardnefs cf heart, and oppofi- 
 tion to every method taken to reclaim them, 
 feems to render their Reftoration an event 
 hardly to be hoped for - - U>4 
 
 Aniwer. However difficult it may be for 
 our reafon to admit the poflibjlity of fuch 
 monfters of iniquity bei g changed and re- 
 ftored, yet nothing is ioo hard for God, 
 and therefore faith may lay hold on hi:. 
 promHes, which he hath gracioufly given 
 us for our encouragement - - 185 
 
 Examples are given us in Scripture of fome 
 of the moil atrocious finners being re- 
 claimed ; we ourfelves have been recon- 
 ciled ; and therefore we ihould not des- 
 pair of the final recovery of all 187 
 Objection. There will come a time when the 
 characters of all men will be lb fixed and 
 confirmed, that no change can afterwards 
 take place upon them. He that is unjuft, 
 let him be unjuft ftill, and he that is filthy 
 let him be filthy fttll, &c. - 187 
 Anfwered. — 1. By confidering the words as 
 belonging to a certain period, and by the 
 confideration of many other fcriptural paf- 
 fages of a like import - - 188 
 2. By companion ; as even the mod holy 
 creatures are unclean, compared with 
 God : fo thofe who remain filthy and 
 unclean, during the prefent life, may be 
 fo efteemed hereafter, in comparifon of 
 thofe holy fouls who having purged 
 themfelves from all uncleannefs here, 
 
liv CONTENTS. 
 
 Page, 
 fhall be reckoned as veflels of the high- 
 eft honour in thehoufe of God - 190 
 Objection. Thofe who add or diminilli /hall 
 have the plagues added to them, or their 
 part taken out of the book of life, &c. 192 
 Anfwer. This no objection to the general 
 Reftoration, but is a foiemn warning for 
 us to take heed that we do not fail under 
 thofe dreadful puniftiments which await 
 unbelievers and profane perfons, nor lofe 
 thofe ineftimable bleflings which Chrift has 
 promifed to the faithful, obedient, over- 
 comers, Sec. - - 193 
 A fad inftance of prefumption mentioned 196 
 The higheft and greateft not fecure, if they 
 
 indulge themfelves in fin - - 196 
 
 The reflections caft upon the doctrine of 
 the Reftoration by its opponents fhewn 
 to be highly abfurd - - 198 
 
 The doctrine of annihilation confidered 199 
 There can be but three things polTible, end- 
 lefs mifery ; total annihilation ; or the 
 Reftoration 199 
 
 The doctrine of annihilation, or a final ft ate 
 of non-exiftence, proved unfcriptural 200 
 
 1. By the wicked being actually tormented 
 
 for along feaibn, ages of ages 200 
 
 2. Becaufethey are deftroyed, not that they 
 might ceafe to exift any more, but that 
 they might come to know the Lord 2co 
 
 3. By the unexceptionable inftance of So- 
 dom and Gomorrah, &c. who were fo 
 long ago deftroyed, and yet (hall have 
 their captivity returned - 201 
 
 The promifes made reflecting Sodom, and 
 Gomorrah, &c. prove the doctrines of 
 
CONTENTS. It 
 
 Page. 
 
 annihilation and endlefs mifery, both to 
 be erroneous, and the Reftoration alone 
 to be true - 203 
 
 An objection taken from Mr. B 's fer- 
 
 mon, That Tinners in Hell will be always 
 under the neceflity of committing frefh. 
 fin, therefore God will be obliged to 
 continue their punifhment to all eternity 204 
 
 Anlv.cred. The objection unfcriptural, 
 merely a rafh conjeclure,totally unfound- 
 ed - - - - 205 
 
 The Scripture reprefents future punifhment 
 as the reward of fins committed in this 
 world - - - 206 
 
 Their intention is to deitroy fin, and con- 
 fequently will cauie it to ceafe from being 
 committed - 20(5 
 
 Whatever rage punithments may at firfr 
 feem to provoke, they muft continue un- 
 til the molt rebellious are entirely fub- 
 dued - 206 
 
 The iaft objection. That fin is infinite, 
 being againft an infinite object, contain- 
 ing infinite hatefulnefs, and juftly de- 
 ferves infinite puniiliment ; and which 
 cannot be fully executed, and therefore 
 endlefs mifery muft be their portion 207 
 
 This unfcriptural, unreafonable, trite ob- 
 jection largely anfwered - 2e8 
 
 1. By (hewing theabfurdity of afcribing in- 
 finite actions to creatures - 208 
 
 2. Acts of the higheft goodnefs, do not 
 extend to God, cannot be infinite, much 
 
 lefs can evil actions be infinite - 208 
 
 3. Though iniquities are once in Scripture 
 itiled infinite, yet it is evident from the 
 
Ivi CONTENT S. 
 
 Page 
 
 whole pafTage compared with other parts 
 of Scripture, that infinite is only ufed for 
 a great multitude. - - 209 
 
 4. The idea of every fin being abfolutely in- 
 finite, and deferving infinite punifhment, 
 or endlefs mifery, entirely confounds and 
 deftroys all the different kinds and de- 
 grees of fin, and all thofe diftinctions 
 which God hath made, and revealed to 
 
 us in the Scriptures - - 213 
 
 5. God threatens to punifh finners for all 
 their fins ; and to render their fin and 
 iniquity double upon them ; and yet 
 promifes to be gracious to them after all : 
 which would be impoflible if every fin 
 was infinite, and could not be fully pu- 
 nlfhed with any punifhment fhort of 
 endlefs mifery - - - 211 
 
 6. Even allowing that fin is naturally infi- 
 nite, and deferves infinite punifhment, 
 that will not prove that any of the hu- 
 man race muft be miferable without 
 end ; fince Chrift has made a full and 
 fufficient reconciliation, and propitiation 
 for the fins of the whole world, and the 
 grace of God muft finally fuperabound 
 and triumph over all fin, and confequent- 
 
 ly put an end to mifery - 212 
 
 Eight reafons given why the Author fome- 
 times treats in public upon the doctrine 
 of the universal Reftoration - 214 
 
 Eleven reafons mentioned why the Author 
 doth not ipeak of it more frequently 
 and fully in his public dilcourics 216 
 
 Conclufion - - - 219 
 
FAMILIAR DIALOGUES 
 
 BETWEEN 
 
 A MINISTER AND HIS FRIEND, 
 
 CONCERNING 
 
 THE DOCTRINE OF 
 THE RESTORATON OF ALL THINGS. 
 
 DIALOGUE I. 
 
 Friend. "IT HAVE taken the freedom to call upon 
 J_ you, to have a little difcourfe with you 
 concerning the doctrine of the Rejloration of all 
 Things ■, which it is faid you believe -, and to pro- 
 pole fome objections. 
 
 M'mifler. I am happy to fee you, and am wil- 
 ling to difcourfe, as well as I am able, upon any 
 fubjecT: that may be agreeable •, but I have always 
 made it a rale never to prefs the belief of my fen- 
 timents upon my friends ; and I can fafely fay, that, 
 though fuch great pains have been taken by my 
 adverfaries to prejudice people againft me, I have 
 never gone about from honfe to houfe to propagate 
 my opinions ; and I make it an universal rule not 
 A to 
 
2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 to introduce the fubject in converfation, unlefs de- 
 fired ; but yet I never have refufed to own my fen- 
 timents, when afked, refpecting the matter ; and 
 am ready, in the fear of God, to anfwer any ob- 
 jections that can be made, to a doctrine which I 
 believe is plainly revealed in the Scriptures of truth, 
 and appears to me worthy of God. 
 
 Friend. I (hall lirit of all bring to view that 
 grand objection, which is formed from the word 
 eternal or everlajJing, being applied to a future itate 
 of punimment ; as in the following palTages : 
 Ifaiah xxxiii. 14. * The finners in Zion are afraid, 
 fearf'ulnefs hath furprized the hypocrites. "Who 
 among us mall dwell with the devouring fire ? 
 Ys r ho among us ihall dwell with everlafting burn- 
 ings > 
 
 Dan. xil. 2. < And many of them that fleep in 
 the dull of the earth mail awake, fome to everlaft- 
 ing life, and fome to fhame and ever Lifting con- 
 tempt? 
 
 St. Matt, xviii. 8. ' Wherefore, if thine hand or 
 thy foot offend thee (or caufe thee to offend) cut 
 them off, and call them from thee ; it is better for 
 thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than 
 having two hands, or two feet, to be caft into 
 everlafting fire/ 
 
 St. Matt. xxv. 41. < Then mail he fay alfo unto 
 them on the left hand., Depait from me, ye cur f- 
 ed, into everlafting fire, prepared for the devil 
 arid his angels.' Verfe 46, < Thefe fhall go away 
 into everlajtlng puniihment : but the righteous in- 
 to life eternal, or everlafting^ — The fame 
 in the original being «&» for both, though varied 
 by th< 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. J 
 
 St. Mark, ill- 29. ' But he that mail bla£ 
 pheme againlt the Holy Ghoft, hath never for- 
 giveneis ; but is in danger of eternal damna- 
 tion.' 
 
 2 Thef. i. 7, %, 9. < The Lord Jefus (hall be 
 revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in 
 flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that 
 know not God, and that obey not the gofpel of 
 our Lord Jefus Chrift : who mail be puniihed 
 with everlajling deffruction, from the prefence of 
 the Lord, and from the glory of his power/ 
 
 Jude, 6, 7. * And the Angels which kept not 
 their firft eftate, but left their own habitation, he 
 hath referved in everlrjling chains under darknefs, 
 unto the judgment of the great day: Even at 
 Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them 
 in like manner, giving themfeives over unto for- 
 nication, and going after ltrange flefh, are fet 
 forth for an example, fufFering the vengeance of 
 1 terrml fire/ 
 
 Thefe texts, together, form fuch an objection to 
 the doctrine of the Refloration, that I can by no 
 means believe it, unlefs this can be fairly anfwer- 
 ed, and proofs brought from the Scriptures to 
 ihew, that the words euerlafiing and eternal, (which 
 .ire translations of the fame word and fynbnimous) 
 being connected with the punifnment of the 
 wicked, and their future mifery, do not necef- 
 iarily imply the continuance of the fame while 
 God exilts. 
 
 Aiimjhr. I am glad that you have fo fairly and 
 fully ftated the matter ; and I highly commend 
 your refolution, not to believe the tmivcrfed doc- 
 trine, unlefs this can be anfwered fully, without 
 any torturing or twiffing the Scriptures ; and if I 
 A 2 
 
f 
 
 4 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 am not able, with God's affiftance, to remove 
 this difficulty, I will publicly recant my fenti- 
 ments. 
 
 But, before I come to give a direct anfwer, I 
 would beg leave to remark how very feldom this 
 word is ufed to exprefs the duration of punifhment. 
 We mould think, by fome fermons we hear, that 
 everlafiing is applied to mifery in every book of the 
 New Teftament, if not in every chapter. A friend 
 of mine told me, that he was once preaching in 
 Maryland, and after fermon a man came and afked 
 him, of what denomination he was ? To which he 
 anfwered, A Baptift. I think, fays the man, that 
 you do not preach up fo much everlafiing damnation^ 
 as the Baptifts and Methodifts, among us, do. To 
 which my friend replied, Everlafiing damnation is 
 found in the Scripture. True, anfwered the man ; 
 but fome preachers give us more of it in one fer- 
 mon than is to be found in the whole Bible. The 
 truth of this remark will appear, if we confider that 
 St. Luke, never ufes the word aionion> or evcrlafi- 
 ing, as connected with the mifery of the wicked, 
 in his gofpei j nor St. Mark but once, and then 
 in a particular cafe only : In the gofpei of St. John, 
 it is not to be found at all, in that connection, nor 
 in any of his epiftles : In the account of the 
 preaching of the apoflles through the world, in 
 the firft age of Chriftianity, we do not find it men- 
 xioned, in that light, fo much as once : No, not in 
 all the fermons, and parts of fermons, which St. 
 Luke has preferved in the Book of the Acts : 
 though the doctrine of everlafiing damnation is the 
 fubftance of many modern difcourfes. St. Paul 
 never mentions everlafiing ihfiruElion but once, 
 though his writings form fuch a confkierable part 
 
 of 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 3" 
 
 of the New Teftament. Neither are fach words 
 found in the epiftle of St. James, or in thole of St. 
 Peter ; and but three times in the gofpel of St. 
 Matthew : And only twice in all the Old Tefta- 
 ment. But was the word aionion applied to mifery 
 but once, in the whole Bible, it would deferve a 
 ferious confideration •, and unlefs the force of it 
 can be removed by the authority of Scripture, it 
 mult, remain an unanfwerable objection. But I in all 
 proceed to anfwer it, by bringing an equal number 
 of pafTages where the word everlafting is applied 
 to things and times y that have had, or muir. have, 
 an end. As in the following paflages : Gen. xvii. 
 7, 8. c And I will eftablith my covenant between 
 me and thee, and thy feed after thee, in their ge- 
 nerations, for an everlafting covenant ; to be a God 
 unto thee, and to thy feed after thee. And I 
 will give unto thee, and to thy feed after thee, 
 the land wherein thou art a ftranger, all the 
 land of Canaan, for an everlafting pofleffion ; 
 and I will be their God.' Verfe 13. i He that 
 is born in thy houfe, and bought with thy mo- 
 ney, mull, needs be circumcifed : and my cove- 
 nant (hall be in your flefh for an everlafting cove- 
 nant.' 
 
 Here note, that the land of Canaan is called 
 an everlafting pofTeflion ; and the covenant of cir- 
 cumcifion in their fleih, an everlafting covenant, 
 though it is certain that the land of Canaan, as 
 well as the other parts of the earth muff, be dif- 
 foivedor melted, in the general conflagration; and 
 circamcifton is now declared null and void by the 
 Holy Ghoff. •, and the ceremony cannot endure to 
 endlefs ages. 
 
 A3 Of 
 
6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Of the fame kind are the following pa/Tages : 
 Gen. xlviii. 3, 4. * And Jacob faid unto Jofeph, 
 God Almighty appeared to me at Luz, in the 
 land of Canaan, and blefTed me ; and faid unto 
 me, Behold, I will make thee fruitful, and mul- 
 tiply thee, and I will make of thee a multi- 
 tude of people : and will give this land to thy 
 feed after thee, for an everlafting poflefTion.' 
 And in the bleffing of Jofeph, he fays, { The 
 bleffings of thy father have prevailed above the 
 blefTings of my progenitors, unto the utmoft 
 bound of the everlafi'mg hills.' By which, I 
 iuppofe, the hills of the land of Canaan were 
 meant. 
 
 God faith to Mofes, Exod. xl. 15. « And thou 
 malt anoint them (Aaron's fons) as thou didft 
 anoint their father, that they may minister unto 
 me in the prieft's office : for their anointing mall 
 furely be an everlafi'mg priefthood, throughout 
 their generations.' Lev. xvi. 34. 'And this 
 mail be an everlaftitig ftatute unto you, to make 
 an atonement for the Children of Ifrael, for all 
 their fins, once a year \ and he did as Jeho- 
 vah commanded Mofes.' 
 
 The apoftle declares, that thefe everlafling ordi- 
 nances were only till the time of reformation^ Heb. 
 ix. 10. And this everlafi'mg pricflhood of Aaron's 
 fons has ceafed long ago : c For the prieflhood 
 being changed, (by Chrift) there is, of necci- 
 fity a change alfo of the law : For he of whom 
 thefe things are fpoken, pertaineth to another 
 tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the 
 altar: For it is evident, that our Lord fprang 
 out of Judah ; of which tribe Mofes fpake no- 
 thing concerning prieilhood. And it is yet far 
 
 more 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 7 
 
 more evident : For that, after the fimilitude of 
 Melchifedec, there arifeth another prieft, who is 
 made not after the law of a carnal command- 
 ment, but after the power of an endlefs life : For 
 he teftifieth, Thou art a prieft for ever, after the 
 order of Melchifedec : For there is verily a dis- 
 annulling of the commandment going before 
 for the weaknefs and unprofitableness thereof.' 
 Heb. vii. 12 — 18. The whole ium of the apoftle's 
 argument, in this epiftle, tends to prove, that the 
 everlajiing ordinance is now no more ; and the ever- 
 lofting piieflhood of Aaron and his fons, is now 
 abolifhed. 
 
 Another paiTage where the WGrd everlafltng is 
 evidently ufed in a limited fenfe, is, Numb xxv. 
 11, 12, 13. where we read thus : 'Phinehas, the 
 fon of Eleazar, the fon of Aaron the prieft, hath 
 turned my wrath away from the Children of If- 
 rael while he was zealous for my fake among 
 them, that I confumed not the Children of Ifrael 
 in my jealoufy. Wherefore fay, Behold, I give 
 imto him my covenant of peace : And he mall 
 have it, and his feed after him, even rhe cove- 
 nant of an everlafltng prlcfthcod ; becaufe he was 
 zealous for his God, and made an atonement 
 for the Children of liiacl.' 
 
 If the word everlafling intends endlefs duration^ 
 how mould we be able to reconcile this promiie 
 with the total celTation of the Levitical priefihocd ? 
 As for the family of Phinehas, with whom this 
 covenant of an everlafling prieflhood was made, it 
 was entirely deprived of the benefit of the fame, 
 within the fpace of four hundred years : For when 
 the fons of Eli tran fgrefTed the covenant, by pro- 
 faning it, God fent him word, that as they had 
 A 4 bro] 
 
5 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 broken it on their parts, it was entirely, and to all 
 intents and purpofes diffolved. Read i Sam. ii. 
 from the beginning of the 12th verfe to the end of 
 the 17th, and from the 27th verfe to the end of 
 ehapter: And alfo, chap. iii. n, 12, 13, 14. 
 
 I will tranfcribe verfe 30, of the fecond chapter, 
 hi proof of my point. * Wherefore, Jehovah, 
 God of Ifrael, faith, I laid, indeed, that thy 
 houfe, and the honfe of thy father, mould walk 
 before mzfor ever: But now Jehovah faith, Be 
 it far from me, for them that honour me, I v/ill 
 honour 5 and they that defpife me, fliall be light- 
 ly ef'teemed. , Hophni, and Phinehas, were foon 
 after Ham in one day •, and Saul, the king of Ifrael, 
 lent Doeg, the Edomite, who fell upon the priefts, 
 And flew fourfcore and five perfons, who wore a 
 linen ephod, in one day. * And Nob, the city of 
 the priefts, fmote he with the edge of the fword; 
 both men, and women, and children, and fuck- 
 lings, and oxen, and afles, and fheep, with the 
 edge of the fword.' 1 Sam. xxii. 19. The whole 
 houfe of Phinehas feems to have been deftroyed at 
 this time, except Abiathar ; and when Solomon 
 came to the throne, he thru ft him out from being 
 prieft, c that he might fulfil the word of Jeho- 
 vah, which he fpake concerning the houfe of 
 Eli, in Shiloh,' 1 Kings, ii. 27. From this 
 time, the houfe of Ithamar had the priefthood. 
 
 It is fo evident that the word which iskranflated 
 everJaJiing, cannot in the nature of things, abfo- 
 lutely fignify, without e?id> that I mould not think 
 it worth while to quote any more paffages in proof 
 of its intending flgf, or ages, only, were it not con- 
 ftantly ufed as a great objection againft the uni 
 Terfal Reftora ion : I mail, therefore, inftance two 
 
 or 
 
UNIVERSAL REST0R.AT10N. 9 
 
 or three more in particular, in this place, and re- 
 fer to a great number of others, of the lame kind \ 
 all tending to prove the fame thing. Hab. iii. 6. 
 ' The everlafting mountains were fcattered, the 
 perpetual hills did bow.' The gofpel is called, 
 the evevlajling gofpel,' Rev. xiv. 6, yet it mull 
 ceafe to be preached, when it fliall be needed no 
 longer. Jonah faith, * The earth with her bars 
 about me, for ever : yet haft thou brought 
 up my life from corruption, O Jehovah, my 
 God.' Jonah, ii. 6. But it would be the 
 higheft abfurdity upon the fuppofition that the 
 word Legfiolnm, here rendered,^/- ever, properly 
 fignifies without end, for him to fay, that his life 
 was brought up from corruption ; and, therefore, 
 we know that he could not ufe it in that feme, be- 
 caufe, on the third day, he was delivered from his 
 dreadful priibn. There is no doubt but the time 
 that he was there, feemed an age, and, while he 
 was thus (hut up, there was no interm-lTion to the 
 darknefs, and diflrefs, that overwhelmed him; 
 and, therefore he might fay, with propriety, that 
 the earth, with her bare, was about him, for 
 ever,' (i. e. perpetually without ceffation) during 
 the period he remained in the finYs belly ', which 
 appeared to him, as a long age indeed. But, as it 
 would be a work of much time and labour to 
 mention ail the paiTages where the word tranllated 
 forever, evidently intends only an age, or period, 
 I fliall juft uhect you to the following ,• which 
 you may look over at your leifure. 
 
 Gen. xiii. i^.xliii. 9. xliv. 32. — Exod. xii. 1.4, 
 17,24. xxi. 6. xxvii. 21. xxviii. 43. xxix. 9,28. 
 xxx. 21. xxxi. 16, 17. xxxii. 13. — Lev. iii. 17. 
 
 Yi. 13, 18, 2C, 22. fli. 34, 36. X. 9, 15. Xvi. 29, 
 
 A 5 3*> 
 
10 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 3i,xxiii. 14, 21, 31, 41. xxiv. 3. xxv. 30, 46. — 
 Numb. x. 3. xv. 15. xviii. 8, 19. xix. 10. — 
 Deut. iv. 40. xv. 17. xviii. 5. xxviii. 46. — Jofhua 
 iv. 7. xiv. 9. — [ Sam. ii. 30. iii. 13. xxvii. 12. 
 xxviii. 2. — 1 Kings, xii. 7. — 2 Kings, v. 27. — 
 2 Chron. x. 7. 
 
 Here are more than fifty paffages, where the 
 word renderedyir ever intends only age, or ages ; 
 to which many more might be added. 
 
 Now, the rule for underftanding words is this : 
 What muft be the meaning of the word, in many 
 places, and what may be the meaning in all ; is the 
 true fenfe of the fame. 
 
 Friend. Although the fingle word forever, in 
 thefe paffages, feems evidently to intend certain 
 unknown, limited periods ; yet, what can you do 
 with thofe texts that fay, the mifery of the wicked 
 fhall endmefor ever and ever? 
 
 Minifies. Indeed, they are terrible threatnings } 
 and, no doubt, will be fully executed. 
 
 Friend. But, do you imagine that fuch paffages 
 as the following can intend lels than endlefs mifery? 
 Rev. xiv. 11. * And the fmoke of their torment 
 afcendeth up, for ever and ever : and they have no 
 reft day nor night, who worfhip the beaft and 
 his image, and whofoever receiveth the mark of 
 his name/ Rev. xix. 3. * And her fmoke role 
 up for ever and ever. 1 Rev. xx. 10. ,* And the 
 devil, that deceived them, was call: into the 
 lake of fire and brimffone, where the beaft and 
 fhe falfe prophet are, and fhall be tormented, 
 day and night, for ever and ever. 9 
 
 Minifter. I confefs, N you have propofed a diffi- 
 culty that I mould jndge to beunanfwerable, were 
 it not for the following confederations : 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. II 
 
 \Jl, If for ever and ever is a longer time than^cr 
 ever, which mull: be granted ; then is there fome 
 proportion between them : Thus, if for ever intends 
 an age, period, or fometimes ages; for ever and ever, 
 may intend ages, an age of ages, or ages of ages : But 
 any proportion at all between two periods, fuppofes 
 both to have an end, or there could be no propor- 
 tion. 
 
 2d!y, I find a time promifed, when, s there mail 
 be no more death; neither ibrrow nor crying; 
 neither (hall there be any more pain ; for the for- 
 mer things are (or ihail then bej pafTed away. 
 And he that fat upon the throne laid, Behold, 
 I make all things new. And he iaid unto me, 
 (John) Write ; for theft words are true and 
 faithful.' Rev. xxi. 4, 5. 
 
 ^dly, I think there is fufficient reafon, from the 
 words of St Peter, in his fecond epiitle, third chap- 
 ter, c, 6, 7, 1 o, 1 1, 12 verfes, to conclude, that 
 as the earth was once overflowed with water, and 
 became truly a lake of water, wherein the world of 
 ungodly men periflied ; ib, by the general confla- 
 gration, the fame (hall become literally the lake of 
 fire and brimftone, in which the wicked (hall be 
 punifhed after the day or judgment : But I alfo 
 think, that the 13th verfe of the fame chapter, 
 compared with Rev. xxi. 1. Ifaiah ixv. j~. Ixvi. 
 22. more than intimates, that the new heaven and 
 earth mail be created out of the fubflance of the 
 old, diflblved by the hie; that the new earth (hall 
 no more have zfca therein, feems to imply, that in 
 its former flare, it had ifea, or why this expreiliop, 
 ■ And there was no more lea.' — Now, if this hy- 
 pothecs is right, the following will be the true 
 flate of the cafe ; viz. 
 
 A C . The 
 
12 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 The lake of fire is exprefsly declared to be ' the 
 fecond death,' Rev. xx. 14. The earth, in its 
 burnt, melted, and diflblved ftate, will be the ge- 
 neral lake of fire and brimftone ; according to the 
 verfes above cited from St. Peter. There will be 
 a new heaven and a new earth, created out of the 
 fubftance of the old, in which there will be no 
 more fea, either of water, or of liquid fire ; confe- 
 quently, the lake of fire, or fecond death, (which 
 are declared to be fynonimous) mult, end ; and, 
 of courfe, the punifhment of the fecond death 
 mull then ceafe. 
 
 j^thly, Thefmoke of their torment is to afcend up 
 for ever and ever, and they are to be tormented day 
 and night : But, as thefmoke of the burning earth 
 muff ceafe, when its fubltance is entirely diflblved 
 or melted, and all combuftible bodies are con- 
 fumed •, and as it is intimated in Job xxvi. 10. that 
 day and night {hall come to an end : and in Rev. 
 xxi. 25. it is faid of the New Jerufalem, ' And 
 the gates of it {hall not be fhut at all by day, for 
 there (hall be no night there.' For all theie 
 reafons, I cannot be altogether perfuaded, that 
 their being tormented day and night, for ever and 
 ever, during which time the fmoke of their tor- 
 ment mail conflantly afcend, is quite equal to 
 endlefs mifery , efpecialiy as there {hall come a time 
 when death fhall be no more, pain fhall be no 
 more, fcrroiu fhall be no more, fmoke fhall probably 
 afcend no more, and, peradventure, night fhall be 
 no more. 
 
 $thfyi But the great reafon of all, why I do not 
 conceive thatj^r ever and ever, doth certainly in- 
 tend endlefs duration, is, becaufc I find the words as 
 often ufed for times and periods, that muff have 
 
 an 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I 3 
 
 an end, as you find them ufed for the mifery of 
 
 the wicked. You bring three paflages, which are 
 all that are to be found in the whole Bible, where 
 they are ufed in that fenfe •, I fhall now invalidate 
 thofe evidences for cndlefs damnation, by bringing 
 an equal number of texts, where you will allow 
 the words are ufed in a limited fenfe. 
 
 Friend. Is it poflible that you can find any fuch 
 paffages in the Bible ? Pray mew them to me. 
 
 Minifter. Ifa. xxx. 8. 'Now go, write it before 
 them in a table, and note it in a book, that it 
 may be for the time to come, fir ever and ever.' 
 
 See Jer. vii. i — 7. The 7th verfe is, ' Then 
 will I caufe you to dwell in this place, in the 
 land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and 
 ever.' 
 
 Jer. xxv. 5. * Turn ye again, now, every one 
 from his evil way, and every one from the evil 
 of your doings, and dwell in the land that Je- 
 hovah hath given unto you, and to your fa- 
 thers, for ever and ever' 
 
 Thefe paflages are as many, and as flrongly ex- 
 preiTed, as thofe which you brought to prove end- 
 lefs mi/cry ; and yet nothing can be more evident 
 than that they cannot intend endlefs duration. — 
 Here, thefe periods mud be limited by the great 
 conflagration \ and thus (for ought that appears as 
 yet) the mifery of the wicked may be limited, not- 
 withftanding the ufe of thofe expreflions, to fet 
 forth its dreadful continuance to unknown ages ; 
 atleaft, thofe words do not neceffarily imply, that 
 they fhall never, as long as God lives, be delivered 
 from their fins and confequent fufferings. 
 
 If we were always to read for ever and ever, 
 endless, we fhould fet the Scriptures at variance ; 
 
 and 
 
14 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 and no criticifm could ever reconcile them. Try, 
 for inftance, to reconcile Pfalm cii, 25, 26, with 
 Pfalm cxlviii. 6. c Of old haft thou laid the foun- 
 dation of the earth, and the heavens are the 
 work of thy hands. They fhall perifh, but thou 
 fhalt endure ; yea, all of them (hall wax old like 
 a garment ; as a vefture fhalt thou change them, 
 and they mail be changed. — He hath alfo efta- 
 blifhed them^r ever and ever : he hath made a 
 decree which fhall not pafs.' 
 
 Now, if the words for ever and ever, fignifv 
 without end, then there is a contradiction that can- 
 not be reconciled •, but only underftand them ages 
 of ages, (as, indeed, they ought to be rendered) and 
 the whole difficulty vanifhes at once. 
 
 Suppcfe a perfon mould read Rev. xx. H. and 
 xxi. 1. £ And I law a great white throne, and 
 him that fat upon it, from whofe face the earth 
 and the heaven lied away ; and there was found 
 no place for them. And I faw a new heaven, 
 and a new earth ; for the firft heaven and the 
 firft earth were paffed away; and there was no 
 more fea -,' And mould then fay, Thefe virions 
 cannot be true, becaufe Solomon hath faid, * One 
 generation paffeth away, and another cometh, 
 but the earth abideth for ever,' Ecelef! I. 4. And 
 God * laid the foundations of the earth, that it 
 mould not be removed, for ever," Pfal. civ. 4. 
 The world alfo is eftablifhed that it cannot be 
 moved,' Pfal. xciii. 1. See alfo ITal. Ixxviii. 69. 
 and xcvi. 10. What would yon think of inch 
 reafoning ? Jufl io weak, muff, all the reafoning 
 againfr. the univcrfal Reftoration be, from the 
 words for titer, and for ever and ever, being 
 plied to fhtcs of future milery, if God has prom i£ 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 5 
 
 ed to put an end to them all, by reconciling all 
 things to himfelf, deflroying fin, and introducing 
 a new creation, and a Itate of univerfal and per- 
 manent happinefs : For, if fuch promifes real- 
 ly exift, and their exiftence can be demonftrat- 
 ed, all reafoning againft them muft be vain and 
 futile. 
 
 Friend. It is certain, that when the word for 
 everis applied to things of this life and world, it 
 intends a period ; but when applied to fpiritual 
 matters, and things of another world, it mult, be 
 endlefs, according to my judgment ; and I am apt 
 to think, you will find it fo too. 
 
 Mintfler. I am certain that you will foon be 
 convinced to the contrary. The apoftle, fpeaking 
 of Chrift, lays, f But this man, after he had of- 
 fered one facrifice for fins, for ever fat down on 
 the right hand of God ; from henceforth, ex- 
 pecting till his enemies be made his footftool," 
 Hcb. x. 12, 13. You will pleafe to notice, that 
 ChriiVs fitting down in the heavens, on the right 
 hand of God, is not a circumftance belonging to 
 this world, or the things of time j and he is is tout 
 there for ever ; and yet that period, which, ac- 
 cording to your hypothefis, muff be endiefsy is ex- 
 prefsly limited by the facred writings : The hea- 
 vens have received him, c until the times (feafons, 
 yes) of reftitution of all things,' (that is, 
 till the beginning, and not the ending of thofe 
 times) which God hath fpoken of by the mouth 
 of all his holy prophets fince world began,' Acts, 
 iii. ai. And the whole New Teftament teacheth 
 us, to wait for the coming of Jefus, from heaven ; 
 (1 Thef. i. 10.) which would be highly abfurd, 
 upon the fuppofition, that he is always to abide 
 
 there : 
 
l6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 there : Which yet he muff, if the word for ever, 
 as applied to things of another Itate, intends endlefs 
 duration. 
 
 Friend. I confeis, I never obferved this before : 
 But, do you know of any pafTage in the New 
 Teflament, where the words, for ever and ever, 
 certainly intend limited duration ? For I obferved, 
 that ail the inltances you brought were from the 
 Old Teflament. 
 
 Minifler. Yes : Heb. i. 8. But unto the Son he 
 faith, ' Thy throne, (in diflinction from the throne 
 of the Father) O God, is for ever and ever;'' 
 yet we read, (i Cor. xv. 24, 28.) of the end, when 
 he fhail have ' delivered up the kingdom to God, 
 even the Father •, when he fhall have put down 
 all rule, and all authority and power : then (hall 
 the Son alio himielf, be fubjea unto him that 
 put all things under him, that God may be all 
 in all.' 
 
 Friend. But when Chrlft threatened fmners, 
 with eve'rlafting fire, everlajling pumihinent, and 
 eternal damnation •, did not his expreffions natural- 
 ly convey the idea of endlefs mifery ? And may not 
 the Son of God be accuied of duplicity and deceit, 
 if he did not mean to denounce puhijhinent without 
 end ? And, therefore, if we believe his words to be 
 true, as moil certainly they are, we muft reject 
 the doctrine of the Reftoration, which puts an 
 end to a ftate, which is called everlafimg, by the 
 mouth of truth iticif. — Are you able to aniwer this 
 fairly ? 
 
 M'wifter. If I am not able to anfwer this objec- 
 tion, which you have ftated in the flrongeil man- 
 ner, I affure you, I will confeis myfe-if in an error -, 
 and fhail thank you, (as an inftrumtnt) for bring- 
 ing 
 
t UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 7 
 
 g me to know it. The lame objection that you 
 ake againft theReftoration, the Jews make againft: 
 hrift and his religion ; for they argue thus : God 
 is an unchangeable Being, and he declared, in the 
 moll lblemn manner, that the ordinances of the 
 Levitical difpenfation mould be everlajling, and the 
 anointing of Aaron's ions mould be an everlajling 
 priefthood, throughout their generations ; (See 
 Exod. xl. 15. and Lev. xvi. 34.) and, therefore, 
 v/e mud reject the Meiliah of the Chriftians, as an 
 impoftor ; inafmuch, as he pretends toabolim thofe 
 ftatutes, which God hath called everlajiingy and to 
 let himfelf up as aPrieft, contrary to the exprefs 
 promife of the Lord, who cannot lye, nor repent, 
 that Aaron and his fons Ihould have an everlajling 
 priefthood -, and, therefore, if this is the true 
 Mefliah, God meant to deceive us, when he pro- 
 mifed thefe everhjling bleffings, and privileges, 
 which, we mull fuppofe were only for a time, 
 if Chriftianity be true ; therefore, we reject it, 
 as being inconfiftent with the promifes of God. 
 
 It is evident, from this view of the matter, that 
 the Jews reject Chrift and his religion, upon as 
 good ground, as you reject the univerfal Reftora- 
 tion, and perhaps better •, for you have nothing 
 to plead againft the P^eftoration, but fome threaten- 
 ings of piiniihments, which are called everlajiingy 
 or eternal^ in our tranflation -, but they plead ex- 
 prefs promifes of the everlajling continuance of 
 their church-Irate and worfhip, in oppofition to 
 Chriftianity. But, if it be true, that both the He- 
 brew and Greek words, which our translators 
 have rendered by the Englifh word everlajling, do 
 not intend endlefs duration, but, a hidden period, or 
 periods i then the ground is changed at once, and 
 
 the 
 
1 8 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 the Jews have no right to object againft Chriftiam- 
 ty, becaufe God promifed a continuance of their 
 temple wor (hip, fore certain age, or, hidden period ; 
 nor the Chriflians to reject the univerfol Reftora- 
 tion, becaufe God hath threatened the rebellious 
 with fuch dreadful punifhments, which (hall en- 
 dure through periods, expreffed in the fame terms. 
 It is indeed confeffed by fome of the molt, learned 
 Jews, that they have no word in their language, 
 which abfolutely fignifies endlefs duration ; and 
 therefore, they can only argue the endlefs continu- 
 ance of any thing from its nature, and not merely 
 from the words rendered for ever, or everlafing. 
 And, if this is the truth of the cafe, (as who can 
 deny it ?) then, neither did Jehovah fpeak to de- 
 ceive the Children of Ifrael, when he promifed 
 them bleffmgs of fuch long continuance, which 
 have ended iong ago, and which are never to be 
 reftored by virtue of that covenant which he made 
 with their fathers, when he brought them out of 
 Egypt : but by the new covenant, which he will 
 make with them, when he mall return them to 
 their own land ; nor did the Son of God fpeak to 
 deceive, when he threatened the wicked with thofe 
 punimmentG, which fhall not end //'// they have an* 
 fwered the purpofes for which it fecms reafonable to 
 believe they pall he inflicted; viz. to bring them 
 down, and humble their proud andftubborn hearts; 
 which fhall be done, during the periods of his 
 kingdom, before he (hall have delivered it up to 
 the Father, that God may be all in at.t.. 
 
 Friend. But if I mould grant that the word 
 aionion doth not even in the New Tcftament always 
 fignify endlefs duration, yet what would yon gain 
 by it, fmceit is plain that Chrifthatfa let the happi- 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IO 
 
 nefs of the righteous, and the mifery of the wicked, 
 one againfr. the other ; and hath expreffed the con- 
 tinuance of both, by the fame word, aionion, in St. 
 Matth. xxv. 46 ? Here, the punifnment of the 
 wicked, and the life of the righteous, are both 
 declared to be aionion, or eternal, without diftinc- 
 tion : Now, can you fhew me any paffage of 
 Scripture, where the fame word is applied to 
 two different things, whofe exigence is not the 
 lame, or the time of their continuance not alike ? 
 
 Minifter. Fairly dated ! And, if it be not as 
 fairly anfwered, it fliall be looked upon as an infu- 
 perable difficulty. But, happily, there is a paf- 
 fage, in Hab. iii. 6. where the fame word is ufed 
 for very different things ; ' He ftood, and meafured 
 the earth : he beheld, and drove afunder the na- 
 tions » and the everlafiing mountains were fcat- 
 tered, the perpetual hills did bow : his ways are 
 everlafing? In our tranllation, the mountains, 
 and the ways of God, are called everlafiing, and 
 the hills perpetual; but, in the original, the word 
 gnad is applied to the mountains, and the word 
 n to the hills, and the ways of God. But 
 whether we argue from the original, or from the 
 translation, it makes no difference : The qutftion 
 is, Are the mountains, or the hills, eternal in the 
 fame fenfe in which the ways of God are ? If fo, 
 the earth muff have exiffed coeval with the ways 
 of Jehovah, and the hills, and mountains, muft 
 never be removed, while his ways endure ; and, 
 as his ways can never be deftroyed, the abfolute 
 eternity, not of the earth only, but of its prefent 
 form, its mountains and hills, mult be inferred : 
 contrary to Ifaiah xl. 4. xliv. 10 — Ezek. xxxviii. 
 2c— 7 Pet. '.*.i. 7, 10, 11, 12.— Rev. xvi. 2c. x;s. 
 
 11. — 
 
20 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 ii. — Nay, even in this very text, the ways of 
 God are ipoken of as being of a different nature 
 from the mountains, which v/zxefcattered, and the 
 hills, which did how. 
 
 Thus, no folid argument can be drawn from 
 the application of the fame word to different things, 
 to prove that they mail be equal in their continu- 
 ance, unlefs their nature be the fame. 
 
 Thus, in the Greek New Teflament, in Rom. 
 xvi. 25. we read of the myflery which hath been 
 kept fecret, from Chronois aioniois y and, in the 26th 
 verfe, we find, that it is now made known by the 
 commandment Tou aionion Theou. But mull it be 
 argued that becaufe aiontou is applied to times, and 
 aionion to God •, therefore, times are as ancient as 
 Jehovah, and mud continue while he exills ? The 
 abfurdity of this is too glaring. Our tranflators 
 have rendered Chronois aioniois , c fince the word be- 
 ganj inflead c of eternal times ;' and have thereby 
 fhewn their judgement to be, that words cannot 
 change the fubjects to which they are applied, but 
 the meaning of the words muft be determined by 
 the nature of the fubjects. 
 
 In Jer. xxviii. 8. the word hegnolam is ufed in the 
 Hebrew \ but the tranflators did not think them- 
 felves obliged to render it c from everlqflingj or, 
 from eternity ;' as it would have been highly ab- 
 furd to have read, eternal prophets, or prophets 
 which were from eternity ; and have therefore ren- 
 dered it ' of old, though it is a flronger word 
 than gnady which they have tranflated ' eternity, 
 in Ifa. lvii. 15. 
 
 Many other inflances of the like nature, might 
 be brought ; but theie are fully fufflcient to con- 
 Yince any unprejudiced mind, that nothing can be 
 
 concluded 
 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. II 
 
 concluded in favour of endlefs pimiJJjment, from the 
 word aionkn being ufed to let forth the duration of 
 it, as well as the duration of that life which our 
 Saviour promifes to the righteous. 
 
 But upon the fuppofition that our Saviour intends 
 no more by the < life eternal,' in the 46th verfe of 
 the xxvth of St. Matthew's gofpel, than he doth 
 in the 34th verfe, by ■ the kingdom prepared from 
 the foundation of the world.' (which it would be 
 hard to prove) then an anfwer might be given, 
 without all this labour, in this manner ; viz. that 
 as the Father hath appointed Chrift a kingdom, fo 
 he hath alfo appointed his faints a kingdom ; (See 
 St. Luke, xxii. 29, 30. Rev. ii. 26, 27. iii. 21.) but 
 as the kingdom which the Father hath given to 
 Chrift, as Mediator, and as Judge, fhall ^W, when 
 he fhall have fubdued all things, and put down all 
 rule, and authority, and power •, (See 1 Cor. xv. 
 24, 25, 26, 27, 28.) fo, of confequence, that 
 kingdom which is given to the faints or overcom- 
 ers, to fubdue the nations, fhall alfo end, when they 
 mall be all fubdued, and brought to fubmit. But 
 as the glory of Chrift fhall not be Ietfened, but in- 
 creafedy when God fhall be all in all ; fo the 
 happinefs of the faints fhall be fo far from end- 
 ing, or being dtmin'tjhfdy at that period, that it 
 fhall then arrive at the fummit of perfection ; but 
 fhall never clofe, nor decreafe, while Jehovah 
 endures. 
 
 Some time ago, a woman came to hear me, and 
 I happened to mention in my fermon, thatChrift's^ 
 mediatorial kingdom was called evcrlajting, or ai- 
 on'io7i \ but that it mujl come to an end, when the 
 kingdom fhould be delivered up to the Father, 
 when he fhould have put down all rule, and all 
 
 autho- 
 
22 DIALOCUES ON THS 
 
 authority and power. After fermon, fhe was alli- 
 ed, how fhe liked ? She anfwered, « Not at all : 
 he fays, The everlafling kingdom of Chrift mail 
 end ; and I never heard of fuch a thing before 
 in all my life •, and I am fure it muff, be contrary 
 to Scripture/ The perfon who afked her, told 
 her, that there was fuch a text fomewhere, me 
 could not tell exactly where to find it. But the 
 woman perfifted in it, that there was no fuch 
 text -, and went away, full of prejudice. Now, 
 had this paffage of Scripture been in the Book 
 of the Revelations, it would not have been fo 
 much to be wondered at, that (he had never heard 
 of it *, but when we confider, that this is expreff- 
 ed in that part of the 15th chapter of St. Paul's 
 firffc epiflle to the Corinthians, which is in the bid- 
 rial fer vice — what mail we fay ? 
 
 Thus, if ChrijTs klngdoinJ?jj/I end, much more 
 Satan's ! If rewards, as fuch, mall ceafe ; how 
 much more punijhments ! If the everlafling king- 
 dom of the faints, which they fhall po fiefs /or ever 
 and ever, (See Dan. vii 18, 27.) (hail end, or be 
 fwallowed up in that kingdom of boundiefs love, 
 where God fhall be all in all; how much 
 much more, fhall all fin, pain, forrow, and death, 
 ceafe, and have no more a name in God's crea- 
 tion ! 
 
 Friend. But fuppofing the doctrine of endlefs 
 mlfery to be a truth, how would you expect to 
 find it expreffed in the Bible ? 
 
 MiniJJer. I ihould have a right to expect, in 
 the fir ft place, that there would be no promiles in 
 tire Scripture to the contrary; no fach paflages as 
 thefe: • For I have fworn by myfelf, the word is 
 gone out of my mouth in righteouiheis, and 
 
 « fliall 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 2J 
 
 fhall not return ; that unto me every knee fhall 
 bow, and every tongue fhall fwear ;' Ifaiah xlv. 
 23. Mind well, every tongue shall swear. 
 Swearing allegiance, as every civilian will tell you, 
 implies pardon, reception, and protection, on the part 
 of the king ; and a hearty renouncing of rebellion, 
 truefubjeclion, and willing obedience, on the part of 
 the rebels. Kings of the earth may be deceived, 
 but God cannot - he will never accept of any feign- 
 ed fubjeclion ; and, therefore, all that fwear, fhall 
 fwear in truth and righteouihefs ; fo fhall rebellion 
 ceafe, and difobedience be no more. 
 
 The apoftle St. Paul, feems to quote this pa£- 
 fage of Scripture with iome variation, in his epif- 
 tie to the Philippians, chap. ii. 9, 10, 1 1 ; where, 
 ipeaking of the fufFerings of Chrift, and the con- 
 iequences of the fame, he fays, ' Wherefore God 
 hath highly exalted him, and given him a 
 a name, which is abo . e every name ; that at (or 
 in) the name of ytfiu every knee fhall bow, of 
 things in heaven, arid things in earth, ai.d things 
 under the earth ; and that every tongue mould 
 confefs that Jcfius Chrift is Lord, to the glory of 
 God the Father.' Now, this confeffion appears 
 tome to imply a wrftfngfutftfi . Verity 
 
 of i>. r, brought about by die operation cf 
 
 bleifed Spirit; for the fame apcitie iaith, 
 Wherefore, I give , on to understand, that no 
 man, ipeaking by . '.t ct GoJ, ealleth Je- 
 
 fus accurfcd ; and r>o man can lay that Jefus is 
 the Lord, but by the Holy GhoiV 1 Cor. xii. 3. 
 
 Then i\. -r, thrown into a lyllogiftical 
 
 fori- . a thus : 
 
 It ( 1 ; bow, of things in heaven. 
 
 and 
 
14 rilALOCUES ON THE 
 
 and things in earth, and things under the earth ; 
 then fhall all rebellion ceafe. 
 
 But the firfl is true ; therefore, alfo the lafr. 
 If every tongue (hall confefs that Jefus Chrift is 
 Lord, to the glory of God the Father ; and no 
 man can fay that Jefus is the Lord, but by the 
 Holy Ghoft-, then fhall the Holy Ghoft work 
 effectually in every man. As the major is proved, 
 by Phil. ii. n. and the minor, by i Cor. xii. 3, 
 the conclufion mufl be evident to a demonftra- 
 tion. 
 
 Friend. I acknowledge, that in the prefent 
 ftate, no man can fay that Jefus is the Lord, but 
 by the Holy Ghoft ; but when they fhall ftand 
 before his bar, they fhall confefs him Lord, to the 
 glory of God the Father, by force. 
 
 Minifter. But St. Paul fpeaks generally, % that 
 no man can fay that Jefus is the Lord, but by the 
 Holy Ghoft :' He does not mention time or place, 
 but reprefents the matter importable ; befides every 
 expreffion here ufed, implies a willing, and not a 
 forced fubjeclion ; as bowing in the name of Jefus, 
 and confefIing him to be Lord of all, to the glory 
 of God the Father. 
 
 Friend. But we are fometimes told, that God 
 is as much glorified by the eternal damnation of 
 fome, as by the eternal falvation of others. 
 
 Minifter. I have, indeed, heard fome afTert the 
 fame : But as the glory of God is the ultimate 
 end of all that he doth, we may properly afk, why 
 he fhould take any pains to fave mankind ? 
 
 But, above all, there is one objection that may 
 be brought againft this idea, which is hard to an- 
 fwer •, and that is, God hath faid, ■ For I have no 
 <pleafurc in the death of him that dieth, faith the 
 
 1 Lord 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IS 
 
 Lord God. Say unto them, As I live, faith the 
 Lord God, I have no pleafure in the death of 
 the wicked ; but that the wicked turn from his 
 way, and live : turn ye, turn ye, from your evil 
 ways ; for why will ye die, O Houfe of Ifrael ?' 
 Ezek. xviii. 23. xxxiii. 11. It is evident to me, 
 that God muft take pleafure in what glorifies his 
 name •, and as he hath fworn, that he takes no 
 pleafure at all in the death of the wicked, it muft be 
 fet down for a truth, rh^xtpuni/Jmient, without hav- 
 ing the reformation and fubjection of rebels for its 
 end, is unworthy of the Being we adore ; and even 
 now, it is called, ' hisjlrange iuork>' and ' hisjlrangt 
 aft? But to proceed : If endlefs mifery were a 
 truth, I ihould not expect that the myftery of the 
 will of God, which he hath made known unto his 
 chofen, according to his good pleafure, which he 
 hath pnrpofed in himfelf, would be, * That, in the 
 difpeniation of the fulnefs of times, he might ga- 
 ther together in one, {or rehead) all things in 
 Chrift, both which are in heaven, and which are 
 in earth,' Ephef. i. 9, 10. Far lefs mould I 
 expect to find, that « It pleafed the Father that in 
 him mould all fulnefs dwell \ and, having made 
 peace by the blood of his crofs, by him, to recon- 
 cile all things to himfelf ; by him, I fay, whether 
 they be things in earth, or things in heaven.' 
 Col. i. 19, 20. And I am not able to imagine, 
 how St. John's vifion (Rev. v. 13.) could bejuft, 
 if endlefs damnation is true, where he fays, * And 
 every creature who is in heaven, and on the 
 earth, and under the earth, and fuch as are in the 
 fea, and all that are in them, heard I, faying, 
 Blefling, and honour, and glory, and power, be 
 unto him that fitteth upon the throne, and unto 
 the Lamb, for ever and ever.' In the nature of 
 B thing s 
 
C!6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 things, it appears impoffible to me to believe ttoefe 
 paffages to be ft rift ly and literally true, if endlefs 
 mifery be a truth : Therefore I fay, that I ftiould 
 not expect any intimations , far lefs abfolute promifes > 
 that God would deftroy death, the works of the 
 devil, and make all things new, with many others 
 of the like nature. 
 
 We find it prornifed, that every knee (hall bow : 
 and left fome might fay, that every knee, meant only 
 fane knees, it is explained by the infpired apoftle, 
 to mean all things in heaven, and in earth, and 
 under the earth : and not only fo, but every tongue 
 fhaliy^rar, and cenfefs that Jelus Chrift is Lord, to 
 the glory of God the Father -, which could not be, 
 except all were reconciled to him, whether things 
 in heaven, or things in earth : Wherefore, this is 
 alfo prornifed ; and, in confequence of their being 
 fubdued, humbled, made obedient, and reconcile J, 
 they (hall be reheaded in Chrijl ' ; never more to go 
 aftray, nor break that band of eternal union, which 
 mall bind all together in one body, joined to one 
 head; and all fhall give never-ceafmg praife to 
 God and the Lamb, world without end. 
 
 As endlefs damnation appears to me to be again/I 
 the promifes, I cannot hold it as an article of my 
 faith *, but were there no promifes or intimations 
 to the contrary in Scripture, I mould not require 
 it to be threatened in any ftronger terms than it is; 
 I fhould believe it as a truth, though I might not 
 be able, at prefent, to fee the propriety and equity 
 thereof; I mould never fuifer my weak reafon to 
 gainfay Divine Revelation : But my difficulty arifes 
 from thefe exprefs promifes of God, which com- 
 pofe fo great a part of that book which is given us 
 as a rule of faith and practice ; and which promi- 
 fes 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 27 
 
 fcs exprefsly affert a future ftate of things beyond 
 fin, forrow, pain, and death of every kind ; when 
 all things fhall be made new •, and death, the laft 
 enemy of God, Chrift, and man, mall be deftroy- 
 ed, fwallowed up in victory ; and fin, which is 
 its fling, mail be no more in exigence •, and tears 
 {hall be all wiped away, from all faces. 
 
 But, though I have acknowledged that I mould 
 not dare to difpute the doctrine of endlefs damnation , 
 unlefs God had given intimations ; and evenpromifes, 
 to the contrary ♦, fince I find feveral dreadful threat- 
 enings in Scripture, in which the word aionion, or 
 everlajiing, is joined with the punifhment of the 
 wicked ; yet, a very little attention will fhew us, 
 that the felicity of the righteous is promifed in 
 much ftronger language, than the mifery of the 
 wicked is threatened, in the Scriptures. 
 
 I remark, in the firit place, that the word aio- 
 nion, rendered everlafting, or eternal, is ufed much 
 oftener in St. John's gofpel alone, to exprefs the 
 continuance of the life, or well-being, of the righ- 
 teous, than it is ufed in the whole Bible, to ex- 
 prefs the mifery of the wicked ; and this remark 
 is ftrengthened by obferving, that he never once 
 ufes the word in his whole gofpel, nor in his epii- 
 tles, to fet forth the duration of punifhment. See 
 St. John, iii. 15, 16, 36. iv. 14. v. 24. vi. 27, 
 40, 47, 54, 68. x. 28. xii. 25, 50. xvii. ver. 2, 
 3. in all which pafTages, the word aionion is ufed 
 to exprefs the continuance of the well-being of 
 the righteous. 
 
 But, not to infift on this : I obferve, that there 
 
 are many fi ronger expreffions (even in our tranfla- 
 
 tion) to fet forth the well-being of the righteous, 
 
 than any that are ufed as connected with the mifery 
 
 B 2 of 
 
28 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 of the wicked. Ifaiah, xlv. 17. we read, < Ifra- 
 el fhall be faved in Jehovah, with an ever la/ling 
 falvation ; ye fhall not be afhamed, nor confound- 
 ed, world without end. 1 But where do we read, 
 that the mifery of the wicked (hall have no end? 
 The word end/efs, or world without end, is never 
 once ufed by our tranflators, to exprefs the eterni- 
 ty of punifhment, in the whole Bible. 
 
 We read, in 1 Pet. i. 4. of « an inheritance, in- 
 corruptible, and undefiled ; and that fadeth ?iot a- 
 tvay, reierved in heaven :' and in chap. v. 4. of 
 * a crown of glory, that fadeth not away :* and, 
 Heb. xii. 28. of a c kingdom, which cannot be 
 moved :' And our bleffed Saviour's words are re- 
 markably ftrong upon this fubjecl, in many pla- 
 ces *, as, in St. Luke's gofpel, chap. xx. 35, 36, 
 where he fays, i But they who fhall be accounted 
 worthy to obtain that world, and the (firft) refur- 
 reclion from the dead, neither marry, nor are giv- 
 en in marriage : neither can they die any more : for 
 they are equal unto the angels ; and are the chil- 
 dren of God, being the children of the refurrec- 
 tion :' And in St. John, x. 27, 28, 29. we read 
 thus : ' My fheep hear my voice, and I know 
 them, and they follow me : and I give unto them 
 eternal life : and they fhall never periJJj, neither 
 fhall any pluck them out of my hand. My Fa- 
 ther, who gave them me, is greater than all ; and 
 none is able to pluck them out of My Father's 
 hand.' In chap. xi. 25, 26. Chrift fays, * I am 
 the refurrecYion and the life : he that believeth in 
 me, though he were dead, yet fhall he live: And 
 whofoever liveth and believeth in me, fhall never 
 die' And, in chap. vi. 50. he fays, ' This is the 
 bread that cometh down from heaven, that a man 
 
 may 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. ?0 
 
 may eat thereof, and not die? And he exprefTes 
 the perpetuity of heavenly blifs, and of our en- 
 joyment of the fame, by advifirig us, faying, * Lay 
 up for yourfelves trealures in heaven ; where nei- 
 ther moth nor ruft doth corrupt, and where 
 thieves do not break through nor (leal. Fear not, 
 little flock ; for it is your Father's good pleafure 
 to give you the kingdom. Sell that ye have, and 
 give alms : provide yourfelves bags which wax 
 not old, a treafure in the heavens that faileth not •, 
 where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrup- 
 ted,' St. Matth. vi. 20. and St. Luke, xii. 32, 33. 
 This is that which St. Paul calleth ' a better and 
 an enduring fubftance,' Heb. x. 34. But what 
 mail I fay of the apoftle's words, 2 Cor. iv. 7 ? 
 ' For our light affliction, which is but for a mo- 
 ment, worketh for us, hath hyperbolen eis hyperbolen 
 aionion baros doxes katergazetai emin : a glory, ex- 
 ceeding aioniotty or eternal, to an excefs' Here is 
 an hyperbole upon an hyperbole ; beyond eter- 
 nal ; a far more exceeding eternal weight of glo- 
 ry- 
 But it is not fo much by the different words 
 made ufe of to denote the permanency of the feli- 
 city of the righteous, from thofe which are ufed 
 to exprefs the duration of the mifery of the wick- 
 ed, that I judge of the continuance of the one be- 
 yond the other •, fo much as from the different 
 fources from whence they flow, and of their dif- 
 ferent natures. 
 
 The happinefs of thofe who are ieconciled to 
 God, arifes from their union to Chrift ; in which 
 if they continue grounded and fettled during this 
 prefent life, wherein they pafs through fo many 
 fore trials, the union will become fo permanent, 
 B 3 as 
 
30 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 as that it will be impoffible to diflblve it •, and the 
 very nature of things mews, that if we abide firm 
 to the end, through all difficulties, and overcome 
 all thoie things that would leek to feparate us 
 from Chriit, when we come into that ftate where 
 we fhall meet with no more temptations, nor any 
 thing that hath the leaft tendency to draw our 
 minds from God, we muff, of confequence, re- 
 main attached, or united, to him, while we have 
 an existence. This doctrine was known to David ; 
 and, therefore, he faid, * While I live, will I 
 praife Jehovah ; I will ling praifes unto my God, 
 while I have any being/ Pfal. cxlvi. 2. civ. 33. 
 It may be proved, that the union fhall continue 
 between Chriit and his faithful ones after this life, 
 and mall become indiffolubie ; and that neither 
 ' tribulation, nor diflrefs, nor persecution, nor fa- 
 mine, nor nakednefs, nor peril, nor fword ; neither 
 death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor 
 powers, nor things prefent, nor things to come, 
 nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, 
 mall be able to feparate us (who abide in him) 
 from the love of God which is in Chriit Jefus 
 our Lord.' See Rom. viii. 35 — 39. See alfo St. 
 John, xv. 4, 5, 7, 9, 10. 1 John, ii. 24 — 28. 
 
 The never-ending continuance of the life, or 
 ftate of well-being of the righteous, may be cer- 
 tainly inferred, with the greatcft eafe, from the 
 continuance of the life of Chrift; who is made an 
 high-prieff, * not after the law of a carnal com- 
 mandment, but after the power of an endiefs life/ 
 Heb. vii. 16. And he hath exprefsly declared, 
 * Becauie I live, ye fhall live alfo/ St. John xiv. 
 19. Thus, as long as the caufe remains, the ef- 
 fect mud: continue ; but the caufe, even the life 
 
 of 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 31 
 
 of Chrifr, muft undoubtedly continue to endleis 
 periods ; therefore alio, the effect, or the life of 
 thofe who are joined to him in an indiffoluble uni- 
 on, mail continue. The apoftle Paul understood 
 logic as well as any in our days : and he thus rea- 
 fons upon this glorious truth ; * The fpirit itfelf 
 beareth witnels with our fpirits, that we (who arc 
 led by the Spirit of God, and have received the 
 fpirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father) 
 * are the children of God : And if children, then 
 heirs ; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Chrift. : 
 if fo be that we iuffer with him, that we may be 
 alio glorified together,' Rom. viii. 16, 17. 
 
 Now, as Chrift, the principal heir, cannot be 
 difinherited ; fo, neither can thofe who are joint 
 heirs with him. The Holy Spirit is given us as 
 the earneft of our inheritance, and to leal us to the 
 day of redemption, 2 Cor. v. 5. Ephef. i. 13, 14. 
 and iv. 30. Chrift is the head, and the overcom- 
 es through the blood of the Lamb, are the members 
 of his body, and mall inherit all things ; he will 
 be their God, and they mall be his children : he is 
 their life, and he ' will make them pillars in the 
 temple of God, and they mall go no more out/ 
 Rev. III. 12. St. Paul fays, * When Chrifl, who 
 is our life, fhall appear, then mall ye alio appear 
 with him in glory,' Col. iii. 4. And St. John fays, 
 ' Behold what manner of love the Father hath be- 
 lle -wed upon us, that we fhould be called the fons 
 of God : therefore the world knoweth us not, 
 becaufe it knew him not. Beloved, now are we 
 the fons of God, and it doth not yet appear what 
 we (hall be : but we know, that when he fhall ap- 
 peap, we fhall be like him ; for we mall fee him as 
 he is,' 1 John iii. 1, 2. Thus, we are fure, from 
 B 4 the 
 
32 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 the Scriptures, and from the nature of things, 
 that thofe who are drawn by the Father, united to 
 the Son, fealed by the Holy Ghoft, willingly choofe 
 the Lord for their portion, and conftantly adhere 
 to him to the end, mail never be feparated from 
 him in the future ages ; for he himfelf faith, * As 
 the living Father hath fent me, and I live by the 
 Father ; fo he that eateth me, even he mall live by 
 me/ St. John, vi. 57. And as Chrifl is the great 
 attracting loadftone, that fhall finally draw all 
 things to him ; it is evident, that he will preferve 
 for ever, thofe whom he hath thoroughly drawn 
 to himfelf, and who have adhered to him through 
 the time of trial. Thus is the life eternal of the 
 righteous, or their endlefs ftate of well-being, cx- 
 preffed in much frronger language than the miiery 
 of the wicked j and, moreover, has its foundation 
 in the union between Chrifl and his church, and 
 in the nature of things. 
 
 Friend. But if the Spirit of God dwelling in us, 
 and thereby caufing us to adhere to Chrift, and to 
 follow him through all trials, makes our union to 
 him fo perfect, that nothing fhall be able to fepa- 
 rate us from him to all eternity ; fince we are con- 
 firmed in habits of goodnefs by free choice, and by 
 oft repeated exercifes ; why, by the fame rule, 
 mail not the mifery of the wicked be etidlefs, fee- 
 ing that they have chofen and adhered to evil 
 through life, and by conftant practice are con- 
 firmed therein ? Evil is grown up to a body in 
 them •, and it appears to me as difficult to reform 
 and bring them off from their vicious habits, as 
 it would be to draw the faints in light from their 
 adherence to virtue and goodnefs. 
 
 Minjfter. 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 33 
 
 Minijier. Your reafoning would be conclusive, 
 upon the fuppofition that there are two eternal prin- 
 ciples^ viz. good and evil \ if it can be proved, that 
 evil is coexiitent with goodnefs, that it hath always 
 been : then, the abfolute eternity of fin and raifery 
 may be eafily inferred. This is the true founda- 
 tion of endlefs mifery> and it came from the Pagan 
 theology : The Heathens believed in two eternal 
 principles^ ever warring againit each other, and nei- 
 ther fully prevailing ; that men had the liberty of 
 enlifting under which they pleafed •, and that thole 
 who in life chofe virtue, mould enjoy endlefs feli- 
 city ; while thofe who chofe, and adhered to vice, 
 Should eternally remain under its dominion, and of 
 confequence be always miferable. Thus, the in- 
 fernal deities being judged by the poor Pagans to 
 be as eternal as the good gods, and more power- 
 ful ; they facrificed more to the evil principle than 
 to the good, out of fear, and to appeafethe anger 
 of thofe abhorred, malevolent agents \ hence, the 
 frequency of human facrifices. 
 
 Now, when the Chriftian religion triumphed 
 over Paganifm in the Roman empire, many of the 
 philofophers embraced and profeiTed it, but withal, 
 retained many of their Pagan notions ; among 
 which was the eternity of theie two oppofite princi- 
 ples : hence arofe the ancient feci: of the Manichees, 
 who believed not only the eternal exigence of two 
 contrary eternal Gods, one good and the other evil; 
 but alfo, that all vifible things were created by the 
 devil ; and upon this principle, they might argue 
 the univerlality of damnation, with as much eafe 
 and certainty, as we, upon the contrary, may argue 
 the certainty of the universal Restoration, accord- 
 ing to that glorious promiie of God, Uaiah, lvii. i6, 
 B 5 '7, 
 
34 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 17, 1 8, 19, ( For I will not contend for ever, nei- 
 ther will I always be wroth : for the Spirit fhould 
 fail before me, and the fouls which I have made. 
 For the iniquity of his covetoufnefs was I wroth, 
 and fmote him : I hid me, and was wroth ; and 
 he went on frowardly, in the way of his heart. 
 I have feen his ways, and will heal him : I "will 
 lead him alfo, and reltore comforts unto him, 
 and to his mourners. I create the fruit of the 
 lips *, Peace, peace, to him that is far off, and to 
 him that is near, faith Jehovah -, and I will heal 
 him.' 
 
 Thofe who venture to contradict their Maker, 
 and fay, that he ivill cotitend for ever, and be always 
 wroth ; ought to give as good a reafon, at leaft, 
 why he w$t 9 as he hath given why he will not ; 
 and, coniequently, mufl prove him not to be the 
 Father of all (pints, and the Creator of all fouls : 
 If, therefore, it can be demonftrated, that Satan 
 is an eternal, felf-exiffent, immutable, evil being, 
 and that he hath created all, or apart of mankind, 
 (as feme afferted formerly, and as I myfelf have 
 heard lately) or that he hath drawn fome of God's 
 creatures into fuch an union with himfelf, that 
 they cannot be feparated from him ; and that he 
 will maintain his crown, throne, and kingdom, in 
 oppofition to God, to all endlefs duration ; then, 
 and not till then, may the eternity of fin andmifery 
 be concluded, from the nature of things, with 
 tqual eafe and certainty, as the perfection and 
 happinefs of the faints. 
 
 But, if the kingdom of evil, and all the works 
 of fin, Satan, and darknels, fhall be totally de- 
 itroyed by Chrift, and all things mall be rehead- 
 cd ifi him, who is the head of all principality 
 
 and 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 3£ 
 
 and power, as well as of every man : See Ephe- 
 fians, i. jc. Co), ii. ic. i Cor. xi. 3. If every 
 knee fhall bow, and tongue (hall iwear, and all 
 things, whether in heaven or in earth, or under 
 the earth, fhall confefs that he is Lord ; and all 
 things, whether in heaven or in earth, fhall be 
 reconciled to him : See Ilaiah, xlv. 23. Phil. ii. 
 10. Col. i. 20. And all kingdoms (not excepting 
 that of the prince of the power of the air) fhall be 
 broken and deftroyed by the kingdom of Chrift, 
 which fhall itfelf be yielded up into the kingdom 
 of boundlefs love, where judgment (haH be no more: 
 What fhall we fay of that doctrine, that teaches 
 us the endlefs duration of evil ? So far is the endlej's 
 fin and milery of the wicked from being inferred 
 from the endlefs holinefs and felicity of the righte- 
 ous, in the kingdom of the Father, that every proof 
 and demonftration of the latter, concludes equally 
 again ft the former. 
 
 One of the firft arguments that ever began to 
 take hold of my mind, and to bring me to think 
 leriouily of the fyftem of the Reftoration, was, 
 what I read in a little book upon the fubject call- 
 ed, The Everlafing Gojpel, Sec. and is there thus 
 expreffed. 
 
 1 it is as impoffible that there mould be two end- 
 lefs contrary things, as that there mould be two 
 real contrary deities, a good God and a bad one, 
 or two forts of contrary creatures, both of truly 
 divine original, fome being -made good by God, 
 and others bad. For an abfolute and merely infi- 
 nite duration, which has neit.i 1 beginning nor 
 end, is according to the confeflion &f all divines, 
 yea or every reasonable man, a property peculiar 
 to the uncreated Being only. But fuch an infi- 
 nite 
 
3^ DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 nite duration, which, although it has a beginning, 
 yet fhall have no end, can only be the property of 
 thofe creatures, that are of divine original. For as 
 thefe, according to the language of the fcripture, 
 are of divine origin, and therefore are rooted in God, 
 or in his almighty creating power, which has no 
 beginning, they can alfo be everlafling, their ex- 
 igence or duration can alfo be without end in God. 
 But whatfoever has not its eternal root in God, 
 or in his eternal creating power, but is fprung up 
 in the creature in this world, by its voluntary 
 turning away from God, and againft. his holy 
 will, and confequently is an abomination and di£- 
 pleafure to the Molt High, and is only fufFered by 
 him, fuch as fin, and the punifhment depending 
 thereon, thefe things cannot poffibly be of an ab- 
 solute endleis exigence and duration, or remain fo 
 long as God mail exift ; but muft of neceflity 
 once ceafe and be annihilated. For as God is a Be- 
 ing to thofe creatures which he created good, and 
 which exift through his will, wherein they may 
 fubfift and be preferved without end ; fo he is on 
 the contrary, to iniquity and fin, (which againft. 
 his will, is fprung up in and flicks to the crea- 
 tures) a consuming fire, whereby all fin and per- 
 verfenefs in the creatures muft be at laft confumed, 
 annihilated, and feparated from them in the highefl 
 degree, in order to reftore them to their primitive 
 purity ; in the fame manner as the fire does not 
 confume and deftroy the gold, but only the drofs, 
 and that which is impure.' 
 
 We will now ftate fome of the arguments in fa- 
 Tour of the cndltfs continuance of the happinefs of 
 the faints, in the kingdom of their Father ; and 
 
 thofe 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 37 
 
 thofe which prove that the ftate of mifery fhall 
 come to an end 
 
 Chrifthath promifed, that the happinefs of the 
 faints mall have no end ; becaufe his life mail have 
 no end, and he is their life. 
 
 The mifery of the wicked mail end, becaufe the 
 kingdom of evil mail end. 
 
 The power of God ftands engaged to preferve 
 and keep thofe who commit themfelves to him ; 
 and thus their union with him mall always con- 
 tinue. 
 
 The fame is engaged to deitroy that covenant 
 with death, and that agreement with hell, where- 
 by finners are held in fubjection to Satan, and thus 
 to take the prey from the mighty, and the captives 
 from the terrible. 
 
 The fubjects of Chrift are his natural fubjec"ts ; 
 he is their rightful fovereign : but Satan's fubjects 
 are flaves, led captive by him at his will ; he is an 
 ufurper, and ail that are in bondage to him belong 
 to Chrift, who will finally draw them all to him- 
 felf. 
 
 Thofe that are in blifs mall be eternally attract- 
 ed by him, and mall always choofe that which is 
 good \ but when evil is broken, its influence mail 
 no more prevail over thofe that are captivated 
 by it; and they mail feel the confequences of 
 fin in fuch a manner as to loathe it ; and they mall 
 heartily return, and fwear allegiance to their right- 
 ful King. 
 
 There mail be no influence to draw the faints in 
 blifs from Chrift, and thereby diffolve his king- 
 dom ; but all the influence of God and goodnefs, 
 fliall tend to diffolve the kingdom of darknefs, and 
 
 to 
 
38 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 to put an end to the thraldom and mifery of its un- 
 happy flaves. 
 
 Thus, I might go on with a long train of argu- 
 ments upon this fubject •, but thefe may fuffice. 
 
 Friend. Your arguments would feem very 
 conclusive, for the entire fubjecYion of all 
 things, if you could prove that the word all, 
 intends literally and mathematically, the whole y 
 without exception : but this, I doubt, will be dif- 
 ficult for you to do, as you muft know, that it is 
 very frequently ufed in common language for 
 a part, and fometimes for only a final I part of man- 
 kind. 
 
 Minijler. I acknowledge, this is the cafe in 
 common converfation, and in fuch parts of the fa- 
 cred hiftory where we are in no danger of being 
 milled by it, being well informed by the context, 
 or fome other paffages, or from the nature, or from 
 the circumftances of the facts, that we muft take 
 it in a limited fenfe ; but I do not recollect any 
 paflage, where any point of doblrinc is fpoken of, in 
 which the word all is ufed in that uncertain and 
 undeterminate manner : and it is neceflary that it 
 mould not be ufed in that way, in matters of im- 
 portance ; becaufe we might be led into confufion 
 and great uncertainty thereby •, not knowing 
 whether to underftand it nniverfally , or partially. 
 Wherefore, I lay down this plain rule ; viz. When 
 the word all is ufed in any pafTage of Scripture, 
 and we are not necefTarily obliged, either by the 
 context or fome other text, or the nature and cir- 
 cumftances of the cafe, to underftand it partially ; 
 and efpecially, where any important point of doc- 
 trine is fpoken of we are always to underftand it 
 u?iiverfally y without exception. 
 
 Friend. 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 39 
 
 Friend. But can you prove from the writings of 
 the apoftles, that they ufed the word ALL in this 
 large and univerfal fenfe ? 
 
 Minijler. Yes, my friend, very eafily, and in the 
 moft unexceptionable manner. Hear what the au- 
 thor of the EpifUe to the Hebrews fays upon this 
 matter : * Thou haft put all things in fubjec*Hon 
 under his feet : for in that he put all in fubjecYion 
 under him ; he left nothing that is not put under him/ 
 Heb. ii. 8. 
 
 It is evident, that the apoftlc's reafoning would 
 be very inaccurate, if not entirely falfe, upon the 
 fuppofition that all things did not intend all, in 
 the largeft fenfe : for how would this conclufion 
 naturally and necefTarily follow, ( For in that he 
 put all in fubjection under him, he left nothing not 
 put under him ;' unlefs it be premifed, that all is 
 ufed in the univerfal fenfe of the word ? 
 
 Friend. But hath not the fame apoftle made an 
 exception, when he ufes the word all, in fome 
 other of his writings ? 
 
 Min'ifler. Yes, truly ; but it is fuch an excep- 
 tion as juftifies this fenfe of the word, more than 
 a thoufand arguments : * For he hath put all 
 things under his feet ; but when he faith, all 
 things are put under him, it is manifeft, that he is 
 excepted which did put ALL things under him. 9 
 1 Cor. xv. 27. Here God the Father being alone 
 excepted, proves all other beings to be included in 
 the words all things ; and that in fo convincing a 
 manner, that I am aftonifhed that I did not perceive 
 it long before I did. 
 
 Friend. It is true, that nothing can be plainer, 
 than that all things, in thefe places, mull: mean 
 all beings, except God -, but then, perhaps, St. 
 
 Paul 
 
40 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Paul only meant, that they mould be fubjecl: to his 
 controul, and not brought willingly to obey : If you 
 can prove this point as clearly as you have the 
 other, and from the fame authority, it will feem to 
 -put the matter with me beyond difpute. 
 
 Minijler. This is very eafily done ; for it is uni- 
 verfally acknowledged by all Chriftians, that all 
 things are now, and have ever been fubjecl: to his 
 controul \ for when he was upon earth, in his low- 
 ell: ftate of humiliation, even the unclean fpirits, 
 the moft rebellious of beings, obeyed his word ; 
 which made thofe who faw his miracles cry, with 
 amazement, ( What thing is this ? what new doc- 
 trine is this ? for with authority commandeth he 
 even the unclean fpirits, and they obey him/ St. 
 Mark, i. 27. The devils obeyed him univerfally, 
 in whatever he commanded them ; and could not 
 enter into the fwine without his permiflio ; and 
 how difagreeable foever his words were to them, 
 they vj ere forced to comply, without daring to 
 complain; yea, they frequently feemed like hum- 
 ble fuppliants *, and once we read, they went fo 
 far as to adjure our blefled Lord not to torment 
 them : See St. Mark, v. 7. The winds, waves, 
 fifhes, all obey him *, all difeafes, and even death 
 itfelf, heard his voice, and departed at his bidding ; 
 and to his difciples he faid, All power is given 
 unto me, in heaven and in earth,' Matth. xxviii. 
 18. and certainly now, he is at ' the right hand 
 of God, angels, and authorities, and powers, are 
 made fubjecl unto him,' 1 Pet. ill. 22. God hath 
 exalted him far above all principality, and power, 
 and might, and dominion, and every name that is 
 named •, not only in this age y (for fo I render the 
 word aiQui) but alfo in that which is to come ; and 
 
 put 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. j(l 
 
 put all things under his feet, and gave him to be 
 the head over all things to the church," Ephef. i. 
 21, 22. But, as though the apoftle had known 
 that the fenfe would be difputed, he hath faid, 
 ' But now we fee not yet all things put under him, 
 Heb. ii. 8. All things were fubjecl: to his controul, 
 even on earth ; and they cannot be lefs fo, now he. 
 is exalted to heaven, to the glory which he had 
 with the Father before the world was ; and yet, 
 many years after his afcenfion, the apoftle fays, 
 ( But now we fee not yet all things put under him j' 
 by which he mult certainly mean their being w/V- 
 lingly fubjecl unto him ; for, in all other fenfes, 
 all things are now put under him, in the moft un- 
 limited manner, as we have feen already. But the 
 apoftle goes on to tell how far the important work 
 is accomplifhed, and that a fure foundation is laid 
 for its entire completion ; faying, « But we fee Je- 
 fus, who was made a little lower than the angels, 
 for thefufferingof death, crowned with glory and 
 honour, that he, by the grace of God, mould taftc 
 death for all ;' (for fo the word pantos ought to 
 be rendered.) There was anciently a manufcript 
 in ufe, in which the words were choris Theou in- 
 ftead of chariti Theou, that is, for all, except 
 God. And there is little doubt of its being the 
 true fenfe \ becaufe St. Paul makes the fame 
 exception, with refpecl to thofe who are put 
 under Chrift, as we have before noted, i Cor. 
 xv. 27. 
 
 Then the apoftle adds, * For it became him, for 
 whom are all things, and by whom are all things^ 
 in bringing many fons unto glory, to make the 
 Cnptain of their falvation perfect through fuffer- 
 ings,' Heb. ii. 9, 10. 
 
 Inftead 
 
4(2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Inftead of the word all intending only a part, we 
 find, in feveral places, that the word many intends 
 ally as in Rom. v. 15, 1 6, 19. ' For if through 
 the offence of one, many be dead ; much more the 
 grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by- 
 one man, Jefus Chrifr, hath abounded unto many. 
 The free gift is of many offences unto juftification. 
 For, as by one man's difobedience many were made 
 finners ; fo, by the obedience of one, fhall many 
 be made righteous.' Ifaiah liii. 11, 12. c By his 
 knowledge fhall my righteous ferrant juftify many 
 (or the many) for he mail bear their iniquities. 
 And he bare the fins of many, and made inter- 
 ceflion for the tranfgrefTors.' Theie many are call- 
 ed all, in the 6th verfe : All we, like fheep have 
 gone affray ; we have turned every one to his own 
 way : and Jehovah hath laid on him the iniquity 
 of us all* 
 
 But, to return to our fubject : St. Paul allures 
 us, that though all things, without exception, are 
 put under him, in one fenfe ; yet, in another, he 
 fays, < But now we fee not yet all things put under 
 him/ But he leaves us not in the dark about the 
 matter •, but fpeaks of that effectual * working, 
 whereby he is able even to fubdue all things unto 
 himfelf,' Phil. iii. 21. And when all things fhall 
 be fubdued unto himfelf, then fhall the Son alio 
 himfelf be fubjeft unto him that put all things un- 
 der him, that God may be all in all,' i Cor. xv. 
 28. Here we plainly find, a very neceflary diftinc- 
 tion between all things being put under him ; and 
 all things being fubdued unto him, the former is al- 
 ready done, in the fulleft manner ; and the latter 
 Jhall be as perfectly and as fully accomplifhed, in 
 due time : «Becaufe the creation itfclf fhall be de- 
 livered 
 
UNIVERSAX RESTORATION. 43 
 
 livered from the bondage of corruption, into the 
 glorious liberty of the children of God. For we 
 know, that the whole creation groaneth and tra- 
 vaileth in pain together, until now/ Rom. viii. 21, 
 22. 
 
 Though what hath already been fpoken, may 
 feem more than enough to prove the point refpect- 
 ing the word all ; yet there is one palTage more, 
 full to the purpoie, that I would not omit ; it be- 
 ing, of itfelf, fully fufficient to fettle the difpute 
 for ever : — The apcftle, fpeaking of Chrift, faith, 
 * Who is the image of the invifible God, thefirft- 
 born of every creature : for by him were all things 
 created that are in heaven, and that are in earth, 
 vifible and invifible, whether they be thrones, of 
 dominions, or principalities, or powers ; all things 
 were created by him, and for him : and he is before 
 all things, and by him all things confift. And he 
 is the head of the body, the church ; who is the 
 beginning, the firft-born from the dead : that in 
 all things he might have the pre-eminence. For it 
 pleafed the Father, that in him mould all fulnefs 
 dwell ; and having made peace through the blood 
 of his crofs, by him, to reconcile all things un- 
 to himielf ; by him, I fay, whether they be 
 things in earth, or things in heaven, 5 Col. i. 
 15 — 20. 
 
 As the word all is generally acknowledged to be 
 uied in its mod extenfive fenfe, in every place in 
 this paragraph, except the laft, there is no reafon 
 to be given why the apoftle fhouid change the fenfe 
 of the word, without giving us the leaif. notice of 
 it •, and, indeed, it would be very unkind, if not 
 unfair, for him thus to do •, as it would tend 
 
 to 
 
44 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 to miflead ns, in a matter of very great import- 
 ance. 
 
 Friend. I hope that I am not fo attached to my 
 own opinions as to be unwilling to hear and confi- 
 der what may be advanced againft them ; but the 
 doctrine of endlefs damnation has been fo generally 
 confidered as a molt important article of faith by 
 all denominations, that I can by no means think of 
 giving it up, unlefs you are able to eftablifh the 
 contrary fyftem upon the mod folid ground, and 
 anfwer all the fcriptural objections fairly, that 
 have been, or that can be brought againft it ; for 
 I muft have all my doubts folved, before I can think 
 of believing fuch a ftrange doctrine as this appears 
 to me. 
 
 Minifter. I moft heartily commend your pru- 
 dence and fincerity : I took the fame refolution ; 
 and would never receive this view, till I could an- 
 fwer all objections to my own fa tis faction : and if 
 you are difpofed to enquire farther at another op- 
 portunity, I mall be happy in giving you all the 
 aiTiflance in my power. 
 
 END OF THE FIRST DIALOGUE, 
 
 DIALOGUE 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 4f 
 
 DIALOGUE II. 
 
 Friend. f^\ OOD day to you, fir, I was juft 
 
 \JT paffing by, and if you have a little 
 time to fpare, I mould be happy to have fome far- 
 ther difcourfe with you, reflecting your fenti- 
 ments j for although I cannot fall in with your 
 views, yet I am convinced, that your mind is up- 
 right in the matter, and that you do not difagree 
 with your brethren for the fake of differing, but 
 for what you believe to be truth. 
 
 Minifter. I have this to fay, (and I can with 
 truth declare it) that I never mould have difTented 
 from my brethren, had they only given me the li- 
 berty of enjoying that natural right of freely 
 thinking for myfelf in matters of religion. I fin- 
 cerely wifh to live and die in unity with all that 
 love God and keep his commandments ; and I 
 fhould never have troubled the world with my fen- 
 timents, had not great pains been taken to repre- 
 fent me as a heretic, and my fentiments dangerous 
 to mankind : This was done to prevent people 
 from hearing what I had to fay in other matters. 
 I was therefore, in a fort, compelled to fit down 
 and anfwer all the objections that were brought 
 againft the truth I believed ; which anfwers, drawn 
 (as I trufh fairly from -the Scriptures, have fatis- 
 
 fied 
 
46 DIALOGUES OiM TUE 
 
 fied many who have read what I then wrote upon 
 the fubject. 
 
 Friend. I never faw your anfwers to objections 
 in print : but in our laft conversion, you gave 
 fuch anfwers to many quefrions, as feemed to con- 
 vince me that much more might be faid in favour of 
 the general Reftoration than I formerly imagined : 
 But I have a number of objections remaining, 
 which appear to me unanfwerable ; and which I 
 beg leave to ftate you in the plaineit manner. 
 
 Minijler. Do, my dear friend ; you will give me 
 pleafure by being free and open upon this fubject ; 
 propofe all your objections, in the ftrongeft man- 
 ner poffible, and I will' give you fuch anfwers as 
 have fatisfied me in the matter ; and I beg leave to 
 afTure you, that no light, trifling, or forced anfwer, 
 far lefs a manifeft evafion, would fatisfy my mind 
 upon this awful and interefting fubject ; and if 
 what I believe is not capable of a fcriptural defence, 
 I fhall endeavour to quit the ground as fpeedily as 
 poilible. 
 
 Friend. The words of our Saviour, recorded by 
 St. Mark, chap. ix. 43 — 40, form a very ferious, 
 and to me an unanfwerable objection againft the 
 univerfal Reitoration. 
 
 c And if thy hand offend thee {or caufe thee to 
 offend) cut it off: it is better for thee to enter in- 
 to life maimed, than having two hands, to go into 
 hell •, into the fire that never (hall be quenched 
 {or that is unquenchable) : where their worm di- 
 eth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thy 
 foot offend thee, (or caufe thee to offend) cut it 
 off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than 
 having two feet, to be caft into hell, into the fire 
 that never fhall be quenched (or that is unquench- 
 able) : 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 47 
 
 able) : where their worm dieth not, and the fire 
 is not quenched. And if thine eye offend thee, 
 (or caufe thee to oflend) pluck it out : it is better 
 for thee to enter into kingdom of God with one 
 eye, than having two eyes to be caft into hell fire : 
 where their worm dieth not, and the fire is 
 not quenched. For every one fhall be falted 
 with fire, and every facrifice fhall be falted with 
 fait/ 
 
 Here our Lord repeats five times, that c the fire 
 is not, or never (hall be quenched, or is unquench- 
 able ;' words of nearly fimilar meaning : Three 
 times he fpeaks of hell, as a place where c their 
 worm dieth not :' and, to mew the perpetuity of 
 the fufterings of the miferable, he fays, * For eve- 
 ry one mall be falted with fire-/ i. e. preferved by 
 the fire, as fait preferves meat. Thefe are the ob- 
 jections from this paiTage, briefly ftated : Are you 
 able to anfvver them fairly, without any evafion, 
 from the authority of Scripture ? 
 
 Minijier. This is certainly a mod terrible paf- 
 hge y and deferves to be considered particularly. 
 
 There is no doubt but Jefus Chrift had his eye 
 upon that pafiage in Ifaiah, lxvi. 24. — * And they 
 fhall go forth, and look upon the carcafes of the 
 men that have tranfgrelTed againft me : for their 
 worm mall not die, neither fhall their fire be 
 quenched ; and they fhall be an abhorring unto 
 all fleih.' 
 
 It will be of ufe to us to underftand when this 
 prophecy fhall be fulfilled : It fhall be when the 
 Children of Ifrael fhall return, and be fettled in 
 their own land •, and their enemies fhall come 
 againfr. them, and fhall be deftroyed, and their 
 ca rcafes fhall fall upon the mountains of Ifrael, 
 1 and 
 
43 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 and fhall be a prey to the fowls of heaven, and 
 their flefh fhall be devoured by worms, which fhall 
 not die, till they have eaten and entirely deftroyed 
 their bodies. 
 
 * Thou malt fall upon the mountains of Ifrael, 
 thou and all thy bands, and the people that is with 
 thee ; I will give thee to the ravenous birds of eve- 
 ry fort, and to the beafts of the field, to be de- 
 voured. Thou fhalt fall upon the open field : for 
 I have fpoken it, faith Adonai Jehovah. And it 
 fhall come to pafs in that day, that I will give unto 
 Gog a place there of graves in Ifrael, the valley of 
 the paffengers on the eaft of the fea : and it fhall 
 flop the nofes of the paffengers ; and there fhall 
 they bury Gog, and all his multitude : and they 
 fhall call it, The Valley of Hammon-Gog. And 
 feven months fhall the Houfe of Ifrael be burying 
 of them, that they may cleanfe the land.' (See 
 Ezek. xxxix. 4, 5, 11, 12.) 'And it fhall come 
 to pafs, that every one that is left of all the nations 
 which came againft Jerufalem, fhall even go up, 
 from year to year, to worfhip the King, Jehovah, 
 of Hofts, and to keep the feaft of tabernacles/ 
 Zech. xiv. 16. ' And it fhall come to pafs, that 
 from one new moon to another, and from one fab- 
 bath to another, fhall all fiefh come to worfhip be- 
 fore me, faith Jehovah/ Ifaiah, lxvi. 21.* And 
 they that fhall come up to Jerufalem, to worfhip 
 the Lord, during the time that thefe bodies fhall 
 lie in the open field, fhall go forth, and behold 
 them in a ftate of putrefaction, a prey to worms ; 
 and all the nations of the earth fhall fee God's 
 judgments executed upon thofe who dare to rebel 
 againft him, by making war againft the Lamb, and 
 againft his army. Rev. xvii. 14. xix. 19. 
 
 It 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 49 
 
 It is alfo intimated by Ezekiel, that a fire mail 
 be kindled, to burn their weapons of war, &c. 
 which mail lafl for fome time. Hear his words : 
 c And they that dwell in the cities of Ifrael mall 
 go forth, and mail fet on fire and burn the weapons, 
 both the fhields and the bucklers, the bows and 
 the arrows, and the hand-ftaves and the fpears -, 
 and they mall burn them with fire {even years : 
 fo that they mall take no wood out of the field, 
 neither cut down any out of the forefts ; for they 
 mall burn the weapons with fire.' See Ezek. 
 xxxix. 9, 10. 
 
 Thus have I endeavoured to give the plain fenfe 
 of the text to which our Lord alluded •, and I have 
 not the fmalleft doubt of its being hereafter literally 
 fulfilled. 
 
 I will now endeavour to give what appears to 
 me the meaning of the text before us : — Chrilt 
 threatened that thofe who would not deny them- 
 felves, and cut off thofe things that led them into 
 fin, mould hereafter furTer infinitely greater incon- 
 veniencies, by being call: into hell fire. And, Oh ! 
 who can conceive how dreadful a portion is threat- 
 ened to fome tranfgrefibrs ! that they t fhall drink 
 of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured 
 out without mixture, into the cup of his indigna- 
 tion ; and mail be tormented with fire and brim- 
 ftone, in the prefence of the holy angels, and 
 in the prefence of the Lamb : And the fmoke 
 of their torment afcendeth up ages of ages ; 
 and they have no reft, day nor night.' Rev. 
 xiv. 10, 11. 
 
 Thus, as the enemies of God, who mail be de- 
 
 ftroyed near Jernfalem, fhall have their carcafes 
 
 cxpofed, full of worms, and be an abhorring unto 
 
 C all 
 
5^ DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 all that behold them ; fo thofc who are caft into 
 the burning lake, fliall be publicly expofed to 
 fhame, and fliall fufFer openly for their crimes-, 
 and the fmoke of their torment (hall afcend up 
 continually, during thofe ages that the lake of fire, 
 or thefecond death, fliall continue. 
 
 But when I confiderthat this terraqueous globe 
 itfelf is probably to become the lake of fire, when 
 the elements fliall melt with fervent heat ; and yet 
 after that dreadful icene is paft, the earth itfelf 
 (hall be renewed, and become the habitation of 
 righteoufnefs ; I can hardly have any doubts, but 
 all the rational part of the creation, c fliall be de- 
 livered from the bondage of corruption, into the 
 glorious liberty of the * children of God.' See 
 Rom. viii. 19, 20, 21, 22. 
 
 Thus, if the lake of fire, or fecond death itfelf, 
 fliall be deftroyed, fliall ceafe, and be no more ; 
 there is a.i\ end to tormenting pain j though, perhaps, 
 inch inward reflections, fliall continue for fome time 
 longer, (if not to eternity) which, though they fliall 
 tend exceedingly to increafe the love of God in the 
 fouls thus delivered, fliall Hil them with fhame, 
 fimilar, or perhaps more pungent than we feel here 
 on earth, when we are melted under a deepfenfe 
 of our manifold tranfgrefiions, and of the pardon- 
 ing love of God at the fame time. — This feems to 
 me to be the meaning of fuch paflages as thefe : 
 
 * O my God, make them like a wheel •, as the 
 ftubble before the wind. As the fire burnetii the 
 wood, and as the flame Jctteth the mountains on 
 fire •, fo perfecute them with thy tempeft, and make 
 them afraid with thy florm. Fill their faces with 
 fhame, that they may feek thy name, O Jehovah. 
 Let them be confounded and troubled for ever •, 
 
 yea, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 5 I 
 
 yea, let them be put to fhame, and perifh : That 
 — (our tranflators have added the word men, but 
 the fenfe determines that the addition mould be) — 
 ' they may know that thou whofe name alone is 
 Jehovah, art the Moft High over all the earth,' 
 Pfal. lxxxiii. 13 — 18. 
 
 * The wife mail inherit glory, but fhame fhall be 
 the promotion of fools,' Prov. hi. 35. 
 
 < They fhall be greatly afhamed, for they fhall 
 not profper ; their everlafting confufion fhall ne- 
 ver be forgotten,' Jer. xx. 1 1. xxxiii. 40. 
 
 * They fhall be afhamed, and aifo confounded, 
 all of them: they fhall go to confufion together, 
 that are makers of idols/ Ifa. xlv. 16. < And all 
 are incenfed againft him, (Jehovah) fhall be a- 
 ihamed,' verfe 24. 
 
 * For thus faith Adonai Jehovah ; I will even 
 deal with thee as thou haft done, which haft de- 
 fpifed the oath in breaking the covenant. Never- 
 thelefs, I will remember my covenant with thee in 
 the days of thy youth, and I will eftablifh unto thee 
 an everlafting covenant. Then thou fhalt remem- 
 ber thy ways, and be afhamed, when thou fhalt 
 receive thy fifters, thine elder and thy younger 
 ( viz. Samaria and Sodom) ; and I will give them 
 unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant. 
 And I will eftabiifh my covenant with thee, and 
 thou fhalt know that I am Jehovah : That thou 
 mayeft remember, and be confounded, and never 
 open thy mouth any more, becaufe of thy fhame, 
 when I am pacified towards thee, for all that thou 
 haft done, faith Adonai Jehovah,' Ezek. xvi. 59 
 
 < Then fhall ye remember your own evil ways, 
 and your doings that were not good, and fhall 
 loathe yourfelves in your own fight, for your ini- 
 
 C 2 quities, 
 
5 2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 quities, and for your abominations. Not for your 
 fakes do I this, faith Adonai Jehovah, be it known 
 unto you ; be alhamed and confounded, O houfc 
 of Ifrael," Ezek. xxxvi. 31, 32. 
 
 But the lake of fire fhall go out, when all the 
 purpofes for which it fhall be kindled are accom- 
 plished ; and if fo, then it follows of courfe, that 
 intelligences fhall be no longer tormented therein. 
 
 Friend. But when God fays, that a fire fhall 
 not be quenched, does it not neceffarily imply, 
 that it fhall never ceafe burning ? 
 
 Minijler. By no means : for we read in feveral 
 places of Scripture of fires that have ceafed, ages 
 ago, that were fpoken of in as ftrong terms as are 
 ufed by Chrift, reflecting the fire of hell. 
 
 As for inftance : In Lev. vi. 13. we read, « The 
 fire fhall ever be burning upon the altar : it fhall 
 never go out/ This is a much ftronger expreflion 
 than if it had been faid, * It (hall not be quench- 
 ed ;' for it is faid, * It fiall never go out ;' But 
 furely, it muft be ufed with fome limitation ; for 
 for we know that it hath ceafed, ages ago : And 
 we read, that Daniel prophefied of the MefTiah, 
 that he fhould ( caufe the facrifice and oblation to 
 ceafe/ Dan. ix. 27 ; but it would certainly have 
 been a weak argument againft Daniel's prophecy, 
 that as Mofes had faid, The fire fhould never go 
 out upon the altar, therefore the MefTiah could 
 never caufe the facrifice and oblation to ceafe; but 
 it would be juft as good an argument againft Da- 
 niel's prophecy, as the words of Chrift are againfl 
 Ifaiah's : * For I will not contend for ever, neither 
 will I be always wroth •, for the fpirit fhould fail 
 before me, and the fouls which I have made. I 
 have fworn by myfelf, the word is gone out of 
 
 my 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 53 
 
 my mouth in righteoufnefs, and mall not return, 
 That unto me every knee mall bow, every tongue 
 fhall fwear. Surely {hall fay, In Jehovah have I 
 righteoufnefs and (Irength ; to him mall come ; 
 and all that are incenfed againft him fhall be a- 
 fhamed,' Ifa. l'vii. 16. xlv. 23, 24. 
 
 In Jer. xvii. 27. we read : < But if you will not 
 hearken unto me, &c. then will I kindle a fire in 
 the gates thereof, and it fhall devour the palaces 
 of Jerufalem, and it flail not be quenched. 1 See 
 alfo chap. iv. 4, xxi. 1 2. Amos v. 6. 2 Kings 
 xxii. 17. 
 
 Similar threatnings we find pofitively pronoun? 
 ced by Ezekiel, at the command of God : c More- 
 over the word of Jehovah came unto me faying, 
 Son of man, fet thy face towards the fouth, and 
 drop thy words towards the fouth, and prophefy 
 againft the foreft of the fouth field, and fay to the 
 foreft of the fouth, Hear the word of Jehovah •, 
 Thus faith Adonai Jehovah, Behold I will kin- 
 dle a fire in thee, and it fhall devour every green 
 tree in thee, and every dry tree : the flaming 
 flame fhall not be quenched, and all faces from 
 the fouth to the north, fhall be burnt therein •, 
 and all flefh fhall fee that I Jehovah have kindled 
 it ; it flail not be quenched, Ezek. XX. 45, 46, 47, 
 48. See alfo Jer. vii. 20. 
 
 Now thefc threatnings were furely executed ; 
 for the people did not hearken to God : he did 
 certainly kindle a fire, and it burnt, and was not 
 quenched, but confirmed Jerufalem and all her 
 palaces ; and the beautiful forefts that were fo 
 much efteemed, fhared the fame fate : But what 
 perfon will argue, that the whole city and country 
 muft be now in flames •, and mull have been con- 
 C 3 fuming, 
 
54 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 fuming, from the days of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, 
 becaufe of thefe expreffions, ' The flaming flame 
 mail not be quenched,' &c. fmce we know that 
 Jerufalem, and the country round about, have 
 been fmce inhabited, and will be again, in a more 
 glorious manner than ever ? 
 
 Neither will it help the matter to fay, that we 
 irruft underfuand the fire figuratively, for the anger 
 of God, Sec. for he declares by Zechariah, after 
 the feventy years captivity, that he was < returned 
 to Jerufalem ivith mercies? See Zech. i. 16. And 
 though the prefent defolation of that land is com- 
 pared to the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, 
 Admah and Zeboim, Deut. xxix. 23 — 28. And 
 Ezekiel not only fpeaks of it as defolate and wafle, 
 but as having been always fo; though we know it 
 was formerly filled with inhabitants : (See Ezek, 
 xxxvi. 34, 35, xxxviii. 8.) Yet all the prophets 
 fpeak of a time to come, when it fhall be much 
 more flou riming than ever it hath been ; and Ifaiah 
 fays, ' Whereas thou haft been forfaken and hat- 
 ed, fo that no man went through thee ; I will 
 make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many 
 generations. Thou ffialt no more be termed For- 
 faken \ neither fhall thy land be termed Defolate ; 
 but thou (halt be called Hephzibah (my delight is 
 in her J and thy land Beulah (married) ; for Je- 
 hovah delighteth in thee, and thy land fhall be 
 married,' Ifaiah lx. 15. lxii. 4. 
 
 Thus we may fee, by thefe and many other paf- 
 fages, that predictions apparently directly contrary 
 one to the other, may be all fulfilled upon the 
 fame land, people and perfons \ only allowing a 
 proper time to each, without which we can never 
 make fenfe of many prophecies. 
 
 Ifaiah, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 55 
 
 Iiaiah, fpeaking of the land of Bozrah, fays, 
 * And the dreams thereof fhall be turned into pitch, 
 and the dull thereof into brimftone : and the land 
 thereof fhall become burning pitch. It fhall not 
 be quenched, night nor day ; the fmoke thereof 
 fhall go up for ever : from generation to generati- 
 on it fhall lie wafte ; none fhall pafs through it, 
 for ever and ever. But the cormorant and the bit- 
 tern (hall poiTefs it ; the owl alfo, and the raven, 
 fhall dwell in it :' (birds that cannot live in fire, 
 pitch, and brimftone, any better than men.) 'And 
 thorns fhall come up in her palaces, nettles and 
 brambles in the fortreffes thereof j and it fhall be 
 an habitation for dragons, and a court for owls. 
 The wild beafts of the defart fhall alfo meet with 
 the wild beafts of the ill and, and the fatyr fhall 
 cry to his fellow : the fcrcech-owl alfo fhall reft, 
 there, and find for herlelf a place of reft. There 
 fhall the great owl make her neft, and lay and 
 hatch, and gather under her fhadow : there fhall 
 the vultures alio be gathered, every one with his 
 mate. Seek ye out of the book of Jehovah, and 
 read : no one of thefe mall fail, none fhall want 
 her mate : for my mouth it hath commanded, and 
 his Spirit it hath gathered them. And he hath 
 caft the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it 
 unto them by line : they fhall poffefs it for ever, 
 from generation to generation fhall they dwell 
 therein,' Ifaiah xxxiv. 9, ic, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 
 
 Now, in this pafTage, there are fuch things fpo- 
 ken of as are impoilible to be fulfilled at once, 
 without as great a miracle as was wrought for the 
 three children in the furnace ; and which there is 
 no reafon to expect will be wrought in favour of 
 C 4 cormo- 
 
5 6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 cormorants, bitterns, owls, ravens, dragons, fatyrs> 
 wild beafts, thorns, nettles, and brambles. In the 
 icth verfe we read of a period, called/or ever, 
 wherein this land is to be on fire and is not to be 
 quenched, night nor day : and the fmoke of it is 
 to afcend up for ever', but in the 17th verfe, it is 
 faid, that the before-mentioned birds and beafts 
 fhall poffefs it for ever, even from generation to 
 generation fhall they dwell therein. But one of 
 thefe periods mufr. end, before the other can be- 
 gin ; the fire mufr. ceafe to burn, and the fmoke 
 to afcend, before beafls can take up their conftant 
 dwelling there, and birds can lay and hatch, and 
 gather their young ones under their fhadow, and 
 enjoy the fociety of their mates. And thus the 
 whole prophecy may be fulfilled -, not in thefume, 
 but in different periods : And thus alfo, may all the 
 threatenings, and all the promiies, in the facred 
 book, be accomplifhed ; not at once, but each in 
 their feafon. 
 
 It appears evident, that our Lord, by alluding 
 to a fiie that fhall burn on earth, and to worms 
 that (hall devour the nVfh of the (lain, could not 
 mean to prove the torments of men to be abfo- 
 lutcly cndlefs ; at leaft, the expreffions of the worm 
 that d'leth not, and the fire that is not quenched, do 
 not nece/pirily imply it ; which has been iufficient- 
 ly proved, by the paffages where the lame or fi- 
 milar expreffions are ufed, where yet the fubject 
 cannot intend endlcfs duration ; and this is all that 
 can be neceflary to prove at prefent. 
 
 As to the expreflion of being falted with fire, as 
 every facrifice was falted with fait ; I am not io clear, 
 what might have been our Saviour's intent in this 
 expreflion ; but I think, in the firft place, he in- 
 truded 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 57 
 
 tended to teach us, that they fhould not be an?iibi- 
 lated by the fire, but preferved therein, to be tor- 
 mented day and night, in the prefence of the holy 
 angels, and in the prefence of the Lamb, during 
 the ages of ages. I would alfo propofe, whether 
 our Lord did not mean to intimate, that even the 
 fire itfelf (hall be of ufe under his direction, to 
 humble, fubdue, and penetrate the ftubborn and 
 difobedient rebels, that fhallbe caft into it. Fire, 
 as weii as fait, is a great purifier : and preferves 
 and cleanfes thofe things which are able to endure 
 it •, and is the great agent by which all metals are 
 ieparated from their drofs, and prepared for the 
 ufe for which they were defigned. Under the 
 law, all unclean things, that could endure the fire, 
 were ordered to be caft into it, in order to their 
 cleanfing. 
 
 Friend. "What you have faid concerning the fires 
 that are reprefented as unquenchable, in feveral 
 paffages of Scripture, is worthy of attention ; but 
 you fhould confider, that thefe fires were all on 
 earth, and in time, and therefore muft have an 
 end, or ceafe to burn ; but the fire of hell is in 
 eternity, and therefore muft laft as long as eternity 
 mail endure. Pray, what can you fay to this ? 
 
 Minifter. Had thofe u?iqnenchable fires never gone 
 out while earth endured, or while time lafted, there 
 might have been fome force in this argument ; but 
 fince the continuance of the fire does not depend 
 upon \\\zfeafon in which it is kindled, but upon the 
 combujlibles that feed and fupport it, this can be no 
 objection : Therefore, fince thofe unquenchable 
 fires that have been mentioned, were kindled on 
 earth, and yet not burn while earth lafted, but 
 have gone out long ago ; there is no neceflity of 
 C 5 granting, 
 
5^ DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 granting, (even though we fhould admit your pre- 
 mifes of the fire of hell being kindled in eternity) 
 that the unquenchable fire of the burning lake 
 tnujl unavoidably burn to all eternity, merely be- 
 caufe it is fuppofed to belong to that ftate : But if 
 punifhments only belong to thofe ages of ages be- 
 fore Chrift mail refign the kingdom to the Father, 
 and the lake of fire mall be this terraqueous globe, 
 dhTolved, or melted, with fervent heat ; then the 
 ground is changed, and the whole objection va- 
 nishes of courfe. 
 
 Friend. As you have come over this objection 
 better than I expected you could, I (hall leave it 
 for the prefent, and confider more fully, when I 
 am by myfelf, what you have faid upon this fub- 
 ject ; and fhall now propofe the greateft objection 
 that can be brought againft the Reftoration of all 
 men, from the Scriptures *, and which, if you can 
 fairly anfwer, I mail be almoft periuaded to believe 
 with you : but I am periuaded that you will be 
 hard put to it. 
 
 Minifter. Produce your caufe, and bring forth 
 your ftrong reafons, that we may hear them *, and 
 if I am filenced, I will not be afhamed to acknow- 
 ledge it with all my heait. 
 
 Friend. I fhall bring my objection from the Scrip- 
 tures, and ftate it with the utmoft precifion that I 
 am able : — It is the fin againft the holy Ghoft, of 
 which cur Saviour fpeaks in the moft awful man- 
 ner *, faying, * Wherefore I lay unto you, all man- 
 ner of fin and blafphemy fhall be forgiven unto 
 men : but the blafphemy againft the Holy Ghoft 
 fhall not be formven unto men. And whofoever 
 Tpeaketh a word againft the Son of man, it fhall 
 (cr may) be forgiven him *, but whofoever fpeakc th 
 
 againft 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION'. 59 
 
 againft the Holy Ghoft, it (hall not be forgiven 
 him, neither in this world (or age) neither in the 
 world (or age) to come. Verily, I fay unto yon, 
 all fins (hall (or may) be forgiven unto the fons of 
 men, and blafphemies wherewith foever they fhall 
 blafpheme : but he that mail blafpheme againft the 
 Holy Ghoft, hath never forgivenefs, (or hath not 
 forgivenefs to the age) but is in danger of eternal 
 damnation,' St. Matth. xii. 31, 32. St Mark, 
 iii. 28, 29. This is fuch a matter of importance, 
 that three of the evangelifts notice it. St. Luke 
 hath it thus : * And whofoever fhall fpeak a word 
 againft the Son of man, it fhall (or may) be forgi- 
 ven him ; but unto him that blafphemeth againft 
 the Holy Ghoft, it fhall not be forgiven,' St. Luke, 
 xii. 10. St. Matthew faith, this fin fhall not be 
 forgiven in this world, nor in that to come -, St. 
 Mark, that fuch an one hath never forgivenefs, 
 but is in danger of eternal damnation •, and St. 
 Luke pofitively faith, it fhall not be forgiven : 
 And, to confirm the matter ftill more, if poilible, 
 St. Paul faith, ' For it is impoflible for thofe who 
 were once enlightened, and have tafted the hea- 
 venly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy 
 Ghoft, and have tafted the good word of God, 
 and the powers of the world to come ; if they 
 fhall fall away, (or, and have fallen away) to re- 
 new them again to repentance ; feeing they cruci- 
 fy to themfelves the Son of God afrefh, and put 
 him to an open ihame. For if we fin wilfully, 
 after that we have received the knowledge of the 
 truth, there remaineth no more facriftce for fins, 
 but a certain fearful looking for of judgment, and 
 fiery indignation, which fhall devour the adver- 
 faries. He that defpifed Mofes's law, died with- 
 out 
 
6o DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 out mercy, by the mouth of two or three witnef- 
 fes : Of how much forer punifhment, fuppofe ye, 
 fhall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden 
 under foot the Son of God, and hath counted 
 the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was fanc- 
 tified, an unholy thing, and hath done deipite un- 
 to the Spirit of grace ?' Heb. vi. 4, 5, 6, x. 26, 
 27, 28, 29. And the fame Apoftle directs us, 
 laying ; c Looking diligently, left any man fail of 
 the grace of God j left any root of bitternefs 
 fpringing up trouble you, and thereby many be 
 defiled : Left there be any fornicator, or profane 
 perfon, as Efau, who for one morfel of meat fold 
 his birthright. For ye know how that after- 
 wards, when he would have inherited the blefling, 
 he was rejected •, for he found no place of re- 
 pentance, though he fought it with tears.' Heb. 
 xii. 15, 16, 17. 
 
 And St. John, the beloved difciple, fays ; ( If 
 any man fee his brother fin a fin which is not 
 unto death, he fhall afk, and he fhall give him 
 life for them that fin not unto death. There is a 
 fin unto death : I do not fay that he fhall pray 
 for it/ 1 John v. 16. 
 
 Now here is a fin for which there is no forgive- 
 nefs, neither in this world (or age) or in that to 
 come •, which fhall not be forgiven at all •, he that 
 committeth it hath never forgivenefs, is in danger 
 of eternal damnation ; he cannot be renewed again 
 to repentance, becaufe he hath crucified Chrift to 
 himfelf afrefh, and hath put him to an open fhame : 
 having finned wilfully and malicioufly, after receiv- 
 ing the knowledge of the truth, to fuch no more 
 facrifice for fins remaineth ; judgment and fiery in- 
 dignation are his certain portion , he is an adver- 
 
 fary, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 6 1 
 
 fary, and mufl be devoured : a forer punifhment 
 than death without mercy awaits him, of which 
 he is worthy, for that he hath trodden under foot 
 the Son of God, the only Saviour, and hath count- 
 ed the precious blood of the covenant, wherewith 
 he was fanctified, and which alone is able to cleanfe 
 from fin, an unholy thing j and hath done defpite 
 to the Spirit of grace, which is only able to renew 
 the heart, and therefore the cafe of fuch muft be 
 defperate ; for if fuch an one, like Efau, mould 
 wifh to repent and gain what he had loft, it could 
 not be, for he would find no place for repentance, 
 though he might feek it carefully with tears ; for 
 having committed the fin unto death, for which no 
 prayer is to be made, no interceflion offered up, 
 he is bound over to the fecond death, the lake of 
 fire and brimftone, and mufl: bear the punifhment 
 of his fins for ever and ever ! ! ! — What fay you 
 to this ? 
 
 Minifler. As when Nebuchadnezzar told Daniel 
 his dream, he was aftonifhed for one hour at the 
 greatnefs of the punifhment which he faw would 
 inevitably come upon the King \ much more muft 
 all thofe be, who read and confider thefe dread- 
 ful threatenings, which muft furely come upon all 
 thofe who have finned in the manner defcribed ! I 
 fhall make a few obfervations upon thefe moft ter- 
 rible paflages of Scripture ; partly to prevent fee- 
 ble minds from falling into deipair, that may fee 
 them collected in one ftrikingview ; partly to cure 
 proud minds of prefumption ; and partly to fhew 
 that the doctrine of the Reftoration may be de- 
 fended, notwithftanding. 
 
 i. We are fure that the Scribes and Pharifees of 
 our Saviour's time, who blafphernoufly afcribed 
 
 his 
 
62 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 his miracles to the power of the devil, did, in the 
 moft direct and undeniable manner, commit that 
 fin ; and fome are doubtful whether it can be com- 
 mitted by any in thefe days. 
 
 2. It is generally acknowledged, that the He- 
 brews were in danger of committing that fin, by 
 openly and wilfully apoftatizing from Chriftianity, 
 and publicly renouncing Chrift and his falvation, 
 and blafpheming againlr the Holy Ghoft, after 
 having been partakers of its extraordinary gifts. 
 
 3. It cannot be committed by ignorant perfons, 
 nor without a confiderable degree of malice pre- 
 penfe : light in the underftanding, and malice in 
 the heart, are necelTary ingredients of this dreadful 
 crime ; and it appears to me, it mult be committed 
 openly, and that it cannot be committed in thought 
 only. 
 
 4. Under the Levitical difpenfation there were 
 many unpardonable fins — crimes that could not be 
 forgiven or overlooked, and for which no atone- 
 ment could be made, and which were punifhed 
 with death, without mercy •, other crimes, urilefs 
 facrifices were offered, and repentance took place, 
 fubjecled the parties to death alio ; but, under the 
 gofpel, there is but one crime that is properly un- 
 pardonable, and that abfolutely fubjeels the perfon 
 guilty of it to the fecond death ; yet many o'her 
 fins are threatened with the fame punifhment con- 
 ditionally, but they may be forgiven, and not pu- 
 nifhed at all ; but this one muft as certainly be 
 punifhed with the fecond death, as murder or any 
 other crime, was by the law of Mofes punifhed 
 with the death of the body without mercy or for- 
 givenefs. Forgery is the unpardonable fin of Eng- 
 land : people frequently furFer death for other 
 
 crimes, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 63 
 
 crimes, as well as this ; but other offences are 
 fometimes forgiven, but this never ; it is always 
 punifhed with death. This circumftance may il- 
 luftrate my meaning. The fin againfl the Holy 
 Ghoft is an offence of that kind, that, either owing 
 to its uncommon malignity (as is molt likely,) or 
 ibme other caufe, expofes the guilty perfon to the 
 age of judgment, from which he cannot efcape by 
 repentance, pardon, and fprinkling of the blood of 
 Chrift, as other finners may •, neither can he be at 
 prefent born of the Spirit, to which he hath done 
 defpite : nor can he be reclaimed by any poffible 
 means, in this age, or in the age that is to fuc- 
 ceed this, but is inevitably bound over to fuffer 
 the inconceivable torments of the fecond death, or 
 lake of fire and brimftone, after the day of judg- 
 ment. 
 
 5. There is no kind of difpute between us, re- 
 fpecYing the certainty of the punifhment of fuch ; 
 in this we both agree : he that finneth againfl the 
 Holy Ghoft, is in danger of eternal damnation, 
 or judgment, or the fecond death : — The queftion 
 is, Shall there ever come a time, when the fecond 
 death, or kike of fire, fhall no more exifr ? If this 
 can be proved, the conclufion will be evident, viz. 
 that not one fhall remain under the power thereof 
 to all eternity : Upon this, and this alone, depends 
 thefolution of this awful, interefting, and moft im- 
 portant queftion : and I confider all other anfwers 
 as mere quibbles, compared with this. And if it 
 cannot be proved that a time will come, when all 
 that bears the name of death fhall be deftroyed* 
 thofe who commit the fin unto death, mufl, at leaft, 
 be allowed to ftand as exceptions to the general 
 rule •, and, I am apt to mink, the rule itfelf will 
 
 be 
 
64 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 be overthrown. I (hall therefore labour this point 
 a little ; and if I fhould be fo happy as to prove 
 to your fatisfaction the total deftru&ion of death, 
 it will anfwer many other objections as well as this. 
 My only refuge is Scripture •, if that fails me, I mall 
 not prefume to purfue the fubjett farther. 
 
 Ifa. xxv. 8. ' He will fw allow up Death in vic- 
 tory ; and Adonai Jehovah will wipe away tears 
 from off all faces/ Hof. xiii. 14. 'I will ranfom 
 them from the power of the grave •, I will redeem 
 them from death, O death, I will be thy plagues ; 
 O grave, (or hell) I will be thy deftrudtion : Re- 
 pentance mail be hid from mine eyes.' 1 Cor. xv. 
 26. ( The laft enemy that fhall be deftroyed is 
 Death* — or rather, as the words may more proper- 
 ly be arranged, ' Death,' the laft enemy, mall be 
 deftroyed.' The fecond death is infinitely more 
 the enemy of man than the firft, and may there- 
 fore be confidered as an enemy which God will de- 
 ftroy. — Now, 
 
 If the laft enemy mail be deftroyed, there will 
 not be one left. 
 
 But the firft is true ; therefore alio the laft. 
 As, 
 
 Would it not be highly abfurd to fay, that, Al- 
 though the very laft enemy fhall be deftroyed, yet, 
 many millions fhall remain to all eternity ? 
 
 Verfe 56. < The fting of Death is fin.' While 
 fin remains in exiftence, death will be able to fhew 
 its fting ; but the time will come when death fhall 
 have no fting to boaft of; therefore fin, and con- 
 fequently death of every kind, fhall be deftroyed. 
 1 John iii. 8. ' For this purpole the Son of God 
 was manifefted, that he might deftroy the works 
 of the devil.' Unlefs Chrift finally deftroys the 
 
 workt 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 65 
 
 works of the devil, even all fin out of the univerfe, 
 his purpofe mult be eternally fruftrated : 
 
 But the laft can never be j therefore the firfl is 
 true. 
 
 Htb. ii. 14. c Forafmuch, then, as the children 
 are partakers of flefh and blood, he alfo himfelf 
 likewife took part of the fame ; that through death 
 he might deftroy him that had the power of death, 
 that is the devil/ — Now what death has the devil 
 power over ? the death of the body ? or that of 
 the foul, which coniifts in enmity againft God, and 
 feparation from him ? c To be carnally minded is 
 death ; but to be fpirituaUy minded is life and peace. 
 Becaufe the carnal mind is enmity againfl: God ; 
 for it is not fubjecr. to the law of God, neither 
 indeed can be,' Rom. viii. 6, 7. If this death, 
 with the confequence of it, is that which the de- 
 vil hath the power of, then muft this death be 
 deflroyed. 
 
 But, I think, the firft is true •, therefore alfo the 
 kit. 
 
 Rev. xxi. 4. we read, < And God mall wipe away 
 all tears from their eyes ; and there (hall be no more 
 Death, neither forrow, nor crying, neither fhall 
 there be any more pain : for the former things are 
 paiTed away.' Here is a Ifate fpoken of beyond 
 all death ; a Hate wherein, forrow, crying, and 
 pain fhall be no more. This ftate is cotemporary 
 with the new heaven and earth, after the lake of 
 fire hath ceafed. 
 
 Friend. "We have always underftood this pafTage 
 to relate to the death of the body, and even to the 
 death of the righteous only ; but making this ftate 
 cotemporary with the new heavens and earth, feems 
 to throw a new light upon the fubjecT;. 
 
 Minifer. 
 
66 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Mini/ler. Mod: certainly the word Death here- 
 implies the fecond death ; for we are informed, in 
 the foregoing chapter, of the firft refurrecYion, 
 even that of the martyrs, who were beheaded for 
 the witnefs of Jefus, and for the word of God •, 
 and fuch as had not worshipped the beaft and his 
 image, neither had received his mark in their fore- 
 heads, or in their hands ; then we read of a thou- 
 fand years between this refurrecYien, and the reft 
 of the dead living again : after this, we find, that 
 the dead, fmall and great, flood before God, and 
 were judged ; and fuch as were not found written 
 in the book of life, were calf into the lake of fire, 
 which is exprefsly called c the fecond death \ which 
 as before obferved, is probably the earth in its 
 melted ftate. In this chapter we find, that all 
 things are to be made new ; and Death is to be 
 no more, neither forrow, nor crying, neither any 
 more pain. But this inuft be the lecond death, or 
 lake of fire \ for the refurrecYion of all the bodies, 
 both of the juft and unjuft, had been fpoken of 
 before. 
 
 Thus, as all fin, and all that bears the name of 
 death, fhall be entirely deftroyed at lafl •, the doc- 
 trine of endlefs mifery feems to fall to the ground, 
 or, at leaft, cannot be certainly proved from Scrip- 
 ture, but rather the contrary. 
 
 The time mull: come when all things mail be 
 fubjecl to Chrift, when he fhall deftroy death, the 
 laft enemy, by deftroying fin, which is the fling of 
 death ; fo this dreadful fin, as well as others, fhall 
 be no more. For if this was not to be the cafe, it 
 never could be true, that * where fin abounded, 
 grace did much more abound :' for it never would 
 abound quite lb much ; neither would death and 
 
 hell 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 6f 
 
 hell be filent when God mall afk the great ques- 
 tions, ' O death where is thy fting ? O grave, (or 
 hell) where is thy victory ? ' for death could lay, 
 Here is my fling, that fin againft the Holy Ghoft, 
 which muft endure to all eternity, and which even 
 divine grace {hall never deftroy ; I have, therefore, 
 the victory and dominion over thefe finners who 
 have committed it, and will hold it while God him- 
 felf exifts. Then death could never be deftroyed, 
 nor Swallowed up in victory •, neither would for- 
 row, crying, and pain ceafe *, neither could God 
 ever be all in all, in any other fenfe, with re- 
 fpect to them, than he is now ; nor would every 
 longue fiuear ; neither would all things wholly be 
 made new, nor all the former things ever pafs 
 ! neither could the univerfal chorus of praife 
 ever be fung by every creature, in heaven, on earth, 
 and under the earth, and throughout God's wide 
 domain ; and, finally, many Scriptures would ne- 
 ver feem to be fulfilled, in the f u Heft fen Se. Rom. 
 v. 20, 21. ' But where fin abounded, grace did 
 much more abound ; that as fin hath reigned unto 
 death ; even So might grace reign, through righte- 
 oufneSs, untoeternallife, by Jefus Chrift our Lord/ 
 Now, if grace {hall abound more than fin, it Shall 
 be as univerfal, and more powerful: But the flrfi: 
 is true ; therefore alfo the laft. If grace Shall be 
 as extenfive as fin, and more powerful, all who 
 have finned {hall be reftored : But the fir ft is true ; 
 therefore alSo the laft. 
 
 What confequences muft follow from the fup- 
 pofition,that Some of God's creatures fhall always 
 remain his enemies ! Either God created fome to 
 be miferable to endlefs ages, or muft be fruftrated 
 
 eternally 
 
#8 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 eternally in his defigns, or all muft be reftored at 
 laft, and made happy by love and free love. 
 
 The firft is blasphemous, the fecond is difho- 
 nourableto God : therefore, the third muft be true : 
 For I cannot think of a fourth conclufion. 
 
 Friend. What do you think of the deplorable 
 cafe of Efau, < who, for one morfel of meat, fold 
 his birthright •, and afterwards, when he would 
 have inherited the blefling, he was rejected ; for 
 he found no place of repentance, though he fought 
 it carefully, with tears ?' 
 
 M'mifter. He certainly loft, or rather fold, his 
 birth-right ; in confequence of which, he loft the 
 blefling belonging to the hrft-born : But left any 
 fhould be led to conclu !e from this, that poor Efau 
 had no bleflings at all, the fame apoftle informs 
 us, that, ' By faith, Ifaac blefTed Jacob and Efau, 
 concerning things to come," Heb. xi. 20. By this 
 we find, he was blefTed, as well as Jacob ; but in 
 a lefs degree. 
 
 Friend. Do we not read, * Jacob have I loved ; 
 but Efau have I hated ?' Rom ix. 13. Mai. i. 
 
 2 > 3- 
 
 Minijler. Yes, moft certainly : But then this 
 
 love and hatred, fo called, was manifefted to their 
 pofterity, and not to their perfons, in the manner 
 defcribed by the prophet : < I have loved you, faith 
 Jehovah : yet ye fay, Wherein haft thou loved us ? 
 Was not Efau Jacob's brother ? faith Jehovah : 
 yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Efau, and laid his 
 mountains and his heritage wafte, for the dragons 
 of the wildernefs.' This manifeftation of hatred 
 did not affecl: the eternal ftate of their fouls, but 
 their condition in this world : God declared, that 
 Jacob's feed fhould exift as a diftinct people to the 
 
 end 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 69 
 
 end of time, but that Efau's fhould not : and this 
 difference is evident ; for the remains of Efau's feed 
 were, in the days of the Maccabees, incorporated 
 with the feed of Jacob, and exifted no more for 
 ever, as a nation by themfelves. From Jacob's 
 race the MefTiah was to come, and all nations were 
 to be blefTed in the feed of Ifrael. In all thefe in- 
 ftances, and in many others, there was a manifefl: 
 preference of Jacob to Efau ; but nothing like po- 
 sitive hatred can be intended. 
 
 Chrift. fays, (St. Luke, xiv. 26.) ' If any man 
 come to me, and hate not his father and mother, 
 and wife, and children, and brethren, and fillers, 
 yea, and his own life alfo, he cannot be my difci- 
 ple.' But we cannot fuppofe our Lord intended 
 pofitive, but comparative hatred ; according to St. 
 Matth. x. 37. He that loveth father or mother 
 more than me, is not worthy of me : and he that 
 loveth fon or daughter more than me, is not wor- 
 thy of me/ 
 
 Friend, What you have faid upon this fubjecl: 
 appears to have fome weight, and I will confider 
 it more fully hereafter : but I muft beg leave to afk 
 you, how you get over that great gulph which 
 is placed between the regions of Paradife and Ge- 
 hernia, of which Abraham fpeaks to the rich man ; 
 faying, ■ And befides all this, between us and you 
 there is a great gulph fixed •, fo that they which 
 would pafs from hence to you, cannot ; neither can 
 they pafs to us, that would come from thence.' 
 Does not this imply the abfolute impoflibility of 
 the rich man's being ever reftored ? 
 
 Min'ifter. You have afked me many queftions ; 
 give me leave to afk you one. — Do you believe, 
 
 that 
 
7« , DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 that Jefus of Nazareth was able to pafs thatimpaf- 
 fable gulph ? 
 
 Friend. Indeed, that is a queffcion I never heard 
 propofed before ; and which I am not prepared to 
 anfwer, without farther con fide ration. Pray, be 
 fo kind as to give an anfwer yourfelf, and tell me 
 what you think of it. 
 
 Minifter. I believe, that with man it is impoffi- 
 ble ; but with God all things are poiTible : And I 
 believe, that Jefus Chrift was not only able to pafs, 
 but that he actually did pafs that gulph, which was 
 impafTable to all men, but not to him : And he ai- 
 fures St. John, that he had paffed it, and not only 
 fo, but that he had the keys of the fame in his pof- 
 feffion ; for he faith, ' Fear not, I am the firft and 
 the lalt ; I am he that liveth, and was dead ; and 
 behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen ; and have 
 the keys of hell and death/ And St. Peter informs 
 us, that c Chrift once fufFered for fins, the juft 
 for the unjuft, (that he might bring us unto God)-, 
 being put to death in the flefh, but quickened by 
 the Spirit ; by which alfo he went and preached 
 to the fpirits in prifon *, who fometime were difo- 
 bedient, when once the long fuffering of God 
 waited, in the days of Noah, while the ark was a 
 preparing ,' And he alfo tells us, that we ' fhall 
 give account to him that is ready to judge the 
 quick and the dead. For, for this caufe was the 
 gofpel preached alfo to them that are dead/ (in 
 diftindYion from them that are quick) ' that they 
 might be judged according to men in the flefh, but 
 live according to God in the fpirit.' See Rev. i. 18. 
 I Pet. iii. 1 8, 19, 20. iv. 5, 6. 
 
 Friend. You know, the common opinion is, that 
 the Spirit of God, in Noah, preached unto the in- 
 habitants 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. Jl 
 
 habitants of the old world ; who, in St. Peter's 
 time, were (hut up in the prifon of hell : But I muft 
 confefs, it appears to me a very dark text. 
 
 Minijler. If you only obferve how particular 
 the expreffions are in thefe texts, I think it will 
 foon appear, that not the Spirit of God in Noah, but 
 the fpirit, or foul, of Chrift, in its difembodied 
 ftate, is here intended. His body was doubtlefs 
 quickened, by his foul, or fpirit coming into it 
 again : "Was it not ? 
 
 Friend. It feems molt reafonable to believe it 
 was. 
 
 Minijler. Then obferve the next words, he went; 
 here the idea of a journey to a diftant place is in- 
 timated, the original word being expreffive of an 
 actual paffage from one place to another, and is 
 the fame that is ufed in ver. 22, for the afcenfion 
 of Chrift into heaven, fo that he appears to have 
 gone into the prifon in the fame proper fenfe, as 
 he afterwards went into heaven. He actually 
 journeyed to the place of confinement, and preach- 
 ed to the fpirit 's, &c. He preached the go/pel no 
 doubt , not to men in the body, but to thefpirits y 
 to thofe in a difembodied ftate ; not only fo, but 
 to the fpirits in prifon : Had they not been in the 
 prifon, Chrift would not have gone into the prifon 
 to preach to them. But, who were thefe fpirits ? 
 St. Peter informs us, that they are thofe who were 
 fometime difobedient ,■ but this cxpreffion intimates, 
 that the time is perfectly pair. ; as, 'Ye were the 
 fervants of fin : for when ye were the fervants 
 of fin, ye were fiee from righteoufnefs,' Rom. vi. 
 17, 20. St. Peter tells us when they were difo- 
 bedient ; when once the Ion g-fuffe ring of God waited 
 in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing : 
 
 Here 
 
72 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Here he evidently diftinguifhes the two periods of 
 their vifitation; one is called the preaching of 
 Chrift, by his fpirit, after he was put to death in 
 the flefh. ; and the other is called the long-fufFer- 
 ing of God, which waited in the days of Noah, 
 while the ark was a preparing. The long-fufFering 
 of God waited upon them, before they were 
 drowned, while the ark was building ; but Chrift 
 preached to them when they were fpirits in prifon. 
 They were difobedient to God's long-fuffering ; 
 but it is not certain that they were fo when Chrift 
 preached to them ; but the contrary is intimated 
 in thefe words : ( For, this caufe was the go/pel 
 preached alfo to them that are dead, &c. This can- 
 not intend thofe that are fpiritually dead only, but 
 thofe whofe bodies are dead ; becaufe we here find 
 the dead fet in oppofition to the quick, or thofe whofe 
 bodies are alive, and not thofe that are fpiritually 
 alive; for we may obferve, that whenever the 
 words quick and dead occur, by quick, we always 
 underftand thofe whofe bodies are alive ; and by 
 dead, thofe who have ceafed to exift here. 
 
 A&s, x. 40, &c. St. Peter, in his fermon to Cor- 
 nelius and his family, informed them of Jefus, 
 who was flain, whom * God raifed from the dead, 
 and fhewed him openly : not to all the people, 
 but unto witnefTes, chofen before of God •, even 
 to us, who did eat and drink with him, after he 
 rofe from the dead. And he commanded us to 
 preach unto the people, and to teftify, that it is 
 he, who was ordained of God to be the judge of 
 quick and dead.' And St. Paul fays to Timothy, 
 I charge thee, therefore, before God, and the 
 Lord Jefus Chrift, who fhall judge the quick and 
 the dead at his appearing, and his kingdom ; 
 1 preach 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 73 
 
 preach the word/ &c. See 2 Tim. iv. 1. So, in 
 1 Pet. iv. 5. the words quick and dead are ufed in 
 the fame manner ; and then immediately, while 
 the idea is warm in our minds, the apoftle gives us 
 the reafons why the gofpel was preached to the 
 dead, {or the fpirits in prifon) of which he had be- 
 fore informed us, and now repeats again, and af- 
 fures us, that it was, that they might be judged ac- 
 cording to men, in theflejh ', or, as though they had 
 heard it while they were alive in the flefh : but alio, 
 that they might live according to God, in the fpirit. 
 The gofpel not only was, but is f preached to them 
 that are dead, in a moral or fpiritual Tenfe. It need 
 not have been faid ; For, for this caufe was the 
 gofpel preached also to them that are dead, if only 
 the fpiritually dead are intended ; for it is rarely 
 preached to any other but fuch. Why mould it 
 be faid, that they might be judged according to men in 
 thefe/h, if they were men in the flefli at the time 
 when it was preached to them ? 
 
 This paffage proves the exigence of the foul after 
 the death of the body : for unlefs the fouls of the 
 antedeluvians exifted after the drowning of their 
 bodies, Chrifl could not have preached to them in 
 prifon : But the dead being oppofed to the quick in 
 this pafTage, fufficiently, and even inconteflibly, 
 determines the fenfe. 
 
 With a little attention, we may eafily be con- 
 vinced, that Chrifr. was not only d'efigned to be a 
 Covenant of the people, (meaning the Jews) and 
 a Light to the Gentiles ; which two defcriptions 
 comprehend all the living : but alfo, to bring out 
 the prifoners from the prifon, and them that fit 
 in darknefs out of the prifon-houfe •, which (if it 
 £> be 
 
74 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 be not a repetition) mufl intend the dead, as all the 
 living were mentioned before. 
 
 c And he faid, It is a light thing that thou 
 fhouldeft be my fervant, to raife up the tribes of 
 Jacob, and to reftore the preferved of Ifrael : I 
 will alfo give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that 
 thou mayeft be my falvation unto the ends of the 
 earth. Thus faith Jehovah, In an acceptable 
 time have I heard thee and in a xiay of falvation 
 have I helped thee : and I will preferve thee, and 
 give thee for a covenant to the people, to efta- 
 blifh the earth, to caufe to inherit the defolate he- 
 ritages.' Thus far the Redeemer's work feems li- 
 mited to the earth, and refpecls the living : But 
 the prophet goes much farther, and fays, c That 
 thou mayeft fay to the prifoners, Go forth : to 
 them that are in darknefs, Shew yourielves : they 
 mall feed in the ways, and their paftures mall be 
 in all high places. They mall not hunger, nor 
 thirft ; neither {hall the heat nor fun finite them ; 
 for he that hath mercy upon them mall lead them, 
 even by the fprings of water mall he guide them.' 
 See Ifaiah, xlii. 6, 7. xlix. 6, 8, 9, 10. Compar- 
 ed with Rev. vii. 14, 15, 16, 17. The work of 
 the Saviour, as defcribcd by the elegant pen of 
 Ifaiah, (chap. lxi. 1, 2, 3.) feems to comprehend a 
 great variety of particulars ; all which he hath 
 performed already, or fhall execute in due time. 
 * The Spirit of Adonai Jehovah is upon me ; be- 
 caufe Jehovah hath anointed me, (1) to preach 
 good tidings to the meek. : (2) He hath fent me to 
 bind up the broken-hearted; (3) to proclaim li- 
 berty to the captives, (4) and the opening of the 
 prifon to them that are bound: (5) To proclaim 
 the acceptable year of Jehovah, (6) and the day 
 1 of 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 75 
 
 of vengeance of our God : (7) To comfort all that 
 mourn : (8)To appoint unto them that mourn in 
 Zion, to give unto them, Firjl, beauty for afhes ; 
 Secondly, the oil of joy for mourning ; Thirdly, the 
 garment of praifefor the fpirit of heavinefs : that 
 they might be called, Firjl, Trees of righteouf- 
 nefs ; Secondly, The planting of Jehovah -, (and 
 all for this great end) — that he might be glorified.' 
 Our Lord Jefus Chrift, by his procefs, hath laid 
 a foundation for the recovery of all men ; c For to 
 this end Chrifl both died, rofej and revived, that he 
 might be Lord, both of the dead and living,' Rom. 
 xiv. 9. He pafTed through all our ftates, that he 
 might redeem us. He came down from Heaven 
 — he was conceived in the womb of Mary — he 
 was born of her — he lived in the world unknown 
 — he fympathized with us in our forrows — he bare 
 our fins in his own body, on the tree — he was bu- 
 ried — he defcended into Hades — He arofe — afcend- 
 ed — fitteth at the right hand of God — and maketh 
 continual interceflion for us. 
 
 It feemed necefTary, that our Saviour mould viflt 
 men in all fituations, that he might redeem them. 
 The apoftle informs us, faying, < Forafmuch as 
 the children are partakers of flefh and blood, he 
 alfo himfelf likewile took part of the fame : that 
 through death, he might deftroy him that had 
 the power of death, that is, the devil ; and deliver 
 them, who, through fear of death, were all their 
 life-time fubjecT: to bondage,' Heb. ii. 14, 15. It 
 was not only necefTary that he mould die, to van- 
 quifh death, and to redeem us from its power ; 
 but it was equally needful for him to go into thofe 
 places, where fpirits were confined in the regions 
 of darknefs , that he might gain univerfal domini- 
 D 2 on, 
 
 l 
 
76 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 on, fpoil principalities, and redeem the captives 
 whom he had bought with his blood, in order 
 that he might alcend up to Heaven, and open to 
 his followers the gates of eternal life. 
 
 4 Wherefore he faith, Whenheafcended up on 
 high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto 
 men. Now that he afcended, what is it but that 
 he alfo defcended fir ft into the lower parts of the 
 earth ? He that defcended, is the fame alfo that 
 afcended up far above all heavens, that he might 
 fill all things,' Ephef. iv. 8, 9, 10. ' And having 
 fpoiled principalities and powers, he made a fhew 
 of them openly, triumphing over them in it,' Col. 
 ii. 15. 
 
 Thus our Saviour by his divine procefs, hath 
 obtained a right to open the prifon doors, and let 
 the captives go free : and though the rich man was 
 in torments, where he could not get a drop of wa- 
 ter to cool his tongue, and hud judgment without 
 mercy, becaufe he had Jbciued no mercy ; yet it is pof- 
 fible, that, by the blood of the covenant, he may 
 be fent forth out of the pit wherein is no water. 
 See Zech. ix. 11. The Lord Jefus is able to take 
 the prey from the mighty, and to deliver the law- 
 ful captive, Ifa. xlix. 24. 
 
 c Such as fit in darknefs, and in the fhadow of 
 death, being bound in affliction, and iron ; be- 
 caufe they rebelled againft the words of God, and 
 contemned the couniel of the Moil High ; there- 
 fore he brought down their heart with labour -, 
 they fell down, and there was none to help.' — 
 Th*s evidently points out the deplorable, m'sfera- 
 ble ftate of Tinners, cut off in their fms j having 
 rebelled againft God's words, and contemned his 
 eouniels*, for which reaibn he hath (hut them up 
 
 fa 
 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 77 
 
 in Jarkneis, and in the fhadow of death •, in fach 
 a iituation, that no power but his own, can give 
 them the leafr help, much lefs releafe. Such cir- 
 cumflances feldom occur in this life \ but thefe 
 words are a lively and affecting defcription of the 
 miferies of the future ftate. 
 
 * Then they cried unto Jehovah in their trou- 
 ble, and he laved them out of their diftrefTes. 
 He brought them out of darknefs, and the fha- 
 dow of death, and brake their bands in funder. 
 O that men would praife Jehovah for his good- 
 nefs, and for his wonderful works to the chil- 
 dren of men ! For he hath broken the gates of 
 brafs, and cut the bars of iron in funder,' Pial. 
 cvii. ic — 1 6. 
 
 This amazing deliverance feems to be described 
 in fuch language, as correfponds much better 
 with the deliverance of the fpirits from their 
 dreadful prifon, than with any temporal mercies 
 that are beftowed on mankind here on earth. ' The 
 righteous mall fee it, and rejoice ; and all iniqui- 
 ty mall flop her mouth : Whoib is wife, and 
 will obierve thefe things, even they fhall under- 
 stand the loving kindnefs of Jehovah,' ver. 42, 
 
 43- 
 
 Thofe who are acquainted with the Divine cha- 
 racter, and fee his defigns of mercy towards his 
 creatures, fhall rejoice in the fame : They that are 
 wife, fhall obierve thefe things, and fhall under- 
 ftand his loving kindnefs ; and that c Jehovah is 
 good to all : and his tender mercies are over all 
 his works,' Pfal. cxlv. 9. 
 
 Thus, how impoflible foever it might appear to 
 
 us, that the rich man fhould ever be delivered, 
 
 we muft remember, that * with God nothing fhall 
 
 D 3 be 
 
7* DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 be impoffible,' St. Luke i. 37. < Is there any 
 thing too hard for Jehovah ?' Gen. xviii. 14. 
 •Behold (fays he) I am Jehovah, the God of 
 all flem : Is there any thing too hard for me V 
 Jer. xxxii. 27. 
 
 Our Saviour fays, (St. Matt. xix. 24, St. Mark 
 x. 25. St. Luke xviii. 25.) ' It is eafier for a camel 
 to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich 
 man to enter into the kingdom of God.' Whe- 
 ther the word here ufed, intends a camel or a ca- 
 ble, it certainly implied the greateft difficulty imagi- 
 nable, even amounting in the view of his difciples, » 
 to a natural impoffibility, or they would not have 
 been as the evangelift expreffes it, exceedingly amaz- 
 ed, and ajlonijhed out of mcafure at his words, ( fay- 
 ing among themfelves, Who then can be laved ?' 
 But, though Jefus meant to reprefent the matter 
 ~s in itfelf a kind of natural impoffibility, and ab- 
 folutely impoffible to men •, yet he could not in- 
 tend thereby, that it never mould be accompiifh- 
 ed, becaufe he immediately adds, * With men, 
 this is impoffible ; but not with God : For with 
 God all things are poffible,' St. Mark x. 27. 
 Therefore, though it was impoffible for men to pafs 
 the gulph between Paradife and Gehenna ; yet, as 
 we have feen, Chrift was able, and therefore as 
 we know not the ne plus ultra of his power to fave, 
 we cannot pofitively conclude againjl the ReJIoration, 
 from this inftance of the rich man, unlefs we could 
 find fome paffiiges of Scripture, where God has 
 promifed never to reflore, or to reconcile fuch to 
 himfelf, whom he hath once caff off: the contrary 
 to which, I think, may be proved : but I am at 
 prefent confidering, that, in the nature of things, 
 it is not impoffible for God to reftore the rich 
 
 man, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 79 
 
 man, if he fo pleafes ; and, confequently, others 
 that are in the fame fituation. 
 
 Behold the rich man in another world ! He 
 
 feems now to have much more true benevolence in 
 him, than in his life-time ; for when he could not 
 obtain a drop of water for his tongue, he pleads 
 much more earneftly for Lazarus to be fent to his 
 five brethren, to teftify to them, left they alfo 
 mould come into the fame place of torment with 
 himfelf. Here he urges the matter moil earneft- 
 ly, and does not feem willing to be denied. This 
 fhews him not to have been fo loft to virtue as Sa- 
 tan ; fince he and his angels, though miferable 
 themfelves, feek to make all men fo too, though 
 their torments are increafed thereby. 
 
 Add to all this, that Abraham called the rich 
 man, ' Son/ and bade him remember, that in his 
 life-time he had his good things : and likewife La- 
 zarus, evil things ; and that therefore it was but 
 realbnable that the fcene mould be changed : that 
 Lazarus mould be comforted, and he tormented. 
 And I think, nothing can be fairly argued from 
 his cafe, in favour of endlefs damnation : For in 
 cafe he was doomed to fuffer while Godexi/ls, there 
 could be no proportion between the fuffe rings, 
 torments, and evil things of Lazarus on earth, and 
 thofe which he endured in hell ; whereas it is inti- 
 mated in the Scriptures, that all things are deter- 
 mined by number, weight, and meafure. Let us 
 hear what our Lord has faid upon the fubjecl:. St. 
 Luke xii. 47, 48. s And that fervant who knew 
 his Lord's will, and prepared not himfelf, neither 
 did according to his will, fhall be beaten with ma- 
 ny ftripes. But he that knew not, and did com- 
 mit things worthy of ftripes, (hall be beaten with 
 D 4 few 
 
%G DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 few ftripes : for unto whomfoever much is given, 
 of him mail be much required ; and to whom men 
 have committed much, of him they will afk the 
 more.' But what difference, fo much to be noti- 
 ced, could there be, if both were to be beaten to 
 all eternity P or how could either be laid to have 
 few, if there never was to be an end ? Impoflible ! 
 Rev. xviii. 7. « How much fhe (Babylon) hath 
 glorified herfelf, and lived delicioufly •, fo much 
 torment and forrow give her.' All this appears 
 juit and reafonable : But to fuppofe a poor ignorant 
 Heathen, or a child of ten years old, will remain 
 in mifery as long as the moft perfecuting Tyrant, or 
 apofbte Chriftian, feems to contradict all the 
 ideas we have of juftice and equity, as v/ell as of 
 goodnefs -, for in this cafe, who can fuppofe that 
 each one is exactly rewarded according to his 
 works ? And efpecially, can any think, that mercy 
 iias any hand 111 a reward, where there is feeming- 
 ly no proportion ? Whereas we read, (Pfalm lxii. 
 12.) ' Alfo unto thee, O Lord, belongeth mercy : 
 for thou rendereft to every man according to his 
 work.' 
 
 Friend. Indeed, I could not have thought that 
 fo much could have been faid upon that fide of 
 the cafe ; and though I am not yet wholly fatis- 
 fied, I muffc cenfefs, fomeof my great difficulties 
 feem to be removed, from what you have faid j 
 and yet there appears fomething very dreadful in 
 the account. Pray, do you underftand it as a pa- 
 rable ? 
 
 Mimjler. I am moft inclined to think it is a 
 piece of real hiftory, known to our Saviour, who 
 was well acquainted with what palled in the fpi- 
 ritual, as well as the natural world \ and who in- 
 tended 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. Si 
 
 tended thereby to give an awful warning to the 
 Pharifees, (who were covetous) of the dreadful 
 condition of wicked rich men in the next ftate : 
 and efpecially, of thole who neglect or defpife the 
 poor. 
 
 Friend. I am inclined to think with you in this 
 matter : and therefore, without any farther delay, 
 I fhall pafs to mention another ftrong objection to 
 the doctrine of the Reftoration of ail men ; viz. 
 the inftance of Judas : of whom our Saviour fays, 
 
 * The Son of man goeth, as it is written of him ; 
 but woe to that man by whom the Son of man 
 is betrayed ; it had been good for that man, if he 
 had not been born, St. Matt. xxvi. 24. St. Mark, 
 xiv. 21. If Judas mould ever be reftored, how 
 could the Saviour fay, c Good were it for that 
 man, if he had never been born ?' I think you wil 
 find it difficult to remove this objection \ for, if 
 he is ever to be happy, (though after many ages) 
 it will be good for him that he was born. 
 
 Minifler. I cannot think that this is fo ftrong an 
 argument againft the general Reltitution, as molt 
 that ufe it imagine. It was a common proverb 
 among the Jews, when any great misfortune hap- 
 pened to a man, or his family, to fay, c Good 
 were it for that man, if he had never been born.' 
 And thus our Saviour ufed it with great propriety 
 reflecting Judas : for who, that thinks with any 
 reafon at all, would not have wifhed that he had 
 never been born, rather than to have betrayed the 
 dear Redeemer ? 
 
 Friend. But can any thing lefs than cndlefs dam- 
 nation be fufficient to juftify the expreiTion of 
 
 • Good were it for that man, that he had never 
 been born ?' . 
 
 D 5 Minifla. 
 
$2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Minifter. I am of opinion that even worldly 
 troubles (fhort as they are) may fufficiently juftify 
 the expreffion. There are a thoufand circumftan- 
 ces into which the children of Adam fall, that 
 make their cafe infinitely worfe than though they 
 had never been born, even without fuppofing a ftate 
 of future punifhment at all. I had rather, a thou- 
 fand times, never have been born, than to have be- 
 trayed Chrift, even upon the fuppofition that I had 
 never been doomed to fuffer for it beyond this 
 life. Job, when he had loft his fubftance, his 
 children, and his eafe, opened his mouth, and, 
 through excefs of grief curfed the day of his birth : 
 though it does not appear that he had any fear of 
 future damnation, but the reverfe. 
 
 < And Job fpake, and faid, ' Let the day pe- 
 rifh wherein I was born ; and the night in which 
 it was faid, There is a man-child conceived. Let 
 that day be darknefs *, let not God regard it from 
 above j neither let the light fhine upon if. Let 
 darknefs and the fhadow of death frain it; let a 
 cloud dwell upon it : let the blacknefs of day ter- 
 rify it. As for that night, let darknefs feize upon 
 it : let it not be joined unto the days of the year ; 
 let it not come into the number of the months. 
 Lo ! let that night be folitary \ let no joyful voice 
 come therein. Let them curfe it that curfe the 
 day, who are ready to raife up their mourning. 
 Let the ftars of the twilight thereof be dark ; 
 let it look for light, but have none •, neither let it 
 fee the dawning of the day •, becaufeit (hut not up 
 the doors of my mother's womb, nor hid iorrow 
 from mine eyes. Why died I not from the womb ? 
 "Why did not I give up the ghofr, when I came 
 out of the belly ? Why did the knees prevent 
 
 me? 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 83 
 
 me ? or, why the breafts that I fhould fuck ? For 
 now fhould I have been ftill, and been quiet ; 
 I fhould have flept •, then had I been at reft, with 
 kings and counfellors of the earth, who built deib- 
 late places for themfelves ; or with princes, that 
 had gold, who filled their houfes with filver : Or, 
 as an hidden, untimely birth, I had not been ; as 
 infants, who never faw light. There the wicked 
 ceafe from troubling ; and there the weary be at 
 reft. There the prifoners reft together : they 
 hear not the voice of the oppreffer. The fmall 
 and great are there •, and the fervant is free from 
 his mafter,' See Job, iii. 2 — 19. 
 
 From this difcourfe, it fcems, that Job thought 
 it would have been better for him never to have 
 been born, than to have fallen into fuch fore trou- 
 bles in this prefent life, without taking the other 
 into his account j but if he had known that he had 
 been doomed to fuffer the amazing torments of 
 the fecond death, in the lake of fire and brim- 
 ftone, what would he have faid ? Even upon the 
 fuppofition that it was only to laft for ages, he 
 would have thought that his being born into this 
 world, to be fitted for fuch a punifhment, would 
 have been the greateft curfe that could have be- 
 fallen him. 
 
 If Job, who could fay, * I know that my Re- 
 deemer liveth, and that he fhall ftand at the lat- 
 ter day upon the earth : And, though after my 
 fkin worms deftroy this body, yet in my flefh 
 fhalll iee God : whom I ihall fee for myfelf, and 
 mine eye> fhall behold, and not another -, though 
 my reins ue confumed within me. He knoweth 
 the way th.it I take ; and when he hath tried me, 
 I fhall come forth as gold. My foot hath held his 
 
 iteps j 
 
&4 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 fteps ; his way have I kept, and not declined ; nei- 
 ther have I gone back from the commandment or 
 Ills lips : I have efteemed the words of his mouth 
 more than my necefTary food. Though he flay 
 me, yet will I truft. in him : but I will maintain 
 mine own ways before him. He alfo mail be my 
 ialvation. My righteoufnefs I hold fad, and will 
 not let it go : my heart (hall not reproach me fo 
 long as I live.' (See Job, xix. 25, 26, 27. xxiii. 
 10, 11, 12. xiii. 15, 16. xxvii. 6.) And who 
 could make fuch a folemn protection of his inno- 
 cence and uprightnels, before God and man, as 
 we find in the xxix. xxx. xxxi. chapters of that 
 book. If fach a man had reafon to fay, • Where- 
 fore, then, haft thou brought me forth out of the 
 womb ? Oh ! that I had given up the ghoft, and 
 no eye had ken me ! I mould have been as though 
 I had not been *, I ihould have been carried from 
 the womb to the grave,' (See Job x. 18, 19.) with 
 what amazing propriety might Chrift fay of Judas, 
 the traitor, who fmned in fuch a dreadful manner, 
 and had fuch horrible guilt on his confeience : 
 who died in black defpair, perifhed in fuch an aw- 
 ful foliation, in his fins, and, probably, by his own 
 hands : who furFered the molt violent agitations of 
 mind, died under the power of the horrid fuggef- 
 tions of the great enemy of men, without one fmile, 
 or look of forgiveneis, from Jefus, or even daring 
 to feek it ; whofe forrow in this life far exceeded 
 Job's, (for Job had no fenfe of guilt, treafon, and 
 ingratitude ; nor was he filled with rage, blafphe- 
 my, and defpair) — and who muff, probably have 
 his rortion in the fecond death ; — ' Good were it 
 for that man, if he had never been born ! even up- 
 on 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 8$ 
 
 on the fuppofition that his torments are not de- 
 figned to continue while God exifts. 
 
 Jeremiah is another inftance much to my pur- 
 pole ; who wifhed that he had never been born, 
 even at the very time when he knew the Lord was 
 his helper ; only becaufe he had been put in the 
 flocks by Pafhur, and had fuffered a little pain and 
 fhame in a good caufe. He was not afraid of end* 
 lefs damnation^ nor yet of any future punifhment : 
 for he thus exprefled himfelf, in all the language 
 of full aflurance ; ' But Jehovah is with me, as 
 a mighty terrible One : therefore, my perfecut- 
 ors {hall {tumble, and they {hall not prevail; 
 they mall be greatly afhamed, for they {hall not 
 profper ; their everlalting confuilon mall never 
 be forgotten. But, O Jehovah of Holts, that 
 trieft the righteous, and feeft the reins and the 
 heart, let me fee thy vengeance on them (or, thou 
 wilt let me fee, &c.) for unto thee have I opened 
 my caufe. Sing unto Jehovah, praife ye Jeho- 
 vah : for he hath delivered the foul of the poor 
 from the hand of evil doers. How ftrong his 
 faith ! how full his afTurance ! Yet it is evident, 
 that he thought it would have been much better 
 for him, perfonally, never to have been born ; 
 for he immediately adds, ' Curfed be the day 
 wherein I was born ; let not the day wherein my 
 mother bare me, be blefled. Curfed be the man 
 who brought tidings to my father, faying, A man 
 child is born unto thee, making him very glad. 
 And let that man be as the cities which Jehovah 
 overthrew, and repented not : And let him hear 
 the cry in the morning, and the {homing at noon- 
 tide ; becaufe he flew me not from the womb : or 
 that my mother might have been my grave : and 
 
 her 
 
$6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 her womb to be always great with me. Where- 
 fore came I out of the womb, to fee labour and 
 forrow, that my days fhould be confumed with 
 fhame ?' See Jer. xx. n — 18. 
 
 Here is not a word about a itate of future pu- 
 nifhment, much lefs endlefs damnation^ and yet the 
 good prophet Jeremiah thought, that if he had 
 never been born, it would have been far better 
 for him. 
 
 Friend. I muft confefs, I never before considered 
 it poffible to anlwer this objection •, you have done 
 much towards folving it : but you muft confider, 
 that both Job ano Jeremiah paffionately exclaimed, 
 and, through forrow, uttered fuch rafli words, 
 as, in their cooler moments, they repented of; and 
 therefore, what they fpake of themfelves cannot 
 wholly fet afide the objection. Had they deliver- 
 ed thole exprefTions as general truths, and declared, 
 that men had much better never have been born, 
 than to have fufFered iuch degrees of worldly for- 
 row, it would ha\ e more than anfwered the objec- 
 tion j but, when men under grief exclaim in fuch 
 a manner, we cannot ground a matter of fuch im- 
 portance upon what they fay refpecling themfelves ' 9 
 as their minds, being overwhelmed with trouble, 
 and the immediate fenfations of pain, are bialTed, 
 and cannut utter the calm dictates of fober reafon. 
 But Chrift, though under great forrows himfelf, 
 faw the cafe of Judas fo deplorable, that he ex- 
 prefled himfelf thus refpecling him ; which was 
 the fober truth, without exaggeration ; and could 
 this be laid of him, or of any other of the hu- 
 man race, upon the fuppofition that mifery is not 
 absolutely endlefs? 
 
 Min\flcr* 
 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION". $7 
 
 Mintfter. We do not find that Job or Jeremiah 
 ever recanted, in their cooler moments, what they 
 uttered in their forrows ; and our Lord, fpeaking 
 of the deftruction of Jerufalem, fays, ' And woe 
 unto them that are with child, and to them that 
 give fuck in thofe days,' See St. Matth. xxiv 19. 
 St. Mark, xiii. 17. Not becaufe of their future, 
 endlefs damnation, in diftincYion from others •, but 
 on account of their prefent trouble and forrow ; as 
 is explained, Luke xxi. 23. c But, woe to them 
 that are with child, and to them that give fuch, in 
 thofe days : for there fhall be great diitxefs in the 
 land, and wrath upon this people/ And when 
 the Saviour was led to death, we read, £ And there 
 followed him a great company of people, and of 
 women, who alio bewailed and lamented him. 
 But Jefus, turning unto them, faid, Daughters of 
 Jerufalem, weep not for me, but for yourfelves, 
 and for your children. For behold the days are 
 coming, in the which they fhall fay, BlefTed are the 
 barren, and the wombs that never bare, and the 
 paps which never gave fuck. Then iliall they fay 
 to the mountains, Fall on us ; and to the hills, 
 Cover us. For if they do thefe things in a green 
 tree, what fhall be done in the dry ?' St. Luke, 
 xxiii. 27 — *— 3 1. 
 
 And who would not, a thoufand times, choofe 
 rather never to have been born, than even to fee, 
 far lefs experience, the miferies which came upon 
 Jerufalem and its inhabitants ? Would it not have 
 been better tor mothers never to have been born, 
 than to have killed and eaten their own children in 
 the fiege ? And would it not have been better for 
 the children never to have been born, than to have 
 beeo food for their mothers ? 
 
 But 
 
88 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 But Solomon not only reprefents a ftate of great 
 mifery and affliction in this life, as worfe than net 
 to have been born, but alfo, a ftate of the greateft 
 profperity, if it ends in difgrace ; for he fays, ' If 
 a man beget an hundred children, and live many 
 years, fo that the days of his years be many, and 
 his foul be not filled with good ; and alfo, that he 
 have no burial •, I fay, that an untimely birth is 
 better than he. For he (the untimely birth) cometh 
 in with vanity, and departeth in darknefs ; and his 
 name fhall be covered with darknefs. Moreover, 
 he hath not feen the fun, nor known any thing : 
 this hath more reft than the other. Yea, though 
 he live a thoufand years twice told, yet hath he 
 feen no good :' (z. e. no equivalent good, to balance 
 his difgrace). ' Do not all go to one place ?' All 
 came from duit, and turn to duft again. See 
 Ecclef. vi. 3, 4, 5, 6. 
 
 The ftate here defcribed by Solomon, is not only 
 infinitely better than the damnation of hell, though 
 limited by certain periods ; but far preferable to 
 many, if not to moft fituations of men in this life : 
 and yet he prefers an untimely birth to a man who 
 lives more than twice the age of Methufelah, and 
 has an hundred children of his own, if he has not 
 his foul filled or fatisfied with good ; and that he 
 hath no burial, or has not honour, (credit, or re- 
 putation) at his death. 
 
 Long life and many children^ were formerly es- 
 teemed as the greateft of bleflings : but as the 
 things of this life cannot fill the foul with good ; 
 fo a man had better never have been born, than to 
 have enjoyed the good things of this world in the 
 greateft profufion, if he dies in difgrace, and has 
 no burial, or is not honoured at his death. Yet, 
 
 this 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 89 
 
 this is not worthy to be named in the fame day 
 with the damnation of hell ; yet, is frequently 
 threatened as a great and terrible judgment •, which, 
 if it falls upon a man, however, he may have en- 
 joyed long life, health, wealth, and all kinds of 
 proiperity *, it makes it worfe for him than if he had 
 never been born, according to the decifion of God 
 himfelf; and, therefore, no wonder that Chrur. 
 faid of wicked Judas; ' Good were it for that man, 
 if he had never been born.' 
 
 Though I have anfwered you fo largely, yet one 
 word might have fufficed to have anfwered the 
 whole objection at rirft ; viz. Had Judas died be- 
 fore he had been born, and perifhed from his mo- 
 ther's womb, he would never have finned, far lefs 
 betrayed Chrift •, he would have entered into 
 peace immediately, * where the wicked ceafe from 
 troubling, and where the weary are at reft :' In 
 that cafe, he would have efcaped the judgment 
 that came upon him, and would have had more 
 reft than thofe who mould live in all the affluence 
 of life two thoufand years, and beget each an hun- 
 dred children, and yet mould not be honoured at 
 their death. 
 
 Some would have anfwered the objection fhort- 
 er, by laying, Chriit promifed twelve thrones to 
 his twelve apoftles, among whom Judas was one ; 
 and therefore, he mull be reftored, or the promife 
 cannot be fulfilled: See St. Matth. xix. 28. But 
 this I do not infift upon ; neverthelefs, thofe who 
 anfwer the objection this way, make an obferva- 
 tion that may be worth attention ; viz. that Peter, 
 fpeaking of Judas, faith, < Let his habitation be de- 
 folate, and let no man dwell therein ;' that is, Let 
 
 his 
 
90 DIALOCtJES ON THE 
 
 his manfion be referved for him, let no man take 
 pofleflion of it ; but < His biuhopric, or office, let 
 another take/ See Acts, i. 20. compared with 
 Pfal. ixix. 25. cix. 8. But I am rather of opinion 
 that the defolation of the habitation of the wicked, 
 and the want of inhabitants in their tents, refpects 
 this ftate, and is part of the curfe pronounced up- 
 on all traitors ; and may therefore in an eminent 
 fenfe, be applied to Judas, and alfo to the rebel- 
 lious nation of the Jews at large ; and therefore, 
 as thefe words do not intend their Reftoration, fo 
 neither are they any objection to it ; for St. Paul 
 applies part of the lxixth Pfalm to the Jews, as 
 truly as St. Peter applies it to Judas : See Rom. 
 x. 9, 1 o. And yet he fays, < I fay then, Have 
 they Humbled, that they mould fall ? God forbid: 
 But rather, through their fall, falvation is come 
 unto the Gentiles, to provoke them to jealoufy. 
 Now, if the fali of them be the riches of the 
 world, and the dimkiiming of them the riches of 
 the Gentiles \ how much more their fulnefs ?' And 
 thus, from the 1 ith verfe to the end of the chap- 
 ter, goes on to fpeak of their being again received, 
 reconciled, and grafted again into their own olive 
 tree ; and that their blindnefs is only for a time : 
 1 And fo all Ifrael (hall be faved : There mail come 
 out of Sion a deliverer, and fhall turn away un- 
 godlinels from Jacob :' That God's covenant, or 
 promife, is to take their fins away ; that they are 
 beloved for the fathers fakes ; that the gifts and 
 calling of God are without repentance; that, 
 therefore, they fhall obtain mercy at laft ; and that, 
 for this very purpofe, God hath concluded them 
 all {or (hut them up) in unbelief, that he might 
 
 not 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. Ol 
 
 not only punilh them thereby for their tranfgref- 
 fions, and alfo, through their unbelief, caufe the 
 the Gentiles to obtain mercy and falvation ; but 
 alio, that he might have mercy upon all thofe whom 
 he had thus fhut up in unbelief, without exception. 
 See the whole chapter. 
 
 Here, then, are three defigns, worthy of a God 
 of infinite wifdom, power and goodnefs, in this one 
 dark difpenfation, the rejection of the Jewifh 
 
 church and nation: 1. That he might puni/h 
 
 them for their iniquity : 2. That others might 
 
 come in their room, fland in their office, and be 
 made partakers of their privileges : and 3. That 
 they might be referved to mercy and forgivenefs at 
 laft. And what happened to a whole nation of 
 traitors, might happen to an individual of that na- 
 tion ; aid vice verfa. 
 
 Friend. This is a fubject of great importance, 
 and if you can maintain the fyflem you have e£« 
 poufed, and anfwer the remaining objections that 
 may be brought againft it, it will molt, certainly 
 give me pleafure, and relieve my mind from great 
 anxiety. I am a father of many children, and 
 God knows the tears I have (Tied on their account, 
 but could I receive your views with what pleafure 
 mould I look upon them ! ! ! But I have many re- 
 maining difficulties and objections ftill to pro- 
 pofe ; may God preferve me from error and falfe 
 doctrine, I wifh to know what is really the truth 
 in this matter, for above all things I dread decep- 
 tion. 
 
 Mimjler. I allure you my friend that I mould 
 be as loth to deceive you, as you are to be deceiv- 
 ed, and had I not the iurelt confidence through the 
 Lord of the truth and reality of this molt glorious 
 
 fyftem, 
 
92 »IALOGUES ON THE 
 
 fyftem, and did I not find the higheft fatisfa&ion 
 in it myfelf, I mould never prefume to hold it 
 forth to others. But as I have an engagement that 
 calls me elfewhere juft now, I muft beg you to ex- 
 cufe me, hoping that in a little time I mall have an- 
 other opportunity of hearing the remainder of your 
 objections •, and in the mean time I advife you to 
 fearch the fcriptures, and pray God to lead you 
 into all truth. 
 
 END OK THE SECOND DIALOGUE, 
 
 DIALOGUF 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 
 
 DIALOGUE III. 
 
 Friend. ] " AM glad to meet with you, to hare 
 lome farther converfation upon the ve- 
 ry important and interefting fubject of the final 
 Reftoration. Since I faw you laft I have had op- 
 portunity of hearing fome very capital objections 
 made againfl this fyftem, which I beg leave to ftate 
 in the plainefl and flrongeft manner. 
 
 Minifler. Your franknefs is well pleafing to me, 
 and I am ready to hear whatever can be urged 
 againfl my fentiments, and will do my endeavour 
 to anfwer all reafonable objections ; therefore pro- 
 pole them as loon as you think proper. 
 
 Friend. One grand objection that is very gene- 
 rally made againft the doctrine of the Reftoration, 
 is, that it tends to licentioufnefs \ that it is the doc- 
 trine that the ferpent preached to Eve ; for we 
 read, (Gen. Hi. 4.) < And the ferpent faid unto the 
 woman, Ye fhall not furely die :' and that it is a 
 doctrine calculated to give encouragement to the 
 wicked to continue in their evil ways ; that it is 
 * faying, Peace, peace, when there is no peace ;' 
 and that this doctrine is as dangerous as that of 
 the wicked prophetefTes of EzekieFs time, of whom 
 God fays, ' With lies ye have made the heart of 
 the righteous fad, whom I have not made fad ; and 
 ftrengthened the hands of the wicked, that he 
 
 ihould 
 
94 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 fhould not return from his wicked way, by pr»- 
 mifmg him life. They fay unto them that defpife me, 
 Jehovah hath faid, Ye (hall have peace ; and they 
 fay unto every one that walketh after the imagina- 
 tion of his own heart, No evil fhall come upon you,' 
 Jer. viii. n. Ezek. xiii. 22. Jer. xxiii. 17. 
 
 It is faid, that it is the nature of God to lay the 
 higheft pofTible reftraint upon fin, and, therefore, 
 he has threatened it with eternal, or endlefs punifh- 
 ment : and this is even found too weak to prevent 
 the prevailing of iniquity. What a flood of im- 
 piety, therefore, would overflow the world, if it 
 fhould be generally believed, that after fome ages 
 of fuffering, mankind fhould be reftored to fome 
 degree of happinefs ? Would not the reftraints be 
 wholly taken off from the lulls and paffions of the 
 wicked, if once this doctrine fhould become pre- 
 valent ? Will you be fo kind as to give a fair and 
 candid reply to this objection ? 
 
 Minifter. This objection is ftated with all pofli- 
 ble force, I fhall, therefore endeavour to anfwer 
 it as well as I can •, putting in this caveat, that if 
 I fhould not anfwer it to your fatisfaction, do not 
 imagine that no folid anfwer can be given ; but im- 
 pute it to my not being fufficiently matter of my 
 lubject, or not being able to exprefs my mind fo 
 clearly as I could wifh. As this objection is fre- 
 quently made, and often ufed, by people who 
 mean well, but have not confidered the fubject 
 thoroughly, I fhall be as explicit as poflibly I can 
 upon it. 
 
 I would firlt obferve, that the great truths, or 
 firlt principles, upon which the Reiteration is 
 founded, and from which it is derived by natural 
 and eafy confequences, are far from tending to li- 
 
 centiouihefs : 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 9J 
 
 eentioufnefs : But, in order to make this evident, 
 it will be proper here to fet them down in their 
 order. 
 
 Firfl Principles, upon "which the Do&rine of the final 
 and univerfal Rejlitution is founded* 
 
 I . God is the univerfal and only creator of all : 
 contrary to the opinion of the Manichees of old, 
 who believed the devil to be the creator of mofl, 
 if not all vifible beings : The MuggUtonlans y of the 
 laff. century, and the Buchanites lately, alTert nearly 
 the fame fentiments ; contrary to Rev. iv. n. Col. 
 i. 1 6. Pfal. c. 3. Numb. xvi. 22. Ifai. Ixiv. 8. Ezek. 
 xviii. 4. Zech. xii. 1. and a vafl number of other 
 Scriptures. 
 
 Now, who can lay, that this noble thought, 
 which St. Paul enlarges upon fo beautifully, ( Acts, 
 
 xvii. 24 30.) tends, in the leafl, to make 
 
 men wicked ? Does it not tend to dignify and en- 
 noble human nature, to be told, that God is our 
 Father, Creator and Firft Caule ; and that we were 
 made by his power, according to his will, and for 
 his pleafure ; and that the chief end for which he 
 made us, was, to glorify his name, and to enjoy him 
 forever ? — as the AfTembly's Catechifm beautifully 
 declares. This is one of the principles from 
 which God himfelf deduces the certainty of the 
 final end of wrath, as I have obferved before : — 
 ' For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be 
 always wroth : for the fpirit mould fail before me, 
 and the fouls which I have made/ Ifai. lvii. 16. — 
 Thofe who venture to contradict their Maker, and 
 lay, that he will contend for ever, a fid be always 
 wroth ; ought to be able, at leaft, to give as good 
 
$5 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 a reafon why he wilt, as he has alTigned why he 
 will not ; and confequently prove, that he hath 
 not made all fouls ; which is the true founda- 
 tion upon which endlefs mifery mull be founded, 
 and the only doctrine which is perfectly confident 
 with it. 
 
 The poor untutored Indians in America, argued 
 (with a miflionary that was fent from Sweden to 
 convert them) from the univerfal providence of 
 God, that he, who was fo kind a Father as to pro- 
 vide for their bodies all things needful, had not 
 wholly neglected their fouls : But this I do not 
 inflit upon, though, I think, the argument has 
 weight in it \ and, certainly, the providential good- 
 nels of God, and his long-fufFering, tends to lead 
 men to repentance : Rom. ii. 4. 2 Pet. iii. 9. 
 
 2. The univerfal benevolence of the Deity, or the 
 love of God to his creatures, is one of the firlt 
 principles from which the general Reftoration is 
 deduced : and who can fay, that this leads to li- 
 centioufnefs ? If thofe who believe that God loves 
 them, in particular, find that confideration the 
 ftrongeit obligation on them to love him again, and 
 to obey his will ; by the fame rule, if all the in- 
 dividuals of the whole human race, were to be- 
 lieve that God loved each one of them, would not 
 the fame caufe produce the fame erfect ? And if fo, 
 can this be charged as a licentious doctrine, which 
 is exprefsly grounded upon a caufe which power- 
 fully operates to produce holinefs ? Is there any 
 thing like argument in this reafoning: I know that 
 God loves me, and feeks to do me good -, there- 
 fore, I muff hate him. What mould we think of 
 a woman who mould leave her hufband, and do 
 all in her power againfl him, and mould be able 
 
 to 
 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 97 
 
 to give no better reafon for it than the following : 
 My hufband loves me, and I know it, and he has 
 always loved me, and always will ; and, therefore, 
 I am determined to hate, ridicule, defpife, and con- 
 temn him, and have left him for this very canfe, 
 and am determined never to love or obey him 
 more ? Bad as human nature is, I queflion whe- 
 ther fuch inftances often occur. We commonly fay, 
 that love begets love : € We love him, becaufe he 
 firft loved us ;' fays the Apoftle, 1 John, iv. 19. 
 Therefore, the doctrine of God's univerfal benevo- 
 lence, cannot lead to licentioufnefs, in any light in 
 which it can be viewed ; for, if he really loves us, 
 he will do all in his power to bring us to love him 
 again, and to be like him ; and I am fure, the con- 
 fideration of his love to us, goes as far as moral 
 fuafion can go, to induce us to love him again, nay, 
 the belief of it is acknowledged to be one of the 
 ftrongeft motives to obedience ; and the love of 
 God, Ihed abroad in the heart, produces the beft 
 effects, and is the moft powerful principle, and 
 fpring, of good and virtuous actions, that we are 
 acquainted with. This being a firft principle, 
 from which the univerfal Reftoration is concluded, 
 we are happy to find, that * God is love :' and 
 that he * fo loved the world, as to give his only 
 begotten Son, that whofoever believeth in him, 
 mould not perifh, but have everlafling life : For, 
 God lent not his Son into the world to condemn 
 the world : but that the world, through him, 
 might be faved.' See 1 John, iv. 16. St. John, hi. 
 16, 17. But it is not fo much my bufinefs now to 
 (hew, that the fentiment is fcriptural, as to fhew 
 that it is not of a dangerous tendency. The fol- 
 lowing words, however, are {o beautiful, that I 
 E take 
 
$S • DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 take the liberty to mention them : — c But thou hafl: 
 mercy upon all •, for thou canft do all things, and 
 winkeft at the fins of men, becaufe they mould 
 amend. For thou loveft all the things that are, 
 and abhorred nothing which thou hafl made : for 
 never wouldeft thou have made any thing, if thou 
 hadft hated it, And how could any thing have 
 endured, if it had not been thy will : or been pre- 
 ferved, if not called by thee ? But thou fpareft all ; 
 for they are thine, O Lord, thou lover of fouls. 
 For thine incorruptible Spirit is in all things -.There- 
 fore chafleneft thou them, by little and little, that 
 offend, and warneft them, by putting them in re- 
 membrance wherein they have offended, that leav- 
 ing their wickednefs, they may believe on thee, O 
 Lord. For thy power is the beginning of righte- 
 oufnefs ; and becaufe thou art the Lord of all, it 
 maketh thee to be gracious unto all. But thou, O 
 God, art gracious and true : long-fuffering, and 
 in mercy ordering all things. For if we fin, we 
 are thine, knowing thy power-, but we will not fin, 
 knowing that we are counted thine :' Wifdom of 
 
 Solomon, xi. 23- 26. xii. 1, 2, 16. xv. 1, 2. 
 
 * Jehovah is gracious and full of compafTion, flow 
 to anger, and of great mercy. Jehovah is good 
 to all : and his tender mercies are over all his 
 works. All thy works (hall praife thee, O Jeho- 
 vah -, and thy faints fhall blefs thee,' Pfal. cxlv. 
 8, 9, ic. 
 
 3. Another great principle, upon which the 
 Reftoration depends, is, that Christ died for all ; 
 < We fee Je/us, who was made a little lower than 
 the angels, for the fuffering of death, crowned 
 with glory and honour •, that he, by the grace of 
 God, ihould tafte death for every man/ (or all) 
 
 Heb. 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 99 
 
 Heb. ii. 9. ' If any man fin, we have an Advo- 
 cate with the Father, Jefus Chriji, the righteous : 
 And he is the propitiation for our fins ; and not 
 for ours only, but alfo for the fins of the whole 
 world,' 1 John, ii. i, 2. f For there is one God, 
 and one Mediator between God and men, the Man 
 Christ Jesus : who gave himfelf a ranfom for 
 all, to be teftified in due time,' i Tim. ii. 5, 6. 
 
 I need not multiply paifages to prove that Cfirijl 
 died for all-, for though the universality of his death 
 is not exprefsly aflerted, in every text where it is 
 mentioned that he died, it mull: always be under- 
 itood ; becaufe it is never denied in any place, and 
 is plainly, and pointedly declared in thofe which 
 
 1 have quoted : And, befides, it is evident that in 
 the apoftles time, the univerfality of the death of 
 Chriit was a firft principle, univerfally acknow- 
 ledged, and, therefore, St. Paul reafons from it 
 as fuch ; which it would have been highly prepos- 
 terous for him to do, if that had not been the cafe : 
 As, for example, * For the love of Chrijl con- 
 ftraineth us ; becaufe we thus judge, that if one 
 died for all,' (which is not difputed by any, and 
 which we know to be a truth) ' then were all 
 dead : And that he died for all ; that they who 
 live, mould not henceforth live unto themfelves, 
 but unto him that died for them, and rofe again,' 
 
 2 Cor. v. 14, 15. 
 
 Friend. But have you never heard it argued that 
 Cbrifl did not die for all, becaufe he did not pra* 
 for all? 
 
 Minifier, I remember, when a lad, I was fent 
 
 to a neighbour's houfe, and overheard the good 
 
 man, the matter of the family, read in a book, after 
 
 this manner : < Chrijl did not die for all, becaufe 
 
 E 2 he 
 
ICO DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 he did not pray for all : I pray for them ; I pray 
 not for the world, but for them which thou haft 
 given me, for they are thine,' St. John, xvii. 9. 
 And I then thought the argument conclufive : But 
 I am now at a lofs whether the author of that 
 book meant to deceive his readers ; or, whether 
 he had never read the chapter through critically : 
 for, had he read the 20th verfe, he would have 
 found thefe words, which would have overthrown 
 his hypothecs : — * Neither pray I for thefe alone; 
 but for them alfo, who (hall believe on me through 
 their word.' If Chrifl had prayed for all, in the 
 9th verfe, for whom he died, he could not have 
 enlarged his prayer fo much in the 20th verfe, as 
 to take in not them only, but all that fhould be- 
 lieve on him through their word : Neither does he 
 ftop here, but goes on to pray for thole that believe, 
 in thefe words : f That they all may be one ; as 
 thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee \ that they 
 alfo may be one in us :' And, why is all this uni- 
 ty prayed for among believers ? Surely, it hath 
 never been accomplifhed ; but it fhall be, for this 
 great and admirable purpofe ; viz. ( That the 
 world may believe that thou haft lent me. And 
 the' glory which thou gaveft me, I have given 
 them ; that they may be one, even as we are one : 
 I in them, and thou in me ; that they may be 
 made perfect in one, and that the world may know 
 that thou haft fent me, and haft loved them, as 
 thou haft loved me,' vtrfes 21, 22, 23. 
 
 Friend. But when fhall the world believe, and 
 know that Chrijl is the Sent of God ? 
 
 Minijler. When all that believe fhall be one, as 
 the Father and the Son are one : When the great 
 marriage of the Lamb fhall be celebrated, and his 
 
 Bride 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 10 I 
 
 Bride (hall be one, in the bond of univerfal love and 
 fellowship, as the Father and Son now are : When 
 the Church (hall be perfected in one ) (hall dwell 
 in love, and dwell in God, as the Father dwells in- 
 the Son, and the Son in the Father : When Zion's 
 watchmen (hall fee eye to eye : W r hen all believers 
 (hall fpeak the fame thing ; when there (hall be no 
 more divifions among them ; when they (hall be 
 perfectly joined together in the fame mind, and in 
 the fame judgment. 
 
 This was the ftate that St. Paul befought the 
 Corinthians to prefs after, and wimed them to at- 
 tain ; but he had the mortification to fee them fall 
 fhort of it, as all the Chriftian churches have, from 
 that day to this. But when Chrijl (hall give that 
 glory and honour to his Bride, which the Father 
 gave to him, and (hall thus unite her to himfelf, 
 in an indifToluble union, and the feveral members 
 of his body, the Church, (hall be as much united 
 one to another, as the members of the natural 
 body are ; or, to exprefs it in his own words, * As 
 thou, Father, art in me, and / in thee / When 
 thus the Church (hall be one, in fpirit, love, de- 
 fign, judgment, &c. as the Father and Son are ; 
 then (hall the world believe, and believing, have 
 life ; then (hall the world know him, whom to 
 know is life eternal : See verfes 2 and 3. But as 
 this great caufe has never yet exifted, the effeB has 
 not yet followed ; but when xhcjirjl (hall be, the 
 lajl (hall take place in confequence. 
 
 The petitions in that mod excellent prayer, that 
 may, with great propriety, be called the Lord's 
 Prayer, may be divided into four clafles : 1. For 
 himfelf, verfes ill: and 5th : 2. For his apoflles, 
 
 9 19: 3. For them that (hould believe, through 
 
 E 3 their 
 
102 DTALOGUES ON T*1E 
 
 their word, verfes 20, 21, 22, 23: And, 4. for 
 the world, verfes 21,23; as I have jufl obferved, 
 and need not add any more upon fo plain a mat- 
 ter. 
 
 Friend. Proceed, if you pleafe, to mew, that the 
 doctrine of the univcrfality of the death of Chrift 
 does not lead to licentioufnefs. 
 
 Minifter. It is evident that it doth not •, but, on 
 the contrary, it is the flrongeft motive to all who 
 believe it, to love and live to him who died for 
 them, and rofe again : We are not our own, but are 
 bought with a price ; therefore, we are exhorted not 
 to be thefervants of fin, (laves to our paffions, and 
 fervants to men : but to glorify God in our bo- 
 dies and rpirits, which are his : and the apoflle be- 
 feeches us, by the mercies of God, to prefent our 
 bodies a living facrifice, holy, acceptable unto 
 God ; which is our reafonable fervice. Foraf- 
 much, as we know that we were not redeemed 
 with corruptible things, as filver and gold ; but 
 with the precious blood of Chrift) as of a Lamb 
 without blemifh, and without fpot; See 2 Cor. v.. 
 15, Rom. vi. 12, 13. 1 Cor. vii. 23. vi. 19, 20. 
 Rom. xii. 1. 1 Peter, i. 18, 19. 
 
 What a horrid thought would it be, that Chrift 
 mould be the minifter of fin, and that his blood- 
 fhedding mould caufe wickednefs to abound ? 
 The love of God, in giving his Son to die, is 
 enough to move an heart of flone •, ' For when 
 we were yet without ftrength, in due time, Chrift 
 died for the ungodly : for, fcarcely for a righte- 
 ous man will one die ; yet, peradventure, for a 
 good (kind, benevolent, generous) man, fome 
 would even dare to die. But God commendeth 
 bis love towards us, in that, while we were yet 
 
 Tinners, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IO3 
 
 finners, Chrift died for us. Much more, being 
 now juftified through his blood, we fhall be laved 
 from wrath through him. For if when we were 
 enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death 
 of his Son; much more, being reconciled, v/e {hall 
 be fared by his life,' Rom. v. 6 10. 
 
 Here the death of the Lord Jefus is laid as the 
 ground, and the falvation of men inferred from it, 
 with the greateft pofllble certainty \ yet, will any 
 one fay, that becaufe Chrift hath died for him, 
 therefore he will indulge himfelf in fin ? God for- 
 bid. Some fay that if they believed this doctrine, 
 they would live in fin, and indulge themfelves in 
 their lufts and paftions : but then it may be ob- 
 ferved, that thofe who fay fo are its enemies, and 
 thofe who oppofe the view, and not thofe who 
 receive it. 
 
 There is fomething fo brutifh and unaccounta- 
 ble in fuch difpofitions, as would lead men to 
 hate their bed friends, merely becaufe they are fo ; 
 that would lead them to hate God, becaufe he 
 loved them ; and defpife Chrift % merely becaufe 
 he died for them •, that, for the honour of human 
 nature, I would hope, thefe inftances are rare. 
 But to the point. I have converfed with many 
 who believed that Chrift died for them in particu- 
 lar ; and yet I never heard them fay, that they 
 hated him for it ; but, on the contrary, that they 
 loved him exceedingly. Now, is not the fame 
 caufe likely to produce the fame effect ? If a thou- 
 fand perfons, for inftance, all believing that Chrift 
 died for them, find their hearts conftrained to love 
 him for it, would it not have the fame effect upon 
 ten thouland, ten millions, or ten millions of mil- 
 lions ? And if it would caufe licentioufnefs to 
 E 4 abound 
 
104 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 abound in the world, to preach that Chrlft died for 
 all, if it was univerfally believed ; by the fame 
 rule it mult, caufe it to prevail, in a lefter degree, 
 to preach that he died for a fmall part, at leaft, a- 
 mong thofe who believe themfelves to be of the 
 the number ; and, therefore, it muft not be preach- 
 ed at all, that he died for any ? Who can deny the 
 confequence ? It feems to be evident, that Chrijl 
 has done and fufFered too much for thofe that he 
 died for, to lofe them finally : and thus the uni- 
 verfal Reftoration {lands connected neceiTarily with 
 the univerfality of the death of Chrijl^ and is de- 
 duced therefrom, in the eafieft manner ; therefore, 
 the doctrine of the former cannot tend to licenti- 
 oufhefs, as it ftands upon the ground of the latter, 
 which hath been demonftrated to have no fuch 
 tendency. 
 
 4. Another principle upon which the univerfal 
 doctrine depends, is, the unchangeablenefs of God : 
 Whom he loves once, he always loves; he loved 
 his creatures when he made them, as none can 
 well deny •, their fins he never loved, nor ever 
 will ; he hath declared, that he loved us when 
 Tinners, but never as finners. His eternal and 
 conftant hatred of all fin, and his unchangeable 
 love of all his creatures, are of the nature of pri- 
 mary truths •, from which the doctrine of the ge- 
 neral Reftoration may be eafily and plainly infer- 
 red. In this view we may under ftand thofe ma- 
 ny dreadful threatenings and gracious promifes, 
 made to the fame people and perfons : Both mail 
 be fulfilled ; the firft, while they continue as 
 rebels, which are defigned to humble and iubdue 
 them ; the Lift, when they fhall have accepted 
 of the punifhmcnt of their iniquity -, when their 
 
 uncir- 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 105 
 
 uncircumcifed hearts are humbled, when their 
 ftubborn knees mall bow to Jehovah, and their 
 former rebellious tongues (hall fwear allegiance 
 to him. 
 
 Does this idea lead to licentioufnefs, that God 
 hates fin, and determines to purfue it to entire de- 
 ftrucYion, and never to put up his fword, fo long as 
 there is a rebel in the univerfe ; yet, at the lame 
 time, has no pofitive hatred to the fouls which he 
 has made, but only wifhes them to return to or- 
 der ? — This idea appears to me, equally to check 
 prefumption and defpair ; and tends to put an 
 end to licentioufnefs, rather than to encourage it : 
 For, if rebels are affured that their rightful fove- 
 reign hates them, and will never fuffer them to be 
 reconciled to him, it naturally caufes them to 
 fight with tenfold rage, as all warriors will teftify ; 
 as, on the other hand, if they believe he is too 
 weak, or undetermined, to conquer them, they 
 will be prefumptuous, and continue the war. It 
 cannot, therefore, be affirmed, by any perfons of 
 reafbn, that the declaration that God will deltroy 
 fin, tends to promote it •, or, that his love of order, 
 and hatred of evil, being compatible with his 
 love to the creatures he has made, is a doftrine 
 that encourages men to rebel ; the contrary is evi- 
 dent : and yet thefe are the very grounds of the 
 univerfal Reftoration ; which cannot, therefore, 
 be licentious. 
 
 5. Another of the firft principles of the Reftora- 
 tion, is, the immutability of Goris coanfels ; which 
 he harh c on firmed by an oath, « That by two Im- 
 mutable things, (i>/'r:.his word and oath) in which 
 it was .mpoflible for Gon to lie, we might have a 
 ftrong confolation, who have fled for refuge, to 
 E 5 lay 
 
I06 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 lay hold upon the hope fet before us,' Heb. vi. 
 17, 1 8. ' God hath abounded towards us in all 
 wifdom and prudence, having made known unto 
 lis the myftery of his will, according to his good 
 pleafure, which he hath purpofed in himfelf. 
 That in the difpenfation of the fulnefs of times, 
 he might gather together (or rehead) in one, all 
 things in Chri/l, both which are in heaven, and 
 which are on earth : even in him : in whom we 
 have obtained an inheritance, being predeftinated 
 according to the pur pole of him who worketh all 
 things according to the counfel of his own will/ 
 Ephef. i. 8, 9, 10, ii. God is our Saviour, (or 
 Soterosy Reftorer) who will have all men to be 
 faved, (fothenai) reftored) and to come unto the 
 knowledge of the truth,' 1 Tim. ii. 3, 4. This is 
 the will and counfel of that God, who « doeth 
 according to his will in the armies of heaven, and 
 and among the inhabitants of the earth •, and 
 none can flay his hand, or fay unto him, What 
 doeft thou ?' Dan. iv. 35. He hath iworn by 
 himfelf, the word is gone out of his mouth in righ- 
 teoufnefs, and fhall not return, that unto him 
 * every knee fhall bow, every tongue fhall fwear,' 
 Ifai. xlv. 23. The counfel of God fhall fland ; he 
 will perforin his pleafure, notwithftanding all the 
 oppofition that men can make : * God is not a man, 
 tnat he fhould lie, neither the fon of man, that he 
 fhould repent : Hath he laid, and fhall he not do 
 it ? or, hath he fpoken, and fhall he not make it 
 good*' Numb, xxiii. 19. If God will have all 
 men to be faved, or reftored, and to come to 
 the knowledge of the truth, if it is his good plea- 
 fure, which he hath purpofed in himfelf, in the 
 difpenfation of the fulnefs of times, to rehead all 
 
 •thing* 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IQJ 
 
 things in Ckrift, both in heaven and on earth ; if 
 he hath {worn, that unto him every knee fliall 
 bow, and every tongue mall fwear ; and if he 
 worketh all things after the couniei of his own 
 will, and is determined to perform all his pleafure, 
 which he is able to do ; and with him nothing 
 that he pleaies is impoffible : I fay, if all thcie 
 things are true, (as who, that believes the Scrip- 
 tures, can deny?) then, is not the doctrine of the 
 Reftoration true ? And who will venture to charge 
 that with licentioufnefs, which God, in the couniei 
 of his will, hath purpofed, and is determined to 
 perform ? We know, the will of God is a will to 
 all goodnefs, and that he cannot do any thing un- 
 juit, or contrary to his holy nature, or inconfifr,- 
 ent with his plan of moral government, or that 
 fhall tend to promote rebellion ; therefore, if God 
 had feen that this great work had been, in any re- 
 fpect, injurious to his perfections, character, go- 
 vernment, &c. he would not have propofed it 5 
 and if he had forefeen that the knowledge of it 
 would have been hurtful to mankind, he would 
 not have revealed it : But fince he hath done both, 
 we may certainly argue, that it is not a licentious 
 doctrine to declare, that God will finally make all 
 his intelligent creatures happy ; by making them 
 all his fubjects, by destroying their fins, and mak- 
 ing them holy, in a way perfectly confident with 
 all his perfections and attributes \ without doing 
 the leaft injury to his character, or rendering his 
 moral government weak, or making any of his 
 words void, whether threarenings or promifes, 
 or in the leaft fecting afide the Sanctions of his law 
 or gofpel, or a future ftate of rewards and pu- 
 niihments ; without derogating at all from the 
 
 glory 
 
108 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 glory of the Mediator, but rather exalting it to 
 the higheft poflible pitch ; without faddening the 
 hearts of the righteous, or diminifhing, in the 
 leaft, from the happinefs of Heaven, but rather 
 caufing it to increafe-, for if there is joy in Heaven 
 over one finner that repenteth, there mult be more 
 over many, in exact proportion -, and as God will 
 certainly give the greateft poflible joy to his chofen, 
 and there is no doubt but it will receive addition 
 from every one that is ieftored, or brought home 
 to himfelf *, therefore, it can only be brought to 
 its higheft poflible pitch by the univerfal Repara- 
 tion : which doctrine cannot, therefore, be licenti- 
 ous, as God has appointed and revealed it, and all 
 holy beings (except ibme weak good men on earth) 
 rejoice therein exceedingly. 
 
 6. Another of the principles on which the gene- 
 ral Rejioration is founded, is, that God hath given 
 all things into the hand of Chrift, who hath declar- 
 ed, that it is the Father' 's ivill> that of all that he gave 
 hi?n, hcffjouldlofe nothing : and that power was giv- 
 en him over all, that he fhould give the knowledge 
 of God, even eternal life, to all that the Father had 
 given him ; and that ally without exception, whom 
 the Father hath given, mail come in fuch a man- 
 ner as not to be caft out : But as all thefe Scrip- 
 tures have been recited, and reafoned upon before, 
 I mail only now obferve, that as God the Father 
 hath given all things to Christ, and as he hath 
 engaged to brings// back, without exception, and 
 hath both will and power to perform this work, 
 and came into the world on purpofe to accomplifh 
 it, it muft, of confequcnce, be finally performed; 
 yet, it cannot tend to licentioufnefs, or the God of 
 Heaven, and the Lord Jefus Ckri/l, would never 
 
 have 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IOp 
 
 have planned it, approved of it, or fought to ex- 
 ecute it. 
 
 Many more firft principles, on which the doc- 
 trine of the Reftorat'wi is founded, might be menti- 
 oned, and fhewn to be far from tending to licenti- 
 oufnefs : but I fhall mention but one more ; and 
 that is — The Scriptures mufl be fulfilled ; the Scrip- 
 tures cannot be broken : None of the words of God 
 can fail of being accomplished ; and he hath not 
 only denounced dreadful threatnings, but made 
 many gracious promifes to the fame people : Thefe 
 cannot be fulfilled together ; and, if there is no 
 truth in the Reftoration, I cannot fee how the lat- 
 ter will ever be fulfilled at all \ and if fins are not 
 punifhed in the perfons who commit them, I am 
 equally at a lofs whatfenfeor truth there can be in 
 the former. It would be a great talk to collect all 
 the texts which juftify the remark, that threatenings 
 and promifes belong to the fame people in differ- 
 ent periods, fome fpecimens of which have been 
 given in the courfe of thefe dialogues. Now, it 
 cannot lead to licentioufnefs, to fuppofe that the 
 Scriptures fhall all be fulfilled ; but it mult lead 
 to infidelity, and all kinds of evil, to fuppofe 
 the contrary. 
 
 Thefe are the firft principles upon which the 
 doctrine of the Reftoration ftands, and by which it 
 is fupported ; and as thefe have all been confider- 
 ed, and proved to have no tendency to encourage 
 fin, feparately, much lefs can they have any fuch 
 tendency, jointly ; and then it evidently follows, 
 that a doctrine which feems neceffarily deduced, 
 or inferred by undeniable confequenres, from all 
 thefe confiderations united, cannot be falfe, or have 
 any evil tendency. 
 
 But 
 
119 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 But I ftiall next proceed to mew, that all true, 
 experimental, and practical religion, feems fo con- 
 fident with the univerfal Rejloration, that it may be 
 reckoned a wonder, that all who have tailed that 
 the Lord is gracious, and have diligently pracYifed 
 his commands, have not, in all ages, been fully 
 convinced of the truth of it. 
 
 Friend. Is it pofTible that you can do this ? If fo, 
 I hope your realbning will be attended to ; and I 
 muft confefs, that you have cleared your way fo 
 well, by confidering the firft principles of the doc- 
 trine, and (hewing that they are very far from 
 tending to licentioufnefs, that I am half inclined to 
 think you will be able to anfwer this objection, 
 formidable as it has been confidered hitherto. 
 
 Minifter. As I trufl you have been made ac- 
 quainted with experimental religion, I need only 
 to appeal to your own experience, for the truth of 
 what I advance j and I am apt to think, if you 
 will anfwer me candidly, to a few queftions, you 
 fAuil acknowledge either that the Reftoration is 
 true, or that your experience is falfe. 
 
 Friend. I am willing to give you as plain and 
 candid anfwers as I can ; for it will be of no ufe to 
 deny what the Lord has done for my foul. 
 
 Minifter. Let me then afk you, in the firft place, 
 Did you not fee yourfelf loft and undone ; and 
 that you were vile before God, unworthy of his 
 mercy, and totally unable to deliver yourfelf from 
 your fin and mifery ? 
 
 Friend. I certainly did ; and I was fometimes 
 ready to think there was hardly fuch a finner on 
 earth as myfelf, all circumftanccs confidered •, for 
 I had finned againft fuch light and love, that I 
 
 thought 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATIONS HI 
 
 thought all the world might be forgiven fooner 
 than myfelf. 
 
 Minijler. And were you not brought by the 
 power of God, to refign yourfelf into his hands, 
 without referve, to do with you, and difpofe of 
 you, according to his will and plealure; being con- 
 vinced, that he neither would nor could do you 
 any injuftice ? 
 
 Friend. O yes ; and then I found peace ; my 
 rebellion againfl God ceafed ; I looked upon him 
 quite different from what I did before ; I faw that 
 he was wholly right and jufl, and that I was 
 entirely to blame : my murmu rings againfl him 
 ceafed ; I viewed him as fuch a holy, good, mer- 
 ciful, and yet righteous God, that I could trufl 
 my foul in his hands, with the moll entire fatis- 
 facTion. 
 
 Minifer. And when Chijl was revealed to you 
 as a Saviour, how did he appear ? 
 
 Friend. As one able and mighty to fave, even to 
 the uttermofl ; and I thought there was not only a 
 fufficiency in him for me, the vilefl of all, but for 
 the whole world, yea, for a thoufand worlds, had 
 there been fo many. His blood feemed to me fo 
 precious, his obedience and fufferings fo meritori- 
 ous, his power fo great, his love fo rich, bound- 
 lefs, and free, that I was overcome with the trans- 
 porting view : and as I faw in him a fulnefs for all, 
 fo I found in him an infinite willingnefs to fave 
 all ; for how could I think otherwife ? I knew my- 
 felf to be moll unworthy, and that he had graci- 
 oufly pitied me : I beheld his love, like a river, 
 flowing down to me as free as water : and I was 
 amazed that I had not beheld it before, in the fame 
 light. I faw, that the love of God to me, did not 
 
 now 
 
112 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 now begin, but was now manifefled to my foul. I 
 faw that there was no change in God, but all in 
 myfelf. Thofe words were precious to my heart 
 at that time : ' Yea, I have loved thee with an 
 everlafting love ; therefore with loving kindnefs 
 have I drawn thee/ Jer. xxxi. 3. As alfo thefe : 
 *Son be of good cheer : thy fins be forgiven thee/ 
 St. Matth. ix. 2. 
 
 Minifler. You have brought my own experience 
 to my mind : — It pleafed God, by an incident too 
 trifling to mention, to bring me to feek earneftly 
 for an unfading treafure ; and, by a train of cir- 
 cumftances, fixed the concern deeply upon my 
 mind •, and I laboured night and day, but could 
 obtain no reft, till one morning — a time never to 
 be forgotten ! — as I was walking on a journey, un- 
 der great diftrefs, and when deliverance feemed 
 farther from me than ever, all at once, I was 
 brought to refign my foul into the hands of God, 
 and thus I expreffed myfelf : < Lord, here I am : 
 a poor helplefs finner : I refign myfelf into thine 
 hands ; take me, and deal with me, juft as thou 
 plealeft : I know thou canft do me no injuitice/ 
 Immediately thefe words came into my mind, with 
 great power and fweetnefs : ' In an acceptable time 
 have I heard thee; and in a day of falvation have 
 I hdped thee/ Ifai. xlix. 8. and t had then fuch a 
 view of Christ, as made me to cry out • Glory 
 to God in the high eft ! This is falvation ; I know 
 this is falvation !' Then thofe paffages which you 
 have mentioned, came into my mind with great 
 enr-rgy ; and I faw the fulneis, fufficiency, and wil- 
 lingnefs of Christ tofave me, and all men, in fuch 
 a manner as conftraim I me to venture my foul into 
 his arms *, and it I had had ten thouland fouls, I 
 
 could 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 13 
 
 could have milled them all in his hands. And, O 
 how did I long, that every foul of Adam's race 
 might come to know the love of God in Christ 
 Jesus ! And I thought, I could not be willing to 
 live any longeron earth, unlefs it might pleafe God 
 to make me ufeful to my fellow-creatures. 
 
 * What peaceful hours I then enjoy' 'd ! 
 
 1 How fiueet their memry fill I 
 ( But they have left an aching void 
 
 * The world can never fill? 
 
 This is a little abflract of what God did then 
 gracioufly teach me by his Spirit *, but I had been 
 brought up in the particular fyflem, and in the 
 Courfe of a few years came to be fo firmly attach- 
 ed to it, as to refufe, in my preaching, to make ge- 
 neral invitations to mankind at large ; rightly rea- 
 foning with myfelf, that if provifion was only 
 made for a fmall part, I had no warrant to call or 
 invite the whole to come and partake ; and there- 
 fore only prefled the duty on fuch and fuch charac- 
 ters, as hungry, thiiyly, weary, heavy-laden, fuch 
 as were without money, fenfible finners, Sec. all of 
 which I concluded to be of the eleel, becaufe I 
 judged the Spirit had begun to operate favingly up- 
 on their hearts ; and that to thefe, and thefe only, 
 the Scriptures directed invitations to be made ; ne- 
 ver considering that text — * Hearken unto me, ye 
 ftout-hearted, that are far from righteoufnefs. I 
 bring near my righteoufnefs ; and it mall not be 
 far off, and my fhlvation mail not tarry/ Ifa. xlvi. 
 12, 13. During the time that I remained in this 
 clofe-hearted fyftem, labouring with all my might 
 to maintain it, I chanced to come to a houfe, 
 
 where, 
 
114 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 where, as far as I can judge, was a very fenfible 
 and pious young woman, whom I never faw be- 
 fore or fince : She gave a very judicious account 
 of the work of grace upon her heart : but when 
 flie came to that part, where (he faid flic beheld an 
 infinite fulnefs in Christ for all the world, I in- 
 terrupted her, and told her, That could not be ; 
 for there was no provifion made for all, and there- 
 fore it was impofiible that ilie could have any fuch 
 difcoveries made to her by the Spirit of God. This 
 Unfilled upon, according to my fyflem, contrary 
 to my experimental knowledge •, (O the mifchiefs 
 of bigotry, prejudice, and vain attachment to fyf- 
 tem!) fhe, on the contrary, maintained, that fhe 
 clearly viewed matters in that light ; and that fhe 
 certainly was taught to believe, that in Chrift 
 there was a fulnefs and freeneis for all : This 1 
 denied •, and fhe was thereby prevented from finifli- 
 ing what fhe had begun. I can never forgive my- 
 felf, for the oppofition I made to what I knew to 
 be truth by experience -, and as I did not enquire 
 the name of the perfon, I have had no opportunity 
 of making a recantation by letter, as I ought to 
 have done*, and having never been in the place 
 fince, and it being highly improbable that ever I 
 Ihall again, I feel myfelf extremely hurt, whenever 
 I think of it. 
 
 Friend. I can but admire the agreement between 
 us in matters of experience ; for I found the fame 
 difpofitions of mind that you mentioned, when it 
 pleafed God to reveal his Son in me. 
 
 Mimjlcr. I never found an experienced Chrifti- 
 an in my life, but would give much the fame ac- 
 count, provided that his fyflem was not in fight ; 
 and I have found fome, that though they were vi- 
 olently 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IIJ 
 
 olently attached to the contrary fyftem, and knew 
 my intention in afking the queftions ; yet anfwer- 
 ed the following affirmatively. 
 
 Did you not fee and feel yourfelves the vileft of 
 finners ? 
 
 Did yon not view the love of God infinitely full, 
 free and unmerited ? 
 
 Did you not behold in Chri/} an infinite fulnefs, 
 fufficiency, and willingnefs, to fave all, without 
 exception ? 
 
 Did you not love all, and wifh that all might 
 come and partake of his grace ? 
 
 Did you net earneftly defire the falvation of all, 
 not only of your family, friends, neighbours, and 
 nation ; but alfo of your enemies, and of all man- 
 kind ? Could you not embrace the whole human 
 race in the arms of benevolence ? 
 
 Did you not find it in your heart to pray for the 
 falvation of all mankind, as for your own ? 
 
 If you had as much power as good-will, would 
 you not bring all to bow to the fceptre of 
 grace, and to be reconciled to God through Jefus 
 Lhrljl f 
 
 Friend. I do not fee how an experienced perfon 
 can refufe to fay Yes, to all thefe queftions 5 they 
 are fo agreeable to the very tempers of the new- 
 born foul ; and, I am fure, I found them in my 
 heart, at the very time when I firft tailed of the 
 love of God. 
 
 Mhujler. Well then, my friend, let me afk you, 
 From whence did thefe tempers and difpofitions 
 proceed ? 
 
 Friend. To be candid, I think they were given 
 me from above, and came down from the Father 
 of lights, from whence every good and perfect 
 
 gift 
 
Il6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 gift cometh ; and I am the mere apt to think fo, 
 becaufe I found contrary difpofitions in my heart 
 before -, and the more I am fenfibte of the forgiv- 
 ing love of God, the more I find thefe affections 
 which you have defcribed, and thefe defires for the 
 good of others. 
 
 Minijler. Then let me afk you, Can a fmall drop 
 be larger than the unfathomed abyfs and ocean of 
 Love ? Have you more compaffion towards your 
 fellow-creatures than the God that made them ? 
 Can any effect be greater than its caufe ? Would 
 you bring all to fubmit to God, and be happy, if 
 you could ? and will not he, to whom nothing 
 that he pleafes to do is impofTible, bring all his 
 creatures to be reconciled to himfelf at laft ? He 
 has infinitely more love to his creatures, than all 
 the faints and angels in glory have ; he is poffeffed 
 of infinite power and wifdom, as well as love ; all 
 means to accomplish the work are known to him : 
 he can do it in a way that mall caufe his praife to 
 abound exceedingly, in a way perfectly confident 
 with all his perfections, and the whole of his glo- 
 rious character \ it is his will and purpofe fo to do, 
 as has been proved at large ; What, then, can hin- 
 der him from fulfilling it ? 
 
 Friend. I am not able to gainfay this reafoning j 
 it feems almoft undeniable : But can you (hew that 
 the doctrine of the Reftoration Hands connected 
 with practical religion, or the keeping of the com- 
 mandments of God ? 
 
 Minijler. I can very eafily do that, in every in- 
 ftance ; but fhall only attend to the following, as 
 a fpecimen. 
 
 i. Our Lord has commanded us to love all man- 
 kind; not our brethren and friends only, but even 
 
 our 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 17 
 
 our greateft enemies ; and all for this purpofe, that 
 we may be the -children of our Father, who is in 
 Heaven, whofe love is univerfal, and whofe tender 
 mercies are over all his works : See St. Matth. v. 
 44 — 48. St. Luke, vi. 27 — 36. But if God doth 
 not love all himfelf, Chrift hath commanded us to 
 be more perfecl, in that refpect, than our Father, 
 who is in Heaven ; which, to fuppofe, is highly 
 abfurd. What mall we fay to that doctrine that 
 teaches us, that God hates, with a perfect hatred, 
 many of thofe whom he hath commanded us to 
 love as ourfelves ? 
 
 Therefore, there is nothing in the doctrine of 
 the Reftoration, contrary to the love of our neigh- 
 bour ; which on the contrary is promoted there- 
 by. 
 
 2. We are commanded to do good to all men, as 
 we have opportunity. This is recommended to us 
 by the example of our heavenly Father, who mak- 
 eth his fun to rife on the evil and on the good, 
 and fendeth rain on the jufl, and on the unjuft ;' 
 and no perfon can fay, that the belief of this doc- 
 trine tends, in the leaft, to hinder us from doing 
 good to all our fellow-creatures ; but rather en- 
 courages us fo to do, from the confideration that 
 God loves them all, and does good to all, and is 
 determined to make them all the fubjects of his 
 kingdom at laft. 
 
 3. We are commanded to forgive all men their 
 trefpajfes, and to pray ; faying, < Forgive us our 
 (debts, or) trefpaffes, as we forgive (our debtors, 
 or) them that trefpafs againft us ;' St. Matth. vi. 
 12. St. Luke, xi. 4. And our Lord fays, « For, if 
 ye forgive men their trefpaifes, your heavenly Fa- 
 ther will alfo forgive you : But if ye forgive not 
 
 men 
 
Il8 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 men their trefpaffes, neither will your Father for- 
 give your trefpaffes;' St. Matth. vi. 14, 15. See 
 alfo, chap, xviii. 21 — 35. St. Mark, xi. 25, 26. St. 
 Luke, vi. 37. 
 
 Now, is it poffible to fuppofe, with any degree 
 of reafon, that our Lord would command us, upon 
 pain of his higheft difpleafure, to forgive thofe 
 whom he hated, and determined to punifh while 
 he mould exift, without having the lead: defire or 
 defign to do them good ? Has he promifed us the 
 greateft bleffings, if we will forgive all men -, and 
 will he never forgive them ? He that can believe 
 this, let him believe it. However, fince forgiving 
 all men is a plain command, which none can deny; 
 I trull:, no one will venture to fay, that believing 
 the final Reftoration of all men, at laft, will have 
 any tendency to make us break this precept of our 
 Saviour's, upon which he lays fo much flrefs •, but, 
 I think, the contrary is evident. 
 
 4. We are commanded to pray for all men : St. 
 Paul fays, * I exhort, therefore, that, firff of all, 
 fupplications, prayers, mterceifions, and giving of 
 thanks, be made for all men : For this is good 
 and acceptable in the fight of God, our Saviour, 
 [or Reftorer) who will have all men to be faved, 
 (or reftored) and to come unto the knowledge of 
 the truth. For there is one God, and one Medi- 
 ator between God and men, the man Chrifl Jefus : 
 who gave himfclf a ranfom for all, to be teftifled 
 in due time.' This is the great doctrine of the 
 Gofpel, the very foundation of Chriftianity : — 
 ' Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an 
 apoflle; (I fpeak the truth in Chrift, and lie not) 
 a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.' The 
 apoftle not only believed, but taught ; not only 
 
 taught, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION". 11^ 
 
 taught, but commanded others to teach and preach 
 this great doctrine, of God's being the Saviour, 
 or Reftorer, of all men : In this he gloried, fay- 
 ing, * This is a faithful faying, and worthy of all 
 acceptation. For therefore we both labour and fuf- 
 fer reproach, becaufe we truft in the living God, 
 who is the Saviour (or Reftorer) of ail men, fpe- 
 cially of thofe that believe. Thefe things command 
 and teach.' 
 
 Upon this grand foundation, St. Paul recom- 
 mends prayer to all men •, faying, « I will there- 
 fore, that men pray every where, lifting up holy 
 hands, without wrath and doubting/ i Tim. ii, 
 I — 8.iv. q, 10, ii. 
 
 Obferve, the apoftle recommends prayer for all 
 men : and wills, that men mould pray every where, 
 at all times, and in all places, lifting up holy hands, 
 without wrath and doubting. How nearly forgiv- 
 ing all men, and praying for all men, Hand con- 
 nected ! and both are plainly and peremptorily re- 
 commended by our Lord 5 who fays, * Love your 
 enemies, blefs them that curie you, do good to 
 them that hate you, and pray for them which def- 
 pitefully uie you, and perfecute you.' 
 
 We are commanded to pray for all men, becaufe 
 it is the will of God that all men mould be faved ; 
 (or reftored) and becaufe Chrift hath given him- 
 lelf a ranlbn for all : And we are bid to pray with- 
 out doubting : O, what a word is this ! May we, 
 ought we, to pray for the ialvation of all men, 
 without doubting r Surely, God would never have 
 commanded us to do this, unlefs it was his pur- 
 pofe to reftore all men, in his own time \ and no 
 man can fay, that the belief of the Reftoration 
 "will prevent our praying for all men. 
 
120 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 
 I was once on a journey, and called in at the 
 houfe of one of my former good friends : Several 
 religious perfons were there ; and, after fome time, 
 my fentiments came to be fpoken of, and they 
 feemed to wonder how I could embrace the opi- 
 nion, that all men, finally, would be faved ! I told 
 them, however many might preach againft it, that 
 no perfon, under the influence of the Divine Spi- 
 rit, could pray againji it >, but, on the contrary, 
 we could pray for it in faith, nothing wavering, 
 as God had commanded, and as his Spirit naturally 
 infpired : that no perfon could pray God not to 
 fave or reflore all mankind, without being mocked 
 at the blafphemy and impiety of fuch a prayer -, but 
 that our Lord had faid, that all things whatfoever 
 we afked in prayer, believing that we mould re- 
 ceive, mould be granted, let them be things feem- 
 ingly ever fo impoffible ; that if we afked any thing 
 according to his will, it mould be done ; and that 
 it was his pofitive and declared will, that all men 
 fhould be faved, (or reftored) and come to the 
 knowledge of the truth : that we were ordered to 
 pray for it in faith, without doubting; and, there- 
 fore, it was as evident as the nature of things re- 
 quired, that it would be done ; fince God had ne- 
 ver ordered us to pray for any thing that he was 
 not able and willing to do. This, and much more, 
 I faid, and they feemed exceedingly well fatisfied ; 
 efpecially, when I informed them, that it was 
 through the blood of Chrift, the blood of the co- 
 venant, that the prifoners mould be fent forth out 
 of the pit wherein is no water, and that all ihould 
 be reftored through his mediation. 
 
 Friend. Then you hold that even the damned 
 
 fliall be finally reftored and delivered by the pow- 
 
 i er 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 121 
 
 er of Jefus, and through his blood-fhedding. I 
 have heard it objected againft your fcheme, that it 
 tended to fet at nought the whole mediatorial plan, 
 and to depreciate the blood of Jefus, which he fried 
 to purge our fins away ; though I never obferved 
 any thing like this in your difcourfes, either in pub- 
 lic or in private. 
 
 Minijfer. No : God forbid that I mould ever fet 
 afide the blood that cleanfeth from all fin ; nor 
 can I be charged with it, unlefs having a much 
 higher idea of its merit than my oppofers, may be 
 looked upon as tending to depreciate it. They hold 
 that it /hall cleanfe a fmall number from their fins ; 
 I believe that it mall cleanfe, heal, and reftore the 
 whole human race. They believe that its virtue . 
 endures for a little feafon ; I maintain that it mail 
 continue to all ages, until all evil mall be deitroy- 
 ed out of the univerfe. 
 
 Friend. I am fatisfied that you do not mean to 
 fet at nought the powerful blood of the dear Re- 
 deemer, but on the contrary, you fuppofe that 
 your views tend more to exalt it. Pray proceed 
 in your difcourfe. 
 
 Minifter. I need not fay much more upon this 
 matter ; Our Saviour has faid, * If any man will 
 do his (the Father's) will, he fhall know of the 
 doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I 
 fpeak of myfelf,' St. John vii. 17. This is the 
 fureft rule : practife religion ; love, revere, and 
 ferve God ; love all men, even your enemies ; do 
 good to all, forgive all, and pray for all ; and then 
 afk, Is the doctrine of the final Reftoration con- 
 trary to this manner of life ? If it be, reject it ; 
 for thefe commands are plain : and if thefe princi- 
 ples are inconfiftent with the obfervation of thefe 
 F precepts, 
 
12 2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 precepts, then avoid them, as you would death 
 and hell. But, I truft, it has been fhewn, that 
 the)' have no iuch tendency ; but the contrary. 
 For inftance, Does this doctrine tend to make us 
 hate God, and his character ? Does it naturally 
 fill our minds with felfijlmcfs, and prevent benevo- 
 lence from ruling within us ? Does it fill us with 
 pride, and caufe us to look down with contempt 
 upon thoie that are beneath us in life, and banifh 
 humility from our hearts ? Does the belief of this, 
 caufe our breads to {well with y?\eenvy, and ran- 
 corous malice, at the happinefs of others ? Does 
 it caufe us to burn with hellifh rage, fury, and 
 madnefs, againft mankind? Does it tend to deftroy 
 meehicfs, and increafe wrath ? If thefe queftions 
 require (either from the nature of things, or from 
 known facts) the anlwers to be in the affirmative ; 
 then I would abhor fuch a fyftem, and wifri it to 
 be univerially detefted : But if, on the contrary, 
 the candid enquirer mnft anfwer in the negative, 
 and fay, That the doctrine of the final Reftoration 
 does not tend to produce felfijlmefs, envy, pride, or 
 wrath •, but, on the contrary, * Glory to God in 
 the higheft, and on earth peace, good-will towards 
 men *,' that it caufes benevolence, meehicfs, humility, 
 forbearance, forgivenefs, charity, and all goodnefs, to 
 abound and increafe -, then it cannot be a licentious 
 doctrine, and is not to be difcarded on that ac- 
 count •, for it is a maxim with St. John, that * He 
 that loveth his brother, abideth in the light, and 
 there is none occafion of {tumbling in him,' i John, 
 u. 10. That is, he cannot receive, hold, maintain, 
 or do, any thing efTentially or materially wrong ; 
 and, therefore, can give no juft occafion of of- 
 fence : ' For, all the law is fulfilled in one word, 
 
 even 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 12} 
 
 even in this ; Thou fhalt love thy neighbour as 
 thyfelf. For he that loveth another, hath fulfilled 
 the law. For this, Thou (halt not commit adul- 
 tery, Thou fhalt not kill, Thou (halt not ileal, 
 Thou fhalt not bear falfe witnefs, Thou fhalt not 
 covet; and if there be any other commandment, 
 it is briefly comprehended in this faying : Thou 
 fhalt love thy neighbour as thyfelf. Love work- 
 eth no ill to his neighbour : therefore, love is 
 the fulfilling of the law/ Gal. v. 14. Rom. xiii. 
 8, 9, 10. 
 
 But it is not only from reafoning, but from facts, 
 that I am able to prove that the belief of the doc- 
 trine of the univerfal Reftoration, does not lead 
 men to fin. The Tnnkers, or German Baptifts, 
 in Pennfylvania, and the ftates adjacent, who take 
 the Scriptures as their only guide, in matters both 
 of faith and pracVie, have always (as far as I know) 
 received, and univerfally, at prefent, hold thefe 
 fentiments : But fuch Chriftians I have never feen 
 as they are ; fo averfe are they to all fin, and to 
 many things that other Chriftians efteem lawful, 
 that they not only refufe to fwear, go to war, &c. 
 but are fo afraid of doing any thing contrary to 
 the commands of Chrift, that no temptation would 
 prevail upon them even to fue any perfon at law, 
 for either name, character, eftate, or any debt, be 
 it ever fo juft : They are induftriou?, fober, tem- 
 perate, kind, charitable people : envying not the 
 great, nor defpifing the mean : They read much, 
 they fing and pray much, they are conitant attend- 
 ants upon the worfhip of God •, their dwelling- 
 houfes are all houfes of prayer : They walk in the 
 commandments and ordinances of the Lord blame- 
 lefs, both in public and private : They bring up 
 F 2 their 
 
124 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 their children in the nurture and admonition of the 
 Lord ; no noife of rudenefs, fhamelefs mirth, loud, 
 vain laughter, is heard within their doors : The 
 law of kindnefs is in their mouths : no fournefs, 
 or morofenefs, difgraces their religion •, and what- 
 soever they believe their Saviour commands, they 
 practife, without enquiring or regarding what 
 others do. 
 
 I remember the Rev. Morgan Edwards, former- 
 ly minifter of the Baptift Church in Philadelphia, 
 once faid to me, * God always will have a vifible 
 people on earth j and thefe are his people at pre- 
 fent, above any other in the world.* And in his 
 Hiitory of the Baptifts in Pennfylvania, fpeakingof 
 thefe people, he fays : i General redemption they 
 certainly held, and, withal, general falvation > 
 which tenets (though wrong) are confident. In 
 a word, they are meek and pious Chriftians ; and 
 have jultly acquired the character of Theharmlefs 
 Tunkers? 
 
 Thus have I proved that this doctrine is not li- 
 centious •, both from the firfr. principles on which 
 it is founded, from the nature of experimental and 
 practical religion, and from facts. As to that 
 part of the objection, which fuppofes this doc- 
 trine to be the fame that the ferpent preached to 
 Eve, faying, ' Ye fhall not furely die -,' it feems al- 
 molt unworthy of notice: But as it has been glo- 
 ried in by lbme writers, as unanfwerable, merely 
 becaufe it was pafTed over unnoticed, as being 
 nothing to the purpofe ; I fhall make a few remarks 
 upon it. 
 
 i. I fay, that Satan was a liar, and God was 
 true: For man and woman did die, in a moral 
 ienfb, on the very day that they finned ; they be- 
 came 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 125 
 
 came dead in trefpaffes and fins ; they loll the di- 
 vine life, and became earthly, fenfual, devilifh ; 
 darknefs in their underftandings, ftubbornnefs in 
 their wills, and diforder in their affections, ren- 
 dered them unfit, unable, and unworthy, to have 
 fellowship with their God. But do they contradict 
 Jehovah, and join with the ferpent, who afTert, 
 that Jesus, the fecond Adam % hath quickened, and 
 is able to quicken, thofe who were dead in trefpaiTes 
 and fins ? If fo, St. Paul joined with the ferpent, 
 in Ephef. ii. i. 
 
 2. Thefentence of death was pronounced upon 
 man, even the death of the body, in thofe words : 
 ' In the fweat of thy face (halt thou eat bread, till 
 thou return unto the ground ; for out of it waft 
 thou taken : for dud thou art, and unto dud thou 
 malt return,' Gen. iii. 19. But, would it bejud 
 and right for any one to fay, that thofe who be- 
 lieved the refurrection of the body, contradicted 
 God, and, joining with the ferpent, declared, that 
 men mould not die ; meiely, becaufe they afferted, 
 according to the promifes, that they mould rife 
 again ? Would not thofe who preach Jefus> and 
 the refurrection, have a right to look upon it as a 
 vile and wilful flander, if any one mould fo mif- 
 reprefent the matter ? What ! mult I be accufed 
 of faying, that no man ever died, becaufe I believe 
 and teach, that fome have rifen, and that all fhall 
 be raifed, at lad : when even the very idea of a 
 refurrection, prefappofes a date of death ? 
 
 3. I confels, that God has threatened finners 
 with the fecond death : but do I fay, that they 
 fhall never tafte of the fecond death, becaufe I 
 declare, that the time will come when it fhall ex- 
 id no more ? This is curious reafoning, indeed. 
 
 F 3 As 
 
126 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 As well may I fay, that no man ever lived on 
 earth, becaufe fo many have died -, that no one 
 fleeps in the night, who wakes in the morning ; or, 
 that no fifh was ever in the water, that was caught 
 and taken out. 
 
 Did St. Paul join with the ierpent, when he 
 faid, « For as in Adam all die, even ib in Christ 
 mall all be made alive ?• i Cor. xv. 22. Will 
 any fuppofe that we affirm, that the dreadful 
 threatenings denounced by God, never were, nor 
 ever will be executed, becaufe we declare, that his 
 promiies ftiall alio be fulfilled ? Can any reafona- 
 ble man fuppofe, becaufe Chrift is the Saviour of 
 men, that, therefore, they were not in a loif con- 
 dition ? How abfurd ! when he declares, that he 
 came to feek and to fave the loft ! 
 
 Thus, though mankind died a moral death, in 
 the day wherein they finned ; yet, Christ is able 
 to quicken and raife them up from the fame : and 
 though their bodies die, in confequence of "the fall ; 
 yet mail he caufe all that are in the graves, to hear 
 his voice, and come forth : and, by the fame rule 
 of arguing, though many (hall fall under the power 
 of the fecond death, which is threatened to fm- 
 ners j yet as he has promifed to deftroy all that 
 bears the name of dea!h> their Reftoration may be 
 fairly concluded, without either contradicting God, 
 or joining with the ferpeut. Had the Scriptures, 
 indeed, contained nothing but threatenings of death, 
 without any promifes of falvationi refurreElion y or 
 rejhrat'wn ; it would have been prefumptuous for 
 us to have entertained any hopes for the human 
 race, or their deliverance, either from fin, death, 
 or /v//: but, fince pronrijls arc found, as well as 
 threatenings 1 we muft not, under pretence or co- 
 lour 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 127 
 
 lor.r of believing the latter, reject the former, left 
 we are found contradict ors and oppofers of God •, 
 for it is as poffible that we may make him a liar, in 
 refufing to believe the record he has given of his 
 Son, and his intentions of grace aud mercy to- 
 wards mankind, as in disregarding bis threatenings, 
 denounced againft :hem becaufe of their fins. 
 
 As for this doctrine making the hearts of the 
 righteous fad whom God would not have made fad, 
 nothing can be more contrary to fact ; for if it be 
 the will of God to reward and punifh, and finally 
 to rtftore mankind, none of the righteous will be 
 ferry, but, on the contrary, will greatly rejoice. 
 It is not God's truth, but men's lies, of which 
 the prophet fpeaks •, which made the hearts of the 
 righteous fad, and ftrengthened the hands of the 
 wicked, that he mould not return from his wicked 
 way, by promifing him life : But we are fo far 
 from ftrengthening the hands of the wicked, and 
 faying, that no evil {hall come upon them ; that 
 we declare from the Scripture, that { the wrath of 
 God is revealed from Heaven, againft all ungodli- 
 nefs and unrighteoufnefs of men, who hold the 
 tr-uth in unrighteoufnefs ; unto them that are con- 
 tentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey un- 
 righteoufnefs, indignation and wrath, tribulation 
 and anguifh, upon every foul of man that doeth 
 evil •, of the Jew fir ft, and alio of the Gentile/ 
 Rom. i. 1 8. ii. 8, 9. And that ' there is no peace 
 to the wicked,' Ifai. xlviii. 22. lvii. 20, 21. There- 
 fore, they are called to repent, and turn to God \ 
 for in fin they never can be happy : no unholy, or 
 unclean thing can enter into the kingdom of Hea- 
 ven. And fo far are we from promifing them life 
 in their wicked ways, that we teftify, from the 
 F 4 Scripture^ 
 
128 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Scripture, thnt < He that believeth not the Son, 
 mall not fee life/ while he continues in that ftate ; 
 * but the wrath of God abideth on him/ St. John, 
 iii. 36. 
 
 Friend. I had intended to propofe that text as 
 an objection to your fyftem •, it is, indeed, one 
 that Dr. Whitby infills much upon : But I fee 
 how you will anfwer it — that the unbeliever, as 
 fuch, and while he fo continues , cannot fee life ; 
 but the wrath of God abideth on him, while he 
 remaineth in unbelief ; but that God can take 
 away the caufe, in his own time, and then the 
 effect /hail ceafe. 
 
 Miuifter. Certainly, this mufl be the meaning: 
 for St. John only meant to defcribe the difference 
 between believers and unbelievers, as fuch-, but 
 could not mean to intimate, that thofe who were 
 unbelievers, in his time, mould always continue fo. 
 
 But I bow pafs to confider the latter part of 
 this objection, upon which I have dwelt fo long; 
 viz. that it is the nature God to lay the highefr. 
 poffible restraint upon fin, and, therefore he has 
 threatened it with everlajiing damnation^ which 
 mult intend endlefs mi/try : and as this reftraint is 
 found too weak, wholly to prevent evil, what an 
 amazing increafe would there be, if this reftraint 
 mould be taken off, in any degree ; as it mufl 
 be, if it fhould come to be known that punifh- 
 ments were only fir certain ages or periods, and de- 
 figned for the amendment of the fuffercrs ? 
 
 I once afked a Reverend Divine, what was his 
 ftrongeft argument in favour of endlefs punijhmcnt P 
 and he told me, this which is mentioned above ; 
 and, therefore as it is of confiderable importance, 
 I mall give it a brief confideration. 
 
 1. It 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 120 
 
 I. It is not quite clear to me, that it is the na- 
 ture of God to lay the higheft poffible reftraint up- 
 on fin ; and that he always doth lb, in all his dif- 
 penfations. He fometimes has higher defigns in 
 view, than barely to reftrain fin : he fometimes, 
 perhaps, fuffers it to prevail for a time, that his 
 power might be more manifeft in deftroying it : 
 hence we read, ' Moreover, the law entered* — 
 not merely to reftrain fin, but—* that the offence 
 might abound : but where fin abounded, grace 
 did much more abound ; that as fin hath reigned 
 unto death, even fo might grace reign, through 
 righteoufnefs, unto eternal life, by Jefus Chrift 
 our Lord. Wherefore, then, ferveth the law ? 
 It was added becaufe of tranfgreffions, till the 
 feed mould come, to whom the promife was 
 made/ Rom. v. 20, 21, Gal. iii. 19. St. Paul 
 fays ; * Sin, taking occafion by the command- 
 ment, wrought in me all manner of concupif- 
 cence \ for, without the law, fin was dead. Was, 
 then, that which was good, made death unto me ? 
 God forbid : But fin, that it might appear fin, 
 working death in me, by that which is good ; 
 that fin, by the commandment, might become 
 exceeding finful,' Rom. vii. 8, 13. Perhaps if 
 the punifhment of fins immediately followed the 
 commifTion of them, it would be a flronger and 
 more effectual reitraint than any threatenings of 
 future mifery; yet God does not think it neceilary 
 to reftrain fin by that mean, though it is exprcis- 
 ly afferted, that, * Becaufe fentence againft an evil 
 work is not executed fpeedily, therefore is the 
 heart of the fons of men fully fet in them to do 
 evil. 1 Ecclef. viii. 11. There is no doubt but if 
 the awful punifnments of the future ft ate were 
 F 5 made 
 
I JO DIALOGUES ON THL 
 
 made vifible to our fenfes, by any means, they 
 would prove a powerful reitraint to fin ; yet God 
 has not thought fit to reffcrain it by thole, and 
 perhaps many other poiTible ways ; Wherefore, I 
 have a right to doubt the premifes •, for, if the 
 ftrongefl: poiTible reftraints were laid upon fin, it 
 might not be io confident with a ltate of proba- 
 tion, as thole reafonable reftraints which God 
 hath thought fit to lay upon it. 
 
 2. But it may be queftioned, whether there is not 
 fomcthing in the idea of limited, yet certain pu- 
 nifhment, fo juft, equitable, reafonable, and evi- 
 dent ; that is much more calculated to produce 
 belief, and confequently more effectual to deftroy 
 falfe hopes of eicaping it, and alio to check that 
 daring prefumption, which riles out of the idea 
 of endlefs mi/etyj than can be found in the contrary 
 doctrine. Endlefs punijhment leems to mock ten- 
 der minds, at lcaft. I heard of a little boy, to 
 whom his mother conftantly kept preaching dam- 
 nation without end, for every fin ; one day, after 
 ihe had been difcourfing with him in that manner, 
 he went to work, but foon returned back, fud- 
 denly opened the door, and with an air of fur- 
 prife, cried out ; ( Why, mother, the law fays, 
 * Jin eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a 
 hand, a foot for afoot ; but you fay, ten thoufand 
 for one, and that punifhment mall never end.' 
 1 have heard of numbers that had no better excufc 
 for finning greedily, than this, viz. that there was 
 no hopes of their being laved \ that, therefore, 
 they were determined to fin as much as poffible, 
 fince it could make no difference. I have reafon 
 to fay, from what I know of mankind, that more 
 peribns refufe to believe in Divine Revelation, 
 
 becauie 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I 3 T 
 
 becaufe it is commonly thought to contain the 
 doctrine of endlefs mifery, than from any other 
 caufe : And numbers have embraced it immedi- 
 ately, upon being fairly convinced that it was not 
 neceflary to underftand it in that light. And a 
 very fenfible Deift once faid to an acquaintance of 
 mine, who believed and preached the univerfal 
 doctrine •, ' Had I been acquainted with your 
 fyftem, thirty years ago, I mould have been a 
 zealous Chriftian ; and as great a friend to Reve- 
 lation, as I have been an enemy.' ' And, pray, 
 why not now Doctor ?' — c Becaufe I am afhamed, 
 having fo long been fighting again!!, to receive it 
 now.' 
 
 3. Though damnation has been commonly un- 
 derstood to be endlefsy for many ages •, yet it has 
 not (as far as we can judge) prevented evil at all, or 
 very little : but I have mentioned before, how 
 very ftrict thoie people live, who receh e and hold 
 the fyftem of limited pnnilhinents : whether it is, 
 that endlefs damnation is too unnatural to be be- 
 lieved, and that limited puniJhmenUy being more 
 reafonable, feem more certain ; or whether it be, 
 that by ccnfidering they (hall be puniihed, either 
 without en/*, or not at all ; and every one think- 
 ing that endlefs punimment is more than they de- 
 ferve, but is only refcrved for fome greater Tinners, 
 and therefore they have nothing to fear from it, I 
 mall not pretend to determine ; but certain it is, 
 that where the idea of endlefs mifery prevails, it 
 has not prevented iniquity, in the meafure that 
 might have been expected, on the fuppofition of its 
 being the truth of God. 
 
 4. The great number of Heathens, that die with- 
 out ever being favoured with the light of the gof- 
 
 pelj 
 
132 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 pel, and certainly without ever hearing of endlefs 
 mifery ; the many that die in a ltate of infancy 
 and childhood ; together with the infr ances of ide- 
 ots, and peribns born deaf •, all convince me, more 
 than any logical arguments, that God has many 
 ways of inftrucYmg and reclaiming his creatures, 
 in another ltate, that we are at prefent unacquaint- 
 ed with. 
 
 5. It is not fo much the intention of God, mere- 
 ly to reflrain fin, as to mew it in all its dreadful 
 deformity, punifh it according to its deferts, and, 
 finally, to mew the fuper-abounding of his grace, 
 in overcoming and totally deftroying it out of his 
 creation •, which (hall be accomplifhed when He 
 that fitteth upon the throne mail make all things 
 new ; ' And there mall be no more death, nei- 
 ther forrow, nor crying ; neither mall there be 
 any more pain •, for the former things are pafTed 
 away,' Rev. xxi. 4. 
 
 6. As the doctrine of the final Reftoration, has 
 been fhewn in itfelf not to have the leait tendency 
 to licentioufnefe, but directly the reverfe ; and, as 
 far as I can learn, by hiitory, or my own obferva- 
 tion, thofe who have believed it, in the manner 
 here laid down, as perfectly confident with a fu- 
 tuie ftate of rewards and puniihments, have been 
 particularly careful to depart from iniquity of eve- 
 ry kind : yet if any mould be fo loft to all that is 
 good, as to pervert this truth (revealed for contra- 
 ry purpofes) to their own deftruction, they alone 
 muff bear the blame, the lofs, and the punifh- 
 ment. The Scriptures of truth have been per- 
 verted ; yet, that is no argument againft Divine 
 Revelation : The Gofpel of the Grace of Gon, 
 has bticn abufed ; but mould it never be preached 
 
 on 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 133 
 
 ©n that account ? Some, in the apoftles days, 
 turned the Grace of God itfelf into wantonnefs or 
 lafcivioufnefs, (See Jude 4)} and others pretended 
 that thofe holy men encouraged fin, by proclaim- 
 ing falvation to Tinners, through grace, or faith 
 in Chrift ; of which St. Paul complains, (Rom. iii. 
 8.) ' We be ilanderoufly reported, and fome af- 
 firm that we fay, Let us do evil, that good may 
 come : whofe damnation is juft ' — The holy apof- 
 tle abhorred, and conftantly denied this horrid 
 confequence, which fome perverfe minds pre- 
 tended to draw from his doctrine; he declared 
 that the damnation of fuch was juft, who did fin 
 that grace might abound, or who affirmed that the 
 doctrine led thereto, or that the apoftles taught or 
 praclifed any fuch things •, neverthelefs, (not as 
 fools, but as wife) they did not think fit to lay the 
 gofpel afide, and refufe to preach falvation through 
 Christ any more on that account : The felf-fame 
 reafoning applies to the prefent cafe. 
 
 Friend. I mult confefs that you have fo far pre- 
 vailed as to filence this great objection ; for cer- 
 tainly the belief of the Reltoration feems by your 
 account of it confident with a ltate of grace, and the 
 knowledge and practice of religion. But though 
 you have obviated feveral objections, there is one 
 you have not yet touched, which is very confi- 
 derable, and I am doubtful that it will be difficult 
 if not impoffible for you to anfwer fairly, it may be 
 thus expreffed, God has abounded towards us in all 
 iv if do m : one inftance is his hanging out the threat- 
 enings of the fevereft punifhments to prevent his 
 creatures from finning while in this world ; but 
 to tell them at the fame time, that if they mould 
 fin he means to fave them, is not prudent ; becaufe 
 
 that 
 
t ^4 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 that leffens, if not deftroys the force of his threat- 
 ening. He told Adam that if he did eat, he ftiould 
 furely die ; but did not tell him (at the fame time) 
 that if hefhould eat, his cafe would not be remedi- 
 lefs ; this were to take down with one hand what 
 he had fet up with the other. After the threaten- 
 ing failed of the effect, he told him Co, and not be- 
 fore, this was prudently done ; fo after his threat- 
 enings fail of effecl: in this ftate, is the time to re- 
 veal his defign of faving daring finners. We may 
 therefore be fure that he has not done it yet, and 
 that we miSconftrue thofe texts which feem to con- 
 tain iuch a revelation. The next ftate is the only 
 ftate to preach the doctrine, and reveal the doc- 
 trine. If you preach it here, it will be unneces- 
 sary to preach it in hell ; for obftinate Sinners will 
 carry it in their heads thither. 
 
 Minijler. As Specious and plauSible as this ob- 
 jection Seems, I doubt not of being able to anfwer 
 it fairly, without evading the natural force of it in 
 the leaft. The firft thing that I Shall notice in this 
 objection, is the very different and contrary man- 
 ner in which you apply thofe words of the apoftle 
 from his firft evident intention. He hath abounded 
 towards us In all ivifdom and prudence, having made 
 hioivn unto us the myjlery sf his will according to his 
 good pleafure, which he hath purpofed in himfclf, that 
 in the difpenfation of the fulnefs of times, he might 
 gather together in one all things in Chrifi, both which 
 are in Heaven, and which are on earth, even in him. 
 Ephef. i. 8, 9, 10. God hath judged it be the 
 height of heavenly wiSdorri and prudence to make 
 known to his Hunts, his glorious purpoSe, finally 
 to rehcad all things in Chrift ; and we ought not 
 to prcSume to be more wife and prudent than he. 
 
 There 
 
CNIVERSA L RESTORATION. 1$$ 
 
 There is no doubt but God hath revealed this 
 great truth more immediately to his faints and 
 faithful ones for their confolation, than for the be- 
 nefit of the finally impenitent. 
 
 It is of amazing, I had almoft faid of infinite 
 ufe to the people of God, to have this divine coun- 
 fel declared to them in the prefent time. The 
 knowledge of this truth entirely removes all hard 
 thoughts of God from the minds of thofe who re- 
 ceive it, as I can teftify by experience ; for fince I 
 have believed in the doctrine of the univerfal Re- 
 ftoration, I have never had one hard thought of 
 God abiding for one minute in my mind, that I re- 
 member, and never expect, to have any more 
 while I continue to believe it firmly. 
 
 The belief of the Relforation is of great ufe in 
 fupporting good people under their farrows and 
 trials here j the idea that evil fhall be deitroyed, 
 and all things reflored to their primitive glory is 
 the molt confolatory of all other ideas. As this 
 doctrine tends to remove the greateft difficulties 
 from the plan of Providence, and alfo from di- 
 vine Revelation, it is evident that the knowledge 
 of it muff be of the greateff ufe to all that love 
 their great Creator. And therefore if the reve- 
 lation of it anfwered no other purpofe in this life, 
 but for the happinefs, joy, and fatisfaclion of fuch 
 as love God, we might be lure that he hath made 
 it known, and that we rightly underffand thofe 
 paffages that hold it forth j for fince < the fe- 
 cret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and 
 he will fhew them his covenant,' Pial. xxv. 14. 
 and r The Lord God will do nothing, but he* re- 
 vealeth his fecret unto his fervants the prophets/ 
 Amos iii. 7. there is all the renfon to conclude, 
 
 that 
 
13^ DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 that if God ever intended to reftore mankind 
 hereafter, he would not fail to reveal it to his 
 chofen and faithful fervants. And this he hath 
 done, if I can underftand the meaning of words. 
 
 It is true that God did not inform our firft pa- 
 rents before they finned that he had provided a 
 remedy ; but not long did he delay after the fall to 
 reveal to them, that the feed of the woman mould 
 bruife the ferpent's head, Gen. hi. 15. and this 
 one text contains in miniature all that I believe 
 reflecting the Reiteration of mankind ; for if the 
 Serpent's head is finally to be bruifed, his power 
 and influence over mankind, muff be entirely de- 
 frroyed ; and then what fhall prevent their return 
 to God ? 
 
 Befides, it is impoiTible to read the Scriptures 
 attentively, and not perceive that God very fre- 
 quently mixes promifes of mercies among his fe- 
 vereft tfereatenings of judgment j and yet he doth 
 not throw down with one hand, what he builds 
 up with the other. 
 
 Your object feems to fuppofe that the doctrine 
 of the Reftoration fuperfedes and fets afide thofe 
 punifhments which God has threatened to inflicr. 
 npon the impenitent ; or elfe how does the preach- 
 ing of this doctrine weaken the force of the threat- 
 enings ? But this is a very falfe idea •, for we ac- 
 knowledge that the threatening;; fhall be fulfilled, 
 and not that the diiobedient (hall efcape unpunfhed. 
 There is a great deal of difference between thefe 
 two ideas, though you would intimate them to be 
 the fame, and that we contradict God by alluring 
 the wicked that they fhall efcape the juft judgment 
 of God. But we only declare that an end mall 
 finally come to their punifhment, and that when 
 
 they 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 137 
 
 they fhall be fufficiently humbled a difpenfation of 
 mercy fhall fucceed that of judgment. Let me 
 afk you, Has not God threatened mankind with 
 death on the account of fin ? ' Duft thou art, and 
 unto dufl thou malt return.' Gen. iii. 19. Well, 
 tell me, is this threatening either weakened or de- 
 ftroyed by the knowledge of the great doctrine 
 of the refurrection of the dead ? Did not God 
 threaten the children of Ifrael with dreadful 
 judgments to prevent their finning, and that they 
 mould be difperfed among all nations ? but will 
 you fay that he either weakened or deftroyed the 
 force of his threatenings, becaufe he promifed 
 them at the fame time that at lafl he would return 
 their captivity, and reftore them as at the firft, and 
 do better unto them, than at their beginning. 
 
 The laws of this country condemn criminals 
 to death : would it be thought that I mould weak- 
 en or deftroy the force of the penal flatutes, by 
 faying, that the execution of the law could only be 
 felt for a certain time, beyond which it could not 
 endure ? Is not every malefactor under the fen- 
 tence of death fuppofed to know this ? and yet 
 will any prefume to fay, that thefe laws are entire- 
 ly weakened, and their force deftroyed becaufe 
 they do not condemn tranfgreffors to endlefs pu- 
 nifhments ? But, if it be allowed that torments, 
 which are but momentary, have a confiderable in- 
 fluence in retraining many vices, there cannot be 
 the fmallefl: reafon to fear that the doctrine of jufl 
 retribution according to the deeds done in the bo- 
 dy, will open the door to vice and immorality, 
 but on the contrary. But this objection is fo near 
 a kin to the lafl which you propofed, that it hard- 
 ly deferves a diftinct confideration ; for if the 
 
 doctrine 
 
I?8 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 doctrine of the Reftoration does not lead men to 
 commit fin, (as I am fure it has no fuch tendency) 
 then no harm can be apprehended from its being 
 known in this ftate. And whereas you argue, 
 that as it would not be proper for the prefent ftate, 
 we may be fure that God hath not revealed it ; 
 and therefore is highly proper for men to know in 
 the prefent ftate. You will pleafe therefore to no- 
 tice that the univerfal doctrine, fo far from tend- 
 ing to render the divine threatenings ufelefs or 
 vain, weakening their force, or fetting them afide, 
 operates in the direct contrary manner. I as much 
 believe as yon or any other man can do, that all 
 the threatenings will be fulfilled upon the finally 
 impenitent ; but dare not carry the matter fo far as 
 to fet afide the gracious promifes of God, with 
 which the Scriptures appear to me to abound, in 
 favour of the final recovery of all at laft. 
 
 Friend. It muft I think be confefTed that if the 
 doctrine of the Reftoration be true, it would be 
 matter of great joy and comfort for good men to 
 know it, for they have often great trouble and 
 anxiety of mind on the account of their families, 
 friends, neighbours, acquaintance, and mankind 
 in general ; which forrow would be greatly reliev- 
 ed, could they have an idea of the Reftoration 
 of all things in the manner you hold it. But 
 however true this may be, it feems not to be plain- 
 ly revealed in the Scripture, otherwife it would 
 not be hidden from the eyes of fo many great and 
 good men. 
 
 Mhiifter. It is pofTible, that afubjecr. may be re- 
 vealed in the plaineft manner, and yet the beft of 
 men may remain ignorant of it. For inftance, were 
 not the fufferings, death, and refurrection of our 
 
 Lord 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 39 
 
 Lord plainly revealed in the Scriptures of the old 
 Teftament ? And yet we know that the apoftles 
 of our Saviour did not underftand one of thofe 
 prophecies. Nay, when Jefus told them openly 
 and exprefsly that he muff be delivered into the 
 hands of men, and that they fhould mock, fcourge, 
 and crucify him, and that the third day he mould 
 rife again, they did not comprehend his meaning ; 
 although he fpoke to them frequently and very 
 plainly upon the fubjecl, and faid, < Let thefe 
 layings fink down into your ears : for the Son of 
 man mail be delivered into the hands of men. But 
 they underftood not this faying, and it was hid 
 from them, that they perceived it not ; and they 
 feared to aik him of that faying.' St. Luke ix. 
 44, 45. And in another place we read, ' For he 
 taught his dlfciples, and faid unto them, The Son 
 of man is delivered into the hands of men, and 
 they mail kill him : and after that he is killed, he 
 mall rife the third day.' It is impoilible that words 
 fhould be more exprefs, or lefs liable to be mif- 
 underftood. ' But (as the cvangelift immediately 
 informs us) c they understood not that faying, and 
 were afraid to afk him.' St. Mark ix. 31, 32. 
 And in the fame chapter we find, that after our 
 Lord Jefus was transfigured upon the mount, in 
 the prefence of Peter, James, and John, c As 
 they came down from the mountain, he charged 
 them that they mould tell no man what things 
 they had feenakidl the Son of man were rifen from 
 the dead. A^B^y kept that faying with them- 
 lelves, queffioniftg one with another what the rif- 
 ing from the dead fhould mean.' Ver. 9, 10. This 
 was what Chriit taught them not only plainly, but 
 alio frequently. See St, Matt. xvi. 21. xvii. 9, 
 
 22, 
 
140 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 22, 23. XX. 17, 18, 19. xxvi. 31, 32. St. Mark 
 viii. 31. ix.p, 10, 31, 32. x. 32, 33, 34. xiv. 27, 
 28. St. Luke ix. 21, 22, 44, 45. xviii. 31, 32, 
 
 33> 34- 
 
 Yet notwithflanding the plainnefs and frequen- 
 cy of thefe predictions, and the pains which Chriffc 
 took to inftil thefe ideas into them, they never un- 
 derflood them at all until fometime after they were 
 fulfilled. For when they faw him taken and de- 
 livered into the hands of men, and treated exactly 
 according to his own words often repeated, they 
 were entirely difappointed, and all their hopes 
 feemed to die within them. And when he was rifen 
 from the dead, they would not believe the teflimo- 
 ny of thofe who had feen him, and would hardly 
 trufl their own fenfes, fo ignorant were they of 
 what he had told them. 
 
 St. John was the firfl of the diiciples who be- 
 lieved that he was rifen, for thus he writes 4 Then 
 went in alfo that other difciple, who came firfl to 
 the fepulchre, and he faw and believed. For as 
 yet they knew not the Scripture that he mufl rife 
 again from the dead.' St. John xx. 8, 9. This 
 inflance is fo much to my purpofe, and proves fo 
 evidently that a thing may be plainly revealed, and 
 exprefTed in the clearefl manner, and yet not be 
 underflood ; that I hardly need mention any more. 
 But I will mention another, and that is, the calling 
 of the Gentiles. This was fpoken of by the pro- 
 phets, in the clearefl language ; and Jefus after 
 his refurreclion gave a full commifllon to his apof- 
 tles, which one would think it was impoflible for 
 them to mifunderfland. 
 
 4 All power is given unto me in heaven and in 
 earthy Go ye therefore and teach all nations/ &c. 
 
 St, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I4I 
 
 St. Matt, xxviii. 18, 19. 'Go ye unto all the 
 world, and preach the gofpel to every creature.' 
 St. Markxvi. 15. 
 
 * Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Chrifr, 
 to fiirTer, and to rife from the dead on the third 
 day: and that repentance and remiflion of fins 
 mould be preached among all nations, beginning 
 at Jerufalem. And ye are witneffes of thefe things.' 
 St. Luke xxiv. 46, 47, 48. ' Ye fhall receive 
 power after that the Holy Ghofl is come upon 
 you : and ye fhall be witnefTes unto me both in 
 Judea and in Samaria, and unto the uttermofl part 
 of the earth.' Acts i. 8. But the apoftles them- 
 felves, even after the miraculous defcent of the 
 Holy Ghoft upon them, were without undemand- 
 ing, refpecting the calling of the Gentiles, until 
 St. Peter was taught it by a viflon from heaven. 
 See Acts x. 
 
 And St. Paul fpeaks of this fubjecl: as a myite- 
 ry that was hid from ages and generations, and 
 particularly revealed to him, and to the faints 
 in that day. See Ephef. iii. 1 — 11. Col. i. 25, 
 26, 27. 
 
 Wherefore, when I confider that the apoftles 
 themfelves could not for a time fee thofe things to 
 be revealed, which yet were mofl plainly, fully, 
 and frequently told them, I cannot wonder that 
 
 [many great and good men now fhould not fee the 
 general Redemption and final Reftoration of all 
 things plainly revealed in the Scriptures, though to 
 me fcarce any fubjecl: appears more evident. It 
 ; gives me now but little concern to hear many fay, 
 
 ithat they cannot fee the matter plainly declared in 
 the Bible, fince I know that things have been 
 there that wife and good men could not fee ; and 
 
 1 what 
 
X^2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 what has happened in times part may take place 
 now : and if I can fee for myfelf, this great truth 
 made known, it is enough for me. I am not to 
 enquire, What does this man believe ? Or, What 
 fhall the other do ? I rauft believe what the 
 Scripture appears to me to teach, and do what I 
 am there commanded, let others believe or do as 
 they may. 
 
 Friend. But I have heard fome fay of you, c How 
 comes this man to know more than all the world ? 
 Have there not been many great, wife, and good 
 men in all ages,, that have never thought of thefe 
 things ? If this doctrine of the final Refroration 
 of all things had been true, furely our wife, good, 
 and learned minifters would have difcovered it, and 
 proclaimed it long ago. But the doctrine of end- 
 lefs rnifery is a point in which they feem generally to 
 agree, however they differ in other matters, and 
 therefore it muft be true, and this doctrine of the 
 general Reftoration, which this man holds up, al- 
 moft alone, mult be falfe.' 
 
 Mimjler. I am very far from pretending to be 
 wifer than any that have gone before me; and as 
 for this doctrine of the Reftoration it was not only 
 believed and preached by the apoftles, but many 
 of the ancient fathers who livcth in the firft ages 
 of Chriftianky, were bold witnefies for this glori- 
 ous truth. It is true that when the Church of 
 Rome rofe to fupreme power, the Popes and Coun- 
 cils endeavoured to extirpate the merciful doElors 
 (as thofe who believed the general Reftoration, 
 were called in derifion) and their adherents, but 
 it was not until near the clofe of the feventh cen- 
 tury, that they were able to filence the witnefles 
 for this truth. This, (as well as many other pre- 
 cious 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 145 
 
 cious truths) then lay hid until the reformation, 
 when it began a little to revive, and hath gradually 
 increafed ever fince. Several great authors have 
 written upon it ; many hundreds, and even thou- 
 sands have believed it, and found comfort and joy 
 therein. Nay, there are many minifters who be- 
 lieve it now as firmly as I do, but do not chufe to 
 confefs or preach it, for various reafons ; and 
 great numbers of private chriftians enjoy the com- 
 fort and happinels of believing it fecretly. But 
 put the cafe that I ftood alone in this testimony, 
 yet if upon a fair examination, the Scriptures hold 
 forth this idea, and if all objections againil: it may 
 be fully anfwered *, why mould my testimony be 
 refufed on the account of its Singularity ? God has 
 an abfolute right to ufe what means or inftruments 
 he pleafes, to manifefl his truth, and to fulfil his 
 purpofes j and though I am nothing, and in his 
 fight am lefs than nothing, yet he is able by the 
 things that are not, to confound and bring to nought 
 the things that are, that no rlefh fiiould glory in 
 his prefence. i Cor. i. 28, 29. 
 
 I acknowledge that the generality of minifters 
 in the prefent day profefs to believe endlefs mifery, 
 though they difagree in other points ; and indeed 
 one reafon why they fall out fo much about other 
 doctrines, is, becaufe they receive this as a firff. 
 principle, as is very obvious; for were thofe who 
 believe that Chrift died only for a part of mankind, 
 once to give up the idea of endlefs mifery, they 
 would acknowledge the univerfality of the love of 
 God, and confefs that Jefus died for nil in the 
 fulleft fenfe. And on the other hand, if thofe who 
 believe in general redemption, were not Co exceed- 
 ingly tenacious of the doctrine of endlefs mifery, 
 
 they 
 
144 DIALOGUES OK THE 
 
 they would not oppofe the doctrine of election, 
 nor hold that the will of God might be finally 
 fruftrated, and that the death of Chrift mail be in 
 vain, with refpect to many, and that many ob- 
 jects of the divine love mall finally perifh to all 
 eternity. Thefe inconfiftencies in their fentiments, 
 and the conteff s between them and thofe who hold 
 partial redemption and falvation, are therefore 
 chiefly, if not wholly owing to both parties being 
 agreed in this moft dreadful doctrine of endlefs 
 mifery. 
 
 It is beautiful to obferve the progreflion of the 
 glorious gofpel, from its opening to our firfl pa- 
 rents in the garden down to the prefent day. I 
 have fometimes mentioned, in public, that the more 
 the gofpel is known and revealed, the larger and 
 richer it appears. 
 
 It firft. feemed confined to one family or nation, 
 but later difcoveries (hewed that all nations had a 
 part therein, and all forts of people were defigned 
 to fhare in its bleflings : now the glorious news 
 begins to be publifhed abroad, not only that all 
 nations, and all forts of people, but all perfons and 
 individuals, without exception, not only may par- 
 take of its benefits, but flail in due time enjoy 
 great advantages thereby. 
 
 God always adapts his remedies to the evils 
 that prevail in the world ; and therefore he hath 
 opened his counfels to men according to their dif- 
 ferent capacities, needs, and circumftances. Chrifti- 
 anity might, formerly, have been received and fin- 
 cerely practifed, without being investigated at all \ 
 but when infidelity rifes up and attacks it, as it does 
 in this our age, it becomes the duty of its friends 
 to defend it, by enquiring into its meaning ; and 
 
 laying 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 145 
 
 laying all prejudices afide, to receive as truth thofe 
 things which God hath revealed, and the fame to 
 vindicate before the world. 
 
 It might not formerly have been neceflary to un- 
 derftand all the prophecies ; and yet now, as the 
 time of their fulfilment draws nigh, they may be- 
 come more important, be more fludied, and better 
 underftood \ and for this purpofe, God may actu- 
 ally illuminate the minds of fome, to fet them 
 forth in a more rational, fcriptural, confident man- 
 ner, than they have appeared in hitherto. And if 
 it mould pleafe God to make any ufe of my tongue 
 or pen for this great purpofe, the glory mall be all 
 afcribed to his name, to whom alone it is due ; I 
 (hall have nothing to glory or boaft of, forafmuch 
 as I can only communicate what I receive •, and I 
 hope none will refufe to receive the truth, however 
 weak or unworthy the inftrument by which God 
 may pleafe to fend it. 
 
 Friend. If this is the truth which you hold 
 forth, however contrary to the commonly receiv- 
 ed opinions of the age, I fee no reafon why men 
 mould refufe to hear what you have to fay ; but 
 I have heard many exclaim againft you in the fe~ 
 vereft manner : and declare that they would not 
 hear you, nor read your writings on any account : 
 and others have faid, that they could confute and 
 overthrow your whole fyftem in ten minutes, 
 but whether they would be able to make their 
 words good if they mould enter the lifts with you 
 is another matter, and cannot be determined till a 
 fair trial. 
 
 Minifter. I can afTure you my friend that I 
 
 mould not have the leaft objection to their makinc 
 
 the attempt ; for though I am confcious that net 
 
 G ther 
 
14-6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 ther my natural nor acquired abilities, are worthy 
 to be compared to thofe of many excellent charac- 
 ters who hold the contrary fentiments : yet the 
 goodnefs of the caufe in which I am engaged, in- 
 spires me with courage to attempt its vindication, 
 let who will enter the lifts with me. For when 
 the evidence of this moft glorious truth firft be- 
 gan to appear to my mind, I was determined never 
 to believe or profefs it, until I could anfwer every 
 objection that could be brought from the Scrip- 
 tures againft it, fairly, and without any torturing 
 or twifting the words of truth \ and it pleafed 
 God fo to open matters to my view, as to take 
 every objection out of my mind, and to clear up 
 every doubt, in fuch a manner, that I have full 
 Satisfaction : And I can fafely fay, in the fear of 
 God, that I am {o far from being offended with 
 thofe who queftion me upon the matter, and there- 
 by give me an opportunity of anfwcring for my- 
 felf, that I take it as an act of kindnefs ; and as I 
 ftand ready to be reproved wherein I am out of 
 the way, io I fhall thank the perfon who, in the 
 fpirit of love, convinces me of error : < Let the 
 righteous fmite me ; it fhall be a kindnefs : and let 
 them reprove me •, it (hall be an excellent oil, which 
 (hall not break my head.' But let not the man 
 who would write, dip his pen in gall ; nor he that 
 would converfe, make his tongue as a fharp 
 fword : but * Let all bitternefs, and wrath, and 
 anger, and clamour, and evil-fpeaking, be put 
 away from vou, with all malice ; and be ye kind 
 one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one 
 another, even as God, for Chrift's fake, hath for- 
 given you. Put on, therefore, as the elect of 
 God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kind- 
 nefs, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 147 
 
 nefs, humblenefs of mind, meeknefs, long-fufFering ; 
 forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, 
 if any man have a quarrel againfr. any -, even as 
 Chrift forgave you, fo alfo do ye. And, above 
 all things, put on charity, which is the bond of 
 perfeclnefs, And let the peace of God rule in your 
 hearts.' Thefe are the tempers of mind we ought 
 always to pofTefs ; and efpecially, when we dii- 
 courfe upon the great things of the kingdom of 
 God. 
 
 Friend. I have the fame defires that you exprefs •, 
 and I think it is to the (hameof human nature, and 
 a reproach to the innocent caufe of Chriftianity, 
 that religious difputes have been carried on with 
 fuch amazing bitternefs and acrimony. Men feem 
 frequently to forget that they are brethren ; and 
 that they muft all ftand before the judgment-feat 
 of Chrift. If they remembered thefe things, as 
 they ought, they would not revile, cenfure, judge, 
 and condemn each other, as they do : From which 
 evil practices may the good Lord preferve us, while 
 we debate this very important fubjecl •, for though 
 I am determined to urge every thing that I can 
 with propriety, in the ftrongeft manner that I am 
 able, yet I am willing to ftipulate on my part, that 
 if I mould ufe any reproachful or cenibrious lan- 
 guage in the remainder of the debate, I will give 
 you leave to oonfider it as totally giving up the 
 caufe in which I am engaged. 
 
 Minifter. And I hereby promife the fame : for I 
 am determined never to write a page of controver- 
 iy, unlefs it can be written in the very jpirit of love 
 and true benevolence, with a fiucere deiire to find 
 and embrace the truth. 
 
 G 2 The 
 
148 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 The want of this in moft controvcrfial writers, 
 has made ferious people fo weary of controverfy, 
 that they will neither read nor hear it on any ac- 
 count : nor can I wonder at it, for fuch bitter- 
 nefs tends entirely to root out the fpirit of true 
 religion. 
 
 Friend. I hope we fhall mew an example to man- 
 kind, how difputes ought to be carried on : in love, 
 and in the fear of God, and for the purpofe of 
 mutual edification. But as our prefent difcourfe 
 has been long and very important, I will take my 
 leave of you for this time, hoping at a future op- 
 portunity to have more converfation with you on 
 this fo interefting a iubject. 
 
 
 END OF THE THIRD DIALOGUE 
 
 DIALOGUE 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I 49 
 
 DIALOGUE IV. 
 
 Friend, T AM happy to have another opportu- 
 nity of difcourfing with yen, concern- 
 ing that point in which you duTer from your bre- 
 thren, the final Reftoration of all things. I have 
 thought much of the fubject fmce I faw you; and 
 though I muft. acknowledge, that you have anfwer- 
 ed, as far as I can fee, fome of the greateit objec- 
 tions that I have found in the Scriptures ; yet a 
 conGderable number remain to be anfwered, before 
 I can venture to receive as a truth, what I have hi- 
 therto looked upon as a dangerous herefy ; and as I 
 have many queflions to propofe, I wifh to make 
 the beft ufe of my time. 
 
 Mlnijler. Propofe your objections, as freely as 
 you pleafe \ and I will endeavour to anfwer them 
 as briefly, and at the fame time as plainly as pofli- 
 ble. 
 
 Friend. Christ threatens the Jews with an eter- 
 nal exclufion from his prefence : < Ye (hall feek 
 me, and (hall not find me ; and where I am, thi- 
 ther ye cannot come,' St. John vii. 34. Then 
 faid Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye 
 (hall feek me, and (hall die in your fins : whither 
 I go, ye cannot come. Ye are from beneath, I 
 am from above : ye are of this world, I am not of 
 this world. I faid therefore unto you, That ye 
 G 3 mall 
 
15° DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 mall die in your fins : for if ye believe not that I 
 am he, ye fhall die in your fins,' St. John viii. 21, 
 23> 24. 
 
 M'mijler. Do you recollect that our Lord ufes 
 words nearly fimilar to fome of thefe, to his own 
 difciples ? 
 
 Friend. No, indeed ; I do not remember any 
 fuch like expreffions ufed to them : Can you mew 
 them to me ? 
 
 Minifter. If I do, will you acknowledge the 
 force of the objection to be removed ? 
 
 Friend. Certainly, I mud. 
 
 M'mijler. Then read St. John xiii. 33. 'Little 
 children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye 
 mall feek mc, and, as I faid unto the Jews, Whi- 
 ther I go, ye cannot come ; fo now I fay unto 
 you.' 
 
 Friend. I am furprized that I mould never have 
 obferved this before — Let me read the pa(Ta<je — 
 Oh ! but (top — it is explained in the 36th ve'rfe : 
 * Simon Peter faid unto him, Lord, whither ^oefl 
 thou ? Jesus anfwered him, Whither I go, thou 
 canfu not follow me now r ; but thou malt follow ' 
 me afterwards.' But nothing of the kind it> inti- 
 mated refpecYingthe Jews. 
 
 Minijier. Not in that text, I confefs ; but in ma- 
 ny others it is more than intimated, that they fhall ' 
 come to know and love him, yea, and to behold 
 him as their friend. I think, it is intimate J '.11 
 tbofe words which our Saviour ufed, in the clofe 
 of his ihreatenings to Jerufalem : — * Behold, your 
 e is left unto you defolate: and verily I fay 
 unto you, Ye fhall not fee me henceforth, until 
 the time come when ye ihallfay, Bleffed is he that . 
 eomCth in the name of the Lord,' St. Mattb. ' 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. IJI 
 
 xxiii. 38, 39. St. Luke xiii. 35. It is more than 
 intimated in thefe words — < And fo all Ifrael (hall 
 be faved. For God hath concluded them all in un- 
 belief, that he might have mercy upon all/ Rom. 
 xi. 26, 32. * In Jehovah fhall all the feed of If- 
 rael be juftified, and fhall glory,' tiki. xlv. 25, f I 
 will call them My people, who were not my peo- 
 ple ; and her Beloved, that was not beloved. And 
 it fhall come to pafs, that in the place where it was 
 laid unto them, Ye are not my people, there fnall 
 they be called, The children of the living God/ 
 Rom. ix. 2^, 26. * Now will I bring again the 
 captivity of Jacob, and have mercy upon the whole 
 houfe of Ifraeh. I have gathered them unto their 
 own land, and have left none of them/ Ezek. 
 xxxix. 25, 28. * And I will multiply men upon 
 you, (the mountains of Ifrael) all the Houle of 
 Ifrael) even all of it/ xxxvi. 10. 'Behold, O 
 my people, I will open your graves, and c . 
 to come up out of your graves, and bring you in- 
 to the land of Ifrael. And ye fhaH know that I 
 am Jehovah, when I have opened your graves, 
 Q my pagple, and brought you up out of your 
 graves, and fhall put my Spirit in you, and ye 
 fhall live, and I fhall place you in your own land : 
 then fhall ye know that I, Jehovah, have fpoken 
 it, and performed it, faith Jehovah/ chap, xxxvii. 
 12, i3>M- 
 
 Friend. But this returning from captivity, can 
 only refpect inch as are alive at that period, 
 when the Lord (hall let his hand the fecond time 
 to recover the remnant of his people from AfTy- 
 ria, &c. 
 
 Mhifter. That is more than any one can prove : 
 
 as the exprefiion is lometimes uled evidently f< r 
 
 G 4 the 
 
152 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 the Reftoration of fuch whofe bodies are deftroy- 
 ed, beyond difputej as, in the cafe of Sodom and 
 her daughters, who were taken away, by fire and 
 brimftone from heaven, whofe captivity God pro- 
 mifes to return, together with the captivity of So- 
 viaria, and her daughters, at the fame time that 
 he will bring again the captivity of Jerttfd- 
 leni) and her daughters, in the midfr. of them. 
 See Ezek. xvi. 44 63-, efpecially, verfes 53, 
 
 Friend. But Mr. Poole's Continuators, as well 
 as many other eminent divines, tell us, that thefe 
 which you take to be promifes, are only dreadful 
 threatenings ; and their meaning is this : — I never 
 will bring again the captivity of Samaria, and her 
 daughters *, nor the captivity of Sodom, and her 
 daughters j neither will I ever bring again the cap- 
 tivity of thy captives, in the midfr. of them : when 
 Sodom and her daughters (hall return to their form- 
 er eftate, (which is impoflible) and Samaria and 
 her daughters fliall return to their former eftate, 
 (which fliall never be) then thou and thy daughters 
 fhall return to your former eftate: but thai time 
 (hall never come. 
 
 Minijler. I know, fuch is their interpretation, 
 which proves nothing more than the weaknefs of 
 their caufe-, for in all this, they exprefsly contra- 
 dict God, who, from the 60th verfe to the end of 
 the chapter, promifes bleffings to Jerufalem in the 
 moft abfolute manner •, That he will remember 
 the covenant made with her in the days of her 
 youth, and will eftablifh unto her an everlafting 
 covenant \ that (lie fnall receive her lifters, Samaria 
 and Sodom^ (called her elder and her yotwger fil- 
 ters) ; and he promifes to give them to her, for 
 
 daughters , 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 53 
 
 daughters ; not by the firft covenant, indeed, 
 bat by the new and everlafting covenant, which 
 he will make in thofe days ; then {hall the covenant 
 be firmly eftablifhed with her -, (he (hall know Je- 
 hovah ; fhall remember, and be confounded •, and 
 never (hall open her mouth in pride any more, 
 becaufe of her former fin and (hame, when God 
 (hall be pacified toward her, for all that (he hath 
 done. 
 
 How many promifes has God made to Jerufalem, 
 in the prophecies, of not only bringing her captivi- 
 ty, and returning her to her former eft ate ; but even 
 caufing greater bleflings than ever to come to her, 
 and of doing better to her than in her beginning, 
 making her an eternal excellency, a joy of many ge- 
 nerations, &c. 
 
 It is therefore very furprifing, that men profef- 
 fing to believe the Bible, (hould dare be fobold as 
 to deny thefe promifes, and declare, that God will 
 never bring Jerufalem to her former eftate ! They 
 might, indeed, fafely fay, that the promifes have 
 not yet been fulfilled -, but it is too bold to aflfert, 
 That therefore they will never be accomplished. 
 Were there no other text to prove the Reftoration of 
 the Jews who died in their fins, and indeed of the 
 whole fallen race of Adam, I (hould judge this fuf- 
 ficient ; — « All that the Father givrth we,Jhallcome 
 to me ; and him that cometh unto me, I will in no 
 wife caft out. For I came down from heaven, 
 not to do my own will, but the will of him that 
 fent me. And this is the Fathers will, which 
 hath fent me, that of all which he hath given 
 me, I fhould lofe n. thing; but (hould rade it up a- 
 gstt at the laft day,' St. John vi. 37, 38, 30. Here 
 we find that Chrijl, our Lord., declare^ not only 
 G r that 
 
154 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 that aft that the Father giveth him Jhall come to 
 him 5 but alio, that they (hail come in fuch a man- 
 ner, as in no wife to be cafl out ; and that inch is 
 the Father's will, that nothing of all which he hath 
 given to the Son, mould be loft, or miffing, at that 
 great day when he mall deliver up the kingdom to 
 the Father, who did put all things under him. ; and 
 as this is the will of that God ivho <worketh all 
 things after the counfel of his own ivill ; and as Chri/l 
 has undertaken the accomplifhment of this will of 
 the Father, it concludes abfolutely and forcibly 
 agamft the doctrine of endlefs mifery, and annihila- 
 tion. 
 
 Friend. It certainly does, with refpeel: to all 
 thofe whom the Father giveth, or hath given, to 
 the Son ; but to none elie. 
 
 Minijler. That is all that I contend for : I 
 ground the univerfal Reft oration of all things, up- 
 on thefe two premifes, which I call the major and 
 the minor, i. That all things are given to the Son, 
 without exception : 2. That all that are given him, 
 fiall come to him, in fuch a manner as not to be 
 cajlout-, and that none fhall be miffing, loft, or 
 wholly deftroyed, but fhall be forth-coming, in 
 that great day when Chrifl fhall give up the king- 
 dom to the Father. 
 
 Fricfid. But can you prove your major ? I am 
 fenfible that the minor has been the great founda- 
 tion upon which particular redemption, &c. has been 
 fupported ; but if the major can be proved, it will 
 fet the ftrongeft weapons of thofe who hold partial 
 decrees, &c. directly agair.ft them, and will give 
 another turn to the argument. 
 
 Minifer. I can prove the major by the fame po- 
 liuve ^xprcilions as the minor, and by more paffa- 
 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 5) 
 
 ges of Scripture ; and you fhall judge for your - 
 felf, whether I quote them fairly, and whether 
 they can be invalidated by any arguments which 
 will not, at the fame time, invalidate the minor. I 
 will fet down the feveral texts at large, as they are 
 of great importance. 
 
 St. Matth. xi. 27. < All things are delivered un- 
 to me of my Father .- and no man knoweth the Son 
 but the Father : neither knoweth any man the 
 Father, lave the Son, and he to whomibever the 
 Son will reveal him.' The very fame words are 
 mentioned by St. Luke : See chap. x. 22. 
 
 But the molt finking paffages of this kind, are 
 found in the gofpel of St. John, chap. III. 35. and 
 xiii. 3. 'The Father loveth the Son, and hath gi- 
 ven all things into his hands. Jcfus knowing 
 that t : given all things into his hands, 
 
 : he was come from God, and went to 
 &c.' 
 
 God hath moreover faid to his Son, « Afk of 
 me, and I fhall give thee the heathen for thine in- 
 heritance, and the uttermoft parts of the earth for 
 thy poiTeffion,' Pial. ii. 8. 
 
 Thus, all things are given to Chrij}, without ex- 
 ception. The major and minor being both proved 
 from Scripture, we may venture to draw this con- 
 dition : 
 
 If all things are given into the hands of Chrifi, 
 by the Father ,• and all that the Father giveth, or 
 hath given, lhall come to Chrij}, in fuch a man- 
 ner as not to be calf out-, then {hall all men be re- 
 ftored. 
 
 Here the whole Chriftian world may unite,with- 
 
 out either party being obliged to give up their fa- 
 
 ite tenets : and while fome flro'ngly contend, 
 
 and 
 
15^ DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 and prove from Scripture, that all things are deli- 
 vered into the hands of Jefus ; let the others go 
 on to prove, that all that the Father giveth, (hall 
 come in fuch a manner as not to be caft out : Thus 
 (hall the truth be promoted mutually and equally, 
 by thofe who feem to contradict each other •, but 
 neither (hall, in that cafe, contradict what our 
 Lord hath faid. 
 
 But as all tbingSy or all men, without exception, 
 are given to Jefus, that he might reftore, or bring 
 them back to God, in his own way and time ; fo is 
 he invefted with all power, that he might be able to 
 accomplifh fo great a work. Jefus fpake, faying, 
 1 All power is given unto me, in Heaven and in 
 earth/ St. Matth. xxviii. 18. 'For as the Father 
 hath life in himfelf, fo hath he given to the Son 
 to have life in himfelf; and hath given him autho- 
 rity to execute judgment alfo, becaufe he is the 
 Son of man,' St. John v. 26, 27. jtfus, or Lord, 
 has power to quicken fouls who are dead in tref- 
 paffes and fms ; See Ephef. ii. 1. He himfelf 
 faith •, l Verily, verily, I fay unto you, The hour 
 is coming, and now is, when the dead (hall hear 
 the voice of the Son of Gcd ; and they that hear, 
 (hall live, St. John v. 25. He hath power to raife 
 all the dead that are in their graves ; for he faith, 
 * Marvel not at this : for the hour is coming, in 
 which all that are in the graves (hall hear his 
 voice, and (hall come forth : they that have done 
 good, to the refurreclion of life ; and they that 
 have done evil, to the refurreclion of damnation,* 
 verfe 29. But he has not only power to raife the 
 dead, and quicken whom he will; to give rewards 
 to them that love him, and to pais fentence of judg- 
 ment and condemnation upon his foes, and they 
 
 that 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. !$7 
 
 that have done evil ; but has alfo power tofubdue 
 all things unto himfelf, to reconcile all things , and 
 to rehead all things in himfelf : And whatever me- 
 thods he may ufe towards mankind, and whatever 
 miferies he may fuffer them to feel for their fins, 
 and how long foever the dreadful age of judge- 
 ment and fiery indignation may laft, Chrlfl has gi- 
 ven us to underftand, in his prayer to the Father, 
 that the power which he hath, was given with a 
 defign far fuperiorto this, (though judgment is in- 
 cluded) — he faith, (in that addrefs which, for its 
 grandeur, beauty, fimplicity, and majefty, never 
 was equalled}; c As thou haft given him power 
 over all f.cjh, that he mould give eternal life to as 
 many (pan, all) as thou haft given him. And 
 this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the 
 only true God, and Jefus Chrifl whom thou haft 
 lent/ St. John xvii. 2, 3. Here we fee, that his 
 power over ail flelri was given him for this grand 
 purpoie, that ultimately he might give eternal life; 
 not only endlefs exiftence, but the knowledge of 
 God and his Chrijl, to all that the Father hath gi- 
 ven him ; which are all without exception. — This 
 is the will of God, that of all which he hath given 
 the Son, he mould lofe nothing ; but mould give 
 eternal life, even the knowledge of God, which 
 he alone can give, to all, without referve, whom 
 the Father hath given him; this is the will which 
 Chr'ijl came to do, and this he hath power to per- 
 form. — Now, if he came purpofely to do the will 
 of God; and if it is the will cf God, that of all 
 tliLit the Father hath given to the Son, he fhould 
 lofe nothing ; but fhould bring all to himfelf, in 
 fuch a manner as that they mould not be caft out, 
 and give them all eternal life ; and if all, without 
 
 referve 
 
15^ DIALOGUES ON TIIF. . 
 
 referve, are given to him, and unive'rfal power 
 and dominion are his, for this very purpofe ; if 
 all thefe premifes are true — as who. can deny ? — ► 
 then nothing can be more evident than this con- 
 cluflon, viz. that All Jl jail be at loft rejlored. 
 
 ' It is written in the prophets, (faith Jefus) — 
 And they mail all be taught of God. Every man 
 therefore, that hath heard, and hath learned of the 
 Father, cometh unto me,' St. John vi. 45. — If all 
 mall be taught of God ; and all that are taught, 
 mail come to Chrijl ; and none that come to him 
 mall be caff out or rejected •, if all thefe premifes 
 are true (and, I think, they are fully proved) ; 
 how very naturally the conciufion follows, viz. 
 that all fhall be finally brought home to God, be- 
 fore Chrijl fhall refign the kingdom to the Father. 
 
 Our blefTed Lord is inverted with power iuffi- 
 cient to perform this work : It is the will of God 
 that it mould be done •, Chrijl came into the world 
 on purpofe to begin, and lay a foundation for the 
 fame ; he hath laid a fufficient foundation, by faff- 
 ing death for all ; one died for all; he gave himfelf 
 a ranfom for ally to be teftified in due time; and he 
 feemed confident that he fhould be able to accom- 
 plifh this will of the Father, when he faid, * And 
 I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all 
 unto me,' St. John xii. 32. He was lifted up 
 from the earth, and therefore the if is now no 
 more ; he will certainly draw all unto himfelf, and 
 give eternal life, or the knowledge of Gcd to all. 
 Hejhallfee of the travail oj his foul, and be fatisficd : 
 And who can conceive how much it will take to 
 iatisfy the capacious foul of the Son of God, and 
 efpecially after having borne fuch deadly pains for 
 all? Thefe pafTages, my friend, eflablim my mind 
 
 in 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 59 
 
 ia the belief of the final univerfal Restitution, be- 
 yond all hefitation •, neverthelefs, I would not wifli 
 to foi ce your afTent, were it in my power, but only 
 to lay before you that evidence which has wrought 
 upon me, and has brought me over, notwithftand- 
 ing my education, prejudices, former fentiments, 
 cuitom, the multitude, my intereft, my honour, 
 and connexions, were all againft it. 
 
 Friend. I fuppofe you know the expofitions that 
 are given by the generality of e<xpofitors upon all 
 thefe texts : and it is a fact that thoufands and 
 millions of great and good men have read them, 
 many have preached from them, and yet never faw 
 any thing like the univerfal Reft oration contained 
 in them ; but if the doctrine be true, and be at all 
 intended to be fet forth in the Scriptures, I muft 
 fuppofe that the paiTages you have mentioned, may 
 allude to it ; but I have many objections yet to 
 propofe, which mult be fairly anfwered before I 
 can receive it. 
 
 Minifter. I would chooie you iliould propofe 
 every objection that you can, efpecially thofe that 
 may be brought from the facred page ; not only 
 for your own fatisfaction, but left any fhould be 
 led to iuppofe that objections of the greateft force 
 are purpofely kept back, becaufe no folid anlwers. 
 could be found ; whereas I am defirous of hearing 
 whatever can be fairly urged from the Scriptures 
 againft this view, and make no doubt of being able 
 to fhew, that all may be fully anfwered. 
 
 Friend. What do you think of thofe paiTages, 
 where God is reprefented as {wearing in his wrath 
 that unbelievers fhall not enter into his reft, which 
 are found in Pfal. xcv. n. Heb. iii. n, 18, 19. 
 Chap. iv. 3, 6, compared with Numb. xiv. Do 
 
 they 
 
l6® IMALOGCTES ON TH* 
 
 they not feem to cut off all hopes of the repara- 
 tion of thofe who die in their fins ? 
 
 Minifler. By the reft that was promifed to the 
 children of Ifrael, which they forfeited by their un- 
 belief, we mud underftand the land of Canaan, and 
 not the final ftate of happinefs. For who can fup- 
 pofe, that out of more than fix hundred thoufand 
 men, befides women, only two will be faved ? — ■ 
 and that even Mofes and Aaron, thofe faints of the 
 Lord, will be loft among the reft ? For they, as 
 well as others, entered not in ; becaufe they be- 
 lieved not God, to fanctify him before the congre- 
 gation : (See Numb. xx. 12.) Only Caleb and Jo- 
 Jljua entered into that reft, for they followed the 
 Lord fully : and they are typical of thofe who fhall 
 follow the Lamb in all ages, fo as to obtain a part 
 in the firji refurretlion, over whom the fecond 
 death fhall have no power : they who are called, 
 and chofen, and faithful, and are overcomers, (hall 
 reign with Chrift on earth during the Millenium, 
 which is the reft that was pointed out by the land 
 of Canaan. 
 
 Friend. Is it, indeed ? We have commonly 
 underftood that reft which the children of Ifrael 
 had in the promifed land, as typical of Heaven and 
 eternal felicity. 
 
 Minifler. This cannot be; fmce it is evident 
 that mighty wars were waged, and dreadful battles 
 fought, thirty-one kings and kingdoms were con- 
 quered and fubdued by Jomua and the Ifraelites, 
 after they paflfed over Jordan ; it was not a perfect 
 reft, but only a type of that keeping of the fabbath 
 which remains for the people of God, into which 
 we are exhorted to enter ; which is the time when 
 our Lorc^ after having conquered the nations of 
 
 the 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. l6l 
 
 the earth, fhall reign for a thouf and years > before the 
 iecond refurreclion ; but as many of the Ifraelites 
 may be faved in the day of the Lord, whofe Carca- 
 fes fell in the wildernefs *, fo, likewife, fhall the 
 names of many be found in the book of life, at the 
 general judgment, when the dead, fmall and great, 
 mall (land before God, who were not worthy to 
 have a part in the firfl refurreclion. Thefe pafTages, 
 therefore, conclude flrongly againfl thqfe having a 
 a part in the firfl refurrection; but nothing againfl 
 the final Refloration, which is a flate far beyond, 
 and belongs to another difpenfation. 
 
 Friend. This is quite a different comment from 
 what I have ever heard before •, but allowing this 
 objection to be anfwered, I have another in my 
 mind, that appears very difficult, and I fhould be 
 gtod to know what you can fay upon it •, it is drawn 
 from Ifaiah xxvii. i r. ' For it is a people of no 
 underflanding ; therefore he that made them will 
 not have mercy on them, and he that formed 
 them will {hew them no favour.' How can they 
 ever be reflored, if God will not have mercy upon 
 them, nor mew them any favour ? 
 
 Minifter. If we did not underfland thefe words 
 with feme limitation, it would be as difficult to re- 
 concile them with other pafTages of Scripture, as 
 with the doctrine of the Reftoration ; but if we 
 only limit the time, all is eafy; c He fhall have 
 judgment without mere}', that hath fhewed no 
 mercy j' neverthelefs it is added, < but mercy re- 
 joiceth againfl judgment/ James ii. 13. The way 
 I anfwer all thefe threatenings, and mew them to 
 be confident with that boundlefs mercy of God, 
 that is over all his works, i?, to mew, that both 
 wrath and mercy have their feafon ; that anger en- 
 
 duretb 
 
l62 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 dureth but a moment , but that mercy efidureth far 
 ever i which glorious declaration is expreifed more 
 than forty times in the Scripture ; and that God 
 frequently threatens the greatefl judgments, and 
 promifeth the greateil mercies, to the lame people 
 and peribns. f Thus faith Jehovah, Thy bruife 
 is incurable, and thy wound is grievous. There 
 is none to plead thy caufe, that thou mayeft be 
 bound up : thou hail no healing medicines. All 
 thy Jovers have forgotten thee : they feek thee 
 not j for I have wounded thee with the wound of 
 an enemy, with the chaflifement of a cruel one, 
 for the multitude of thine iniquity ; becaufe thy 
 iins w T ere increafed. Why criefl thou for thine 
 affliction ? Thy forrow is incurable, for the mul- 
 titude of thine iniquity : becaufe thy fins were in- 
 creafed, I have done thefe things unto thee.' 
 Now, who would not think, from reading thefe 
 words, that thefe people were in a mo ft hopelefs 
 ftate, beyond the reach of mercy ; and that it was 
 In vain for them even to feck it ? — And yet the ve- 
 ry next words fpeak a language directly contrary. 
 ( Therefore all they that devour thee, (hall be de- 
 voured, &c. For I will reflore health unto thee, 
 and I will heal thee of thy wounds, faith Jeho- 
 vah ; becaufe they called thee an Outcafl, faying, 
 This is Z'w?i, whom no man feeketh after.' See 
 Jer. xxx. 12 — 17. I could juftify this obferva- 
 tion by hundreds of paliapes wherein God threat- 
 ens his people with judgments the moil fevere, and 
 declares — that his eye mail not pity, nor his arm 
 five; that he will vifit their X rani e upon 
 
 them, .will utterly call them off, and will not 
 have companion on them at ail ; and then inch 
 promifes of mercy break out as are fufficient to a- 
 
 ftoni/h 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 63 
 
 ftonifh every one with their greatnefs. But time 
 would fail to quote them at large. God, by Ho- 
 fea, fays, * I will no more have mercy upon the 
 houfe of Ifrael ; but I will utterly take them away. 
 For ye are not my people, and I will not be your 
 God/ And then immediately fays, fpeaking of a 
 time to come, * And it mall come to pafs, that in 
 the place where it was faid unto them, Ye are not 
 my people, there it mail be faid unto them, ' Ye 
 are the Ions of the living God.' See Hofea, i. 6, 
 9, 10. 
 
 The whole prophecy, indeed, feems of a piece 
 with this fpecimen. In the fecond chapter it is 
 faid, ' Plead with your mother, plead : for me is 
 not my wife, neither am I her hufband ; and I 
 will not have mercy upon her children ; for they 
 be the children of whoredoms.' Then he goes 
 on to pronounce manv dreadful threatenings •, but 
 the chapter clofes with the molt amazing promises 
 of mercies to the fame people, under the fimilitude 
 of a wife that had been rejected, and after a long 
 time received again. * And I will betroth thee. 
 unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto 
 me in righteoufnefs, and in judgment, and in Ioy-, 
 ing-kindnefs, and in mercies. I will even betroth 
 thee unto me in faithful fiefs, and thou fnalt know 
 the Lord. And I will low her unto me in the 
 earth, and I will have mercy upon her that had 
 not obtained mercy ; and I will fay to them who 
 were not my people, Thou art my people i and, 
 they (hall fay/ Thou art my God ;' See Hof. ii. 2, 
 4, 19,20, 23. Thus the objection admits of a fair 
 and rational aofwer ; and I have been the larger 
 1 it, becaufe I judged it of great importance 
 [ear it up thoroughly: but more paffages upon 
 
 this 
 
J^4 DIALOGUES Olf THE 
 
 this fubjecr. are needlefs, or I could eafdy produce 
 great numbers, that fpeak to the fame purpofe. 
 
 Friend. You have feemed to come over this ob- 
 jection rather better than I could have expected, 
 but Imuft beg leave to aflc you, What you do with 
 that pafTagc : (Pfalms xlix. \$.) c He (hall go to 
 the generation of his fathers •, they (hall never 
 fee light ?• 
 
 Minijler. I render the words gnad natzab, K un- 
 til fubdued and overcome, they (hall not fee the 
 light ; or, s until the age, or a certain period, they 
 ftiall not fee the light/ The fame words are ufed 
 in Job xxxiv. 36, where they are rendered * unto 
 the end* c My defire is, that Job may be tried 
 cnto the end. How would it feem to render the 
 words thus — ( My defire is, that Job may be tried 
 never; or, may never be tried ?' This would be 
 quite inconfiftent with the nature of things, as 
 well as a contradiction in the words themfelves ; 
 For firft to fay, « My defire is, that Job may be 
 tried,' and then to add words that mean never, is 
 quite ridiculous even to fuppofe ; but render the 
 words, unto a time or period, or as they will bear, 
 * until he be fubdued or overcome,* and the meaning 
 is both plain and benevolent : but to wifli him tri- 
 edfor ever, world without end, would be a mod 
 malevolent wifli, — and to wifh him tried never, 
 would be nonfenfe. 
 
 Friend. This translation is very different from 
 that which we commonly read, in which this text 
 appears a very formidable objection indeed : for if 
 they [hall never fee the light, they cannot be re- 
 itored. 
 
 Minijler. The word never is fomctimes ufed in 
 our tranflation* in fuch a manner as to oblige us 
 
 to 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 65 
 
 to underftand it in a limited fenfe, as has been pro- 
 red before; Lev. vi. 13. ' The fire fhall ever be 
 burning upon the altar, it (hall never go out ; and 
 in feveral other places. 
 
 Friend. I muft allow that the words you men- 
 tion feem very ftrong and abfolute, but the very 
 reafon of things obliges us to limit their meaning 
 to a period or age •, but where no fuch neceflity 
 appears we muft underftand fuch words in the 
 mofl abfolute and unlimited fenfe. 
 
 Minijler. I think there is as abundant reafon 
 from Scripture to limit the time of punifhment as 
 any thing whatever ; as I truft will appear in the 
 courfe of our converfation, for which purpofe I 
 mall be glad to hear all that you are able to urge 
 againft the doctrine of the Reftoration. 
 
 Friend. The next objection I (hall bring is from 
 Job xxxv i. 18. * Becaufe there is wrath, beware 
 left he take thee away with his ftroke 5 then a 
 great ranfom cannot deliver thee/ By which we 
 underfland, that after death there is no deliver- 
 ance, no, not even by that great ranfom the blood 
 of Chrift. 
 
 Minijler. This would be one of the ftrongeft ob- 
 jections that you have yet advanced, if the words 
 a great ranfom, had any allufion to the blood of the 
 dear Redeemer, and if it could be fairly demonitra- 
 ted, that it can have no power over the dead ; but 
 I apprehend, when you read and confider the text, 
 context, and fimilar paiTages, you will fee that 
 no fuch thing is intended. 
 
 Job had frequently wifhed for death in his trou- 
 ble and anguiih, (as many perfons foolimly and 
 wickedly do, that have never felt the tenth part 
 of his afflictions) for which Elihu juftly reproves 
 him, in thefe words ; ■ Becaufe there is wrath, be- 
 ware 
 
1 66 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 ware left he take thee away with his ftroke ; then 
 a great ranfom cannot deliver thee/ from death 
 and the grave ; from being cut off by the hand of 
 Heaven, juflly provoked by thy rafhnefs : * Will 
 he efteem thy riches ?' Will he account thy great 
 riches a ranfom for thy life ? ' No not gold, nor 
 all the forces of ftrength :' Wouldeft thou give 
 ever fo much of the precious ore to ranfom thy 
 life, it would be unavailable •, or, fhouldeft thou 
 truft in thy ftrength of body or mind ; fhouldeft 
 thou plead the readinefs of thy wit, the ftrength 
 and greatnefs of thy judgment, memory, and 
 other faculties ; thy benevolence of difpofition ; 
 thy ufefulnefs in life, thy numerous connections, 
 the great honours that await thee \ wert thou a 
 monarch, and couldeft thou command armies and 
 valiant hofts, ftrong and mighty ; all thefe things 
 would be totally diiregarded by God, if he, pro- 
 voked by thy rafhnefs, fhould give thee thy wifh, 
 and ifTue the death warrant againft thy life : there- 
 fore, confiderlng thefe things, * Defire not the 
 night (of death, and efpecially iudden death) when 
 people are cut off in their place ;' and there is no 
 remedy, no ranfom, no difcharge in that war •, 
 from which neither power, wifdom, might, riches, 
 honours, wickednefs, nor even virtue, can deliver* 
 
 * Take heed, regard not iniquity ;' do not fin in any 
 wife, and efpecially do not raflily wifh for death; 
 which is very prefumptuous and heaven daring-, 
 
 * for this thou haft choien, rather than affliction :> 
 See Job xxxvi. 18, 19, 20, 21. This is evident- 
 ly the plain meaning of the text, and is confirmed 
 by Pial. xlix. 6, 7, 8, 9. * They that truft in 
 their wealth, and boaft thcmfelves in the multi- 
 tude of their riches ; none of them can by any 
 means redeem his brother, nor gi\e to God a ran- 
 fom 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. l6? 
 
 fom for him : (For the redemption of their foul is 
 precious, and it ceafeth for ever.) That he fhould 
 frill live for ever, and not fee corruption.' But, 
 though the power of wealth, wifdom, and ftrength, 
 are not fufficient to buy a fhort reprieve from 
 death ; yet the power of God is able to ranfom 
 therefrom, and to redeem from the grave, or hell, 
 as I have noticed before ; and which is expreffed 
 in the lait-mentioned Pfalm, in the following 
 terms ; * But God will redeem my foul from the 
 power of the grave j for he mall receive me,' ver. 
 15. And by the fame parity of reafoning, that 
 the power of the Highest is able alfo to redeem 
 or ranfom, the bodies of men from the grave, af- 
 ter they have periftied there : he is able alfo to 
 redeem fouls from fin and mifery, if it be his 
 pleafure ; and, by the blood of the Messiah's, 
 covenant, to fend forth his prifoners out of the 
 pit wherein is no water, not even a drop to cool 
 the tongues of thofe who are tormented there. I 
 have therefore no doubt, but, the blood of Chrift 
 is able to redeem to the uttermoft, and is fufficient 
 to deftroy the power of fm, death, and hell. No- 
 thing in the text on which your objection is found- 
 ed, can depreciate the merit of that cleanfmg, all- 
 powerful blood, by proving that it cannot be ef- 
 fectual to loft fouls. 
 
 Friend. But have you forgot that the Scripture 
 {ays, * Whatfoever thy hand findeth to do, do it 
 with thy might : for there is no work, nor device, 
 nor knowledge, nor wifdom, in the grave, whither 
 thou goeft. And if the tree fall toward .the 
 fouth, or toward the north ; in the place where 
 the tree fallath, there it mail be ?' Ecclef. ix. 10. 
 xi. 3. 
 
 Mintfter, 
 
l68 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Minlfter. No ; I have not forgot that fuch paf- 
 fages are found in the Bible ; and I believe they 
 were written with a defign to make us diligent, 
 and wifely to improve our time and talents ; and 
 that we fhould be liberal in giving alms, which 
 feems efpecially to be the meaning of the laft, if we 
 may judge by the connection in which it is found, 
 and without which I am not able to fay what it in- 
 tends : But, in this cafe, they do not appear to me 
 to be any thing to the purpofe, one way or the 
 other ; and yet no Scriptures are more frequently 
 brought than thefe againft the doctrine of the Re- 
 ftoration of all things •, but commonly accompani- 
 ed with fome additions ; fuch as — * There is no 
 repentance in the grave ; Nor pardon offered to the 
 dead/ — c And as death leaves us, fo judgment 
 finds us/ — Words that I have never found in the 
 Bible ; but were they repeated ever fo often, could 
 not affect: this argument •, fince the general Reft ora- 
 tion cannot happen till long after the laft Judg- 
 ment, and will not be wholly compleated till the 
 time of the creation of the new heavens and earth, 
 wherein righteoufnefs alone (hall dwell. 
 
 We all know, that the grave is a place of inac- 
 tivity, where there is no work, device, knowledge, 
 nor tuifdom ; and it is a ftate to which we /hall foon 
 be brought , and, therefore, we ought to be dili- 
 gent and induftrious now : But thofe who believe 
 in the immortality of the foul, will not undertake 
 to prove from thefe words, that it has no knowledge, 
 or tuifdom, after it leaves the body; fince many 
 of them fay, that the foul knows much more in 
 cne hour after that event takes place, than in the 
 whole period of its cxiftence before. And as for 
 thofe who believe that man dies wholly y and ileeps 
 a in 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 169 
 
 in the grave until the refur rection, they can never 
 bring this text with any confiftency againft the fi- 
 nal Reftoration of all men •, becaufe, let what will 
 be the ftate of things in the grave, nothing can 
 prevent our Saviour from raifing all at laft, and 
 changing them finally for the better, if fuch be 
 his pleasure. I might, therefore, juft as well at- 
 tempt, from the vii. and xiv. chapters of Job, to 
 prove, that there fhall be no rifurreTlion of the 
 dead from their graves, notwithstanding the nu- 
 merous promifes of that grand event ; as any per- 
 lon to prove, from theie and fimilar pafTages, that 
 all men pall not be finally rejlored ; fince what is 
 laid in thofe chapters feems ten times more againft 
 the former, than any thing that can be urged from 
 thefe is againft the latter. The doctrine of the 
 general refurre&ion of the juft and unjuft •, and a 
 ftate of rewards for the former, and pimifimients 
 for the latter, according to their works •, and alfo 
 the fubjcclion, final reconciliation, and re-union of 
 all things in Christ, are all exprefsly revealed, 
 and are made the fubject of prophecies, threaten- 
 ings, and promifes ; and are all truths, that cannot 
 be overthrown by any reafonings, as they are plain- 
 ly declared by God himfeif. 
 
 The Scripture, in abundance of places, highly 
 recommends liberality -, and, in the molt pofitive 
 manner, allures the bounteous, that they fhall be 
 blefTed : I need not recite pafTages to prove, what 
 is fo univerfally known and confefTed. Solomon y 
 therefore, having given many excellent precepts 
 to direct, us in other matters, comes to exhort us 
 to be bountiful and liberal, in diftributing to the 
 neceflities of others what God hath blefTed us with- 
 al ; faying, * Call thy bread upon the waters ; for 
 H thou 
 
170 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 thou fhalt find it after many days. Give a portion 
 to feven, and alio to eight ■, for thou knoweft not 
 what evil (hall be upon the earth. If the clouds 
 be full of rain, they empty themfelves upon the 
 earth : and if the tree fall toward the fouth, or to- 
 ward the north ; in the place where the tree fall- 
 eth, there it (hall be.' Thereby intimating to us, 
 that as certainly as thefe plain common obferva- 
 tions are true, (than which nothing can be more 
 fo) (hall they who beftow liberally upon the poor 
 and needy, be rewarded ; fince God has promifed, 
 and he will perform : See, upon this fubject, Deut. 
 xv. 10, 1 1. — Pfal. xli. i, 2, 3, cxii. — Prov. xi. 24, 
 25, 26. xiv. 31. xix. 17. xxii. 9. — St. Matth. vi. 3, 
 4, x. 42. — St. Lukevi. 38. xii. 33. xiv. 12, 13, 
 14. — 2 Cor. viii. 9. — 1 Tim. vi. 17, 18, 19 — and 
 many other places. 
 
 Solomon then goes on upon the fame fubjecl:, and 
 intimates to us, by two ftriking metaphors, that if 
 we wait till no difficulties appear in our way to 
 hinder us from performing our duty, we (hall never 
 reap the bleffing •, and after giving us to under- 
 hand that God has many fecret ways of working, 
 far above our comprehenfion, and can therefore 
 blefs and reward us in many ways out of our own 
 light, or the view of others, and yet no4efs cer- 
 tainly than children are conceived, nonrifhed, and 
 receive life in the womb, though we know not 
 how ; he comes to give us a warm and preiling 
 exhortation, to be conftant in doing good to all, 
 according to our power ; and to be fo far from 
 concluding that to be loft that we thus be- 
 ftow, that we ought to confider alms as feed 
 Ibwn in a fruitful foil, and fhould, with pati- 
 ence, wait for the glorious harveft, when, through 
 
 the 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I 71 
 
 the divine bleffing, we may expect to reap an hun- 
 dred fold. 
 
 All this is piain and eafy : But how any text in 
 this beautiful chain, mould ever have been thought 
 to have any allufion to the ftate of fouls departed, 
 or brought as a proof that no alteration can take 
 place after death, I cannot conceive. But, allow- 
 ing it to have any relation at all to a future ftate, 
 it cannot then in the leafl difprove, that very ma- 
 terial changes may happen to fouls in the fpiritual 
 world ; iince a tree cut down by its owner, lies 
 not long in the fame pofition in which it falls, but 
 is applied to various ufes, according to its fitnefs 
 and his pleafure. But as this is nothing to the 
 purpofe, I think I have taken too much pains here 
 already ; and I mould have faid little or nothing 
 upon this part of the objection, were it not con- 
 tinually urged, as though the whole controverly 
 turned and terminated upon this allufion, than 
 which, nothing feems farther from the meaning 
 of the text ; which, in its true fenfe, appears to 
 be this — That as certainly as full clouds mufl 
 empty themfelves upon the terraqueous globe, and 
 that every thing is what it is, and where it is, and 
 no where elfe ; and as a tree falling to the fouth, 
 does not fall and lie to the north ; and, vice verfa, 
 fo, with the fame certainty, (hall liberality be blefl 
 and rewarded. 
 
 Friend. I have nothing to object to what you 
 have faid upon the text ; it appears natural. I 
 formerly thought it intended, that as perfons were 
 laid in the grave, {o they fhould rife, and that there 
 could be no change after death ; but I am fully 
 convinced^ that this belongs not to the fubject. 
 But there is another paffage, in the book of Eccle- 
 H 2 fiafles, 
 
I7 2 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 fiaftes, (chap. ix. 4, 5, 6.) that I mould be glad 
 
 to hear your opinion of: ' For to him that is 
 
 joined to all the living, there is hope ; for a living 
 dog is better than a dead lion. For the living 
 know, that they mult die : but the dead know not 
 any thing, neither have they any more a reward ; 
 for the memory of them is forgotten. Alfo, 
 their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is 
 now perimed : neither have they any more a por- 
 tion for ever, in any thing that is done under the 
 fun/ 
 
 Minijler. It is evident that the wife man, in this 
 and many other of his obfervations, only confider- 
 ed things with refpect to the prefent life, without 
 any regard to a future ftate. In this view, his de- 
 clarations are confiftent with truth ; but in no 
 other. Let the following ferve as a fpecimen : — 
 ' No man knoweth either love or hatred, by all 
 that is before them. All things come alike to all ; 
 there is one event to the righteous and to the wick- 
 ed ; to the good, and to the clean, and to the un- 
 clean j to him that facrificeth, and to him that fa- 
 crificeth not ; as is the good, fo is the finner ; and 
 he that fweareth, as he that feareth an oath/ ver. 
 
 1, 2. Nothing could poffibly be more falfe than 
 
 thefe obfervations, applied to a future ftate, though 
 they are generally true in this life ; for if there 
 are no future rewards and punifhments, no ftate 
 of retribution hereafter, there is an end to all re- 
 ligion. But he does not finally leave the matter fo •, 
 but makes a moft excellent conclufion to this book ; 
 faying — 
 
 c Let us hear the conclufion of the whole mat- 
 ter : Fear {or revere) God, and keep his command- 
 ments : for this is the whole duty of man. For 
 
 God 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 173 
 
 God mall bring every work into judgment, with 
 every fecret thing ; whether it be good, or whether 
 it be evil, chap. xii. 13, 14. 
 
 Thus, it is plain, that a living dog is better 
 (more uieful in this world) than a dead lion \ 
 which is no longer capable of doing good or evil - y 
 that a man, when he dies, lofes all hopes of en- 
 joyment in this life, and is rendered incapable of 
 exercifing the functions of it any longer •, has no 
 more a portion in any thing belonging thereto. 
 Thus, in fine, all the obiervations that can be fairly 
 made, upon this and fimilar pafTages, belong en- 
 tirely to the prefent ftate of things •, and, there- 
 fore, do not at all affect, the argument, either one 
 way or the other. 
 
 Friend. This is fo plain, that nothing can be 
 more fo j but our Saviour's words (St. John ix, 4.) 
 deferve a particular confideration: — ' I mull: work 
 the works of him that fent me, while it is day : the 
 night cometh, when no man can work :' — which 
 is explained commonly of the night of death, when 
 no more works can he wrought. 
 
 Minijler. Our Lord was diligent in his labour ; 
 he conftantly went about doing good ; he was ne- 
 ver idle \ he was in hafte, till he had finiiried the 
 work which his father had given him to do. In 
 this he was — as in every thing elfe — a glorious 
 pattern and example for us ! And, O that we might 
 follow him ! — Now we may feed the hungry, give 
 drink to the thirfty, clothe the naked, be eyes to 
 the blind, feet to the lame ; may take in the Gran- 
 ger, relieve the diftrefled, vifit the fick, the father- 
 lefs, widows, and prifoners in their afflicYion ; may 
 bury the dead, — and conftantly perform works of 
 benevolence and mercy, while we remain in this 
 H 3 ftate 
 
174 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 ftate of our exiftence ; which if we here neglect, 
 we never can perform at all, and of confeqnence, 
 never obtain the rewards which are promifed to 
 the obedient : but as it is not the itate of rewards 
 and puniihments that we are now difcourfing about, 
 but a ilate beyond — even the Reftoration of all 
 things ; neither is the difpute about what men can 
 do after this life, but what God can do, or what 
 he has purpofed to do with and for them, in the 
 ages to come, after the dreadful fentence is paft ; 
 whether they fhall be left under the fame, ivhile 
 God exifls ; or whether they fhall ever be reftored ; 
 or whether they ihall be annihilated : this, you 
 know, is the ftate of the queftion : fome hold the 
 firfli and others the loft : but I am apt to think 
 both thefe opinions are extremes, and therefore 
 judge it fafeft to maintain the fecond, which I take 
 to be the medium here. 
 
 Friend, Indeed I am convinced, that no circum- 
 ftance preceding the general judgment, can affect 
 the argument -, becanie we are informed, that the 
 condemnation of the wicked fhall be at that day j 
 then God will render to them according to their 
 deeds, and will fay to them, Depart from me 9 &c. 
 — But the following texts of Scripture forma ftrong 
 objection to the univerfal Reftoration, which I 
 would wifh you well to confider. 
 
 € The expectation of the wicked fhall perifh ; 
 and the hypocrite's hope fhall perifh : Whofe 
 hope fhall be cut off, and whofe truft fhall be a 
 fpider's web. He fhall lean upon his houfe, but 
 it fhall not Hand ; he fhall hold it faft, but it fhall 
 not endure. The heaven fhall reveal his iniquity, 
 and the earth fhall rife up againft him. The eyes 
 of the wicked fhall fail, and they fhall not efcape; 
 
 and 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 175 
 
 and their hope mall be as the giving up of the ghoft. 
 His confidence, mall be rooted out of his taberna- 
 cle, and it fhall bring him to the king of terrors. 
 For what is the hope of the wicked, though he 
 hath gained, when God taketh away his foul ? 
 Will God hear his cry, when trouble cometh up- 
 on him ? He that being often reproved, hardeneth 
 his neck, fhall fuddenly be deffroyed, and that 
 without remedy. "When a wicked man dieth, his 
 expectation fhall perifh ; and the hope of unjuft 
 men penfheth. Becaufe I have called, and ye have 
 refufed ; I have flretched out my hand, and no man 
 regarded : But ye have fet at nought all my coun- 
 fel, and would none of my reproof: I alfo will 
 laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your 
 fear cometh ; When your fear cometh as defola- 
 tion, and your deftrudtion cometh as a whirlwind; 
 when diftrefs and anguifh. come upon you : Then 
 fhall they call upon me, but I will not anfwer ; 
 they fhall feek me early, but they fhall not find 
 me : For that they hated knowledge, and did not 
 choofe the fear of Jehovah. They would none 
 of my counfel : they defpifed all my reproof. 
 Therefore fhall they eat of the fruit of their own 
 way, and be filled with their own devices/ Prov. 
 x. 28. Job viii. 13, 14, 15, xx. 27. xi. 20. xviii. 
 14. xxvii. 8, 9. Prov. xxix. 1. xi. 7. i. 24 — 31. 
 Thefe, and abundance of other fimilar pafTages, 
 declare the future itate of the wicked to be defpe- 
 rate, without hope ; they and their hopes perifti 
 together, as the fpider's web ; they have no hopes 
 or profpect of being redeemed ; they can look for 
 nothing but judgment and fiery indignation, which 
 fhall devour them as flubble fully dry, and as thorns 
 cut up fhall they be burned in the fire. Solomon 
 H 4 fays, 
 
1 7'^ DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 Jays, * The expectation of the wicked is wrath/ 
 Prov. xi. 23. 'As he loved curling, fo (hall it 
 come unto him : as he delighted not in blefling, fo 
 fhall it be far from him. As he cioathed himfelf 
 with curfing, like as with his garment ; fo mall it 
 come into his bowels like water, and like oil into 
 his bones/ Pfal. cix. 17, 18, Indeed he can have 
 no hopes, when he confiders that he hath neglect- 
 ed fo great a falvation all his life ; that he hath fet 
 at nought God's counfeis, defpifed his reproofs : 
 that when his Creator called to him to turn, he 
 had no ears to hear his voice \ and therefore, when 
 forrow (hall overtake, though he may cry, he (hall 
 not be regarded of God ; and though he may leek, 
 he mall not find : the Mailer of the houfe having 
 rifen up, and (hut to the door, all knocking for 
 entrance is in vain, even though fuch were to plead- 
 for admittance in the moil earneft manner, laying, 
 1 Lord, Lord, open to us •,' he (hall anfwer, * I 
 know you not whence you are j' and though they 
 may reiterate, and expoftulate, faying, ' We have 
 eaten and drank in thy prefence, and thou haft 
 taught in our ftreets •,' he (hall not be moved, but 
 mall fay to them, c I tell yon, I know you not 
 whence you are •, depart from me, all ye workers 
 of iniquity. There (hall be weeping, and gnafhing 
 of teeth, when they fhall fee Abraham, and Iliac, 
 and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of 
 God, and they themielves thruft out.' St. Luke 
 xiii. 25, 26, 27, 28. See alfo, St. Matth. vii. 21, 
 22, 23, xxv. 11, 12. 
 
 Minijler. Thefe are awful warnings, indeed ; 
 and were they attended to as they ought to be, 
 would be fufficient, one would think, to deter men 
 from their evil ways : I am glad that you have 
 
 dated 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I 77 
 
 ftated them in this moft linking point of light ; 
 for though they form no real objection to my views 
 of God's dealing with men, as I underftand the 
 Scriptures, they are an infuperable bar to the 
 opinions of thole who deny a future ftate of retri- 
 bution, which I think impoiTible for them to an- 
 iwer fairly. I (hall, however, notice briefly, 
 fome things in this collection of Scriptures, in or- 
 der that my fentiments may appear in their true 
 light. 
 
 1. All the hopes of the wicked, ungodly, and 
 hypocrites, fhall perifh at their death. 
 
 Perhaps they hoped to have lived long, to 
 have enjoyed health, wealth, pkafure, and all 
 worldly good, for many years ; to have feen 
 their children for many generations, flourifhing 
 for a long time on earth ; but death deftroys thele 
 hopes. 
 
 The hypocrites might have hoped that they mould 
 have been accepted with God, on the account of 
 their birth, parentage, profeflion, rank among the 
 people of God, obiervation of the externals of re- 
 ligion, &c. &c. all of which vain hopes do certain- 
 ly perim at death. 
 
 The profane and wicked infidel, and practical 
 atbeilt, might have hoped, either to have ceafed 
 to exift , or to have found fome way of efcaping the 
 threatened punifhment ; but death deftroys thele 
 hopes alio. 
 
 2. Whatever may be the final intention of God 
 towards thefe miferable creatures, it is evident 
 they are (hut up in a ftate of keen tormenting def- 
 pair, or dreadful fuipenfe, and may be fully per- 
 fuaded that they (hall never be releafed,of which it 
 is likely thty may not have even the moft diftant 
 
 H 5 hope, 
 
I7& DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 hope, or the lead degree of knowledge — but, on 
 the contrary, be in fearful expectation of more 
 terrible punimment hereafter. 
 
 3. As they have lived and died in fin, their de- 
 duction, or mifery, is certain — and there is no 
 remedy, that can prevent their experiencing the 
 confequences of their crimes, andfuffering thejuft 
 punifhment which (hall be inflicted on them, ac- 
 cording to their different deferts. 
 
 4. They who live and die in rebellion againft 
 God, will be eternally deprived of the glories and 
 honours of the kingdom of Chrijl> which other- 
 wife they might have poiTefled ; will be excluded 
 from a (hare in the firft refurreclion, and will be 
 expofed to fuffer the torments of the fecond death ; 
 which all mult inevitably fuffer, who remain incor- 
 rigible till the great day of judgment. 
 
 5. As God hath called, and they have refufed, 
 it is but reafonable to fuppoie, that they, in their 
 turn, (hall cry in vain : yet neverthelefs, though 
 he may long delay, he may hear their cries, and 
 deliver them at lafh See Pfal. cvii. 13, 14, 15, 
 16. 
 
 David, in Pfalm xxxivth fays, * The face of Je- 
 hovah is againft them that do evil, to cut off the 
 remembi ance of them from the earth.' Our trans- 
 lators not underftanding, or not entertaining an 
 idea of the future Reftoration, add, * The righte- 
 ous cry, and Jehovah heareth, and delivereth 
 them out of all their troubles.' Whereas the Holy 
 Ghoft has put no fuch words as the righteous into 
 the text there \ but after faying, that the face of 
 Jehovah is againft them that do evil, to deftroy 
 them out of the world, and to make them forgot- 
 ten, and their names, to ceafeupon the earth, it adds 
 
 a 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 179 
 
 a word that fignifies crying, and then fays, c And 
 Jehovah heareth, and delivered! them out of all 
 their troubles :' See ver. 16, 17. This feems, in- 
 deed, like the docVine of the Bible, which elie- 
 where fays, fpeaking of the notoriouily wicked ; 
 « O my God, make them like a wheel : as the ftub- 
 bie before the wind. As the fire burneth the wood, 
 and as the flame fetteth the mountains on fiie ; fo 
 perfecute them with thy tempeft, and make them 
 afraid with thy ftorm. Fill their faces with fhame, 
 that they may feek thy name, O Jehovah. Let 
 them be confounded, and troubled for ever ; yea, 
 let them be put to fhame, and perifh. And they 
 fhall know (as the Hebrew word fignifies, and as 
 it is rendered in the old translation) * that thou, 
 whofe name alone is Jehovah, art the Molt High 
 
 over all the earth,' Pfal. lxxxiii. 1 3 — 18. Here 
 
 we fee, in a beautiful and clear manner, that one 
 grand defign of God in bringing judgments, and 
 even what is called utter deftrucYion, upon men, is 
 that they may know that he is Jehovah, the true 
 God : and there are but few intelligent Chriitians, 
 but mult, in fome meafure, be able to conceive 
 hopes concerning all thole to whom the knowledge 
 of God is promiied. 
 
 Though the threatenings in the prophecy of 
 Ezekiel, both againft the Jews and other nations, 
 are uncommonly levere ; yet they frequently clofe 
 with this gracious promife — * And they mail know 
 that I am Jehovah' — or fomething fimilar ; as 
 will evidently appear to thofe who will be at the 
 pains of examining the following paflages in that 
 book. 
 
 Ezekiel, vi. 7, 10, 13, 14. vii. 4, 9, 27. xi. ic, 
 12. xii. 15, 16, 20; x'm. 9, 14, 21, 23. xiv. 8. 
 
 xv. 
 
l80 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 xv. 7. xvi. 62. xx. 12, 20, 26, 38, 42, 44. 
 
 xxii. 16. xxiii. 49. xxiv. 24, 27. xxv. 5, 7, 
 
 11, 17. xxvi. 6. xxviii. 22, 23, 24, 26. xxix. 
 
 6, 9, 16, 21. xxx. 8, 19, 25, 26. xxxii. 15. 
 
 xxxiii. 29. xxxiv. 27. xxxv. 4, 9, 12, i<. 
 
 xxxvi. 11, 23, 38. xxxvii. 6, 13. xxxviii. 23. 
 
 xxxix. 6, 7, 22, 28. 
 
 Friend. But docs not punifhment harden and 
 inflame offenders, inftead of foftening and hum- 
 bling them ? As we read, Ifa. viii, 21. * They (hall 
 curfe their King and their God, and look upward :' 
 and, in Rev. xvi. 9, 10, 11. « And men were 
 icorched with great heat, and blafphemed the name 
 of God, which hath power over thefe plagues : 
 and they repented not to give him glory. And 
 they gnawed their tongues for pain, and blaf- 
 phemed the God of Heaven, becaufe of their 
 pains and their fores •, and repented not of their 
 deeds.' 
 
 Minlfler. Punifhment, to a certain degree, in- 
 flames and enrages, in a mod amafing manner; 
 but continued longer, and heavier, produces a con- 
 trary effect — foftens, humbles, and fubdues. When 
 Ephraim, of old, bemoaned himfelf, he laid thus : 
 — c Thou hait chaftifed me, and I was chaftifed, 
 as a bullock unaccuftomed to the yoke ; turn thou 
 me, and I fhall be turned ; for thou art Jehovah, 
 my God/ Jer. xxxi. 18. The metaphor here ufed, 
 expreffes, in a molt lively manner, the different 
 effects of the fame difcipline, in its beginning, 
 progrefs, and end. When a bullock firft has the 
 yoke laid on his neck, he frets, toffes, and rages 
 exceedingly, but, by a continuance of the dilci- 
 pline, he is fubdued, brought down, humbled, 
 and tamed, fo as to become the moft ufeful and 
 
 gentle 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. l3 f 
 
 gentle of animals. The fons of Zion are repre- 
 iented as lying • at the head of all the ftreets, as 
 a wild bull in a net ; full of the fury of Jehovah, 
 the rebuke of God,' Ilai. li. 20. A wild bull, in 
 a net, muff be a furious creature ; fo are men, 
 when tirft they are brought under the Divine cor- 
 rection. But God knows how to correct: men, in 
 fuch a manner as to bring them to fubmit to him, 
 in due time •, and though fome are fo funk in fin as 
 not to be reformed, by any means, in this life ; 
 yet that is no argument, that God is not able to 
 iubdue and bring down the proud and moft rebel- 
 lious, in another ftate, by means that may be ufed 
 effectually there, though they could not be ufed 
 here. God fays, by the prophet to Ifrael. * Be- 
 caufe I have purged thee, and thou waft not purg- 
 ed, thou (halt not be purged from thy filthinefs 
 any more till I have caufed my fury to reft upon 
 thee. So will I make my fury towards thee to reft, 
 and my jeaioufy mail depart from thee ; and I will 
 be quiet, and will be no more angry,' Ezek. xxiv. 
 13. xvi. 42. Some fins arefo daring and prefump- 
 tuous, as to provoke God to threaten, that they 
 fhall not be purged away in this life-, and, perhaps, 
 their malignancy may be fo great, that nothing that 
 can be ufed here, is able to iubdue them : Thus, 
 when God threatened his people, of old, with 
 deftruction, they turned his threatenings into ridi- 
 cule : inftead of weeping, mourning, baldnefs, and 
 girding with fackcloth, to which God called them ^ 
 there was nothing but < joy and gladnefs, flaying 
 oxen, and killing fheep, eating flefh, and drinking 
 wine : Let us eat and drink, for to-morrow we 
 d'e. And it was revealed in mine ears, by Jeho- 
 vah of Hofts, Surely, this iniquity fhall not be 
 
 purged 
 
l82 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 purged from you till ye die, faith Jehovah, God 
 of Ifrael/ Ifai. xxii. 12, 13, 14. 
 
 Thus, punifhments are defigned for the humb- 
 ling of the proud : but if they fail of anfwering 
 that purpofe, as adminiftered in the prefent ftate, 
 they will be continued and increafed in future pe- 
 riods, to fuch a degree, as fhall bring all down in 
 due time. Thofe pains which produced that rage 
 and blafphemy which you mentioned, were all 
 poured out on hardened finners in the prefent life ; 
 and were f© terrible and fevere as to produce 
 thofe fearful effects, but not fufficiently fo as to 
 produce the contrary. 
 
 That punifhment, to a certain degree, produces 
 rage, but to a certain degree beyond, produces 
 fubmiflion •, may be illuftrated by the follow- 
 ing fact, as well as many others, of the fame 
 nature. 
 
 In the former war between England and France, 
 
 there was one Mr. — , of Virginia, 
 
 who was waggon-malter-gencral in the army of 
 the Provincials. He was guilty of abufing his 
 power, by frequently (Inking the foldiers with his 
 waggon-whip. Complaint being made, a court- 
 martial was held, and he was fentenced to receive 
 five hundred lames ; which fentence was executed 
 upon him. When firft he began to feel the lafti, 
 he was exceedingly enraged, and curfed thofe who 
 had thus fentenced him -, fwearing, that if he lived 
 to be releafed, he would kill them all, if poflible ; 
 for that he valued not his life, in the lead, but 
 would revenge this difgrace, by killing them, 
 wherever he found themj and much more, to the 
 fame purpofe. But, before he had received half 
 his punifhment, he declared, that he had not the 
 
 leait 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION 18} 
 
 leaft difpofition to lift his hand againff, them ; he 
 faw clearly that they had acted right ; that he had 
 been entirely to blame ; and that his punifhment 
 was juft. After his correction was over, he was 
 led quietly away, entirely cured of all his rage ; 
 from which he was as much freed by his punifh- 
 ment, as ever an effect, was produced by a caufe. 
 He was healed of his wounds, and, I think, reftor- 
 ed to his poft. — Some time after the war was over, 
 he was palling one day over thofe mountains in 
 Virginia, commonly called The Blue Ridge ; and 
 there he met alone one of the men who had con- 
 demned him, in the court-martial, to fuch a pu- 
 nifhment. He put him in mind of it *, and told 
 him, that it was now in his power to retaliate up- 
 on him. The other acknowledged that he was in 
 
 his power ; but added, ' M , you know you 
 
 did wrong, and deferved the punifhment you re- 
 ceived •, and if you kill me, I declare, that we did 
 right in fentencing you to be whipped ; I mould do 
 the fame, were it to do again j and fo would you 
 
 have done, had you been in my place.' Mr. M 
 
 acknowledged the truth of it •, and was fo far from 
 fulfilling his threatenings, that he fuffered him to 
 go in peace, highly commending him for his con- 
 duct. Mr. M may be ftill living : he was a 
 
 general in the American army during the late war, 
 and acquired great honour, for his valour and 
 good conduct. 
 
 This I think is an argument ad hominem. I have 
 often oblerved inftances of the fame nature, in a 
 lefs degree ; and I think it mufl be admitted, that 
 although a certain degree of punifhment will en 
 flame, harden, and enrage ; yet, farther degrees 
 produce quite contrary efftcis. Nor is punifh- 
 ment 
 
I84 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 ment the only thing in nature that produces con- 
 trary effects, according to the quantity ufed ; al- 
 moft all things do the fame. Thus, water, with a 
 little fait in it, will caufe putrefaction, much foon- 
 er than perfectly frefh water ; but let it be fatura- 
 ted with fait, and it will preferve bodies that are 
 caft therein. A little fait calt on the earth is 
 good manure, and caufes fruitfulnefs ; but a great- 
 er quantity produces the contrary effect, by cauf- 
 ing barrennefs. A little wine refreshes, cheers, 
 invigorates ; but, taken to excels, ftupifies and in- 
 toxicates. And, to mention no more inftances, a 
 little {mattering of knowledge puffs up the mind \ 
 but a greater degree, humbles and brings it down : 
 From whence, 
 
 * Drink deep, or never tcjle the Jpring.' 
 
 Friend. But let me afk you : When you view the 
 miferable ftate of fallen men, the inveterate obiVi- 
 nacy of their wills, the total averfion that many 
 have to God and goodnefs, their confirmed habits 
 of evil, their amazing love of vice, their oppofi- 
 tion to every method taken to reclaim them, and 
 a thoufand other dreadful circurnftances, which 
 you mufl have obfen c ■■:! -, are you not ready to def- 
 pair of their recovery ? not for any want of good- 
 nefs in God, but through their total incapacity of 
 ever being made better. 
 
 Minijler. I muft confefs, this objection has great 
 weight ; and I have often been ready to give up 
 my own falvation, on account of the evils of my 
 own heart, which lometimes rife, and prevail in 
 fuch a manner, as almoft drives me to defpair : 
 and I can find no relief, but by flying to Jefus y as 
 
 my 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 185 
 
 my only refuge, and trufting in his promifes : And 
 the cafe is the fame with rcfpecl to the Refroration 
 of all men. My weak reafon tells me, that it can- 
 not be j that it is abioiateiv impofiibie, that luch 
 hardened rebels can be fo changed to eternity, as 
 to become willing and obedient iubjects : but when 
 faith prevails, it informs me, that the things 
 which are impofiible with men, are pofiibie with 
 God •, that nothing is too hard for Jehovah ; and 
 that he hath faid — ' Beheld, I am Jehovah, the 
 the God of all flefh : is there any thing too hard 
 for mer' Jer. xxxii. 27. And the example of A- 
 braham has often proved a great fupport to me 
 in this caie ; f who, againfr. hope, believed in hope, 
 that he might become the father of many nations ; 
 according to that which was ipoken> So fhall thy 
 feed be: and being not weak in faith, he consi- 
 dered not" the impediments, which* to the eye of 
 reafon, rendered the accomplifhment of the pro- 
 mifes improbable, if not im pofiibie. ( He dag- 
 gered not at the promife of God, through unbe- 
 lief; but was Itrong in faith, giving glory to 
 God : And being fully periuaJed that what he 
 had promifed, he was able alio to perform,' Rom. 
 iv. 18, 19, 2C, 21. 
 
 This is the only way I anfwer this objection to 
 my ownfatisfac~tion — God hath lworn, that to him 
 every knee fhall bow, every tongue mail fwear, 
 Ifai. xlv. 23. — That in the name of Jcfus y every 
 knee fhall bow, of things in heaven, things on 
 earth, and things under the earth: and that every 
 tongue fhall confefs, that Jefus Chrijl is Lord, to 
 the glory of God the. Father, Phil. ii. 10, n. That 
 it is the myftery ol his will, according to his good 
 
 pleafure 
 
l86 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 pleafure, which he hath purpofed in himfelf, in 
 the difpenfation of the fulnefs of the times, to ga- 
 ther together, or rehead, in one, all things in Chrijl; 
 both which are in heaven, and which are on earth ; 
 even in him, Ephef. i. 9, 10, — And having made 
 peace through the blood of his crofs, he is deter- 
 mined to reconcile all things unto himfelf •, whe- 
 ther things in heaven, or things on earth, Col. i. 
 20. — That he worketh all things after the coun- 
 fel of his own will, Ephef. i. n.-^That he will 
 have all men to be faved, or reftored, and to come 
 unto the knowledge of the truth, 1 Tim. ii. 6. — 
 That the Father loveth the Son, and hath given 
 all things into his hands, St. John iii. 35. — And 
 that Chrijl hath faid, « All that the Father giveth 
 me, fhall come unto me ; and him that cometh 
 unto me, I will in no wife caff out,' St. John vi. 
 37. — When I confider thefe, and many fueh like 
 promifes, which I find in the Scriptures ; and that 
 he that hath promifed, is able to perform •, hath 
 wifdom, power, and goodnefs, fufficient to ac- 
 complifh all his words, how difficult or impofiible 
 foever the matter may feem, to our carnal, vain, 
 and weak reafoning ; I caff the whole of my con- 
 cern upon him •, judging, that he is faithful who 
 hath promifed, and that, in his own time, he will 
 fulfil all his purpofes, and all his promifes. But 
 I confefs to you, that it requiies a faith, if poffi- 
 ble, more ftrong than that of Abraham, to believe 
 the doctrine of the Reftoration ftedfaftly, in the 
 midft of fo much evil as prevails in the world, and 
 which feems to render it impofiible : But my only 
 hope is in God. 
 
 But, to encourage us the more, there are not 
 only promifes of what God will do, but examples 
 
 of 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. tSj 
 
 of what he hath done, recorded in Scripture , as 
 the cafes of ManaJJeh, Nebuchadnezzar, Mary Mag- 
 dalen, Saul, and many of the murderers of our 
 Lord, priefts, and even Pharifees, are left on re- 
 cord, as patterns of God's long-fufFering, power, 
 mercy, and love. — And I would advife thofe Chri£- 
 tians that doubt of the univerfal Reconciliation of 
 all things, to remember St. Paul's words to the 
 Colo/Iians, on this fubjec*t, chap. i. 21. * And 
 you that were fome time alienated, and enemies 
 in your mind, by wicked works, yet now hath he 
 reconciled •,' as a proof and example of his power 
 to reconcile all things. Let all remember their 
 own ftubbornnefs ; and then, inftead of reviling 
 and deriding a truth which God has revealed, 
 they will adore him, of whom, through whom, 
 and to whom, are all things ; who ' doeth accord- 
 ing to his will in the army of heaven, and among 
 the inhabitants of the earth •, and none can ftay 
 his hand, or fay unto him, What doeft thou ?' 
 Rom. xi. 36. Dan. iv. 35. 
 
 Friend. But allowing that God has power to 
 change the hearts of the vileft of men, is not the 
 exercife of that power evidently limited ? for I find 
 it written in Rev. xxii. 11. — * He that is unjuft, 
 let him be unjuft ftill ; and he that is filthy, let 
 him be filthy ftill ; and he that is righteous, let 
 him be righteous ftill ; and he that is holy, let 
 him be holy ftill.' By thefe words it feems to 
 be intimated, that the characters of both the 
 wicked and the righteous, (hall at fome period be 
 fo confirmed and fixed, as to admit of no change 
 or alteration. 
 
 Minj/ter. This appears to be a confiderable dif- 
 ficulty, but can by no means overthrow the fyftem 
 
 of 
 
l88 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 of the Re Iteration, which feems eitablifhed upon 
 many gracious promiies. The words leem to re- 
 fer to a particular period, even when the Lord 
 fhall come, and mew that his coming will not, (as 
 fome fuppofe) change the characters of men •, but 
 that all (hall conrinue, for a certain time, in the 
 fame character as before. But, though ' he that 
 is unjuft, mall be unjuft frill; and he that is fil- 
 thy, mail be filthy ftili' — during the age of judg- 
 ment ; and fhall have the dreadful curie pronoun- 
 ced upon him ; for, c If any man love not the 
 Lord Jefus Chrift, let him be anathema, Maran- 
 atha : that is, Accurfed, the Lord cometh : I Cor. 
 xvi. 22. Yet I truft that I have proved, that 
 the vileft fhall be finally changed ; and confequent- 
 ly, that thefe words muft be underitood with 
 fome limitation. And thus though this text is 
 plainly contrary to the opinion of thofe who fup- 
 pofe that all the human race fhall be admitted in- 
 to the kingdom of heaven at the day of judgment, 
 yet it may be well reconciled to the fyltem laid 
 down in thefe Dialogues ♦, efpecially if it can be 
 proved that flmilar expreilions are ufed, where a 
 limitation is fuppofed, or neecliarily implied. 
 
 Friend. Yes *, if you can find fimilar exprcflions 
 ufed for limited times, it will be fatisfactory. 
 
 Mmijlcr. St. Paul lays, i Cor. xiv. 38. < But 
 if any man be ignorant, let him him be ignorant :' 
 But we can hardly fuppofe that he meant without 
 limitation. So we read of the Jews, that * God 
 hath given them the fpirit of flumber- eyes that 
 they fhould not fee, and ears that they fhould 
 
 not hear, unto this day.' And David faith ; 
 
 * Let their table be made a lhare, and a trap, and 
 a ftumbling-block, and a recompence unto them. 
 
 Let 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I89 
 
 Let their eyes be darkened that they mould not 
 fee, and bow down their back alway,' Rom. xi. 
 8, 9, 10. Thele expreffions of their remaining 
 in a blinded, hardened, and reprobate ftate, are 
 ftronger than thole — * He that is unjuft let him be 
 unjuft ftill, &c. for, inftead of Jlill, the word al- 
 <way is ufed ; and yet we are informed, that this 
 
 * blindnefs in part has (only) happened to Ifrael, 
 until the fulnefs of the Gentiles be come in : And 
 fo all Ifrael mail be faved.' And that * God hath 
 concluded them all (or, (hut them up together) in 
 unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all/ 
 even all whom he had (hut up, or concluded in 
 unbelief. And, as I obferved before, David lays ; 
 
 * Fill their faces with fhame, that they may feek 
 thy name, O Jehovah. Let them be confounded 
 and troubled for ever : yea, let them be put fhame, 
 and perim \ That they may know that thou whofe 
 name alone is Jehovah, art the Moft High over 
 all the earth/ Pfal. lxxxiii. 16, 17, 1 8. Many 
 other fimilar pafTages might be mentioned; but 
 thefe may fuffice, to fhew, that often where the 
 words Let It, or Let them be, in fuch-and-fuch a 
 ftate, they only intend a certain period, until ano- 
 ther difpeniation takes place. As for righteouf- 
 nefs, holinefs, and happinefs, they have quite a 
 different foundation from- fin and impurity, as I 
 have (he wn before ; and therefore, no arguments 
 ufed in favour of the total deftrufrion of evil, can, 
 in the leaft, prove, that goodnefs, which is the Di- 
 vine eiTence, (hall ceafe ; but the contrary : and 
 thofe who are firmly joined to the Lord, and have 
 continued with him through the ftate of temptation, 
 mall never ceafe to be righteous, nor be feparated 
 from their Head, from whom they fhall derive 
 
 eternal 
 
t^O BIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 eternal life : for Christ hath faid, € Becaufe I 
 live, ye fhalllive alfo.' St. John xiv. 19. 
 
 Christ, at his coming, will bring every hidden 
 thing to light, and fhall take off all difguifes ; Co 
 that he that is unjuft, fhall appear unjuft 5 and he 
 that is filthy, fhall be difcovered : hypocrify fhall 
 be no more. c The vile perfon fhall be no more 
 called liberal, nor the churl laid to be bountiful,' 
 Ifai xxxii. 5. c Then fhall ye return, and difcern 
 between the righteous and the wicked ; and be- 
 tween him that ferveth God, and him that ferv- 
 eth him not,' Mai. iii. 18. The judgment of God 
 is according to truth, and is defigned to make an 
 entire difcovery of all perfons, and all fecret 
 things, * that every mouth may be flopped, and 
 all the world may become guilty before God,' 
 Rom. iii. 19. But though judgment has its great 
 ufe in difcovering, laying open, convincing, 
 and condemning ; and punifhment, in deflroying, 
 fubduing, and humbling ; yet the powerful, fav- 
 ing grace of God, and the operation of the di- 
 vine Spirit, muff have the glory of reftoring, or 
 creating men anew \ and the blood of Jesus muft 
 cleanfe their fouls from the guilt and pollution of 
 fin. Evil muft be deftroyed out of them : this is 
 done by afflictions ; and goodnefs mull: be reftor- 
 ed ; this is done by God's renewing power and 
 grace. 
 
 But the objection may be anfwered another way, 
 without any of this reafoning, by confidering the 
 fubject comparatively. Thus : As God only is 
 holy ; as none are good but he, in an abfolute 
 fenfe ; as he putteth no trull: in his holy ones, and 
 the heavens are not clean in his fight, and his an- 
 gels he charged with folly; (See Job xv. 15. iv. 
 
 18.) 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I9I 
 
 18.) and as all intelligences, compared with him, 
 are unjuft and unclean ; fo, thofe who have lived 
 and died in rebellion againft God, and in the pol- 
 lution of fin, may remain unjuft and filthy, com- 
 pared with the faints, thofe vefTels of honour and 
 glory, who have purged themfelves. ' But in a 
 great houfe there are not only veflels of gold and 
 filver, but alfo of wood, and of earth ; and fome 
 to honour and fome to difhonour. If a man, 
 therefore, purge himfelf from thefe (fins), he mail 
 be a vefTel of honour, fanctified and meet for the 
 mafttr's ufe, and prepared unto every good work, 9 
 2 Tim. ii. 20, 21. Here we may obferve, that 
 in our Lord's great houfe there fhall be divers vef- 
 fels of various kinds, yet all ufeful, but fome more 
 highly fo than others ; that honour and difhonour 
 are comparative terms ; and that the way to be- 
 come vefTels of the higheft honour at laft, is to 
 purge ourfelves from iniquity while on earth, by 
 obeying the truth. For it inuft appear evident, 
 from the nature of things, that there will always 
 be an immenfe difference between thofe who fhall 
 be kings and priefts to God, and thofe who fhall 
 be fubdued in the ages to come, fo as to be fub- 
 iefts, but who fhall not attain to that honour and 
 glory, which they fhall have who fuffer with 
 Chrift here, and fhall be glorified with him here- 
 after. 
 
 Friend. Since I have converfed with you I mud 
 acknowledge that many things have appeared in 
 a different light from what they did before ; and 
 if I do not wholly embrace the doctrine of the 
 Reiteration, I mull allow that there is much more 
 to be faid for it than I could have imagined. But 
 I have (till fome difficulties that I wifh to propofe. 
 
 There 
 
TOS DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 There is a terrible threatening, which is indeed 
 the lait in the Bible, that I fhould be glad to hear 
 .your thoughts upon, which is thus exprefTed, 
 (Rev. xxii. 18, 19,) c For I teftify unto every 
 man, that heareth the words of the prophecy of 
 this book ; If any man. (hall add unto thefe things, 
 God (hall add unto him the plagues that are writ- 
 ten in this book : And if any man fTiall take away 
 .from the words of the book of this prophecy, God 
 fhall take away his part out of the book of life, 
 and out of the holy city, and from the things 
 .which are written in this book :' But I can almoft 
 forefee how you will aniwcr this ; that though the 
 plagues that are written in this book, {hall be add- 
 ed, yet mercy mall finally rejoice againlt judg- 
 ment j and though a man's part may be taken out 
 of the book of life, and he, in confequence, fuf- 
 fer the torments of the fecond death : yet, as the 
 time will come, when there nhall be no more death 
 of any kind, neither lbrrow, nor crying, nor any 
 more pain •, his Reitoration may be certainly in- 
 ferred ; and though his pait in the heavenly city 
 may be forfeited, fo that he may never become 
 one of thole who fhall reign therein, nor yet have 
 a conftant dwelling there ; he may, neverthelefs, 
 enter as a worfliipper, and a fubject of the great 
 King -, and may drink of the water of life ; feed 
 on the fruits of the tree of life, and be healed 
 by its leaves ; and be one of the happy inhabitants 
 of the new earth, which God will create. 
 
 Minifter. Yes, my friend : But though this 
 Scripture may be eafdy reconciled to the plan laid 
 down in thefe dialogues ; it contains fuch threat- 
 enings as are very terrible indeed •, and mould make 
 US exceeding careful not to contradict what God 
 
 1 hath 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I93 
 
 hath here revealed, by adding vain interpretati- 
 ons of our own, contrary to the fenfe of the text ; 
 nor in any wife to explain away, or weaken, the 
 force of either the threatenings or promifes, fet 
 forth in this wondrous book. The amazing tor- 
 ments which they mall feel that have thefe plagues 
 added to them, and the dreadful lofs which they 
 fhall fuftain that have their part taken out of the 
 book of life, and out of the holy city, cannot be 
 even conceived : And it being poffible to forfeit 
 this glorious portion entirely, and for ever, made 
 St. Paul warn the Hebrews in fuch a folemn man- 
 ner as he doth throughout the whole epiflle. — 
 Oh, what affecting advice is the following ! — 
 * Looking diligently, left any man fail of the grace 
 of God j left any root of bitternefs, fpringing up 
 trouble you, and thereby many be defiled : Left 
 there be any fornicator, or profane perfon, as 
 Efau •, who, for one morfel of meat, fold his 
 birthwright. For ye know, how that afterward, 
 when he would have inherited the bleffing, he 
 was rejected : for he found no place of repent- 
 ance, though he fought it carefully, with tears,' 
 Heb. xii. 15, 16, 17. 
 
 1 Poor Efau repented too /ate, 
 
 1 That once he his birthright defpis'd ; 
 
 < And fold for a morfel of meat, 
 
 ( What could not too highly be priz'd. 
 
 c How great ivas his angui/h, when told, 
 c The bleffing he fought to obtain 
 
 i 1 Fas gone, with the birthright he fold ; 
 * A 'fid none could recal it again ! 
 
 Thus 
 
'94 DIALOGUES GN THE 
 
 Thus, though Efau, as well as Jacob, was 
 hie/Ted concerning things to come ; (See Heb. xi. 
 20.) yet the birthright, and the particular bleiT- 
 ings connected therewith, he loft for ever : And 
 fo it is poflible that we may lofe our parts in the 
 holy city, or no fuch threatenings would ever have 
 been made. For it is a maxim with me — That 
 God never warns, where there is no danger to 
 fear ; arid never encourages us to hope, where 
 there is no poffibility of obtaining. 
 
 As the glorious and univerfal deliverance of all 
 men from the bondage of fin, and their obtaining 
 an inheritance in the new earth, was clearly point- 
 ed out by the great year of Jubilee, under the law ; 
 in which every fervant went out free, and every 
 man returned to his poiTeiTion, and to his family ; 
 (See Lev. xxv. ic.) So, the poffibility of being 
 cut off from the holy city, for ever, was pointed 
 
 out by that notable exception, ver. 29, 30. 
 
 ' And if a man fell a dwelling-houfe in a walled 
 city, then he may redeem it within a whole year af- 
 ter it is fold; within a full year, may he redeem it. 
 And if it be not redeemed within the fpace of a 
 full year, then the houfe that is in the walled city 
 mall be eftablifhed for ever to him that bought 
 it, throughout his generations : it mail not go out 
 in the Jubilee/ 
 
 Something fimilar to this may be found in Rev. 
 iii. 11. — ( Behold, I come quickly; hold that fail 
 which thou haft, that no man take thy crown :' 
 And the 5th verfe is alfo worthy of confideration 
 — < He that overcometh, the fame (hall be clothed 
 in white raiment; and I will not blot out his 
 name out of the book of life ; but I will confefs 
 his name before my Father, and before his an- 
 gels/ 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. I95 
 
 gels.' — O, what promifes are made to overcom- 
 ers ! That they mail eat of the tree of life, which 
 is in the midft of the Paradife of God ; mail have 
 a crown of life ; and mall not be hurt of the fe- 
 cond death ; mall eat of the hidden manna ; mail 
 have a white (tone, and a new name, which no 
 man knoweth, faving he that receiveth it ; mail 
 have power over the nations, &c. even as Chrift. 
 received of the Father : fliall walk with him in 
 white ; mall be efteemed worthy to be compani- 
 ons and friends of God; fliall be clothed in white ; 
 fhall have their names enrolled among the follow- 
 ers of the Lamb, as called, chofen, and faithful ; 
 mail be confefTed by the Son of God, before his 
 Father, and the holy angels ; mail be made pil- 
 lars in the temple of God, and mall go no more 
 out ; fliall have the name of God written upon 
 their foreheads, and the name of the holy city, 
 New Jerufalem, and Chrift 's new, heavenly name ; 
 fhall fit with him upon his throne, even as he o- 
 vercame, and is fet down with the Father, upon 
 his throne ; fhall inherit all things ; fliall be called 
 the fons of God : See Rev. ii. 7, 10, 11, 17, 26, 
 27. hi. 4, 5, 12, 21. xvii. 14. xxi. 7. 
 
 The apoflle afTures us, that * If (we are) chil- 
 dren, then (are we) heirs; heirs of God, and 
 joint heirs with Chrift ; if lb be that we fuffer 
 with him, that we may be alfo glorified together.' 
 And then adds — ' For I reckon that the fufTer- 
 ings of the prefent time, are not worthy to be 
 compared with the glory which fliall be revealed 
 in us,' Rom. viii. 17, 18. < When Chrift, who is 
 our life, fhall appear ; then mail ye (his faints) 
 alfo appear with him in glory,' Col. iii. 4, « We 
 know, that when he fhall appear, we fhall be like 
 I 2 him ; 
 
IC)6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 him ; for we mall fee him as he is,' I John iii. 2. 
 But let none of thofe who believe themfelves the 
 heirs of this kingdom, &c. dare to indulge them- 
 felves in fin, under a notion that God can never 
 caft them off; as fome do. 
 
 A Preacher whom I once knew, encouraged 
 this wickedly prefumptuous difpofition fo far, as, 
 openly, to lay : ' God cannot damn me : He can 
 as foon ceafe to be God, as he can caft me off: 
 even though I mould fin ever fo much. If I 
 mould kill a man, he could not damn me •, nay, 
 if I mould kill all the men in the world, he can- 
 not damn me.' — This man was rigid in trifles, re- 
 Jigioufly fcrupulous in frivolous things, fuch as 
 drefsy &c. yet he made traffick of the human kind, 
 engaged in war, and performed acts of cruelty 
 and outrage with as little tendernefs as may be 
 imagined ! He long bloated himfelf with the no- 
 tion of God's peculiar favour — but, near the clofe 
 of his life, the difpleafure of the Almighty com- 
 ing vifibly upon him, the rhapfodijl changed his 
 tone, and exclaimed, that God had forfaken him ! 
 
 I would advife all men, of that bold, prefuming, 
 felf-confident fpirit, to read and confider well 
 thofe words, in Jer. xxii. 24. ' As I live, faith 
 Jehovah, though Coiiiah, the foil of Jehoiakim 9 
 king of Judah, were the fignet upon my right 
 hand ; yet would I pluck thee thence.' 
 
 Confider, rirft, who fpeaks, Jehovah: He not 
 only fpeaks, but he confirms his threatening with 
 an oath •, and, becaufehe could lwear by no great- 
 er, he fware by himfelf, by his own life ; ' As I 
 live, faith Jehovah, though Coniah % the fon of Je- 
 boiakim, king of Judah ;' though he is of the fami- 
 ly of David, with whom I have made an everlaft- 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 1 97 
 
 ing covenant, ordered in all things, and fure ; 
 and though he is anointed king over my people ; I 
 will not fpare him : yea, though he < were the fig- 
 net upon my right hand ; yet would I pluck thee 
 thence.' Signets, upon the hands of ancient Perfi- 
 an monarchs, were thofe feals with which their 
 decrees were fealed and confirmed : fo that no 
 man could reverfe them. Now, God declares, that 
 if this man was ever fo dear, and as neceffary, to 
 him, as the fignet on the right hand of a king is 
 to its owner ; that though he was not able to go- 
 vern his kingdom without his affiftance ; though 
 he had been the deareft and moft ufeful thing : he 
 would entirely calf him off, for his tranfgreflions. 
 And how much more fo, if it be confidered, that 
 no man is neceffary to God ; that man cannot be 
 profitable to him *, that neither our wickednefs can 
 hurt him, nor our righteoufnefs benefit him : (See 
 Job xxii. 2, 3. xxxv. 6, 7, 8. Pfal. xvi. 2, 3.) 
 And that he threatens to punifh the only family 
 that he had known on earth, for all their iniqui- 
 ties ; Amos iii. 2. What have not thofe to fear, 
 who have been placed in high ftations, entrufted 
 with precious treafures, great abilities, opportuni- 
 ties, &c. and have abufed them ! Let fuch 
 
 read, and ferioufly confider, St. Luke xii. 42 — 
 48. St. Matth. xxiv. 45 — 51, 2 Pet, ii. 20, 21, 
 22. 
 
 Friend. Thefe confiderations are, on one hand, 
 glorious and fublime, beyond conception \ and, 
 on the other, terrible, beyond defcription. But 
 fome fty, That if they are only admitted into the 
 kingdom of God, and are not caff into the lake of 
 fire, it is the higheft of their ambition : that they 
 never afpire to be kings and priefls ; nor to obtain 
 I 3 a 
 
I98 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 a crown, throne, fceptre, &c. And others fay, 
 That if they are ever, to all eternity, to be deli- 
 vered from their mifery, that it is a matter of little 
 confequence to them whether they are followers 
 of Chrift here, or not. 
 
 Minijler. Thefe kind of reflections are frequent- 
 ly thrown out by the enemies of the Reftoration, 
 to caft an odium upon the doctrine : But if they 
 were to hear a man fay; 4 If I am juft fuffered 
 to enter into this kingdom, and am not condemn- 
 ed as a rebel, it is all I wifh •, I defire neither the 
 riches, honours, pleafures, convenieacies, nor even 
 the necefTaries, that many of the inhabitants en- 
 joy : all I afk is to be exempted from the pain and 
 fhame of public punifhment :' And another was to 
 add — * 1 can fee little or no difference between be- 
 ing made heir apparent to the crown, pofTeirmg all 
 the privileges, honours, dignities, &c. of a prince 
 of the blood •, and being hanged, drawn, and quar- 
 tered, for high treafon ; fince even that punifh- 
 ment, painful and fhamefui as it is, mull come 
 to an end :' I afk, Would they not effeem both 
 thefe men in a ftate of imanitv, or worfe ; entire- 
 ly devoid of all fenfe and reafon ? Yet, this unrea- 
 fonable language, is not worthy to be named in 
 the fame day with that whi h you mentioned. The 
 difference is lb great, I cannot find language to 
 exprefs it. I therefore confider all fuch pcrlbns 
 as madmen, with whom it is not worth while to 
 reafon ; who under ft and not what they lay, nor 
 whereof they affirm. 
 
 Friend. So they appear to me. But the fyftem 
 you have laid down, appears equally calculated to 
 check prefumption and defpair, and to cure all 
 fuch Spiritual madnefs ; provided that they will at- 
 tend 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 10? 
 
 tend to it. — But, what will you fay to the doc- 
 trine of annihilation ? that may not be liable to the 
 fame objections as cndlefs damnation ; and fo the 
 wicked may be punithed with ever lofting deftruclion> 
 and deftroyed, foul and body, in hell; and yet, at 
 laff, all beings that are in exigence may be made 
 happy. The Scripture feems, in many places, to 
 favour this idea; and the works of nature feem to 
 confirm it. For instance •, many fruits and animals 
 periih, before they arrive at perfection ; and why 
 may it not be lb with the fouls and bodies of men ? 
 they are no where laid to be railed to incorruption, 
 or immortality ; but to be deftroyed, to be call 
 into the lake of fire, to be burnt up, root and 
 branch : to be coniumed, devoured, burnt up as 
 chaff, thorns, &c. I need not mention particular 
 texts ; becaufe the general part of the threaten- 
 ings in the Scriptures run in that itiie. And I 
 have fometimes of late reafoned with myielf, that 
 thelecond death mult end either in the reftoration 
 or annihilation of thole who were call therein ; for 
 there leemed fomething in entUefs mifery, that lur- 
 pafled my belief, at times. But I could not iatis- 
 fy myfelf, whether the wicked would be finally 
 reftored to ibme degree of happinefs, or totally 
 deftroyed ; and was apt to think the latter, as it 
 feemed a ftrange figure of lpeech to call deftm&isn, 
 Reftoration. — Pray, have you ever thought upon 
 this matter ? 
 
 Minijler. There are but three poflible things 
 that can befal thofe who are caft into the fecond 
 death ; either endhfs mi/try, total annihilation, or 
 Reftoration i a fourth cannot be thought upon ; 
 and but one of thefe can be true. Now, where 
 there are only three polTibilities, of which only 
 I 4 one 
 
200 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 one can be true, and one mujl be true •, there are 
 thefe two ways of difcovering the truth : Firft, if 
 two of the proportions are proved to be abfurd, 
 the third muff fland : 2dly, if one be proved true, 
 the others mult fall to the ground of confe- 
 quence. I have taken the fecond method ; and 
 having mewed that the doctrine of the Reftoration 
 is not abfurd, and therefore that it is true ; confe- 
 tjuently, the others are falfe. — But, befides this 
 way of arguing, there are three circumftances 
 which prove to my latisfaction, that annihilation is 
 not a truth. 
 
 i. That at the very time that the wicked are de- 
 stroyed, they are fatd to be tormented with fire 
 and brimftone : and that they have no reft, day 
 nor night ; and the continuance of this is for 
 no fhort time, (as would probably be the cafe, 
 if the intention of God was only to deftroy them 
 out of being) but for the age of ages. Rev. xiv. 
 
 10. II. 
 
 2. They are put to fliame, and perifh, that they 
 may know the Lord -, as I have noticed before : 
 See Pfal. xxxiv. 16, 17. lxxxiii. 16, 17, 18. — and 
 the obfervations I have made upon thefe pafTages 
 in the dialogues. 
 
 3. But that on which I dare venture the whole 
 caufe, is, that God hath abfolutely promifed to re- 
 itore and bring again thofe whom he hath utterly 
 deftroyed. 
 
 Friend, Can you prove that ? For if you can, 
 it will fettle the whole controverfy. 
 
 Minijler. I trufl I can, in many inftances : But 
 I will fix upon one that is full to the purpofe, and 
 unexceptionable ; and that is, the cafe of Sodom, 
 and he* daughters, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim ; 
 
 who, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 201 
 
 who, « giving themfelves over to fornication, and 
 going after ftrange flefh, are fet forth for an ex- 
 ample, fuffering the vengeance of eternal fire/ 
 Jude 7. 
 
 As they are fet forth for an example in their pu- 
 nifhment, fo alfo in their reftoration ; For we may 
 certainly argue, that if any of the human race mail 
 be annihilated, the inhabitants of Sodom, Gomorrah, 
 &c. will be ; as they were condemned with an 
 overthrow, and made an example to thofe who 
 mould after live ungodly, 2 Pet. ii. 6. But thefc 
 wicked nations mall have their captivity returned ; 
 mall return to their former efkte ; and fhall be 
 received by Jerufalem, as daughters, in the ever- 
 lafting covenant : Jerufalem and her daughters, 
 more wicked themfelves, than Sodom and her daugh- 
 ters, mail be reftored at the fame time ; fhall re- 
 member their ways, and be afhamed •, mail never 
 open mouth any more to glory over the meaneft. of 
 mankind ; when the great Jehovah fhall be paci- 
 fied towards Jerufalem, for all that fhe has done, 
 and towards Sodom and Samaria, for all that they 
 have done alio, inafmuch as they fhall return 
 from their long captivity, and be given to Je- 
 rufalem for daughters ; See Ezek. xvi. 53, 55, 61, 
 63. 
 
 Now, by Sodom and her daughters being re- 
 turned from their long and dreadful captivity, we 
 mud underftand one of three things : either, firft, 
 the return of their defendants ; or, fecondly, the 
 reftoration of the land whereon the cities flood ; or, 
 laltly, the reftoration of thofe very perfons who 
 were deftroyed. 
 
 It cannot be the firft ; for there are none of their 
 
 defendants remaining on earth : all were deftroy- 
 
 I 5 ed 
 
202 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 ed by fire and brimftone : none of the inhabitant? 
 efcaped, Lot and his daughters excepted : who 
 were only fojourners, and were defcendants of Te- 
 rah, and relations to Abraham. 
 
 As it cannot be the firft, let us try the fecond. 
 A very ingenious gentleman fuppofes, that in the 
 time of the Millenium, the Dead Sea fhall be turn- 
 ed into land, and fhall again become a beautiful, 
 well-watered plain, and be given to the pofterity 
 of Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob : For he argues, 
 and feemingly very jufHy, that as God promifed 
 Abraham all the land which he could fee from the 
 place where he then flood ; (See Gen. xiii. 14, 15, 
 16, 17.) and as the plain of Sodom was in fight, 
 it was included in the grant : and, though the Dead 
 Sea now occupies the place where thofe cities 
 flood ; yet God's promife cannot fail : and, there- 
 fore, in the Millenium, the Dead Sea fhall be fwal- 
 lowed up, and the place mall become a fruitful 
 plain. But whoever will read Ezek. xlvii. 8, o t 
 10, 11. may plainly fee, that the waters that fhall 
 ifTue out from under the threfhold of the holy 
 houfe, mail be brought into the Dead Sea ; and 
 fhall ib heal thofe deadly waters, that they fhall be- 
 come fruitful, and bring forth fifh in great abund- 
 ance; exceeding many, like the great fea, which is 
 now called the Mediterranean ; which fifh fhall be 
 more ufeful for food, to the innumerable inhabit- 
 ants that fhall then be in that happy country, than 
 all the vegetables that would grow there, even 
 though the whole place was turned into a fruitful 
 garden. 
 
 Friend. But are you certain, that by the fea, is 
 meant the Dead Sea } or Lake of Sodom ? 
 
 A-Lnifler, 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 203 
 
 Minijlcr. Yes. 1. Becaufe all the other waters 
 in thofe parts, produce great plenty of excellent 
 fifti; and, therefore, need not healing. 2. Be- 
 caufe fifhers fhall ftand upon the banks of the fea, 
 from En-gedi even unto En-eglaim, places that arc 
 well known to be contiguous to the Dead Sea •, one 
 of which is nearly at the north-eaft corner, the 
 other at the weft end of the fame. 3. The marfhes, 
 and the miry places thereof, fhall not be healed ; 
 but mail be given to fait, as ipecimens of what 
 the whole is at this time ; which barren and dead- 
 ly fpots (hall remain, as {landing evidences of the 
 truth of Scripture, and the exact fulfilment of pro- 
 phecy. 
 
 Thus, as Sodom cannot be reftored in her pos- 
 terity, there being none remaining on earth ; nei- 
 ther (hall the Dead Sea be turned into land, in the 
 Millenium ; it follows, as the only remaining fenfe 
 of the return of Sodom 1 s captivity, that thofe ve- 
 ry inhabitants, who were deftroyed by fire and 
 brimftone from heaven, fhall be reftored to a ftate 
 of felicity : And thus, both the doctrine of anni- 
 hilation and endlefs damnation, fall to the ground at 
 once. 
 
 Friend. But as it is the fecond death, after the 
 day of judgment, that is to deftroy the bodies and 
 fouls of the wicked in hell ; perhaps, the inhabit- 
 ants of Sodomy Samaria, and Jernfalcm, may be re- 
 ftored before that period, and may not be caft into 
 the lake of fire 
 
 Minifter. It is evident by our Saviour's words, 
 (for we muft not contradict any part of the Scrip- 
 tures) that this will not be the cafe : for he faith, 
 That it fhall be more tolerable for the land (that is, 
 the inhabitants-) of Sodom, in the day of judgment,. 
 
 than 
 
204 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 than for the cities where his gofpel was preached, 
 and his miracles wrought, and yet the inhabitants 
 remained impenitent : See St. Matth. xi. 24. x. 15. 
 St. Mark, vi. 1 1 . St. Luke, x. 1 2. From all which 
 pafTages it is evident, that the inhabitants of Sodom 
 will be condemned in the day of judgment, and 
 punifhed in the lake of fire •, and though their mi- 
 fery will not be fo great as that of the inhabitants 
 of the cities where our Saviour preached, and per- 
 formed his mighty works ; yet they will be mifera- 
 ble in that day : and, confequently, the return of 
 their captivity is not to be expected, till after the 
 creation of the new earth. Therefore, it is plain, 
 that the lake of fire is not defigned to annihilate 
 thofe who are caft therein •, fmce all that are not 
 found written in the book of life, at the day of 
 judgment, will be caft into the lake of fire. They 
 whofe names are in the book of life, will be happy. 
 The inhabitants of Sodom will be miferable, in fome 
 degree ; therefore, will not be found written in 
 the book of life ; confequently, will be caft into 
 the lake of fire. They will be reftored ; their 
 captivity fhall be returned : therefore the lake of 
 fire (hall not annihilate them. They are let forth 
 for an example in their punifhment ; and confe- 
 quently, in their Reftoration. — I need not purfue 
 this argument farther : It appears evident to me ; 
 and, till it be fairly anfwered, I mail add nothing 
 more. 
 
 Friend. I lately read a fermon written by one 
 
 M r . £ f in which the writer brings many 
 
 ftrong reafons for the eternity of Hell torments, 
 moft of which have already been mentioned and 
 anfwered in thefe Dialogues •, but he makes nfe 
 of one which has not yet been brought under 
 
 our 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION* 20$ 
 
 our confide ration, which is, That the damned 
 are under the neceffity of conlbntly committing 
 frefh fin, and therefore as they will always con- 
 tinue to fin againft God, fo of neceflity their pu- 
 nifhment can never ceafe. Have you ever thought 
 of this ? 
 
 Minijler. Yes, I have frequently heard it men- 
 tioned , but as it appears totally void of all foun- 
 dation in the Scripture, it hardly deferves any no- 
 tice. The objections that I feel myfelf concerned 
 to treat with ferioufnefs and refpect, and candidly 
 to anfwer, are thofe which appear to be drawn 
 from the book of divine Revelation ; but if I muft 
 attend to all thofe which the ingenuity of men 
 might raife againft the doctrine of the Reftoration, 
 I fhould not only have a very hard tafk, but fhould 
 never know when I had done, and befides the dif. 
 courfe would dwindle into trifling and conjectures, 
 very unfuitable to the nature and importance of 
 fuch an awful ferious fubject. I mull obferve, 
 that this objection is nothing but a rafti unground- 
 ed affertion, or bold conjecture, without the leaft 
 foundation either in Scripture or reafon, and if I 
 was to affert juft the contrary, I cannot fee why 
 my affertion would not be a fufficient anfwer. Ne- 
 verthelefs, left it mould be thought that any ob- 
 jection can be railed, that cannot be fairly anfwer- 
 ed, and that I knowing the ftrength of this, would 
 willingly evade it, I will fay a few words upon it. 
 The Scriptures univerfally hold forth the idea, that 
 men will be judged, condemned, and punifhed ac- 
 cording to the deeds done in the body. God will 
 render to every man according to his deeds,' Rom. 
 ii. 6. ■ For we muft all appear before the judg- 
 ment feat of Chrift, that every one may receive 
 
 the 
 
206 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 the things done in his body, according to that h* 
 hath done, whether it be good or bad,' 2 Cor. v. 
 10. 
 
 c And that fervant which knew his Lord's will, 
 and prepared not himfelf, neither did according to 
 his will, fhall be beaten with many ftripes : but he 
 that knew not, and did commit things worthy of 
 ftripes, fhall be beaten with few {tripes/ St. Luke, 
 xii. 47, 48. Thefe, and all the paflages that fpeak 
 of future punifhment, conftantly hold it forth as 
 a juft retribution for the evil deeds done in this 
 life •, but never intimate any thing of what this ob- 
 jection-holds forth, of punifhment being continued 
 ad itifimtwn for crimes committed hereafter. Be- 
 fides, it is plain that punifhments or corrections 
 are intended to flop men from finning, and under 
 the divine agency to take away their fins. ' By 
 this therefore fhall the iniquity of Jacob be purg- 
 ed ; and this is all the fruit to take away his fin,' 
 Ifai. xxvii. 9. This is univeriaily allowed to be the 
 defign of troubles and forrows in the prefent life, 
 and why not in the next ftate alfo ? the Scripture 
 fays nothing to forbid this idea, but much to en- 
 courage it ; particularly that awful pafTage where 
 the prophet fays, * And it was revealed in mine 
 ears by Jehovah of Hofts, Surely this iniquity 
 fhall not be purged from you, till ye die, faith 
 the Lord God of hofts/ Ifai. xxii. 14. If then 
 iniquity (hall be purged away after death, it is 
 certain that men (hall not always continue to fin 
 in a future ftate, for they muft ceafe to commit ini- 
 quity, before it can be purged away. And though 
 their punifhments may at fir ft caufe them to rage, 
 (as we fee is frequently the cafe in this world) }et 
 fhall they continue until the moft flubborn fhall be 
 entirely fubdued and humbled. 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 207 
 
 Friend. There is another argument of this fame 
 kind, viz. that is not founded upon any particular 
 text of Scripture, which is directly contrary to 
 the one you have been anfwering, which I have 
 formerly thought unanfwerable in favour of the 
 doctrine of endlefs punifhment, which is the infi- 
 nity of fin, being againfr, an infinite object:, con- 
 taining infinite hatefulnefs, and juftly therefore 
 deferving infinite punifhment. Sin is a crime of 
 infinite magnitude, becaufe God is a Being of in- 
 finite majefty and perfection. Every crime juftly 
 demerits punifhment proportioned to its malignity! 
 and confequently every offence againfl God deme- 
 rits infinite punifhment. No mere creature can 
 ever fuffer an infinity of puniihment in any limited 
 duration. It follows therefore, that a finner de- 
 ferves to be eternally punifhed. Farther, every 
 man is under infinite obligations to devote him- 
 felf to the fervice of God, his infinitely glo- 
 rious Creator, Preferver and Benefactor. To 
 violate an infinite obligation, is to commit a 
 crime of infinite malignity. A crime of infinite 
 malignity, deferves infinite punifhment. Can it 
 ever be proved then that everlafting, or endlefs pu- 
 nijbment is not the proper defert of a life of fin ? 
 J have often faid, That this argument trite and 
 common as it is, never was, nor ever would be 
 fairly anfwered \ neverthelefs, I am willing to hear 
 what you have to fay upon it. 
 
 Minifter. As this argument is often urged, as of 
 the greateft. weight, and as you have ftated it in its 
 greateft poffibk force, I (hail endeavour to anfwer 
 it fairly, and particularly. 
 
 If fin is infinite, then we muft afcribe to it one 
 of the perfections of the Deity, which firikes me 
 as fomething abfurd, if not fomething worfe : fin, 
 
 a 
 
203 flljfcOGUES ON TKE 
 
 $i privation, an a# 0/* a worm, infinite ? Actions 
 muft, in my opinion take their denomination from 
 the actors, and not from the objects. Infinite 
 actions, or actions of infinite magnitude require 
 infinite power to perform them. If fin is of in- 
 finite magnitude, goodncfs is more fo, as deriving 
 a power from God to the performance of it. But 
 if you grant that David fpoke in the name of the 
 Mediator in Plalm xvi. you may be at once furnifh- 
 ed with a proof, that even goodnefs, in the high- 
 cft ftate in which it ever was exhibited in the 
 world, was not confidered as of infinite magni- 
 tude by the great performer. i Thou haft faid 
 unto Jehovah, Thou art my Lord : my goodnefs 
 extendeth not to thee. But to the faints that 
 are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is 
 all my delight,' Ver. 2, 3. If acts of goodnefs 
 were of infinite magnitude they muft extend to 
 God, but the fpeaker, in thefe words, be he 
 who he may, David or Chrift, was careful to 
 let us know that he did not conceive his acts of 
 goodnefs infinite. And if acts of goodnefs are 
 not infinite, it would be highly abi'urd to call 
 evil actions infinite, which proceed wholly from 
 the creature. 
 
 I grant indeed that there is a paffage of Scrip- 
 ture which mentions the word infinite 'as belonging 
 to fin and iniquity, but then it is mentioned in 
 fuch a connection as (hews it to be ufed as Jofe- 
 phus frequently mentions it, for a very great mul- 
 titude. And thus it is ufed by many good authors, 
 who certainly do not mean to ufe it in the firfi: and 
 proper fenfeof the word. The Sacred Writer, in 
 the paffage alluded to, takes particular care to 
 guard us againit. any fuch idea, as though fin was 
 
 of 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 20$ 
 
 t>f infinite magnitude, or even virtuous and righte- 
 ous actions, which approach far nearer to infini- 
 ty, as having their fource from the fountain of in- 
 finite goodnefs. For Eliphaz fays, c Can a man 
 be profitable unto God, as he that is wife may be 
 profitable unto himfelf ? Is it any pleafure to the 
 Almighty, that thou art righteous ? or is it gain 
 to him that thou makeft thy ways perfect ? Will 
 he reprove thee for fear of thee ? Will he enter 
 with thee into judgment ? Is not thy wickednefs 
 great ? and thine iniquities infinite ?' Job xxii. 
 2 — 5. And language very fimilar to the above is 
 ufed by Elihn, ' If thou finned, what doeft thou 
 againfl him ? or if thy tranfgreffions be multiplied, 
 what doft thou unto him ? If thou be righteous, 
 what giveft thou him ? or what receiveth he of thine 
 hand ? Thy wickednefs may hurt a man as thou 
 art, and thy righteoufnefs may profit the fon of 
 man/ job xxxv. 6, 7, 8. 
 
 Thefe expreflions, if they teach any thing, I 
 mould think exprefsly declare, that no actions of 
 men can by any means be of infinite magnitude, in 
 the fenfe in which we commonly underftand that 
 word ; though their numbers and magnitudes may 
 be Co great as to be {tiled infinite, as the word is 
 fometimcs ufed. 
 
 You afTerr, in confequence of your ideas of in- 
 finite fin, that every offence againfl God demerits 
 infinite punifnment. If the cafe be fo, does it not 
 tend entirely to take away the diftincYion which 
 God hath made between fins of infirmity and fins 
 of malice, fins of ignorance and fins of wilfulnefs, 
 lefier and greater fins ? All fins are offences againfl 
 God, and if every offence againfl God is of infinite 
 magnitude^ how can any be greater ? and thus the 
 
 difliudlions 
 

 210 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 diftincHons are entirely deftroyed, and, all fins will 
 be efteemed equal, contrary to the whole tenor of 
 the Scriptures. 
 
 If every offence againft God demerits infinite 
 punifhment, then it will follow, that God cannot 
 render to any according to their ways, nor punifh 
 them as their iniquities delerve, unlefs they are 
 doomed to endlefs mifery ; what then will become 
 of all thofe threatenings where God threatens to 
 punifh people for all their iniquities, and yet to 
 fhew favour to them afterwards ? This is impofii- 
 ble upon your plan, for none can ever receive all 
 the punifhment due to their fins during numberlefs 
 ages. Yet if the word of God be true, he can 
 deal with tranfgreflbrs as they have done, and yet 
 be gracious to them afterwards. * For thus faith 
 Adonai Jehovah, I will even deal with thee as 
 thou haft, done, which haft defpifed the oath in 
 breaking the covenant. Neverthelefs, I will re- 
 member my covenant with thee in the days of thy 
 youth, and I will eftablifh unto thee an everlafting 
 covenant. — That thou mayeft remember and be 
 confounded, and never open thy mouth anymore 
 becaufe of thy (name, when I am pacified towards 
 thee for all that thou haft done, faith Adonai Je- 
 hovah,' Ezek. xvi. 59, 60, 63. 
 
 Here is an inftance to the purpofe, of thofe 
 whofe fins were of the deepeft die, and to whom 
 God threatens to deal as they had done, and to 
 punifhthem for all their numerous and aggravated 
 tranfgreiTions, and yet to remember mercy for them 
 afterwards, and to be pacified towards them for 
 all that they had done. All which things would 
 beabfolutely impoilible, according to your ideas. 
 Ifl many other parts of Scripture God promifes to 
 
 render 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 2fl 
 
 render to tranfgreflbrs according to their works 
 and ways, and yet to be afterwards gracious unto 
 them. And in one place, at lead, where God is 
 declaring the great mercies which he will manifeft 
 unto the children of Ifrael, in returning them to 
 their own land, and caufing them to dwell fafely 
 therein, he fays, c And firft, I will recompenfe 
 their iniquity, and their fm double : becaufe they 
 have defiled my land, they have filled mine inherit- 
 ance with the carcafes of their deteftable and abo- 
 minable things,' Jer. xvi. 18. What do you think. 
 of this ? If every offence is of infinite magnitude, 
 and deferves infinite punifhment, which can never 
 be fully executed, then how can God punim a 
 people for all their iniquities, and do to the greater! 
 finners as they have done, yea, and recommence 
 their iniquity, and their fin double firft, and then 
 be gracious to them, and love them, and be paci- 
 fied towards them afterwards ? And the prophet 
 Ifaiah lays, * Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, 
 faith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jeru- 
 falem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accom- 
 plifhed, that her iniquity is pardoned ; for (lie 
 hath received of the Lord's hind double for all 
 her sins,' Ilai. xl. i, 2. Here a fact is faid to be 
 accomplished, which upon your fcheme can ne- 
 ver be done to all eternity \ for if every offence 
 againft God is of infinite magnitude, and de- 
 ferves infinite punifhinent, none can ever have re- 
 ceived Jingle for one of thdrjins, far lefs double 
 for ALL. 
 
 And therefore nothing can poiTibly be more 
 evidently contrary to Scripture than your trite and 
 common argument, that as, every fin is of infi- 
 nite magnitude, fo it juflly demerits infinite pu- 
 
 nilhment, 
 
212 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 cifhment, "which as no mere creature can bear, 
 muft neceffarily fubject all who are recompensed 
 according to their own doings to endlefs mifery. 
 
 Befides, If I was to grant you, contrary to 
 Scripture, reafon, and common fenfe, that every 
 offence is of infinite magnitude, and naturally 
 deferves infinite punifhment : How would you 
 prove from that the certainty of endlefs mifery P 
 Do you make nothing of the reconciliation which 
 our Lord Jefus has made for all finners, and for 
 all fins? 
 
 Let me afk you ferionily, Did not Chrift make 
 a full and complete offering and propitiation for 
 the fins of the whole world ? Is it not certain that 
 his merits were far greater than the demerits of 
 all mankind ? Is he not the Lamb of God, who 
 taketh away the fin of the world ? If Chrift died 
 for all men, without exception, as you grant, and 
 removed all their iniquities, and bore them away, 
 and reconciled all to God by his death while they 
 were enemies : much more as he has paid fo great 
 a price for their ranlbm, he will recover them out 
 of their loft eftate, and fave them by his life. 
 < Where fin abounded, grace did (or fnall) much 
 more abound. That as fin hath reigned unto death, 
 even fo might grace reign through righteoufnefs 
 unto eternal life, by Jefus Chrift our Lord,' Rom, 
 v, 20, 21. 
 
 I conclude, that let fin be ever fo great, the 
 grace of God is greater : and if you will have it 
 that fin is of infinite magnitude^ I hope you will 
 not deny the propitiation of Jefus Chrift, which 
 he made for all fins, the fame character. There- 
 fore if you magnify fin, and infift upon the great- 
 $efs of its demerit, I will endeavour to magnify 
 
 the 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 213 
 
 the all powerful Redeemer above it, and fpeak of 
 his power to redeem all the human race, for whom 
 he fried his blood. And then you will gain no- 
 thing in favour of the doctrine of endlefs damna- 
 tion, by all your arguments founded upon the 
 infinity of fin : Chrifl being far more infinite to 
 fove, than fin can be to deftroy : and as he has 
 undertaken to redeem and bring back thofe who 
 were loft, there is no danger of his failing to per- 
 form it. 
 
 Friend, I mull confefs that what you have faid 
 on this head entirely convinces me, that we can- 
 not found the eternity of punifhment, upon the 
 infinity of fin ; and you have given me more fa- 
 tisfaction upon many points in thcfe converfations 
 than I ever expected to receive. I am indeed at 
 length almoft perfuaded to receive your fentiments, 
 though I once thought that it was impofiible to 
 anfwer all my objections, yet you have gone far 
 towards it. Nay, I cannot at prefent recollect 
 any thing material, but what you have anfwered. 
 I would not however be too hafty in adopting this 
 fyftem, but after your example confider it well. 
 But there is certainly fomething more grand, beau- 
 tiful, and harmonious in this view than can be 
 found in any other Icheme ; for both the other 
 fy Items end in darknefs and black night, one in 
 endltfs damnation, and the other in gloomy annihila- 
 tion. But on your plan light rifes out of obfcurity, 
 and a glorious day fucceeds the darkefr. fcenes. 
 This view of things fets the Book of divine Reve- 
 lation in the moil: pleafing light, and appears, 
 for aught any thing that I can fee, confident 
 with the Divine perfections. But why, fince you 
 believe the univerfalRefloration, do you not men- 
 tion 
 
2l4 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 tion it more freely and fully, in your public dif- 
 courfes ? 
 
 Minijler. On the other hand, fome afk me, Why 
 do you ever mention it at all in your fermons ; 
 fince it is not effential to falvation to believe it ? 
 To them I give thefe anfwers. 
 
 i. St. Paul declared to Timothy, that this uni- 
 verfal Gofpel of God's being the Saviour, or Re- 
 florer, of all men, but efpecially of thole that be- 
 lieve, was a faithful faying, and worthy of all ac- 
 •eptation \ and that they laboured and luffered re- 
 proach, becaufe they trufted in God, as theuniver- 
 fal Saviour. But he was fo far from being afham- 
 ed of this belief, that he faid to Timothy, * Thefe 
 things command and teach,' i Tim. iv. 9, 10, 11. 
 And fo am I determined to do, at proper opportu- 
 nities ; notwithftanding the reproach and contempt 
 awaiting me tor fo doing. 
 
 2. Though it is frequently faid to be a matter 
 of little or no confequence, if true • yet, if it be 
 any part of the record God hath given of his Son, 
 (as I think I have proved) we are in danger of 
 making him a liar, if we believe it not : See 1 John 
 v. 9, 10, 11. 
 
 3. Though you may be Chriflians, and not be- 
 lieve it ; yet I cannot \ though once I could alio : 
 But now the evidences of its truth appear lb plain 
 to my mind, that it would be criminal in me not 
 to believe it ; and fince I do believe it, would it 
 not be highly difhoneft in me to deny it ? I have 
 never done fo yet, wheu afked ; and God forbid, 
 that I fhould be afhamed to publifh, what he has 
 commanded to be made known. 
 
 4. I have commonly acted merely on the defen- 
 five, and I never fhould, that I know of, have 
 
 preached 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 21 £ 
 
 preached it in public, or but rarely, far lefs have 
 written upon the fubject, had it not been repre- 
 fented'as a dangerous and deftructive herefy ; and 
 people been cautioned againft hearing me, on that 
 account. 
 
 5. I have been frequently defired to preach 
 upon the fubjecl, expreisly ; and could not well 
 refufe, without betraying a cowardly difpofition. 
 
 6. I afk, Who is the belt man ; he who preaches 
 the truth contrary to his judgment, for intereft, or 
 to gain applaufe j or he that fairly fpeaks as he 
 thinks, without difguife •, although he knows that 
 it will difpleafe his bed friends on earth ; even up- 
 on the fuppofition that he errs, in many points ? 
 If there be an heretic in the world, it is the man, 
 who, for the love of money or applaufe, or through 
 the fear of man, preaches that to others which he 
 himfelf doth not believe. « He that is fuch, is fub- 
 verted, and finneth j being condemned of himfelf/ 
 Tit. iii. 11. 
 
 7. If we are to hold forth nothing to mankind, 
 but what all are agreed in, we mull difcourie upon 
 very few iubjects : for I do not recollect fo much 
 as one, but what people either difagree about the 
 thing itfelf, or the manner of explaining and hold- 
 ing it : No ! not even the being and perfections of 
 God : nor any point of doctrinal, experimental, or 
 even practical religion. 
 
 8. We are to endeavour to teach mankind what 
 they know not, as well as to confirm them in what 
 they are already taught ; fhould keep back nothing 
 that may be profitable to them ; fhould give meat 
 to flrong men, as well as milk to babes , and fhould 
 not fhun to declare the whole counfel of God. We 
 ought to juftiry the ways of God to men, to fhew 
 
2l6 DIALOGUES ON THE 
 
 the neceffity and harmony of Divine Revelation, 
 and take pains to convert ' infidels ; all which 
 things are more promoted by this view than any 
 Other. 
 
 As to your queftion, why* I do not dwell more 
 upon it ? I anfwer : 
 
 i. There are a thoufand other fubjec*ts in the Bi- 
 ble, befides this -, and all deferve confideration, ac- 
 cording to their weight and importance. 
 
 2. I have an utter averfion to going always in 
 the fame round of matter or manner •, and, therefore 
 I frequently vary in both. 
 
 3. There are many other fubjecT:s of more pre- 
 fent importance than the belief of this ; fuch as, re- 
 pentance, faith, hope, love, obedience, &c. and 
 therefore ought to be more frequently inMed on, 
 in proportion to their prefent ufe. 
 
 4. There are many fcenes of providence and 
 grace to take place in the univerfe, before the ge- 
 neral Reftoration ; fuch as the Millenium, the call- 
 ing of the Jews, the univerfal fpread of the gof- 
 pel through the earth, &c. Thefe things are much 
 nearer, and therefore the Scripture fpeaks more 
 of them •, and what God moft fpeaks of, in his 
 word, we fhould difcourfe of moft to the people. 
 
 5. This doctrine, though it may have its ufein 
 converting men •, and certainly enables thofe who 
 believe it, to fet forth the terrors of the Lord, and 
 his mercies, in a more finking manner than other- 
 wife they could ; yet it is chiefly uieful in com- 
 forting the people of God, and, in part, relieving 
 them from that bitter anguifh which their tender 
 minds feel, from the confideration of the vaft num- 
 bers that perifli *, and, therefore, may not be fo 
 
 prope 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 217 
 
 proper for a popular audience as many other fub- 
 jects. 
 
 6. The plan of this grand Reftoration is fo 
 vaft, includes fo many different and feemingly 
 contradictory difpenfations, that it cannot be fairly 
 ftated, and fully defended, in one fermon, and 
 efpecially the objections anfwered \ and many per- 
 fons are not capable of taking in and digefling at 
 once, fo many fubjects as are necefTary to the un- 
 derftanding of this matter, and have not patience 
 to attend to a long feries of demonfirations, argu- 
 ments, and proofs •, and, therefore, this doctrine 
 mould not be introduced by any man, in any place, 
 unlefs he has opportunity to give it a fair invelti- 
 gation ; and, therefore, I never mention it at all, 
 at my firft preaching in any place ; nor unlefs I 
 have fufficient opportunities to difcufs it. 
 
 7. Chriftfcys to his difciples — ( I have yet many 
 things to fay unto you ; but ye cannot bear them 
 now,' St. John xvi. 1 2. And St. Paul fays — ' And 
 I, brethren, conld not fpeak unto you as unto fpi- 
 ritual, but as unto carnal; even as unto babes in 
 Chrijl : I have fed you with milk, and not with 
 meat -, for hitherto ye were not able to bear it ; 
 neither yet now are ye able/ 1 Cor. iii. 1, 2. 
 * Strong meat belongeth to them that are of full 
 age •, even thofe who, by reafon of ufe, have their 
 fenfes exercifed, to difcern both good and evil,' 
 Heb. v. 14. Therefore, as the Saviour and his 
 apoftles adapted their fubjects and difcourfes to the 
 circumflances of their hearers, and treated them 
 in a gentle manner ; fo (hould we. Prudence, pa- 
 tience, and care, mould always be ufed in di£- 
 couriing on a doctrine fo deep and awful as this ; 
 
 K and, 
 
2lS DIALOGUE? ON' THE 
 
 and, efpecially, as it hath been fo littk known of 
 late ages. 
 
 H. I would wim to eftabiiiTi well the firff prin- 
 ciples of Chriftianity, before I meddle with any 
 thing elfe : and as to the doctrine of the Reftora- 
 tion, I would rather that it (hould feem to be na- 
 turally inferred from truths already known, than 
 delivered as an independent fyftem : I, therefore, 
 feldcm or ever make it a leading point in my dii- 
 Courfes; but fometimes lead to it, as a natural 
 confequence of what has been faid. After all, I 
 would chufe that men mould difcover it themfelves, 
 by carefully reading the Scriptures, without pre- 
 judice, believing them to be ltrictly true : by liv- 
 ing in love towards God and man *, by walking in 
 humility, often reflecting on their former eftate ; 
 znd confrantly viewing the fufflciency of Ckri/I, and 
 the boundlefs love of their great Creator : rather 
 than to learn it of any man, far lefs ftill, of fuch 
 an unworthy worm as I am. 
 
 9. As far as I know my own heart, truth, in 
 love, is my conftant aim. I am unconnected with 
 any party ; and am not fo prejudiced in favour of 
 any thing that I hold, but that I would willingly 
 be convinced in any thing, by proper evidence 5 
 and when fo convinced, I am ready to retract pub- 
 Iicldy : As, therefore, I do not feel myfelf perfon- 
 ally intertfted to fupport the fyftem, right or 
 wrong ', I have, therefore, dwelt much lefs upon 
 it, than moft preachers do upon their particular 
 fentiments. 
 
 ic. When I firft embraced thefe views, I was 
 obliged to give fome account of my reafons ; and 
 I chofe rather to do it by writing than preaching : 
 Accordingly, I publifhed my fentiments, and an- 
 swers 
 
UNIVERSAL RESTORATION. 2I£ 
 
 fwers to many objections ; which publications be- 
 ing in the hands of thofe to whom I preached, 
 made it kfs neceflary for me to difcourfe upon 
 thofe matters in public, or even in private, as I 
 could refer to what I had written : and with the 
 lame view, I am inclined to publifh thefe familiar 
 difcourfes, which we have had together ; after 
 which it will be lefs neceflary than ever for me to 
 preach the Reftoration publicly ; yet, I will not 
 wholly avoid it, at convenient times, and in pro- 
 per circumflances. 
 
 ii. Laftly, as I know fo much of the nature 
 of man, as to be fenfible that he turns, with di£- 
 guft and loathing, from what is perpetually cram- 
 med down his throat; but relifhes that which he 
 falls upon, as it were accidentally, and comes into 
 by little and little : I have always made it a rule 
 never to introduce it, in public or private, unlefs 
 where it was earneftly defired, nor ever to continue 
 it long together; and, above all, never to queilion 
 people upon the fubjeft, after difcourfing upon it : 
 afking them, faying, Do you believe it ? &c. Nor 
 would I ever wifh to prefs them with the argu- 
 ments at once, and oblige them immediately to 
 yield ; as this kind of conduct, fo far from anfwer- 
 ing any good purpofes, commonly lets them again!! 
 what is thus intruded upon them. It is the beft 
 way to give time and leifure to perfons, whom 
 you would wifh to convince ; and let them exer- 
 cife their own faculties. 
 
 Friend. I mull confefs that what you have ad- 
 vanced is highly fatisfactory to me, and I truft 
 will be fo to many others, who may read thefe 
 converfations, which I hope to have the pleafure 
 of feeing in print before long ; and in the mean 
 
 time, 
 
220 Dialogues on the 
 
 time, I wifh for a bleiTing to attend your labours, 
 and that you may be an inftrument of much good 
 to mankind in your day and generation-, and that 
 you may obtain a crown of life from the Lord the 
 righteous Judge, in the day of his appearing. 
 
 Minifter. I thank you moft kindly for your be- 
 nevolent wiflies, I heartily wifh the fame blefling 
 may come to yourfelf. And if I have been an in- 
 ftrument of giving you any fatisfaclion, let all the 
 glory be to God, but let me have an intereft in 
 your prayers. 
 
 FIN/ 61 
 
'•*$*#-