^^mmm^m. /A ?• ^/j I V .C..HOl_^^_^^ BOOKSELLER 79MADfS0NST. h^M e^ IS^"^ ,^-t>^ ^\*^t%\n^^\t^l ^ ^%: PRINCETON, N. J. %. ?« • Presented by~V^^^5\<^<2/^^ V^Wo 'O, BX 9941 .TA29 1862 Thayer, Thomas Baldwin, 181^ -1886. Theology of universalism Digitized by tine Internet Arciiive in 2009 witii funding from Princeton Tiieologicai Seminary Library http://www.arcliive.org/details/tlieologyofuniverOOtliay Ctji^ijljjgu rf Mitikrsa&m : BEING AN EXPOSITION OF ITS DOCTRmES AND TEACHINGS, IN THEIB LOGICAL AND MORAL RELATIONS; INCLUDING SI Crttfcistn of tfjc VLtxtn, CITED IN PROOF OF THE TRINITr, VICARIOUS ATONEMENT, NATURAL DEPRAVITY, A GENERAL JUDGMENT AND ENDLESS PUNISHMENT. / V BY THOMAS BALDWIN THAYER. BOSTON: TOIVERSALIST PUBLISHING HOUSE, No. 37 COENHILL. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by In tbe Clerk's Office of the District Court of MassachuBettk PREFACE The title page and table of contents sufficiently indicate the general character and object of this work. It is only necessary to mention two or three special features. First : It embodies in one volume the views of the denomina- tion on all the leading doctrines of Christian Theology, and an exposition of the more important words and phrases supposed to conflict with these views. It thus furnishes a comprehensive answer, within reach of all, to the question — What is Universal- ism ? And it is to be hoped that the answer to it is in such form as to meet the wants of all classes of readers, and to command respectful attention from the Theologian and the Scholar. Second : It aims to show that Universalism is not a confused collection of doctrinal fragments, without continuity or relation of parts ; but a system of divinity, a tree of life rooted in the character and perfections of Deity, and growing up naturally in- to trunk and branches, putting forth leaves, and buds, and blos- soms, and finally producing the ripe fruit of a Christian life. And as the Divine character and perfections constitute the foundation of the entire argument, and the basis of all theological reasoning, a correspondingly large space has been devoted to this theme. Third : There will be found introduced into the text and notes, liberal quotations from Fathers of the early Church ; the object being to call attention to the fact, so little recognized, that the IV PREFACE. doctrines of the Church immediately subBequent to the time of Christ and his apostles, are largely identical with the Universal- ism of to-day — and that, therefore, it is not a new thing, but certainly as old as the Christian Church and the New Testament. Fourth : Citations are also occasionally given from the popular authors of the day, and from teachers of all Christian commun- ions ; wherein they have expressed their rejection of the doctrine of endless punishment, or their faith in the final restoration This is done for the purpose of showing that this faith alone feeds the great hunger of the human heart; or, as Olshausen says, that '• the feeling is deeply rooted in noble minds, and is the expres- sion of a heartfelt desire for a perfect harmony of the creation." The testimonies reveal the fact that belief in this final harmony of the moral universe, or a tendency to belief, is the natural fruit* age of large and liberal study, of a generous literary and scientific culture. It is only justice to the author to add, that it is not pretended that the volume is a thorough treatise on the various subjects discussed ; but an attempt only to indicate the way, and to show their natural and dogmatic relations. And though it is not all that was wished or sought, he sends it forth with a prayer for the divine approval and blessing ; and with an bumble hope that it may be useful in promoting among men the knowledge, and love, and practice of the truth. Boston, Nov, J 1862. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Paqb iNTEODUCTOfiY U CHAPTER T.— God and His Attributes. 15 Section L— God the Creator — Existence of Evil : i. Physical Evils; II. Evils of Ignorance ; iii. Moral Evil 16 Sect. H.— The Wisdom of God — The Plan of Creation 32 Sect. III.— The Power of God — Omnipotence : i. Moral and Spiritual, as well as Physical; ii. Freedom of the Human Willj or " Free Agency" o... 41 Sect. IV.-^The Goodness of God — Infinite and Unchangeable . . 58 Sect. V.— The Justice of God: i. What is Justice, and what does it demand ? ii. Justice has claims on God as well as on man 70 Sect. VI.— God the Father of all men 89 CHAPTER II. — Christ — His Nature, Office, Death and Atonement. Section I. — His exalted character and pre-existence— The Trinity, evidences for and against it 103 Sect. H. — The Atonement, what it is, and how we are recon- ciled and saved by the Death of Christ 123 Sect. HI. — The death of Christ not vicarious -^Argument from the Epistle to the Hebrews : i. Christ a sacrifice for sin; ii. Our Passover; in. Our Ransom; iv. Redeems us from the cursp of the Law ; v. Bears our griefs, ia wounded for our trangressions 136 VI TABLE OF CONTENTS. CHAPTER III.— Man — The Rectitude of nis NATtRE— Original Sin — Natural Depravity. Section I.— The teaching of the Bible and the Early Church re- specting man's moral ability 1 46 Sect. II.— Special proofs of the Rectitude of Human Nature.. 154 Sect. III. — Criticism of texts cited in proof of Natural Depravity — '* The -wicked estranged from the womb" — " Shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin" — •' Every imagination of the heart evil continual- ly"—" Children of wrath by nature' '— ' * The nat- ural man" — " The carnal mind" 161 CHAPTER IV. — The Scriptural Doctrine of Regene* RATION, or the NeW BiRTH CONVERSION — Water Baptism. 167 Section I.— Born again — Born of God — Born of the Spirit 168 Sect. II. — Regeneration — New Creature — New Man — Giving a New Heart — Creating in Christ Jesus — Quicken- ing from the Dead — § Water Baptism 179 CHAPTER v.— Salvation, what it is — The New Testa- ment Doctrine. 188 Section I.— Direct Scriptural Testimony respecting the nature of Salvation 191 Sect. II. — Figures and jMctaphors illustrating the nature of Salvation: i. We are refined as Silver; ii. We are Cleansed and Washed ; in. We are healed as of a Disease ; i v. Christ our Teacher ; v. We are found as the lost — All not saved in this life — Ancient Universalism on this point 107 CHAPTER VI. — The Doctrine of The Resurrection. Section I. — The Resurrection a Moral an Spiritual, as well as a Bodily change 207 Sect. II.—" Every man in his own order." 220 Sect. EII.—" Then cometh the end." 226 Sect. IV. — Death— Resurrection— Salvation— Their relation to each other 233 TABLE OF CONTEXTS. vii CHAPTER yil. — TuE Scriptural Doctrine of Judgment Definitions. 245 Section L— God judging the -world under the Old Dispensation 246 Sect. U.— Judgment of the world by Christ under the New Dis- pensation: I. Time and place of Judgment — When the Judgment day began; ii. The Judgment spiritual, by the Avord of truth, and not literal or in person; iii. Tile end of the Judgment Day, and the results of the Judgment — OjDinions of Ancient Universalists f 201 Sect. HI— The Judgment after Death, Heb. ix. 27 266 I CHAPTER VIII.— The Doctrine of Rewards and Punish- ments: Section I.— The Rewards of Righteousness 273 Sect. II.— The Punishments of Sin— The Law and its Penalties: I. The design of the Law ; ii. The design of the Penalty 286 Sect. III.~The Remedial Nature of Punishment — Testimony of the Scriptures— The teaching of Ancient Univer- salism o 291 Sect. IV. — The present a state of Retribution, and not of Pro- bation: I. The argument of facts and experience ; II. Argument from the Bible 302 CHAPTER IX. — Repentance and Forgiveness in rela- tion TO Punishment and Saltation. 313 CHAPTER X. — The Scriptural Doctrine of Damnation. Section I. — Definition and usage of the original words 321 Sect. H. — "Resurrection of Damnation" — "Awaking to shame and everlasting contempt' ' 329 CHAPTER XI. — Meaning and Usage of the words translated " everlasting," " eternal," "forever," &C. Section I.— Classic usage and Lexicography —Aristotle's famous Definition of Aion 337 Sect. II.-~ Jewish-Greek usage— Philo, Josephus 346 Sect. HI.— Usage of Church Fathers 348 Sect. IV,— Scriptural usage — Everlasting, as applied to the Life of the Ptighteous and the Punishment of the Wicked. Matt. xxv. 46 351 VIU TABLE OF CONTENTS. CHAPTER XII. — The Scriptural Doctrine concerning Hell. Section I. — S/icoZ, or the Hell of the Old Testament— "The ■wicked shall be turned into hell." — Endless pun- ishment not taught in the Law of Moses — Con- fessions of Theologians and Biblical Scholars 362 Sect. H. — Hades, of the New Testament — Its meaning and usage — " The Rich Man and Lazarus." 371 Sect. IU.— Gehenna — Origin and usage of the word — Was it used as a symbol of future punishment in the time of Christ? — I. The Septuagint; ii. The Apocry- pha; III. Pliilo and Josephus: iv. The Targums. " Destruction of soul and body in Hell." 384 Sect. TV. — Tarfarus— Meaning and usage — " The angels cast down to hell" — The Book of Enoch quoted by Peter and Jude— The story of the angels 399 CHAPTER XIII. — The origin and usage of Metaphors AND Figures of Speech, with special re- ference TO their use in the Bible. Section I. — Origin and use of Metaphors 406 Sect. II.— Scriptural Metaphors relating to the Deity — All lan- guage more or less figui'ative 409 Sect. III. — Metaphors derived from local customs, occupations and opinions 415 Sect, IV. — Metaphors and Figures derived from natural objects and phenomena 423 INTRODUCTORY All religious are founded upon a belief in a Deity, of some kind, superior in nature, or in power, to man. The moral force and value of any religion, in its influ- ence on the believer, is in proportion to the degree of perfection which it ascribes to the Deity. Aristotle has somewhere said, in substance, that excellency in man depends on his acquaintance with something hio-h- er and better than himself; and the whole course of religious history illustrates the truth of the observa- tion. Where the religion is really believed, and exercises its legitimate influence on the believer, the moral and social results correspond to the character of the theol- ogy. " If the divinities, " says a judicious writer, " are represented as virtuous and noble, a correspond- ing excellence and greatness of soul, will be produced among the people, and this in proportion to their reverence for the objects of their adoration. But wherever the gods are imperfect or base, imperfection % or baseness will belong to the worshippers." No other result can be looked for where the faith of the people is a living force in them, and acts directly on their feelings, character, and conduct. Hence it has been justly affirmed, that " religion will not be- 12 INTRODUCTORY. come the friend of virtue and happiness, until it teach- es that the Deity is not only an inconceivably power- ful, but also an inconceivably wise and good being ; that for this reason, he gives way neither to anger nor revenge, and never punishes capriciously ; that we owe to his favor alone, all the good'that we possess or enjoy ; that even our sufferings contribute to our hio-hest good, and death is a bitter, but salutary change ; in fine, that the sacrifice most acceptable to God, consists in a mind that seeks for truth, and a heart that ahvays preserves its purity. A religion which announces these exalted truths, offers to man, the strongest preservatives from vice, and the strongest motives to virtue, exalts and enobles his joys, consoles and guides him in all kinds of misfortune, and inspires him with forbearance, patience, and active benevolence towards his brethren." l This is a noble utterance ; and the religion thus de- scribed, is precisely the want of the world at the pre- sent time. Everywhere the soul of man is reaching out toward a Deity, in whom is embodied this perfec- tion of wisdom and goodness, of justice and mercy. In the language of Channing, it is the deepest want of human nature, " some being to whom we may give our hearts, whom we may love more than ourselves, for whom we may live, and be ready to die ; and whose character corresponds to that idea of perfection, which, however dim and undefined, is an essential element of every human soul. We cannot be happy beyond our love To secure a growing ^Sec an excellent article, conceived in a liberal spirit, on the " Char- acter and Theology of the early Romans," in the Biblical Repository for April, 1843. INTRODUCTORY. 13 happiness and a spotless virtue, we need for tlie heart a being worthy of the whole treasure of its love, to whom we may consecrate our whole existence ; in ap- proaching whonij we enter an atmosphere of purity and briglitness,in sympathizing with whom, Ave cherish only noble sentiments, in devoting ourselves to whom, we espouse great and enduring interests ; in whose character we find the spring of an ever-enlarging philanthrophy, and by attachment to whom all our other attachments are hallowed, protected, and sup- plied with tender and sublime consolations under bereavement and blighted hope. Such a being is God."^ This is essentially the theology ofUniversalism, the character and action which, following the sacred Scriptures, it ascribes to God as the Supreme Govern- or of the universe, and the Creator and Father of men. In him are united all possible perfections ; and by the necessity of his nature, he is infinite in all his attributes, and unchangeable — the same yester- day, to-day, and forever. He is the source of all our blessings, the inexhaustible fountain of good to man in this world, and in all worlds, in time, and in eternity. This doctrine of the complete harmony and perfec- tion of all the divine attributes, of the infinite benevo- lence of God in the creation and government of the world, inspires the true believer with reverent trust, with devout gratitude, and with an earnest desire to conform to all the requirements of his righteous laws. It imparts courage in the presence of danger, resist- ance in the time of temptation, patience in tribula- ^Works, vol. i. p. 204. 14 INTRODUCTORY. tion, resignation in suffering, and peace in the hour of death. The experience of these beneficent in- fluences, and the hapj^y consciousness of this s]3iritual renewal, justify the Universalist Christian in claim- ing for his faith, that it has all the characteristics of a divinely authenticated religion ; that it is, in a word, identical with the Gospel as taught by the Saviour and his chosen disciples. In order to the better understanding of this doctrine, and in evidence of the justness of this claim, we shall proceed to a statement of particulars, setting forth our views on the great questions of Christian theol- ogy ; and the system, or method, of Scriptural inter- pretation, by which these views are sustained and enforced. And as the starting point, the foundation of all argument, we shall begin with the Creator and his attributes, or the divine character and action as they relate to man and his destiny ; and though we shall chiefly direct our labors to a dogmatic or doc- trinal statement of the subjects in hand, yet the care- ful reader will readily discover how the doctrine naturally and necessarily leads on to the precept ; and in what manner faith is developed into moral character, and becomes the spiritual force which reg- ulates and blesses the life of the believer. CHAPTER I. GOD HIS ATTRIBUTES, AND THEIIl RELATION TO HUMAN DESTINY. The very idea of existence implies certain powers and qualities. Spiritual existence involves spiritual and moral qualities or attributes. God is a Spirit ; and his moral attributes, his spiritual perfections, constitute his character, and determine his action. If he is infinitely good, if the essence of his being is Love, all his actions vnll partake of this quality. If he is supreme in power, he will act without restraint or hindrance. If he is all-wise, or omniscient, he cannot err in judgment, or make any mistake in his plans, or fail in his purposes through want of know- ledge or foresight, as to the results of anything he might do. If he is infinitely just, all his dealings with his creatures will be marked by perfect equity ; and he will require nothing but what is right and possible, and will lay no evil or penalty on man but what is consistent with eternal rectitude. If he is above all perturbations, all weakness and passion, above the disturbing influences of evil and sin ; then he will never act from anger or revenge, never will do anything to, or with, his creatures, save from the dictates of infinite and unchano-eable benevolence. These general statements necessarily involve the conclusion of triumphant universal good, as the result 16 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEKSALISM. of the creation and government of tlic world by God. The very act of creation is virtually a pledge of this ; and all his attributes unite in the accomplishment of this great purpose of Infinite Beneficence. A more particular review of the relations of God as Creator, and as a Father, and of the divine perfec- tions, with specific reference to the act of giving ex- istence to man, will illustrate and establish this posi- tion. SECTION I. GOD THE CREATOR — EXISTENCE OF EVIL. It would be to little purpose to inquire whether God could not have created this world without evil or imperfection of any sort ; whether he could not have made man in such a way, physically and m^orally, as to have secured him against the possibility of sin. The fact that he has not done this meets us on the threshold of our inquiry ; and it is with this fact that we have to deal, aided by the light of reason and the authoritative revelations of the Bible. For aught we know, God may have created some- where in infinite space a world without evil, peopled by a race of beings morally perfect. But even if this were so, it would remain to be proved that this world, and man as we find him here, imperfect and subject to evil, do not constitute a link in the endless chain of being, without which it would be incomplete, with- out which even heaven itself would lose a measure of its harmony and fulness. The philosoj^hical poet has spoken well on this interesting point : '* Of systems possible, if 'tis confcst Tliat V)'isdom Infinite must form the best. €:OI>--nrS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 17 Where all must full or not coherent be, A.nd all that rise, must rise in due degree, Then in the scale of reasoning life, 'tis plain. There must be somewhere such a rank as man." And then, in answer to the question so often started, *' Why could not man have been created perfect, with- out liability to sin ? why was he not placed higher in the scale of being — why not made an angel ? " lie proceeds as follow^s : ** Presumptuous man, wouldst thou the reason find Why made so weak, so little, and so blind? First, if thou canst, the harder reason guess, Why made no weaker, blinder and no less — Ask of thy mother earth whj^ oaks are made Taller and stronger than the weeds they shade* On superior powers "Were we to press, inferior might on ours; Or in the full creation leave a void, Where one step broken, the great scale's destroyed^ From natui-e's chain whatever link you strike. Tenth, or ten-thousandth, breaks the chain alike." Admitting, therefore^ what, perhaps, no one is pre- pared to deny, that God can create a relatively per- fect world, or a world not liable to evil, and people it with a race of perfect beings not liable to sin : this world may, nevertheless, hold as important and ne- cessary a place in creation as that. Nay, it may be that without just such a world as this, inhabited by | just such beings as men, the whole machinery of the universe, as at present arranged, would be imperfect in its structure and working. Manifestly this earth, v/ith its myriad immortal intelligences, is not formed without a purpose. Without these, the space which they fill in the circle of organic and spiritual existence Vv^ould be blank ; and there would be one link want- ing in the golden chain of being which stretches, on 18 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. either side of us, to the infinite above, and the infinite below. The fact that man was made relatively imperfect, that is, imperfect in the sense of liability to sin, is proved bj the fact that he is a sinner. He was not created a sinner, for sin is the result of voluntary ac- tion. He was aot created depraved, but pure and in- nocent. He yielded to temptation, and so fell away from his primal innocence into transgression. The author of JEcclesiastes states the case very correctly and tersely, when he says, " Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright ; but they have sought out many inventions." viii. 29. That this constitution of m_an and its consequences entered into the original plan of the Creator, and is not an after accident, or an unlooked for result, is dis- tinctly stated by the apostle Paul in his epistle to the Romans: *' The creature was made subject to van- ity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath sub- jected the same in hope ; because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corrup- tion into the glorious liberty of the children of God." viii. 20, 21. See the whole chapter. Now here we are certified in the most unqualified terms, that the creature man, or the human race, was made subject to vanity or imperfection, for wise and beneficent reasons ; and with express reference to the fact that, when the purposes of this subjection to evil are fully accomplished, then man is to be delivered from the bondage of corruption and death into the glorious liberty of the children of God. Whatever may be thought of this position of Paul, there can be no difference of opinion as to what he meant, or what GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC, 19 he intended to say. It is clear enough tliat lie be- lieved and taught that we were subjected to this im- perfect condition by the Creator himself. It was de- signed in the beginning for a special purpose ; and has not, since then, come to pass contrary to his ex- pectations. Bishop Bloomfield renders the passage in this form : " For the world (i. e, God's creatures) was made subject to imperfection, corruption and misery (not by any will of its own, but by Him who thus subjected it), yet with a hope (on their part) that this very creation (i. e. these his creatures) will be delivered from the bondage of corruption, & 3. Cor- ruption may perhaps be meant to be taken both in a moral and physical sense, to denote both liability to sin, and to disease and death." Of course, then, " vanity" must be taken to mean the same things, for the words are plainly synonymous, and refer to the same condition ; the creature being delivered from the same thing to which it was subjected ; in the one case called " vanity," and in the other " corrup- tion."' It is plain, then, that God, as the Creator of man- kind, when he determined upon the nature of their physical and moral condition on earth, determined ^Maratdrrjf, vanity, occurs in only two other passages of the New Testament. Eph. iv. 17, " in the vanity of their mind;" where tho moral element is manifestly involved, as vei-ses 19 and 22 plainly show —*• lasciviousness and all uncleanness with greediness:;" and 2 Peter ii. 18, Avhere the same statement applies, as the next words show — " lusts of the flesh and wantonness." 0u/ja, corruption, is found not only in I Cor, XV,, but also in such passages as these : " having escaped the corruption that is in the world," "servants of corruption," 2 Peter i. & ii., illustrating its use in a moral as well as in a physical sense, Whitby and others argue elaborately' for the corruption of death as the offlly meaning of** vanity." 20 THEOLOGY OP UNIVERSALIS^. that it should be Puch as involved the liability to physical and moral evil ; and, consequently, as the apostle says, he " made man subject to vanity," or imperfection. He " subjected " him to this condition, with a clear foresight and intention respecting all the trials and sorrows,^ the spiritual conflicts and tempta- tions, the failures and conquests, as well as the decay and destruction by death of the mortal body, which this constitution of things would nati^t^ily bring in its train. But, of course, all this was with a view to the greater good tha.t is to come of it, Thiv condition was not ordained for its own sake, as a perm*ine»t thing ; but as a means to a beneficent and glorioui^ end, as a school wherein we are to be taav'ht ami trained for a higher sphere of life and action, both iik the present and in the future. Dr. Jonathan Ed- wards, who was regarded as the highest authority in theological metaphysics, says, with great good sense, in his famous work on the Will : — " I believe there is no person of good understanding, who will venturr to say he is certain that it is impossible it should be best, taking in the whole compass and extent of ex- istence, and all consequences in the endless series o^ events, that there should be such a thing as moraft evil in the world. And if so, it will certainly follow,, that an infinitely wise Being, who always choose* what is best, must choose that there be such a thing.'* Again, he says : — " It is not of a bad tendency fo? the Supreme Being thus to order and permit thai moral evil to be which it is best should come to pass ; for that it is of good tendency is the very thing ^ supposed in the point in question, .... and good 16 the actual issue in the final result of things.'^ GOD — HIS ATIRIBUTES, ETC. 21 TurnbiiU, in his " Principles of Moral Philosophy," " which Euwards quotes approvingly, states that " God intends and pursues the univer sal good of his creation ; and the evil which happens is not permit- ted for its own sake, but because it is requisite to the greater good pursued." ' And if we give a little attention to the details of the question, it will not be very difficult to discover how the conflict with the imperfections and evils of A iVnd with these agree the following Unitarian testimonies : — " The origin oi oxLx liahiliiy to sin, we can explain only by referring it to the will of our Maker." Again:—" We hold that God is master of evil, not merely iihysical but moral — master of his creation, and able to overrule all evil for moral good, so that at last, when his work is consummated, the good shall be triumphant and complete.'" I think it would bo difficult to show that the above premises of Ed- wards and TurnbuU do not involve the conclusion which it is the pur- pose of this volume to establish. If ** good is the actual issue in the final result of things," of moral evil or sin, in one case, why not in all cases ? The principle is the same; and it surely is as easy for God to realize a great result as a little one. And if, in the permission of evil, " Gad intends and pursues the universal good of his creation," there seems an end of the argument ; for if he intends and pursues it, he will certainly accomplish it, and the good of the whole can only be accom- plished in the good of each particular part. Bishop Wareurton, who coultl not believe in endless punishment, says, very truly: — " Though the system of the best supposes that the evils themselves will be fully compensated by the good they produce to the whole, yet this is so far from supiwsing that particulars shall suffer for a general good, that it u essential to this system, to conclude that at the completion of things, ^^y^ when the whole is arrived to the state of utmost perfection, particular and uuiversal good shall coincide." And commenting on Rev. xx. 1-1, " death and hell cast into the lake of fire," he says: — *' The sense of the whole seems to be this, that at the consummation of things (the eubject here treated of), aZ/ physical and moral evil shall be abol- ished." For the quotations, see Edwards on the Will, Part iv. , Sec, ix. , or Works, vol. ii., p. 254, Edit. 1829. Turxbull's Philosophy, vol. ii., pp. 42, 35, 37. Christian Examiner, numbers for Nov., 1853, and March, 1861. Warbukton's Works, vols, xi., 26--30; v. 407, t2 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM, our lot serves to dcvelope the faculties of body and mind, to strengthen and build up the character ; how, in fact, all evil finally takes on some shape of good, and thus vindicates the divine wisdom in subjecting man to '^ vanity." To begin with the lowest form of the subject : — I. I^/iy steal Evils. — We may safely say that our usefulness and happiness are largely dependant on the development of aJl our powers and gifts, physi- cal, mental, and spiritual. For accomplishing this, there must, of course, be occasion for that action of which this development is the legitimate result. But J if there were no evil connected with our present condition and estate, how could this be ? Where the occasion for activity or exertion, if man were free from evil, and already as perfect as he is capable of being ? And if you leave him one step this side of perfection, you involve him in the necessary evil of imperfection. But if perfect in all respects, what moving cause would there be for action ? He has no wants to gratify ; no enjoyment to obtain ; no incon- venience to be rid of;, no work to perform ; no end to seek or gain^ no occasion, whatever, for the slightest exertion of body or mind. The propelling power w^ould be gone to a great degree,, and life would become as a still and stagnant pool, covered over with its green and slimy coating, unbroken by the winds of heaven, or the dip of a passing wing. Take one example only. If there were no hunger ; if man had been so constituted as never to want food, then there vfould have been no room for the activitj", both of mind and body, which is now devoted to pro- curing this. The noble science of agriculture^ whicli ^OD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 2S is SO rapidly unfolding the powers of the earth and the elements, and bringing us so constantly into the presence of infinite wisdom and benevolence, would have no beino;. The constant hum of business and enterprise heard all over the earth, and the wonderful and complicated movements connected with the sup- ply of this one universal want, would cease at once. The far-stretching fields of grain, rich and ripe, wav- ing in the wind, and adding such beauty to the land- scape, and giving such joy to the heart of the behold- er — the mill, with the noise of its grinding, and the wild merriment of its whirling wheels and rushing waters — the pleasant garden-spot, with its various vegetable productions, and the satisfaction of cultivat- ing and watching over it — the groves of delicious fruit, planted by the hand of man in every clime — - the proud ship, that bears its freight of blessings from shore to shore — the canal, the rail-road, the steam- ship, the magnetic telegraph, — all these would be struck out of existence ; and the thousands who are engaged in these manifold employments, and find a life and joy in the activity they afford, would fall back into a dead silence and listlessness, and all would be- come a complete and thorough blank in the place of that quick life and cheerful industry, which are born of this want or evil, and those kindred to it, IL Intel, ectual Evils^ or the Euils of Ignorance. — That ignorance of the government and works of God, ignorance of the truths of science, of the laws of or- ganized life, and of the physical universe, is the source of much evil, of accident and suffering, no one can, or is disposed to, deny. But suppose there were no ig- 24: THEOLOGY OF UXI\ ERSALIS3I. norance in regard to these things ; suppose God had, when he created man, thoroughly instraeted him in all the sciences ; and imparted to him, by direct mira- cle or revelation, a complete knowledge of all the laws of the i^hysicai world. It is true, you might in this way, get quit of all the suffering, of all the evil con- sequent upon ignorance ; but would you not also an- nihilate all the mental action and effort consequent upon it? If the Creator had given to man in the beginning, by inspiration or revelation, a knowledge of all the sublime and beautiful truths of astronomy, chemistry, geology, physiology, political science, natural philoso- phy, and all other departments of human knowledge — then all the labor of mind, the splendid intellectual triumphs by which these truths have been unfolded, and which have thrilled all souls that have witnessed their success, with admiration and joy — all this ac- tivity and consequent happiness had never been. And we had not known, as now, how glorious a creature the human mind is ; how manifold its powers and re- sources ; how heroically it will struggle against diffi- culties, till it rise up into the heavens, victorious over all, and reverently, yet without trembling, stand at last in the presence of the Eternal One ! But not only this. With the loss of these efforts and triumphs, must be numbered also the countless books written on these subjects ; the glorious print- ing-press, giving wings to knowledge and truth ; the beautiful and exquisite instruments with which science has wrought out her discoveries ; and all the study and industry consequent upon ihcm — all these must perish with the evils of ignorance ; or rather, but for 'GrOJy — HIS AITRIBUTES, ETC. 2& ^lic evils of ignorance they could have had no exist- ence. All the truths of science and art known to us, there would be no use for them — no call for mental •effort to invent, or mechanical labor to execute. If, then, there is any happiness in the discovery of truth, and the increase of knowledge, if any measure of our blessedness lies in the development and perfec- tion of the intellect, all which necessarily involve the existence of previous ignorance and imperfection — ■ then, just to this extent, we are furnished with a so- lution of the great problem of evil ; or, at least, we see some of the important uses which evil may sub- serve. And now let us turn to— - III. Iforal Evil. If there had been no error or sin in the world, we should have known nothing of Jesus the Christ, that loftiest exhibition of perfected human- ity, that single bright star in the mingled firmament of earth and heaven, whose light was never dimmed. We should have known nothino- of his deeds of love and merey in return for hate and cruelty ; nothing of that life of his, always so serene and beautiful amid the storms of temptation and bigotry and persecution, and closed at last with that sublime prayer of forgive- ness and blessing, the very record of which even now thrills the souls of the millions with unutterable emo- tions of reverence and joy. And so one of the most instructive pages in the history of humanity would have been left totally blank, with not a single bright word of heaven's language to catch the eye, or quick- en the thought. And of God, also — if there were no sin, we should lose sight of half the glory of his character, and of the 26 THEaLOGY OF UNI VERS ALISJf. beautiful and tender relations which he sustains to us. ' We should know him as a God of almighty power, of infinite wisdom, of perfect holiness ; but of his saving grace, of his mercy, of his patient and watchful care for his wayward children, of his long-suffering and pardoning love, of his blessed promises of redemption — if there were no moral evil, no error nor sin, what should we know of these glorious exhibitijns of the divine character ? How could they have been at all ? How could we have loved and adored, in spirit and understanding, the affectionate Father and the perfect God, as we love and adore him now ? ^ But there is another phase to this question of moral evil, which deserves a thought. It will be allowed very readily, that the virtues of charity, for- giveness, generosity, self-sacrifice, faiths fidelity, are of great worth, and give the highest grace and beau- ty to the character. All will agree that without these noble virtues, it would become tame and spirit- less, with scarcely a single trait to waken our admir- ation, or call forth our reverence and love. The lively and animated picture of the soul's struggles and triumphs, would lose its richest coloring and fin- ish ; and life itself would be without point, without any useful or elevating aim. But if man had been created perfect, and never had fallen into any kind of sin, how could these virtues have birth or beino; ? If there were nothing to try our patience or our love, how could the worth * Jonathan Edwards says, " God does not will sin as sin, or for the sake of any thing evil; though it be his pleasure so to order things, that, he permitting, sin will come to pass, foi' the sake of the great good that by hU disposal shall be the consequence.'''' Works, vol. ii.» 254. Editiool830. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 27 and trutli of them be proved ? If none offended against us, how coukl we forgive ? If none did us evil, how could we obey the greatest of the divine requisitions, " Return good for evil ? " If there were no want nor sorrow, if there were no injustice nor wrong, where would be the noble examples of chari- ty and mercy, of generosity and self-forgetfulness, which have adorned the history of the world, and moved multitudes of souls with admiring joy, and sent them forth with inspiration for the same blessed work ? If there were no sorrow nor pain, where had been those heavenly lessons of patient love, of affec- tionate devotion, under sternest trials ? where had been that sweet submission to God, that serene peace, that divine strength, which the frailest child of sufferino; has at times manifested ? leaving; a wit- ness, before which the strongest and most unwilling have bowed ; and, through the power of which, the humblest and weakest have felt themselves lifted up to new courage and faith. If, then, these virtues are of any worth ; if charity, forgiveness, resignation, faith, self-sacrifice, have any value in themselves, or as examples to the world ; if they adorn the human character, and are necessary to the perfect development of the human heart, then here again is a reason why the Creator did not make man perfect in the begining, but determined rather to leave him to perfect himself through toil and strug- gle, through defeat and victory, through obedience, and self-conquest, and faith, and love, aided and blessed by the Holy Spirit — another reason why he subjected him to temporal evil, that he might, through this, work out for himself an abiding, ever- f8 TEIEOLOGY OF U^iyEKSALTSM, Tasting good. And Paul alludes to this view of tlie subject, in immediate connection with the passage already qnoteJoHN Foster, distinguished among the English Baptists as a thinker ftnd -writer, in his letter to a young clergyman troubled with doubts in regard to endless punishment, says, " I acknowledge myself not con- vinced of the orthodox doctrine. Endless punishment ! Hopeless misery through a duration to which the most enormous terms of time will be absolutely nothing ! I acknowledge my inability (I would say it reverently,) to admit this belief together with a belief in the Divine Goodness — the belief that God is LovCy that his tender mercies are Qverallhis vforks.' '—Sheppard's Life and Correspondence of John Foster. Letter %'^, GOD HIS ATTKIBUTES, ETC. B9 turns with irresistible force. Creating with this de- sign, he of course arranged his plan of operations, and ordered his government and laws in reference to it. The nature he bestowed on man, the mental forces, the moral sentiments, the religious element, the bod- ily appetites, were all harmonized to this central thought and aim. The divine omniscience took in ali the possibilities and certainties of his life, determined all the circumstances of lus lot, foresaw all the in- fluences, however subtle, and inappreciable by us, which would act on him ; and pre-arranged that they should all, directly or indirectly, contribute to the purposed result ; and to the development and glory of " the riches both of the wisdom and the knowledore of God, and of his unsearchable judgments," Bom. xL Or in the truthful lines of Akenside : " Bf holding in the sacred light Of his essential reason all the shapes Of swift contingence, all successive ties Of action propagated through the sum Of possible existence. He at once Down the long series of eventful time So fixed the dates of being, so disposed To every living soul of every kind The field of motion and the hour of rest. That all consijired to his supreme design, To univtrsal good 1 " Let us say all we can here of the " free agency" of man, of the obstinacy and depravity of the human heart, of the rejection of the offers and conditions of salvation ; and after all the argument founded upon the Scriptural statement, that, " known unto God are all his works from the bec^innino: to the end," fur- nishes a simple and final reply to it. God either did, or did not, foresee all these diflSculties (if there 40 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEKSALISM. he any difficulties with God,') when he devised hi3 plan of creation and redemption. If he did not fore- see them, then he does not know " all his works from the beginning to the end" — but the Bible affirms that he does : He did, therefore, foresee all these difficul- ties, and foreseeing, of course, he provided against them, and adjusted his plan with express reference to overcomin2: them.' We must not forget that both the use and the abuse of the freedom of man, lay within the sweep of God's omniscience at the time of creating him. If he had foreseen that man would so abuse this moral free- dom as to defeat his purpose in creating, he would have arranged it differently. And as he did not ar- range it differently, we need have no fears of its being a'hindrance in the way of the fulfilment of that pur- pose. Whatever, therefore, the measure of man's freedom, it was embraced in the original plan of his creation, and is perfectly consistent with the aim and end of that plan, viz. : the highest perfection and blessed- ^ The following is from Dr. Johnson, the great lexicographer (if Bp. Porteus is right,) and while it is directly to the pomt argued in the text, it will show the opinion of this literary giant in regard to the great restoration. The passages are from sermons published by Dr, Taylor, but which were undoubtedly written by Dr. Johnson. Scg Boswell*s Life, vol. iii. chap. vi. — "We know th^>^t God is infinite in wisdom, in power, and in goodness ; that therefore ne designs the happiness of all his creatures ; that he cannot but know the proper means by which this end maybe obtained ; and that, in the use of these means, as he cannot be mistaken because he is omniscient, so he cannot be defeated because he is almighty." In another of these sermons on Psalm cxlv. 9, he says, " Far and wide as is the vast range of existence, 80 is the Divine benevolence extended ; and both in the previous trial hnd final retribution of all his rational and moral productions^ the Lord is good to all, and his tender mercies are over all his works." GOD HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 41 Ai jss of which he is constitutionally capable. To this result the wisdom of God is pledged; and all the foreseen means for its accomplishment lie within the reach, and ready at the fitting time for the use, of that Almighty Power which " worketh all things after the counsel of his own wilL" Eph, i. And the next section will illustrate the manner in which the Divine Will conforms the human will to its gracious purposes, without in any respect violating its rights, or restraining its freedom or voluntary action. SECTION III, THE POWER OP O0» OMNIPOTENCE, MORAL AND SPIRITUAL, AS WELL AS PHYSICAL. § I. God almighty in Ms power over mind as well as matter. — The Bible abounds in declarations of the illimitable and infinite power of God, passages setting forth his ability to create and to destroy, to govern and control the destinies of nations and individuals, to accomplish all his purposes, and to do his will throughout the physical and spiritual universe. It is important to observe the language of this state- ment — that God is omnipotent, not only in the natur- al world, but also in the moral and spiritual world. It is as easy for him to create and govern a soul, as to create and govern a sun or a planet. And it re- quires no more efibrt on his part to discipline and save a moral being, according to the laws of his moral nature, than it requires to control the solar systems, according to the material laws impressed upon them at the time of their creation. 42 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. This fact is part and parcel of the very idea of God, and essential to the successful government of the world, and the realization of the divine plan and purpose in creating man. And this fact is every- where recognized in the Scripture testimonies to the almighty power of God. It is not only the sunshine and the rains, the winds and the lightnings, the sea and the rivers, the earth, and its vitalizing forces, that he employs to work out his purposes and wishes ; but the thoughts and the affections, the impulses and the actions, the good and the evil, of intelligent and moral beings. If any one should say that God had created a material world — the " lost pleiad," for example — and that, having created it, he could not control it, could not keep it in its orbit, nor compel it into obedience to the laws of gravitation ; but that, by growth of the forces he had incorporated in it, it had broken from his hold, rushed from its heavenly path, and plunged into the infinite abysses of space, carrying confusion, and wreck, and ruin, into all the surround- ing systems and constellations ; and that the Creator had exerted all his might and power to restore it again to its ancient orbit, and remedy the evils of its rebellion and desertion, but had utterly failed, and was obliged to abandon the effort, and leave its place among the starry orbs forever vacant — If any one should make such a statement as this, or teach such a doctrine, would not all Christian peo- ple say that it was virtually atheism ? a rejection of the perfections of the Divine character ; a direct denial of the omnipotence and supreme government of God ; an accusation against him of weakness and incapaci- ty? GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 43 But suppose this person should affirm precisely the Bame thing of God's creation and goyernment of the spiritual universe ; suppose he should teach that he had created a world of intelligent beings, and estab- lished over them a moral government, but that con- trary to his plan and expectation, the powers and agencies, the intellectual and spiritual forces, which he had bestowed upon them, had developed into an opposition to his authority and rule, which he could not overcome ; and that, after exhausting all liis moral resources, he was utterly unable to restore man to obedience, and would therefore be obliged to abandon him to endless rebellion and sin, and ac- knowledge his creation and government, as originally constituted, a complete failure. Suppose he should affirm this ; would there be the slightest difference between it and the former state- ment regarding the " lost pleiad ?" Would it not be substantially the same thing as it respects the athe- ism, and the denial of the divine omnipotence and perfection? What is the difference, at bottom, whether you deny the power of God over spirit ; or deny his power over matter ? Whether you say he cannot save a planet, or cannot save a soul, from ruin ? Of course, we do not ignore the essential difference between matter and mind ; between the laws which govern a planet, and those which govern a soul. It is not contended that God undertakes to rule and save a free spirit, in the same way in which he holds the sun in its place, or sends a planet through its orbit. But the thing we do contend for, the thing which the complete omnipotence of God logically 44 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEKSALISM. necessitates, is, that he is just as ample in his spiritual resources for educating, training, and saving the souls of men, as he is in his physical resources for shaping, guiding, and governing the worlds and con- stellations in their courses. And we contend, far- ther, that he can do the first without the violation of any moral agency, or of any spiritual law, just as easy as he can do the last, without the violation of any natural or physical law. And this, as already said, is clearly and positively the teaching of the Scriptures. " Behold thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee."-— Jer. xxxii. 17, 27. " O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven ? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen ? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee." — 2 Chron. xx. 6. " He ruleth by his power forever, his eyes behold the nations. The Lord reigneth ; he is clothed with majesty ; the Lord is clothed with strength, where- with he hath girded himself: the world also is es- tablished that it cannot be moved." — Ps. Ixvi. xciii. " Whatsoever the Lord pleased, that did he in heaven, and in earth, and in the seas, and in all deep places." — Ps. cxxxv. These passages, out of a multitude, set forth the physical omnl^^otence of the Deity, or his infinite power over the material universe. But side by side with these are such testimonies as the following, relating to the moral world : — " The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water : he turneth it whithersoever he wilU^ — GOD — HIS ATTEIBUTES, ETC. 45 Prov. xxi. 1. "A man's heart deviseth his way ; but the Lord directeth his steps,'' xvi. 9. " For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure." — Phil. il. 13. " For whom he did foreknow he also did predestinate to he con- formed to the ifnage of his Son, .... moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called.'' — Eom. viii. " Nov/ there are diversities of gifts, but the same spirit ; and there are diversities of opera- tions, but it is the same God which worheth all in fjli;^ — 1 Cor. xii. " Therefore said I unto you that no man can come unto me, except it were given him of my Father." — John vi. Qb. " Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee, and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth." — Eom. ix. 17. ''A new heart will I also give you, and a new spirit will I put within you ; and 1 will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes." — Ezek. xxxvi. 26. " He doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth ; and none can stay his hand, or say unto him. What doest thou?" — Dan. iv. 35. ''It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. And they were , astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved ? And Jesus looking upon them, saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God ; for with God all things are jyossihle." — Mark X. 23—27. Similar passages might be multiplied to any ex- 46 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. ^ tent ; but these are sufficient to establish the state- ment, that the Bible teaches the omnipotence of God in the moral and spiritual world, as well as in the material world : that he governs the affections and purposes of men as easily, and as truly, as he governs the motions of the planets. In his own time, he takes away the stony heart of Israel^ and gives them a new heart and a new spirit, and causes them to walk in his statutes, ^q predestinates and calls those chosen to the work of the Gospel, and conforms them to the image of his Son. He works in men both to will and to do according to his pleasure. He doeth his will equally among the spirits of heaven, and among the inhabitants of earth ; and in the work of salva- tion, there is no degree of selfishness, no love of the world, no darkness of mind, no depravity of heart, too great to be overcome by the infinite power of his truth and love ; for the Saviour directly and posi- tively affirms, in regard to this very point, that nothing is impossible with God ! Tnis position established, the next question is. Since he his the power ^ will he use it f Is there any Scrip- tural evidence that he will put away all sin and evil, renew all hearts, and by the infinite energies of his Spirit, bring all souls into harmony Avith truth and holiness ? The passages which follow, will answer this question : " I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God ; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation ; he hath covered mc with the robe of righteousness For as the earth bringeth forth the bud, and as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth, so GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 47 the Lord God will cause righteousness an I praise to spring forth before all the nations.''^ — Isa. Ixi. 10, 11. The comparison here is equally intelligible and positive. As surely as the earth puts forth its bud, and the garden causes the seed sown in it to spring- up, so surely will the truth and grace of God put forth their bud also, and in due time cause riirhteous- ness to spring up in the hearts of all the nations of the earth. The productive relations of seed and soil are not more fixed in the order of nature, than the results of the regenerating power of divine truth in the soul of man. And how can it be otherwise ? Look at it. If the atmosphere, the sunshine, the rain, electricity, fire, the ocean, the tree, the grain of wheat, every element of nature, answers the purpose in the mate- rial world for which it was created ; why should the Holy Spirit, why should the Infinite Love of God, be eternally defeated of their ends in the spiritual world ? But this thought is repeated in other words, and the point of the comparison ixade more significant, if possible. " For AS the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater ; so shall my word he that goeth forth out of my mouth, it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." — Isa. iv. 10, 11. Can anything be more direct and conclusive than this proclamation of the eflSciency of the divine will 48 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEllSALISM. and spirit in the salvation of mankind ? Was it ever known that the rain came down from heaven and went back again without watering the earth ? Was it ever known that God failed to restore the earth in spring time, and make it bud and bring forth? ^N'ever ! Just as surely, then, as the rain does not re- turn to the heavens without doing the work for which it was sent, so surely the word of God shall not return to him void. As certainly as the forces of nature in spring renew and freshen the earth into life and beauty, and abundance, so certainly shall his truth, the gospel of his grace, renovate and restore the moral world to its primeval beauty and purity. And this is the argument and witness of God himself, to show that, having infinite spiritual power, he will use it for the salvation of mankind, as efficiently as he uses his infinite physical power in the creation and renew^al of the earth. But there are other texts going directly^ without comparison, to the sam.e result. " For this is the covenant that I will make watli the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord ; I will put my laws into their minds^ and write them in their hearts * and I will be to them a God, and they shall he to me a people : and they shall not teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying. Know the Lord — for all shall hnow me^ from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteous- ness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remem- ber no more." — Hcb. viii. 10 — 12. Observe, here, not only the universality of the phraseology, but the absoluteness of it. God says, I will put my law in their hearts — they shall be my people, and they shall GOD HIS ATTEIBUTES, ETC. 49 know, and their sins and iniquities shall be put away. He not only has the moral power to change and save them, but he declares he will employ it to this end. " There is no God beside me ; a just God and a Saviour. Look unto me, and he ye saved, all the ends of the earth ; for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return. That unto me every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall swear, surely shall say. In the Lord have I righteousness and strength — to him shall men come ; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed." — Isa. xlv. 21 — 25. Here we have the same direct and unqualified language from the Lord himself, aflSrming the truth, that the infinite energies of his spirit will be used in renewing the soul of man unto righteousness. There are no conditions nor contingencies here — " be ye saved " — " every knee shall bow " — absolute and certain, wrought out by the will of God, whose omnipotence cannot fail of its end. § II. The Freedom of the human will, or " Free Ageney,^^ — It may be said in reply to the preceding reasoning, that this is simply compelling men to be saved, without regard to their voluntary action. We answer, No ; for all this is done in harmony with spiritual laws and man's freedom. There is no com- pulsion, no force. The comparison of the garden and the rain is still in place. The earth is not com- pelled mechanically to bud and bring forth, and there is no violation of atmospheric laws when the rain falls. The seed do not lose their freedom or indi- fiO THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. viduality as seed, because the air, and rain, and sun- shine, operating through the soil, develope the germ within, and push it out into leaf, and bud, and blos- som, and fruit. So with the soul of man ; there is no violation of law, no loss of freedom, no conflict of forces, when the Spirit of God, acting with the truth, sends in the light upon the darkened mind, quickens the affections, and lifts the whole being into the eter- nal life of faith and love. Paul was as free when he preached the Gospel, as when he persecuted the dis- ciples ; and he followed the impulses of his heart as truly, when he asked, submissively, " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? " as when he left the Damascus gate, " breathing out threatenings and slaughter ! " The only difference was that, in the meantime, God had changed his heart ; or, in other words, the truth and light of heaven had streamed in upon his soul, and he willingly and rejoicingly followed their lead. And this is the case with every converted soul. As Dr. Woods, of Andover Seminary, says : " The true convert wills or chooses as really as before. The difference is, he now chooses right. He now has a will truly free. Before his will was free from com- pulsion — free in every sense necessary to his being a moral, accountable agent. But after all he was a slave to sin, and under the bondage of corruption. Now he is free, and his will is free in the best sense, free from the slavery of depraved passions and de- sires. The work of God in conversion emancipates the sinner from this dejrradinjx bonda^ie, and brink's him into subjection to the will of God. This is true liberty, " The glorious liberty of the sons of God." * Woods' Works, vol. v., p. 549. See also his " Letters to Unita- rians," Letter x., and " Reply to Ware," Works, vol. iv. 81-90, 250. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 61 And tlie philosophy of this method of conver- eion and salvation which Paul had experimentally known in his own soul, he afterwards asserted and illustrated in his letter to the Hebrew believers : " Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant mahe you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ.^' Chap. xiii. In our anxiety to assert the freedom of man's will, we must not forget that God is free as well as man ; free to choose, free to work. It is said that, if God influences man so as to make the result certain, then he is not free, he cannot do as he pleases. But if man can so abuse his freedom as to defeat the pur- pose of God, then God is not free ; he cannot do as he pleases ! Suppose Paul had possessed a " free agency" which would not yield to the enlightening influences of the Holy Spirit — suppose in the exercise of his freedom, he had chosen to remain Saul, the perse- cutor, instead of becoming Paul, the apostle, accord- ing to the purpose of God ; whose freedom would have been greatest in this case ? whose will the strongest ? whose plans overturned ? But is not the principle involved in this case the same operating in the case of every soul finally wrecked and ruined ? If God created man for endless happiness and glory, and man abuses his agency to his endless destruction —if God is not free to bring him to heaven, and man is free to go to hell ; whose freedom is mightiest in 52 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALIS3I. this case ? whose will prevails ? and whose plans are overthrown ? ' We should be careful, as observed, in defending hu- man freedom, not to destroy Divine freedom. And we must remember that if man is a " free ajrent," and can do as he chooses ; God is also a " free agent," and can do as he chooses — and that if the will and pur- pose of man come into conflict w^ith the will and the purpose of God, there can be but one issue to such a conflict. God will prevail : and, as remarked he will prevail so as in no way to violate any law of our spir- itual constitution, or infringe in the slightest degree the moral liberty with which he has endowed us. Look at the following record : " And Jesus, walk- * Dk. Woods lias a good thing on this point, -which deserves a place here : *' No one can have any power except what God gives, and there can be no greater absurdity than to suppose that God will give to any of his creatures a power which he cannot control, and which shall in any possible circumstances, so come in the way of his administration as actually to prevent him from doing what he wills to do. If he is really omnipotent, and if all power in creation depends on him, it must be that he will do all his pleasure ; that whatever he sees on the whole to be the best he will certainly accomplish. •* As the supreme government of God relates to all his works, it re- lates particularly to the moral world. This is the most important part of the creation, and it is of course most of all important that this should be managed right ; and to be managed right, is to be managed accord- ing to the will of God : or in other words according to the dictates of infinite perfection. If God is prevented from doing his own righteous and holy will, he is prevented by something within himself, or some- thing without himself. If by something within himself, then there are contradictory attributes in his own spiritual nature : an imperfection in a mind which is absolutely perfect ; a principle opposed to wisdom and goodness in one who is infinitely wise and good. And to suppose that ho is in any case hindered from doing his own joleasure by any thing with' out himself, that is, by something in created beings, is to suppose that he has designedly invested them with power to frustrate his designs. And this is the same as to suppose that he purj)oscly acts against hxai- Bc\(^^— Biblical Rcposilonj, Jan.., 1844. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 53 lug by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea ; for they were fishers. And he said unto them, Follow mc, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway left their nets, and followed him. And going on from thence, he saw two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets ; and he called them. And they immediately left the ship and their father, andfoU lowed him:' Matt. iv. 18-22. And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the Eeceipt of Custom, and he said unto him. Follow me. And he left all, rose up and followed him^' Luke v. 27. Now were these men compelled to leave all and fol- low Jesus, in any sense that implied unwillingness on their part ? Was their " free agency" violated, or did they follow their own wishes and preferences ? Of course the last. They were just as free, acted just as entirely out of their own hearts, when they became the disciples of Jesus, as when they followed their former occupations. God had a new and higher work for them ; and when the time came, and the work was ready for them, they were ready for the work. And Peter and Andrew and James and John went into the ministry of the Gospel, as cheerfully as they ever went out upon the Lake of Galilee to fish. And Matthew, the tax-gatherer, even celebrates his abandonment of the custom-house, and his conver- sion and obedience to the call of Christ, by a joyful gathering of his former business associates and friends. Luke v. 29. 64 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. There is no form which opposition to the great truth of universal reconcihation takes, indicative of such entire ignorance of the nature of man, of the philosophy of the human affections, as that which so persistently sets up against it, the doctrine of "free agency," and argues from it that " God will not compel men to be saved, will not force them into heaven." Do we compel the drunkard into temperance, when by showing him the evil of his course, and the benefits and blessings of a temperate life, and helping him to conquer his raging appe- tite, we restore him to himself and his family a reformed and happy man? And when the aban- doned outcast, the depraved and hardened crim- inal, is subdued into tears and penitence by the ear- nest prayers and exhortations, by the persevering la- bor of love in his behalf; and finally shakes off the palsy of his sin, and enters gladly upon a new life of virtue and holiness — when thus he faces about to- wards heaven, is he forced to it in any sense that does not make the force a joy and a triumph to him ? in any sense that does not leave him, heart and soul, free as the air he breathes ? Did ever a reformed sinner complain that he was driven into reformation against his will ? And when through their much patience and gen- tleness, and long-suffering affection, a disobedient and wilful child is brought to the feet of his parents in shame and repentance, is any violence done to his freedom as a moral beino; ? Is it not rather that, in- structed by their teachings, and overcome by their love, he chooses what they choose for him, and so hia will and theirs come into concurrence and unity. 55 Was the Prodigal Son any less free in wish or feel- ing, in purpose or will, when, taught by his folly, and influenced by his circumstances, and compelled^ if you will, by his sufferings, he said " I will arise, and go to my Father," than when he " gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance in riotous living?" Not one iota less free ; but infinitely wiser by his sorrowful experience, and willing henceforth to be guided by his father, and to find rest, and peace in the dear old home which gave him such loving welcome back. And I am happy to add here a testimony and an illustration on the point involved, from John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. '' There seems," says he, " to be a plain and simple way of removing this difficulty, without entangling ourselves in any subtle, metaphysical disquisition. As God is one, so the work of God is uniform in all ages. May we not then con- ceive how he will work on the souls of men in time to come, by considering how he does work now ? and how he has wrought in times past ? Take one in- stance of this in which you cannot be deceived. You know how God wrought in your own soul. He did not take away your understanding, but enlightened and strengthened it. He did not destroy any of your aflfections ; rather they were more vigorous than be- fore. Least of all did he take away your liberty, your power of choosing good and evil ; he did not force 5 ou ; but being assisted by his grace, you, like Mary, chose the better part. Just as he has assisted thousands, without depriving any of them of that lib- erty which is essential to a moral agent. Now in the same manner as God has converted so many to him- 56 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. self, without destroying their liberty, he can undoubt- edly, convert whole nations, or the whole world I It is as easy for him to convert a world, as one individ- ual soul." * And it is curious to see how the Arminlan and the Calvinist both unite on this point to sustain the preceding reasoning. The following is from Prof. Stuart, late of the Andover Institution : " Men who doubt and reason thus do in their own hearts, make the work of conversion a mere business of moral suasion by force of reasoning and argument. They overlook the omnipotence of that Spirit^ whose office it is to how the stuhhoim will, and soften the hearts of the ujihelieving. What I are not all things possible with God ? Can he not ' make the people wilUng in the day of his power ? ' Cannot he, who works in men ' according to the working of his mighty power which he wrought in Christ when he raised him from the dead,' can he not make the deaf to hear, and the blind to see ? Can he not raise the dead to life ? Has he not promised to do all this ? Has he not often repeated the assurance that he will do it ? Has he not done it in numberless instances ? Is any thino; too hard for God ? Are not ' all hearts in his hand ; ' and so in it, that he can turn them whither- soever he will, even as the rivers of water are turned ? Can any resist God's will? Cannot he whose mighty power bowed the hearts of our pagan ances- tors — cannot he bow the hearts of the children of Abraham ? With the apostle I answer, ' The Jews also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be ^ Sermon on Isaiah, xi. 9 GOD HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 67 grafted in ; for Grocl is able to graft them in.* Eom. 11 : 23. And how can they abide in unhelief^ when, according to the promise of God, of which he will never repent, the seed of Abraham shall have a new heart, and a right spirit given to them ? The suppo- sition calls in question the veracity of God ! To doubt on this subject, is to question his power and his truth, the reality of the Christian religion, and the omnipotence of the Holy Spirit ! Believers in the Scriptures are not permitted to doubt. The thing is certain. The decree has gone forth, stamped with Heaven's own seal upon it. Jehovah hath sworn by himself, that cxsery knee shall yet how to Jesus, and every tongue confess that he is Lord.'''' " The day and the hour, when all which has been promised may be fulfilled, we may not know. It is not essential that we should know them. But the promises of God, the facts which he has declared shall take place, are certain.''' ^ ' Sermon at Ordination ofVf. G. Schauffler. The following, from Dr. PoxD, of the Bangor Theological Seminary, is conclusive on the point : *' The question therefore comes to this, Is it impossible for God to convert and save all men ? But in what sense can this be considered as impossible? Is it incon- sistent with the nature of the human mind, and with the freedom and accountability of man ? Such a supposition is a priori incredible ; be- cause God made the minds of men, as well as their bodies — made them free, accountable agents— and it is not likely that he would give exis- tence to a being which it was impossible for him to control. Besides, is it not a fict that God does control the minds of men, of all men, in perfect consistency with their freedom and accountability ? I speak not now of the manner in which this is done, whether by a dii-ect efficiency in view of motives, or by the mere influence of motives ;— the fact that it is done will not be denied, except by those who deny that God exe- ecutea his purposes and governs the world. The Scriptures too — by 68 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. The result, then, of our Scriptural investigations re- specting the omnipotence of God is substantially this : That his power over spirit is as absolute as is his power over matter — that he can do his will as easily, and that he will do it as certainly, in the moral world as in the material world — that he not only has the power to lead his children from darknes into light, from unbelief and sin into faith and righteousness, to take away their evil heart and give them a new heart and a new spirit, and finally to reconcile and restore all things to himself; but that " in the dispensation of the fulness of times," he will do it, teaching through Christ, sanctifying through his Holy Spirit, and so establishinfi^ the reio;n of Love and Holiness throughout the universe forever more ! SECTION IV. THE GOODNESS OF GOD INFINITE AND UNCHANGEABLE. It would be a work of supererogation to enter upon an elaborate argument to prove that God is infi- nitely good. Goodness is his nature and essence — " God is Love,'^ 1 John iv. And the very word " good " is but another way of saying " God ; " for necessary implication, by direct assertion, and in almost every form of representation and expression — exhibit the free minds of men as subject to the control of Him who ruleth all. God's control over the free, responsible mind is also exhibited in every instance of conversion. Every conversion which takes place is the work of God's Spirit, accomplished in perfect consistency with the nature of the mind, and without any infringement of human freedom or accountability. But are not all minds constituted essentially alike? And if it is possible for God to convert one sinner in the manner above described, why not two ? why not as many as he pleases ? why not allV* GOD nrS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 59 in the old Saxon, God aud Good are one word, and not two, as with us. The word meant " goodness " or " the good," and hence, because of the infinitely benevolent character and disposition of the Divine Being, it was used to designate him, both as a name and a title. •^ The evidences and manifestations of God's good- ness, are co-extensive with his creation ; and its uni- versality and eternity are affirmed everywhere in the Sacred Scriptures. The heavens, the earth, and the sea, are his witnesses ; and prophets and apostles, Moses and Jesus, bear the same testimony to the truth, that " the Lord is good unto all, and his ten- der mercies over all his works." If, then, the very essence of the Deity is Love, if he is infinitely, and, of course, unchangeably good, all his actions must be good, everything he does, or ever will do, must proceed from his eternal love. The creation of man, the government of the world, his providence, his laws, his penalties and punishments, the mingled joys and sorrows, the good and evil of our lot, all originate in beneficent wisdom, and must have a beneficent end. Of course, we cannot judge safely of the means, but we are sure of the end. God says, truly : — " Mj thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways your ways. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." — ^Isa. Iv. Often ^ It is worthy of note that, while God is so frequently called Lore, he is never said to be Wisdom, or Power, or Justice. These are only at- tributes, or manifestations of the Deity; but Love is his essence, the very nature and substance of God. GO TnEOLOGT OF UNIVERSALISM. he accomplishes his designs in ways far above ours, and which we cannot understand ; but, whatever the ways and means employed, when the end is reached, it will be found to be full of blessing. This is the necessary consequence of the fact of infinite good- ness. No other conclusion is possible. By the help of this plain and indisputable truth, let the reader interpret the language already cited in part, in a previous section : — " By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory, some men are pre- destinated unto everlasting life, and others foreor- dained unto everlasting death. Those of mankind, that are predestinated unto life, God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to his eternal and immutable purpose, and the secret coun- sel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen in Christ, unto everlasting life, out of his mere free grace and love, without any foresight of faith or good works, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions and causes moving him thereunto." ' * And that I may not seem to make the jiresent responsible for the past, I give the following, copied verbatim ^ from the Presbyterian Confession of Faith, as ratified by the General Assembly, in May, 1821, and amended in 1833, and i^ublished under the sanction of the Assem- bly in 1834. The Presbyterians in the United States, number more than 4500 Ministers. " God, from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of hij own it-iV/ , freely and unchangeably orcZat/i whatsoever comes to pafls. «« ** »*** By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his glory ^ some men and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life, and others /oreor- dained to everlasting death. These angels and men thus predestinated and foreordained, arc par- ticularly and unchangeably designed^ and their number is so certain and definite^ that it cannot be either increased or diminished. Those of mankind that are predestinated unto life, God, before the GOD — ITIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. Gl Now, it is a matter of little consequence, so far as it concerns tlie character of God, whether this awful result was foreordained by immutable decree, or sim- ply foreseen by an all-comprehending knowledge, (and this is a point which those who reject the de- crees with horror, and yet hold to endless punish- ment, do not seem to understand,) for the principle, the moral element involved, is the same in both cases. There can be no foreordination without a foreknowledixe and choice of what is to be foreor- dained ; and, on the other hand, there can be no cer- tain foreknowledge of what is to come to pass, with- foundation of the Tvorld was laid, according to liis eternal and immuta- ble purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will, hath chosen in Christ, unto everlasting glory, out of his mere free grace and love, without any foresight of faith or ^ooi ifor/js, or persever- ance in either of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions or causes moving him thereunto, and all to the praise of his glorious grace. • As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath he, by the eter- nal and most free purpose of his will, foreordained oil the means thereunto. Wherefore, they who are elected, being fallen in Adam, are redeemed by Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ, by his Spirit working in due season, are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by his power, through faith unto salvation. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ, effectually called, justified, adopted, sancti- lied and saved, but the elect only. The rest of mankind, God was pZeasffi?, according to the unsearcha- ble counsel of his own will, whereby he extendeth or withholdeth mercy as he pleaseth, for the glory of hissovei'eignpower over his crea- tures, to pass by and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for their sin, to thcpraise of his glorious justice. The doctrine of this high mystery of predestination is to be handled with special prudence and care, that men attending the will of God revealed in his word, and yielding obedience thereunto, may, from the certainty of their effectual vocation, be assured of their eternal election. So shall this doctrine afford matter of pr wise, reverence w[\(i admiral Hon of God, and of humility, diligence, and abundant consolation, to all that truly obey the gospel." Compare this with tha Andover Con- fession. G2 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALTSM. out a prior foreordlnatlon of what shall come to pass. So flir, therefore, as it affects the quality of goodness, it is the same whether God, in creating, foreordained everlasting death as the result ; or foreknew that, if he created, this would certainly be the result. Now, is it possible to believe, in the goodness or justice of a Being who, in the act of creation, with- out regard to moral character or conduct, says to himself: — '• These I create and foreordain to a life of endless blessedness ; and these I create and foreor- dain to a life of endless torment ! And no orood that these can do will save them from the curse ; and no evil that those can do will hinder their joy. It is not from any foresight of faith or unbelief, of good works or evil works, or any other thing in them moving me thereunto, that I foreordain these different conditions • or destinies, but solely out of the secret counsel and good pleasure of my will, and as a manifestion of my glory and free grace ! " To say nothing of the justice of such a monstrous proceeding, it is not in the power of any sane mind, or sound heart, to pronounce such a Being infinitely good. To say that God has acted in this way, and at the same time to say that he is good, is to con- found all distinctions between good and evil, and to make the proof of benevolence and mercy to rest on the same acts which are the strongest proof of cruel- ty and fiendishness. No more thorough refutation of such a theology can be devised, than the simple statement that God is in- finitely good. That is a sufficient reply, not only to the asserted foreordination, but to the possibility of everlastins death. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 63 The only end which an infinitely good Being could propose to himself, as the motive for creating, would be simply the multiplication of intelligent creatures, in his own likeness, to become partakers of the hap- piness which finds its fulness in him. He would en- ter on the work of creation only that he might have more immortal beings on whom to pour out his infin- ite love, and with whom, finally made equal unto the angels, he might people the heavenly mansions — the realms of light and joy. It is easy to see how the God of the 'New Testa- ment, the God whom the blessed Saviour addresses as " Our Father, who art in Heaven," should enter- tain such a purpose as thie ; and, therefore, create for himself immortal spirits, children of his own, on whom to lavish the wealth of his infinite love ; final- ly gathering them around the throne of his glory that he might rejoice in them, and they in him, world without end. Such purpose and action as this, is precisely what we should look for in such a divinely beneficent being. It would be consistent with the character of a God who, by way of emphasis, is re- peatedly described and named in the Gospel Scrip- tures by the single word " Xow." And it is pleasing to turn back to the Universal- ists of sixteen and seventeen hundred years ago, and find their reasoning on this point in perfect accord with our own. Clement, of Alexandria, nearly con- temporary with the apostle John, (a. d., 190,) says : — " The Lord is good unto all, and delights in all. Man is, indeed, necessarily dear to God, because he is his own workmanship. Other things he made only by his order, but man he formed by his own 64 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSaLISM. hand, and breathed into him his distinguishing proper- ties. Now, whatever was created by him, especially in his own image, must have been created because it was, in itself, desirable to God, or else desirable from some other consideration. There could be no other reason why God should create him, than that God could not otherwise be a benevolent Maker, nor his glory be displayed to the human race. There is nothing that the Lord hates, for he cannot hate any thing, and yet will that it should exist ; nor can he ^vill that any thing should not exist, and at the same time cause it to exist. And if he hates none of his works, then it is evident that he loves them all, es- pecially man above the rest, who is the most excellent of his creatures ; a being desirable to God, since he who cannot err, made him just such as he desired him to be. Now, whoever loves another, wishes to benefit him, and, therefore, God does good unto all ; not blessing them in some particulars, and neglecting them in others, but carefully solicitous for all their interests." ^ But, turning from this a moment, let us approach the subject from another side. There are onW three positions conceivable, as the purpose and end of cre- ating mankind, whatever the character or disposition of the Creator. 1. The final misery of all. 2. The final misery of a part, and the final hap- piness of the rest. 3. The final happiness of all. ' Pcedagog. Lib. i. cap. 3 & 8. Ancient History of Univcrsalism^ chap. iii. As 1 shall frequently quote from the ancient fathers of our faith, I may as well say here, that the quotations arc always from Dr Ballou's History, except when other authority is given. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 65 One of these must have been the motive for creat- ing, the end which God proposed to himself in enter- ing upon the work. T\iq first would make him infi- nitely malignant ; the second would make him a com- pound of good and evil, capricious, partial, unjust, and cruel ; and the third only makes him infinitely- benevolent, and, as the Bible declares, " good unto all," and his wisdom " full of mercy and good fruits, and without partiality." It is idle to argue that God is infinitely good, and at the same time affirm that he would create an im- mortal being, knowing at the moment of doing it, that the existence he was forcing upon him, would prove an endless curse to him. To call him good, in such case, is to use words without sense. Goodness is not a name, a mere title, but character, principle, conduct. As Dr. Channing truly says : " It is very possible to speak of God magnificently, and to think of him meanly ; to apply to his person high sounding epithets, and to his government principles which make him odious." If God deliberately went to the work of creating millions of intelligent beings, with the certain knowledge — we will not say intention, or purpose — but with the certain knowledge that they would in any way, through any agency or sin of their own, fall into a condition of endless wickedness and torment ; then he is not infinitely good, not good to them at all, in any just sense of the word. And it is of no avail here to put in the argument of present sin and evil, and say, " If infinite goodness will not permit endless evil and suflPering, so by the same rule we should argue that it would not permit present sin and evil. It does permit temporary evil ; i6 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM. Jiherefore it may permit endless evil." There is an infinite difference in the two cases. Sin and suffering for a time, as a means, admit of explanation ; but sin and suffering as final and endless, for their own sake, admit of no explanation.* It would be just as reasonable to contend that, be- cause it is consistent with the architect's plan to have a scaffolding around the building while in process of erection, it will be equally so to keep it there when the building is finished — or that if it be necessary to permit the rubbish to lie around while the work is going on, it will be necessary to leave it there when the work is completed. Many things may be per- mitted as a means, which could not be sanctioned as an end. Many books and charts may be necessary while pursuing an education, which may be thrown aside when our education is completej Besides, this argument proves too much, and in- volves consequences which those who use it cannot accept. The argument is thus : God's goodness per- mits suffering in this world, therefore it may permit it in the next — it does not save sinners from present temporary misery, therefore it will not save them from future endless misery. The same Love which would forbid the one, would forbid the other. Suppose we take up this argument and extend it as 1 *• We hold that though God permits evil, the evil i9 not regnant, but a surely defeated enemy. We hold that the actual working powers of God for good, are regnant to overcome all evil in every soul, and pre- sently and surely tending toward the destruction of all evil. We hold that the very sty of sin and husks cf lowest misery are overruled to send the prodigal back to God. The ideal personation of evil, Satan or Devil, is forced to speak etfectively for God, and so God reigns to redeem every soul.** Christian Examiner, March, 1861. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 67 follows : God permits the righteous to be afflicted and to suffer in this world ; therefore he will permit them to be afflicted and to suffer in the next world. The same Love, the same Justice, which would forbid the one, would forbid the other. If his benevolence would lead him to deliver them hereafter, the same benevo- lence would lead him to deliver them here — he does not deliver them here ; therefore he will not deliver thorn hereafter ; and their misery must be endless. But again : All who are not saved now, never will be saved ; for if infinite goodness can consistently leave them unsaved to day, it can with equal consis- tency leave them unsaved to-morrow, and next day, and forever. You cannot argue from the Love of God for the conversion and salvation of a single soul now unconverted, because the same Love would necessitate its conversion and salvation now, this very moment ! The absurdity of such reasoning is apparent with- out an elaborate exposure of its illogical and unphilo- sophical character, God of course has established the world, created man, and determined his present and future condition, according to a fixed plan, embracing not only a clearly defined end, but all the means necessary to that end. He does not do everything at once. He does not design to save all at once by a miracle ; but gradually by appointed agencies, and ac- cording to the laws of their spiritual nature. Each day has its specific work, each event its special mean- ing ; and these stand related not only to the present, but to the future ; links in the great chain of being, whose end is fastened at the throne of God. We can only judge of the unfinished parts, when we come to gee the finished whole. And that the finished whole 6S THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM. embraces the good of all created intelligences, is, as we have shown, a necessary and unavoidable deduc- tion from the acknowledged fact, that he who created is himself Infinite Goodness ! Neither can any argument against this grand con- summation of universal beatitude, be set up on the ground of man's unbelief and sin ; " For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all." Eom. xi. In his impartial good- ness he counts all in unbelief, only that he may have mercy on alL Hence also it is written, that " where sin abounded, grace did much more abound ; that as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord." Eom. v. However far, therefore, sin and its consequences may abound, Divine Grace and Goodness are to abound over and beyond all, through " the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world." John i. 29. The sin of man is not too great for the goodness of God to overcome. Its nature is to endure, and forgive, and weary out the heart of sin and wickedness by its patient, long- suffering, infinite tenderness. And so it becomes ex- ample, precept, and exhortation to us, that we may be " followers of God as dear children." Eph. iv. 32 ; V. 1. And this brings us to another important point in the discussion, worthy of profound thought and study. If the goodness of God be not of the nature and power here set forth, if it do not embrace the con- version, purification, and final welfare of his sinful and rebellious children, how are we to interpret such teachings as the following ; " I say unto you, love GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. C9 your enemies, do good to them wliicli hate you, bless them that curse you, and pray for them which de- spitefully use you For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye ? for sinners also love those that love them. And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye ? for sin- ners also do even the same. . . . But love your en- emies, and do good, and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest ; for he is kind to the unthankful and to the cviL Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful." Luke vi. Is it possible to believe that God expects greater goodness and mercy in us than he himself possesses ? "VYould he command us, poor, frail, tempted mortals, to love our enemies, when he has not the moral courage to do it himself? Can any Christian sup- pose for a moment that God would command us to bless and do good to those who hate us, when he means eternally to curse and do evil to those who hate him ? Why should he expect us to be so much more generous, and merciful and sublime, than he is himself? And if we say that he loves only those who love him — if we say he will hate his enemies, and curse those who curse him, do we not put him on a level with sinners, " who also do even the same ?" But why ask these questions ? God is, and does, all and infinitely more than he asks us to be or to do. The very language of the passage cited shows this. By loving our enemies and doing good to those who hate us, we are said to become children of the High- est, to be like God ; we are said to be merciful as our Father in heaven is merciful. He furnishes us 70 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. the example in his goodness and forgiveness towards us, and calls upon us to follow it in our feeling and conduct towards each other. So, therefore, if in loving our enemies, and blessing those who curse us, we are like God, he will do the same ; and his in- finite and everlasting goodness will reveal its power in subduing all enmity, in purifying all hearts from sin, and restoring the whole family of man to holiness and happiness. SECTION V. THE JUSTICE OF GOD— -WHAT IT IS AND WHAT IT DEMANDS. No attribute of the Divine character has led to so much vague thinking and reasoning as that of Justice. And perhaps in its human definitions and applications, it would be difficult to find a word more generally misunderstood and misapplied. Lexicographers give to it meanings, judicial authorities state its duties and demands, and theologians assign to it principles and aims, than which nothing could be farther from its nature and office. Retribution, in the sense of retali- ation, of so much pain for so much wrong, vindictive punishment, evil for evil, are elements entering large- ly into the popular, the judicial, and the theological thought on this subject.^ * The English Imperixil Dictionary, Webster, and others, give as one definition of Justice, ''vindictive retribution;" and define *' vindic- tive" to ha ^* revengeful, given to revenge.'''' Bellamy takes up the point with a manifest relish: " Vindictive justice is a glorious and amiable perfection of the Deity. The ejection of the sinning angels out of heaven down to eternal darkness and despair, turning our first pa- rents out of paradise, and dooming them and all their race to death, and the final sentence to be passed on apostate angels and apostate men., at the day of judgement, arc all perfect in beauty. The divine char- ' the better, through the liberty of ohoicc which th" mind has in its power. And the GOD — HIS ATTIUCUTES, ETC. 83 necessary cliastlscmcnts of the great Judge, who regards all with benignity, make mankind grieve for their sins and imperfections, and advance them through the various states of discipline to perfection. Even God's wrath, if so his admonitions may be called, is full of benevolence towards the human race ; for whose sake the Word of God was made man." ^ And with this agrees Origen, one of the greatest scholars, as well as one of the most distinguished Universalists, of the Ancient Church, A. D. 230. He says, " Justice is Goodness .... and when they al- lege that God, who rewards every one according to his deserts, renders evil to the evil, let them not con- ceal the principle (on which this is done) — that as the sick must be cured by harsh medicines, so God administers, for the purpose of emendation, what for the present is productive of pain." ^ Thus the Justice of God, in its absolute character, and in its relative object and end, furnishes one of the most conclusive and unanswerable aro'uments for the final destruction of evil, and the restoration of moral order, for universal holiness and salvation. Its per- petual demand is, " Do right — abolish wrong — obey the law, or suffer the penalty till you do obey — an end of sin and of all evil, and the universal and everlasting reign of Eighteousness — this only will satisfy my claims on mankind, and the end cannot 1 Stromctta Lib. vii. cap. 2; Pcedagog. Lib. i. cap. 8. 2 JDe PrincipHs, Lib . ii. cap. 5, § 3. Even Tertullian says, "J\''ihil bonum^qnodinjustum; bonum aiitem o nine quod jwitum est.'^ Again he says: " Stultissimi, qui de huraanis divina prcejudicant, ut quo- niam in liomine corruptorite conditionis babentur hujusmodi pas- sioncs, idcirco et in Deo cjusdem status cxistimcntur," &c. Contra Marc i. 25, 2C; ii. 12. Ilagcnbach § 39. 84 THEOLOGY or UXIVERSALISM. come till tliis comes. Disorder, injustice, %Yrong, and wickedness, punishment and suffering, are not the end, not the thing the Divine Government rests in , but Unimrsal Ordzr^ HoUn-iSS^ and Ilap^iness^ — these, and only these, arc final and forever, the di- vine offspring of Divine Justice ! " Hence the Lord himself says : — " 1 am a just God and a Saviour — there is none beside me. Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth ; for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in rio"hteousness, and shall not return (i. e. shall be accomplished), that unto me every knee shall bow every tongue shall swear, surely shall say, In the Lord have I righteousness and strength — and all, that are incensed against him shall be ashamed." — Isaiah X. 20—25. § II. Justice has claims on God as loell as on man. There is another side to this question of Justice, which is almost wholly ignored in the argument — viz : that it has claims on God as well as on man. Not only does justice demand that the sinner shall suffer for his sins, but also that he who created shall have dealt fairly with him in all that respects his moral and physical constitution, and the conditions of liis life on earth, prior to his sin ; and that he shall continue to in all the consequences and retributions following it. And God himself recognizes this prin- ciple in his moral administration of our affairs, and in all his dealings with mankind. This is admirably il- lustrated in the record of Abraham's pleading with the Almighty respecting the destruction of Sodom. Gen. xviii. 2-3 — 33. God replies to the question of GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 85 the patriarch ; " Shall not the judge of all the earth do right ? " and plainly admits the moral obligations impHed in the question. So he reasons with the Jews in the same way, and condescends even to defend his action toward them on the grounds of strict justice ; and elaborates the . arguments of defence at great length. Ezek. xviii. The conclusion comes in this form : — " And yet saith the house of Israel, the way of the Lord is not equal. O house cf Israel ! Are not my ways equal ? Are not your ways unequal ? Therefore, will I judge you, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord God." And similar passages are found throughout the Scriptures, acknowledging the law of justice as applicable to the divine conduct : — " Doth God pervert judgment ? or doth the Almighty pervert justice ? " " Far be it from God that he should do wickedness ; and from the Almighty that he should commit ini- quity. " Yea, surely God will not do wickedly ; neither will the Almighty pervert judgment. He will not lay upon man more than is right, that he should enter into judgment with God." — Job viii. xxxiv. " Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne." " Eighteous art thou, O Lord, and upright are thy judgments." — Psalms., Ixxxix, cix., &c. These passages show that God is governed by the strictest principles of honor and justice, in all his dealings with his creatures, acknowledging and re- '' specting all their rights, and all their claims upon him to be treated with fairness and equity In all that involves the interests of the present and the future. Indeed, the government of God is not for the good of 86 THEOLOGY OF UNIYERSALISM. the governor, but for the good of the governed ; not to display the arbitrary power of Deity, but to pro- mote the happiness of mankind. And since, from the nature of the case, the sub- ject of the government could not be consulted as to its form and principles, its laws and penalties ; Jus- tice requires that all these should be such as are fitted to secure the highest good of all concerned. If you act in my affairs without my knowledge or consent, you are bound to act fairly and honorably, for my benefit, and not to my injury. If God bestows on me an existence, which 1 am not allowed to refuse, whatever its responsibilities or perils. Justice demands that the existence thus forced upon me should prove a good and not an evil. If I could see, beforehand, that it would prove an endless curse to me, I should, of course, reject it, if the choice were given me. If God sees beforehand that it will prove an endless curse to me — no matter how or why ; no matter by whose fault — it is a violation of justice in all its defi- nitions to force it upon me. But we will go farther than this, and suppose that he did 7iot know tliat it would prove a final curse ; was it right or just to create us with such a fearful issue as endless woe 2^ossihle even ? Without push- ing the question of omniscience, suppose it possible that we might reach the glory and blessedness of heaven, ought we to be comijclled to take the risk, however unwilling, when the alternative of failure is so awful? Let us resort to illustration again, that we may see it more clearly. A frail and narrow bridge swings across a gulf that stretches fearful and fathomless below. On this, GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 87 as it rocks wildly in the winds, a father places his young child. Beyond, on the other side of the gulf, he has deposited a prize of gold and jewels above estimate, which he promises to the child if he passes the bridge safely ; and then compels him to go, commandino' him to look neither to the rio;ht nor to the left, but to be watchful and attentive; and firm of step. The boy heedless and disobedient, hesitates in- stead of going steadily forward — reels and staggers — the slight bridge quivers for a moment — swings from under him, and hurled as the liirhtninfr, into the gulf, he is caught and impaled on a sharp and jagged splinter of rock far down the abyss. There he hangs for days and weeks, for long and weary years, if possible, struggling and agonizing, and writhing in torture, and crying to his father for help and deliverance. But his father turns a deaf ear to all his entreaties, goes about his business wholly in- different to the horrible sufferings of his child, and justifies himself by saying, "• The boy might have passed the bridge safely, and won the prize — he was warned of the danger— it was his own fault that he fell, and he suffers justly ! " Now, would not Justice, Honor, Humanity, — would not all men and angels, pronounce this father a monster and a fiend ; and reprobate his conduct as the essence of injustice and cruelty ? "VYould not every one say there was no necessity for such a pro- ceeding, no excuse for the awful risk to which the child was thus wantonly exposed ? And shall God place me on the frail and narrow bridge of Life, stretched, as it is, over the awful'and flaming abyss of endless perdition, with the bare pos- hAy\ t^/^ 88 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEllSALISM, sibility of a heaven beyond ; and then leave me there to Avalk it, swinging learfiilly to and fro in the winds and tempests of temptation, till, faint with ter- ror, at last I make a false step, and am percipitated into the fathomless sea of fire below? Why give life with sueh awful hazard ? I would not choose it, nor take it, if left to my own freedom. I would not willingly cross the frail and unsteady bridge, swaying in the wind with so many thousand chances against me — whatever the prize — not for the possibility of ten thousand heavens. Uncreated I suffered nothing, I lost nothing, I ran no risk. Why drag me forth from nothingness with- out my consent, and force me upon the perilous life- brido'e, and then leave me to fall headlons: into the bottomless abyss of torment, torment beyond mea- sure, and without end ? Does not the moral sense of every man cry out against this ? Does not Justice, with all her voices, protest against it ? Assuredly so. There was no need to subject me to this terrible risk — nothino' that demanded it ; and there is nothinjr that can justify or excuse it. And if God has done this, the plea which Young, in " The Last Day," has put into the mouth of the damned sinner in hell, would tell with terrible effect on the Divine Justice as well as INIercy : *' Father of ^lercics ! why from silent earth Didst thou awake and curse me into birth ? Tear vie from quiet, ravish me from night. And make a thankless present of thy light ? Push into being a reverse of thee, ^ And animate a clod with misery ? The beasts are happy \ they come forth and keep Short watch on earth, and then lie down to sleep. GOD— niS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 89 But our dire punishment forever strong. Our constitution too forever young, Cursed -with returns of vigor still the same. Powerful to bear and satisfy the flame ; Still to be caught and still to be pursued ; To perish still, and still to be renewed ! And this my Help, my God at thy decree : JVature is changed and Hell should succor me ! And canst thou, then look down from perfect bliss, And see me plunging in this dark abyss? Calling thee Father, in a sea of fire ? Or pouring blasphemies at thy desire ? With mortal's anguish wilt thou raise thy name? And by my pangs omnipotence proclaim ? ' ' The Divine Justice, therefore, is not only an elo- quent and unanswerable protest against the doctrine of endless pain and punishment ; but it is an equally conclusive argument that all the issues of the divine government under which we have been placed, will be beneficent, and that every living soul shall at last have abundant cause to rejoice that it was created. And so will be fulfilled the prophecy and the promise already quoted,—" I am a Just God and a Saviour , . . unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear, surely shall say, I?i the Lord have, I righteousness and strength,'^ SECTION VI. GOD THE FATHER OF ALL MEN. But God is not only represented in the Scriptures as the Creator of man, perfect in power, and wisdom, and goodness, and justice ; but he has also declared himself as sustaining toward us the intimate and 90 TIIEOLOGr OF UXIVEUSALISM. tender relation of I^arcnt. And in this revelation he announces liimself as assuming all the obligations, and possessing all the affections for us, implied by that name and relation. By the apostle Paul, we have the witness that there is " one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." Eph. iv. ; and again, that "to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him." 1 Cor. viii. "The Lord, the God of the Spirits of all flesh." Num. xvi., xxvii. And, again, we have the saluta* tion : " Grace be to you, and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave him- self for us, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father : to whom be glory forever and ever." Gal. i. And the Saviour has given to the world a beautiful formula of prayer, beginning with, " Our Father, which art in heaven."^ 1 It maybe thought that John viii. 37—45, requires some notice, since here Jesus not only seems to deny that God -was the Father of the unbelieving Jews, but expressly declares the devil to be their father. But he is speaking in this case simply of moral resemblance, or like ness in character. They were children of the devil, or the devil was their father, because they Vv-ere alike in character. The devil was " a murderer from the beginniug," and ** ye seek to kill me ;" *' he is a liar, and the father of it," and ye choose a lie, for ** I tell you the truth, and ye believe me not;" and thus " ye are of your ftither the devil." As they were in moral character or resemblance the children of the devil, so they could not, iti this respect, claim God as tlieir Father, for there was no likeness between them. Verses 39, 40 ex- plain the meaning :—" If ye Averc Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham ;" just as he says, verse 42, "If God were your Father, ye would love me." Of course they were Abraham'a children by nature or descent ; but they were not morally, because Abraham was distinguished for his faith, and they for their unbelief. GOD — HIS ATTRIBUTES, ETC. 91 But God is not only bound to mankind by the ties and affections of a parent, but he has also established over them the authority and discipline of parental government. He has set up his laws and declared his commandments, what he requires us to do, and what he forbids us to do ; and he calls upon us to obey him, with the assurance that obedience brings peace and happiness, and disobedience sorrow and pain. The faithful will find favor in his sight, and the rebellious will incur the penalties of the law. But the law and the penalty, the discipline and pun- ishment, are all the offspring of parental wisdom and love. God governs his great family of intelligent offspring for their good, and not for his own. The commandments are for their benefit, not for his ; and So they were God's children by nature or creation, but not morally or by faith and obedience. The Saviour just as much denies the fixther- hood of Abraham, as the fatherhood of God. The fact is, that the primal parental relation by nature, both of God and of Abraham, ex- ists independent of the moral or spiritual relation. The one is a re^ semblance in character ; the other is the necessity of creation and birth, and cannot be changed nor abolished. A child may be very disobe- dient and sinful, but that does not annul his relationship to his parent. The fact that he is a child is in the nature of things, and cannot be changed by any act either of the father or of the child. The figure in question, is very common in the Scriptures ; as far ex- ample: *' Children of light," and "children of darkness,** " sou of thunder," '* son of perdition,' " son of consolation," &c.; and in the language of the day, we have " Sons of Temperance," " Daughters of Charity," " Sisters of Mercy," aud like forms of speech, expressive of character and action. The language of Jesus no more implies the personality of the devil, than these names imply the personality of Light, Consolation, Temperance and Charity. If it be said that the game reasoning would disprove the jDersonality of God, I answer. No ; for the personality of God does not depend on a name or a relation. The existence of man, the earth, the physical creation, are the witness- ea of God's existence and personality > 92 THEOLOGY OP UXIVERSALISM. the chastisements of disobedience are corrective, and not in anger. The Father rises above the Lawgiver and the Judge, and all other relations of God to man are sub- ordinate to this. The divine love of the Parent is the source out of which comes the Divine Govern- ment, the centre from which all action toward man orijTinates. No lauG^uao-e is too stronof or intensive to express the greatness and tenderness of the Father's affection for his children ; for as the apostle says : " Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalis ties, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.'' Horn. viii. He is the fountain of life, and light and joy, to all his intelligent creatures. By day and by night he cares for us ; from the cradle to the grave, he watches for us, and suffers no real evil to come nisch to us. Our sorrows and trials are not evil, but min- isters of good to us, though for a little they walk with us in disguise. All that we suffer is ordered in a love whose tenderness is equalled only by its wis- dom. And he has told us that he will never abandon his children, Avhatever darkness may cloud the mind, whatever hardness may come upon the heart. They may forsake liim, but he is still a father ; and the golden cord of parental affection is too strong ever to be broken. His infinite energy cannot he exhausted, nor his Spirit wearied, in his efforts to recover the lost, lift up the fallen, and reform the sinful. And ho will not stay the work of regeneration and redemp- tion, until he has rebuilt every ruined soul in its GOD III3 ATTllIBUTES, ETC. 93 original fair proportions, in all its primal symmetry and beauty. ' And how luminously all this is written out on the sacred page, as a part of the Divine religion of Jesus. " Every good gift, and every perfect gift, is from above, and cometh down from the Father of Lio'hts, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." James i. He is the same in his infin- ite goodness toward his children, " yesterday, to-day, and forever," whatever their waywardness or ingrati- tude, or sinfulness ; for change in them works no change in him. Hence the beautiful and affecting witness of Jesus : " Love your enemieSj bless them that curse you, and do good to them that hate you, that ye may he the cliildren of your Father which is in heaven ; for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth his rain on the just and on the unjust. Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father w^hich is in heaven is perfect." Matt. v. Can lano-uajre '* 110 THEOLOGY OF UXIVEESALISJI. Obviously the person who says this, and the per- son to whom it is said, are two persons, and not one. And in the next verse we see the supreme Deity ; " Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity ; tlierefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee lA'ith the oil of gladness above thy fellows." Now, If Christ be called God here, yet there is another who is Ms God, his superior, anointing him for his holy office, and placing him above his fellows. He who does this, and he to whom it is done, are distinct be- insrs, the one subordinate to the other : or the lan- es ' ■' guage is without sense or meaning. (3.) John X. 30. " / and my Father are oneJ'^ Not in person nor in substance, but in thought and purpose respecting the salvation of the world. "For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife ; and they twain shall be one flesJi.''^ Matt. xix. What language is stronger than this ? but in what sense are husband and wife one flesh? Are they one person only, or two persons, who are one in affections, aims and labors ? The same thought is expressed in 1 Cor. iii. 8. '* I have planted, Apollos watered. . . . Now he that planteth, and he that watereth, are one." Did Paul mean to say that he and Apollos were the same per- son ? or that they were one spirit dwelling in two bodies ? Of course not; but only that with one pur- pose and will, they were working to one end, viz : The promotion of Christian truth, and the Christian life, in the Corinthian church. And hence he argues that there should be no divisions, no strifes, among the believers ; but that they should all labor together for the Gospel as it is in Jesus. CHRIST — IlIS NATURE, ETC. Ill In chapter xvii. Jesus prays respecting his discljles, " that they may be one, as wq are^ Did he mean that the twelve should be one person only, or one in spirit and love, one in the work of salvation, as he and the Father were ? So in the 21st verse he prays that all believers '' miy be one, as thou Father art iu mc, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us." That is, one in mind and heart ; otherwise being one with God would make thirteen or fourteen, instead of three, persons in the Godhead, (4.) 1 John V. 7. " For there are three that hear record in heaven^ the Father^ the Word^ and the Holy Ghost ; and these three are oneJ^ Admitting the genuineness of this text, its mean- ing is obviously the same with that of the preced- ing, " I and my Father are one ; " i, e. one in their witness to the truth of the Divine love and grace as manifested in the Gospel ; one in spirit and pur- pose touching the redemption of mankind. See the context. But the text is, beyond question, an inter- polation, as Manuscripts and Versions abundantly demonstrate.^ (5.) Col. i. 15—20. "WTio is the image of the invisible God. . . . For by him were all things creat- ed that are in heaven^' &c. This is very strong lan- guage, but observe: 1. He of whom this is spoken is not the invisible supreme God, but the image of him. The likeness or portrait of a person, is not the person himself. 2. Immediately following this, w^e have this statement : " For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell," <&c. Here the ^ See the author's " Christianity against Infidelity." 2d edition, page 192, 112 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. distinction between the Father as supreme, and the Son as subordinate, is set forth again. It is all ac- cording to the pleasure of the Father ; and the very creative and redeeming fulness of the Son dwells in him by the Father's appointment, and is derived from the Father. (6.) Kom. ix. 5. " Of whom as concerning the fl'ssh Christ came^ who is over all, God Messed for ever. Amen.'' This is simply an exclamation. The allusion to the incarnation of Jesus, brings out the phrase of thankso^ivino; — " God blessed forever," or " Blessed be Grod forever." The expression of Thomas is in the same line, when, putting his finger into the wounded side, he exclaimed, " My Lord ! and my God!" John XX. 2T. (7.) John i. 1-14. " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word teas loith God, and the Wo7'd was God. The same was in the beginning with God;' <&c. Allowing this to refer to Christ personally, and not to the Divme Wisdom or Fnergy taking human form in him, we still see the distinction of person kept up. We cannot suppose that the Word was God in the same sense it is said to be with God. A person can- not properly be said to be with himself. But the dis- tinction is definitely stated, in the usual form, in verse 14 : The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us and w^e beheld his glory, the glory as of the only be.jT^otten of the Father, full of grace and truth." Here the Word is the only begotten of the Father ; but he who begets is not surely the same person wuth him' who is begotten — the one gives life, and the CHRIST — HIS NATURE, ETC. 113 Other receives life — nnd the first is certainly antece- dent to the last. But the simple intention of John is undoubtedly to declare, that the Word, Logos, the Divine Energy cr Wisdom, was with God as an at- tribute, a part of his being ; and was God, in the sense in which a man's thought, or his mind, may be said to be the man himself. This Word, or Spiritual En- ergy,^ " "^^s made flesh," or, in other words, dwelt in Jesus ; it was the spirit " v/ithout measure " given unto him by the Father, and through the inspiration of which he was " full of grace and truth." (8.) 1 John V. 20. '* And we hiow the Son of God is come, and hath given lis an understanding, that we may Jcnoto him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life J' Can any one, who has no theory to defend, per- suade himself that the phrases " the Son of God is come," and " this is the true God," refer to the same person? Can the true God be the Son of himself? Our translators have supplied the word " even," making " him that is true," and " his Son Jesus Christ " the same. But the word " and " is equally authorized, and more consistent : " We are in him that is true," i. e. God the Father, " and in his Son Jesus Christ." This is the true God," who ? The God of whom he had been speaking all along, prior to this verse, and whose Son '* is come, and hath given us understanding, that we may know him that ^Origen, who believed iii the " eternal generatiou" of the Son, and even calls him a second Go J, ^(brcpoi 0i6s, still insists on his inferiority tQ the Father in essence and rank. He is worthy of all honor, after the God of the universe, ^eru t6vO(6v rwv hXuv. Contra Cclsum and De Oral. 114 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. IS true," i. e. know him whom the Son reveals to he the true God ; and this is ^' eternal life." The same idea, and the same words almost, are in the gospel xvii. 3 : " And this is life eternal, that they might knovr thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." (9.) Phil. ii. 6. " WTio^ heing in the form o/ God^ thought it not rohhery to he equal with God,*'' Archbishop Newcome gives the true sense : — " Did not eagerly covet to be equal with God." The word rendered " robbery, " signifies the thing stolen, the prey, the object seized ; and the simple meaning of the language is, that Jesus, though in the form and likeness of God, did not think he should eagerly seize on, or assume, an equality with God; but, so far from such unholy ambition, " made himself of no re- putation, and took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men." The present translation completely defeats the object of the apos- tle, which was to teach a lesson of humility, from the example of Christ. But what humility was there in aspiring to be equal with God ? " Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus." The whole point of the exhortation lies in the fact that Christ, being in the likeness or fomi of God, did not seek to be equal with God, but " took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of man, and humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also highly exalted him," &c. Verses 5-11. But how could God liighly exalt him If he was already equal to God ? And how could it be said that God exalted him at all, if he himself were God ? CHRIST — 'HIS NATURE, ETC. 115 II. Scriptural proof against the Deity of Christ, Let us come now to the positive proof that Christ is not the supreme God, but subordinate to, and de- pendent on him, for all things. (1.) Jesus always acknowledged the supremacy of the Father^ and his own dependence on him, " My Father is greater than I." John xiv. When he said "my Father," did he mean himself? did he mean that he was greater than himself? or greater when acting; as Father than when actins: as Son ? What is the honest interpretation of such lano-uage ? "The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sceth the Father do." John v. What would the people infer from this — that he who uttered it was the Almighty God ? " My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me." John vii. Are we to understand from this that in the capacity of Father he sent him- self in the capacity of Son; and that while his doc- trines were not his own as the sent, t\\Qj were his own as the sender ? " As my Father taught me, I ppeak these things." John viii. " To sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father," Matt. xx. Yet if he were God, it was his to give. " Of that day and that hour knoweth no man ; no, not the angels in heaven, neither the Son, but my Father only." Mark xiii., Matt. xxiv. But if the Father and Son were the same beinsf, it was not possible that he should not know as Son what he knew as Father. " My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ? " -Matt, xxvii. Was this cry of anguish and desolation addressed to himself? These are examples of the direct and positive asser- 116 THEOLOGY OF UXI VHERSALISM. tions of Jesus himself, that he was only the sen'ant and agent of God, by whose authority and help he eaid and did everything. He does not know all things, all times and events — this infinite knowledge belongs to the Father only. All his doctrines and miracles are from one greater than himself, who alone is almighty and all-wise. He is not God, but the Son of God, and all wisdom and power are given him of the Father. And in confirmation of this he con- tinually expressed the sense of his dependence on God by prayer. " He continued all night in prayer to God." Luke vi. " Sit ye here while I go and pray." Matt, xxvi., Mark i. vi., Luke v. ix. xxii. If he were God what is the meaning of this praying? Would he seek of himself the power and guidance and support, which he knew he already possessed in himself? Was the prayer in spirit or in form only ? a true expression of weakness and dependence on his part, or a deception practised on those who followed him? (2.) The conduct and testimony of his disciples show that they did not believe him to he God. It is not possible to believe that the twelve, who were continually with him, really supposed they were keeping company with the almighty Jehovah, taberna- cled in a human body ; eating, drinking, sleeping, walk- ing and conversing with him. If they did believe that Jesus was actually the omnipotent, omniscient God, the Creator and Ruler of the universe ; they were the most extraordinary men the world ever saw, and their conduct towards him sets at defiance all the ordinary principles upon which we interpret human action. Can any reasonable man convince himself that the CHRIST — HIS NATURE, ETC. 117 disciples, impressed witli the tremendous fact that this Jesus was the great God himself, would, as they did, argue with him, advise, reprove, betray, deny and forsake him, with cowardly fear, in the presence of his human enemies ? Could they have been so free and familiar in their intercourse with him ? could they have lost their faith in him, and abandoned their work in despair, if all the while they knew he was the Lord Almighty ? Do the simple and plain nar- ratives of the Gospels anywhere — not to say every- where^ as they would, if it were true — indicate to the reader that the men who wrote, wrote under the pressure of the awful and ever present thought, that they were giving us the history of God's life on earth ? of the sayings and doings of the Infinite Je- hovah vdiom they knew, and with whom they met and talked, face to face, for the space of three years ? They always speak of him as inferior and subject nj God ; as sent, anointed, inspired, directed, sup- ported, exalted, raised from the dead by God; as the agent, servant, the Son, the Beloved of God ; as a Mediator, a Priest, a Man, the Image, the Begotten, the First-born of God. " There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." " Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-bom of every creature." " This Jesus hath God raised." " God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost." " When all things shall be sub- dued under him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all." 1 Tim. ii.. Col. i.. Acts ii., X., xvii., 1 Cor. xv. &c. This language applied everywhere to Christ is 118 THEOLOGY OF UNI VERS ALISM. wholly irrcconcUeable wit)i the supposition that the writers believed him to be the only living and true God, supreme in all things. Look at the last two passages from the stand-point of the Trinity, that the Fatlier, the Son and the Holy Ghost are one and the same beino; — " God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost," i. e., God anointed God with God. Is this what Peter intended to say? Is this what the Jews and Gentiles understood him to say ? and was it to this unintelligible doctrine that Cornelius and his family were converted ? Then the Son being subject to him who put all things under him, that God may be all in all. Did Paul really write this under the impression that the subject Son and the God who is all in all, were one and the same ? that he who put all things under Je- su?, was this Jesus himself? and that when in a pre- ceding verse he speaks of his " delivering up the king- dom to God, even the Father," he was himself the God and Father to whom he delivered up the king- dom ? Surely there is but one fair and honest interpreta- tion of such language from the lips of the disciples and apostles ; and that is, that it was spoken out of an unquestioning conviction on their part, that he was the Son and not the Father in any sense, subor- dinate to God, coming from him and returning to him ; receiving his power and wisdom, his kingdom and all things from God, and finally surrendering all things back again to him. And since they were con- stantly with him, and heard all his public testimonies, and all liis private conversations, and therefore cer- tainly had the best means of knowing his true char-' CHRIST — IirS IsMTUKE, ETC. 119 acter, we think it safe to follow tliem in faith, and accept their verdict in the case. (3.) Christ expressly and positively denied that he was God, when charged with claiming to he so hy the Jews, " Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God." John v. 17-23. Now, how did Jesus meet this false inference from his lano^uao-e ? He did say that God was his Father, and the Jews pretended from this that he made himself equal with God, in the same sense that the son, come to manhood, is the equal with his father. The point is, that by claiming God as his Father, he claimed — not that he was God himself, for parent and child are not one, or the same person, but — that he was, in all respects, of the same nature and essence with God ; as the son is, in all respects, of the same nature, and, mentally and bodily, the equal of his father. But even this the Saviour promptly and directly denies. He assures the Jews that he does not claim to be of the same nature and essence w^ith God, or his equal in anything, because he calls God his Father. God is self-existent ; and he is be2:otten and created. God is of himself all in all ; and he is dependent. God has spiritual life in himself ; but to him it is given. Then answered Jesus and said unto them, " Verily I say unto you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sceth the Father do. .... I can of mine own self do nothino; : as I hear I judge," &c. Ver. 30. Nothing is plainer than that Jesus here rebuts the false charge of making himself 120 THEOLOGY or UNIYEKSALTSM. cquiil with God, by acknowledging that he was whol- ly dependent upon him ; deriving from him his life, knowledge, and miraculous powers, and doing only those things that the Father gave him authority to do in his name. * But there is another passage even more direct to the point than this, where the Jews accused him of claiming to be not equal with God, but God himself:. The record of the occasion and circumstances is in John X. 30-38. Jesus had said in their presence, " I and my Father are one," whereupon they " took up stones to stone him ; " and Jesus asking why they stoned him, they answered, "For blasphemy, and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. " Now, how did Jesus meet this charge ? If he were really God, the charge was true, and this was the time, of all others, to declare his Deity. The occa- sion, his character, the truth, everything demanded that he should assert openly that he was God the Almighty, if this were the fact. Does he do this ? Does he say plainly, "It is not blasphemy for me to make myself God, for I am GodP'' No ; not a word of this sort ; but the record says : — " Jesus answered tlicm. Is it not written in your law, I said, ye are gods ? If he called them gods, unto whom the word *- And this reply and denial of Jesus shows the en'or of the transla- tion in Phil. ii. 6. " Who being in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God." This is what he was accused of by the Jews, and expressly repudiates. If he " thought it not robbery to be equal with God," if he was equal w^ith God, why did he deny it to the Jews ? Why did he not rather admit the fact, and defend it instead of Eaj Lng, " I can do nothing of myself." CHRIST — IIIS NATURE, ETC. 121 of God came, and the Scriptures cannot be broken ; say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the work!, Thou blasphemest because 1 said, I am the Son of GodV Here is a direct and unqualified denial of the charge that he was God, and a re-assertion of the old truth that he was only the Son of God ; and that this was all he intended by the words to which they had taken exception — " I and my Father are one." ^ Now if Jesus was truly God, how could he meet the charge in this way ? How can the Trinitarian, after this reply of the Saviour, still maintain that he is God, without virtually charging him with dishonesty ? And observe how carefully all the attendant particu- lars are phrased to illustrate his denial, and show his dependent and subordinate character ; viz., that the Father had sanctified him, had him sent into the world, and, in the next verse, that the works he did were the Father's. I see not how it is possible, in the face of this record, to affirm the Deity of Christ, without compromising his character for integ- rity, honesty, and truth. (4.) The whole tenor and drift of the New Testa- ment is to the point that Christ is inferior to God^ who is alone Eternal^ Infinite^ and Supreme. It is a just rule in reading a book where some pas- sages are obscure, or unintelligible, or in seeming contradiction to other passages, to appeal to the gene- ral tenor or sense of the whole ; and thus seek to get at ' Is it not singular that Christians should make the same mistake which the Jews made in regard to this saying of Jesus, "I and my Father are one; " and that they should persist in forcing upon it a meaning Avhich he so positively disavows ? 122 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. the true im2:)ort of the doubtful, through the evident intent and meaning of the entire book. In order to illustrate this point, and exhibit the weight of the ar- gument, I shall introduce the following summary of texts : 1st. Those passages in the New Testament, in which the Father is styled one or only God, are in number 17. 2d. Those passages where he Is styled God, abso- lutely^ by way of eminence and supremacy^ are in number 320. 3d. Those passages where he Is styled God, with peculiarly high titles and ejnthets or attributes, are in number 105. 4th. Those passages wherein It Is declared that all prayers and praises ought to be offered to htm, and that every thing ought ultimately to be directed to HIS honor and glory, are in number 90. 5th. Passages wherein the Son is declared positive- ly, and by the clearest Implication, to be subordinate to the Father, deriving His being from Him, receiv- ing from Him his divine power, and acting in all things wholly according to the will of the Father, are in number above 300. 6th. Of 1300 passages in the New Testament, where the word God is mentioned, not one of them necessarily implies a plurality of persons. ^ Such are the Scriptural grounds on which we rc- * Grundy's Lectures, -where the passages are quoted in full. In ad- dition to the above may be counted 2,000 i)assages from the Old Testa- ment, in which the oneness of God is positively asserted, or evidently implied. See also Wilson's Scriptural Proofs of Unitarianism, where the texts are classified according to the thought. THE ATONEMENT. 123 jcct the doctrine of the Trinity, and affirm that God is one onl}^ ; and that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, inferior and subordinate to him, but sancti^ed, and gifted, and exalted, by him, above all other be- ings, angels and men ; and sent into the world as his Image, the Brightness of his glory, the Representa- tive of his truth and love, the Example, the Sancti- fier and Saviour of the world. SECTION II. THE ATONEMENT, WHAT IT IS, AND HOW WE ARE RECONCILED AND SAVED BY THE DEATH OF CHRIST. The word " Atonement " is one of those theologi- cal terms, the true meaning of which has been sadly perverted ; and the beautiful and tender thought which it expresses in the Scriptures, overlaid with the errors and coarse definitions of the schools and creeds. It is a curious fact that this word, which occupies BO large a space in the theological literature, and sec- tarian controversies, of our time, is found only once in the New Testament. Eom. v. 11. And the use of it in this passage is so directly in conflict with the meaning commonly attached to it, that it is a marvel how it ever came to signify substitution, or the suf- ferino: of Christ in the sense of satisfaction to Divine Justice. The meaning of the original word is wide enough from this idea, and is properly expressed in every other passage where it occurs, by the English word " reconciliation." And this was the meaning of the 124 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. word " atonement " in early English, and at tlie tiine the present translation Avas made. It has passed out of this into its present narrow and perverted sense, since that day. A few references to earher literature will illustrate this point. Johnson, the lexicographer, states that the primi- tive meaning of the word was " to agr-:e^ to accord."^ And he quotes from Shakespeare, who was contem- porary with our translators, in proof of this : ** He and Aufidius can no more atone Than violentest contrariety." Trench, in his Glossary of English Words, gives the following illustrations of its early usage : " His first essay succeeded so well, Moses would venture on a second design, to atone two Israelites at variance." " Havinix more reo-ard to their old variance than their new atonement.'''' " If Sir John Falstaff have committed disparage- ment unto you, I am of the Church, and will be glad to do my benevolence, to make atonements and com- promises between you."-^ In all these examples, " atone " signifies agreement ^ or reconciliation^ being put in opposition to " con- trariety," " variance," " hostility," &c. Originally it was written as two words, joined by a hyphen, and pronounced thus, at-one ; and the noun at-one-ment^ meaning a state of oneness or unity. In the Apocrypha the translators have used the 1 Coriolanus, Act. iv. Sc. 6. Fuller's Pisgah Sight of Palestine, n 92. Uoore's Histonj of Richard III, Mernj fVives of Windsor Act i. Sc. 1. THE ATONEMENT. 125 word in this form : " Then cried they to Simon, be- seeching them to be at-one with them," referring to those besieged in the tower at Jerusalem. 1 Macca- bees xiii. 50. So in the second book of Maccabees, where the wish is expressed that God " would hear your prayers and be at^one with you," i. 5. And again it is written : '* Though the Lord be angry with us a little while for our chastening and correc- tion, yet sh-all he be at-ouQ again with his servants," yii. 33. And in the New Testament we have this use of the word : " The next day he showed himself unto them as they strove, and would have set them at'One again." Acts vii. 26 ; i. e. would have atoned or reconciled them. The Book of Homilies, of the Church of England, employs the term in the same sense in reference to Christ's death, though it falsely apphes it to God instead of man. ^ The New Testament never speaks of God being reconciled to man, but it is always man who is reconciled to God. Hence in the passage al- ready named, the only one in which the word atone- ment is used, we have it in this form : " But we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whcm we have now received the atonement^ Rom. v. 11. It is we who have been atoned or reconciled to God, not God to us. And this is the uniform witness of the Gospel ; and it shows how utterly unfounded is the common doctrine of God's wrath against man, and the necessity of Christ's sacrificial death in order to satisfy his offended justice. Let us see how thia stands in the sacred text. » See Noble's Lectures on Important Doctrines, pp, 368-370. 12G THEOLOGY OF UNI VERBALISM. Eom. y. 10, 11. " For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life," &c, 2 Cor. v. 18--20. " All things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconcili- ation ; to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself^ not imputing their trespasses unto them ; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now, then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us ; we pray you, in Christ's stead, he ye reconciled to God.^^ Rom. xi. 15. " The reconciling of the worUV 1 Cor. vii. 11. " Let her remain unmarried, or be re- conciled to her husband." These are all the passages in the Kew Testament where the Greek word rendered atonement occurs ; and, as we see, in every instance but one it is rendered by the word " reconciliation," in its substantive or verbal form. The idea embodied in the word is ob- vious enough, and the doctrine is plain and positive beyond mistake or dispute. It is we who are ene- mies to God, not he an enemy to us. We are the unreconciled party ; and the object of Christ's death, and the whole aim and intent of the Gospel, is this one thing - — to reconcile man to God. This is the true atonement, and this is all that is embodied in the figures of a Sacrifice, a Mediator, Intercessor, Advo- cate, &c. There is no suffering of punishment in the place of the guilty world; no infliction of the penal- ties of the violated law on one who never offended ; no satisfaction rendered to inexorable justice ; no con- fusion of God the judge and executioner, and God the THE ATONEMENT* 127 Victim and sufferer; nothiDg vicarious or substitu- tiocal, in any sense whatever, in this scriptural pre- sentation of the subject. ' God was in Christ recon- ciling the world unto himself, and the burthen of the ministry of reconciliation is simply this- — " Be ye re- conciled to God." Hence the apostle declares that " it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell ; and, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, whether things in earth, or things in heaven." Col. i. 19, 20. And it is at this point where we see the union of God and Christ in the salvation of man. In the pre- 1 Those who woulcl see to what extent of blasphemy a creed may go respecting Christ's suffering as our substitute^ may consult Luther's comment on Gal. iii. 13. I have not courage to quote it; but it may be found in I^oyes' Introduction to his "Collection of Theological Essays," a most valuable article. It is instructive to follow the grad- ual growth of reasonable views on the subject, from Luther's day to the pi-esent. Dr. Noyes has shown the way. The following specimen will illustrate one stage of the growth. It is from Flavel, whose works are still published by the American Tract Society : " To wrath, to the wrath of an infinite God without mixture, to the very torments of hell, was Christ delivered, and that by the hands of his own Father." " It was wrath aggravated in diverse respects beyond that whicn the damned themselves do suffer." Per contra, those who would see what pro- gress has been made in regard to the doctrine of the atonement, even in the bosom of the Church, may read the Essays by Jowett on " The Atonement," the " Imputation of the sin of Adam," &c., in his Com- mentai-y on Paul's Epistles, or in Noyes's Collection. Rev. Charles KixGSLEY, also of the English Church, and one of the most popular authors of the day, himself a Universalist, in his preface to the " Fool of Quality," by Henry Brooke, who was also a Universalist, speaka severely of the creeds which teach that God " will doom to endless tor- ture the vast majority of the human race; while he has made, for the purpose of delivering a very small minority, a certain highly artificial urrangenient (the atonement,) to be explained by no human notions of justice or of love; " thus making *' the divine morality utterly diff- erent from the ideal of human morality." p. xlis. London Edit. 1859, 1128 THEOLOGY or UNIVERSALISM. vious chapter, on the divine cliaracter and attributes, we showed that the discipline and final redemption of the human race, was embraced in the original plan of God, and that his Power and Wisdom were eno-agred to overcome all obstacles, to remove all opposition, obstinacy, and evil, from the heart of man, and recon* cile and restore him to holiness and heaven. But while this was the original purpose of God, it was also his purpose to accomplish this, not by a mir- acle, but through appointed means ; or, in one word, through the grace and truth of Jesus Christ the Son, aided and blessed by the sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit. And the declaration of Paul, just cited, indicates the manner in which Christ, as the anointed of God, becomes to man " the Way, the Truth, and the Life," the Mediator, the Eeconciler, and Saviour. And how beautiful and intelligible is all this, and in what a different light it presents the character of God, compared with the popular doctrine of atone- ment. A world disobedient, sinful, long wandering, and borne down with the sorrows and sufferings that have come of transgression — God a loving and pity- ing Father, looking upon, and watching over, his wayward children, with a tender and never wearying affection ; and sending his willing Son, endued with wisdom aod power, to show them the way of repent- ance and restoration. He comes in the Father^s name, and with an earnest and true soul, gives him- self to the task of leading the wandering sheep back to the fold of rest and safety. He reveals the true character of God, whom they had feared, and at whose name they had trembled ; he tells them of his infinite and unchangeable love ; his goodness that haa THE ATONEMENT. 129 been so patient, and suffered so long with them ; of his compassion for them in their blindness, and error, and sin, and his purposes of grace and redemption, through faith and obedience ; of his wise and benefi- cent laws made for their good, and the reasonable- ness and blessedness of obedience ; of the inheritance of life and immortality, of which they were heirs and joint-heirs with him, and through him ! And when he has opened to them these great truths, and shed the light and warmth of them into their hearts, he calls upon the prodigals to be reconciled to God, to receive the at-one-ment which he offers them, and come back to the blessed home where all things beau- tiful abide, and where the soul shall rejoice forever- more in the sunshine of Heaven. And to this holy work he devotes all his strength and energies. He pleads with them, toils and suffers, and is persecuted even by those whom he seeks to bless — so perverse is the heart of man, so cruel is sin. And at last betrayed and crucified, he seals the sincerity of his words and actions, and crowns his life and labors, with his death. And that to the Death of Christy as well as to his life, the writers of the New Testament attribute a pe- culiar influence and efficacy in the work of atone- ment, cannot be denied. It is associated with the salvation of the world, in such a way as to show that it had a special place among the agencies working out the result. A consideration of this point, a little more in detail, will discover to us the more important relations of the Saviour's death to the atonement, or the reconciliation of man to God. ISO THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM. 1. The death of Christ as an J^xample. — Jesus not only came to show us how to live, but also how to die, how to yield up everything to truth and duty, how to die with forgiveness and love toward all men, even our enemies ; with faith and resignation toward God ; with courage and confidence respecting the future. Througli suffering he was made perfect, as the Caj)tain of our Salvation. His death was the crown- ing glory of his great work, giving to the whole the harmonious beauty of perfect proportion and com- pleteness. Had he not died and triumphed as he did, we should have felt that something: was want- ing, that the finish was omitted. We should have been in doubt how he would have met the last great trial. But now we know how he met it, and that his death was like his life, serene and beautiful, an exhi- bition of highest love, a perfect submission to the will of God, a complete surrender of self to the good of mankind, amid fearful agonies, and girded about with unmitigated horrors and ferocities. His death shows us how to conquer, how to for- give, how to be true to highest principle ; and so as an example of the divinest sort, helps, by its direct influence on the heart, to save from hate, and passion, and human weakness, and the power of evil. And finally, it helps us to meet death, even in its worst forms, and amid its fiercest terrors, with composure, and sweetness, and holy trust toward God. And what power there is in this example, may be seen in the case of Stephen, when, bruised and crush- ed with the stones dashed upon him by his murder- ers, he knelt down, and cried with a loud voice, THE ATONEMENT. 131 " Lord, lay not this sin to their charge." The death of Jesus, and his great prayer, "Father, forgive them," had taught him how to die, and how to for- give his bloody-minded assassins. And on how many hearts has the perfected exam- ple of Christ, in his death, had a subduing, sanctify- ing, and redeeming power. How many have offer- ed up the prayer of forgiveness, who never would have done it but for his death scene. How many have thus received the atonement, and been reconcil- ed to God and their fellows, through the sacrifice of the Lamb of God. 2. The death of Christ is a commendation of God's love to the tcorld. — In this respect, the death of the Saviour is peculiar in character, and in its direct rela- tion to the reconciliation and redemption of man. The Scriptures of the New Testament constantly present it in this light, as being designed especially to reveal and commend the love of God to man. The death of no other servant of God, of no other good man, is ever spoken of in this respect, as the death of Jesus is. Others may die as martyrs, as friends of humanity, in behalf of the truth ; but in no instance is their death said to stand in that peculiar position between God and mankind, which is uniformly as- signed to the death of Christ. In no case is it said of them, that they died to commend the love of God to the world ; or that their death was intended to bear a direct and efficacious relation to the salvation of man. If it be asked why the death of Christ is any more an exhibition of divine love, than the death of any good man in the same cause ; it can only be answer- 102 THEOLOGY OF UNIYERSALISM. ^c.d Ly (lie fact that God must, in some way, reveal himself, and make known his love to his erring and sinful children. Some means must be employed, some visible and actual exhibition of his gracious mercy must be made ; and all we can say is, that, amid an infinite variety of methods, he chose this, the death of Christ. Of the fact itself, that he did choose this method, that the death of Christ was a commendation of his favor and love, we have plainest declaration. In his Epistle to the Eomans, Paul expressly states that " God commendeth Jiis love toward us, in that, while w^c were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Chap. v. 8. So John : " For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world : but that the world throu2i;li him mio-ht be saved."' John iii. IG, 17. So in his first Epistle : " In this was manifested the love of God toward us^ because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him." Chap, iv. 9. All this shows that Christ died, not because God was angry with us, not to save the world from the divine wrath and vengeance ; but because God loved the world, and sought to deliver it, through Christ, from sin and death, and every power of evil. He sends his only Son, as his representative, to die in at- testation of the greatness of his aflTection toward us. He shows us, in the sufferings and death of Christ, how strongly he is bound to us, how^ mighty is the love which, amid so much evil and wickedness, still THE ATONEMEXT. 133 clings to the guilty, and seeks their good, and aim9 to deliver them into the glorious liberty of his spirit- ual children. How this exhibition of Divine Love in the death of Christ, how the crucifixion scene itself, influences the hardest heart, and with a mighty moral power, over- comes the evil in it, and inspires it with gratitude, love, and goodness ; and how, therefore, the death of the Saviour is related to the salvation of the sinner, is sufficiently plain without argument. When he sees the great love of God, as manifested in the death of Jesus, when he sees that the very heart he has pierced, beats in its last pulses of agony with tender- est affection for him ; in spite of himself the rebel- lious spirit within him is subdued into shame and penitence ; the ice of sin melts away before the warmth of Divine Love ; and now he feels how hard it is to sin against such love. And at last, contem- plating this pathetic scene, this exhibition of good- ness and compassion, he is forced to yield, and cries out with Saul, " Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ? " And so In his case the atonement is complete ;. he is reconciled to God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 3. The death of Christy associated with his Hesur- red ion, confirms the assurance of our future exist- ence^ and delivers us from the fear of death. This is declared to be one of the great purposes of the death of Christ, that he might rise again to the justification of our hope of immortality ; and show us that we also shall live again, and, being children of the resurrection, shall therefore, on that account, be also children of God. To this end, the Saviour 134 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. directs attention to tills point, often speaking of his death and his triumph over the grave, fixing the thought of his disciples and hearers on the predicted event, that when it came to pass, they might re*- mcmber his words. It was the purpose of God that it should take place under peculiar circumstances, with special ac- compamments, that it might be known and perceived in its relations to the future life of the soul ; and fur- nish a foundation of hope and faith, that, as our Re- deemer llveth, wc shall live also. It is made to oc- cupy a prominent place in the history and mission of the Saviour, that the attention of the world might be drawn to it as a demonstration of the truth of what he had taught on this point. Thus it reveals to us the plan of God respecting our hereafter, and reconciles us to him by faith and gratitude, making us at-one with him. Thus, also, it contributes to our salvation from doubt and fear re- specting death ; and establishes on a rock foundation, our confidence in that great and blessed truth, which, before Christ, had either not been seen at all, or so dimly seen, that it neither softened the terrors of death, nor lifted the Impenetrable gloom of the grave ; so dimly that it Imparted to the dying neither courage nor consolation. But now, if Christ died and rose again as a prophecy of our future life, the problem is solved, the darkness and gloom are &catter- ed, and light from his empty tomb, glorious and beau- tiful, streams downward into the valley of shadows, and upward to the gates of heaven. We are recon- ciled to God ; we are reconciled to death. We see how " through death he destroys him that had tho THE ATONEMENT. 135 power oF death, that is, the devil ; and delivers those v^'ho, through fear of death, were all their life time subject to bondage.'' Ileb. ii. 14, 15. Thus it is that Christ's death is related, in a pecu- liar and efficacious manner, to our salvation in the gospel sense, i. e. salvation from sin and disobedience, iVom the bondajxe and the fear of death, and from evil of every sort. And we see how it is, that through the blood of Christ v/e have forgiveness or remission of sins, are spiritually vrashcd and made clean, and accepted of God ; or, in Paul's words, how by him we receive the atonement, and have pe-ace with God. We see, in clearest light, and understand, the mean- \\\^ of the atonement, that is, reconciliation to God. It is plain to us that, though Christ does not, as our substitute, save us from punishment by suiiering for us, yet he saves us from sin, by leading us away from it into the paths of life and peace. Let us consider how immense the sacrifice, in order for us to die to save a righteous man, or a dear friend even, from death. But the love of God for us is manifest in that, while we were yet sinners and ene- mies, Christ died for us ! Let us contemplate the death of the Saviour in this light, and we shall soon discover how it is that we are saved by his death — "we shall soon find its spiritual power over our way- ward affections and passions. As we feel the warm blood trickling down upon our hearts from his wounded side, his lacerated hands and feet, and hear his prayer of forgiveness, we sliall be completely con- quered by the diA'inc and heavenly influence. The s[)irit will bow in grateful penitence to the power of Almighty Love ; and every evil aifection will die out 106 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. frora the heart. And thus, receiving the atonement, and saved with an everlasting salvation, we shall gladl}^ join the throng who take up the song of the Ivcdecmcd ; " Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father ; to hhn be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen." SECTION III. THE DEATH OF CHRIST NOT VICAEIOUS HE DID NOT SUFFER A3 OUR SUBSTITUTE ARGUMENT FROM THE EPISTLE TO THE IIEBEEWS. It may be said that the foregoing presentation of the doctrine of Atonement, differs in a very marked manner from the popular views on this subject ; and that there are some passages of scripture which seem not only not to accord with this theory, but to de- clare the death of Christ to be sacrificial in the ordi- nary sense of the word, especially portions of the Epistle to the Hebrews. This presumed difficulty is now entitled to a respectful consideration. So far as the Epistle to the Hebrews is concerned, the sum of the matter is, that the apostle makes a general comparison, showing a general resemblance between the things of the law and of the gospel ; with a view, at the same time, to show the difFcrer ccs in important particulars between the two, and where- in, in respect to these diffijrences, Christ and the gos- pel are superior to Aaron and the Law. And it is only in the light of this fact, keeping the design of the writer in the foreground, that any one can hope THE DEATH 01^ CHRIST NOT VICAHIOUS. 137 to understand the language and teachings of this epistle. And at the very outset, the idea of substitution is disavowed, in the positive declaration that, under the Law Dispensation (" the word spoken by angels,") *' every transgression and disobedience i^eceived a just recompense of reward," ii. 2 ; i. e. says Hammond, *' the breaches of the law were actually punished." Now, if this be true, then plainly the sacrifices of the law were not vicarious. If every transgression and disobedience received a just punishment, then the sin and trespass offerings of the Law did not save from this punishment. They were not something accepted as a substitute for this, and thereby wholly releasing the sinner from the consequences of his sin. Nothing, it would seem, can be plainer than this, or more con- clusive against the vicarious theory. And the same is apparent now. Notwithstanding the asserted vicarious death of Christ, men suffer for their sins as much as if no satisfaction had been ren- dered to the divine law. Every trangression and dis- obedience receives its just recompense and reward under the new, as well as under the old, dispensa- tion ; and the sacrifice of Christ does not seem to in- terfere with the natural operation of the moral and physical law, any more than the Levitical sacrifices. There is no. transfer of the guilty conscience, the remorse and terror of the murderer, to the innocent sufferer on the cross. The crime and its punishment still clino; to2:cther in the darkened and condemned soul of the criminal. And it cannot be otherwise as man is constituted at present. Vicarious suffering for sin, the transfer of the proper and only legitimate 138 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. pimisliment of sin, from the guilty to the innocen-t, Is a simple impossibility, without an entire change of man's moral and spiritual nature, which would be substantially the creation of a new race of beings. And the physical suffering, broken constitution, wasted property, degradation^ shame, and wretched- ness of soul and body, which reveal the drunkard, reveal also that the punishment is inherent in, and inseparable from, the sin, and that no sacrifice can save from it. Nay, they show that, without a per* petual miracle, without the constant interposition of God in every example of transgression, the punish* ment of sin could not in any sense be transferred to Christ. • I turn now to the consideration of some of the par- ticulars respecting the sacrifice of Chris-t, as they are set forth in this epistle and in other scriptures. § I. Christ a Sacrifice for Sin.— The constant de- claration is, that Christ offered himself a sacrifice for sin, and not as a substitute to release man from pun- ishment* " His blood cleanseth from all sin ; " he '^' puts away sin by the sacrifice of himself; " "he offered one sacrifice for sins for ever;" he "bears the sins of many ; " our " hearts are sprinkled from an evil conscience ; " we are " purged from dead works to serve the living God," &c. ' Dr. Clarke justly says, •* Every sinner has a daily pay, and this pay is death ; be has misery because he sins. Sin constitutes hell; the sinner has a hell in his own bosom; all is confusion and disorder ■where God does not reign; every indulgence of sinful passions in- creases tlic disorder, and consequently the misery of the sinner." J\''ote on Rom. vi. 23. This being the case, it is not easy to see how Christ suffers in his stead, unless the sinner receives double wages, or is paid twice j — once in his own person and once in the person of Christ* THE DEATH OF CHRIST NOT VICARIOUS. 130 This \h the language of the epistle ^perpetually re- peated, but not a word of his bearing the ptmi&hmerd of sin, or suffering as a substitute in this respect. And thus the epistle harmonizes with the rest of the New Testament, whix^h uniformly testifies that he saves us from sin and iniquity. " He gave himself for our sins," that he might " redeem us from all ini" qidty ; '' " he shall be called Jesus, for he shall save liis people from their s^?^8," eYQ to be understood as a full and tfue type, it would prove nothing for the vicarious theory. The Passover began in Egypt, before the giving of' the law, and was perpetuated as one of the festivals under the law. The record is in Exodus xii. 1-28. Here the Israelites are required to kill a lamb, and eat it with unleavened bread, and to " take of the blood and strike it on the two side-posts, and on the upper door-post," of their houses. " For the Lord will pass through and smite the (first born of the) Egyp- tians, and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel^ and on the two side-posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you." Yerse 23. Now there is nothing like a sacrifice of substitu- tion here, nor even an offering for sin. The Jews had not sinned, w^ere in no danger of punishment, and the lamb was not intended to avert the wrath of God against them. The judgment was against the Egyp- tians entirely, and the blood on the door-posts was a token of deliverance for them and theirs, from the destroying angel. And in this sense Christ is our Passover, if his blood is so appropriated, through faith and obedience, as to distinguish us, as true Is- raelites, from the hardened and wicked Egyptians. If " the blood of Christ cleanseth us from all sin," then we are known as his, and the angel of judgment 2)asscs us over. We are saved from those evils which we should have suffered had we continued in sin, as did the Egyptians. Hence Christ is called the THE DEATH OF CHRIST NOT VICARIOUS. 141 *^ Lamb (I. c, of the Passover,) that takcth away the fl 1 of the world," § III. Christ our Ransom. — The Scriptures speak of Christ as a ransom. He says himself, " The Son of Man came to give his life a ransom for many." Matt. XX. 28, Paul affirms that " he gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time," 1 Tim. ii. 6. Tlie thought embodied in this form of expression is |)lainly, deliverance from the bondage of sin. The prophet Isaiah represents the arm of the Lord as that which *' made the dep-ths of the sea a way for the ransomed to pass over." li. 10. The ransomed iiere were the Israelites, ransomed or delivered from the servitude of Egypt. Of course, the Lord did not pay a price to the Egyptians to let his people go, though thev are said to be ransomed. See also Jer, xxxi. 11. So in Ilosea xiii, 14, God says, " I will ransom them from the po%v(?r of the grave ; I will re- deem them from death." Now, are we to suppose that God really, literally, or in any sense, paid a price to the grave in order to release those referred to from its power ! Did he redeem them in the sense of buy- ing them out of the hands of death ? Did he render to death, or the grave, an equivalent for the life of those who were ransomed ? No ; but the manner in which they were ransomed, is shown in the next words : " O death, I will be thy plagues ; O grave, I will be thy destruction ! " So Jesus is represented as giving himself to ran- som or redeem mankind from the servitude and slav- ery of sin. He strengthens the heart in its resistance, be inspires it with heavenly courage, he breaks the iI2 THEOLOGY OF UXrVEIlSALIS:M, power of evil, and the bonds of imquity, and leads U3 forth into spiritual liberty. In a word, he destroys sin, makes an end of it, and so liberates us from its bondacfe, and establishes the law of rii^hteousness io nW hearts foreyermore. § IV. Christ redeems us from the curse oftTie Law, Though the pnssage here refeiTcd to is in Gala- iLans, it properly comes in here for notice. " Christ hath redeemed ns from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us ; for it is written. Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree." Gal. iii. 13. It IS cr^sy ta see that this was a kind of proverb, or poi)ular saying among the Jews ; because there is no possible reason, in the nature of things, .why one who was hanged on a tree, should be specially cursed of God, more than one put to death in any other way. The apostle's reference is to Deut. xxi. 23, where the body of one executed in this way, is ordered to be taken down and buried before night, that the land be not defiled by its presence. Because Jesus "svas crucified, or hanged on a tree, the apostle applies this popular saying to him, as ex- pressive of what he suffered, in order to redeem the world. The law of which Paul speaks, is the law of i\\(i Mosaic rites and ceremonies, the burden, the yoke or curse Avhich Peter witnessed to in the Council at Jerusalem : " Now, therefore, why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the disciples (Gentiles,) which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear." Acts xv. Christ delivers us from this, and abolishes it altogether, by his death, and in this sense may be said to be " made a curse for us." Of course, the curse of the law was not endless THE DEATH OF CHEIST XOT VICAEIOUS. 14S j:)unlsbmGnt, for that Christ did not suffer ; and it is nowhere revealed in the law of Moses as the peualtj of transgression ; nor is it alluded to in any way. This is agreed to on all hands by the most learned of Biblical scholars, such as Paley, Whately, Jahn, Mayer, Wines, Warburton, &c., the last of whom ^ays, " In the writings of Moses, we find nothing hut temporal rewards and punishments.'^^ ' If the thing was not known to Moses, it could not be the curse of his law on him who was hanged upon a tree. As re- marked, it was a current proverb among the Jewish peoj)le, and the apostle simply applies it to Christ, by whose death on the cross, or tree, the law and its burthensome ritual were abolished, and the reign of grace and love set up in the hearts of men. § Y. Christ hearing our griefs^ and loounded for car transgressions. — The language of Isaiah liii. 4—6, 10, compared with 1 Peter ii. 21-24. " Surely he hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities ; the chastisement of our peace was upon him ; and with his stripes we are healed. The Lord hath laid upon him the iniquity of us all." This is as strono; lano;uao;e as can be cited from the Scriptures, and yet a moment's examination will show the impossibility of a literal interpretation. How could Christ bear the grief, or carry the sorrow of sin, who knew no sin ? It is not possible he could feel the remorse of the criminal, the murderer ; or the ag • ^ See this subject illustrated in the " Origin and History of the Doc- trine of Endless Punishment," by the author. The argument shows the false use made of this passage from Galatians by believers in the vicarious sufferings of Christ. 144 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. ony of shame and degradation, and the physical tor- ment, of the drunkard. But in a figurative sense he may be said to bear our griefs and sorrows, as John Howard bore the griefs and sorrows of the prisoners and the wretched whom he visited and comforted, and, by incessant toil and effort, relieved from the cruelties laid upon them. So Christ bears our sorrows and " our sins in his own person on the tree," by living, and laboring, and dying, to deliver us from them. And thus we are healed by his stripes, our peace is secured by his suf- fering, we are redeemed from sin by the power of truth and grace revealed in his death. Hence he says, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." John xii. 32.* Matt. viii. 16, 17, is a perfect commentary on Isaiah and Peter. " And he cast out the spirits with his word, and he healed all that were sick ; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, "Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses." Now, in what sense did, or could, Jesus take the infirmities of those who were diseased, or bear their sicknesses ? What did he do in their case ? "VYe are told in the preceding words : " He healed all that 1 These -words of Jesus are beautifully paraphrased by Elizaeetii Bab.ui:t BRo^Y^•lNG, in the " Drama of Exile," in which she discovera her owu faith in the great redemi>tion: *' Look on me! As I shall be ui)lifted on a cross In darkness of eclipse, and anguish dread! So shall I lift vp in my pierced hands — Not into dark, but light; not unto death, But life— beyond the reach of guilt and griefs The wuole creation." THE DEATH OF CHRIST NOT VICARIOUS. 145 were sick." This is tiie equivalent of the phrase, " he bare our sicknesses ;" which, in a physical sense, is the equivalent of the phrase, " he bare our sins," in a moral sense. Christ bore the infirmities and sicknesses of the people by healing them ; and he bears our sins in the same way, by restoring us to spiritual health.^ Both prophet and apostle undoubtedly had the scapegoat of the great day of atonement in mind, and borrowed the phraseology of that custom, as record- ed in Levit. xvi. 20-22. " And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness ; and the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited — and he shall let the goat go in the wilderness." Of course, all this is tropical, and not literal. Lit- erally it is impossible. The thing is done only in a figure ; for in no other possible sense could the legal or moral sins of the people be laid upon the head of the goat, or he be made to bear them, or carry them away into the wilderness- And even in this figure., it is to be observed that it is not the punishment, but the iniquity and sin of the people, which the goat is represented as bearing. There is nothing vicarious in the transaction. The sum of the matter is, that the scapegoat was a 1 While -writing this, a friend, speaking of a distinguished physician, remarked, " He carried my mother through a severe sickness." lie carried her iu the sense of curing her. Ub THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISAT. symbolic expressioD, on the part of the people, of their purpose to put away all the sins and iniquities of the past ; and, on the part of God, of his accept- ance of this evidence of their repentance, and his wil- lingness to blot out the past, and to begin a new ac- count with them, and to receive them as though they had not sinned at all. But the renewal of this sacrifice and ceremony every year, shows, as the apostle says, how ineffectu- al it was in putting away sin, or the disposition to it. There was no moral power in the form, — nothing that could affect or win the heart. The live goat led into the wilderness could no more take away sin, than the blood of the slain goat. They were simply an ac- knowlcdo-ment of the rio-hteousness of the law, and of the obligation to obey it. And here, again, the argument of the Epistle takes effect, and, by contrast, shows the superiority of Christ's sacrifice. He removes, puts away sin by the sacrifice of himself, and does it effectually, — not by exhibiting the sternness of the lawgiver, or the un- yielding rigor of the law, but by displaying the infi- nite and everlasting love of the Father. And this is not for one people only, but for the whole world. He is " the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world." JSTot in part, but entirely ; for " the blood of Christ cleanseth from all sin." Not for a year only, but for all time ; for " after he had offered one sacrifice for sins, he for ever sat down on the ri^ht hand of God:" and "we are sanctified once for all, through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ." So greatly superior is the sacrifice and atonement THE DEATH OF CHRIST NOT VICARIOUS. 14T of our great Hi";h Priest and Saviour ; and so mark- ed are the special differences, notwithstanding the general resemblance, between the priesthood of Aaron and that of Jesus. And to the glorious result set forth in this Epistle, all Scripture points. The prophet declares it in the very passage wliich represents him as bearing our iniquities ; for, says the man of God, " he shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied, the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand." And what is this pleasure of the Lord which shall prosper in his hand? Answer: "It pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell ; and hav- ing made peace by the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all thino;s unto himself." Col. i. Thus the pleasure and the purpose of the Lord, the sacrifice and atonement, the travail, desire and satisfaction of Christ, and the deliverance of all souls from sin, unite on one point ; and shed the splendors of the celestial world on the love of God to man, as displayed in the perfected plan of universal holiness and happiness. Having thus, by aid of the Scriptures, obtained a correct understanding of the character and office of Christ, the meaning and purpose of his death and atonement, and his relation to Man as a Saviour ; the next step in our inquiry is to ascertain the nature and moral status of man, the being who is to be saved, and to discover the causes of his sinful condition, and the reafons for his need of a Saviour. 148 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALTSST. This becomes necessary in order to understand the exact moral relation existing between God as Crea- tor and Man as the creature ; as well as for the pur- pose of exhibiting the true relation of Christ as the Kedeemer, to Man as the redeemed. We wish to know the organic condition of man, his spiritual struc- ture, at the time he comes from the forming hand of his Maker ; and to ascertain through what agency he has fallen from innocence into a condition requiring the help of a Saviour ', and what this condition is into which he has fallen, its effect upon his nature or character. All this we must know that we may be able to form a clear idea of what it is the Saviour does for man, what the nature of the salvation he works out for him, and the precise character of the evil or evils from which he saves him. And thus we shall discover how the creative work of God, in its moral aspects, connects, through Christ the Saviour, with the moral nature of man, and his present sinful condition ; and how these, in turn^ connect with the renewing work of the Holy Spirit, and the great Kedemption of the GospeL CHAPTEE III. ■AN— THE RECTITUDE OF HIS NATURE ORIGINAL SIN NAIUBAI DEPRAVITY. SE CTI ON I, THE TEACHING OF THE BIBLE AND THE EARLY CHURCH RESPECT- ING man's moral ABILITY. It cannot but be evident to every careful reader, that the Old and New Testaments are based, from first to last, on the ability of man to obey the law of God, on the presumption that he has the power to be good in word, thought, and deed. All the exhorta- tions and warnings, all the counsels, commands, and encouragements, all the rewards and punishments of the old dispensation and of the new, of the Law and the Gospel, proceed upon the ground that mankind are equally capable of good and evil, of holiness and wickedness. There is no meaning in these things, but upon this supposition. If it be not so, the whole Bible is an enigma, without moral force or authority ; for where there is no power to obey, there is no authority in the law. If the moral precepts of Chris- tianity were addressed to the beasts of the field, or the fowls of the air, they would have no moral weight, nor would these creatures be under any obli- gations to obey. Where there is no moral sense, 150 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. there can be no moral obligation. If, therefore', the commandments and precepts, if the promises and threatenings, of the Bible have any authority, force or meaning to them, and we are under the slightest ob- ligation to obey, we are so far capable of obeying. Our moral responsibility goes precisely to the extent of our moral ability. But suppose, as is so largely believed and taught in Christian churches, that we are bom into the world depraved, with a corrupt and jrerverted nature inherited from Adam ; that we are created by God " utterly indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined to all evil." Suppose this were so, why does God require us to be good, and do good ? Does he expect a corrupt tree to bring forth good fruit ? Does he insist on gathering grapes of thorns, and figs of thistles ? And why has he given us the Bible ? Why has he given us a moral law ? What reason or justice is there in such commands as these — " Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all the heart, and soul, and strength, and thy neighbor as thyself; If thine enemy hunger, feed him, if he thirst, give him drink ; Re- compense no man evil for evil, but overcome evil with good ; Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, be put away from you, with all malice ; xlbstain from all fleshly lusts, which war against the soul ; Cleanse yourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, for as he that hath called you is holy, so be ye holy, })crfcct even as your Father in heaven is perfect ; Abstain from ail appearance of evil." Is it possible for any intelligent Christian, in the face of these and a thousand other like exhortationa THE MORAL ABILITY OF MAK. 151 and commands, to believe that mankind are by nature totally depraved, and wholly incapable of good in deed, or thought, or feeling ? Is it likely that the God who commands these virtues, has made it impos- sible for us, of ourselves, ever to attain to them? That he has suffered us to come into the world inher- iting from Adam a nature " prone to all evil, full of all wickedness," and then bidden us, under the threat of endless torment, to be holy as he is holy, perfect as he is perfect ? Is it possible for any sincere and pious believer in the Christian Scriptures, so shock- ingly to defame the justice and goodness of our Father in Heaven ? Is it not much more reasonable to suppose, since he has exhorted and commanded us to be good, that we can be good of ourselves ; and that if we are evil, it is because we choose it, and not because we have " wholly lost all ability of will to any spiritual good ? " Take this example : "What doth the Lord require of thee, O man, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God." On reading this, is it not the first thought and conviction with every man, that he can do it ? that, if he will make the effort, he has the moral ability to obey this requirement ? And does not every one who reads this, instinctively feel that the very fact that God has given us this com- mandment, is proof conclusive that we have the pow- er to conform to it? Truly, as we have said, the whole Bible is a complete riddle, an insolvable prob- lem, if the doctrines of original sin, and hereditary total depravity, be true. The plain doctrine of the Scriptures, direct and in- ferential, is that of the entire rectitude of human ';52 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. nature. Every mortal brought into existence, is placed on the same moral level with Adam and Eve, equally innocent and pure, hindered in no thing more than they were, 'having the same moral qualities and unimpaired faculties, the same ability to reject evil and choose good, that they had. Whatever differences exist between individuals, are always relative to the demands made on them. If God has given only one talent, he does not ask five in return. He expects only in the ratio of his original gifts. He holds us to a just improvement of our talents, and to strict obedience to our moral sense ; and if we fail in this, he inflicts the deserved punishment — but he does not hold us responsible for the failure of Adam, or pun- ish us for a sin committed thousands of years before we were born. The man of to-day is created as pure as the first man, but also, as he was, liable to sin. He com- mences his career as Adam did, without knowledge or experience, without positive character of any sort ; for character is the product of action. He has wants and desires, and is subject to strong necessities and temptations ; and, being ignorant, he is easily deceiv- ed, and under the blind impulse of passion, goes wrong, misjudges his interests, mistakes the means of happiness, and transgresses the law of God. But ho is free to choose good or evil; and he is capable of goodness, virtue, and obedience, by nature, of his own free will. And this was the uniform teachinjx of the primitive church. The dogma o^ human inahili- ty was unknown to the Christians of the first four centuries. Let us hear some of the witnesses on this point : THE MOEAL ABILITY OF MAX. 153 1. Ignatius^ a contemporary of the Apostles, says : — " I do not speak of t^Yo natures of men, but that the one man is sometimes of God, sometimes of the Devil. If one be pious, he is a man of God ; but if any man be impious, he is a man of the Devil, being made so, not hy nature^ but hy Ms own will^ 2. Justin 3Iartyr, A. D. 140 : — " For this is the nature of every one that is born, to he capable of vir- tue and vice ; for nothing would be deserving of praise if it had not the power of turning itself either icay.'^ 3. Tatian, A. D. 172, says : — " Free will destroy- ed us. Being free we became slaves ; we were sold because of sin. No evil proceeds from God. We have produced wickedness ; but those who have pro- duced it have it in tJieir power again to renounce it.''^ 4. Clement of Alexandria, A. D. 194 :— " His will is that we should be saved hy ourselves. This^ then, is the nature of the soul, to move hy itself Then we, who are rational, philosophy itself being rational, have some relation to it. Fitness, indeed, is a ten- dency to virtue, but it is not virtue. All men, then, as I said, are qualified hy nature for the acquisition of virtue." 5. Tertullian, A. D. 200 :— " Therefore, though we have learned from the commands of God both what he wills and what he forbids, yet we have a will and 'power to choose either, as it is written, ' Behold, I have set before you good and evil ; ' for you have tasted of the tree of knowledge. Therefore, that which is subject to our own will, we ought not to re- fer to the will of God : he who wills no evil, wills that we have a will." 154 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. 6. Origen^ A. D. 230, was a strong defender of the freedom of the wilL " This also is settled in the doctrine of the Church," says he, that " every rational soul has free wilir 7. Eusehius, A. D. 315 :r-" The fault is in him who chooses, not in God. For God has not made nature or the substance of the soul had ; for he who is good can make nothing but what is good. Every thing is good lohich is aeeording to nature. Every rational soul has naturally a good free ivill^ formed for the choice of that which is good." 8. Athanasius, A. D. 326 : — " For the knowledge and accurate comprehension of the way of truth, we have need of nothing hut ourselves. Not as God is above all things, so is the way which leads to these things remote or extraneous to ourselves, but it is in ourselves,'^ -^ SECTION II. SPECIAL PROOFS OF THE RECTITUDE OF HUIIAN NATURE. A few direct testimonies under this head, will illus- trate the correctness of the preceding argument, and show that the Bible, the primitive Church, and Human Nature, are at one on this point. § I. The argument of Ezehiel xviii., is a complete refutation of the doo-ma of orio;inal sin and inherited depravity, as well as that of total depravity. " If a ^ BuRNAP's " Roctitude of Human Niiture," pp. 309-314; Nc.indcr's History, vols. i. & ii. Tcrtullian and others believed in depravity in- licritcd from Adam, what they called a " second nature, which has its own God and Father, even the author of the corruption himself ; but gOv)duess still resides in the soul, that original, god-like and genuine thing, u-liich is its own proper-nature.^^ Be Anima, cap. 41. Nean- der, vol. ii. i>p. JJuO-OOl. This is a very dificrcnt thing from being ut- terly iucai: and hating one another." verse S. REGENERATION. 185 Christ to Ills disciples : " Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that belie veth, and is baptized, shall be saved ; but he that believeth not, shall be damned." Mark xvi. 15, 16. Here we have the same union of faith and profession ; not only must the convert believe, but he must open- ly confess his faith, and show the world that he is on llie side of truth and righteousness. And as baptism at that time was the common method of doing it, this is accepted and sanctioned by the Saviour for this sjyecijic purpose* So in the Epistle to the Romans, we have this declaration : " If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved ; for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." x. 9, 10. In the first days of the Gospel, its reception and diffusion depended, in a great measure, on its disci- ples openly confessing it before the world. Hence much stress is laid on this, and Jesus, who had little regard for forms as such, insists that they who be- lieve shall be baptized, because this was the recogniz- ed way, at that time, of making public profession of conversion and faith. And if they cannot take up this cross, if they have not courage and sincerity enough for this, they cannot be saved, or accepted as his disciples ; they are not renewed in spirit, they have not yet wholly put off the old man, but are still " in bondage to the beggarly elements " of the world. "Whether water baptism is now, in Christian lands, to be regarded as a permanent rite, may be held as matter of question. Where children are, as it were, 18J THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM, l)orn into the belief and aclvnowledgment of Jesus aa the Messiah and Saviour, baptism cannot certainly have the significance it had in the days of ancient Ju- daism and Paganism, viz,, the washing away of an old religion or faith, and embracing a new. Where the Gospel is preached in heathen lands, and idolaters are "bom again," in the Scriptural sense of the term, the ordinance is unquestionably in force, and converts should be required to make public profession of their faith by water baptism, Nor can any weighty objection be made to the ob- servance of this rite, when a wicked man is convert- ed from his evil ways, and is resolved to follow Christ as his Master and Saviour ; provided it be properly explained, and the exact thing intended to be expressed by it, is understood. If he has been called of God to repentance and a holy life, and has obeyed the call ; if he is truly born and baptized of the Spirit, and is desirous to confess the faith in this ancient form ; we should be disposed in this case, and in all like cases, to take up the words of Peter in the house of Cornelius, " Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we." Acts x. The doctrine of Regeneration, its producing cause. and resultant effects, clearly understood ; we are ready to enter upon the inquiry respecting the nature of Salvation, what it is, and what it does, for man. And we shall see, in the progress of the investiga- tion, that Salvation is the end or completion of that heavenly work in the soul, that life of consecration ta God, of which the New Birth is the beginning. The REGENERATIOX. 187 New Birth is that change of affections, desires, and interests, by which the heart is turned away from earth to heaven, with an earnest effort to realize in itself, the divine life of Christ. Salvation is that ef- fort realized, that diviae life attained, as far as possi- ble in this world ; it is that spiritual condition in which the whole tide of thought, desire, purpose, character, and conduct, sets steadily and strongly to- toward God, and to whatsoever is pleasing in Lis sight. CHAPTER y. SALVATION WHAT IT IS ? THE NEW TESTAMENT DOCTEINE. The subject of this chapter is the most important, perhaps, in the whole range of religious discussion and inquiry. It is more personal than any other : it relates to the highest interest of the soul ; it appeals to our fears and our hopes, to our aifections and as- pirations, to all that we love and all that we desire ; it is the question of destiny for time and eternity. It is not alone what is to become of mankind, but what is to become of me ? What am I ? Whence came I ? and whither do I go when the " silver cord " of this life is loosed ? What is the purpose of my beino; on this earth ? What does Christ come to me for ? and what does he seek to accomplish in me ? and for me ? How is he a Saviour ? and what does he save me from ? What is redemption through his blood ? Is it present or future ; before death, or after death, or both ? Is it deliverance from the evil of our own hearts, or from some evil outside of us ? from judgment and punishment, or from a moral con- dition and life which brino: these? Is it union with God, the life of Christ in the soul, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, whenever and wherever these are realized ? These are the questions which crowd upon us at the "s cry threshold of any inquiry into the object of SALVATION — WHAT IT IS. 189 Christ's mission, or tlie nature of Christian salvation. T can only indicate the way, and point out some of the leading features of the question ; and then leave the reader, with the New Testament in his hand, to follow the investigation to its results, confident that he cannot miss the truth on this all-important sub- ject. It is singular that it has so lono; been taken for granted, in the Christian church, that salvation is de- liverance from punishment, from the penalty of the divine law, from hell in the sense of endless torment, from the consequences of sin ; instead of from sin it- self, from the dominion and bondage of an evil heart and a wicked life, and a translation into the glorious liberty of the children of God. And it is the more so from the fact, easily verified by examination, that never, in a single instance of the multitude of texts where the words Saviour^ save, and salvation, are used, are they connected with any such idea or defi- nition of salvation. Nor is there more than one pas- sacre in which the usa2:e of the terms could suo^jrest such a mistake in regard to the true nature of re- demption by Christ. It is possible that Romans v. 9, might be taken in- ferentially, to mean something of this sort : " Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall he saved from wrath through him." The word " wrath " here may be supposed to refer to the judg- ment of God against sin ; but even if it do, it is not the judgment or punishment of sins already commit- ted, that is meant. What the apostle intends to say is, that we are saved, by Christ, from a sinful and wicked life; and, so far, are saved from the judg- 190 THEOLOGY OF UXIVEIISALISM. ments which follow, as the natural and necessary con- sequence of a wicked life. Beside, the phraseology in this case is peculiar. It is not by the death of Christ, through which, accord- ing to the popular theology, the atonement is made, but by his life that we are saved from this wrcith. " We shall be saved from wrath through him ; for if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconcil- ed, we shall be saved by his life." That is, the death of Christ, as an exhibition of divine love, has recon- ciled us to God, filled our hearts with gratitude and affection ; and the beauty of his divine life wins us to himself, and so saves us from all the evils of a sin- ful life, and that " wrath of God which cometh upon the children of disobedience." Eph. v. 6 ; Col. iii. 6. Let us proceed now to the direct testimony re- specting the nature of the salvation which Christ came to work out in man, and for man. In the first of the following passages, the Saviour speaks for himself, and that, too, at the very commencement of »his ministry on earth. He reads the words of the prophet Isaiah, in the synagogue at Nazareth, and applies them to himself. Of course, he knows what God the Father sent him into the world to do ; he knows whether he came to save the world from sin, or from the punishment of sin ; whether his salvation is internal and spiritual, or external, from some evil coming upon the soul from without. SALYATTOX — WHAT IT IS. 191 SECTION I. DIRECT TESTIMONY RESPECTING THE NATURE OF SALVATION. Luke iv. 16-22. " And Jesus came to Xazareth, where he had been brought up ; and, as his custom was, 1k3 went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor ; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, and to preach the acceptable year of the Lord." ' In this public announcement of the objects of his advent on earth, and the character of the salvation he Avas sent to work out in the soul of man, there is no allusion to deliverance from the wrath of an an- gry God, or the penalties of the divine law, or the legitimate claims of divine justice, or the terrors and torments of an endless hell. And his entire silence on these points, in this his inaugural address on en- tering upon his ministry, is the most demonstrative and conclusive proof of the falsehood of these dog- mas of the churches and schools. It is plain enough, to the most indifferent reader, that the salvation which Jesus sets forth, in his pro- phetic testimony, as the work on which he was sent ^ Why (lid Jesus stop in the middle of the sentence, and leave out the important declaration, ^^a?id the day of vengeance of our God?'' doubly and trebly important if he came to save us from this. How do believers in this doctrine explain the omission! See the passage in Isaiah Ixi. 1-3. 192 THEOLOGY OF UNIYEESALISM. of the Father, is spiritual salvation, the enlighten- ment of the mind, the purification of the heart, and the peace and comfort of a perfect faith in God. It is good tidings to the poor and friendless, the forsak- en and broken-hearted, good tidings of a Father's love and protection, the promise that he will cause all things to work together for their good, and, in thu fulness of time, wipe away all tears from their eyes : liberty to those in captivity to sin ; light and sight to those blinded by error ; and healing and restoration to those that are bruised and wounded in the conflict with temptation and evil. Other passages are to the same point, that the re- demption of Christ is from sin. Acts iii. 25. " God having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to hiess you^ in turning away every one of you from Ms iniquities^ This is testimony direct to the question. The inspired apostle informs us that Jesus was sent expressly to save us from ini- quity^ not from the punishment of iniquity. The sal- vation is moral, is Avithin the soul, is present to us here the moment we believe in Jesus, and receive his spirit. Then sin has no more dominion over us as our master, but we follow after holiness ; we are washed and made clean through the blood of Christ. Matt. i. 21. " Thou shalt call his name Jesus, for Le shall save his people from their si?isJ^ Here the Keavenly messenger, direct from the presence of God, declares that the very name of the wonderful child bhali be descriptive of his work. He is to be called Jesus, the Saviour, b 3cause he is to save his people from their sins. Of course, his people are sinners, or they would need no salvation. Only sinners can be SALVATION — WHAT IT IS. 193 gaved i only the sick can be healed. The salvation of the sinner, is the healing of the soul, the removal of the palsy of sin, and its restoration to righteous health and strength. What palsy is to the body, sin is to the soul. What healing is to the body, redemp- tion is to the soul. Titus ii. 11-14. " For the grace of God, which bringeth salvation, hath appeared to all men, teach- ing us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world ; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God, and our Saviour Jesus Christ ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity., and jiurify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works."' Nothing can be more explicit and conclusive than the entire phrasing of this passage. It not only af- firms that Christ gave himself to redeem us from ini- 1 Paul did not say that " the grace oCGod had appeared to all men'' at the time he wrote; for it had appeared to comparatively very few. It has not ^appeared to all men even now, after eighteen centuries. What he did say was, " the grace of God that bringeth salvation to all men^ hath appeared"— and the translator shave put this in the margin, when they ought to have put it in the text. The Greek is 'E-i4>qvt} yup II ^QQii Tov Qeou r'l aoTTipioi rramv avOow-ois; which literally translated is, *' For there has appeared the grace of God, bringing salvation to all men." Bloomfield says, "Trdo-d/ ai/OpuTrois must be construed not with t-KKlmn], but with n (TU)T>ipios.'' The Vulgate has, " apparuit enim gratia Dei salutaris omnibus hominibus.''' Beza has the same construction; and the French Protestant version of Paris renders it, " Car la grace de Dieu salutaire a tons Ics homines a ete manifestee.'" Dr. A. Clarke justly says: "Had our translators, who were excellent and learned men, leaned less to their own peculiar creed in the present au- ihorized version^ the Church of Christ would not have been so agi. tated and torn as it has been with polemical divinity." Note on Heb. vi. G. 194 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. qiiity, to save us from sin ; but the wliole connection is built upon the fact, that salvation is from ungodli- ness, and worldly lasts, and evil works. The doctrine is, that Christ comes to redeem us from sin ; and the precept consequent upon this doc- trine is, that we should, therefore, deny all ungodli- ness, and wicked works, and live soberly and right- eously, in this present world. This is the practical teaching of " the grace of God, which bringeth sal- vation to all men ; " and, as every one sees, from the nature of the salvation, the practice, or the morality enjoined, is the logical sequence or necessity of the doctrine. The injunction to " live soberly, righteous- ly, and godly, in this present world," brings us natu- rally to the next testimony. Galatians i. 3-5. " Grace be unto you, and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this 'present evil worlds according to the will of God and our Father : to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen." Is not this a strange and inexplicable passage, if Christ came to save us from the torments of a future evil world ? If the popular theory be correct, if this is what the Saviour delivers us from, is it not pass- ing wonderful that the Holy Spirit should dictate to Paul to write " tliis present evil world," instead of " that future evil world ? " Is it not plain, then, from this witness of the inspir- ed apostle, that the salvation which Christ comes to accomplish for the human race, is deliverance from the actual sin and moral corruption of the life that now is, and not from threatened punishments in the SALVATION — WHAT IT IS. 195 life to come ? Is it not proof indisputable that Chris- tian salvation is inward and spiritual, and not outward and material ; from disobedience itself, and not from the penalties of disobedience ? It would seem im- possible to imagine testimony more positive in lan- guage, or more direct to the point in review. John i. 29. " John seeth Jesus comin2: unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." Here, again, the wit- ness is the same, " he taketh away the sin^'^ not the punitive consequence of sin, not the penalties of that law of which sin is the transgression. And John the apostle is in perfect agreement on this point with John the Baptist, for he testifies that " the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all siny 1 John i. 7. And the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews has the same testimony : " How much more shall the blood of Christ, who, through the eternal bpirit, offered himself without spot to God, purge the conscience from dead works to serve the livino: God.'' ix. 14. From sin and dead works, the blood of Christ redeems us, purges the conscience, and restores us to the service of the living God. There is a remarkable passage, on this point, in Paul's Epistle to Titus, chapter iii : " For we our- selves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, de- ceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of right- eousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost, which he shed on U3 abundantly through Jesus Christ our Lord." 196 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. Here salvation is directly identified with a tlioroufli reform of cliaracter, a deliverance from evil feelings and ha,bits, from hateful lusts and pas- sions, a conversion from an ungodly and wicked life, to a life of holiness and obedience to God. And, ob- serve, that this salvation is not future, but past ; it had already been realized — "he aaxted us." And then he urges Titus so to preach to them that they may continue in a godly life, or continue in this sal- vation : " that they which have believed in God, mio-ht be careful to maintain 2:ood works " — faith and practice, one and inseparable. Observe, also, that this conversion and salvation was wrouo;ht out by the manifestation through Christ of " iha Idndness and the love of God our Saviour ; " not by his wrath or judgments, not by the terrors of the law, or the fear of a fabled hell. The apostle offers no thanks for an escape from these ; nor does he so much as allude to them, but speaks with grateful heart of being saved from their former vicious, sensual, and sinful life. These Bible winesses might be indefinitely multi- plied, but what has thus far been adduced, is suflScient to justify us in saying, that if Christ did come to save us from the just and deserved punishments of sin, if he did come to ransom us from the torments of a future world, the men of God who are teachers, the Saviour himself, the Holy Spirit of Inspiration, have not only failed to say this, but they have substituted something else entirely different in the place of it ! This the Christian cannot believe, and therefore he must no longer associate with the beautiful words " salvation," " redemption," " reconciliation," the SALVATION — WHAT IT IS. 197 false idea of deliverance from pains and penalties, but deliverance from the evil heart of unbelief which brings these. He need strive no more to escape a future hell ; but let him labor to escape from the pre- sent captivity of sin, from the bondage of his lusts and passions, " into the glorious liberty of the chil- dren of God." This is heaven, or at least the begin- ning of it ; and it is as real now as in the future, as possible on this side the grave as on the other, l SECTION II, FIGURES AND METAPHORS ILLUSTRATING THE NATURE OF SALVATION. There are numerous figures of speech in the Scrip- tures, which will help us to understand the kind of redemption which Jesus brings to the soul of man. A brief review of a few of these will add to the pre- ceding argument, and shed light upon this important inquiry. ^ Wesley seems to have seen the truth on this point : " By salvation, I. mean not barely, accor(/i/i5' to the i;zfZ(7ar 7io/iOrt, deliverance from hell, or going to heaven, but a present deliverance from sin. Now, if by salvation we mean a present salvation from sin, we cannot say holi- ness is the condition of it; for it is the thing itself.^' Ward's " View of all Religions. ' ' The following from an orthodox journal is prophetic of progi'ess: ** The genei'al idea of salvation is, that it consists in going to a cer- tain place, called heaven. With this pZace is connected the idea of be- ing perfectly happy. This, however, is a very loose way of thinking on BO momentous a subject. — It is not the place that makes the inhabitants whflt they are, but it is they that make the place what it is. Heaven is what it is because of the character of those who dwell there. Any world — any place would be a heaven, if filled with pei-fectly holy beings. AVhether a man is saved or not depends on wh'077i judgments, though we may be purified hy them, spiritually refined and separated from our sins in the fiery furnace of suflPering. To say Christ is like a refiner of silver, because he saves us from the torments of hell, or bears the wrath of God in our stead, is to make a comparison where there is no likeness, no resemblance of the things compared. But there is a resemblance be- tween him who purifies the soul from sin, and one who purifies the silver from dross. And in this sense Jesus is a Refiner and Purifier, separating the spirit- ual from the sensual, bringing out the heavenly from its mixture with the earthly dross, and preparing it to receive anew the image and superscription of God. The thought, or truth, of this figure, is found in many other texts. Peter, speaking of the Gentiles, says : " God put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith." Acts xv. Again, SALVATION— WHAT IT IS. 199 he says, in his first Epistle : " Seeing ye \\^vq puynfi* ed your souls in obeying the truth through the Spir- it." i. 22. Here the heart, the soul, are purified, which, of course, is an inward personal salvation, and not redemption from threatened judgments. John says : " He that liath this hope in him, purifieth him- self even as he is pure." 1 John iii. How is Christ pure ? In any sense that would represent him as saved from punishment ? Of course not, but in the sense of entire freedom from sin, " a lamb without spot or blemish." 2. We are cleansed and washed. The passage al- ready cited from Malachi, declares also that the Saviour is '' like fuller's soap," i. e. that his truth and grace act on the soul, as soap acts on a soiled gar- ment ; only in one sense, of course, that of cleansing, the one acting by spiritual, and the other by chemi- cal laws. The idea embodied in this figure pervades the New Testament. After namins; certain kinds of evil persons who cannot, as such, or while in that condi- tion, enter the kingdom of God, or be received as fol- lowers of Christ, the apostle says : " And such were some of you ; but ye are washed, but ye are sanctifi- ed, but ye are justified," &c. 1 Cor. 9-11. " Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood." Eev. i. 5. " If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 1 John i. 9. And the passage already quoted from the same chap- ter, " The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all Bin." The metaphor running through these texts, is per- fectly descriptive of the nature and process of salva" 200 THEOLOGY OF UNIYEIISALISM. tion. You cannot wash a person from the penaxty of the hiw ; you cannot cleanse him from punishment. There is no fitness to the comparison ; the figure fails altogether. But it is full of meaning and beauty when employed to describe gospel salvation, which is being " washed from our sins," and " cleansed from all unrighteousness," through the grace and truth of our Lord Jesus Christ. 3. We are healed as of a disease* This figure hag been partially considered in the preceding section ; but we call attention to it again, that the principle in- volved may be carefully considered in its negative and positive relations. Christ himself authorizes the language, when he justifies himself for keeping com- pany " wath publicans and sinners," by saying, " They that be wdiole need not a jyJiysieian^ but they that are sick." Matt. ix. 12. The Psalmist has the same metaphor : " Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forccet not all his benefits : who forojiveth all thine in- iquities ; who healeth all thy diseases." ciii. 2, 3. According to the parallelism of Hebrew verse, the forgiving iniquities and healing diseases in this pas- saije, are the same thinsr. The foroiveness, or re- nioval of iniquity or sin from the soul, which is sal- vation, is set forth by the figure of healing, or re- moving of disease from the body. But the physician who cures the sick man, does not do it by taking his sickness, or bearing the pain of it ; but by driving out the disease. So Jesus does not save us by bear- ing for us the punishment of sin ; but by driving out the sin from the heart. A man cannot be cured or healed of endless torment — there is no point or meaning to such a figure — but he ean be cured of SALVATION — WHAT IT IS. 201 Ills moral disease ; lie can be healed of the leprosy of sin, by the grace of Jesus, by the Spirit of God. 4. Christ is our Teacher ; and we are saved hy the Truth. " We know that thou art a teacher come from God." John iii. " AYe know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth." Matt. XX ii. This metaphor also illustrates the spiritual and personal nature of salvation, and shows in part v/liat it is from — ignorance, error, and unbelief When a man becomes my teacher, he does not stand as my substitute ; he does not take upon himself and suffer all tlie evils of my ignorance ; but he instructs me, he enlightens me by iip.parting knowledge, or helping me to obtain it. Salvation, therefore, if this metaphor has any propriety or significance in it, bears the same relation to the spirit which knowledge bears to the intellect. And this element of salvation, and this method or process, are recognized in many important passages. " I exhort, therefore, that first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men, .... for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God, who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the hnowledge of the truths 1 Tim. ii. Here " to be saved," and " to come to the know- ledge of the truth," are equivalent terms, meaning the same thing. Hence the Saviour says : " This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent." John xvii. The knowledge of God and his Son is eter- nal life, salvation, deliverance from ignorance and un- belief, throu2;h the enlii^htenino: influence of the Gos- pel an 1 the Spirit of Truth. 202 lllEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. 5. We are found, as the lost, " The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke xix. The parable of the lost sheep, in chapter XV., is familiar to all. The good shepherd seeks it among the mountains and in the wilderness, till he finds it ; and then, laying it on his shoulder, he brings it in safety, and with rejoicing, to the fold. In what sense can the punishment of sin be repre- sented under the figure of being lost? or deliverance from this unJer the fio;ure of beino; found? It is an easy and appropriate metaphor, which describes him who wanders from the paths of truth and righteous- ness, as lost in the wilderness of sin ; and, when he is restored to them again, as found. When the prod- igal returned from the far country of his folly and wickedness, the rejoicing father exclaimed, " My son, that was lost, is found." But note again, how the figure tells against the popular doctrine of salvation, and for the Scriptural doctrine. The shepherd who went in search of the lost sheep, did not suffer the pains and terrors which were the consequence of being lost. The poor sheep endured for itself all the evils of going astray, through all the long days and nights of its w^ander- ing. Nobody could save it from these. It had al- ready suffered them. They could not be borne by another. They could not be separated from its lost condition, any more than the shadow can be separat- ed from the substance, or the pain from a broken limb, or blindness from loss of sight. These figures and metaphors might be largely in- creased, but the examples given are sufficient to show how the great truth that salvation is from sin and SALVATION — WHAT IT IS. 203 wickedness, from blindness of mind, and unbelief, and moral corruption, pervades the entire body of the Scripture, its doctrines and precepts, the character of its thought, and the structure of its language. I have given more space to this subject, and enforced the point at the risk of repetition, because I regard it as the pivot on which the whole Christian system turns. If the punishmetit of sin inheres in the very sub- stance of sin itself, then no one can suffer it for us ; and the sacrificial scheme, as we have shown under the iiead of " Atonement," foils to the ground. The thing it proposes is simply impossible ; and the only way for us to escape the punishment, is to abandon the sin. If we would be delivered from the mur- derer's doom, we must avoid the murderer's crime. If the drunkard would escape from the hell in which he lives, he must repent, and thoroughly reform. If any would be saved from the torments of envy, jeal- ousy, hatred, malice, these foul spirits must be ex- pelled from the heart. If we would not confront the terrors and tortures of a guilty conscience, we must keep it pure and without offence. If we would be delivered from all anxiety and doubts, from that "fear which hath torment," we must believe in Christ, we must know God, and trust in him ; and then shall we enter into rest, and find peace passing knowledge. This is the practical bearing of the subject ; its direct influence on life and action. And thus the true doctrine of Salvation links itself in natural and logical sequence with the true doctrine of Atonement. Then, again, if salvation is from sin, it is not from i04: THEOLOGY OF UXTVERSALISM. endless punishment — and this monstrous accusation against God, is proved to be wickedly false, and his character stands forth in all the attractions of a Father's love, of infinite and everlasting goodness. This understood, and the hardness of the sinner's heart is subdued ; the prodigal no longer stays away from home, through fear of his Father's anger ; or lest he will reduce him to the condition of a servant and slave, instead of receivino; hn.m as a son. lie will not wait until it comes to famine and starvation ; but penitent for the past, and painfully instructed for the future, he will, long ere this, arise and go to his Father. And thus, again, we see how the true Scriptural teaching of Salvation stands related to the doctrine of Rewards and Punishments, of the law and its penalty. There is no religious question of more practical importance, than this respecting the nature of salva- tion — what it is ; what it docs for us; how we are to obtain it; where we are to enjoy it. And if it can be fully apprehended and settled in the. mind of the inquirer, it speedily clears the ground of many per- nicious and dangerous errors ; and leads not only to a complete re-adjustment of Christian doctrines, but also to a complete change of character, of the motives to obedience, of the aims and purposes of life. Elec- tion and reprobation, salvation and damnation, heav- en and hell, rewards and punishments, will all be shaped into harmony with this central truth. The true Scriptural, Evangelical doctrine, then, on this momentous subject, is this, viz. : that salvation is moral and spiritual ; that it is not exemption from the just retribution of wrong, but redemption from SALVATIOX WHAT IT IS. 205 tlie wrong itself; not from one ihinp;, but from many tliino-s — from error and false doctrines, from iinbc- lief, from sin and all nnrlgliteonsness, from hatred, and malice, and envy, from the bondage of passion and hurtful lusts, from the outward criminal act, and from the inward criminal desire — conversion from these to faith and obedience, to holiness of life and heart, to sincere reverence and affection toward (iod and the Saviour, to charity and love for all mankind ; in a word, it is a regenerate and sanctified spirit, which makes the whole being consecrate to God, and the whole life beautiful as that of the angels. And, when it comes to this with vis, we are, to that extent, in heaven, whether in the present life or in the future, whether in this world or in any other. ^ But it may be said, that all men are not saved, in this life, in the sense of salvation here set forth ; that thousands die in ignorance, unbelief, and sin. This is true ; and it is not affirmed by our argument, that all men, or any, are "perfectly saved in this world, Xo one, in this life, attains to that spiritual freedom and angelic perfection, represented by the " image of 1 1 think also tliat one impoi'tant element of Christian salvation is, as shown undei" the head of Aloiumcnt^ deliverance from the fear of death. The doctrines of Jesus respecting the character of God, and of the future life, and his own death and resurrection, were intended to inspire us with hope, and courage, and peace in the hour of death. Hebrews ii. 14, distinctly afiirms this: " Forasmuch as the children avo l)artakers of flesh and blood, he also himself took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver those who through fear of death were all their life time subject to boudtige." And how truly this salvation is accom- plished in the believer, is abundantly shown by the manner in which death is always mentioned in the' New Testament; and beautifully illus- trated by the epitaphs of the early Christians in the Catacombs .^f Heme, as well as by the death of every true believer. 20G THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM. the hcavcnlv," of wlncli Paul speaks ; or, in other words, no one reaches the full stature of the heavenly state while in the body. Therefore, no soul, however advanced, realizes the full measure of salvation, till through the resurrection it is made equal unto the ano-els of God. o And this is Ancient Universalism. Origen (A. D. 230,) says : " The TForcZ, which is the Wisdom of (jrod, shall bring together all intelligent creatures, and convert them into his own perfection, through the instrumentality of their free will and their exer- tions. For though, among the disorders of the body, there are, indeed, some which the medical art cannot heal, yet we deny, that of all the vices of the soul, there is any which the supreme Word cannot cure ; for the Word is more powerful than all the diseases of the soul, and he applies his remedies to each one according to the pleasure of God. And the consum- mation of all things, will be the extinction of sin, and the reformation of every soul, so that all shall serve him with one consent. This may not, indeed, take place with mankind, in the present life, but be ac- complished after they shall have been liberated from the body. 1 But the discussion of this point carries us over in- to the subject of the next chapter ; to which we i:)ass now for the completion of the argument. ^ Contra Celsum, Lib. viii. This -work is Origcn's celebrated defence of Christianity against the attacks of the lieathen philosopher whose name it bears — Celsus. Clement of Alexandria, speaking of the unbe- lieving and unconverted, says: " Hosv is he a Saviour and Lord, unless he is the Lord and Saviour of all ? He is certainly the Saviour of those ■who have believed; a «(/ oj' those ivho have not believed he is Lord ^ until by being brought to confess him, they shall receive the blessing suited and adapted to them ! ''—Stromata Lib. vii. cap. ii. A. D. 195, CHAPTER YI. THE DOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION. I do not propose, in this cliapter, to discuss tlie various theories respecting the time, nature, and pro- cesses of the resurrection, current among Christians ; but only to examine the Scripture statements, so far as they relate to the great question of human destiny — though I shall not refuse to notice such points re- specting the philosophy of the mind and affections, as may legitimately come into the examination. But the main facts to be established by the Bible testimo- ny, ^vill not be affected by any theory relative to the time of the resurrection ; and the arguments will have equal weight, whether it is progressive or in- stantaneous at some future period ; whether it is ex- perienced, in its commencement, by each individual at the time of death, or by all at the end of the world. SECTION I. THE RESURRECTION — A MORAL AND SPIRITUAL, AS WELL A BODILY, CUANGE. The passages which treat of the resurrection to im- mortality, set forth two important facts in very clear and intelligible language. 'And these are, § I. That we are clothed upon with an ineorrufpti- hie and spiritual body, suitable to our new sphere of existence. 208 THEOLOGY OF UXIVERSALISM. The apostle, Paul, establishes this fact by the plain- est statements, in his first epistle to the Corinthians. The question is proposed thus : " How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come?" The fact that this earthly body decomposes, and falls away, after death, into the dust out of which it was formed, was apparent to all. It is plain that the spirit abandons it, no longer inhabits it, no longer uses it. What body, then, does it have, in the resur- rection ? This Paul answers very directly, by saying it is not this body, " but God givetJi it a hody as it hath pleased him." ^q gives it a body when it enters the resurrection world, a new body, as he gave it a body when it entered into this world. The earthly body is suited to the earthly state ; and the heavenly body to a heavenly state. " There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body," ... " as is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy ; and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly — and ?.s we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall r,lso bear the image of the heavenly." The apostle proceeds to illustrate this point from the natural world : " That which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die ; and that which thou sowest, thou lowest not that boily that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain." The body dies, and only the germ or soul of the grain lives, and that is clutled upon with a new body ; in the likeness of the old, to be sure, but created anew, out of the vital forces of the soil and the atmosphere, out of the invisible elements of air, water, light, electricity. So the earthly body dies, and the soul is clothed upon anew ; God givctJi it a body fitted to its new sphere of life and activity. BOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION. 209 In the second epistle to the Corinthians, Paul intro- duces the subject again : " For we know that if oiu' earthlv house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, (not the same house which was dissolved, not the old house repaired or altered, but a new building of God,) eternal in the heavens. For in this (earth- ly house,) we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven." Plain- ly, this house from heaven is a different thing from the earthly one already dissolved ; and the distinction set up between the two, is so sharp, that we cannot w^ell suppose the one is to be built up out of the other ; or that any part of the material of the earth- ly body, or house, is to be manufactured, or wrought up into the heavenly body, or the " house from heaven." In the absence of all facts and Scriptural informa- tion, we abstain from speculating as to the nature of the resurrection body. It is enough for us to know that it is adapted to our heavenly estate, to our growth in knowledge of the divine character and at- tributes, as displayed in the numberless worlds scat- tered through the abysses of the universe. Thus fitted to the Avants and uses of the spirit, it is of little con- sequence wdiat its peculiar characteristics may be, or wliether it is created in part of the old structure or not. The drift of the language, where the subject is touched, certainly seems to intimate that the " spirit- ual body " is wholly a new body ; and that so far as the word resurrection is concerned, it implies the call- ing of the soul out of the earthly body, now dead, in- to this heavenly body, being thus exalted, or born 210 THEOLOGY OF UNIV EKSALlS^f. ni^.iin, into !i liigher and nobler life. Ai\d lliis loaclg to (lie otlKU' important fact imlioated by the New 'J\\-(Mnient toucliings on this point, wbicli is, § n. 'flat the JResiirrc.ctiofb /n a moral and ^jilritiial (hange — the, anastasis, vr raising yj)-, of the Sx^nl. 'Llui Avord (iv&oTuuig which is generally translated I y tlio b^nglish word "resurrection," does not neces- iiAvWy imply, that those to wh(ini i( refers, should be ilo.iJ. It is often used in regard fo the living, and lur.iijs, in its most literal definition, a rising up, or a hang rifled \ip^ exaltation^ as iw-pects condition or circumstances. Dr. Campbell says: " It denotes sim- j>!y, being raised from inactivily to action, or from obscurity fo eminence, or a return to such a state, af- tci au interruption. The verb anistemi has the like ];ititn«lo (>f signification ; and both words are used, in this exlenl, by the writers of the New Testament, as well as by tbe Seventy. Agreeabl}", therefore, to Jic oiigiiiLil import, rising from a seat is properl}^ lermod avai^tasis^ so is awahing out of sleep, ov pro- wot';('n frcun an inferior condition. The word is used in ti:i? ]ast i^^WiiQ^ in Luke ii, 34." ^I'l:e passage referred to, reads thus : " Behold this cliild is s\. for the fall and rising again (^anastasis^') of mnny iii Israel :" meaning that his humble condi- tion \v' uld be :i stimibling block to the Jews, who, for lliis reason, Avouhl reject him : but who would, neverllicles;'., in the fulness of time, by faith in him, be restored, or rnised to spiritual life again, as set (brtli in Kon^ans xi. So when it refers to the future life, it implies a rais- i;ig ui), an exaltation, of the whole man ; not only in DOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION". 211 a bodily respect, but also in a moral and spiritual re- spect. The resurrection is not simply being lifted out of the mortal into the immortal, out of the earth- ly into the heavenly ; but out of the imperfect into the perfect, out of the weakness, and frailty, and sinful- ness of our present estate, into the strength and holiness, and spiritual completeness of the future state. " It is sown in corruption ; it is raised in incorrup- tion : it is sown in dishonor ; it is raised in glory : it is sown in weakness ; it is raised in power : it is sown a natural body ; it is raised a spiritual body." Now, supposing this language to refer to the body solely, it is manifest enough that it is universal in its appli- cation, that it is descriptive of the resurrection body which all are to inhabit. The apostle is not speak- ing of a class, but of "the dead," in its general meaning ; not of the righteous, but of all who have borne " the image of the earthy," which phrase can- not be made to mean less than all mankind. If, then, this language describes the resurrection body, it needs nothing more to show that the resur- rection state, is one of universal holiness and happi- ness ; for it would be difficult to show how a soul dwelling in an incorruptible, glorious, spiritual body, could be unholy and miserable. No soul, in such a heavenly habitation as is here portrayed by Paul, could possibly be in a moral condition, or in a state of sufiering, represented by the word " hell." But it seems obvious that the language quoted has to do with more than the body, that it takes in the anastasis^ or up-rising, into a higher life of the whole being. It is the question, both of the fact and char- 212 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM, acter of a future life. This is evident, from the en- tire argument of the chapter. It was not simply the difficulty involved in the question, " With what body do they come ? " but whether they come at all ; whether, when the body perishes, anything remains. This was the point in dispute among that portion oi the half pagan converts of the Corinthian church, who had initiated the controversy. And it is to this point Paul directs his reply, covering the whole ground of doubt and inquiry, embracing three distinct heads : 1. The fact of a resurrection, or a future life, bas- ed on the resurrection of Christ as the proof of its possibility, and the pledge of its actuality and cer- tainty in regard to all men, 2. The nature of the resurrection body, or the fact that, though the earthly body dies, that is not a diffi- culty in the way of the first position ; since God giveth to the soul, as to the various seeds, a new body, as it pleaseth him. 3. The character of the future life, or the anastasis or exaltation of the soul, when clothed upon by thia new body. These particulars, to be sure^ are not logically dis- tributed and argued, independently of each other; for, from the very nature of the subject, the thought of one naturally mingles with, and flows into, that of the others ; but the three points named, constitute the substance of Paul's statement of the ease, as will be seen bv an examination of the lano;uai][e em- ployed. 1. '' But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen ^ and if Christ be not risen, DOCTRINE OF THE RESURRECTION. 213 then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain Then they also, that are fallen asleep m Christ^ are perished^ (i. e. are annihilated, do not live at all.) If in this life only we have hope In Christ, we are of all men most miserable." The argument is plain — If Christ has not risen, there Is no future existence, the dead are perished, and we have hope only in this life ; and of all men, therefore, we are most miserable, because we endure such persecution and suffcrino' In defence of the resurrection of the o dead. " But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept." Yerse 20, This is an established fact, and, therefore, our faith is not in vain. But, as is frequently the case with the Bible writers, Paul's argument, in the following verses, 20-28, passes over from the logical fact to the moral accompaniments of the fact, and takes in a brief view of the results of this universal anastasis, or resurrec- tion through Jesus Christ, viz : the destruction of all the enemies to his reign and man's happiness, even to the last, which is death, and the spiritual subjection of all souls, even of the Son himself, to the Father, that God may be all in all ! 2. But if the dead live, how do they live ? Since this body dies, and turns to dust, " with what body do they come ? " or what body do they inhabit in the resurrection life ? This is answered directly in verses 85-38, by showing that as God gives a new body to the germ or soul of the grain, whose old body per- ishes when it is sown ; so he gives a new heavenly body to the spirit or soul of man, when the old earthly body perishes in the grave. Hi THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. And here, again, as in the first point revieweJ, the argument reaches over into the next particular ; and he naturally mixes up with the statement, that the soul will be clothed upon with a heavenly and glori- ous body, the necessary conclusion that it will be in a heavenly and glorious condition. This is shown in verses 42-57, as set forth in the next paragraph. 3. " It is sown in weakness ; it is raised in power ; it is sown ia dishonor ; it is raised in gloiy." "The first man is of the earth, earthy ; the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy ; and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly." That is, as Adam represents our earthly condition, 80 Christ represents our heavenly condition ; and as in this life we are in the likeness of the first man, so in the future life we shall be in the likeness of the second man. For " as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image af the heav- enly ; and as is the heavenly, so are they that are heavenly." " The dead," not the righteous only, but " the clead,^' — embracing all who have departed, as strictly as the expression "the living," embraces all who remain — " shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be chano;ed." The conti^st is between the dead and the living ; and the word " we " shows that he is speaking of the race, of mankind in their continuous relation to each other, since he, and those lie addressed, arc dead long time ago, and the end is not yet. The apostle declares that, at the final consumma- tion (" the end " of which he had previously spoken) i^omc would be living ; and though these would not DOCTRINE OP THE RESURRECTTON. 215 die, yet they would be clianged into the likeness of the heavenly ; or, in other words, would be clothed up« OD with the immortal body, and the heavenly image, by a change equivalent to that through which the <]ead pass ; leaving behind them the earthly taberna- cle, and the earthly drift of character which fettered and held them in this life. And so the sting of death, which is sin, being destroyed, and death swal- lowed up in the victory of life immortal, all will take up the joyous cry, " O death ! where is thy sting ? O grave ! where is thy victory ? Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ ! " The main doctrine of Paul, in this chapter, is clearly and authoritatively established by the Saviour, in his controversy with the Sadducees ; especially the first ancl last points, which are chief in importance and interest. Matt, xxii., Mark xii., Luke xx. The Sadducees denied the resurrection, and a fu- ture existence, and brought the case of the woman having seven husbands, as an insuperable objection to the doctrine ; on the mistaken supposition that a future existence necessarily involved a continuation of all the social relations, and legal obligations, of the present. -Here, then, were two points in discussion, two errors to be met and refuted — 1. The denial of a future life. 2. The assumption that the conditions of this life would obtain, and be perpetuated, in the next. These were exactly the first and third questions in- volved in Paul's argument, and so distinctly unfolded by him — resting, doubtless, upon the foundation of tlie Saviour's teaching on this subject. Let us then 21G THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALIS3I. proceed to examine the method of Christ's treatment of these errors, and the doctrines affirmed by him. 1. "As touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob ? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living — for all live unto him." The force of this reply rests on the use of the pre- f^ent tense. At the time the language was uttered, these patriarchs had been dead from two to three Jiundred years, and more ; yet God says, " I am the God of Abraham," &c. Now, if they had perished, utterly ceased to exist, there was no propriety or truth in this language ; for God is not the God of the dead, but of the living ; not the God of nothing, but of something. Since, therefore, he says " I am the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob," these patri- archs must have been living at the time he spake these words, which was two hundred years after their earthly bodies were dead. Th^re is, therefore, a fu- ture existence, another life beyond death. Dr. Campbell illustrates the point very happily : " If wc should hear one man say to another, ' I wish to have you in my service, and to be your master, as I am your father's and your grandfather's master ; ' should we not conclude that the persons spoken of were alive, and his servants at this very moment ? And would it not be reasonable to insist, that if they were not living, his expression would be ' as I was your father's and grandfather's master ? ' " Thus did our Lord dispose of the first j^oint, and as I lie Sadducccs made no reply, wc may conclude they had noiie to make. BOCITRIXE OF THE KESTJRKECTrON. 21T 2. The next point was, that the woman had beea fdie wife of seven husbands, " Therefore, in the re- surrection, whose wife shall she be of the seven ? for they all had her." As remarked, the mistake of the Sadducees con- sisted in transferring to the fliture existence, the rela- tions and conditions of the present existence. This error the Saviour confutes, by a distinct annuncia- tion, that the future life is not like this in its condi- tions and circumstances ; that we are not there as we are here ; but changed into the heavenly likeness, and fitted to the character and mode of our new spir- itual existence, " Jesus answered, and said unto them, Ye do err^ not knowing the Scriptures, nor the power of God, For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven — neither can they die any more ; for they are equals unto the angels, and are children of God, being children of the resurrection," Observe, there ai-e two specifications made by our Lord ; 1. Their ignorance of the Scriptures. 2. Their Vgnorance of the power of God. The first refers to their ignorance of the Mosaic record, where God says '^ I am the God of Abra- ham," THEOLOGT OF UXIVEESALISM. becomes angelic. Can anything be more concIusiT^ in evidence of the fact, that the chanire is a moral and spiritual one ? that it is a result brought about by- moral and spiritual agencies, through which the soul is corrected, informed and raised up to heaven, and *' changed into the same image, from glory to glory 5, even as by the Spirit of the Lord." 2 Cor, iii. 18J SECTION II. " EVEEV MAN IN BTS OWN OKDER.'^ The language of Paul, in 1 Cor, xv. 22, is ofteia quoted as proof, that the resurrection state is not a state of holiness and happiness for all. " But every man in his own order ; Christ the first fruits, after- ward they that are Christ's at his coming." This is supposed to imply, or teach, that there are two orders in the resurrection beside Christ, the righteous and the wicked ; and that the righteous are raised first^, and afterwards the wicked. "■See the subject continncd iu the ncs.t section, f have Biade no men- tion of the woi'ds recorded by Lukc^ '^accounted worthy to obtain thai loorldy and the resurrection of the dead,"' for two reasons : 1. Because- the resui-rection of a/^ the dead is the acknowledged doctriae of the- New Testament. 2. Becaitse the Evangelists cuuld net have attached any great doctrinal importance to the expression, inasmuchas two, out of three recording the conversation ,. omit it. If it was intended as a. declaration of partial resurrection^ or of annihilation, or of a dijGferenco in the destiny of those raised ^ they v,-ouLl neither have forgotten it, nor have neglected to report it. Wliat was the precise thought tlic Saviour may liave intended to convey by the words,, it is not easy to determine,. PerhaiJS this is the idea, — Those Avhom C^o^l judges wortliy of a i-esur- rection, i. e. y worth being raised from the dead; those having a mental and moral nature which gives them a title to a future existence — in a word, his intel/igent creatures, made in his own image;, in. distiuxition £!;oia the lower orders of crcajtiou^ ** EVERY MAK IN HIS OWN OEDER." 221 But this idea conflicts with the common doctrine, that the resurrection of all the dead is simultaneous, *' in a moment, at the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump." If the dead are all raised in the end of the world, at the same moment, then there is no prece- dence of the righteous over the wicked, in point of time. And the position is equally in conflict with the doc- trine of a progressive resurrection ; for if the resur- rection is immediately -subsequent to death, then a wicked man dying before a righteous man, is raised be.orc him. And so, on neither hypothesis is the difierence of character distinguished by a diflPerence of time in the resurrection. But ill a matter of so much importance, it is not safe to trust to implications ; it is not reasonable to suppose the Holy Spirit would leave the truth to be inferred, instead of stating it in plain speech. If, in the resurrection, there are three orders, Firsts Christ ; Second, The Eighteous: and Third, The Wicked; why did not Paul, if he was guided by the Spirit of God, say so ? That would have put the subject at rest forever. It would have ended all debate and doubt, on the most momentous question in the whole ranse of divine revelation. If Paul had said, " But every man in his own order ; Christ the first fruits ; afterwards, they that are Christ's at his coming ; and after these the wicked f then the subject would have been put beyond all controversy. And if it really be so, can we doubt, for a moment, that he would have stated it in this form, or in terms equally- positive and definite ? But he has done nothino; of the kind. He has not Wl TriEOLOGY OF tlNlTERSALlSSi, intimated, much less asserted, that there are any wicked in the resurrection. He gives tis only two orders ; Christ the first frtiits ; afterwards, they that are Christ's at Lis coming. If there be any otherScf he does not mention them ; and there is no informa- tion in regard to the matter, save what he furnishes/ The order of time is marked, however, by three distinct events, and noting these, will confirm what has already been said. 1. The restirrection of Christ,. as the first frtiits. 2. The resiirreetion of those who are Christ's at his coming. 3, "^Then eometh the end." INow, observe, that the " end " comes immediately after the raising of those called Christ's. No trans- action, of any kind, intervenes between the second and third event of the series. They are represented as immediately consecutive, following in regular or- der, according to the original plan. And yet the common doctrine separates these^two links in the chain of events, which the argument of Paul ha& bound together, and inserts another totally foreign y and in direct opposition, to the very purpose of that argument, viz., the resurrection of the wicked I As if it were possible for Paul to forget, or omit, a fact of such tremendous importance ; and which, if true, would have compelled an entire re-construction; of the argument in this part of his Epistle ! Taul's expression, "there shall be a resurrection both of the just and the unjust,'''' is simply expressive of universality, and not of moral character or condition in the resurrectioUy as lie says elsewhere, " Jew and Gentile," "^ bond and free." We have similar p'nrases, as '• high and low," " rich and poor," "good and bad," "wise and ignorant," meaning thereby " all men." They arc used not to describe character but to express universality, com].ilctcncsSy "EVERY MAN IN HIS OWN ORHER.'^ 223 But the fact of there being only two orders in the resurrection, is farther confirmed by the figure which the apostle employs — » " Christ the first fruits,'^ The first fruits were gathered, at tlie beginning of the harvest, and offered in solemn form to God, ^vith great rejoicings, as an acknowledgment of his good- ness, and of the bounty of his providence in the fruits of the earth. Afterwards came the general harvest, of which the first fruits were alike a sam-^ pie and a pledge. Of course, if the figure of the apostle is well chosen, and to the point, there are but two orders in the resurrection ; Christ the first fruits^ and then the universal harvest of the dead. This fact of the first fruits being a pattern or sam- ple of the harvest, is important, and still further con- firms the argument that there are only two orders* In verse 20, we have the followins: : " But now is Christ risen from the dead^ and become the first fruits of them that slept," or the dead of every condition and character — not of any particular class; for all die alike, and •' as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." Now, if we turn to Rom. xi. IG, we have the ar- gument complete : " If the first fruits be holy, the lump is also holy ; and if the root be holy^ so are the branches." Here the same figure is used with refer- ence to the final ingathering of the Jews, but the fact asserted is what demands attention, viz., that the first fruits are a specimen, a sample of the quality and character of the whole han^est— - " if the first fruits be holy, the lump (" the entire mass, the whole harvest,) is holy." And he repeats the thought un- der an additional figure ; " If the root be holy, s(j> 221 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALIS:.!. are the brandies ; i. c, the brMiiches derive their character from the root out of which they grow ; and if the root, therefore, be good, then necessarily the branches must be good also." The argument of these figures, in their application to the resurrection of the dead, is direct and unan- swerable. Christ is the first fruits of the resurrec- tion harvest, and is holy ; therefore, we know what will be the quality and character of the universal harvest. He is the root, for in him is all our hope of a future life. We are raised from the mortal into the immortal, from the earthly into the heavenly, through him ; as the branches arc developed, through the life of the trunk or root, into beauty, and bloom, and fruitage. As the branches are after the nature and pattern of the trunk, so are we, in the resurrec- tion life, after the nature and pattern of Christ. As we have borne the image of the earthy here, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly there ; for all shall be made alive in Christ. We may not know now what that imasce is, but it is enouo;h to know that it is in the likeness of Christ. As John says : *■' It doth not yet appear what we shall be ; but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is." 1 John iii. 2. vSo the argument stands thus in proof of only two orders or classes in the resurrection : Christ is the first fruits of all the dead — if the first fruits be holy, the lump, or the whole harvest, is holy — therefore, all the dead in the resurrection will be holy. If Clirist be not the first fruits of all the dead, then there is no proof that those, of whom he is u(»t the "EVERY MAN IN HIS OWN ORDER." 225 first fruits, will be raised at all, and if not raised, then they are perished ; and annihilation, and not endless torment, is the result. These are the only logical conclusions which can he based on the language of the apostle. lie is en- tirely silent in regard to the wicked in the resurrec- tion ; and either there are no wicked when " the end " comes, or they are not raised.^ He speaks of those who are Christ's, but makes not the least allu- sion to those who are not his ; and the leo^itlmate in- ference is, that there are none of this sort, but that all are Christ's, and Christ is God's ; and he, as the Father, is all in all. This is the Christian doctrine, and, as Home truly says : " How beautiful and strik- ing is Paul's use of this figure of the first fruits, in this most consolatory and closely reasoned chapter, in which he argues and establishes the certainty of the general resurrection, from the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and represents Christ as the first fruits of a glorious and universal harvest of all the sleeping cleadr ' Yes ; and the very point of the argument, and the very truth which gives it its consolatory character, is the fact, that in the resurrection, when the end comes, the wicked will cease to be wicked, and all T Dr. Bloomfield remarks, Tvith great naivete, "The apostle says nothing about those who are not Christ's, the ivicked.'' Exactly: and that is good reason why we should say nothing about them. It is not well for us to be wise above what is written in this matter. If the apos- tle had believed that in the resurrection some would not be Christ's, he could not have forgotten, he would not have refused to say so; and as he did not, the proof is conclusive against such a supposition. For the " resurrection to damnation," and awaking to " -everlasting shamo and contempt," see chapter x. ' Introduction, vol. iii. 288. 226 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALIS^. souls purified, redeemed, and exalted in Christ, will rejoice for ever more, in the glorious liberty of the children of God. And in confirmation of this view, we shall, in the next section, consider the circum- stances under which "the end" here mentioned, is to come, and the time of its coming. SECTION III. "then COMETH THE ENE " CHRIST's SAYING POWER CONTINUES BEYOND DEATH, TO THE END. " Then cometh the end," says Paul. 1 Cor. xv. 24. "When cometh the end ? and the end of what ? " Then " implies a specified time, and the apostle points it out, with great precision, in the very next words. " Then cometh the end, when he shall liaYe delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father ; lohen he shall have put down all rule, and all authori- ty, and power. For he musl reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall bo destroyed is death." And in the words imnwdi- ately preceding, he connects the end directly with the resurrection, thus : " As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order ; Christ the first fruits, afterwards they that are Christ's at his coming. Then cometh the end." The end spoken of, is the end of Christ's media- torial reign, of his separate kingdom as a Saviour ; which, at the time named, he delivers up to God the Father. And this is not done till all things are sub- jected to his spiritual rule, all opposing powers and authorities ; not till death, the last enemy, is destroy ed, swallowed up iu the victory of life immortal (and the last enemy implies that all other enemies are de- stroyed before it, as sin, ignorance, error ;) not till all are made alive in Christ ; or, in other words, not till the work of the resurrection is completed, and all are raised up into the image of the heavenly, and be- come children of God, by virtue of this resurrection change. Then cometh the end of Christ's work as a Saviour, and not till then ; then cometh the end of his kino- dom, and he surrenders all things back into the hands of the Father, and God, henceforth, is all in all. The point to be specially noted and emphasized is, that the end of Christ's saving action and rule, his relation to the soul as Teacher and Redeemer, does not cease at death, but continues till after the resur- rection is completed ; till the last enemy, till all evil is destroyed. This once understood, the answer to the question, so often asked, is very plain : '' If Jesus came to bave all men from sin, and thousands die in sin, thou- Fands die without ever having heard of him, as the Iieathen; how can he be properly called the Saviour (.fall?" The mistake of those who ask this question, is in liiiilting or restricting the power of Christ, as a Sa- viour, to this world — in supposing that, at the death of each individual, his redeeming power over the soul ceases. There is nothing in the Xew Testament to justify this error, and tlic lano'uage of Paul, just quot- ed, is a direct confutation of it. The power of God over all souls, is inflnit:^ and endless, and no event can ])]ace them beyond his control. The power which 228 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. Le has delegated to the Saviour, remains with him till the work he gave him to do is finished ; and, cer- tainly, it is not finished in this life in the case of mil- lions of souls dying in unbelief, and ignorance, and sin. Consequently, this power to save, continues be- yond death ; continues, as Paul says, till " the end " Cometh, and this end, as shown, comes after the res- urrection and the destruction of all evil. The Resurrection itself, is a part of the Saviour's work, a most important part. Whatever the charac- ter of the change it works out for man, it is always ascribed to Christ as the agent of God. Hence we are said to be raised " through Christ," to be "made alive in Christ," to have the victory over death " through our Lord Jesus Christ," &c. This victory God giveth us. It is of his power, as every thing- else is ; the life that now is, the life to come, the soul itself, salvation, all we have, and all we hope for. But he chooses to bestow his spiritual gifts through Christ. He makes him the medium of communica- tion with us. He delegates his power to him as the Saviour of men, as Jesus himself repeatedly testi- fies ; and one special manifestation of this power is seen in the raising of the dead. " The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand ; " " And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day." John iii. 35 ; vi. 39. So then the saving power of Jesus over the soul, is not limited to this worltl, nor is it surrendered at the death of the body. It has no limit but the res- urrection in its completeness, and to this grand con- •'THEN COMETH THE END." 229 summation it extends in all its fulness ; nay, the re- surrection is one of the most glorious exhibitions of this power ; for then the sting of death is removed, the victory is plucked from the grave (for death itself is dead) ; ''* and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away." Eev. xxi. If it be asked, " How is Chiist to save men after death ? " the answer is, By the same means, and in the same way, as before death, doubtless ; only in- creased in power and directness, and operating with- out the obstructions incident to the flesh or earthly nature. The simple truth is, all men arc saved, in a greater or less degree, after death. The spiritual change of the resurrection, is necessary to the completeness and happiness of every soul. Are any perfect here ? Do not even the best of men fail in many things ? Have we not all " come short of the glory of God ? " Doc-s not the sainted Jchn declare, that " if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us ? " Does not Paul confess, in burning words, to the war between the flesh and the spirit ? Is any one on earth, equal to the angels of God in heaven ? The answers to these questions are patent to all, and reveal the truth and necessity of a change after death. VYe are not perfect, not as the angels, when we die, not even the greatest saint on earth ; but we a^hall be in the resurrection. How can this be, if there be no change after death ? if Christ do not still aid and bless us as a Saviour ? And will Paul main- 230 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. tain his painful struggle against evil, and John con fess to sin, in the resurrection life ? If not, then they will be so far changed after death. ' And this position is logically involved in all the creeds of the day. For example, the xxxix Articles of the Episcopal Church, speaking of original sin, say, " This infection of nature doth remain, ^/ea, in them that are regenerated.^^ If then, the regenerate are infected with sin in this world, one of two things is certain ; either they continue infected with it after death, or they are saved from it after death. The Presbyterian Confession of Faith says : " Sanctification is throughout in the whole man, yet imperfect in this life ; there abideth still some rem- nants of corruption in every part whence ariseth a continual and irreconcileable war, the flesh lustmg against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh. The imperfection of sanctification in believers ariseth from the remnants of sin abiding in every part of them, and the perpetual lustings of the flesh against the spirit ; whereby they are often assailed with temptations and fall into, many sins ; are hindered in all their spiritual services, and their best works are imperfect and defiled in the sight of God." This being the case, if there be no salvation or ' "Before death, sin is only repressed — after tlie rcsui-rection sin will be exterminated. Here the believer lias to maintain the combat, with a tendency to evil still lodging in his heart, and working a perverse movement among his inclinations; but after his Avarfarc in this world 13 accomplished, he will no longer be so thwarted. The great constitu- tional plague of his nature Avill no longer trouble him; and there will l>c the charm of a genial affinity between the purity of his heart and the purity of the clement he breathes in." — Chalmer's Sermon on 2 Peler iii. 13. 231 change after death, what is to be done with these be- lle veis with " remnants of sin abiding in every part of them ? " Are they to continue as " imperfect " in the future life as they are in this life ? If not, then they must be saved to that extent beyond this life ; find since there is no other Saviour but Christ, they must be saved after death through him. And thus is demonstrated the truth that Ills redeeming agency docs not cease at death, but takes up the soul at its entrance upon the resurrection world, and enlightens, guides and instructs it in divine things, till it attains to that perfection, purity and blessedness, described by the term " heaven," or by the words of Christ " equal unto the angels." And through this resur- rection change, this uplifting into the image of God, all must pass alike, differing only in degrees ; saint and sinner, believer and unbeliever, Christian and Pagan ; those who have learned the name of Christ In this world, and those who never heard of him till they passed over the boundaries into the other world. And this is " the end " of the work of Jesus — the world redeemed, and clothed in the white robes of purity, every wanderer restored, every fallen one lifted up, and the great family of God renewed in the Divine image in which they were created. To this we all shall come, through Christ and the resurrec- tion. And what a glorious result ! with what infi- nite rejoicings it will be hailed by all the hosts of heaven ! " Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and Buch as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard 232 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. I paying, Blessing, and horror, and glory, and power, be unto him tliat sitteth upon the throne, and untc the Laml) forever and ever." Eev. v. In the eloquent language of Athanase Coquerel, the distinguished Protestant preacher of Paris, and an able advocate of universal restoration : " What an affecting and majestic arrangement of the universe, where there is a place for all ; and an immortality where there is an opportunity for all ! These thoughts are so delightful and consolatory, that we feel constrained to regard their sublimity as one guaranty more for their truth. And the glory of the Kedeemer of the world is compromised by the oppo- site doctrine, as much as our joy and love. To be- lieve in an eternal hell as well as an eternal heaven, is to bring to the same level the power of evil and false- hood, and that of goodness and truth; it is to deny that virtue has an internal and irresistible force, which eventually will overcome evil ; it is to deny that truth ought to outweigh error. I ask, is it ad- ministering to the glory of Jesus to say to him : Thy redemption stops for man at the tomb ; powerful on this side, it is powerless beyond ; it loses itself, so to speak, in the dust of the sepulchre, in the night of death ; its efficacy lasts for the duration of human life only ; beyond this life, it no longer bears fruit, and has nothing to give. Is it not a much better service to the glory of His mercy to announce new triumphs, and to say to him: "Thou savest ever; thou rcignest over the living and the dead ; thy re- demption retains all its value through immoi'tality ; thy reign in heaven at the right hand of God, contin- ues thy mission, in this world ; thou intercedcst al- DEATH— KESURRECTIOK— SALVATION. 2S3 tvays with equal power ; thou savest always with equal goodness!"^ SECTION IV, DEATH — RESURRECTION — SALVATION — THEIR RELATIONS TO EACH OTHER. We have already indicated^ with sufficient clear- ness for the intelligent reader, the spiritual character of the agencies and processes by which the soul is to be raised up and redeemed in the resurrection ; but there are some special points which, for the sake of the inquirer, may call for farther elucidation and il- lustration. And it is necessary, in order to meet a supposed difficulty, often stated in the following form : " A change of place is not a change of character. To suppose that its entrance into the future world will affect the moral tendencies of the soul, or give a new direction to its dispositions, desires and aims, is ^ *' Le Ctiristianisme Experimental.^'' Translated and published in London under the title of " Christianity; itsperfect adaptation to the Mental, Moral and Spiritual Natureof Man," 1847. This is Coquerel's great work, the sum of his philosophy, religion, and life experience; the last chapter of which has this title: " The Expectation of Universal Hestoration," in which he argues the subject with eminent ability and learning. Later still he has published another work on this subject: *' La Mort Second et les peines eternelleii,'^ or " The Second Death and Eternal Punishment." A single sentence more: " my brethren," he exclaims, " accept this magnificent hope of the final redemption of all in Christ. To the ti-iumphs of your Divine Saviour, there lacks only the abolition of hell. Do not restrict His reign to the narro'sv limits of a mortal career. Make room in eternity, and give extension in heaven, to what is infinite in the love of Jesus." It is pleasant to know that the gi-eat doctrines of our faith are preached thus eloquently to a congregation of two thousand persons, by one of the most cele- brated Protestant Ministers of France — and that, too, in the heart of Paris, a few steps only from the very church whose heavy bell gave THEOLOGY OF UNlVERSALIS3i. ?oil and productions of the earth ; by modes of life, customs, superstitions, knowledge and social organ il'- ation. And consider what a tremendous power over the moral nature, over the development of character, the mind and the affections, aims and enjoyments, if had by education and ignorance, plenty and poverty, kindness and neglect, virtuous and vicious compan- ions, the presence and absence of temptations. Look into the condition of the destitute and dangerous classes on the one hand, and, on the other hand, into that of those who enjoy all the privileges of mental and moral culture, religion, rirtuons society, and a ready and abundant supply for all their physical wants. I am persuaded that any one will feel con- vinced by the examination, that much of our good- ness is due to the favorable circumstances and influ- ences by w^hich we have been surrounded from our birth ; and that more wickedness than is generally supposed, is to be put down to hunger, and naked- ness, and tmcleanness, to bad air, and bad food and shelter, to ignorance and evil associations. The apostle rightly says, " Et^il communications corrupt good manners ; " and it is equally true that good communications help to reform bad manners. And can we estimate, then, too highly, the power for good over the soul which will be put in action by the new and wonderful circumstances in which it w^ill be placed on its entrance into the spiritual world, by the mighty and divine influences brought to bear upon it ? No longer seeing through a glass darkly, as it did when veiled wdthin the body, it there sees as a spirit, face to face, and perceives the real character nnd true relations of things. And what sudden rev- DEATH — RESURRECTION — SALVATION. 237 elations of truth, of love, and beauty, burst upon its anointed sight. The glory of God's majesty, the ex- cellency of his wisdom, the extent of his goodness, the tenderness and the love of the Saviour for man, the joy and the spiritual beauty of the angels, the blessedness and ever-increaslni>' knowledoc of the re- deemed, the boundless creation stretching out on all sides into the invisible, the countless starry worlds that lie like shining dust under the foot of God ! These, and a thousand other exhibitions of divine power and wisdom, and a thousand otlier revelations of the Saviour's love and grace, and of the holiness and bliss of heaven, must, indeed, exert a mighty at- tractive influence on the new-born soul, lifting it up- ward. They will draw it toward the pure, the good, the beautiful, as the vapors of the earth and sea are drawn upward toward the sun, by the attraction of its genial ligjht and warmth. What force there is even here in truth, and puri- ty, and love. How reverent they will make us, how gentle and yielding, when exerting their full power upon us. How strongly we arc drawn toward a really good man, even in this life, vdiile surrounded by all manner of evil influences, and perverted, dark- ened, and hindered by our sinfulness, O, how much more, then, when the darkness and blindness which the fleshly veil puts upon our sight, are passed away ; when, set free from the perverting and corrupting in- fluences of the body, v*'e become spirit only, behold- inn; the infinite i^oodness of God ! And now let us turn to another thought connected with the subject. It is sometimes said, that a man cannot be made virtuous or holy, as a soiled garment f38 TirEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISJI. or vessel is made clean by washing ; that the resulfa of conduct are not arrested by some sudden miraclCy at death, and the soul separated from its sins, purifi- ed and saved, by a kind of moral chemistry, without any effort or volition of its own ; that death is wholly a physical result, and has nothing to do with shi, nothing to do with salvation, which is altogether a spiritual result. It is certainly true that death has nothing to do with sin directly, yet the hodi/ has a great deal to do with it ; and as death delivers the soul from the- body, it sets it free from the temptations of the body. Suppose a man falls into the sea encumbered, not only with his ordinary clothes, but with thick, heavy over-garments, his feet encased in heavy boots, and his hands confined in stout gloves. By great exer- tion and struggle, he succeeds in throwing these oflfl The getting quit of these, does not, indeed, save him' from drowning, but it certainly puts him in a better condition for reaching the shore. So death does not, itself, bestow purity, knowledge, and happiness on the soul, but it certainly puts it in a better eonditioii for reaching these, by freeing it from all the clogs r.nd hindrances of the flesh, Henry Ward Beecher seems to have caught the true idea : "We shall enter upon another life divest- ed of many of the hindrances and incumbrances of this. When we pass from life, v/c shall leave behind, not only the body, but all that part of the passions and the appetites which has its function and sphere on account of our poor bodily condition. It seems to me that much that mars life is what we call in- Qrmity ;. and that whjen we die, we leave behind ua DEATH — RESURRECTION— SALVATION. 239 many things tliat we call f-xults, and foibles, and sins, as the trees shed their leaves when winter comes. When the body dies. Oh, how much will perish that is the result of the forces of those passions which sleep with the flesh ! When we go from this world. Low shall we be released from ten thousand things that belong to our physical state, and that tend to hinder our spiritual development ! " * With reo-ard to the observation that " the results of conduct are not arrested by a sudden miracle at death," we may speak more cautiously. As to the miracle, we need not spend words. Experience shows that, without a miracle, the results of conduct, or more properly, what would be the results if that conduct were continued, are often arrested by influ- ences far less potent than death. Behold the triumphs of Reform in all its phases. Take, as an example, the man who, for years, has given himself up to the most reckless indulgence of appetite, rushing down from one depth of debasement to another, till he becomes degraded as a brute, and ferocious as a fiend. See him now, all at once, sud- ' Independent, 'Deo.., 1881. Clemens Alexandrinus said, nearly 1700 years ago : " Souls in their separate state, though darkened by evil passions, have yet a clearer discernment than they had whilst ia the body, because they are no longer clouded and encumbered by the flesh." Stro/nata, Lib. vi. cap. 6. The ancient Fathers generally un- derstood the preaching to tlie spirits in prison, 1 Peter iii., literally, and Clement and Origen both quote the passage in proof of a future universal restoration. Origex believed that the souls of the good, or Christians, at death, go to Paradise, or the bosom of Abraham; and that, as they grow in knowledge, they rise to higher and higher regions, till they finally reach that state of perfection and blessedness called Heaven. Gregory Nazianzen, and others, believed they went direct- ly into the presence of God.— Hagenbach, History of Doctrines^ Sects. 77, 78, 142. 240 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. tlen as the flash of the lightning, arrested in his course ! A look, or a tone of the voice, a dream, a beautiful memory, the prayer of his childhood, the vision of his dead mother's sweet forgiving look, the remembrance of a sister's love, the face of a child, a strain of music, turns back the whole tide of his being ; and the steps that were just now going down- ward to hell, are turned upward toward heaven ! And if such slight incidents can so suddenly arrest the sinful and criminal, and turn the whole current of thought, and feeling, and purpose, into a new and right direction ; can death, which liberates the soul from the body and its temptations, be powerless in its influence? Is it presumption to suppose that this great event, which changes the condition, and all the outward relations of the spirit, and opens for it a new era of existence, will arrest its evil tendencies, and exert a mighty moral influence upon it ? I think a just and intelligent philosophy would predict precise- ly such a result on inductive principles. And let us not be deceived by any false ideas of forcing; the soul into the rio-ht, or violatino; the laws of its spiritual constitution, by turning it to God. The new influences acting upon it in the resurrection, may aflect it more powerfully, and more quickly im- part to its desires and affections, a right direction, than while in association with the body ; but it will be in perfect accord with the nature of the soul, with the laws of its being, and with its volition and fi^c- doiii. AYe believe in no violation, or forcible sus^ pension of these. Jesus will work out the redemp- tion of the soul in the resurrection, by the same agencies which he employs here. He will not save DEATH — RESURKECTIOX — SALVATIOX. 241 by " meclianical " forces or means, but by such means as shall address themselves to the natural con- ditions and elements of the spiritual being. The growth of a plant may be hastened by an in- crease of light and heat, or by a more favorable loca- tion, or fitting soil. And the same result may be obtained by a peculiar dressing of the soil, or by an increase of electricity supplied to the earth and plant. But all this is in perfect harmony with the radical nature and laws of the plant ; nay, could not be at all, if it were not so. Whatever sudden in- crease of growth or productiveness is attained, is the consequence of more favorable circumstances adapted to the existing capacities, structure, and wants of the plant. So with the soul, in the resurrection. It is brought into more favorable circumstances, and its growth is more rapidly set forward by a great and sudden increase of spiritual light and heat ; but in perfect harmony with its nature, the laws of its structure and development, and the capacities with which it was origiifally endowed. The germ of all the soul will attain to, and enjoy, in the future life, is doubtless within it now and here. The more genial clime of the spirit world will only quicken and de- velop it. There is a pleasant passage from Mountford, illus- trating this truth : " Look out of the window, at the garden. It is very beautiful. But what was it last Christmas, when barrenness, and cold, and death, reigned every where, over garden, and field, and for- est ? And yet nearly all you now behold was at that time existent under the soil. There lav latent in the 242 THEOLOGY OF UNIVEESALISM. liarcl black clods of earth, all the gracefulness of those plants, the shady foliage of the trees, every flowery perfume, the lusciousness of the grape and the strawberry ; and all the colors of the rainbow, those of the rose, the polyanthus, the daffodil, the daisy, the violet, and the acanthus, together with all the sweetness and the attractiveness of the whole scene. Three months sunshine and rain have foster- ed, out of dead earth, all this beauty and abundance ! But rain and sunshine, what are they, as agents com- pared with holy influences like those which the Father Almighty can exert upon the soul of man ! '' Need we, then, when we see these wonders of re- newal, in the natural w^orld, wrought out by such simple agencies, need we doubt the final restoration of the soul to God ? Can we doubt his resources, his power to renew it again in its first love, in the glory of its primeval state ? Can we imagine a beau- ty of holiness, an excess of bliss, too great for the resurrection state ? too great for the soul's glad sum- mer to realize ? And when we see the simplicity of method and means by which God works in the natural world, and freshens the earth into beauty and abundance ; shall we sufler any vain and blind philosophy to deceive us with the idle assertion that this doctrine makes the resurrection only a kind of moral chemistry, and the salvation of the soul a deliverance and purification as J3y miracle ? In the presence of the great restora- tion of Nature in her spring-time, does a like renew- al in the S2:)iritual world, look impossible or unphilo- Bophical ? I do not say " unscriptural," because, as we have seen, the Go.^pcl authoritatively announces DEATH — RESURRECTION — SALVATION. 243 this glorious consummation as the eternal purpose of God, and the end, and the crowning triumph, of Christ's mission. In the preceding chapters, we have presented the leading doctrines of the Theology of Universalism, in their natural and consequential relations. We have endeavored to show how they link into each other, and unite in a complete system ; beginning in the original purpose and plan of God, embracing the ar- gument from the Divine character and perfections, the object of the Saviour's mission, the nature of his Eedemption, the office of the Holy Spirit, the New Birth of the soul, the glory and blessedness of the Immortal Life ; and ending in the final restoration and exaltation to this life of all mankind through Jesus Christ. These doctrines are coincident with the entire drift of Divine Eevelation ; they constitute the substance and meaning of the Gospel, and alone give to the mission of the Son of God, its true dignity and value. In themselves, they are a system of Divinity. They complete the argument in relation to human destiny, and the ultimate results of the government of God on earth ; and establish the ever-blessed and beauti- ful truth, that the good of Man and the glory of G od are one and inseparable. But in conducting the inquiry thus far, we have avoided all side issues, all discussions of collateral doctrines, for the express purpose of carrying the ar- gument forward, without interruption, from its start- ing point in the primal purpose of God, to its logical conclusion in the final restoration and perfection of 244 THEOLOGY OF UNIVERSALISM. mankmd. Consequently, we have omitted all polemi- cal reference, not absolutely in the line of reasoning jDursued, to the doctrines of Judgment, of Rewards and Punishments specially as such, of Repentance and Forgiveness, the Divine Law and its Penalties, Damnation, Everlasting Punishment, Hell, &c. ; re- serving them for separate consideration, as collateral proofs, and illustrations of the main argument. These subjects, which embrace a wide range of in- quiry, and exposition, will receive attention in the chapters which follow. And the reader Avill not only find that the teachings of the Bible on these points, do not contravene the argument of the preceding chapters ; but as intimated, it will be a pleasing sur- prise to him, if he has not investigated the subject before, to find how perfectly they harmonize with, and how thoroughly they confirm, the crowning doc- trine of Universal Redemption. This will especially appear in the several expositions of the doctrines concerning Judgment, the Divine Law, Rewards and Punishments, &c. They will discover the man- ner in which all these great facts and principles of the Divine Government, converge upon the single point of the final abolition of all sin and suffering, and the everlasting reign of holiness and happiness through- out the universe. And at the close of the investiga- tion, he will, perhaps, take up the saying of the an- cient people, with a larger and more glorious mean- ing : " The Lord is our Judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King ; he will save us." Lsa. xxxiii. CHAPTEE VII. THE SCRIPTURAL DOCTRINE OF JUDGMENT, The word Judgment is used with a variety of sig nifications in the sacred writings. 1. As descriptive of the Laws or Commandmentt of God to the Jews. After statutes and laws were ■given to the people, Moses said to them : " Where- fore, it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these judgments^ and keep, and do them,"