^ PRINCETON, N. J. ^ Presented b7V\^^\^^fc\ ^ . c)C/(7\X^OO "CO BX 5037 .R65 1801 v. 8 Romaine, William, 1714-1795 Works of the late reverend William Romaine Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014 https://archive.org/details/worksoflaterever08roma_0 WORKS OF THE REVEREND WILLIAM ROMAINE, A. M. . RECTOR OF SAINT ANDREW BY THE WARDROBE, AND Saint Ann, Blachfriars, AND LECTURER OF SAINT DUNSTAN, IN THE WEST, LONDO N. f n ei5i)t Volumes. VOL VIII. SECOND EDITION. LONDON : PRINTED FOR CROSBY AND LETTERMAN, STATIONERS'-COURT, PATERNOSTER-ROW. 1801. L E T T E R S WRITTEN BY THE LATE Rev. WILLIAM ROMAINE. Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be loft. I (EnrertD at vithin you — Feel it. And then tell me, whether there be any certain profpe£l of folid happinefs, but what is promifed and found in our Shiloh, the giver of quietnefs. May he continue to blefs you. LETTER III. March 19, 1784, My dear Friend, I HAVE read of a certain love-charm, which has pleafed me ever fince I heard of it— " If you would be beloved — Love." B a It 12 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE It was the faying of an old philofopher : 1 admire it, and I fet my feal to it. Probatum ejl : For it is true gofpel. It is the very way in which God commendeth his love to us, and which is the means of teaching us to love one another. I have in my heart brotherly love: and what is it worth, if it does not prevent the very wifties of my friends, and be trying to do them good, even when they are afleep, or when they know nothing of it ? Mr. 1 tell you nothing but the truth, that I am often thinking of you and yours, and am contriving every pofilble way of (hewing my afFeftion, wherever I have intereft, efpecially with my King, and with fuch of his royal gifts- as you may never hear of in this world : prefent things are only the evidence, and I cannot help giving you fome proof of my good wifhes. Your confecrated Bible is in your hand every day. May he, of whom it treats, be ever with you in reading it. May he open it to you, as he did to his apoftles, and give you to mix faith with it. We have got a great way into the ftudy of it, when we feel our need of David's prayer, and are conftantly ufing it — " Lord open thou mine eyes, that I may fee wondrous things in thy word j" — efpecially fee, admire, and adore the w^ondrous love of God our Saviour. May be grow every day more dear and precious unto your heart. 3 You ■REV. \V. ROMAINE, A. M. tj You feem at a lofs about the prefent fyftem of politics. I am not at all. Leaders of parties differ not an atom — Two men of the world, think, fpeak, a£l, on motives of felf-intereft — Potflierds of the earth, in their contcft, may knock one againft each other, and break both to pieces. Truly, Sir, they will not, they cannot do you or me, or our caufe, any good : nor indeed, hurt, unlefs we trouble ourfelves about them. Our Lord reigneth. This is my firlt principle in politics — the next is, the fame Lord reigneth — and fo on, even to the end. Ihe laft is, The Lord reigneth. Bleffingson him. King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. iVIy King and my Lord. Here my heart refts, and is happy— come what may. He ruicth the raging of the fca. He ruleth the maonefs of the people. All things, creatures, devils, are in his power — And he makes them work under him for my good, and for his own glory. To his charge and care I oommit you, and yours ; Mrs. —■ — efpecially. I pray that my deareft Jefus may be very near her heart, and comfort her fpjrit with his divine cordials. Mr. W. T. fliall not efcape out of my hands, as he intends. Give my love to him, and tell him we will make one more effort at the Hebrew. Who knows what ftudy and prayer Bjay do ? I wifli 14 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE I wilh to eye, and follow, the bleffed pattern of all perfection. To him I am infinitely in- debted. " He has made me rich, by making me a beggar. So wonderful is his love, that the poorer I am, the more he gives.'* And you, and I, and all my friends are better for his gifts : he makes me loving, communicative, benevolent, beneficent, yea, whatever is counted moral. O Air, I wifli you perfectly acquainted with my Jefus. I know a little of him, and it is a bleffed knowledge. BeUeve me, it is fomething of paradife. Read the word, there is his cha- racter— pray over it, there you will m.eet his Spirit. Live on it by faith — there you will have graces and comforts : and go on, your time is fhort. Improve it, all you can : grow ever fo faft, and much, in the knowledge of Jefus — yet ilill, there are worlds of fclence and experience before you. May you grow in grace, and in the knowledge and love of God-Jefus. As you do. I am fure he will put it into your heart, to pray for W.R. LETTER HEV, W. ROMAINTJ, A. M. 15 LETTER IV. July 30, 1784. My real Friend, I HAVE many fubjeSls of thanks this morning. When I look at you, your wife, your ■children ; vour temporal bleffings, how many — how great : your fpiritual bleffings, how exceed- ing great, paffing all underitanding, in their fovereign rife and fountain ; in their reaching to your confcience, and heart, and life, in their flreams of grace ; and how foon they will run, and you with them into the ocean of eternity. I cannot help adoring and praifing your mod generous benefaftor. BlefTed be the Lord God for his unfpeakable mercies to you. Indeed, my friend, he has loaded you with benefits, which are conftantly calling on you to give him the glory due unto his name. Your (kill in your bufinefs, your fuccefs in it, are the gifts of God. Profper ever fo much in it, build as fine an houfe as is in H— e ; live to fee all your children grown up, fettled, and profpering in the world, none of thefe things will be any hurt to you, while you live in an abiding fenfe, that God is a free-giver : nay they will do you good, while you fee his hand, ^md tafte his love in them. I admire that fen- tence, LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE tence, " I have fet the Lord always before me." 0 how much is it my daily prayer for you. In the morning, I fcarce ever drink a difti of tea, "but the cracknel {landing on the table, reminds me of my S. friends, and gets a petition put up to my royal mafter. May he, who gives me, through them, the bread that periflieth, give unto them daily, the bread that endureth unto everlafting life. He himfelf is that bread. And 1 want you in your heart, to feed upon him, feaft upon him, I fhould fay : and you are doing it, if he give you for the moment to feel your dependence, and beftow an atom more of thank- fulnefs upon you. O that I could bring Jefus Chrift and you as near together as he wifhes you ; he is not fhy nor referved. He knows not what it is to keep ftate and diflance. Your lins and your complaints, rightly ma- naged, would endear you to him — and your miferies felt or feared, would make him more precious. He has warranted you to live with him in fuch intimacy, that every thing fliould fet him before your eyes, and keep your heart warm with his heavenly love. He would have nothing to hinder. If good come, he is the giver — if bad come, he can, and he only can, make it work for good. This is the happy life, which you do know fomething of, as well as I ; but truly. Sir, I am but a learner, and a dull one : yet 1 have learned fo much, as to be con- vinced REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. ly vinced there is nothing upon earth to be com- pared with it. May your experience get far beyond mine. I will help you as 1 can, and follow you with my conftant prayers. See how one wanders from the point, and gets upon what is uppermoft. I took my pen to thank you for cracknels, and lo, I have digreffed to my old fubjeft. Excufe me. Sir ; for In truth, I would give the whole world, if it were mine, to obtain for you a little more faith in the word, and a little more attachment to the perfon of my beloved Jefus. I thank him for the account of your family. I rejoice in your wel- fare. It is really mine own. Brotherly love makes it fo. Bloffed be God for his mercies to Mrs. . I thought my requeft was fo reafon- able flie would have gratified me. I did not wifli for a letter from her, but only an acknow^- ledgment of my kindnefs in one line. 1 think in my laft, I dictated the words ; but 1 lay no ftrefs upon that. Leave me out, and thank God. I am praying for little John — God blefs him. It will do me good, as I truly am his friend, to hear particularly of his welfare. I hope to take him up in my arms and blefs him. You wiOi to know my route : we go north, God willing, next Monday, as far as Newcaftle upon Tyne. I have three fifters living, and am going to take my final leave of them. They are old, fo am I. And we fhall not in all probability l8 LETTERS WRITTEN BY TPlfe probability meet any more on this fide of the grave. The occafion of this journey, has brought a great folemnity upon my fpirits. There isfome- thing in this laft meeting, which would he too much for my feelings, if I had not all the reafon in the world to believe, that our next meeting will be in glory. Mr. Whitfield ufed often to fay to me, " how highly favoured I was ; that whereas, none of his family were believers, all mine were like thofe bleffed people, Jefus loved Martha, and her fifter, and Lazarus." My father and mother, and my three fitters, fhare in his love. Glory be to him in the higheft. My intention is to return about the middle of Sep- tember. After fome little ftay at home, to go to my fon's, at Reading, from thence to Heckfield, and fo on to you at S. I hope to find a letter on my table at my coming home, faying our houfe, our hearts are open — come and vifit us in the name of the Lord. I have a propofal to brother K. Lately I preached about a dozen fermons on Phil. iii. I treated it as a body of divinity, doc- trinal, and practical. Let him try to fee my plan — if not, I will open it to him, as God fliall help me. It is a wonderful portion of God's word, I admire it ; I blefs God for it. 1 could not do without it. Till Sep. 15, I take my leave, Let there be a letter then on my table — and . REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I9 and you fliall ,hear from me. Mrs. R. is not behind in beft wiOies to you and Mrs. My bleffing on all the children. Love to bro- ther K. wife and family, and conne£lions. Pray for W. R, LETTER V. PvTr. W. T. is come at lad. By him I fend my love, real, hearty, and what I have juft now been expreffing to God for you, and yours — efpecially for Mrs. , whofe chaplain I am, till file is abroad again. It is now my preaching morning — and I am preparing foj: the delightful work — yet I cannot help writing a line or two. My thoughts are turned to day upon recommending Chrift to my people. I have a fweet fubjefl: from John iv. lo, in which our Lord lays open the love of his heart in a moft attracting manner. He muft needs go through Samaria ; becaufe there was a very v;icked creature, whom he would fave. His manner of teaching her, is peculiar to himfelf, lie does it in the kindeft way that almighty love pould 2t> LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE could infpire, and I can witnefs for him that he is not changed—in convincing her — opening her eyes — making himfelf known — and giving her to believe in him ; he is repeating thefe won- ders every day — If thou knewefi: the gift of God. It is ignorance that keeps finners from Chrift. When he is teaching and drawing them, it is ignorant pride that hinders them from receiv- ing falvation as the gift of God. It is for want of knowing who Chrift is, and who it is that faith to thee — Give me to drink. If his true charafter were underftood, who he is, and what he came into the world for, convinced fmners would not lie under guilt and unbelief as they do. They would come and afk of him — for he gives to all alkers — his Spirit — which is the water of life. So the promife runs, Luke xi. 13, *' Afk, and ye fliall have," is the one grand truth that runs through the gofpel. And efpe- cially, the receiving, not for, but upon aiking, the Holy Spirit, as John vii. 37, &c. He is the water mentioned, John iv. 10, not living, as our tranflation hath it, but the water of life, as the old tranflations, or quickening water, as the French hath it, in verfe 14. It Ihail be in him a fountain, not a well, fpringing up into ever- lafting life. Lord give us this water of life. I fat down to write as foon as prayers were over, and Mr. W. and Mrs. R. went to break- faft. The bell rings to take away. W. is going. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 2.1 going. The Lord Jefus Chrift blefs you and vours; brother K. and family, and fchool. Ex- cufe the little fermon. My mind was fo taken up with it, that I could think of nothing elfe. O how often, how much, do I wifh and pray, that Chrift and you were better acquainted. My dear friend, give him more employment — make more ufe of him— truft him better — he wants your confidence, and would have you live in perfe6l friendfliip with him. He deferves it at your hands. Indeed, Sir, he would have you truft and not be afraid. You cannot think what a heaven it is to be intimate with him. W. does not take his hat, fo I write on, and fo I will. Jefu on thine each fyllable A thoufand Aveet Arabias dwell ; Mountains of myrrh, and beds of fpices. And ten, ten thoufand Paradifes. Ay, more than all this, millions more. LETTER LETTERS WRITTEN BY THS LETTER VI. Se/:f. 15, 178+, My very dear Friend^ YOUR letter met us returned in fafety. We went out in his name, and came back to give him praife : for we fet our feal to the promife, " I will keep thy going out and thy " coming in, from this time forth, and even for *' evermore." And it was done unto us accord- ing to that word, wherein he had caufed us to put our truft. In this fame faith we hope to fet out next week for Reading, not doubting but that in believing the truth of the promife, and relying on the promifer's faithfulnefs, we fliall have the promifed bleffing — accompanying us as far as . The day we cannot fix, but we will take care to let you know it, as foon as we know it ourfelves. I have jufl: finiflied my delightful tafk, and read through my Bible once more : the impreffions which it has left on my heart in this laft perufal, are fo warm and lively, that I cannot help communicating them to you, and wifhing that you and Mrs. may feel the fame. The fcripture plan has in it all the treafures of wifdom and knowledge, in theory and expe- rience. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 2^ rience. It will be the lludv and the admiration of eternity. O Avhat a mercy to have a renewed mind — to be of the fame judgement with God — and to be made to fee thinsrs in the lisrht of his revelation. I blefs him for the great charter of grace — and that in my laft reading of it, he has much revived my heart with obferving, how all the parts perfeftly harmonize, and when com- pared together, each iiluftrates and beautifies the whole. I wilh you to feel, for I cannot exprefs how great confirmation I have received of the truth of God's word, and of his power ftill accompa- nying it. I am not more certain of any thing than of the divine authority of the fcriptures. Every verfe has Spirit — and has life in it. When one finds it come to the heart, and written upon the inward parts, it nouriflies, it feafts : no cor- dial beyond it. This influence is promifed, and it is indeed almighty. Can you think, Sir, of any power beyond that which God has put forth in your heart and mine ? " Of his own will begat he us with the " word of truth". Our new birth is a new cre- ation— and he did it by his word ; which he made the mlniftration of his Spirit. Bleflings on him. I feel the effefts of this every time I take up my Bible : I fet my feal to it, that it is more, much more, than the word of man. It is in truth the word of God ; becaufe it efFe£l:ually 2 worketh 2.4 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE worketli to this very day in tliein that believe. Its influence on the heart and lite, to form them to the pattern of the word, is certainly far beyond all created power. Indeed it is a ftanding mira- cle. Now finding this experience of God's power in and with his word, it has been made to me in this reading very precious. My love for it grew as I went on, both for its tafle and its value. It was in tafte fvveeter than honey to the mouth — in value, above gold, " Yea than " much fine gold". And all this was greatly enhanced by believing, that the feaft, fweet as it was, was only a foretafte : and the golden Mine, though very rich, was only an earneft of un- fearchable riches. O what a book is this ! Judge, whether there be any thing like it. Truly, my friend, I cannot get enough of it. You know it is a good fign of health when peo- ple long for their meals. So it is in the mind. I have juft done reading, and I want to begin again. My appetite is become keener. This feeding upon the word is not like the grofs meat and drink of the body. No. There is nothing cloy- ing: in it. But when mixed with faith, it fobers the fenfes, it refines the faculties, and exhile- rates the Spirits. The believer fays, " O what " love have I unto thy word. All day long is " my ftudy, and delight in it." Lord make it every reading more precious. All thefe confi- derations have received great confirmation in this REV. W. ROMAIKE, A. M. 25 this laft reading : becaufe I have got one year nearer to the full accomphfliment of all the Bible promifes. This has vaftly increafed their value. I fee them near. Yet a little, a very little while, and perfection and eternity will be put to their fulfillment. The word will he com-" pleated perfectly in all its promifes — eternally in all their glories. O what a day will that be ! What Joftiua faid of Canaan, Ch. xxi. 25, Ch. xxiii. 14, 15, will be true of heaven. Faith realizes it. Faith brings it into fome prefent en- joyment. All things in the world look great, when they are near. As you go from them they appear lefs. Now it is the property of faith in the exercife to bring the promifes near. As faith grows by hearing and reading, it brings the promifes nearer; and thereby makes them look greater. The home-profpeft familiarizes them, and prc- fents them to our view with growing charms. Believe me. Sir, this is a matter of fa£l. The eye affects the heart, and puts new beauty on the good things of Immanuel's land, which, though they be at prefent in promife and hope, yet faith has a magnifying glafs, which, can open fuch a profpefl:, as is full of glory and immortality. This view of the Bible is inex- preflibly glorious. It reveals, it realizes ; it brings into prefent enjoyment; eternal things. It is my conftant prayer for S. friends— that Vol. VIII. C they 26 LETTERS WRITTEN SY THE they may be thefe fort of Bible-chriftians : msy you live more up to it than I do. I was going on, and my paper faid, flop. Take a line to thank Mrs. for her letter. It was a cor- dial. God blefs her for it. Thank Mr. > for love expreffed — and proofs of it many : for which Mr. R. will come with returns of love for love. Mrs. R. joins in every good wifli to you, and to the family. My beft wi flies to bro- ther K. What if he were to give the Lord of the harvefl: the honor of 1784? He giveth us rain from heaven, and fruitful feafons, filling our hearts with food and gladnefs. He giveth us the Spirit to fow the feed. He rains upon it. Ke Ihines upon it. k ripens. It is gathered in. It is ufed. And whenever the believer fills his belly, his heart is full of gladnefs. He gets the food : God gets the praife. May my brother magnify the Lord of the harveft, and pray for W. R. and all his. LETTER VII. Reading, Oi9. 27, 1784. My dear Friend. I HAVE fcarce ever loft fight of you fince I left S. And I hope to have you in remem- brance, and on my heart until I take my leave df kEV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 27 of this dying world. Your kindnefs to me and to mine is fiich, that I efteem it my privilege to make mention of you always in my prayers : and it is my happinefs to believe, that death it- felf will not part our friendfliip. It is from the Lord, and in the Lord : thanks be to him. I do feel myfelf interefted in your interefl: — your children — connexions — minifter — and in what- ever is for your good. And I truft it is the fame with you. I only take up my pen , to inform you of what youexpreffed a great defire to be acquainted with. Our common friend took care of us. We got fafe and foon to Winchefter. I acknowledge Mr. T's favor, and add one more to the long Irft. We arrived in good time, about fun-fet, at Reading — found our children and their chil- dren well — the little babe rather better, but ftill in a weak condition. Since I got here, I have been arrefted, and cannot be fuffered to go home till next Tuefday. Mrs. R. fends every good widi to yoii" that our God has to give : Mr. and Mrs. C. join. Nothing fliort of all this is exprelFed by my foil and daughter. This comes to you by the wag- gon, which fets out from hence this day. Mr. T. He who is your God and guide, has Jed you hitherto, and done wonders for you. Go on trufting and fear not. He has profpered you. He has bleffed you. Commit your way C 2 unto LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE unto him, and he will give you your heart's defire, and wife, -children, Sec. &c. all fliall be bleflings. Mrs. T. — May the giver of faith increafc yours, that, as a wife, mother, and miftrefs, you may adorn your profeffion. Mifs T. — I have been courtinj: for vou an hufband, and got his confent. Give him your heart and your hand. Take him and try him. No evil can befall you, while his, all poffible good will become yours. Herein I tread in his fteps. 2 Cor. xi. i, 2. May he be yours for ever, even my Jefus. Mifs Efther, — The world's a cheat. It flatters you. Your fenfes join, and without Chrift they will make a fool of you. Your fifter has made a good choice. Follow her example, and God will give you infinitely better things than you part with for him. Mr. W. T. — Take my advice. I wifli you well. It rejoices my heart to fee you dutiful and diligent : this is from God : but do not flop here. There is an infinitely greater eftate to be got than all S. Alk and it is yours : believe and you get poflcfiion. Seek it by believing, and you lliall have it. My wilh for you is unbound- ed— even the unfearchable riches of Chriii:. Mr. S. T. — Mind your bufinefs. Pray over it. Prayer is as needful as all outward means. I will do my part. May God command his bleff- 5 ins REV, W. ROMAINE, A. M. 2^ lag on your perfon, and on your trade, that both may profper. I have much to fay to my namefake, and to Tommy and Sally, and to my own John : but I muft wait a little. It is fo cold, 1 can fcarce hold my pen : and all fo badly written, that I can but juft read it myfelf^ We go to town on Tuefday next, God willing. I ihall have occa- fion to write to Mr. T. foon, fo that I can only fay to him, and to you, at prefent. That I do love you, and hope to fhew it in word and a precious Jefus. So he is this May the 3d. I have been confulting one, who was quite enraptured with his Lord's beauty— who had feen him in his plory, and he gave me great en- couragement to proceed in this divine ftudy: for he faid to me " After twenty three years *' happv experience of w hat he is to me, befides " ti e vifions and revelations which I had of him " i.i paradife, Itill I know him but in part^ yet " what I do know, has fuch a powerful influence " upon my heart and life, that I am ftill prefl^mg *' forward, and I will, God helping me, until I *' know, even as alfo I am known." O this vi^as fweet advice. You cannot think what jrood it did me; for I found my cafe, and the apofties' were much alike: I do, bleflings on him, I do know My Jefus, truly, and favingly; yet it is but little: 1 am not fatisfied with my attainments: more, far more, rem.ains to be known of this in- finite objefi:, and therefore it is not enjoyed: a fenfe of this keeps alive a conftant appetite for frefli difcoveries: and this hungering and thirft- ing is not in vain. It is the vigor of fpiritual life. In the kingdom of faith, the health of the foul is more feen in its defires than in its en- joyments; for we have flelb and blood, and they let us feel u e are not at home. We have alfo many mighty and cunning enemies, who are al- ways attacking and often robbing us of our fen- fible REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 49 iible enjoyments; and yet faith can live and thrive amidfl all. It can break through every obftacle that Hands between it, and its beloved ; trufting to what God has promifed, and waiting patiently for his fulfilling it. If he hide his fa- vourable countenance — yea, if he appear as an enemy, the believer trufts and is not afraid. Thefe are fome of the workings of faith, by which its truth, iis efficacy, and its bleffednei"s, appear. May the witnefs for Jefus keep them very ftrong upon your heart ! It is his office, while we are abfent from our deareft friend, to preferve longings afterhim in our fouls — warm breathings (fuch as Pfalm Ixiii throughout) fervent defires, not to be fatisfied, till they get full enjoyment ; and in this way, the Holy Sprit glorifies the Saviour. What he manifefts to us creates fuch an appetite for him, as only God-Jefus hiaifelf in glory can fill. All the grace we now get out of his fulnefs, is but a whet of what we hope to get out of the fame fuhv^fs in glory. Now this is living and thriving faith. The more I have, the better I am; and you too are better for my betternefs. It makes me wllli the belt thing for you: although you do not always treat me as I could wifli. You would do me a great favor to employ me more. You have a wedding in hand. I expefted to be invited to it; not down to Southampton, but up to my Lord. His pre- fence I would have intreated, and he is as fa- mous 5© LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE mous now, as he was at Cana of Galilee, for turning cold water into generous wine. My Jove to them, and my prayers for them, that he may every day repeat the miracle at . God blefs you all. And remember to pray for W.R. LETTER XIV. Junt 1 2th, 1788. Afy dear Friend, YOUR laft letter brought me down upon my knees. — Poor W. I feel for you. I pray you may have a right ufe of this vifitation. It can only be fan£lified by the fpirit of God and prayer. May you meet it in faith, and improve it by patience. A child--a pleafant child — of fair hopes — I have loft fuch an one ; and I well remember it gave me occafion to exercife all the grace I could get. I found an infinite fulnefs, and there is the fame for you to go to. And now your children are growing up, they will make you very miferable, or elfe they will com- pel you to be daily learning. Heb. iv. 16. Read it. REV. W. ROMAINE, A M. it. Meditate well upon it. Pray over it. It is a lefTon of conftant practice. If your chil- dren live; if they profper; if they get on in fpi- ritual fuccefs, as well as temporal; if they be fick; if they fliould die: all will try your faith, and make you feel, that your whole dependence for yourfelf and family is on the Lord who made heaven and earth. Whatever may be the event of W's complaint, we know not. But our Lord has taught us to live in fubje£lion to his holy will, whatever he may pleafe to fend. Mr. T. you are not to learn this at your time of day, in theory ; but how to praftife it is the point; and therein molt of us fail. We none of us carry our fubje6lion fo far, as he warrants us — his rule is " If any man be my difciple, let him deny " himfelf, and take up his crofs and follow me." This carries the terms of difciplefliip very high. A man muft deny all that he has and is, as a child of Adam — himfelf — as being under the law, under fm, and under condemnation. No polTible hope in himfelf. And then he takes up the crofs, which was the inftrumentof death, and to which the curfe of the broken law was annexed, and executed too, on Adam, and all his defcendants. He pleads guilty ; owns the fentence juft; carries about with him an abi- ding convi6lion, that he deferves the curfe and death, due to fin, as his wages. He puts the life of Adam, what he lives in the flefl), upon the 5i LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE the crofs, and henceforward lives by the faith of the Son of God— really dead to all hopes-— ex- cept what Chrift is to him. It is a great trial to have your fon fick: it will be a greater if God fliould take him from you. But fuch a trial does not come up to our Lord's meaning. We call every thing that goes contrary to our will, a crofs; but this is far fliort of the matter. Chrift's difciple muft not only deny the will of the flefli, but hl nfelf; not only all truft in the fledi, but life itfelf. If he has come aright to Chrift, he has come with a halter about his neck: Aye, and has it on ftill — owning, that the crofs and curfe, due to fin, are due to him. He fubmiis to the penalty; and, moreover, waits with faiih and patience for the execution. It is thus the Spirit of God makes Chrift his one liope — breaking off all connexion with Adam's world, and with the lite we derive from Adam. He quickens us into Chrift, and into Chrift's world. This is a total refjgnation; not only the will, but the whole man is crucified with Chrift. The greateft thing we have, life itfelf, is refigned to him. And tiius the difciple is taught fubmifijon in all other things. It be- comes eafy then to fay — aye, and to praftife too — " Take away what thou pleafeft. Lord ; " not my will, but thine be done!" Duties are all alike eafy — trials all alike tolerable ; when we meet them in the ftrength of Chrift; but when we REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. We would do them, or bear any part of them ourfelves, then we find our j)erfecl weaknefs. A difciple feels his refiftance, and lays the bur- den upon Chrift, who fays to him, " I will fuf- tain thee." His almighty power fulfils his word. And through him, faith and patience do their perfeiSl work. This is following Chrifl". May vou at this time, and at all times, be one of his happy difciples— denying yourfelf— taking up your crofs daily— and following the Lamb, whi- therfoever he leads you. It will not be unfeafonable to remind you, that you cannot lay in a (lock of grace, and thereby keep your heart in any preparation to fubmit cheerfully to God's will, efpecially when it is much contrary to your own. No paft experi- ence can enable you to bear a prefent trial. You muft have frefii grace for the moment, as you breathe, Ifaiah, xxvii. 3. fo is the fpiritual life : it is not from yourfelf, any more than your animal life. We fetch both from without us. Your genial warmth is light in every part of folids and fluids, as electrical experiments de- monftrate. And it is the action of the air, by which you breathe, and move, and have your being. The life and livelinefs of your foul de- pend entirely on Chrift, the light of life, and on the Holy Spirit, the breath of life j and you can only receive, and can only enjoy, thefe influ- ences from Chrifl and the Spirit, as you are liv- ing 54 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE ing every moment by faith. This is the holy art of beheving: by it a beggar is enriched — a firmer pardoned— the weak ftrong In the Lord — the miferable bleffed— the dying difciple h'ves for ever. May you pradlife this holy art at , and become the happiefi: believers in the ifland. W. has a friend in need to pray for the good effeft of the waters. When you v^ rite, remem- ber me to him and his companion. I charge you to pray for W. R. LETTER XV. Augull 13, 1 78 1. My dear Friendy I HAVE not been at all vt^ell, fince I left you: a giddinefs follows me conftantly, and fometimes I am ready to fall. I am aware of the confequencess and, thank God, I have no- thing to fear, come what may. Nay, though it be a fair warning, that the houfe is growing ruinous; yet I have a profpe£l of another build- ing—a houfe of Immanuel's making— out of the reach of death and mifery.— Fit for Immanuel's land. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 5^ land, which is a country, far, far better than Paradife. It is made fo to me, by free gift, the grant accepted by faith, and the earnefl: of the Spirit enjoyed. In the grant is death — a cove- nant mercy — by which we receive all covenant bleflings. And for all in hand and in promife, I am kept looking to Jefus. I am afraid to fay much of myfelf, left I fhould fall into a miftake, which I have often noticed and blamed in Mrs. Rowe, that fhe talked too much in raptures, and fliot too high, far above common chriftians* heads. However, let him have his glory. He won the crown, let him wear it. Keep him in fight in all his gifts — in all his graces — every thing will then go well. This is my old leflbn, and my new leflbn daily. Pray, I charge you to pray for W. ROMAINE. LETTER XVI. Blackfriars, Nov. 8. 1788. FRIDAY morning, Nov. 7, 1788. I fit down to write to my good friend W. T. intending to fill up this paper to-day, if I am able. I owe you for a very friendly note ; the contents were all matter of praife. How thankful 2 50 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE thankful (hould you feel ! How humbly flioUld you walk ! under a fenfe of fuch mere ies. And even for this, there is an ample provifion made. Grace, from which all good comes, is ready to make you truly thankful, and to keep you hum- ble ; and if you ufe ever fo much grace to in- creafe humble thankfulnefs, yet always remem- ber the character of our Jefus, He giveth more grace. I got no further yefterday — called off by bufi- nefs, vifits, &c. Saturday morning. I am looking at that moll bleffed giver of more. He is like the fun which is never weary of fend- ing out more light : nor is our fun of fending out more grace — frefli — always adding — more in quantity — more in quality — better and better — and the lafl: the heft — even eternal grace — the crown of all. Mr. T. I tell you a great fecret ; and it Is all 1 have learnt in a very long experience. By putting this word to every thing, it makes a miraculous change : it really turns evil unto good. Mifery with grace can feel happy — pain is fweet — gracious poverty makes rich — a weak believer, out of weaknefs, becomes ftrong — weak in himfelf, therefore ftrong in the grace that is in Chrift Jefus. Nay, no difpenfation can hurt, where grace is exer- cifed 5 indeed nothing can hurt, not even fin it- felf : for where Im abounded, grace did much more abound, 8cc. Rom. v. 20, 21. Read thefe REV, W. ROMAINE, A. M. 57 thcfe two verfes. and St. Paul's comment upon them, Ephcfians, chap. i. and ii. and. then tell me, whether the grace of our Jefus ought not to have, and from me it fliall have, conftant ufe and employment^ as long as I have any being. May you, and yours, do tlie fame : and then you will find fliowers of bleffings coming down daily upon yon. - - - ■ All was good in your letter^ except what related to Mrs. K. and even that, put grace to it, will alfo be good. Grace can extraQ: .much, fpiritual health out of bodily ficknefs. ' l hope and pray flie may be better for her prefent com- plaint, and find under it grace fufficient to make her fay, from her heart, and her good man to join her, " Thy will be done !" But mind, this , mull be prcfcnt grace, received moment after moment, out of tlie fulnefs of the God-man. We have no ftock in hand : and when faith lives, as it fliould do, it finds the benefit of receiv- ing all, jufi: as it is wanted, even frefli grace to thank Jefus for his grace. I had written a long letter to W. on his go- ing abroad, but I did not fend it. Mr. 1. and I, cannot agree about the fubject. I can live, by faith, under a fpecial providence, and do as well, even for my health, in this fmoky and dirty city, as they can do at Montpellier. Hap- pier they cannot be. however, I wifli them well ; may they come home better in foul and Vol. Vni. E body. 5^ LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE body. Your daughter is going to be married. She has my prayers. May it be fuch a con- neflion as my Lord may approve, and then he will blefs it. Mr. N. tells me much of your frequent vifits, in which I truly rejoice. We have been alarmed at our good King's danger. To-day I hear the diftemper has taken a favor- able turn ; and he is much better. Lord, pre- ferve his precious life ! Pray for him : fpeak to brother K. in public and in private to plead, like the poor widow. Mrs. R. is very hearty in her falutes to Mrs. T. as you know, I could not write from Reading, being quite taken up with vifiting, and with preaching ; and now I do write, what does it amount to, but only a cy- pher, unlefs you pleafe to put fome numbers to it : I truft you will, and believe me to be^ not in word only, but in deed and in truth. Your real and faft friend. And faithful fervant. In the Lord Chrift, W. ROMAINE. LETTER REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. S9 LETTER XVII. D(c. 20, I788» Mr. T. Mrs. K. is fick ; yet her ficknefs is not unto death. O what a mercy that her foul is alive--to God— in Chrift. United to him, flie is one with the fountain of life, and cannot be cut off : fee John xi. 25, 26. BlelTed are the dead who die in the Lord. May her partner, and all the family, knowing what it is to be in the Lord, when they forrow, yet forrow not as others who have no hope. You feem to be much afFe£led with the com- plexion of the times. So am I : and your fup- port is minealfo. The Lord relgneth j the Lord Jefus—and bleffed are all they who put their truft in him. His fubjefts have nothing to fear in the worft of times : for their King is Almigh- ty— Almighty to fave them from all their fins — Almighty to fave them from all their miferies — Almighty to give them all fpiritual bleffings — Yea, Almighty to command the bleffing, even Jife for evermore. O what a King is this ! O what fubjefts are thefe ! Who is a God like unto thee, God Jefus, who pardoneth rebels, and makeft them kings and priefts unto God, E z and 6o Letters written ey th2 and the Father; and then advifeth them to fit down with thee upon thy throne of glory. The Lord reigneth in his kingdom of grace, byhisword, and by his Spirit conquering rebels daily, and making them his willing fubjefts, till they be all brought fafe to the kingdom of his glory. Now, what makes thefe bleffed views of Jefus, the King of kings, fo quieting and comforting to my heart, is, that he is my King. This crowns all. He is my Almighty Saviour — my Blefler — my Keeper. His providence is over me for good, and he fays to me, Left any hurt thee, I will keep' thee ' *' night and day." And as to what concerns life and godlinefs, he fays, " Caft all thy care upon me : for I care for thee." Jefus, Lord, I believe thee — the government is upon thy fhoulders— under thy prote61"ion I am fafe and happy. I know thou canft get thyfelf honor and renown in the darkeft days, and the mod ftormy weather; Let the tempeft rage ever fo much, my pilot is Almighty. He fays to the winds, " be ftill," and to the waves, " ceafe," and the ftormy winds and waves fulfil his word. Mr. T. here is my reft. I ufe means, as well as you. I am at my prayers. But Jefus is my only hope. The prefent profpc£t may ap- pear to you very dark — a black cloud gathering — you fear what may come, when it burfts in all its vengeance. My good Sir, this is the time for REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 6l for faith, to exercife it— Ay, to improve it. What of fan- weather, and funfliining faith. How can one tell whether it be true or genuine ? But to put to fea in our little boat, in the midft of a ftorm, the waves dafliing over our heads, and threatening to fwallow us up every moment : then to be able to fay and feel — my Chrifl: is with me in the boat, therefore I will truft and not be afraid. This is the proper working of the faith of God's ele6l. For thus the command runs, " Truft ye in Jehovah for ever— becaufe in Jah, " Jehovah is everlafting ftrength." Let brother K. turn to his Hebrew Bible, and tell you, why I thus render the text. I have been fo much pleafed with your thought, " the Lord relgneth," that if God fpare life and health, I will preach upon it New Year's Day, and make it my watchword for the year 1789, giving the charafter of the perfon of the king — of the nature of his government, and what a peculiar fort of people his fubje£ts are — faved, pardoned, juftified, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Chrift — how they live — and how they die — and how they live to die no more- Pray for me, that I may be fo enabled to fet forth his praifes, that he may be glorified in me, 3nd by me, then, and for ever. W. ROMAINE. LETTER LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER XVIII. Jan. \o, 17S9; SATURDAY morning. It is fo cold, I can fcarce hold my pen, but I cannot help writing to you my prefent thoughts. Pardon fail- ings, as it is written. " Have fervent love among *' yourfelves, for this love fhall cover the mul- *' titude of offences." i Peter iv. 8. I expected daily to hear of Mrs. K. and I thank God for her. BlelTed are the dead who die in the Lord : for they lived in him by his Spirit, the Spirit of life, who had given them faith to receive Chrift, by which they were united to him, and had grovi-n up as members under him their head-'- living upon him, as well as by him. O bleffed life, for it is out of the reach of death, as Jefus faid to Martha, " I am the refurreftion and *' the life : he that believeth in me, although " he had been dead, yet fliall be made alive ; and whofoever liveth and believeth in me, " fhall never die : believefl thou this ?" So fays he to you : he fpeaks what is as true to-day as it was then. Believe him, and dry up your tears. Mourn not as they do who have no fuch hope. Mrs. K. was in the Lord. She is in hira now. She is with him now. And like him REV. W. ROMATNE, A. M. 6^ hini— like that ftandard of all perfection. Upon the ground of this faith, you ought to have a family meeting, and join in thankfgiving to our deareft Jefus, that he has vouchfafed to admit one of you to his prefence, and into his glory : and then to improve the providence in prayer, that God would make you all ready. You will foon follow her — fooner than fome of you think. Take warning. You have nothing to do here, that fignifies any thing, but to prepare for death. God help you to live by faith, that the next of you, who goes after her, may be found in the Lord, and may live with him for ever. Mrs. T. — We have been at prayers for you. The beft thing we can do. I know well the ten- dernefs of your heart, and how you have felt your prefent lofs. I believe you go for comfort, where I would have you. He, who has won your heart, is waiting to be gracious to you. He can fup- ply with his prefence your fifter's abfence. Whatever good you had from her, was his gift, and now he takes it away, he can make up your temporal lofs abundantly by his fpiritual bleff- ings. May you live near to him, and make fo much ufe of him at this time, that you may now find him a precious Jefus : for, " Bleffed *' are all they who put their truft in him." You know this well as a truth, but 1 with you to feel Its power. May you enjoy the prefence and the love of our matchlefs Jefus, which is bleff- ednefs 64 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE ednefs in the fupreme. May he whifper to your heart — " I have made your fifter as happy as " my ahnighty love can. Wait a little, and I " will do as much for you." Mr. K. — I truft we have one Spirit, and feel as brethren for one another. I am fure I do for you. Where to go, and how to go for com- fort, you know as well as I, even to the God of all comfort. He, and he alone can give it you at this time. We, your friends, can only pray that you may make good ufe of, and receive much profit from, your prefent difpenfation. You are fenfible, that wifdom to do this, muft come from above ; and it is fuch a wifdom, as produces miraculous effefts to this, as truly as in the day when James wrote Ch. i. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Probatum eji. Mifs K. — Weep not as thofe who have no hope. I am praying for grace to teach you fub- milTion to the will of our Lord. She was your mother, but remember — how flie lived — how fhe died — and where flie is now. Dry up your tears. You have work to do for the Lord. You are to fill up for a time your mother's place in the family. May my God give you grace, and prudence, and diligence, carefully to fol- low her ftcps. I fliall not forget your brothers and fifters. ■ Mr. T. — I am to thank you for your infor- mation concerning yourgueft. You have glad- dened REV. \V. ROMAINE, A. M. 65 dened my very heart with your good account of my old friend. May it prove better than you mention. I am fure, that Chrift, and Chrift only, can make him truly and completely hap- py. All is vanity befide. I wifli he enjoyed what I have little of, and it would make me hap- pier, if he had all I wifh him. You fee I can fcarce hold my pen. It is cold, very cold ; but I do not murmur. Froft, and fnow, and ftormy wind, fulfill his word ; and in that word I truli, let the weather be what it may. His will be done. Remember Blackfriars. Here live two of your friends. Pray for them and theirs, W. ROMAINE. LETTER XIX. Jjiril 27, 1789. My good 'FrieJid, HAVING the favor of feeing Sir Richard, I immediately thought of you ; and although Monday is a day in which I am fel- dom fit for any fort of attention, yet, this oppor- tunity 66 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE tunity of telling you that brotherly love conti- nues, makes me glad to fit down and write as long as I am able. I congratulate you on our late national mercies, which all the people have felt — thofe of the world in their way — and we in ours — in prayer, and in praife, bringing God into our joys, and looking up to him, that he would give us frelh reafon to rejoice in his holy name. I believe you and I are in unifon — and perhaps I may ftrike an o£lave — the touching upon my joy may afFe£l, and increafe yours. Never was I more difappointed, nor more agreeably, than on the 23d. I expe6ted to be left alone, and to preach to ftone walls ; but be- hold, we had a full church, and a blefled con- gregation of ferious worfhippers. Our fubje6t was the izid Pfalm, a fliort paraphrafe on it, with reafonable applications. As I take no notes, I can only give you fome of the outlines. May they warm your heart as much as they did mine : for I had fome of the prophet's joy, which he felt when he faid, " I was glad, when they faid unto me. Let us go into the houfe of " the Lord." They were going up to Jeru- falem, as you know they did three times a year. It was a pleafant occafionto the true worfhippers, who had received the Holy Spirit, by whom they had living faith in Jefus, and thereby be- lieved and enjoyed the Father's love in him. They went up to the feftivals to confirm and to c increafe REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 67 Increafe their joy ; for they knew well, that the temple was the type of Chrift's body, and all the public fervices there had relation ta him : when they faid, " Our feet fliall ftand within thy gates, O Jerufalem," they then felt that true joy and peace in believing, which any of us now feel in reading Rom. v. i, 2 ; for the very word Jerufalem, which means the inheritance of peace, led them to lookup to him, who only is our peace, who only makes us heirs of God, and joint heirs with Chrift : fee Gal. iv. 22, to the end. Heb.xii. 12. Rev. xxi. throughout. And when they came to Jerufalem, How did it add to their joy ? — v. 3. All worfhipping in one place, one objeft, one faith, and one uniformity of rites and fervices. — v. 4. When the tribes went up, even the tribes of the Lord, they had the fame teftimonies, i. e. ordinances, as we have, all referring dire£lly to the Meffiah — the temple, its vefTel, the holy place, the moft holy, preach- ed Chrift as plainly as I can : for " they went *' up to give thanks unto the name Jehovah:" he was a perfon — the name Jehovah, as Exod. xxiii. 21, Ifa. XXX. 27, that perfon who was to be God incarnate, Jehovah Jefus, through whom prayer, praife, duties, all we do, is made acceptable, and through him only. In this faith, wherever a Jew was, when he pray- ed, he turned his face towards the temple, ac- knowledging 68 LETTERS WRITTEN EY THE knowledging that the God, worfliipped at Jeru- falem, was his God. In this view, they might well rejoice when they went up with one heart, and one voice, to blcfs the name Jehovah : be- caufc to hmi they afcribe, as in v. 5, their civil, as well as religious, profperity. Under him they enjoyed full fecurity for life and property. x\ good government, according to the word of God, is a great mercy. This they enjoyed — they had a King fitting on the throne of judg- ment, ruling in the fear of God. Senfible of their blcffings, and thankful for them, they ex- hort one another : v. 6, " O pray for the peace " of Jerufalem— our church and ftate." They love Chrift, who pray fo ; who feel for their bre- thren, and their profperity, and who know and value the houfe of the Lord our God, they will be much in prayer for the continuance of thefe- ineftimable bleffin.o:s. Thefe meditations brought us home to En- gland ; and to enquire, whether we had not as much reafon to rejoice to-day, as they ever had on any fcftival at Jerufalem : we have the fame religions, the fame civil mercies, as they had — and we come behind them in nothing, unlefs we fail to-day, in our national praifes : for our privi- leges are uncommonly great, and call for fingu- lar acknowledgments. We have religion in its purity— God's word in our hands— men fent of God to open and to explain it, and they are owned REV. w. roma'inS, a. m. Cg owned of him in their Iabors.---No where in tiro world is the gofpel in its truth, and in its power, as it is with us : O what rich incenfe of praife fliould go up to the throne of grace from us this day ! O what fuperlative thankfulnefs do thefe favors of God require of Britifli believers, of you, and mc. The gofpel runs and is glorified, and yet the times are quiet. The government is on the fide of our moft holy faith. Our king, God blefs him, is himfelf a defender of it. May he, by whom kings reign, look down upon him v>;th a gracious eye this day. When he proftrates himfelf before his God, may the great Angel of the covenant take his prayers, and praifes, aud perfume them with much of his heavenly incenfe. Lord God, fpeak to his heart, and let him feel fome of that joy and peace which furpafs all underftanding. You can eafily add v»'hat came in here, con_ cerning the day. It was only to call upon the people to thank the Lord our God, and to give him the glory due unto his great name, for pub- lic mercies, family mercies, perfoual jnercies. How high ought our praifes to rife? Sinners, as we are, helplefs, unworthy; yea, unthank- ful, and unprofitable. O what a God - have we to deal with, who loadefh fuch creatures with fuch benefits ! What a mercy, that fuch poor thanks, and thefe his own gifts of grace, fliould be accepted at our hands. Holy Ghoft affift 70 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE aflift US in our prayers — help our infirmities in our praifes, and teach us, with increafing gra- titude, to adore the Son for his falvation, and to vvorfliip the Father for his love in Jefus. To the eternal Three, be eternal praife. What a fcribble ! But I could not Hop. It was a glorious day — ever to be remembered in the annals of Britifh hiftory. Mr. K. got the lead — he will keep it. I have fold great num- bers of his fermon, and fhould have fold the whole impreflion, but for price " one {hilling,'* that kept it out of many hands. My true love to your dear partner. My bleffing on the whole family. Add to all good providences, what is really miraculous — Thurfday's crowds, Friday's exceeding the day before, and no body hurt. Glory be to him in the higheft ! W. ROMAINE. LETTER XX. Blackfriars, Nov. ii, 1789^ My dear Friend, I SIT down as your monitor, to thank our phyfician that you all keep fo well, and that I hear Mrs D. is a great deal better. If you would REV. W. ROMAINE, A.M. would follow his receipts, all would mend. He prefcribes one fimple remedy, and that infallibly cures all difeafes. Only believe. All that ever tried it, found its virtue never fail, no, not when life itfelf failed: the experience of every age has fet its feal — Probatum eft. And yet we have among us many pretenders to fkill, who cry it down, as a quack noftrum. Our learned doc- tors have fhut it out of the new London and Birmingham difpenfaries. And they treat us as rank enthufiafts, who try to keep it ftill in prac- tice. You know Sir, as well as I, what the great men of the day think of Jefus Chrift, and of his remedy: But their opinion does not hurt you, or me. We truft to matter of fa6l. A wounded confcience fet at peace — a broken heart healed — a miferable fmner made happy — a dying fmner rejoicing in the profpe£t of death. — Millions of fuch, who now fee his face, and we, who now feel his virtue, are witnefTes of his almighty power, and that he ftill faveth freely by grace through faith. To this truth I fet my hand and feal, this eleventh day of Novem- ber, A. D. 1789. It is all my falvation, and, God be thanked, it is all my defire. You have my living and dying tefl:imony in a volume of fermons, which I have revifed andjuft: publifli- ed. You will pleafe to accept them as a to- ken of brotherly love ; and when you read them , may you feel real fellowfliip with your divine Jefus, ']! lETTERS WRITTEN BY tHE Jefus, as much, more if it pleafe him, than he' has moft gracioufly vouchfafed unto me. Per- haps I may feem too Avarm, (a little enthufiaftic) in fpeaking of this happinefs to fome. Even believers are too apt to reft in the truth: But is it not therefore received that it may produce its proper effefts? Such as great joy and peace in believing ? The unfearchable riches of Chrift ! What are they, if no body is to be enriched out of his treafury r " Thine eyes fliall fee the king in . his beauty" — Yes, i have had a glimpfe of him, and I long to fee more of his matchlefs charms. He hath promifed — " They fliall hear my words, for they are fv^/eet" — Yes, Lord, I hear the joyful found, and it is heavenly melody in my ears. Thy name is as ointment poured forth — I feel its perfume, the fmell of thine ointments is to me much better than all-fpices. " Come tafte and fee how gracious the Lord is." I have come, Lord, and thy fruit is indeed fvveet unto my tafte. " As many as touched him were made perfectly whole." Glory be to him who enables us ftill to handle the word of life. Thefe are the fiv^e fenfes of the fpiritual man 3 and each of them finds in Chrift the proper exercife of its faculty. The bodily fenfes take in all the objects of na- ture: the fpiritual fenfes take in all the fulnefs of Chrift J and in him they have their employ- ment, and will have their happinefs for ever. The belief of this, and fome enjoyment of it, makes 1 me REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 73 me wifh that I myfelf, and you my chrlftian friends, may have our fenfes more exercifed in our own proper world, that we may get fafter hold of Chrift, may find him more precious, and every day may be growing up into him, and that in all things. You have great reafon to pray for W. R. LETTER XXL My very good Friend, YOU know our cuftom — We begin the year always with a motto — Ours for 1 790 is, " Trufl: in him at all times" — A year of efpecial faith — I would have it famous for believin'e all that come to him ; to fave them from all their fins, and from all their miferies, and alfo to give them all pofllible good in earth and in heaven ? This is the kindeft meffage of the gofpel, and it is fweetly recommended by put- ting the finner into the prefent enjoyment of falvation, as the fare earnefi: of eternal enjoy- ment. Mr. fays. This fhall not be preach- ed in my pulpit, becaufe my congregation are offended at it. Lord God open their eyes ! In this view Mr. you fee the important ftand which your brother ouglit to make. The good news fiiall not be fuffered to be proclaimed in churches. Not even Mr. among his friends and relations, Iball enter the pulpit. In fuch circamftances furely very much depends upon Mr. '-. How earneft fliould he be in his work ! How faithful in preaching ! How care- ful in his walk ! How fervent in clofet prayer ! How conftantly dependent on Chrift for the fuc- cefs of his miniftry ! May the Spirit of the living God keep him — his eye fingle — his heart chafie — his whole foul engaged in magnifying the per- fon and the work of God our Saviour. I fliall be often remembering him and you when I am at court. The King of Kings is extremely gra- cious to me, and admits me int) his prefence, I and REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I09 and fometimes into his cabinet : when he voucb- fafes me fuch a favorable audience, I will not fail to prefent a petition for poor S. Let me re- commend it to you to do the fame at your prayer meetings. God blefs them, and be much with 3-ou in that hour. May your pleadings for your ignorant neighbours bring down both, on them, and on you, Oiowers of bleffings. Your letter was like the aforefaid cordial, be- caufe h brought a welcome account of your family. We had been often faying, I wonder we do not hear from . What can be the matter ! I am afraid they are not all well. At laft comes good news from your family and friends, for which 1 am very thankful. My blefled mafter is very kind in taking care of you. He has followed you with loving kindnefs all your days. And I pray him, I doubt not but he will, keep you to the end. I had another fub- je£l of thankfulnefs from your letters, they came juft time enough to inform me of opening the brewhoufe ; I was prefent on the occafion, and I am a witnefs it was confecrated in form. The trade thereof was dedicated to the Lord, and I truft he will have the whole management of it. Pleafe to tell— that I (hall continue my tervent prayers for their fiiccefs. I hope our God will blefs them in better things than thefe, and wjll give them the upper as well as the no LETTERS WRITTEN' BY THE the nether fprings : and then, my joy concern* ing them will be full. When you have read thus far, you will begin to think, that 1 write in good fpirits — and yet I am under the rod, and it is a very lharp one. ]\Irs. called on Tuefday, and my wife could not fee her ; indeed {he has feen nobody fmce we heard the melancholy news of my fon's death. It has been to us both a very heavy af- fliction. He was cut off by a violent flux at Trincomale in the ifland of Ceylon, I feel as a parent ; I am not a ftone : but grace has got the better of, nature. God fupports. God com- forts. I have a will of mine own ; and by it I would have gladly kept my fon ; for he was a fweet youth. But I can, from my heart, fay, ^' Not my will Lord, but thine be done," where- by I have the advantage of finding that my faith being put into the furnace is true gold. It is, glorv be to grace, proved, and improved. When I firft faw the letter which brought us the ac- count, 1 knew the general's feal to it, and fear- ing the contents, I looked up for the prefence, and for the fupport of my good Mafter, and my old Friend ; and he anfwered me in the words of a great Believer, " The Lord gave, and the " Lord hath taken away." He has a right to do what he will with his own, then he enabled me to reply, " Bleffed be the name of the ^' Lord," and I do praife him for giving me fome REV. W. ROMAINE, A, M. Ill fome of Job's refignation, that I could ufe his words with the fame fpirit. My poor wife has exquifite fecHngs on this occafion. She wifhes not to murmur, nor to difpleafe our good Lord by any hard thoughts of him. But the tender- nefs of the parent, and to a child who never offended her in his life, occafions rifings of grief. The Spirit is willing to kifs the rod, but the flefh is weak. In the main, flie behaves as I could wifh. Her faith is fupported. Her mind grows quiet and calm. And I doubt not but God will foon bring in his comforts, as well as fupports. Pray for us that we may both profit by our lofs. Again and again I befeech you to pray for W. ROMAINE, And Familv. LETTER XXXVI. Reading, j'tt/^' 30, 1783. My very dear Friend, GRACE with you — and with yours. I very agreeably met with your fon in Cheap-' fide. It was a fliort vifit, although fweet. He 112 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE He gave me a good account of vou, and of Mrs. T. with her offspring : from whence I got frefli matter of thankfulnefs to my bountiful mafter. He is good, and doeth good. I never think of you without praifing him. His favors to you, and to your children, are fingular — Such as he only can give, and luch as even he gives to none but his peculiar. Whenever I look at you, it is with gratitude to hi;n. 1 have only to wifli, that he may keep you humble, and you may never rob him of the g'cry of his diftinguiihing mercies: and then he giveth more grace. In- deed, he will deny you nothing, if you return him all his praife. I am on a prerxhing party at Reading, and next Sunday at Wallingford ; from whence we go for fome da} s, to Mr. S.'s at Heckfield, near Bafmgftoke— from thence to my fifter Owen's, at Tiverton. Aug. 30, at Mr. Ireland's, Briflington, near Briftoi : where I am engaged to do duty all the month of Sep- tember. A^'henever we turn -homeward in Oftober, Southampton lies in our way ; and if it did not, I would take fome pains to tell you in perfon, how much I am bound to love you, and to blefs you. I only write this fhort note, in anfwer to your kind enquiry, when it was likely you might fee us. Tell my dear brother K. that an old friend of mine had given him very particular dire6lions in every point relating to his miniftry. When he and I meet, we may ftrengthen REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. Iij flrengthen one another's hands by reading his cpiftles together. My love to his wife. Will you remember me to Mrs. T. your mother. I have her upon my heart. May my father be a father to your children — My God their God. And then, but not till then, they will have enough. LETTER XXXVII. Bath, Sept. 22, 1783. My dear Friend, OUR good Lord would not have you not to feel for your lofs — but to mourn as one that hath hope. We cannot doubt but your mother is with the Lord. And though flie had a legal heart to ftruggle with, and had legal con- nexions, which cherifhed a fort of daggering at the promifes, yet fhe was in Chrift. All is fafe in his hand. I have heard her again and again commit herfelf into his keeping: and I am a witnefs, that her confidence was placed on the right obje£l, on which God himfelf had com- manded her to reft her foul. Sorrow not, there- fore, fo much for her, as to hinder your gratitude to God for his fpecial kindnefs to her living and dying. You have loft a mother, a good mother, and 114 LETTERS WRITTEN BV THE and I have Joft a friend ; but neither you nor I would wifli her back again. Blefled be God, we are following her — very faft I am — Bleffed be his holy name, he fupported her faith to the laft — fo he will ours. Let us improve this pro- vidence, as much as we can, to be always ready— that living and dying we may be the Lords. I write this from Bath, in our way to Brad- ford : then for a few da} s to Frome — from thence to Weftgate — the day is uncertain ; it may be OSi. 4, if not, it will certainly be the 6th or yth. God give us an happy meeting. May he blefs you with much of his gracious prefence in thefe trying feafons. I feel much, and pray much for Mrs. T. The Lord give her his fupports and comforts. My chriftian love to brother K. and family— -to Walter, Sam, &:c. &c. friend Wingrove's love to you allj with Mrs. R. and W. ROMAINE's. Our kindeft love to Mr. and Mrs. Cadogan. I hope he is fuffered in public to extoll the praifes of our Jefus, and to let me hear them. LETTER REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. LETTER XXXVIIL Jan.z\, 1784. Mr. T. I AM forced — but it is a willing vio- lence— to be Mrs. R.'s fecretary. And having a cover to you, I thought it beft to inclofe hers, and to take the opportunity of addreffing two or three lines to yourfelf. You are in my debt ; but I don't ftand upon that. Much of our Lord's love faves us from that trafficking fpirit, which returns only what it had received — " Love me, and I will love you ; give me a pound, and I will give you a pound again." O, no. He teaches us his free love, and that makes us like him. I love you in him — for his fake I and the more I know of you, the more I admire his grace and goodnefs to you. I have now upon my tabid a precious token of his love — the Magna Charta of his moft gracious gifts— in which he would alTure you and me, how he intends to deal with us in another world, and what we have to hope and fear from him. We never could have known this wondertul fecret, unlefs he had revealed it : and being of inefti- mable value, Vv'e cannot prize it enough, now it is revealed. I have devoted it to the ufe of your Il6 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE your intended dwelling. Let it be the firft piece of furniture : as indeed it is the beft : and for my fake, let it be the family Bible. If it be his fovereign will — I may be your occafional chaplain, and may have it for my morning and evening lecture. It is Beza's edition, and has the befl: notes that I ever read : I keep it, till I can conveniently fend it. I have great faith in the communion of faints — I wifli you had as much — you would be oftner than vou are, telling roe of your vnlhes and wants. 1 have not had any thing for a long time to alk for, when I have been at court, but about a fxck child. My Lord loves children. It is his delight to hear parents dedicate, and friends recommend them to him. I hope he has been gracious to my prayers for your infant — and Mrs. T. fays, " All is well." The times are threatening. What a fearful earthquake in Sicily and Italy ! what an alarm- ing one in the political ftate of England ! how has God confounded the wifdom of the wife ! the French wanted all the trade of America from us; they have loft all their trade by it. The Dutch followed their fteps, and have ruined themfelves. Mr. I. thus writes me from France: " We went through Cherbur^h — Caen — Tours — " Poitiers — Angouieme — to Bourderaix ; through " all the places we palTed, the commercial peo- " pie are tired of the people of the thirteen " ftripes. AH that have dealt with them are " bankrupts. REV. 'w. ROMAINE, A.M. Iiy " bankrupts, and they are every where diiliked : *' one only is left at Bourdeaux, and he is not " worth a fliilling. People's eyes are now " open ; and they prove my words true, although *' they expefted to enrich themfelves by their *' commerce with thefe people. It is impoflible " to defcribe the averfion of the French to the *' people of the thirteen ftripes. Now you'll *' have them with you ; as no credit is to be " had elfewhere. I wifli they may not complete " our ruin. Bankruptcies are here in all parts — no lefs than 135 at Bourdeaux, in eight " months pafl:. Trade is very dull every where ; *' and fpecie, none to be had." O what a hap- pinefs in fuch a ftorm to be fafe in the ark ! he need not be afraid of any evil tidings, who has embarked his all with Chrift. Noah went through fuch a florm, as never was before, nor fmce, and he feared not ; becaufe the Lord Ihut him in. May that fame Lord take you into his care, and keep you and yours, by his mighty power, through faith unto falvation. I need not tell you, that I am, with ufual good wi flies. Your friend and fervant. In our common Lord, W. ROMAINE. LETTER Il8 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THt LETTER XXXIX. Julj 9, 1784. Mr. T. I HAVE got a very good letter car- rier in fome things, but not in all. He very feldom gives me proper notice of his depar- ture. He came to dinner to-day, and faid he fliould go to-morrow morning by the diligence ; fo that I am only left a little of the afternoon to tell you, Avhat I fliall not go through in months and years. — How much brotherly love in- creafes, and ripens by experience. He that teaches it, has made it my rcqueft, that it may grow on, until it be perfefted in his own world. And I afk in faith nothing wavering. May you feel the heavenly influence, as I do. I do not forget my promife. The creed which I mentioned is prepared. Every article is fettled, and you fhall have it in due time. Only give me patience. I am now reading my bible through from beginning to end. When this is finifhed, I hope for fome leifure, and Mr. T.-fliall have his fliare of it. You have a de- mand on me, and you fliall have your due. I would gladly ferve Mr. Mitchell, but Mr. Serle is now at Bath. If Mr. Mitchell goes that way, he will find Mr, Serle at Mrs. Shaw's on the REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 119 the parade: who I am furc will do any ihing for him that he can, if not by a diredl applica- tion; yet he can put him in a way. God give fuccefs. We are to have a thankfgiving for the peace. On this occafion I rejoice ; for I am not a politician. Lord.S. I know not, and I lhall fay nothing about him. My fabjetl fliall be about the peace-maker — Jefus Chrift. — How he made peace between God and man. — How he keeps it, and carries it on, til! it be peace everlafting. — And how he makes peace between man and God, and reconciles them perfectly by his Spi- rit through the belief of his gofpel. And then he reconciles man to man, and enables them to live at peace with one another. Tell brother K. thefe are the outlines of my fermon on Ephef. ii. 14. He is our peace. On which fubjed he cannot fpeak too highly of Chrift Jefus, the peace-maker, nor yet of the proclama- tion upon the word— in which all the articles of it are fully fettled— nor yet of the fecurity of be- lieving thefe articles upon the warrant, authority, and commandment of God, and of living in peace with God, when the Lord the Spirit explains and applies them. May it be a great day of thankfgiving with you! I do not wilh to be releafed from my chap- lainQiip, or from the duties of it. Mrs. T's health reftored, and getting about again, will keep I20 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE keep me ftiil looking up to my good Lord for her — and for her dear John. — his name means one that has found grace, may he be acquainted with his name and enjoy the thing. Tell me — how (he does — and how my John thrives. Admiral M. brings this with many enquiries — We have feen much of him in his prefent jour- ney; and he has given me great fatisfatlion, as to the reality of his faith, and to the growth of it: he is indeed one after my own heart. I commend myfelf and Mrs. R. to your pray- ers. We defire very cordially to be remem- bered to Mrs. T. I long to fee Mr. Mitchell. When will he return? Get out of my debt as faft as you can ; and pray for W. R. And all his. LETTER XL. Tuesday, Jan. a^. My dear Mr. T. I THANK you much — I was pre- pared— my facrifice of praife was ready — and I offered it up—bleiTing that gracious, moft gra- cious REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. Izt clous Lord, who delighteth in mercy. He is, like himfelf, good, to father and mother, chil- dren and friends. O call upon all you know, to give him the honor due unto his name. We kept a jubilee laft night. Our joyfal thanks went up with acceptance. Our fupplications for the mother, for the babe, we left with him, who, we are certain will do all for the bed. Surely Mr. T. God's dealings with you have fomething of peculiar mercy, and call for fmgular acknowledgments--- your perfon, your wife, your children, your prof- perity, in this vvorld, in a better — O what fort of a man fhould you be, whom God thus load- eth with benefits! I fcarce ever think of you, and how whatever you take in hand, the Lord maketh it to profper, without praying at the fame time that he would crown all his favors tvdth true poverty of fpirit, and you may walk humbly with your God. Amenr. Amen. My be- loved partner was very hearty in our prayers and praifes. She begs every thing kind and. fiiendly may be prefented to Mrs. T. from her, as I alfo do from me. She defires her refpe61s to Sally; wifhes her much joy of her little fifter; and hopes flie will take a great deal of care of her. This is the way to fhe\v, that the is a good girl, and loves her father and mother. This is preaching morning; but I ftole this time from reading and prayer, to write thefe few lines. God make them acceptable. Vol VIIL I LETTER 122 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER XLI. Sept. 26, l-jiS' My dear Friendi OUR laft letters met upon the road ; but no angry words paft between them. All was peace. I kept my anfwer to yours, until I fliould fettle my affairs at home, and, taking my autumn ride, I fliould fee you face to face, and juft look upon you by the way. But my former conveyancer, the admiral, has again put it in my power to inform you, that I am ftill employing my interefl: for you, and diligent in it. As love direfts I am conftantly keeping a good look up for Mrs T. And he takes notice of me, who can make her the living mother of a living child: he has anfwered prayer on the fame occafion, and I do not doubt of his good will or power. We who pray now fliall praife foon. I hope to fee the mother, and to blefs the babe. If God fend you a fon, will you do me the favor to let me give him a name, expreffive of our devoting him to our common Lord } We have feen a great deal of the admiral and Mrs. M. who in- form me that my John is a fine boy. God blefs him. He lays him upon my heart, fo that I have him in fpecial remembrance. He is really a fa- voritCc REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. IZ3 ybrlte. And I fhew it in my way. He is a child of many prayers, which I truft will bring down upon him many bleflings. When I often am thinking of your great bufinefs, your great family, your many connexions, your atlive fpi- rit feenis a peculiar mercy. The Bath quaker is not of my mind. He wants to quiet and ftill you; as if all religion confifted in a calm. But man is not madfe for ftill life, nor can the Chriftiaa man, in your family, and bufinefs, and manifold concerns, be of the quaker fpirit. I remember he faid once to you, " I wifti I could ftop that aftivity of yours." I did not take him up — but I have often fince admired the wifdom of God in fitting you for your place and ftation. See him in all ; and all will be well — be not flothful in bufinefs; but begin it, and end it with the Lord : then fuccefs will follow. You are a witnefs for this — fo am I in my way. I am in my fpirit as aftive as you can be — but I fet the Lord always before me. I take him with me to my reading ; vifiting the fick ; public, private mi- niftrations; and it is wonderful, what he enables a man to do, when he works for God. For when we carry him all the glory, he fi:ill fends us away with more grace. Go on. Be bufy. Do all you can for your family; but fan£lify all by the word of God and prayer. I believe you do. God knit all our hearts- brother K. — Mrs.— your family— in one bond 1 2 never. 124 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE never, never, to be broken — No, not by deatby that great bond-breaker. So prays your real friend. And conftant oratorio him, W. ROMAINE. LETTER XLII. Friday Morning. My dear Friendy ALTHOUGH I have not time to write as I could wifh, yet I could not negleft the opportunity-— if it was only to let you fee, that the doftrines of grace, are not unfriendly to good works. Though by the by, the firft good work a man can do, is to receive them, and the next, and fo on, is to make ufe of them. When I would tell you of my good works, it is not great I ; O no. It is the fun that makes fruitfulnefs — fo does my Sun, my light and my life. He ena- bles me to wifh to be like him ; and to be doing what he did, and as he did it : on the fame motive and to the fame end. My love to you is truly his gift. And what if I fliould fay I fliew proof of it, expeding nothing again ? I write. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M, I25 write, and I write, and write again. This is No. 4, fince I left S. I take every occafion to mention you and yours to my gracious JLord, and he is pleafed to hear me. The very privilege is its own bleffednefs. It will only receive fome addition, when friend T. fliall fay— I am doing the fame for you and yours. I believe, you are doing it. But do it more, and hetter, and get out of my debt as faft as you can. It will be a good while firft, but if you will let me give you a hint, it may be improved for your fake and mine. Make a confcience of remembering me as often as yQ.u are going to . Pray one for another — fo runs the command — mind how faithful he is to his word. Daniel's three friends went to prayer — they befought God with him, to give Daniel the underftanding of Nebuchadnez- zar's dream, and the interpretation : while they prayed, the anfwer came. In like manner, when Peter was in prifon, and to be executed the next day, the church was at prayers all night for his deliverance, and while they were praying, Peter came and told them, " How God had delivered him." Peter fpoke very feelingly afterwards, when he faid, " The Lord knoweth, how to " deliver them that are his." Indeed, Sir, I want your prayers. I alk them. I have fome right to them ; and I believe they will do me good. My blelhng on all the children. Peace be with you. Amen. Mr. 126 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE Mr. K. is in my Litany for g«''l'jcl minifters, when 1 weekly recommend them by name to the Lord of the harveft. I wifh he may do th^ fame for me. W. R. \ I.ETTER XLIIL Jan. g, 178$. Mr. T. I BEGIN with thanks— Bleffed be his name — who has fpared us another year, and is ftill msj^nifying his mercy to us and to ours. He is good, and doeth good ; for his mercy en- dureth for ever. And to whom ? Who are the objcfts of his mercy ? Woi.derful to confider : all, all of them are rebels— and when pardoned, for their bell fervices deferve nothing, bur hell: and yet he glorifies his grace in fuch — giving, in- creafing, multiplying, his mercies, both to their bodies and fouls -vea, he loadeth them with his benefits. My friend, take an t ftimate of them ; you have leifure, more than \ou had at S. I am a bad accountant ; but you are well acquainted with figures — try, what you can do in calling up this fum— " What has God done for you-- " When HEV. W. KOMAINE, A. M. IZJ When did liis purpofcs of doing you good *' begin — How many mercies have followed you *' all the days oFyoar life — And when will they " flop." Pfalms ciii. 17. I believe it will puzzle all your {kill in arithmetic, to give the fum total. A better man than you tried, but he failed ; and he thought it his wifeft part, to end the trial with frefh praife, as you may read, Pfalms cvi. 1,2. It is the right working of divine grace to be willing to afcribe all to grace. And inftead of getting out of debt by praifes, we are more indebted for our praifes, and Ihould be more thankful for more thankfulnefs. When I have acknowledged your Chriftmas prefent, it is no payment. It is only faying Mr. T. is very kind to his friends, and I am among them, much behold- en to him ; that with you is enough : fo it is with our God. I am much indebted to your faithful partner — tell her fo. I will acknowledge her letter, when I get time. At prefent 1 have more work than I can well get through. My curate is leaving me — and 1 am not yet provided , fo that the parochial duty lies heavy on me. But I ferve a good maftcr, and I do not complain — He makes my fervice pcrfe£l freedom. Mr. Serle will by no means hear of money ; and I cannot think of accepting fo large a quan- tity for nothing : you will therefore give me leave to make you a free-will offering. 1 will take 128 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE take care you fliall have the half dozen fackfuk in due time — cut ready and prepared for plant- ing half an acre : which in one year will yield you a fufficient quantity for a very great farm. The Lord of the harvefl blefs the plough. I have much to fay to you about this new year — but my excufe to Mrs. Taylor muft alfo plead with you. When leifure is vouchfafed unto me, I fhall look towards P. G. and often before pray my Lord to look there, and to take you and yours under his fpecial care. So prays my good partner, joining heartily vvith W. ROMAINE. LETTER XLIV. Saturday Morning. My dear Friend, PUT your mercies and your afBl£l:Ion3 together — what comparifon between them— how many more mercies than affliftions — and how many mercies in affli£lions. O for a loudj a louder ftill, fong of praife — Who is a God, like unto our God, that maketh affli£lion do us good and bring hiiUfelf glory ! let fongs of triumph ■REV, W. ROMAINE, A. M. I29 triumph be founded by all your family, that you have no dark fide in God's providences and dealings with you. Let your children and friends join with me in adoring him for what he has done, and praying him not to flacken his hand In this fweet einployment I fhall be engaged till Tuefday, the day v/e hope to fee you face to face. It muft be a fhort vifit — but let us meet and part goad friends, expe£ting that whatever befalls us, the day will come, when we fhall meet, and part no more. My beloved partner has a fliare in all my good wiflies to Mrs. T. and family, not forgetting my John. Pray for W. ROMAINE- LETTER XLV. Sunderland, Auguft i, 1791, My dear Friend, I PROMISED that I would write unto' you when I came to the end of my jour- ney: and I do not take up my pen to fulfil that promife, but to tell you, that Mrs. T's letter came to us yefterday, foj-warded by my fon from 130 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE from London, and that the contents occafioned great joy and thankfuhiefs in both our hearts. We were very anxious for Mrs. D. and led to pray much for her, and now our prayers are turned into praifes ; as he faid, " What rctura fhall I make unto the Lord for all the bene- " fits which he hath done unto me," what he Ijas done for you, is for me alfo. He has given me to fliare in your good ; for which 1 blefs his holy name. I lhall keep looking up to him for the mother a,nd her fon — for the mother, that ihe may feel how much flie is indebted to the loving kindnefs of her good Lord Jefus— and for the fon, that, whether it lives or dies, it may be the Lord's. Mrs. R. defires to thank Mrs. T. for the good news : it was really fo, and helped us greatly to increafe the thanks of yefterday. I was favored with an opportunity of recommending my deareft Jefus in the oldeft church in England, called Monk Weremouth, which belonged to the venerable Bede, a very favorite pulpit of mine, and from which his pre- cious name has been often, like ointment, pour- ed forth. "W hen I remove from this place to Northumberland, and get a fight of Chevy Chafe Hills, which bound England and Scot- land, I fhall be reminded of an engagement to Mr. T. 1 ill it be fulfilled, 1 fliall be recom- mending you, Mrs. T. and all yours, to, the care and keeping of my Jefus : fo will Mrs. R. who REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. ?3J who begs, whenever you write to Mrs. D. to be moft affe£lionately remembered to her, as does alfo W. ROMAINE. LETTER XLVI. Brislington, Sejif. 24, 179I0 Dear Friend, ALTHOUGH I always look upon you, as one highly favored ; yet I could men- tion a perfon who has been as gracioufiy dealt with as yourfelf. And who perhaps may fur- pafs you in the greatnefs, the number, and the continuance, of divine mercies. I hope to dif- courfi with you upon this fubjeft, and to try which of us can beft magnify the fpecial goodnefs of our God. He furrqunds me here with his lov- ing kindnefs — the farnily — the place — the wea- ther— Brrftol friends — Brlftol congregatiqns. I have not a moment, but fome of them are fay- ing to me — Here, here is frefh matter of praife. God make me thankful, I vvilh to bring fuch fpirit, as I now feel, to P. We leave our friends here 0£t. 3, and ftaying two days at Bradford, we expert to be at Salifbury the 6th. on I^Z letter;: WRITTEN BY THE on Thurfday, and meeting your chaife, ta arrive Friday, by. two o'clock, at P. The Lord Jefus vouch fafe us a happy meeting, that we may help one another forward in our great journey. My paper will not hold the number of refpe£Vs, and remembrances to Mrs. T. from Mr«. R. ac- companied with the falutations of the I's, with my own particular good wiflies and prayers for every branch of your, family. You are all upon my heart, the fick and the well. My Lord, to whom I recommend you, makes his people happy in all conditions ; and he often lets them be Tick (o make them happier. He has a won- derful y/ay, qf his own, in curing defperate dif- eafes; yea, even of turning death into life. Bleffed, bleffed for ever, are all they who fol- low his prefcription. Mr. T. you have tried him — go on — truft and be not afraid. If your faith could go as far as his promifes, you would find heaven upon earth — the work of faith with power is heaven. May he keep you in it, who is the author, and the finiflier of the faith. My love to brother K. and family^ and to your vifitors, if any whom I know. Pray for W. ROiVL\INE. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. LETTER XLVII. Jan. 4, 1794. Fi'jl letter of this Tear, Mr. T WE have taken our leave of the laft year: Farewell 1791, thou wilt return no more. Welcome 1792. Our bufmefs now is, to try- to profit from the paft, and to improve the coming time. When a chriftian looks back, every thing calls for his praife. And looking forward, every thing calls for prayer, the prayet of faith. On thefe fubje£ls we employed our„ felves on New Year's Day. You know it is one of my feftivals. We had a great meeting ; and, I truft, many true worfhippers. Our motto for this year, and our employment through all our years, is, " Grow in grace." i. Pet. iii. 18. Take the outlines. Grace means favor, free. In our prefent circumftances, it is the favor of God to the finners of mankind j faid to come from Jeho- vah, very very gracious — from the Faiher, from the Son frequently, and from the Spirit of Grace, to teach us, that in the bleffed Trinity all their purpofes, v/ords and works, are favor, nothing but real favor, to believers. To them who feel guilt, and wrath in their con- fcicnce-s, it comes like a cool breeze after a fuJtry IJ4- L?,TTER§ WRITTEN fiY TH% fultry day ; and it is alfo compared to dew; which in hot countries is very neceflary to all the fruits of the earth, and com€s upon them moft freely, as you may fee, Mich. v. 7. Hence the neceffity of it was ftiewn. It is to the foul what breath is to the body. What the dew, and rain, and the fliining of the heavens, are to every thing that grows out of the earth ; fo is grace, as the Apoftle proves at large, Eph. ii. And this leads us to confider the ob- jefts of grace, not fo much in the purpofe of the Trinity, as in the difcovery of it. They are quickened by the Spirit of life, enabled to receive Jefus for their Saviour and their God, and then to live upon his fulnefs by faith, where they find all grace, for fpiritual life, growth and activity ; moment after moment, grace for grace. To learn this leiTon in practice is the found experience of a true believer — grace to pardon, as I Tim. i. 14. Grace to fubdue fin — grace to purify the heart — grace to regulate the life ; thefe in ufe are the exercife and the improve- ment of the grace of Jefus. He takes all from Chrift, as mere favor, and wifhes to grow up into him in all things. May this profper in your heart. God is teaching it you, as I ob- ferve from your laft letter ; and 1 fee a legal turn in you that would pervert his teaching. Mr. T. the feeling of what you are fhould not keep REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I35 keep you from Chrift, but make you live more on his grace, and endear him to you, as the only refuge for your cafe. If you grow in felf- knowledge, it fliould be your fchoolmafter to teach you more of Chrift ; becaufe, the more you know him, the more you will truft him. He will every day give you more reafon to do it:- and mind — the more you truft him, the more you will lovehim. His Spirit will make him to your believ- ing heart, a precious Jefus ; and the conftrain- ing love of Chrift will lead you to a diligent ufe of all the appointed means, in which he has promifed to meet, and to blefs his people. This is our morality : and all this is favor. He giveth grace, and he giveth glory. Saints and angels are, and will be to eternity, worftiippers of our Immanuel : fo fays Peter, " To him be glory " now, and through the day of eternity. Amen." My application was, i. To theGracelefs. 2. To feekers. 3. To the weak in faith. 4. To the ftrong. All is from Chrift. May this year be a growing year — downwards and upwards — out of felf into Chrift, from all creature-dependence to more perfe6l in and on God— his word and Spirit, as a witnefs to the fulnefs of Jefus. O Mr. T. this is fine talking; but, believe me, you may as foon create a world, as learn this Icffon without Almighty grace. Prav, pray for divine teaching. Pray for a growth in grace, that you Daay loath and abhor yourfelf ; and, repenting in duft 136 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE duft and aflies, may adore the God of all grace. I am on my watch-tower for you, and for Mrs. T. and for all your family, that they may get it, and ufe it. Mr. K. will not be offended at my wi filing him more grace in his heart, and in his pulpit, kid in his fainily. W. ROMAINE. LETTER XLVIIL Brislington, 5^//, t^, 1-7520 very dear Friend, WE have fettled our plan, and im- mediately communicate it to our friends at P. When you was at Plymouth, it would have been a- little variety, and not at all out of your way, to have come by Taviftock and Creditor! to Tiverton, — a charming road. We came from Plymouth that way. And afterrefrefliing us with the fight of you all, you would have got into your road at Honiton again withoui lofs of time. We purpofe, God willing, to be at Salif- bury on Tuefday evening, October the fecond, 1 whefe Rev. w. romatne, a. m. 137 v^herc you kindly engage to fend for us. It will give us a very great entertainment to have it under your hand, that you arc all well, got home fafe, have been remembering that dearefl friend, who kept your going out and your com- ing in. We are here at Briflington, with our friends, who talk ftill of returning to France, notwithftanding the great Appollyon reigns there paramount. The feeds have been long fowing, and now they are manifeft in their fruits, marked with favage, more than favage, bloodfliedding and cruelty. What can Dr. Prieftly fay now ? Here is infidelity with its natural effects.. God keep old England ! We have too much, by far, of the French principles ; only the Almighty can ftop their dreadful efre61:s. May we repent and be fpared. I am praying, and preaching, and exhorting, all I can, to flop the rnadnefs of the times. This is a folemn feafon alfo with me on my own account. More than half a century ago I was ordained to be a witnefs for Chrift, in this month of September. Looking backward, every thing I can remember, covers me with fliame. Doing fo little for fuch a Jefus — grudg- ing to be laid out and fpent for him — and, when he did vouchfafe to make ufe of me, fo ready to take his glory to myfelf. I verily ftand amazed, at his infinite patience and kindnefs in all his dealings with me. I feel I muft lie at his toot- ftool, and be content (but he muft make me fo) Vol. VIII. K to I3S LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE to be in bis debt for all things that belong tr> life and godlinefs : according to iVIr. Jones's, dying triumph, " A finner faved, a (inner faved." AH here falute you. Mrs. R. in a particular manner to Mrs. T. and yourfelf, with your taithtul friend in our deareft Lord, , \V. ROMAINE. LETTER XLIX. My dear Friend, I HAVE had to- preach twelve times- Ih fourteen days — and rather not well, till preaching comes, and then I get better. No mafter like mine. His fervice is perfeiSt free- dom. Our meditation concerning him on New Year's Day, was on one of his names, namely, !Melchiiedec — from comparing wb.at is faid of him in Genefis, and in the iioth Pfalm, with St. Paul's comment upon both thefe paffages in Hebrews vii. It feems to me moft certain, that Jefus Chrift is the perfon fpoken of in the Old Teftament. The apoftle has explained the word for us, and fays it means, " the King of righ* " teoufnefi," REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 139 •* teoufnefs." O what a blefled name ! There being none righteous, no, not one, he vouch- fafed to be " the Lord our righteoufnefs." He wrought it out for us, and applies it in us. He fends his Spirit to convince us, that we want it, and to enable us to truft in his — to plead it in the confcience, and to rejoice in it in the heart, and to be filled with the bleifed fruits (as Phil, i. 11) of it in our lives. Confider, he is the king of this faving righteoufnefs — a great King — Je- hovah— King of Kings— the creator of heaven and earth — the God of providence, who up- holdeth all things by the word of his power — the God of the fathers, worfhipped under the tabernacle and temple difpenfation — and the God, whom chriftians worfhip, it being their diftinguilliing character, to call upon the name of the Lord, as you may fee, A6ls ix. i f. I Cor. i, 2. 2 Tim. ii. 22. May he reveal himfelf all the year to you, as your righteoufnefs: and this is the proper work and office of faith — with all the confidence of your heart to depend upon him, fo as to enjoy peace with God — love to God — andlovingobedience. Remember,thisyear will call for much faith : and you will not exercife it as far as he warrants you. He bids youcaftail your care upon him : for Mrs. T.— for children— for bufinefs— for death— for eternity— you can- not lay too much upon him— the government of K 2 'all 140 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE all worlds is upon his flioulders. O precious faith ! He is my King. He rules in my heart. He has fet up there a throne of grace. He keeps under the rebels, and keeps me willing to follow him wherefoever his providence leads. Mr. T. I beg for you, and beg yourfelf, for more truft in the Lord our righteoufnefs. That you may fo grow in grace, as to thank God, who always caufeth you to triumph in Chrift. Pray for W. ROMAINE. LETTER L. Decs. I79J- My Friend, A GOODLY company of you met together. Peace be with you, family and guefls. You fay, 1 am in your debt — fo I wifli to be ; and fo I muft be, for fome time. I have fat down in earneft to finilTi the Triumph of Faith : and am now tranfcribing it for the prefs. It had grown fo voluminous, having been in hand ever fmce 1771, that I have refolved to throw afide REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I41 afide all my papers, and write only jufl: what I myfelf am at prefent, an old believer. I am in hafte to get it finiflied, before I finifli my courfe, which is very near ran out. Soon I fliall enter on my 8oth year, and foon be no more here. I therefore leave my experience in the former vo- lumes of the Life of Faiths and of the Walk of Faith in this concluding treatife, which con- tains what I am ftill learning and living. Some years ago, I publifhed a volume of Dr. Smith's portraiture of old age, explaining the 12th of Ecclefiaftes. Now I am made to feel the fymp- toms therein defcribed ; which is practical know- lege, and the trueft comment upon the Bible, when the Holy Spirit writes it on the heart, and brings it into ufe and experience in the life. Now I have told you my prefent ftate — I am as bufy, in my way, as you can be in yours. The preparing for the prefe is not the whole of my employment. I would be found much in prayer for direftion, for afliftance, &c. and above all, for a bleffing from God : without which, the book may as well be burnt as fee the light. Herein you, and my friends with you, can help me much \ and you will, if brotherly love con- tinue. 1 beg, for my Lord's fake, that you would plead with him for his direflion — his af- fiftanc€--his bleffing, on my poor attempt to fpread his matchlefs fame, and to encourage be- lievers to truft him more and better. Take 142 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE • Take this excufe : for it is a true one. O that your account of Mr. T. may be matter of fact : 1 rejoice and am thankful. May you take Mrs. T. home as well as I wifli her. M., I find is to learn a little longer in our Lord's fchool : may he prove a good fcho- till faith and patience have done their perfe£t work. My love to Mr. I. He is in my debt, and can get out of it when he will. I wifh him one of your blefled gofpel-winters. Mrs. I. and her dear children, are in my litany : fo are yours. If you have any regard for me — remember my Triumph of Faith. Pray that I may live it, and, in due time, die it. So wilhes my good part- ner, to you, and yours, and all your guells. In the holy bonds of chrill:ian love, I am, truly, • Your friend and fervant, VV. ROMAINE. LETTER a-EV. \V. ROMAINE, A M. 1 4:; LETTER LI. Jan. 1794. My Dear Friend, MAY this be the happiefl year of your life, andMrs. T. and all your children. He can make it fo, in whofe hands are your time. And he can do it in a marvellous way. He can bring in comforts, by taking away comforts, and I hope •he does. Mr. I. faid in a letter 5 " You have " heard of the melancholy death of Mr. D." I had a letter from S, about a fortnight after, which made no mention of it, fo that I did not know for certain, how it was, till I met Mr. B. who fliewed me a letter from you, giving an account of it. You fee here is another breach in your family — a loud warning to you all, young and old — to be ready, that is, take care, that ye be found in Chrift, living and dying. Our motto was this year, " The God of " hope," Rom. xv. 13. I purpofe to give you the fubftance of my obfervations fome other time. Laft week I was enabled to preach eight fermons--and this week feven. It is better to burn out, than to ruft out. If Mr. K. does not preach fo often, may he do it more fervently, and with 144 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE with more fuccefs. I can wifli you nothing greater, than the continual experience of Rom. XV. 13. May the power of the Holy Ghoft fliew what great things, exceeding great, you have to hope for from God in Chrift, and put you by faith into the prefent enjoyment, Mrs. T. and all your children. So prays W. R. LETTER LII. My good Friend, I GIVE, you the earliefl: intelligence of our motions, in which you arc pleafed to intereft yourfelf. It is our year lo vifit my fifter at Tiverton, to whom we go the beginning of July — Afterwards, I have taken the care of Mary Pc rtchurch, in Briftol, for four Sundays. After which, 1 hope God will open a way for us, to fee our friends at P. and to help one for another ward in thebefl things -which will be (if all things favour) in Otlobcr, and of which I fhall inform you again and again in the courfe of the fummer. a May REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I45 May our hearts meet often in the centre of union. Your late ficknefs had a voice— it fpake— and you heard it fay—" In the midft of life we " are in death." How fliort is life — how uncer- tain—How certain, infallibly certain, is death — How neceffary is preparation for it— How dan- gerous the leaft delay— How comfortable a well- grounded hope of fafety in death, and of joy beyond it. Mr. T. you know thefe things, O for more practical knowledge, and lively ex- pel ience. There is an antidote againft the ih'ng, aye, and againft the fear of death — an in- fallible cure— true faith believes, and takes it. The con fc ience feels the fovereign virtue — the blood of the lamb cleanfes it from all fin : and when guilt is gone, the heart is faved from every enemy it had reafon to fear, and is entitled to every blelTmg, that God has promifed. It is upon the ground of this wan'ant,and nothing elfe, (pray mind that) that any man can look forward to death and judgment, with a hope full of glory and immortality. What faid the blefled company of old teftament martyrs ? All thefe died in faith : to whom the new teftament church in perfefl unifon replies — Thanks be to God, who giveth us alfo the victory over the law, over fin, and over death, through Jefus Chrift our Lord. Mr. T. you have their faith— God help you to make good ufe of it. If you live long, you mufl: expedl 146 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE expe£l trials ; the profpeft which faith opens into the other world, will marvelloufly fupport and comfort you under them. God has given you many, many, temporal blefllngs ; this faith will improve them, and exalt them into fpiritual .and heavenly mercies— It will teach you to fit loofe to them — God in them, and not they alone, will be your portion — You will tafte his good- nefs in them ; and w^hen he calls you to leave them, you will be, he will make you, as ready to leave them, as a poor beggar would be to fall afleep, if the Almighty had promifed that he fhould awake a great emperor : our Jefus is this Almighty— He has promifed to be our fliepherd through life and death. May he magnify his tender care over you, by making you feel happy in him, as happy as the 23d Pfalm promifes lie will make you. I know you will excufe my long fermon : bat truly I am fo fenfible of the importance of preparation— the dreadful danger of delay, that I could not help thanking my God, who had fpared you — This ficknefs, I trufl, was for his glory in your good — as Lazarus's was — but Lazarus died afterwards. May you Ijve to die as Lazarus, and be where he is now. I aflTure you, the chriliian hope has its prefent harveft of bleflings — May you enjoy them abundantly, through life, and for ever and ever- Mrs. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I47 Mrs. T. is in my eye, and in my heart. What I wIHi you, I alfo wiOi her. She carries about with her a conftant monitor, a weak and crazy body ; and he fays to her, " Be ye alfo " ready." I know flie believes : and whatever bad nerves may fuggcfi:, and they are terrible enemies to the comforts of Chrift, yet he is on her fide ; and he will prove himfelf, in every time of need, to be her Saviour and her God, She is perfuaded I make ufe of my intereft with him for her, and for all (he loves, efpecially my John, whom God blefs. B. K. gave me yefter- day a good account of his Father — I was in prayer for him — and have now been giving of thanks : may he be preferved, for the fake of his church, his family, and his friends. Mrs. R. defires the kindeft things may be faid for her to Mrs. T. and all true and real. We join in conftant prayer for you, and hope to join foon with you— And it warms my very heart and foul with feelings inexpreflibly bieffed, that I hope, ere long, to join all my P. friends, in the praifes of God, and the Lamb, which will never, never end, but grow better and better, to all eternity. LETTER LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER LIU. To Mrs. T. Nov. 28, 1785. My dear Friend, Mrs T. I WAS interefted greatly in the birth of John — and, if I remember well, 1 fent you on that occafion, fome reflexions to ftir up your gratitude. My heart has been with you on the prefent mercy, for which I joined in prayer, and now join in thankfgiving. You will not be of- fended, that 1 fend you what has been upon my mind lately, and what I truft has been alfo upon yours — May he, who commands the bleffing, make it the means of exciting and increafing the praifes of your heart. I fuppofe you in your clofet, and in the prefence of God. O, how many are my mercies ! and thefe new mercies are calling for a new fong of praife. Elefs the Lord, O my foul, and all that is within me, blefs his holy name : Blefs the Lord, O my foul, and forget not all his benefits : For furely, his mercy and goodnefs have fol- lowed m€ all the days of my life. O what REV. W. ROMAINE, A.M. 149 O what was I, that God fliould fet his love upon me before time, and in time call me to the faving knowledge of his Son, whom, to know aright is life eternal ? And what am I even now, fince I have felt fomething of the power of his precious gofpel ? Why me, Lord ! what was I, what am I, that I fliould be chofen, and called, and accepted in the beloved ? Not unto me, in the leaft, not unto me, but unto thy fovereign grace be all the praife. 0 help me to afcribe unto thee, the glory due unto thy great name: for I am furrounded, I am loaded with thy benefits. All thy dealings with me fliew forth thy loving kindnefs, and in temporals, as well as fpirituals, I am Angularly favored. 1 cannot count my many, many outward bleffings, nor can I be thankful enough for a fpiritual ufe of them. When I furvey my fituation in life, my kind relations, my friends, and fubftance, my houfe and fervants, they all proclaim the bounty of heaven to my, foul. Thanks be to thee, thou that delighteft to do good, I fee thy hand, I tafte fomething of thy love in all my enjoyments. I thank thee for thy gifts--I ufc them by thy grace— and I blefs thee, that they are in any 150 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE any meafure fanclified by the word of God and prayer. O how are my mercies increafmg — they abound in number — in quality they grow more excellent — For I get two in one — firft a mercy, and then a tliankfal heart to acknowiedge it, which Is grace for grace. Let me, deeply impreft, lift up my heart to blefs the Lord God, for my hulband, my children, and efpecially for my new born Son — whom I devote to thee, and to thy fervicc — O be with him through life — thou knoweft my heart and the feelings of a mother, let the bowels of thy tender mercies in Chrift be towards him — I afk nothir-g more for him, and thou wouldeft not have me afk any thing lefs^--than that thou mayefl be his portion, and his exceeding great reward. And now father of my mercies, who haft been the guide of my youth, into thy'care and keep- ing I conmiit me, and mine. Here I am at P , a miracle of thy goodnefs — let me live here a life of praife — and whatever bleffings thou giveft, crown them with a humble, and a thankful heart. O let me never be fuff'ered to rob thee of thy glory, bat help me to give it all, where it is due, in life, and death, and to all eternity — to~ Father, Son, and Holy Ghoft. Ameni c When HEV. W. ROMAINE, A. iVf. 1^2 When this fliall be completed, W. R. hopes to be in company, and to join in an everlafting Hallelujah. Aye, and before too : the well grounded ex- peftation of this feeds and nourilhes our gra- titude at prefent. Already I feel fome of its heavenly influence, and my defign in writing, is to fnggelT: fomcthing which may give you a new relifli of it. Though we cannot enjoy fo much, nor praife fo well, as our elder brethren, who are now round the throne, yet furely we may tafte and fee as well as they, how gracious our Lord is ; and although they arc banquet- ing at the marriage fupper, yet we, the friends of the bridegroom, are invited to rejoice in our Lord, as well as theirs, and we are com- manded too to rejoice in him always : and again I fay, rejoice. My dear Mrs. T. 1 know your weak frame, and your poor nerves — I make allowances for your bodily infirmities ; yet it is upon account ©f ihefe very things, that I would try to ftir you up the more. You want frefli encouragements to believe, and by believing not only to go on your way, but alfo to be able to go on rejoicing. Happy am I, if my good mailer pleafes to blefs any thing I write to the increaling of your faith, and of your joy in him. Be allured, the more you truft him, the greater reafon you will find to trull liillmore : and when you are quite fatisfied, that 15a LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE that you are fafe in his hands, as he warrants you to be, then will your love to him abound ; for faith firft workcth love, and then worketh by love, keeping the heart warm, in its grateful attachment to a precious, precious Jefus. May this be your portion : So prays W. R. LETTER LIV. May, 12, 1788. Mrs. T. TUESDAY, one o'clock — ^juft come from church. This is my day for preaching to young people : we had a congregation of at leaft two thoufand children ; and what made me wifh, I had feen all your dears before me, was, that my Lord might have laid his hands upon them, and bleffed them ; for he was with us of a truth. He repeated Mark x. 13. Our text was Pfalms cxix. 9. Our nature is defiled — the fountain is pollution — fo are the ftreams — Thoughts vain — play foolifh — tempers rebelli- ous, and headftrong — end is deftru£tion— rOur Jefus is almighty to fave us. He can teach the REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. the ignorant, wafli the filthy, pardon the guilty — fubdue every bad temper, and fet in, and keep an, the way of life and falvation. He invites young people to come to him : promifes to give them better things than play or pleafure : makes his promifes good — gives exceeding great and precious things, and thefe for ever. Many intreaties were ufed — and much prayer for fuccefs, that the work of the day might profper. He did his own will : to him be all the glory. My kind love to Mr. T. and thanks for his kind letter. God has profpered, God does profper, God will profper, him. So prays W. R. for him and his. LETTER LV.. Mrs. T. YOU gave me great pleafure in your' laft letter. I am much beholden to you. I fpeak not after the manner of men, but from my heart. I feel thankfulnefs : It is no bad wifli Vol. VIII. L - to 154 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE to pray you may feel as much : for I am fure you have as much, if not more, reafon. You have a friend, who has done wonders for you, and who expects nothing in return, but an humble acknowledgment : and that alfo he muft give you. I often think of his goodnefs, and blefs him for you. If he took away a parent, he was better than a father. He himfelf brought you up, and made your guardians fo careful of you, and fo kind to you. He fent you your hufband, and put you into fuch circumrtances, that your heart cannot wifh for more. Look back, Mrs. T. look round, and fee, whether our God hath not dealt bountifully with you. May all his tem- poral mercies ftir up, and increafe gratitude in your foul. But what are thefe, though they be great, and many, and undeferved, compared to his fpecial favors. I knew he loved you : but I am happy to have it under your hand. What- ever almighty love cr.n do — he will perform. Q what a debt do you owe him — for his unfpeak- able gifts — himfelf— -What a fum is that ! His Spirit, to unite your fpirit to Jefus — O what an infinite mercy ^ And to abide with you to keep you in union, and to eftablifh communion with God your Saviour ; that in his fulnefs you may find and enjoy all the blellings of the Father's love — his Father, and in Jefus your Father. By what gracious providences has he led you to this experience ! Your relations, friends, ac- quaintance. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I^^ quaintance,and education, all kindly overruled by him to train you up in the good old way. Your prefent fettlement, the family you are in, the miniftry you fit under, O what mercies ! The Bible opened to you — the promifes credited, put in fuit, applied. Prayer a delight, in fome raeafure — praife at times very encouraging — a humble walk, as I can witnefs. My dear friend, raife up your heart, and blefs his Holy name. If your heart be cold, like the weather, warm it at his love : for all his gifts are but a little ear- neft in hand. At prefent, your beft is but a fore- tafte. Look forward, and fee what an eftate you have in reverfion. True, it is only in promife : but that credited is as good as any freehold. Truft, truft him, be not afraid. It is yet but a little, very little while, and he will put you in- to full polTefhon. And I hope to fee it, and join your eternal fong of praife to God and the Lamb. Your friends die. The year is juft dead. I am tottering over the grave : but he fays to me, and he keeps up my Spirits, " Be- " caufe I live, ye fliall live alfo." In this confi- dence, come what may, I go on my way re- joicing. Pray for W. ROMAINE. L z LETTERS aROM THE LATE Rev. WILLIAM ROMAINE, TO ONE OF HIS SISTERS, V^he Dates are, for the mqfi part, uncertain; hut they appear to have been written between the years 1758, LETTERS »ROM BY THE tATE Rev. WILLIAM ROMAINE. LETTER r. My dear Sifter, I ALWAYS loved you as my fifter, now I love you much more than ever. I truft in God you will foon ftand related to me, by a more clofe and dearer bond than nature can tie. Only go on, and you will be happy. God has begun his work, let him finiOi it. All my prayers fliall be offered for your fpeedy experience of his pardoning love ; and, until you tafte of it, let me entreat you to be earneft in the careful ufe of all the means of grace : be much in prayer, in reading, and meditating on the word of God ; but l60 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE but then t?ke care that you build not on thefe duties. You are not to fancy, 'hat any thing you can do, is able to jufti^y you in the fight of God Your ii'ftification is a free att of God's grace Without works. W. R. LETTER II. My dear Sijlefy I SAW Mr. R. laft Sundav, who gave me a very pleafing account of your growth in grace. It vras faid formerly, that the diftinguilli- ing love of God chofe two of a city, and one of a family ; but now, what reafon have We to magnify, and to exalt the love of our God, who has been fo exceedingly gracious to 'our family ? I truft, he has greater bleffings for us all, even in this life, than we have yet received. Only do you wait upon him, and be found in thofe ways, * wherein he meets his people, and he will carry you on fafely and fweetly to the end of your journey : it is but a little way, and a fhort time, and we fliall be at home ; fo that we ought every moment to be prefling forward ; and may God keep REV. W.- ROMAINE, A.M. l6l keep you from being weary or faint in your mind ! You have afflictions and troubles in the way, and fo have all God's children. You have them, becaufe you want them. You could not grow in grace without them. How could you take up your crofs, and deny yourfelf daily, if you had not daily troubles? And it is the exercife of faith to bear them, and to believe that God deals them out by number, weight, and meafure. You have not one pain more than you ftand in need of. And farther, " our light affliction, which is but tor a moment, worketh for us, a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." If we do but attain to this glory, it fignifies very little by what way we come to the attainment of it. Think on thefe things, and, through the blefling of God, they may help to make you fee and feel, that the way of fufFering is the royal way to the kingdom. My tendered duty waits upon my dear mother. I hope God will finiiii his work in her, before flie goes hence. I truft we fliall meet once more in this world ; and I doubt not hvX we fhall meet, where we lhall part no more. I fend enclofed, a little piece of Mr. Mafon's. I hope God will blefs it at this time, as it comes (eafonably, and particularly to my filler M. who v/ill, 1 expeft, be able to read it with profit, about the time it reaches you. Wh/ ^62 LETTERS WRITTEN BY TftE Why do you want fo much to have texts, .mcl pieces of fermons r Have you not the Bible ? One word of it is worth a volume. Read and pray much ; and God will do more for you, than all his minifters can. I commend you to God, and to the riches of his grace, praying him to do for you all exceed- ing abundantly above all that you can aflc or think. I remain. Your loving brother, W. R. LETTER III. July 1 8, 175?. My dear Sijler, I CAN now acquaint you, with great thankfulnefs to my good God, that my wife is brought to bed ; ftie had a pretty good time, and has a boy likely to live. In a little time, I hope to be able to get my churches provided for, and then I fliall inform you, when I fhall fet out for the north. In the mean time, pray for us, and efpecially REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 1 63 «fpecially for me, that I may come unto you, with the demonftration of the fpirit, and of power : and if God opens a door for me, it certainly fliall be fo. There feems to be a great hungering and thirfting after the word, hi mod parts of the country ; I pray God, fome perfons may be fent to break the bread of hfc, and to diftribute the waters of comfort to them. The work of God ftill profpers in this city, which is the only token we have for good — for it fliews that God, in the midft of wrath, remembers mercy j and if his wrath fliould encreafe, may th« work of God profper in your foul and mine, that if he fliould com.e to punilh, and to deftroy thisfm- ful nation, he may find no fins in us to puniih, all, all being covered with the Redeemer's blood. I hope to find my mother better, to whom give my duty, and my love to my fifters. May you all grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrifl : So praycth your friend and brother, V/. R. LET1ER 164 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER IV. My dear Sijer, I THANK you for your kind letter, I think fince I left St. Olave's, I have more bu- finefs than before ; always fome call to vifit the lick or other duty; but not fo much taken up, as to hinder me from writing every poft, if I thought it would be any comfort to my mother. - If flie is Vv'aiting on God, he will not leave her. If flie is defiring the fulfilling of the promifes, God cannot deny himfelf : his word cannot be broken ; he will give her her heart's defire, even himfelf to be her God, and her everlafting reward. My wife has been very ill, thank God fhe is now pretty well recovered, and fends her duty to my mother, and her love to you all. The children are well. LETTER V. I CAN fay nothing yet about coming down. I have had fad troubles at St. Dunftan's, with the new Vicar. He will kt none preach I for SlEV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. l6j for me without a licence, wliich puts me to great inconvenience ; but all is governed by One, who knows what is beft, and does what is beft, for his own glory, and his people's good. I defire to be more and more thankful to God, for his mercies both to me, and to you. How can we thank him enough for that fo many of us are feeking happinefs in eternal things, while f» many are content with the happinefs of time and fenfe ! how can we do too much to ihow our gratitude ? Oh, let us do, or fufFer any thing our God calls us to ! furely, the time is fhort, and this fhort fuffering is the way to an eternal weight of glory, &c. W. R. LETTER VI. My dear Sijler, I AM glad to fee your hand writing, I received your bill, and have fent you two books ftitched in blue paper. You know, I fappofe, why we did not all come as we intended ; my wife is poorly : as foon as fhe is any thing better, I hope to fee you. I fend you enclofed two letters l66 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE letters of Mrs. Love's, the mofl extraordinary I ever faw. — Her faith was as ftrong as Abraham's, in offering up his only fon. May God give you and me the fame faith ! and I doubt not but he will, if he call us to the like trials ; for I am certain, I find it by experience, that he gives his people ftrength for their day. Religion is in a very flourifliing ftate among us. We have great additions of people, and feveral minifters lately come out. This is indeed a day, which the Lord hath made. Oh that I may find him pre- fent with his divine efficacy, when I come down j help me with your prayers, both before, and when 1 am there, that the work of the Lord may profper in my hands. Yours, mofl: afFe£lionateIy, W. R. LETTER VIL My dear Sijfer, I HAVE been very poorly a long time, but thank God, I find ficknefs better for me than health j and I am fure, when the Lord fees /> REV, W. ROMAINE, A. M. 1 67 Tees beft, I fliall be rcftored to my former flate. The main thing is to be fecure of our eternal health ; of that I have no doubt. Bleffed be God for his unfpeakable gift. I believe not one tittle of the word can be broken, but that to the uttermoft it fhall be fulfilled, even to me. This gives a relifli to every thing God fends; becaufe, whatever comes from him, comes always fanfti- fied, and generally fweetened. What the enemy attempts againft our peace, God over-rules to the eftablifliing of it; and his temptations againft our graces, are made to ftrengthen them. This is my experience; I hope it is yours. Rejoice in havin": an Almi^rhtv friend. Be comforted in. him. What fignifies all that Satan, or the world, or our own hearts, can do againft his power? We are his. That is enough. He will keep us. He will ftrengthen us. He will juftify us. He will fanftify and glorify us. Yea, he will do this for fuch as we are. Oh let us then fear nothing but difpleafmg him; and while this holy fear is in our hearts, we lhall go on fafcly and fvveetly homewards. There may we meet, even in our father's kingdom, and in- herit all that Jefus purchafed for us! My beft refpefts, and duty, and prayers, at- tend my dear mother. I have not the leaft un- eafy thought about her. She has God's promife. This flie fliall find. Tlie Lord keep you and all friends. W, R. ' LETTER 368 I-ETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER VIII. D€ar Sijler, YOUR letter gave me gr«ater joy than I can exprefs. I hope all will foon be well with your foul. You may examine yourfelf by thefe following rules, and I hope God will give his blelling to them. Firft, look back and fee from whence your convi£lion of fm arofe. The fcripture fays, true conviftion muft come from the holy fpirit ; and when he is come, fays Chrift, he will convince the world of fin. It is his bufinefs, and his of- fice ; and, when he a6i;s in it, conviftion has thefe properties different from the conviction of natural confcience. It refpefts not fo much acls of fin, as the fin of our nature ; that entire pollution, and depravity of the faculties of foul and body, which render us by nature children of wrath. Again, it is deep ; it goes to the bottom of the heart, and lays open all the lurking places of fin. Farther, it is lafting, it continues its hatred and oppofition to all fin, until it be not only feen in the heart, but alfo driven out of it. Secondly, if, after examining your conviction by thefe rules, you find it right, and peace and joy begin to arife in your confcience ; if it be the peace REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M, 1 69 peace and joy of the holy fjjirit, it will make you continue to hate fin, and every thing finful. It will leave you more in love with God than it found you. You will love prayer more, and will have a freedom and liberty in it, which you had not before. You will love God's word more, and will underftand more of it, being ena- bled, by his grace, to find inftru£lion in it, fuit- able to all your fpiritual wants. My meaning in all this is, if the conviftions have brought you to Jefus Chrift, you will know it by its fruits. You will find yourfelf grow in grace, and more in earnefi: about the falvation of your foul. Thirdly, examine your growth in grace by this rule. We remember the fin which did fo eafily befet us; look at that; fee whether you hate it entirely, and whether you have entirely got the maftery over it. God has promifed that you {hall have grace to help in time of need. Apply to God for the fulfilling of this promife ; and be more concerned about this grace, which you al- ways want in time of need, than about fenfible comforts ; becaufe, in the one you may be de- ceived, but in the other you cannot. My dear filter, you have chofen the better part. The kingdom of heaven is worth millions of worlds. May God enable you to feek, until you attain it. My prayers attend you. — Remember me to my fifter.— My duty to my dear mother. Adieu, W/R. Vol. VIII. M LEI l ER 170 LETTERS WRITTEN BY Letter ix. (iRACE! be with you, my dear fifter*, and with my dearefi: mother; thanks for your kind letter. I am glad to obferve the fpirit of* it. While Chrift is dear afnd precious all will be well. Lay him as the foundation, and build all upon him ; then foundatioit and building will never, never, fall. O my dear fifter, you cannot make too much of him. Faith, refling on him, finds a free, full, eternal, pafdon for all fin; and faith, living upon him, finds power over fin, de- liverance from temptations and enemies ; and, bye and bye, fin fhall be no more, but only heaven and glory, the purehafe of the Saviour's blood. The believers motto is, " Chrift all, I no- . thing." For he cannot live upon Chrift, unlefs he feel his want of him. More wants, more faith. As they increafe, fo muft faith, that the believer may get a fupply, and the Saviour may get the glory. May that precious Saviour, eter- nally, infinitely precious, be your keeper ! May you love him more than I do ; live more upoa him than I! i\iay my dear mother get eftablilhed in him : Jefus keep you I Jefus blefs you! My dear fifter, yours in him, VV, R. LETTER KEY. W. ROMAINE, a. M. LETTER X. My dear Sifter, I HyVVE been waiting to anfwer roui* kind letter, with fomething fatisfa£torv about my outward affairs; but, not being able as yet to do it, I could not put off my writing any longer. You tell me good news indeed ; which makes my heart glad and thankful. O what reafoa have I to blcfs the good and gracious Lord, who is ftill infinitely lovely to me and mine! He hath brought me once more to St. Dunftan's, and through many miracles of mercy, which I have experienced both in my body and foul, for thefe lafl: fix months. Now I can fit down, and, looking back, adore and blefs his rich grace; in all things, and for all things, I can give him thanks. No- thing have I to mention all the day long, but mer- cy upon mercy; great meafure, preffed dov^ n, and running over. Every moment brings fome increafe of mercies to body, or foul, or children, or friends, orfubftance; and leads me to magnify ihe goOd- nefsof my dearcfl: Lord. He hath fhevVed him- felf, by numberlefs a£ts of grace, fo entirely, my friend, that he has enabled me to truft all my merciqs in his hands. He knows what is bell M a far 1'72 LETTERS WRITTEN BY tHE forme; and I am fure he will give it me. Thus- he is glorified, and I am happy. You have heard ol my being a candidate for a church in the city. My friends put me up; and I am as if I were not a candidate, tor I have fcarce a thought about it. One wlih I am fure I have not, but that Chrift's will may be done. Would he em- ploy me in a larger field than I have at prefent, *' here I am. Lord, fend me." If he would have me to ftay, and work where 1 am, I am content. Be thou. Lord, but with me, then I fliall be and do what thou plcafeft. Thus have I caft all my care for this and all other things upon the Lord, knowing that he careth for me. You will fup- pofe then that I am happy; and fo am, very,, very happy. I have got the pearl; let them take the field that will. For one end and purpofe only do I now live. I fee in this pearl of great price, the infinitely rich Jefus, far more wifdom, righteoufnefs, hoiinefs, ftrength, and bleflednefs,. than 1 have yet attained ; and 1 hunger and thirft for more, Itill more, i know it is all mine; and tliercfore I keep prefTmg forward. In what me- thod, andou what motives, Ido this,Iwlll tell you. iMrft. As to myfelf, I find that, to this moment, I never go to Chrift for any thing, until I feel the want of it; fo that, the more wants I have, the more I make ufe of him; for which reafon I am not af aid to difcover what is in myfelf, be it what It will, bccaufe it does not drive me from Chrift» REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 173 Chrifl:, but leads me to liim. By this means fclf is kept down, and Chriii: is exalted. For, 2. As to Chrift, I grow in the knowledge of him, by finding every day more, that without him I can do nothing. Hereby my faith is encreafed, and I live in a more fettled dependance upon him. My hopes are enlarged, and laid up Vv ith him within the veil, which is the death of world- ly hopes and fears; and my love to him abounds trom daily experience of his rich love to my foul, which crucifies and kills the creature-love. For thefe two things I am prefling forward, ■defiring to be more emptied of felf, and to live more out of felf; that I may be filled more with Ohrift, and live more upon his fullnefs: and this I am fure is the way to be holy and happy. Now, at Chriftmas, I would wifh to feel in my- felf what a loft and eternally miferable creature I fhouid have been without Chrift. Here lies the ground of dependance on him, and thank- fulnefs to him. That believer w^Ill fpend the beft Chriftmas, who is moft expermientally ac- quainted with his own ruined nature, and thereby knows what a mercy it is, that God (liould take our nature, to fave us from all the fins and mife- ries of it; and, being thus faved, what will he be doing all the Chriftmas, but praifing and blefling that dear Jefus, to whom he is infinitely, and will be eternally, indebted? May nothing but praife come from your lips, and mine, and my 174 LETTERS WRITTEN EY THE my dear mother's ! IVIay flie know, that Jefus was born for her, and be glad now in his falva-, tion. I am, Your's in everlafting bonds, \V. R. LETTER XI. Lambeth, July"], 1764. GRACE and peace be with you al- ways, my dear fifter, and always increafing ; this 1 heartily wi{h and pray for, both for you and myfelf — Indeed, it is all we want, to partake of the grace of God, and to have peace, the fweet fenfe of it, ever upon our minds. This ruling in our fouls is heaven upon earth ; and this pro- mifed is enjoyed by believers. " The peace of " God rules in their hearts, alway, by al! means." Of this I am a witnefs for God. Glory be to fovereign grace. I am obliged to go down to Brighthelmftone, before I come into the North, fo that I fliall not be with you, until the firft week in Auguft ; but you fliall hear from me again, before I come dov^^n. I ifked REV. W. ROMAINE, A.M. I7- I afked your curate to accept ol: fome of lady Buchan's legacy — he feemed willing, and although I have not received the money, yet you may pay him ten guineas ; and inform him, that it is the part of what I intend him of this legacy. Other matters I refer till I <;ome. You need take no receipt of him, only pay him (the firft opportunity) the money. 1 am but poorly in health : the weather is fo hot, and our con- gregations fo large, that I am quite faint, but to- morrow is my laft day. A little air and exercife will, I hope, fet me up again : but, it matters not, Chrill is mine ; and he knows how to order my affairs. He can blefs ficknefs as well as health ; nay, he does blefs all things to his peo- ple. So I find. I have nothing to fear on his part, though every thing on my own. I am going into a den of lions. Pray for me, and pray for my journey down, that it may be to God's glory. My wife and children join with me in duty to my dear mother, and love to you. I am, for that precious Jefus' fake, Your loving friend. And affeftionate brother, W. R. LETTER 176 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER XII. Lameeth, Seft.Zi^, 1764. My dear Sifter ^ MUST not accufe me of negleft. I have been about my mafter's bufinefs, preaching at Bath, at Bradford, at Powfey, &c. and, being now returned to London, to preach three times to morrow, I could not help giving you an ac- count of my matters, and of my dear Jefus's ereat jroodnefs to me. He has travelled with me, and been with me of a truth. Oh, what have I experienced of his love, fince I left you : he has not only let me tafte that he is precious, but he has made me alfo live upon his grace. He lets me have nothing but love, free rich love, and my very phyfic is given by, and taftes of, his love, and alvv^ays works greater love in me to him; fo that Jefus is become exceed- \ ingdear to me. His crofs endears him, as well as liis crown. Indeed, his crofs is full of diamonds ■within, as his daughter, (that is every true be- liever) is all glorious within. But why do I fpeak thus to you? Is not that precious Immanuel lovely in your eyes ? Yes, I know he is ; and I fpeak of him to you, to encourage you ftill to go on expefting to receive every day of his fulnefs more than you received yefterday. Don't flop. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 177 ftop. Don't think you have attained all he has to give ; but keep preffing on — ftiil there is more wifdom, you know but in part ; ftill more growth in knowledge of Chrili's righteoufnefs, it is infinite and everlafting ; ftill more holinefs in Jefus's fulnefs than any one living has yet re- ceived, becaufe not one on earth loves as they do in heaven ; ftill more ftrength, becaufe every day is to bring us more fenfible of our weaknefs, that we may be flrengthened more by him, and that his ftrength may be perfe6led in our weak- nefs. The Lord give you his mind and fpirit, that you may be growing up into him in all things. You have great reafon to blefs the Lord Chrift, for his goodnefs to you in the North ; but he has a dear people, and a numerous one too, in the Wefl, and growing, it will be a vaft multitude when they all get together ; and that puts me in mind of my dear mother, who, I am fure, will not be wanting, when the Lord count- eth his jewels. Mine, and my wife's duty to her. The children are well we hear. Remem- ber us kindly to Mr. and Mrs. Callender, and Mr. and Mrs. Packer. Jefus be with you all. I am, for his fake. Yours moft affectionately, W. R. LETTER J 78 LETTERS WaSTXiK l^Y THE LETTER Xlil. L^MEETH, Nov. 6, 176.5, My dear Sijier, WHOM I love in the Lord, peace be \viih you. Although I have nothing particular to communicate, yet I could not help writing on ^iie old fubject, which will never be exhaufted. \Vhile there are angels to fing, and faints to fhout, to fliout aloud for joy, they will be telling of the love of Jefus, to all ages. How great is his goodnefs ! how great is his beauty ! match- lefs both ; as I can witnefs for one, 1 am loaded ■With his benefits. If I Ihould begin to number them, they are more than I am able to exprefs. To my body, my fubftance, my children, my foul, all, all is mercy ; and mercy too that endureth for ever. May the God of all mercy, fecure to himfeif, from me, all the glory that is his due. You afk about Blackfriars ; the caufe ftands ftill : it was to have been heard the firft day of this^ term ; but the lawyers were not ready. They begged for more time, and my Lord Chancellor granted it to them. When it will come on now 1 cannot tell. But I can tell much of Jefus's goodnefs to me. He does not let all this waiting, time be loll. He is teaching me to make up all my happinefs in himfeif, and is kindly cutting • . off REV, W. ROMAINE, A. M. 1^9 off one and another view of reft, fliort of him, who is our only reft. And becaufe I am a very dull fcholar, and the mafter is meek and lowly, he therefore bears with me, and takes a great deal of pains to inftruft me in my leifon. I think this is one great end and aim in all his dealings with his dear people. He woukl have them to truft liim, to live on him, and to love him, always. But how can he do this fo effeftur ally, as by bringing them off from trufting to, living on, and loving, other things ? He would take thefe out of the heart, in order to make room for himfelf. He is a jealous God. He will not fit on the fame throne with idols. If there be one ftill in the heart, it muft come down. The more we cleave to it, he will put forth the more of his ftrength to divorce us from it. While he is in much mercy doing this, the foolifli heart thinks Chrift is hurting it, and in- tending it evil, when he means nothing but good, and is taking the beft means to beftow good He is removing the fliadow, to make way for the fubftance. He is deadening the foul to fenfual enjoyments, that it may be there- by more alive to God, and fitter for clofer com- munion with him. Gracioufly is he teaching me thefe bleffed leffons. What he takes from me, I gain moft by. For I am an immenfe, yea, an eternal gainer, when he fills up with himfelf the l8o LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE the want of that, which he takes away. Whatever brings me this bleffing, I can welcome it. Wel- come the lofs of Blackfriars. Welcome every crofs which brings me nearer to my Jefiis, and makes me live in ftrifter fellowxliip with him ; and then I can fay, and feel it too, farewel fine world, farc- wel all thy fine things, farewel for ever ; when they v^ould keep me one moment from the en- joyment of ray greateft good, and from the love of my bell and eternal friend, my Jefus. I have not one uneafy thought about my mother. I have feen the Lord's love to her, and I know he changeth not ; vi'hat he hath begun he will carry on. I can only pray, fl;e may be as much fatisfied in her own heart, as I am about her. Sweet Jefus blefs you in body, and foul, and fub^ ^ance. Give me an intereft in your prayers, who am. Your mofl affectionate brother, W. R, LETTER XIV. Brighthelmstone, Ocl. 8, 1765. My dear Sijler, I HAVE been waiting for an oppor- tunity to write unto you, and it is now come. You love to hear, and I love to write, about our common REV. W. ROMAINE, A.M. l8l common friend, that matchlcfs loving lovely Jcfus ; a fubje£l one is never tired of ; the more we dvv^ell on it, the fweeter it grows ; the longer we enjoy its fweetnefs, the more of heaven will come down to us, till we get up into heaven itfelf. To fee Jefus in heaven, and to enjoy him, is the blifs of heaven. Thanks be to him, he is the joy of your heart, and mine. Although we do know him, and rejoice in him, yet we know but little of what Is to be known ; for he is an infinite fubjecl, and we can but know him in part — but let us prefs on to know more. And, as » We grow more humble and teachable, he willfliew us more of the excellency of his knowledge. Pray earneftly for more deep heart-humility. Mind— what he hideth from the worldly wife, he revealeth unto babes, unto them who are child- like, and fimple. The Lord make us more fo daily, that we may know him aright ; and then we fliall always fee our falvation from fin, and hell, and our title to heaven and glory, in him. We cannot know him truly without believing in him. When we underftand his power, God- man — his errand Into the world, to fave finners, his Almighty arm, and the love of his bleeding heart to fave them ; and what an innumerable company he has pluckt out of hell's mouth, and raifed up, to his heaven ; the more we know of thefe things, the more vve can truft him. He fays to all finners, " Come to me, and I w^ill fave iSz LETTERS WRITTE>3- BY THE fave you." O what grace is in thefe lips— ^ that you and I have heard his voice, and have come, and are favcd. We do believe. Lord, in- creafe our faith ! let us pray much for it ; be- caufe, as our faith in him increafes, fo will our love to him. I cannot believe he has finifhed falvation's work for me, and daily experience miracles of his love, without loving him in re- turn ; and, as his miracles increafe, I would love him more and more. O for more love to this beft and deareit of friends ! I am fare your heart favs, Jmen. Now the way to have his love both growing and increafmg, fo as to abound in us> is to be continually making ufe of him. He has all good in hinij and he has it for you and me. He has the tulnefs in him of a fountain, to com- municate of it. Of this fulnefs he would have us to make free ; he invites us, commands us, to come with flrong faith, and much love, that, by receiving from him great grace, he may get much glory from u&, while we get much hap- pinefs from him.--Kis generous offer is, " Come " with boldnefs — all 1 have is for you." Faith replies, "Lo! I come, fweet Jefus, at thy bid- " ding, every moment, for every thing, for grace *' and glory: I am content to receive all at thy " hands, and to be indebted to thee for all, and " that for ever and ever." — While you live thus, my dear filler, in conJlant fellowihip with your Saviour, he will give you continual reafon to love him. REV. W. ROMAINE, A, M. 1 83 him, and to blefs him. He will fo treat you, fo comfort you, fo ftrengthen you, will make you, in him, fo holy and fo happy, that every day he will enable you to truft him more, and to love him i)ettcr. Thus you will come to enjoy more of him, you will delight more in his company, you will get greater intimacy with him, and will walk in clofe communion with him, which is heaven upon earth. This growing fellowfhip with him will increafe the joys of your prefent falvation. So that, when doubt of his love, fenf^ of indwelling fin, earth or hell, would tempt you from Jefus, he will fpeak in his word, and will fpeak to your heart, by his fpirit, — " 1 am thine, *' fear not. I will guide thee with my counfel, " and, after that, will receive thee into glory.'* You will believe ftedfaftly what he fays, and will thereby refill and overcome the temptation. He will keep you ; and you fliall hold out unto the end, and iliall know it too, and praife him for perfevcriiig grace. He will blefs you in death ; and thehappieft time you ever knew will be, when he lays your body in a fweet fleep, and your fpi- rit, with open face, fliall fee Jefus in the highell glory. To be with him for ever is the higheft blifs. To this, I truft, he will bring you and me, that we may praife the riches of his grace, and get more in "his debt for ever and ever. He is now teaching us this heavenly employment.— You can, and I can, take the crown of all our gra- S ecsj 1S4 LETTERS WRITTEN £Y THE ces, and throw it at his feet.— Soon, very foon, we (hall do the fame with the crown of glory. O what a thought is that !---The good Lord is preparing my mother to do the fame. I heartily pray for her eftabliihment in the faith, and am, with my wife's duty and love, your faithful friend, and affeftionate brother, in our precious, moft precious, eternally precious, Jefus, W. ROMAINE. LETTER XV. Lambeth, Dec, 27, 1765. ALL the joy of this good feafon be with my dear fifter, and my kind prayers for my mother's rejoicmg alfo on this occafion. I thank you for your laft letter, and would have anfwered it fooner, but have been bufv from morning to night in tranfcribing my book for the prefs, which will come out with convenient fpeed; but I may not hurry. It is a deep fubject, and de- pends much on experience: I therefore let it be read by my friends. Mr. Aladan has read it, and approves of it. I fend it to-morrow to Mr. Mafon's; and then I fhall let it go. May the Lord REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 185 Lord Chrift go out with it ! Pray, my dear fifter, for a blefling on the publication. — I have been very ill, but am, through the goodnefs of my mafter, much better. I have not been once kept from duty, although I have got a little cha- pel, at which I preach twice on Sunday, and a third time, at night, at St. Dunlian's. I com- mend you and my dear mother to the mercy of Jefus; and may his grace be with you living and dying. My wife and my children, both at home and well, defire their duty to my mother, and love to you. I am. With great refpe£l and love. Your affectionate brother, W. R, LETTER XVL Aug. 20, 1765, My dear Sifter, TO whom I w.ifli an increafe of grace and peace. I could not withftand the perfuafion I had to come to London s and, fol- lowing it, I found my wife had been given over for fome days.— But God had mercy on her, arxd on me alfo. Dr. Griffith prefcribed fome- VoL.VIIL N thing, i86 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE thing which the Lord blcffed, and flie grew fo faft better, that fhe herfelf infifted on my going ♦ to , from whence I returned laft night. No time could I get to tell you of all this till to-day. jVly wife was and is better; my journey was profperous in the Lord's matters, and I find all things well at home. " The Lord lhall preferve " thy going out, and thy coming in." So he promifed — fo he fulfils— ras 1 can witnefs. I want nothing but more faith, to truft all with him, who, I am fure, freely loveth and blelTeth me. The Lord increafe my faith and yours! My duty to my dear mother; flie is fafe. Not only I fay fo, but fo fays the word of God. Die as' flie is, flie cannot perifli — only flie wants the prefent comforts of our falvation. She dares, flie does, venture her foul in the hands of Jefus, who never did, nor can, lofe any thing committed to his care. With him flie is fafe. Under his care, flie is; — and, rejoicing in him, flie will be, 'ivhe'never flie is able to feparate believing from the fruits of believing. The Lord teach her, and do the good pleafure of his will in her with power ! Remember me to Mrs. and Mr. Thomas Par- ker, and to Mr. and Mrs. Callcnder. The good Lord blefs them all. May you enjoy much of his prefence, and be guided till his fpirit bring you to the vifion of Jefus! W. R. LETTER REV. W. ROMAINE, A. IW. 187 LETTER XVII. Lambeth, 14. THE Lord enrich you with aL fpiri- tual bleflings, and keep you rejoicing in his pre- cious love. He has let a little glimpfe of his glory pafs before me ; and what I have feen, that I declare unto you. Next week, I hope to fend you an hundred of my experiences, entitled, " The Life of Faith", where vou will fee how the Lord has taught me. When you read the book, I beg of the Lord to fhine upon it, that you may have a right underftanding in all things. Our kind love and duty to our dear mother, and hope her foul profpers in the knowledge and faith of the Lord. I wifli to hear of it. Pray for your loving friend and brother in Chrift, W. R. LETTER XVin. Lambeth, March 3, 1764, GRACE and peace be with my dear fifter, and with my mother. I thank you for your note by the penny poft. Our God is good ; Oh, N 2 he iSS LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE he is good indeed to us. Not a family perhaps in England fo blefled of the Lord as we are. Why us, why us? Grace, grace has done it, Grace, grace muft have the praife for ever. The time is at hand. The Lord hath fpoken, " They that wait upon mv-; fliall never be afliamed." My mother is waiting. She trufts the Lord, but has not the comfort of believing. She fhall not be afliamed. God will appear for her, and flie fliall rejoice in his falvation. I believe it, as much as if I now heard her in the Triumph of Faith. My little book is almoft printed off. Pleafe to fend me word how to fend them, and what number. My dear filler pray for it. Let it be a book of many prayers. Beg it may be a means of in- creafing faith in the hearts of all that fliall read it. I have got more preferment, God be thanked; I am turned out of my little chapel. Rejoice with me, that I am counted worthy to fuffer fhame for his dear, dear, dearefl: of all names, Jefus. I do love him more for this mark of his love. *Tis worth more than a thoufand a year. I find to lofe for Chrift is vafl gain. Who would not part with farthings for guineas ; oh I cannot tell you, words fail, how he has made up this lofs to me, and how he has won my very heart by it, and endeared himfelf beyond meafure to me. Let me entreat you to prefs on. Look at nothing but the way of duty. Go on in that, and REV. W, ROMAINE, A. M. 189 and there, by faith, all things will work together for your good- Believe me, it is fo. I find he makes all things, what the flefli hates mofi:, do good. Fear nothing then but fin. And let the world rail, perfecute, it matters not. You are fafe in Jefus's love, and happy. I am rich. My heart too is open. I defire no body may want, while my purfe is full. My wife is well, and the children. We join in duty to my dear mother, and in love to yourfelf. I am. In the clofeft bonds of brotherly love, Yours, for that dear Lamb's fake, W. R. LETTER XIX. 1765. My dear Sifter , HAVING two or three minutes to fpare, I could not avoid informing you, of the Lord's great goodnefs to me and mine. Indeed, it is marvellous. How many blefijngs have I which ipo LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE which numbers want? And how many have I, in not defiring what I do want? Which ever wav I turn myfelf; bleflings meet me, and yet I know not why I am fo highly favoured, unlefs it be that God may be highly honoured. For none can be more unworthy, and therefore from none can grace get fo much glory. My election is not ended about Blacktriars. Law goes on. But I am quite out of it. My mind is at peace. Thanks be to the dear, ever dear Jefus. It is my one defire to pleafe him; but how or where is not my bufmefs. He muft look to tliat. All his flock is infinitely precious; and none of them lhall perifli for lack of knowledge. If he want me to feed his flieep at Blackfriars, I fliall go. If he does not, I truft I fliall not go from him. Forbid it, Lord I and if his prefence does but go with me, wherever I am, then, I fliall be there doinghis will. So belt, fv.eet Jefus! Your laft account of my mother was very revi- ving to me. I hope I fliall fee her once more on this earth; (I have no doubt of feeing her in heaven) and rejoice with her in the goodnefs of the Lord to her foul. When it will be I cannot tell, on account of this law-fuit. But, God wil- ling, nothing fliall hinder my calling upon you fometime this fummer. Yours, W. R. LETTER REV. W> ROMAINE, A. M- 191 LETTER XX. My dear Sijler, I THANK you for your kind letter, and for your care of the enclofed. It was the laO; flieet of my fermons. I ufed to think I fhould never live to finifli them; and yet God has lengthened my life, and this part of my work is done. Thefe are fome of my laft thoughts; what I now think about religion. The thoughts which fupport me in the near views of death and judgment. I am wholly now for magnify- ing the grace and love of our dear Redeemer. He deferves more of me, ihaji I fhall pay him to eternity; and therefore I would defire with Paul to know nothing but Jefus Chrill, and him crucified. To know him as crucified for me, and to feel the power and efficacy of his obla- tion on the crofs, crucifying fin in me. To know this, is enough. Nothing more need be known. AW befides is vanity, and will be vexation of fpirit. Believe me, my dear fifter, I have tried all that you can try out of him; and it is now grief to my heart. I not only renounce it, but alfo renounce it with forrow, and that I fli^uld fet up any thing againft my precious Saviour, and leave him to fcek for any clfewhere. He is 192 lettehs -writtex by the is all in all. What \vould ye more? For '* it " pleafed the Father, that in him fliould all " fulncfs dwell." May you and I dwell where all fulnefs is I I would have wrote fooner, but Air. Grimfliaw promifed to fend vou a letter as foon as poffible he could after we parted. Blelfed 'be God, I bore my journey well. Nothing hap- pened of what Mr. G. told, till I got home. 1 found my family well. As to myfelf, I am neither well nor ill: but it is bed to be as God would have us to be. His will be done! I hope my dear mother will foon receive him, whom her foul longeth after. I don't doubt it. He has promifed, and he cannot break his word. " He fillcth the hungry with good things." My love to my fifiers. I will fend you fome fer- mons foon. Pray for your brother in the ftrong- eft bonds, W. R. LETTER XXI. L A M E E T H , .-pri/ 23 . GRACE and peace be to mv dear fifter, from that ever, ever bleiled Tefus. Glorv be to him. ^^ hat wonders is he now doing in REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I93 in the earth! What miracles of love! Can there be greater than that you and I, fuch poor Tinners, Ihould have dally reafon to praife and to blefs him, and that we fliould have fo many reafons to believe he will let us praife and blefs him to all eternity. Oh! fifter, is not this aftonifliing good- nefs? In fin dead, and liable to the fecond death, from hence he has raifed us to a ftate of grace, and ere long will raife us to a ftate of glory. Blefs the Lord, O my foul, and all that is within me, blefs his holy name. He that is fo infinitely kind to private perfons, is the very fame to his church; for that is only a congregation of private perfons. What feems to hurt fume of them is for the good of all. For the government of all is upon his flioulders, and he looks to the leaft, as well as to the greateft: of his matters. Not a hair falls, and much lefs a minifter, without his appointment. I dare not therefore think one hard thought of his taking dear Mr. Grimfliaw to himfelf. His work was done. The Lord took him to refi:; and, as to his people, they will be well looked after. Their fliepherd will fee to it, that they lack nothing. But where, fay you, fhall they go now, to find " green paftures, and the waters of comfort r" Why, let them go to the great fliepherd and biftiop of fouls. Himfelf will feed them, as Pfalm xxiii. " But he does it by means;" That is true; and is not he the Lord of means.? Cannot he 194 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE he find out means, when we are at a lofs, if we look up with faith to him? I verily believe that Mr. Grimfhaw's death will be as ufeful-as his life; and the work is not yet come to its height in Yorkfliire, No, it >vill fpread farther, and deeper ftill: minifter's removals, yea, the moft ufeful of us, fliall tend to fpread it. For all things work together, under God, for his glory and his people's good. The more I think and preach about the infi- -iiitely rich Jefus, and his love, the greater ftill does he appear. My heart grows warmer to hivn. His caufe grows more amiable; and no- thing gives me pain, but that I do fo little for him, and fpeak fo poorly of him, and that this lazy body is foTo.on tired in his work. But I would do better, and fliall too, bye and bye. — Aye, that is my comfort. I fliall not always live at this poor rate. When I fee him, I fliall be like " him. Farewel then to fin and forrow. Temptations farewel. Corruption is no more. Oh blefiTed time ! Lord Jefus Chrift fit you and me for the fight and enjoyment of himfelf ! W. ROMAINE. LETTER REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. Ip LETTER XXH. GRACE and peace be to my dear fifter. 1 can thank the God of all grace for what he has already done for my mother ; and I have no doubt, but that he, who has begun the good work, will perfect it in her. She fhall have peace : not becaufc I fay fo, but God. He has promifed it to her. She is feeking ; flie fliall find. Trufting to this word, which cannot be broken, I am as eafy about her, as if I favv her in heaven. Which of us fliall be there firft, I know not ; but I am waiting, not knowing when my Lord v/ill come. On him I refl: to carry me through life, through death ; believing that, when he calls me hence, I fliall fee him face to face, to my eternal joy. And in his prefcnce I fliall find my dear mother, and you ; yes, you, my After. Only hold faft the faith, and foon you will win the crown. The devil has a vaft fpite againft you. He begins to defpair of drawing you from Chrift, and then his malice puts him upon plaguing you. He will make your way as troublefome as he can. One of his grand engines againft believers is error. If he can get the judgment wrong, he hopes thereby to prejudice the will, and fo gain upon the heart. Thus he has always been un- 2 dcrmining 196 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE dermining the church. Oh ! beware of this temptation. He commonly introduces it thus ; You are in Chrift, and you are a believer ; " but you want light in fuch a doftrine." He allows the do£lrine, but draws a falfe inference from it, under a pretence of illuftrating the doftrine. Would you, my dear fifter, not be ignorant of his devices ; pray to be humble. Much humility is better than much knowledge. Many knowing perfons have been loft ; but none truly humble. The Lord Jefus keep you, and make you, in him, complete and happy. I have not forgot the Catechifm, but I have not fettled fince I left you. I am at Brighthelm- ftone, in Suffex, and fliall not be gone till No- vember. The Lord has been wonderfully with us here, and many fouls are awakened. Some walking rejoicing in the Lord, and vaft congre- gations. I am, With great truth. Your loving brother, W. ROMAINE. LETTER REV. \V. ROMAINE, A. M. LETTER XXIII. Lambeth, Aug. 12, 1762. GRACE and peace to my dear mo- ther, and to my iHler. Thanks be to the Lord for your kindnefs to me. I am much in your debt, for many favors ; but efpecially for fparing me in the article of writing. I am indeed a bad correfpondent. Truth cannot be denied. When I fliall mend I know not. But, furely, between this and my next vifit, I fliall write more than four times. Mat- ter enough I have to write about. My laft journey gives me a large fubjeft, but I forbear at this time, excepting what relates 10 my dear mother, of whofe falvation 1 have no more doubt tlian of mine own. Her evidences were good to mc, though they cannot be comfort- able to her, till the Lord pleafe to make them fo. Such a conviftion of fin, fuch humiliation for fm, could not be, but by the grace and fpirit of God. From him, alfo, is that reli- ance which flie has, and will not let go, up- on the word and promife of the Lord Chrift. Bye and bye he will feal them to hef heart. I am. Your truly loving brother. In the Lord, W. ROMAINE. LRTTERS WRITTEN BY THE lETTER XXIV. My dear Sijier, TO whom I wifli an increafe grace. 1 could delay no longer to thank you for your kind prefent, which came fafe, and for your kinder letter. Your good wiflies and prayers are the beft prefent. Let me ftill {hare in them. I never wanted them more. My affair at Blackfriars is not fettled ; and I have ftrong applications to go to America, to a church in the city of Philadelphia. The Lord muft determine. I would not have one wifli againft his will. Being bought with an infinite price, all I have and am (liould be at his fervice. He has a clear right to all, " Take it. Lord. " Let it be thine for ever." But 1 fhall not be in any hurry. Waiting is good — on the Lord. I will tarry his leifure, and look at his providences. My friends, in general, are for my flaying in London; and fo am I in my own mind. But I dare not choofe, till my choice is made plain to me. Perhaps, the Lord may fix me at Blackfriars ; and then the matter will be- ended at once. My hearty prayers are for my dear mother, that this year may be the happiell flie ever faw. May REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. I99 May flie find Chrift in it. He has fought her out, and found her ; but flie has not, in comfortable enjoyment, found him. That I wirti and pray for, not doubting of the event; becaufe I have his w^ord that I fliall fucceed. '* Seek " and ye fliall find," fays he. His word is in- fallible. May flie foon experience it in the joy of his falvation ! W. R. LEITER XXV. Lambeth, ^an. 7, 1766. My dear Sifter , ALTHOUGH I am greatly hurried, yet I could not help informing you, that this day my caufe, about Blackfriars, was finally determined, and in my favor. I have retired and been alone this afternoon to abafe myfelf. This is to me an amazing event. That fuch an one fliould be made a paftor ; one that is plagued to death with his own heart, to make him a watchman over others ! What is the Lord doing ? With the nioft utter abhorrence of myfelf. 200 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE myfelf, and of my being unfit to be minifter of af great parifli, in the midft of this great city — I have been forced to leave it to the Lord. . I have heard, in my heart, a voice fay, *' Whom fliall 1 fend r" And I have been compelled to fay, " Here I am, fend me." Trufting then, fweet Jefus, to thy grace and power, depending upon thine arm and blefling, out I go, not only unfit, but alfo averfe to the "work. It is thine. Lord, " to work in me both " to will and to do " I believe you love me ; indeed, I do not doubt of it ; and therefore I give you this notice, to pray your mafler, and my mafter, to fit me for this new work. He knows my heart, I never had one defire for this new work, but that I might have more room to glorify my Jefus. I would not look at any thing, but at his glory, and at my humility. Will you intreat him, then, thus to fet forth his praife ^ Beg of him to help me to exalt him, and to keep me down. Your affeftionate brother, W. ROMAINE. LETTER REV. \V. ROMAINE, A. M. 2or LETTER XXVI. My dear Sifter, I HAVE lonsred for a little time to write you a few lines — to thank you for your laft letter, and for your kind remembrance of me at our court. Pray continue me that fa- vour. And, when the King fmiles upon you, and you have freedom to approach, and have accefs with confidence into his royal prefence, then make requ^t for your brother. He knows, for he fent me upon, my prefcnt work. I find myfelf as unfit for it as a dog that cannot bark, and therefore for grace, for gifts, for fuccefs, I am forced to depend upon him. Moft gladly would I live as a minifter, in the fame way that I live as a chriiiian, " By the faith of the Son " of God," trufting in him to do all for me. There is my own fafety. As a fmner, I have no confidence in any thing, but the finiflied fal- vation, the blood and righteoufnefs of the Lamb of God. This being a fure foundation for a finner to reft upon, and having myfelf found how fure it is, 1 can, therefore, write freely, and mightily encourage all that hear, be they ^who they will, to venture upon this foundation, which God. hath laid; leaving the fuccefs (but . Vol. Vm. b O that 202 LETTERS WRITTEN BY TUt 0 that it may be abundant !) to him, ffonl whom alone it cometh. Being fafely built upon this i foundation, 1 find continual matter of rejoicing. Which ever way I look, comfort prefents itfelf. To- be faved from what I was once, brought to what I am now, the God of all confolation be- come my God, his Son my Saviour, his Spirit my leader to heaven, his promifes mine j all, all mine, now enjoyed by faith ; for ever, in full poffeffion ! ! What' divine comforts are thefe ? With thefe 1 would encourage the miferable to come to Jefus ; that, having trufted themfelves with him, he might have the glory of making them happy. O that I may prevail ! Say, I want for *' this, Grace every moment." I call, and he, in whom all fulnefs dwells, fays to me, " I will " water thee every moment." I believe it — I experience it, Grace has made me willing to live out of myfelf — upon the fulnefs of Jefus — In him I have what I want ; yea, from him I gain by my wants. I grow richer by my 'poverty, and happier by my mifery. Whatever it be, that brings me to live more upon his grace, is the means of my getting more grace, and there- by proves to me a real blefling. As I have freely received this grace, fo I freely make the publication of it with all its benefits. I caa tell my people, and boldly, that we are faved by grace i kept by grace -j comforted by graces fandlified REV. W. ROMAISE, A. M. iu^ fanaified by griice ,; and, although this be the doctrine againft which the wicked one, the wick- ed world, and above all, the felf-righteous world, fight, with all their might ; yet I am not dif- couraged, becaufe Jefus is my ftre'ngth. On him I depend for counfel tofet about the work, for fuccefs in it, for a blefling upon it. If op- pofition arife, and it cannot but be that he who is born after the flefn, Ihould perfecute him that is born of the Spirit ; to my Almighty King I flie, and on his promifed help I truft. Oppofe what will, Jefus is on the throne. All power in heaven and earth is his. By faith, ftrong in the Lord, and in the power of his might, I have feen the moft formidable op- pofition fall before me. Therefore, let us go on, walking ftraight forward to Jefus, what- ever may ftand to ftop us in the way. If war arife, hot, fierce and long battles ; many ene- mies, mighty and ftrong, all the hofts of earth and hell ; then Jefus is my viftory. He arms me for the battle, with the whole armour of God; clad in which, he teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight ; ftrengthens the heart to hold out in long battles ; difcovers plots and wiles of fubtle foes j gives courage to meet the roaring lion ; brings the foldier oflf conquer- or day by day, and more than conqueror at laft, his enemies all eternally vanquifhed ; he then fits down upon a throne, crowned with ever- O a laftinff 204 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE lading glory and honor. 'Tis bleffed fighting through Jefus our captain : O ! what will it be to reign with Jefus our King ! Heaven it is upon earth to enjoy him ; and there is heaven in every thing which brings me to more enjoy-- ment of him. This the apoftle had in his eye, and he had a great deal of it in his heart, when he called upon his Ephefians, to grow up into him in all things, who is the head, even Chrift. Mind, all things, while we live by faith, lhall make us grow up into Chrift more clofely and intimately ; finding you want him daily more and more, for life and godlinefs, for body and foul, for time and eternity : fo that, without him you can do nothing. The abiding fenfe of this will keep you in your right place, as a poor helplefs creature, hanging on the arm, living on the bounty, of the infinitely rich Jefus. This is the believer's growth. He grows more up into Chrift. Taught by the Spirit of Jefus, he fees and feels his want of every good ; and he is made to fee and feel this continually, that he may not live upon felf, upon any creature, upon worldly happinefs ; but that, finding his need of Jefus every moment, he may be receiv- ing, every moment, grace for grace out of Jefus's fulnefs. O for more of the teaching of that fpirit, to humble us, and to glorify jefus I O for more fellowftiip with him in his fulnefs of grace ! Heaven is nothing more than fellow- ftiip REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M, 20j Ihip with him in his fulnefs of glory. May my dear mother know him thus ! I ceafe not to remember her at his throne. Her cafe is fafe. I only wifii her more happy in believing it. All here are well, and defire to be remembered to you. With your truly affeftionate brother, W. ROMAINE. LETTER XXVII. 1766. My dear Sijler, GRACE be with you. I begin to think it long fince I heard from Hartlepool ; but, fuppofing you make nothing of the note which I fent from Helmfley, I muft therefore write firft, which I gladly do, embracing this and all occafions to tell of Jefus's love. His mercies have followed me all the days of my life — mod free and undeferved — to body and foul. Surely a greater monument lives not. He brought me home fafe — keeps me in health — gives me enough and to fpare of this world's good ; and I tafte the love of the giver in his every gift. What would I more ? Why, truly, a nothing 205 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE nothing in this world. But, if I am thus in- debted for temporal bleffings, where (hall I be- gin to fet forth his infinite grace in fpirituals ? I am that brand, fuch as the like is not, pluck- ed by Almighty love out of the burning. I might have been in it forty, aye, fifty, years ago, and in it for ever. O what patience was there in the Lamb ! But he was refolved to have all the glory : and indeed he richly de- ferves it — both for faving me out of hell, and for giving himfelf to me to be a faviour; and for giving his Spirit to bring me to know myfelf, and to know him, whoiTi to know is life eter- nal. All the angels, all the faints, could not tell how great his love already experienced is to me. How far fliort muft I myfelf fall ? I am content he fnould have the crown. It well becomes the head of- King Jefus. I pay him willing homage, and am glad to take a free pardon, a perfect title to heaven, at his royal hands. Indebted to him for heaven, makes the thoughts of it fvveet. I would not be out of his debt if I could. Are not you glad ? 1 know you are, that to me Jefus has been fo exceedingly kind, in all things. Yea, to mine, my family and rela- tions. What grace has been fhewn ? How much are we bound to acknowledge his bounty ? O let us with our lips and lives fhew forth his praife ! and let my mother join. I am fure REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. ZOf flie ought. Bleffings on her from the beft of friends. So prays your and her's, in a precious, ever precious Saviour, W. R. LETTER XXVm. Lambeth, 1767. ■ My Dear Sifter ^ I WAS in hopes you would have dif- pofed of my charity before this, and would have let me know to whom I am to pay the money. I am thankful you had my commifljon, for I think it can never be more wanted. The good Lord fecure to himfelf all the glory of this, and of every aft ofkindnefs to his afflifted members. I am praying for my dear mother; Jefiis hear me ; that this may be the grand year of her life, when Hie will fay, — " Blefs the Lord, O my foul, " and all that is within me, blefs his holy name, " for he hath forgiven thee all thy fins. He him- " felf is become thy falvation." O what a jour- ney (hould I have to Hartlepool, if I was to come and hear this voice of joy and thankfgiving. Well, I don't doubt of it. All is now fafe. All wi'U 208 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE will be comfortable^ when the Lord pleafes. Let him do what feemefh him good. A happy, happy year to her and to you! Through mercy, I am going on very well. I want nothing but more capacity to praife and to enjoy Jefus. He is very near to mc, and he makes himfelf very dear. He ftill fmiles on our meetings, and is in the midft of us. Black Friars is owned by him. He has fet to his feal that God is there. O for more of his prefence to fill the ordinances with life and power. Pray for us, my dear fifter, and you will not lofe any thing by our having much of Chrifi: with us. We will pray for you in return. To him I commend you, whofe love is truly heaven, even upon earth. May you never want it, till you enjoy all its fulnefs, together with your loving brother, W. R. LETTER XXIX. Feh, 21, 1767. ALL fpiritual bleffings be with my dear fifter. — I thank you for your laft favour, and for being my almoner. I hope you will write to me REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 209 me foon, and let me know how my mother does. As flie is in the Lord's hands, all will be well. Before flie goes hence, he will open her mouth to fpeak for Jefus. I go on with my prayers, that the Lord's good pleafure may be done in her. Here is good news of the increafing king- dom of Jefus. More minifters, efpecially, are raifed up. We have more awakenings among us. More refrefliing times. Things wear a very promifing afpeft. Thanks for thefe bleflf- ings! May they bring down more. O praife the Lord with us, and let us magnify his name toge- ther! May we join to thank him for poor Hartle- pool finners! 1 charge you not to forget me, nor Blackfriars, in your prayers. I cannot forget you. The precious Lord Jefus be your compa- uion and guide unto death. I am. Very heartily. Yours in him, W. R. LETTER XXX. Lambeth, junezj, 1767. My Dear Sifter y I HAVE been waiting for a long time to write to you, that I might fix the time of feeing you, but have been prevented hitherto, by my being 2IO LETTERS, &C. being difappointed of three curates. At prefent I am without onej and I know not when I fhall get one to my mind. I am obliged to ftay till I do. Your letter this morning would not let me delay any longer. As to the contents, having received no hint from any quarter, I was indeed furprifed at ^'s affair; and, as to your own connections, you are of age, and the beft judge. Whatever you do, my prayers and beft Tviflies fhsll attend you, married or unm.arried. If any thing can bring me down foon, it will be your account of my mother. I know fhe is fafe as to her ftate, but is puzzled about the evi-^ dence of it; which robs her of her prefent peace, but cannot hurt her falvation, Of this, I have no doubt. I have converfed with her for feveral years upon this point, and am perfectly ac- quainted with her ftate. All here join in pray- ers for her, as long as we know her to be within th^ reach of prayer; and, if God permit, 1 will come and pray with her. — I commend you anci her to the care of our dear Jefus, and am, "\'cry heartily in him. Your friend, and loving brother, W. R. Second A second series of letters from the Rev, Mr. Romaine to one of his Sisters, kindly commwiicated to the Editor, by the Rev. Mr, Heslup of Horsley, in ^Northumberland ; to whom also he is indebted for the former collection of family letters. There is added to these letters, one from Mr. Romaine to his Mother; and one to Mr. Heslup, on the death of his wife, the Sister to whom the family letters were addressed. LETTERS FROM THE LATE Rev. WILLIAM ROMAINE, TO ONH OF HIS SISTERS, LETTER I. Blackfriars, June. zS, 1768, My dear Sifter, I PURPOSE, through God's bleffing, to be at Northallerton, Monday next, Jilly 4, and' defire my old fellow-traveller may meet me there with horfes the fame day, time enough for me to get to Yarum that night, if we cannot reach Hartlepool. I hope to be at Northaller- ton about noon, or foon after. Once more, the Lord in great mercy will bring us together, and will, I truft, accompany our meeting with his bleffing. If it be agreeable, I will be either at Hartlepool or Strantum, on Sunday, July 10. Re- member 214 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE member me, with my beft: prayers for my dear tnother; my love to brother Heflup. I am. With great truth and love. Your affe£tionate friend and brother, W. ROMAINE. LETTER 11. Slackfriars, Nov. ig. 176^. My dear Sifter. I THANK you very much for your laft letter, and for the contents of it — particularly for the good account of my mother's Avelfare. The Lord profper her flill more and more. I am ftill praying for her life. If the people at Har- tlepool knew how much depended on it, they would do the fame. You tell me good news of poor finners con- verted, and of believers fettled and eftablillied in their moft holy faith. My heart rejoices to hear of any increafe of Jefus his glory. He is the prince of the kings of the earth — to whom all bleffing is due. — Yea, he is above all blelT- ing and praife, and that for evermore; becaufe REV. W. ROMAINE, A Af. 21^ he humbled himfelf, God was made man; O wonderful humiliation! — He went lower 3 hum- bled himfclf to become obedient — obedient un- to death — even the death of the crofs — there- fore he is highly exalted.— King of Kings — crowned — many crowns upon his head. O how I triumph in my inmoft foul in his love! — He loved me— I pay him homage— all within me, all without me, bleffes his holy name. He is my king — my royal Saviour — I pay him my allegi- ance with heart and hand. Not that he may be away — Away with that proud thought ! — But becaufe he is mine: — therefore I would walk be- fore him, without fear, in holinefs and righte- oufnefs all the days of my life. My kind love to Mr. Hellup, and defire him to exalt Jefus. He cannot fet him too high. He cannot think of him fo high as he isj fo high as he deferves. The higher he is exalted, the more will every thing, fin efpecially, bow before him. When you write to Sunderland or Newcaftle, pray remember me to my fillers, their bufbands, and to their families. I defire and beg for an intcreft in your prayers, and am, with my duty to my dear mother, and prayers for her. Your affeiSlionate friend and brother, W. ROMAJNE. LETTER 2l6 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER III. Nov. 7, 1769, My dear Sijlei'y GRACE and peace be multiplied unto you. May you be growing and increafing in the grace of our Lord Jefus Chrift, and have a fweet and abiding fenfe of it in your heart, en- joying daily more of that peace of God, which is heaven begun. I pray you not to reft or ftop in any attainments. Keep going on. Be preff- ing forw^ard. Faith fhoiild grow. We read of going from faith to faith, from one degree to another. There fliould be a progrefs, both in the knowledge of your intereft in Jefus, and in the enjoyment of the good things, in w^hich you are interefted. If faith muft grow, then hope muft alfo ; for hope is the daughter of faith. Bv faith we truft the word of God, by hope we wait, till we receive the promifes in his word. Hope is never difappointed, nor does it ever make afliamed. It gets many a pledge, and brings in fweet foretaftes of the things hoped for. A true believer therefore never fays, I have enough. No, no; his hunger and thirft increafes by taftes and crumbs of glory. — What falls from his Lord's table, whets his appetite for the marriage fup- per. "kEVi W. ROMAiNfi, A.M. 217 per. So the apoftle prays for the belicvnig Ro- mans— " May the God of hope fill you with all *' joy and peace in believing, that ye may " abound in hope by the Holy Ghoft." Now in proportion as faith and hope grow fo does Jove. — We love God, becaufe we believe he firfl: loved us; and this love increafes, as faith gives a more fubftantial prefence to the things hoped for. Ljve is now in its infancy — the greateft love upon earth is but one ray of the morning dawn, compared to the fliining of the perfcft day. O my dear filler, never think you have attained perfect love, till you get into a per- fetl heaven. Be ftill going on, growing in grace, and in the knowledge and love of God your Saviour. There is room enough for this, both on Jefus's part, and on yours alfo. He can give more. You can receive more. And, as faith enlarges your velTel, you will hold more. As hope increafes, you will enjoy more. And this I pray heartily, that your love may abound yet more and more, in knowledge, and in all fenfible feeling, that you may walk in love, till faith and hope leave you in fall polfeflion of the love of God in life everlaftijig. I write thus, becaufe I am jealous over you with a godly jealoufy. I am afraid you fliould flop by the way. Many do. They fet out well, but fall afleep, and dream of being in heaven,while their warfare is carrying on upon earth. They fan- VoL. VIII. £» cy 2)8 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE cy to tbemfclves a triumphant ftate, while they are militant. A fad delufion! Becaufe it tempts them to reft, when they fliould be fighting; and to fit ftill, when they fliould be preffing forward. Are you a believer ? Yes. Well then, the gof- pel fays,—" Forget the things which are behind, " and reach forth unto the things which are be- " fore." How long muft I do this? Till you have laid hold of eternal life. Faith fliould be growing, hope fliould be increafing, and love abounding, unto death ; or, as the Apoftle has it, I ThefT. i. 3. Faith fhould be at its work, love at its labor, hope at its patience, waiting on pati- ently, till we have finiflied our courfe with joy. I pray God you may be thus employed, when death calls you to judgment. Remember me, with all duty to my dear mo- ther. I blefs God for his great grace to her, and doubt not but he hears prayer for its conti- nuance. My love to Mr. Heflup, and let him read the former part of the letter, and ftudy it. I would have him not grown up (till he is dead), but growing up into Chrift Jefus in all things. I have been trying to fpread the fame of our precious Jefus in various parts of England — a journey of near 800 miles. I rejoice with you in the fpreading of the gof- ^ pel in your parts. It is the Lord's doing ; and it fhould be marvellous in our eyes. 2 You REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 219 You mufl: not forget me in your prayers. I "want them much. At prefent, I am in a great difficulty. My ]e6turer is gone, and I am forced to do the duty myfelf — for fear a falfe prophet fliould get in. I did not feek it ; but I hope the Lord, now he has called me to it, will give me will and power, and if it pleafe him, fuccefs. Defire your friends to pfay for me. My wife travelled with me. We found the children well. I have nothing to tell of but mercies--May the giver add one to them all — even a heart to praife, and to blefs his goodnefs. I amj ' With great truth. Your loving brother, W. ROMAINE. LETTER IV. My dear Sl/ier, IT is the Lord : let him do what feemeth him good. So fays faith ; fo fliould you and I fay. My thoughts upon this occafion have not been improved, as I could wifli, through great P 2 bodil/ 220 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE bodily pain and indifpofition ; but fuch reflec=' tions as thefe have greatly tended to quiet my mind, and to produce a willing fubmiflion. Firft, My mother's true converfion to the Lord, She knew in whom fhe had believed ; and flie was in Chrift. Chrift was her eain, both in life and death. Glory be to him for this great grace. Secondly, She died in faith : O what a mercy, to finidi all well ! What are we defiring forour- felves, as chriftians, but the fame mercy, that we may hold out to the end, and finifli our courfe with joy ? Therefore, Thirdly, We are not to mourn, as thofe who have no hope. Our deareft friend is with her Lord, with whom we expeft to be foon. We have only parted a moment, that we may meet for ever. It looks to me, in my near view of death, only like my taking leave of my dear mother, to go yearly to London. I fhall go to her — bleflcd, truly bleffed profpe£t ! and I do not wifli her to come back to me : — becaufe — Fourthly, I do indeed find, that the Lord fup- plies the want of all creature comforts wdth his own prefence. When he takes them away, it is to make more room for himfelf in the heart. A ' fweet exchange ! we live upon the fountain, when the ftreams are dried up. He dries them up to make us come nearer to the fountain, and that the abfence of temporal mercies might be fupplied REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 221 fupplied with an happy enjoyment and commu- nion with God himfelf. Sheliad lived to a bleiTed time — even fpeaking after the manner of men — (lie died in a good old age, full of years — and was gathered to her peo- ple ; to whom I am going. Now it is my turn^ I know of nothing worth living for one day. We are now travellers ; and what traveller does not wiQi to be at reft ? We are now abfent from our Lord ; and home is home. What foldier, after a hard campaign, does not wiQi for winter quarters What man in love, does not wifli the moments to fly fwiftly, to bring on his wedding day. O for that blefled confummation which will laft for ever, for ever and ever, to all eter- nity. I (hall love you, my fifter, as long as I live, for your attention to my dear mother. You have done your part. May you do all as well as this ! I thank you for my part, and honor you greatly. My kind love to Mr. Heflup. He has been tried with his attention to my mother; the good Lord repay his kindnefs a thoufand fold — Mine eyes overflow with tears, while I am thinking of both your goodnefs to her — God blefs you both— God blefs you. My kind love to my fifters, and their hufbands. Poor Hartlepool ! few know this. Jofs. It is the greateft the town cdyld have. LETTER 211 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER V. Blackfriars, Sf/>. 6, 1771. GRACE be with you, and your yoke- fellow— I know we are in a dying world. I fee it, and feel it. It is my heart's defire to live ' under the conflant impreffion of this truth ; there is but a ftep between me and death ; but a ftep between me and the full enjoyment of what I have now by faith. It is not that I love you not — God knoweth my love to you is dou- ble— you are twice my fifter, born, and new- born. And I truly efteem you both in the flefli, and in the fpirit. But' I could not come and tell you this face to face ; but I fhall come, God willing, and tell it you, and the reafons too, that you may be fatisfied. Only wait patiently, and- fee how good the Lord will be to us in this, and in all other things that we wait upon him for. It is my fixt purpofe to vifit you, as early as I can in the fpring ; but the great dif- pofer of all our purpofes has us in his hands. Our will muft bow to his fovereign will ; and, in fubmiffion to it, we always fpeak of to-morrow, pot knowing what a day may bring forth. I can very well fupply my abfence. There is yio want of preaching ; we have enough of that, emd too uiuch in the preacher's ftrength. We want REV. W. ROMAINR, A. M. 223 want prayer greatly — a dependence on the al- mighty head to blefs preaching to his people. This feems to me to be wanting both in preachers and hearers. I can do fbmething towards the fuppJy of this want : and am trying at it. O that fervent efFeftual prayer was but afcending ' more and oftener to the throne of grace j we lliould have more ffiowers of bleflings coming down. I beg not to be forgotten by yoa, at any time before the throne. May I never forget yoa nor yours. Errors and herefies are rampant. God keep you. I beg of Mr. Heflup to be much at his Bible : he reads other books too much. I am fure, God the Holy Ghoft is the beft writer ; and I find him the beft expofitor upon his own writings. Tell Mr. Heflup fo. I repent of years wafted in fruitlefs ftudy, and am, juft as my ftudies are over, got to be right in them. I wifli he may improve by my miliakes, and now in eameft refolve to be a Bible-ftudent, and a Bible-chriftian. Farewell, my dear fifter. May all the rich covenant mercies of our Jefus b« yours. I am, for his fake. Very finccrely. Your loving brother, W. ROMAINR My wife joins in every chriftian wifli. Tlie children are well. LETTER 224 l^;tters written by tHE LETTER VI. Blackfriars, OJ. 2~, My dear Sifter, OFTEN remembered, and intereft made for you at our court. I have been upon the king's bufmefs, travelHng from place to place, to exalt and honor him, for near three months. He has been pleafed to bring me fafe home for the winter, and I lit down the firft opportunity to thank you for all your kindnefs to me at Hartlepool. I did not doubt of your love, but my vifit this year confirmed me in it. Your whole behaviour convinced me, that I was a welcome gueft, and has kept a warm defire upon my mind to fee you again. Thankful am I, for what I met with of the fame kind, both at Newcaftle and Sunderland, efpecially at the latter, as I was never fo highly honored before, as to be fufFered to fpeak for my glorious Jefus. Although things were not fo pleafing at Yarum, yet 1 forgive from my ver}' heart Mr. O.'s treat- ment : for I believe G . M. is a dear child of God, and was mifled by his partner, who mifreprefented me. People will quarrel ; 1 would hinder them, if I could ; but quarrel J will not : no, not with Mr. O. Thanks to the prince of peace — he has taught REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 22^ taught me better things. I know him God-man : I believe in his work — it is tlie greateft work of God a complete, an eternal fah'ation. O mar- vellous grace, I enjoy it. While others difpute about it, I am poffeffing it. They bufy them- felves about ftiadows, and I am rejoicing in the fubftance. Would to God Mr. O. had the fame fellowfliip with Jefus. Poor man ! he would not talk of himfelf before the Lord God, and plead his own doings — he would not urge this plea: " Lord, my works laft July, were very merito- " rious, for I ftood and tried to flop all I could *' from going to Yarum church, to hear that heretic Romaine, who was going to teach them, that they were to be faved wholly and *' folely for what you had done and fuffered, " and all glorv, as well as all grace by the way, " was to be had entirely out of your fulnefs." But enough of this : Mr. W. forgives him ; fo do 1 : Chrilt forgive him. My motto has long been, " Ceafe ye from " man." All my experience leads me to truft man lefs, and God more. My Bible is my ftudy, and the Holy Ghoft my commentator. I have done with names — great authorities — and living popes — for we have an Englifli pope. In oppo- fition to whom, I am a proteflant. I proteft againft the merit of works, and all its long, long train of errors; but I won't difpute with any pope. I will rather pray for him, as I do. God open 226 LETTERS AVRITTEN BY THE open his eyes, and turn him from darknefs to light, from blind popery, into gofpel-liberty. My love to Mr. Heflup. I fear for him, left thefe times fhould take him off from Chrift, and get him into difputing. Defire him, from me, to read his Bible more, and not bufy himfelf about opinions. What has he or I to do with Mr. Wefley ? Let him go on in his way 3 and let us go on in our's. But let us be as diligent as him — our lives as exemplary — our good works as many. And let us beat him all to nothing in charity. If he revile, let us pray. If he be dogmatical, let us be meek and lowly. I cannot give any account for my writing about him ; for I don't love to have any thing to do with him ; but it came upon my mind — and I let it ftand. i fhould rejoice to hear frgm you. We are all well. I am. Yours and Mr. Heflup's, very heartily, W. R. LETTER REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 2.2^ LETTER VII. Nov. g, 1771. JM^ dear Sifter^ I WROTE to ybufome time ago, and, hearing Mr. Parker was ill, I got a frank to Mr. Callender, in which I fent a long letter to him, and another to Mr. Parker. None of you have thousfht it worth while to fend me an anfwer, at which I am a good deal furprized. I therefore .beg the favor of you, upon the receipt of this, to give me fome account of my fillers, and their hufbands, and families ; and alfo how you go on at Hartlepool. You mull not think me indiltt-rent to the caufe and intereft of God any where ; but furely not among our own relations, at leafl: of all among relations hitherto fo kind and obliging to me. I fend you my written fermons, when I cannot come to preach i n perfon , but lam waiting in hope, when I fliall confirm my doftrine by word of mouth, and find a proper time to bear my teftiraony again to the divine glory of the perfon of Jefus, and to his abfolutely perfect falvation. Be alTured, my dear filler, it is complete, lacking -nothing. We carry nothing to him, but receive all from him. We have, from his fulnefs, change of fl:ate, of tempers, of life. He is the author of all our good thoughts, words, and works. If thefQ 228 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE thefe have any merit, it muft be put to his ac- count, and not to our's ; for he worketh all for us, and all in us. And he will, and muft have all the glory too. O that you may be willing to give it him i That is true holy humility. You cannot think what grace he gives to them, who are willing to return him all his glory. Try, pray for a growing fenfe of your own unworihinefs : and the lower and viler you are in your own eyes, the more will he be honored for his grace, and therefore he will give you more ; for he giveth grace unto the humble. Nothing ftops the current of his favors fo much, as pride ; he rcHfteth the proud ; he is at war with them. A fad war ! a proud fmner fighting againft an holy God. Who think ye will conquer And how ]ow will the proud be laid O beware of all high thoughts. -Take heed of admiring your own greatilefs or goodnefs. Self delight is a very plcafing fin, but more odious to a jealous God than the grofs fms of the flcfli. I fee thofe, who fall in love with thcmfelves, do not think with me about my heavenly lover : I am fure, the more we love him, the lefs we fhall admire ourfelves. The pharifee, full of felf-compla- cency, remained in his guilt ; the poor publican, who loathed himfelf, went home juftificd : fo muft we go to heaven, pleading all the way, and pleading there too, mercy of God through Jefus Chrift, and nothing clfe. ' You REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 229 You will fay, what is all this to me ? Why, truly, fifter; you want it. There is no perfe£t humility, but in heaven. Till we get there, we fliould be lear,ning, and every day feeking for more grace to humble us — learning of our mafter to be meek and lov/ly. May God make you and me better fcholars, and Mr. Heflup ; for he wants much to keep him down. My kind love to all friends. Don't fail me in writing the firft poll. I commend you to Jefus's care and love, being truly yours in him, W. ROMAINE. LEITER Vlir. Dec.ii, 1773, My dear Sijer, ALTHOUGH I have not heard from you for fome time, yet I cannot help williing you every Chriftmas bleffing. And what thefe are, how many, how great, none can tell. It is the great myftery of godlinefs — God manifeft in the fleQi- God born for us in the flefli— bora in us by the Spirit. Then we keep our Chrift- mas, S^O LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE mas, when we are new-born, the children 0^ God by faith in Chrlft Jefus. This new birth of Chrilt, formed in us, and dwelHng in our hearts by faith, appears, as our birth into this world does. The new-born babe enters the world with crying : fo they who have received the fpirit of adoption cry, " Abba, Father." They are the brethren of Chrift, one with him ; and his Father is their Father, O ineftimable privilege ! What a blefling to believe it ! "What bleflings come from enjoying it ! How many foever they be, I wifh them yours. When the infant is born, it cries for food : in like man- ner, believers as new-born babes defire the fin- cere milk of the word, that they may grow thereby. In Chrift their fouls live, as their bodies do in this world : on him alfo they live, and by feeding on his word, and mixing prayer and praife with it, they grow up into him in all things — doing nothing, either temporal or fpiritual, but by the faith of the Son of God. For ever bleffed are they who keep fuch a Chriftmas — who can call Chrift their brother, his Father their Father, by the indwelling Spirit; and who can evidence this to themfelves and others, by a converfation directed to the glory of God. Thus would I live, thus may you live !— in Chrift, and on Chrift, and to Chrift. If we receive much from him, let us not rob him of hi& "REV. W, ROMAINE, A. M. SJI his honor. If we do much for him, we have nothing- to hoaft of : for he worketh in us both to will and to do. I am for good works, as much as any of them ; but I would do them to a right end, and upon a right motive ; and after all, having done the beil that can be done, I would not lay the weight of the leaft tittle of my falvation— no, not one atom of it, upon, them. It all refts on Chrift— he is my only foundation— he is my topftone : and all the building, laid on him, grovveth up into a holy temple in the Lord. He has done all for me. He does all in me. He does all by me: to him be all the glory for ever and ever. Amen. Times are very hard : but the beft things are the cheapefl:. You may have Chrift for no- thing : and the more freely you receive, the more freely you will honor him with his gifts. So I feel it. Remember me to your poor: I beg their prayers ; for I want them much. My kind love to Mr. Heflup. I wifli Chrift and he were better acquainted. I am fure the more he knows of Chrift, the more he will love him, and his word and ways, becaufe of Chrift himfelf revealed in them. Farewel, my dear Sifter, and I charge you not to forget, in your daily prayers. Your true friend. And brother, W. ROMAINE, LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER IX. June 26, 1773. My dear Sifter, I AM obliged to you for your lafl; favour. You would have received my acknow- ledgment fooner ; but I was waiting to fee how my way would be directed this fummer. I have waited fo long, that I am quite afliamed to be filent any longer : and, therefore, take my pen to tell you, that there is at prefent no- thing determined about my travels. I hope to be where the Lord pleafes, and to be found doing his work. Then all will be well, where- ever I am. My thoughts often run about poor Hartle- pool. I believe the Lord has a pe.ople among you, and I wifh he may honor Mr. Heflup, by making him ufeful to gather them together, and to build them up in their moft holy faith. My prayers are not wanting for him and them : particularly I defire the prince of peace to keep him from a difputing fpirit. I do not know that he is given to it, but I know many who are : whofe principles, as well as tempers, in- cline them to be of a felf-righteous, and there- fore of a cenforious and wrangling fpirit. I have REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 2^$ have fuffered more from fach, than from all the world befide. Bid Mr. Heflup take warning from me. I advife him to avoid controverfy, as he would the plague. And, if he would be kept entirely, I will tell him how I am kept. The do£lrines, which others are difputing about, I am living upon. They have ceafed to be with me matters of controverfy. I have brought them into experience. By which means, I not only am certain of their truth, but alfo receive from it great profit. Doubting and difputing are at an end : for what room can there be to queftion any doftrine, while it is really prac- tical, and brings in a great revenue ? Thus a man gets to be fettled. Others quarrel about the {hell, he feeds upon the kernel ; and often feafts upon it. My wife is in good health. We all defire to be kindly remembered to you and to Mr. Heflup, efpecially Your loving brother, W. ROMAINE. Vol. VIII. Q * LETTER 234 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER X. May 24, 1777. My dear Sifter, AS to the particulars about houfe and land — I write nothing. Hope to fee you in June, as I promifed, and fee nothing at prefent to flop me. If I keep my word, will not God? And what is faith but taking him at his word ? What is all religion but trufting to his faithfulnefs ? Is not this the higheft fervice of the heart ; and if it be real there, the fervice alfo of the life ? For the obedience of faith is the obedience of the whole man. What honor does this put upon God ? His wifdom in con- triving fuch a falvation — his love in revealing it — his power in working it out — his promifes of giving it freely — and his fulfilling them per- feflly — thefe, and all his attributes, are glorified in believing : for then we fet to our feal, that God is true. W^e -are of one mind with him j of one will with him : and, if we can truft {im- ply what he fays ; yea, truft, when difficulties be in the way of his fulfilling his word ; then we fliew that our faith is ftrong : but, if we can truft againft feeming impolTibilities, againfl hope believe in hope, then we prove ourfelves the children REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 235 children of believing Abraham. I can affure you. Sifter, that my higheft lefTon is this ; and I learn it flovvly. I want to honor God in his word, by believing againft fenfe — fometimes it is well with me--but prefently 1 ftagger. Yet I aim at ftronger ftanding in faith daily. Pray for me. My love to Mr. Heflup. I have no advice to give him, till 1 fee him ; only I wifti he may not move, till the cloud moves. Mr. M. breakfafted with me to day, who is ftill mifinformed, and lives at a very low rate in be- lieving. Mrs. Petre muft fend me another receipt, for ten pounds — her falary is fo much this year — figned as before, only the fum altered. You may pay her, if flie wants it much. Ivly love to our friends at Newcaftle and Sunderland. I am, very fmcerely, Yours, in our comm_on Lord, W. ROMAINE. LETTER 236 LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE LETTER XI. 5, 1769. My dear Mother y THIS is the firft letter that I have had time to write fince I left Hartlepool, and as you have a right to my daily remembrance, I begin my correfpondence, where it is firft due. My jour- ney was very pleafant, not hot, nor dully. All quiet and happy within. The Lord's counte- nance fhinii>g in an unclouded Iky. Mercies upon mercies — heaped up and running over. It feems as if I was fmglcd o^ut to be a witnefs for my God, that his mercies are above all his wprks. I arrived fafe, and vifited my houfe, and found frefli matter of praife and thankf- giving. All glory be to free grace ! When I look back to Hartlepool, and review the dealings of a precious Jefus with you, and with vour's, mv debt increafes : and vvhen I con- fider his goodnefs to Hartlepool-finncKS, and Bilhoprick-finners — how many of them he has called from darknefs to light, O what a tribute of praife ought we to be continually paying to the Saviour of the North country ! And, if we .particularly confider our relations, one by one, whom it has pleafed our good God to work up- on by his Holy Spirit, we fliould call upon all I within REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 237 within us, to blefs his Holy name, and all with out us, to join in fliewing forth his praife. This, for my own part, I would moft gladly do, hav- ing feen fo much in my lad journey, both of his prefence with me, and of his grace working by me, that I am ready to join all tha't are praifmg our good God, and to crown our royal Lord and Saviour, the free giver of all bleflings both in earth and in heaven. I have had a good time at the Affizes, and preached to a vaft congregation. The feed was fown ; but the great Sower is the Son of man himfelf — unlefs he rain and fliine upon the word — man's plowing, and harrowing, and fow- ing, will come to nothing. I would, therefore, preach, as well as live, in a conflant depen- dence upon the blefling of Jefus. After men- tioning the loving kindnefs of the Lord, we fhould remember our want of it ftill, and how we are to receive the fupply of our continual wants. We have a prayer-hearing God. He has anfwered all our petitions for you ; where- by he has encouraged us to come again with- out doubt or wavering. This I hope to do for you, my dear Mother, as long as you or 1 are within the reach of prayer. He has let you live to a good time. You know him ; you believe in him, as your Jefus. He is your Lord and your God. It is our part and duty 10 beg of him, that you may be every day growing in grace, and LETTERS WRITTEN BY THE and in the excellency of the knowledge of Chrift Jefus ; and that, when ever he ftiall be pleafed to - take you to liimfelf, you may witnefs a good con- fcffion, and confirm the truth by your death, as you do by your life. I beg my love to Mr. and Mrs. Hcflup. Pray tell them, that I never had fo pleafant a journey in all my life, fo many gracious providences, and fo many outward mercies, bcfidcs ihe peace in my own foul 5 — encouragements thefe not to negleft coming another fummer. O that, whenever I do come, it may be to the praife of the glory of rich free grace ; and, if I ftay longer than I ufed to do, which all appearances feemto favor, may the good Lord overrule a longei ftay for greater good. And, as I hope there are feveral in Hartle- pool, who have nearnefs to the throne of grace, I defire you would, one by one, defire them to make ufe of their interefs for me. If you fee my brother Parker and wife, or Callender and wife, intreat the fame favor of them : I afk it of none but thofe who are already in my debt, and who ought to get out of it as faft as they can. I am. With rny duty to you, And my love and refpefts to all friends. Your affeftionate fon, And moft obedient fervant, w. romainp:. REV. W. ROMAINE, A. M. 239 LETTER XII. jkIj i6, 1793. My good Brother y I WAS very glad to fee your tefti- mony, at laft, concerning my fifter — and thank you for it. She was the Lord's : fhe lived to him and on him — and flie is with him — where I hope you and I fliall foon be with him, and like him for evermore. Till that happy day— you are called upon to be a public witnefs for him. May you preach him — in his glorious ful- nefs — and may the Holy Ghoft come down from heaven upon your preaching, that Northumber- land finners may hear and live. Do your beft. Exalt him with all your might, in your pulpit, and in your living, you will do but little. I am an old preachqr, and have feen enough of his glory to be afhamed of myfelf : I reprobate all my fervices ; and, if I were to begin again, I would try to llioot higher — and I do. BlelTmgs on him ! He is above all blelTing and praife. Perhaps, before I fee you — I may fee him face to face—when he will enable me, without one fclfifli 240 LETTERS, &C. felfifli thought, to give him all the glory : to him I commend you. May he fupply my lifter's place. You will mifs her more every day. Your leffon is to pray him to fill up her abfence with his prefence. Pray for it. So does W. ROMAINE. The The Editor is ohligsd to alter his original plan, ajid to close the letters ; as it has been sug^ gesled to him, by several friends of his late honore^d Father, to whose judgment he al~ zvays wishes to pay the highest respect, that the zuorks cannot be considered as complete, if the two pamphlets on the Jew Bill, and the Essay on Psalmody, are omitted. ' Perhaps, there never was a time when the considerations on the Jew Bill could, with more propriety , be brought before the pub- lic, than the present ; zvhen the Dutch Republic has granted the Jeivs an Act of Naturalization, and zvhen the attention of society has been called to some attempts towards their conversion in this metropolis. 1 / A MODEST APOLOGY FOR THE CITIZENS AND MERCHANTS OF LONDON, WHO PETITIONED THE HOUSE OF COMMONS AGAINST NATURALIZING THE JEWS. Thefe men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city. Ac is, xvi. 20. Firji publiped in London, 1755. PREFACE The Jews have exceedingly troubled our City of late, and they are like to trou- ble it much longer. They have been at- tempting a naturalization bill, though it be contrary to the exprefs words of their own law, and contrary alfo to our prefent religious and civil eftablifhment. The City of London, apprehenfive of the fatal confequences which might arife from in- corporating fuch a fet of people, alfembled together in common-council, and, with great unanimity, refolved to addrefs the Houfe of Commons againft the bill. Their petition was. carried up, prefented, and read. The perfons who fpake to it were fome of the ableft of our merchants. Their arguments were good and ftrong. But the honorable houfe did not fee them in 246 fREFACE. in the fame light, as we did in the city. The bill was read the third time, arid carried by a vaft majority ; and, if it ob- tains the royal affent, it will foon pafs into a law, and then every vagabond Jew may purchafe all the liberties and immunities of free-born Englilhmen. The conduct of the city was warmly cenfured for oppolmg the bill. The Jews' agents could not keep their temper : they faid very hard things of the citizens and merchants, and they (till fpeak of our op- pofition with bitternefs ; and therefore we are forced to make our Apology to the public, for what we have done, whom we defire to confider the tendency of this bill. We thought it afFe6led our civil liberties as a free trading nation, and our religious liberties as a chriftian nation ; we viewed it in thefe tw o refpedls. To the firft our merchants, and Sir John Barnard in particular, fpake moft ex- cellently, and the public will foon fee their arguments collected and digefted. To the fecond very little was faid, or could be faid, becaufe it w^as maintained, that. PREFACE. that, as the bill came from the upper houfe, my lords the billiops would not have fufFered it to pafs, if they had appre- hended it to be deftru6live of that religion of which they are the guardians* This was thought a fufficient anfwer to what- ever we had to urge about chriftianity ; but this anfwer did not fatisfy us. The follovving reflexions will fhew what reafon we had to be diffatisfied. In drawing them up, it may be thought we have in- dulged fome feverity. The univerfal can- dour and infinite benevolence of the pre- fent age will, indeed, make our treatment of the Jews appear unpolite and uncha- ritable. If any cool moderate fpirit fhould begin, as he is reading, to be offended, we beg of him to turn back to thefe two re- marks, which contain our Apology ; and, if he will be pleafed to read them twice over, we hope they will abate his heat, and enable him to proceed with temper. I. We look upon the Jews, who lived in the time of Chrift, as traitors, rebels againft God. The acl of rebellion was rejecting Jefus for the promifed Mefliah, and 248 PREFACE. and crucifying him for a malefactor : for this Jefus was the true God, and is ftill the God of the chriftians. He is the king of all worlds, and according to our laws he has all power in heaven and in earth. And was it not then, by our laws, rebellion to attempt to dethrone and murder this fovereign Lord of the univerfe ? Doubt- lefs, it was the higheft a6l of treafon which man can commit. II. The prefent Jews are guilty of the fame treafon, by aiding and abetting trait- ors : for they defend their anceflors' re- bellion ; they juftify the crucifying,K)f the Son of God; and, if they had him in their power, they would crucify him again. Their books are full of the bittereft curfes and blafphemie^ againft Jefus Chrift, and they fay fuch fhocking things of him, as we dare not repeat. Now, this we bring in high treafon ; becaufe the aiders and abettors of treafon againft God muft be traitors of the blackeft nature. If the candid reader will apply thefc two rules to treafon in our ow^n civil affairs, and confider in what light the law PREFACE, 249 law looks upon him, who fhould take away the life of the king, and upon him, who was an aider and abettor of the regicide, then we hope he will judge chari- tably of the following remarks, and in- (lead of cenfuring us for laying them before him, will be led to pray for the con- verfion of all of them, who rebel againft Jehovah, and againft his Chrift. Vol. VIII. R A MODEST APOLOGY, '^c. I. IHE Bill now depending in Parliament, which relates to the Jews' Naturalization, is en- tirely of a religious nature. It ftrikes at the root of our prefent eftablifliment, and affe6ls the very being of chriftianity ; and becaufe great pains have been taken to make us believe that trade was the principal end in view, and to turn our attention from its malignant influence on our religion, we have, therefore, drawn thefe few hints together, in hopes they may enable well-difpofed minds to form a right judgment of this important fubje£t, and may filence them who will not be fet right, alid thereby do good to the generality among ourfelves ; and, in hopes that they may fall into the hands of fome of the Jews, and convince them that their prefent blindnefs and difperfion are the heavy judg- ments of God, which he fent upon them for R 2 rejecting 252 A MODEST APOLOGY. rejefling Jefus of Nazareth for the promifed Mefliah, and that, therefore, they ought to be more concerned to become chriftians, than to become Enghflimen : but if they fliould not be convinced on reading thefe remarks, and if any of their fadducee do£lors fliould think proper to reply, we promife them an anfwer written with chriftian meeknefs and candor. £. The fundamental article on which thefe remarks are built, is univcrfally eftablifhed amoLg chrifl-ians, and the King's majefty, the Lords fpiritual and temporal, and the Commons in this prefent Parliament aflembled, have pub- lickly bore their teftimony to the truth of it, and therefore we can have no difpute with any part of the legiflature, concerning the divine authority of the Old Teftament and the New. Our laws, at prefent, allow thefe books to be true in all their parts, and worthy of that all- wife God, by whofe infpiration they "w^ere wiitten : what they fay about the Jews, who crucified Chrift, is as true as what they fay about his being crucified ; for which reafon we are concerned not to falfify what they fay about his crucihers and their abettors, left we fliould introduce contradiftions into our laws, and fliould make them alTert the fame thing to be true, and not true, at the fame time, and in the very fame refpe61: ; for let us view our laws as they ftand at prefent. 3. Our A MODEST APOLOGY. 2^^ 3. Our civil and religi'^us eftabliOimcnt is confeffedly Chriftian, founded upon the doctrine of Jefus Chrirt : and numbers of A£ls of Par- liament, as well as the Kook of Common Prayer, and of Homilies, and the Thirty-nine Articles, which are alfo enacted by authority of Parliament, do exprefsly declare, that the volume of the Old Teftament relates to the Meffiah, v/ho is there- in promifed, from beginning to end, under th^ charafler of a divine Saviour, who was to come into the world to redeem us from fin, and death, and mifery. 4. And the Redeemer, promifed in the Old Teftament, came into the world at the time fixed by Mofes and the prophets, — he was born at Bethlehem of Judea, one thoufand feven hundred and fifty-three years fince. — He lived at Nazareth — He taught the people through- out Judea — He wrought many miracles — He was accufed of blafphemy, for faying that he was the Son of God — Was crucified — Died — Rofe again-^And after he had converfed with his difciples for forty days, he afcended into hea- ven : this perfon, our laws maintain, was the Mefliah promifed in the Old Tefi:ament. 5. Our laws farther declare, concerning this perfon, that he was God and man united in one Chrifi-, and accordingly they have provided, that no perfon fhould have a licenfe to teach in public, unlefs he fubfcribe to the divinity of Jefus 254 A MODEST APOLOGY. Jefus Chrift, and acknowledge him to be as truly a perfon of the divine nature, as he was a perfon of the human nature. And therefore, 6. Our laws declare over and over again, that Chrift alone can fave us from our fins, and that what he fuffered for us as man, and what his fufFerings merited for us as God, are the only fatisfaftion w^hich can be paid to the in- finite Juftice of God the father, and therefore, if we rejeft the merits of his fufferings, we utterly exclude ourfelves from the divine love and mercy, becaufe we ungratefully rejeft the only means which God has appointed to lead us to falvation. 7. The prefent Jews affirm in dire£l oppo- fition to thefe laws, that the promifed Meffiah is not yet come, and that Jefus of Nazareth was an impoftor and a blafphemer, by which means they make themfelves abettors of their anceftors' crime, who crucified Chrift. And how then fliall we reconcile our laws with thefe Jewifli herefies ? Shall we by law eftablifti thenti who fay the Mefliah is not yet come, when our laws are built upon the certainty of his being come one thoufand feven hundred and fifty-three years ago ? Or lhall we, can we, incorporate them among us, who maintain, that Jefus of Nazareth was an impoftor and a blafphemer, when by the laws of the land he is our Saviour and our God? Certainly thefe are fuch fla- 3 , S'-ant A MODEST APOLOGY. 2^^ grant contradi6tions, as no wife flate would, and no good ftatc can, admit into the body of its laws ; and therefore we may reafonably hope that our wife and good legiflature will not cftab- lifli fuch contradiftions by a£l of parliament. And, 8. Upon the footing of our laws, as they ftand at prcfent, we cannot eftablifh them, be- caufe the Old Teftament is true. The whole legiflature allows it to be ()f divine authority^ and therefore no human authority can repeal it ; and yet, if its prophecies foretell certain events, which were to befall the Jews after they had reje6ted Chrift, and if our laws try to pre- vent the completion of thefe prophecies, then we endeavour, as much as in us lies, to repeal the divine laws by human authority, which not only fuppofes us to be wifer than the All-wife* but alfo, that we can be too hard for the Almighty j and this is impiety of fo abfurd a nature, that one would think reafonable men could not fall into it. 9. The prophecies which relate to the flate and condition of the Jews, after they fhould rejeSt ChriH:, are very clear and very numerous. God threatens to call them out of their land-* To deftroy their civil polity—To fend the Ro- man eagles, who fliould befiege Jerufalem, and take it on the Sabbath-day, who Ihould burn the 1^6 A MODEST APOLOGY. the temple, fo that not one ftone of it fhould ever after be laid iipoh another, and fhould carry the people captive into all nations, where they were to continue difperfed, until they fhould repent and return unto the Lord, by accepting Jefus of Nazareth for their MefTiah^v 10. In what manner the Naturalizing of the Jews will afFe6l the .authority of thefe prophe- cies is very obvious ; for firft, God cafl them off for rejefting Chriil:, and we take them in : he drove them out of their own land, becaufe of their unbelief, but we receive them as ,free- born fubjefts in our land, notwithflanding the fame unbehef. God expelled them, they come to us expelled, and we naturalize them : fo that, what he made their puniflimcnt, we turn into a reward, by doing which, we a£l dire£lly againfl providence, for we take them into our communion, whom he has excommunicated, and we give them a better land to make them amends for lofmg that, of which he thought them unworthy. 11. Ill the next place, God difperfed the Jews into all lands for reje£ring Chrifl. He intended their difperfion fliould be their punifli- ment, and we try to turn it into a blefling. He fcattered them over the earth as fugitives and vagrants, the New Teflament writers call them Vagabond Jews, and yet we gather them togther A MODEST APOLOGY. 257 together as if they were free-born Englinimen : they arc the outcaft of heaven, and yet we in- corporate them : God thus difperfed them, be- caufe of their infidelity, and though they be ftill infidels, yet we give them the privileges of chriftian fubjedls, by which means we not only defeat the reafon and end of the Jews' difperfion, but alfo . 12. A£t in direft oppofition to what the fcrip- ture declares, was to be their condition, fo long as they fhould continue difperfed. They were to have no fuch eftablifliment among any people, as we are trying to give them. Mofes is clear againft it; his words, in Deut. xxviii. 65. de- ferves the attention of the legiflature. " And " among th'efe nations thou tlialt find no cafe, neither fiiall the fole of thy foot have refl: ; but " the Lord fliall give thee there a trembling " heart, and failing of eyes, and forrow of " mind." How can this prophecy be fulfilled, after the Jews are naturalized ? God here fays, that they ftiall not find eafe in their difperfion ; we fay, they J/m// find eafe : for we give them all the eafe we can, by making them free fubje^ts of this kingdom. God here fays, that they Jliall not find reft for the foles of their feet ; we fay, they Jlia/i find reft, they /w// have a quiet pofleffiori of lands and houfes, and J^a// enjoy as much reft as our laws and liberties can give them. The ijS A MODEST APOLOGY. The expreffion, " of finding no reft, not eveii *' for the foles of their feet," is very ftrong and comptehenfive : for, he certainly has found reft, who being expelled his own country finds a large eftale, and a fine houfe, and a quiet fet- tlement in another country : but God here de- clares, that the Jews fliould have no fuch reft ; they were to be vagrants fo long as they con- tinued difperfed, and to this day the Jews have been vagrants, excluded from all ftates, heathen and mahometan, as well as chriftian : but if they become native, free-,born Engliftimen, they thert ceafe to be vagrants, and find fuch a reft, as will fruftrate, fo far as man is able, the truth of God's infallible prophecies. T3. The remaining part of the prophecy, viz. that " God would give the Jews a trembling " heart, and failing of eyes, and forrow of mind,'* has been hitherto fulfilled, and no human power can prevent its future completion. It is matter of faft, that the Jews do live in continual un- eafinefs, tormented and haunted, like murderers^ with a legion of horrors : their crimes deferve thefe fevere lathes of confcience, and how fe- vere they are, you may read in their very facesi You know a Jew at firft fight. And what then are his diftinguifliing features ? Examine what it is peculiar that ftrikes you. It is not his dirty Ikin, for there are other people as nafty j neither A MODEST ArOLOGY. 259 Is it the make of his body, for the Dutch arc every whit as odd, awkward figures as the Jews. But look at his eyes. Don't you fee a maHgnant blacknefs underneath them, which gives them fuch a caft, as befpeaks guilt and murder ? Yoa can never miftake a Jew by this mark, it throws fuch a dead, livid afpe^l over all his features, that he carries evidence enough in his face to convift him of being a crucifier. Now it muft be granted, their ill looks would be no objeftioa againft naturalizing them, if they had good hearts ; but when God fays, that for rejeSing Chrift, he puniflied them with fuch trembling of heart, as would always betray itfelf in the coun- tenance, then this becomes a moil formidable objeftion. " The Lord thall give thee a trem- " bling heart, and failing of eyes, and forrow of " mind." The Lord fent thefe punifliments, and therefore it tvould be prudent to put off naturalizing the Jews, until he take them away : and whenever the Lord fliall take them away, and give them fortitude of heart, life and vigour of eyes, and joy of mind, then let them be naturalized, but not till then ; leaft we lliould be found oppofing the decrees of providence, and fliould thereby draw upon ourfelves fome of thofe very punifliments which God has hifiided upon our friends the Jews. 14. But it may, it will be faid, in this all-candid age, that' thefe, remarks are uncharitably fevere. They 26o A MODEST APOLOGY. They may be fevere---but they are true— and truth cannot be uncharitable. They are the very words, or direft inferences from our own laws, which maintain, that the crime of the Jews, who crucified Chrift, was the greateft that man can commit againft God, and the prefent Jews are known to be aiders and abettors of that crime. But left ftrength of imagination, or hot-headed zeal, as warmth for our holy efta- bliflied religion is now termed, fliould be thought f to lead us to egaggerate matters, we will mention two or three defcriptions of the ftate of the dif- perfed Jews, which we meet with in thofe records that our laws allow to be of divine authority. 15. The evidence already offered, proves, that the Jews cannot be naturalized : God has put them under an utter difqualification : and we fliall now fee that they ought not to be natura- lized ; they have no merit to entitle them to any fuch immunity ; nothing but their riches could induce any ftate to incorporate them ; for they deferve every difcouragement under which pro- vidence has put them, and under which chriftian ftates have hitherto agreed to put them. Their crime confifted in oppofing the decrees of the Almighty, in trying to defeat them, in ftanding out againft Jehovah and his Chrift, in blaf- pheming them, and in perfevering in their blaf- phemy, until having filled up the meafure of their A MODEST APOLOGY. their iniquity God dellroyed their civil polity, and fcattered them as fugitives and vagabonds over the face of the earth. Our laws have ftio-matized them with this odious chara£ler, and fliall the fame laws honor them with the greateft privileges and immunities that free-born Englifli- men can enjoy? We will not, we cannot honor them, if we obferve their monftrous impiety, which made our laws ftigmatize them with the above odious charafter. For, 1 6. Becaufe they oppofed the decrees of the Almighty, and tried to defeat them, our God himfclf told them, John viii. 44. " Ye are of " your father the devil, and the lufts of your " father you will do :" and the bleffed Stephen fhews what works of their father the devil they were always ready to do. A6ts vii. 51, 52, " Ye *' ftiffhecked, and uncircumcifed in heart and " ears, ye do always refift the Holy Ghoft, as " your fathers*did,. fo do ye. Which of the pro- " phets have not your fathers perfccuted And " they have flain them which fliewed before of " the coming of the juft One (Chrift) of whom " ye have been now the betrayers and mur- derers." There is one rule of interpreting all fuch places of fcripture. The perfons who are guilty of the fame crime, deferve the fame in- famous character, but the prefent Jews are guilty of the fame crime here mentioned, confe- quently they deferve the fame infamous charac- I ten A MODEST APOLOGY. ter. Let us review thefe fcriptures, and confider whom we are going to naturalize ; they are not only the children of the devil, but fuch children as were always ready to do the lufts of their father ; like him, ftiffnecked, and in heart and ears difobedient to the will of God ; like him, always refifling the Holy Ghoft ; like him, for he was a murderer from the beginning, always perfecuting and flaying them, who prophefied of the coming of Chrifls traitors, like him, for they were the betrayers and murderers of the Son of God. And are thefe the mifcreants — the fpawn of wliom we are going to che- rifh in our bofom ? Avert it heaven. 17. Again, our meek and gracious Redeemer thus charafterifes them, Matt, xxiii. 33. " Ye " ferpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye *' efcape the damnation of hell ?" This he fpeaks to the children of them v. ho killed the prophets, and wlio were to fill up the meafure of their father's guilt, by killing him, the Lord of life ; the prefent Jews are aiders and abettors with their fathers in killing him, and confequently involved in the fame guilt. And can we believe this, and yet naturalize " Serpents, a generation ♦* of vipers, who cannot efcape the damnation of hell ?" But, 18. Farther, Chrlft has given us another defcription of the Jev/s, which we don't think the worfe of, becaufe a zealot preacher has oc- cafioncd A MODEST APOLOGY. 263 cafioned it to be much bruited of late, or becaufe it has been contemptibly treated in news-papers and in coffee-houfcs. It is ftill a part of our laws, and is fo inconfiftent with naturalizing the Jews, that it ought to be repealed before the bill takes place. The words are thefe, " I know," fays Chrift, " the blafphemy of them, who fay " they are Jews, and they are not, but are the " fynagogue of fatan." They who now pretend to be jews, are blafphemers, and fhall we natu- ralize blafph&my? They are the fynagogue of fatan, and fliall we licence fatan's meeting- houfe } Shall we put his fynagogue and Chrift's church upon the fame foundation ? God forbid. 19. But there is one more place of fcripture, which, if ferioufly confidered, would moft effe£l:- ually prevent our naturalizing the Jews : for they maintain, that Chrift is not yet come in the flelh, and St. John, ift Ep. ch. iv. 3, affures us, " That " every fpirit, which confeffeth not that Jefus " Chrift is come in the flefli, is not of God : and " this is Xhd.t fpirit of antichrift, whereof ye " have heard that it fliould come, and even now *' already it is in the world :" from hence it ap- pears, that the Jews are antichrift ; and fliall we tlien fet up and eftablifli antichrift in our land ? Is Chrift and antichrift to be incorporated ? The thought fills us with horror. God Almighty keep us from this infatuation, and give us not over to ilm dreadful guilt, 20. Thefe 26|. A MODEST APOLOGl'. '20. Thefe few hints may fuffice to fet the fubjecl in a clear light, fo far as religion is con- cerned. And as to trade and other- worldly views, they are too mean and dirty to be once mentioned, when the honor of our own laws, nay, when the honor of God and of his laws, of Chrift and his gofpel are to be maintained. Our own laws, and the laws of God, are built on the certainty of the Meffiali's being come in the flefli one thoufand feven hundred and fifty-three years ago : our civil and religious eftablithment reft abfolutiely upon this truth ; and the Jews for denying it have been regarded and treated hitherto as vagrants, infidels, blafphemers, and crucifiers. And if we naturalize fuch perfons, how can we avoid involving ourfelves in their guilt ? For they now ftand excommunicated by the authority of God, and by the laws of this kingdom. They are God's profeft enemies. He expelled them from their own country, for their horrid blafphemies and impieties, and becaufe they have not repented, he keeps them expelled. Now upon what maxims of found policy can we naturalize thefe outcafts of heaven ? Is it not the firfl: m.axim of good government to feek by all means the bleffing of providence upon the ftate ? But how will this ftep entitle us to his blelTing ? Our friends the Jews are his enemies. He expelled whom we take in. He difperfed whom we gather together. He has accurfed whom A MODEST APOLOGY. 265 whom we naturalize. And therefore our friend- fhip to them muft render him at enmity with us, and involve our land in their guilt, and call down upon it their punifhment. 21. It is an old obfervation, which has been juftified by l6ng experience, that blindnefs always precedes a judgment. The very hea- then could obferve it — Q_iios Jupiter vult perderey prius dementat. Our prefent conduft argues fome fuch infatuation, and foretels the approach of fome great calamity : for we have been long at open war againft Jehovah, and his Chrift, and have hardened our necks not to receive correftion by any of the divine vifitations ; for which reafon we may expert his mercy will foon be wearied out. How many calls have we lately had to re- pentance ? And how fev/ of us repented ? God vifited us with a bloody expenfive war by fea and land for many years — He inflifted upon us the heavieft of his judgments, a civil- war — he fent us the peftilence — and he vifited us with earthquakes ; but all was in vain. Infidelity and immorality ftill raged among us. We were in- corrigible. And therefore he now feems to be giving us over to deftruftion, fmce he fuffers us to be fo blinded as to add to all our national firs, that of attempting to incorporate antichriit with the religion of the blelTed Jefus j which is im- poffible. Our own laws are ftill againft it. The prophecies of God forbid it. The Almighty Vol. VIII. S hath 266 A MODEST APOLOGY. hath declared hlmfelt againfl it. In oppofitlon to thefe authorities what will prevail ? We hope in God nothing will— God dire£l the hearts of our governors, that nothing may — but that we may continue an happy free people, proteftants, and chriftians, until providence remove us from all affinity with the blafpheming Jews, into the number of his eleft made perfect through the obedience and fufFerings of Jefus Chrift, the God of the chriftians. At* ANSWER 10 A fAMFHLET, ENTITLED, CONSIDERATIONS ON THE BILL TO PERMIT PERSONS PROFESSING THE JEWISH RELIGION TO BE N/VTURALIZED J ^ Wherein the FALSE REASONING, GROSS MISREPRESENTATION OF FACTS, AND PERVERSION OF SCRIPTURE, ARE FULLY LAID OPEN AND DETECTED. The multitude of the city was divided, and part held with the Jews, and part with the apoftles. Acts xiv. 4. Reprinted hy the Citizent of London, 1753. ADVERTI SEMENT TO THE CHRISTIAN READER. When the Tews' Naturalization was propofed, the citizens and merchants of London thought, that their duty to their king and country, to their reli- gion and liberties, called upon them to oppofe it. And they condudled their oppofition with great moderation and temper : but the Jews, though they car- ried their favourite point, cannot forgive us. The keennefs of their refentment and malice, is feen in a libel, which they publilhed againlf us, entitled, " Confiderations on the Bill to permit " perfons profefTmg the Jewifh religion " to JB/O ADVERTISEMENT, " to be naturalized." Several thoufands of this libel were difperfed, with great induftry, throughout the kingdom, in order to pouon the minds of our coun- trymen, and to give them evil impreffi- ons of our condu6t : and, therefore, it is become neceflary for us to difperfe a proper antidote, fo far as the poifon has been fpread. The following fheets we hope will anfwer this purpofe, which contain our reply to the Jewilli Confix derations, and we believe it will be agreeable to every true Englifhman to find, that the Jews have accufed us falfly ; and that we did nothing, not even in the manner of our oppofition, but what all our honeft countrymen would have done, if they had been in our circumftances. We have only to defire of the per- fons, into whofe hands this pamphlet may fall, that if they find any of their neigh- bours, » ADVERTISEMENT. 2^1 hours, who are ignorant of the affair, or who have been mifled by the Jewifh party, that they would endeavour to in- form them, and to fet them right. This will be doing juftice to the citizens of London, and fervice to the public, and nothing can be more neceffary than t® do it at prefent, in order to open men's eyes, and to fhew them, who thefe Jews are, and what fchemes they are carrying on. Thefe Jews, whom we carefs fo much, and are taking into our bofoms, have been always hitherto con- fidered by our ftate, in the eye of the common law, as aliens; and our ftatute law, paffed in the iSth of Edward I. banifhed them for ever, and made it death for a Jew to be found in Eng- land. This ftatute was never repealed. And yet thofe outlawed blafphemers have, by fome unaccountable fatality, been fuffered to return from their baniih- ment, 272 ADVERTISEMENT. ment, and have got vaft intereft among us, and are carrying on great fchemes. They have got the management of all money matters — We begin to feel their weight in the great companies — They want nothing now, but our lands ; and the way is paved for their taking pofleflion of them. You fee, by the late A61 in their favor, what power and influence they already have, and this A6t was to give them more ; and more they will, and muft have, unlefs we take every proper method of providing againft the increafe of the Jew-tntereft. There are many lawful means ftill in our power, which every Englifhman will take on this occafion,; in the ufe of which, we will, with all our might, labour together with you until the chriflian-intereft triumph over all its oppofers. The Citizens of London m the Chrljiian-Intereji ^ PREFACE The Jews have lately publiflied a pamphlet, entitled, "Confiderations on the Bill to permit Perfons profefling the Jew- ifh Religion to be naturalized." This is the firft ferious piece that came from their quarter. The defign of it is to defend the propofed naturalization, and it is drawn up by way of reply to the city petition. The perfon, whom they employed in this work, has done their caufe a great deal of injury by his imprudent defence of it : for he has filled it with many notorious falfhoods, has perverted many fcriptures, and has misftated the plaineft fa6ls. And he has befides hurt them much in the opinion of the more moderate part of the city, by beftowing his invectives without reafon, and yet without bounds, upon every man, who happened to think differ- ently from the Jews in this affair. Thefe 2/4 PREFACE. Thefe calumnies from the Jews' quarter were not expelled. Prudence ought to have taught them a different behaviour to every Englifhman, efpecially to the magiftrates of this city, under whofe go- vernment they are prote6ted, and to the merchants, with whom they are connected in trade. It was their intereft to have defended themfelves with good manners, and the Jews do not often a6t againft their intereft ; but here is an exception to a general rule, in which they are the more culpable, as we had fet them no example of this kind : for they cannot pretend that we have given them any precedent for their ill treatment of us. If the citizens and merchants had made no anfwer, then the Jews would have triumphed. They would have faid, that we could not anfwer ; and therefore fome reply became necelTary. And it fell to my province to draw it up. Such as it is, the reader has it now at his mercy. If he thinks it a full reply to the Jewifh Con- fiderations, &c. then I have my reward : if he does not think it a full reply, upon the PREFACE. the firft reading, I have one favor to beg of him, if it be not too much prefumption to afK him, to read it over again. I have no right to demand fo much of his time and labour, but I humbly afk it in the name of thefe two refpe6lable bodies, wliofe caufe I am defending. The citizens and merchants defire to have this affair thoroughly canvaffed; for they are well affured, that every man, who is a perfect mafter of the fubjecl, will have a favorable opinion of their condu6l ; and they will be much beholden to the reader, if he will be pleafed to examine the fa6ts here alledged carefully, and then give his im- partial judgment : for they think nothing is more valuable to men engaged in trade and commerce, than a fair chara6ler, of which this Jew pamphlet has tried to rob them, and which it is the de'fign of the fol- lowing flieets to re-eftablilh. AN ANSWER TO THE' CONSIDERAT'IONS ON THE BILL TO PERMIT JEWS IHE fubjeSl of the Jews' naturalization has been for fome time publicly debated, and one may now be able to colle61: the arguments, which the advocates for the Jews can urge in their defence. They have fpoken and written in their clients' caufe all that it would bear, and it may not then be unfeafonable to offer fome reply in behalf of the chriftians ; which I have chofen to do by way of anfwer to a pamphlet, entitled, " Confiderations on the Bill," &c. becaufe.the great pen, from whence it came, and the many high encomiums made upon it, render it very proba-' ble, that this is the grand battery of the Jews, and that if this were once overthrown, they and their advocates would not be in hafte to ere£t another. TO BE NATURALIZED, iffc. There 278 ANSWER TO THE There has been much artifice ufed to reconcile men's minds to this meafure, and many fallacies have been advanced for undoubted facls. One of the mofl; material, and the moft infifted upon, was an opinion lately ftarted by fome lawyers, . relating to certain natural privileges, which they aver all thefe Jews enjoy, who are born in the king's dominions. Moft of the pamphlets and fpeeches in favor of the Jews, run upon this fuppofition, and particularly the pamphlet which lies before me, takes it for granted, that they are to all intents and purpo/es natural-born fubje£ls, and reafonsupon it throughout, as if it were ^he moft felf-evident maxim in our laws. If this opinion of the minifterial lawyers could be clear- ly confuted, our author's whole piece would then fall to the ground j for he has not one argument that could ftand, if this fundamental point were ' removed ; and therefore it is necelTary to begin with a folution of this fallacy. CHAP. L The Jews not natural-born Stibj e 61 proved from the Englijh Hijiory. ALL the favorers of the Jew bill have agreed to adopt a maxim, which was never heard of till the prefent times, viz. " That the Jews, who 1 are V CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. ■are born in the king's dominions, are natural- born fubjefts, and entitled to the rights and privileges of Engliflimen." This maxim they have maintained with great affurance, and have made it the very foundation of all their defences of the prefent bill ; and therefore it is abfolutely neceflary to enquire into the truth of it, which I (hall endeavour to do, Firft, By confulting the EngliOi hiftory on this head. And here 1 find all our records unani- mous in their teftimony ; they do not afford one fingle inftance of any Jew, who was ever con- fidered in the eye of the law, as a natural-born fubje£l: : but on the contrary, they give us feveral clear proofs of their being always looked upon as foreigners and aliens. Our l.iflorians take very little notice of the Jews, till the reign of Edward the Confeffor, in whofe laws we find an undoubted proof, that they were then treated as vafTals to the crown, in which light they were ever afterwards confidered until their banilh- ment in 1290. The words of the Confeffor's law are very remarkable. " Be it known alfo, that all the Jews, where- " foever they be within the realm, ought to be " under the king's guard and proteftion, as his " vafTals, neither can anyone of them put him- felf under the power of any rich perfon, with- *' out the king's licence : for the Jews and all ** they have belong to the king. And if any *' perfon 28o ANSWER TO THE " perfon fhall detain them, or their money, the " king may claim them (if he pleafes) as his own " property*." I have given the original Latin at the bottom of this page, for the fake of the curious, and I think the following remarks will naturally occur to every attentive reader. 1. We. here fee in what a miferable ftate the Jews were, when our laws firft take notice of them : wherever they refided, they were under the king's proteftion, and were not confidered as free-born Englilhmen, but 2. As mere vafTals : their perfons and their goods were the king's fole property. There is fomething very ftrong in the expreffion — " The *' Jews and a)] they have belong to the king." 3. This vafialage was fo fevere, that they could neither difpofe of their perfons nor effefts with- out his particular licence, and 4. This was always confidered as the known and eftabliflied law of the land : for if we read the Englifh hiftory with care from this period, until the Jews' expulfion in 1290, we fliall find, that our kings thought they had a right to treat * Sciendum eft quoque, quod omnes Judael ubicunquein regno funt fub tutela & defenfioae regis ligia debent effe, nec quilibet eoriim alicai diviti fe poteft fubdere fine regis licentia : Judaei enim & omnia fua regis funt : quod ft quifpiam detinuerit eos vel pecuniam eorum perquirat rex (fi vult) tanquam fuum pro- prium. them CONSlbEkAtlONS ON THE JEW BILL. 281 tiiem as their vaffals, which accordingly they did. And during this a^ra, we have inftances in every reign of their vaffalage, but I defy any Jew advocate to produce from hiftory one au- thority of the Jews being confidered as the natural-born fubjefts of this realm. Our hiftorians do not take much notice of the Jews, till the time of the conqueft : William the Conqueror, as they inform us, did not only re- ceive of them a large fum of money for their admiffion, but he alfo brought them over under the moft odious character, that of tax-gatherers and ufurers upon his Englifli fubjefts. Hol- lingHiead fays, vol. 3. p. 15. " Among other *' grievances, which the Englifli fuftained by the " hard dealings of the Conqueror, this is to be remembered, that he brought Jews into the *' land from Rhoan, and appointed them a place *' to inhabit and occupy." Antoninus's chronicle fays the fame, and the Magdeburg centuries out of him. Cent. ii. cap. 14. add, that it was ob numeratum pretium, for a fum of money. Here we fee what a prevailing engine the Jews' money was, and how fuccefsful they have been in truft- ing their caufe to its influence. The all-power- ful gold which brought them into England at the conqueft, again introduced them in the reign of Cromwell — two a^ras — both memorable for over- turning the government at home, and for intro- ducing the blafpheming Jews from abroad, (thefe ate very ftriking circumftances) and at both VjQL. VIII T times iSa ANSWER TO THE times th£y were introduced by bribery. And' do they not ftill work by the felf fame money- engine — preferred by too many, who call them- felves chriftians, even to Ghrift himfelf, and ehriftianity ? We find the Jew? in the fame infamous- ftation, wherein the Conqueror placed them, until their banifliment by king Edward I. and never treated as free-born fubjeGs, but as vaf- fals of the crown, who might be fleeced and pillaged of th^ir ill-gotten wealth at the king's pleafure : and accordingly, whenever the ftate . ' was in neceflity, or any of our fovereigns were difoofed to do a popular action, the rich Jews, who had plundered the public, were fui^e to be plundered in their turn without mercy. VaflTals they were, and like vaffals they were treated : until at laft, king Richard I. fuffered no doubt to remain concerning their abfolute vaffalage to the crown. Upon his return into England, from the Crufade in the year 1104, Roger Hoveden in- forms us, Annal. pars poft. p. 745. that he ap- pointed" a regifter office for the Jews, in which all effefts belonging to the^i were to be regifter- ed, and the concealment of any particular was to be puniflied with the forfeiture of body and whole eftate. John Brompton and Hollingfhead give an account of this regiftry, and of its officers. Ey means of it the king was always acquainted with the effefts of the Jews, and knew perfectly what fums he could levy upon them. CONSIDERATIONS ON THE j£W BILL. 283 them. Can it be queftioned, whether they were then confidered as free-born fubje£ls, when their perfons and their goods were to be regiftered in fuch an office of vaffalage, and when we read of the continual ufe made of it, in after reigns, to fqueeze money from the Jews ? Infomuch, that my Lord Coke fays, in his notes upon the fta- tute of Judaifm, from December 17, in the fifti- eth year of Henry III. to Tuefday In Shrove-lide, the fecond year of Edward I. which was about feven years, the crown received four hundred and twenty thoufand pounds, fifteen fliillings, and four-pence — a prodigious fum, confidering that filver was but then twenty-pence an ounce, and now it is about five fliilliugs and fix-pence. Thus were thefe wretched ufurers treated. The crown looked upon them as its vafTais, un- til their final banifliment. After which, we read nothing of them, till the time of Crom- well, and even he was not hardy enough to give them a licence to return : he onlv connived at it, as did King Charles II. and King James, and fince the Revolution they have continued on the fame footing : for they could never be made na- tural-born fubjefts, while the A8: of Parliament, by which they were outlawed, was in full force againft them. And wc have a remarkable in- ftance of the opinion which the governmtjjt en- tertained of them in the year 1690. A difpute arofe between them and the chriftian merchants, about the payment of alien duty, which the T % Jews 284 ANSWER TO THE Jew's pretended they were exempted from, by royal letters of denization. But this pretence was fuperfeded, by an order of the king in council, dated Hampton-court, October 14, 1690, , requiring them to pay the alien duty, notwith- ftanding letters of denization. From thefe authorities, rt is abundantly evi- dent, that to fuppofe any Jew, who happens to be born in the kmg's dominions, to be therefore a natural-born fubjeft, is a novel opinion, quite tmknown to our ancient hiftorians, and dire£tly contrary to that ftate of vaffalage, which they were under from the time of Edward the Con- feffor, to their final banifliment in 1290. Thefe hiftorical fa£ls demonftrate, that during this long period, the Jews were never eonlidered as free- born fubjefts. And the fame truth may be made equally clear from the common law of the land. CHAP. IL The Jews not natural burn SuhjeEls— proved from the Common Lazo of the Land. THE Jews were never treated as free-born fubjecls, and they could not be fo treated with- out deftroying the two effential maxims of our policy, viz. That the chriftian religion is true, and that, therefore, it ought to be maintained. All our laws are founded on the former, and all of CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 285 of them tend to fupport the latter ; and does it not feem, at firft fight, the grodelt folecifni in politics, to allow ihem to be the natural-born fubje£ts of the ftate, who oppofe the two fun- damental principles upon which the ftate is formed — who deny the truth of the chrillian re- ligion, and who have been always feeking its deftruftion ? The great Lord Coke lays this down for the firft point in our law — Summa ratio eft qu^e pro r.eligione facit ; that is principally to be regarded which concerns religion : for every good govern- ment chiefly ftudies the eternal falvation of men's fouls, and after that, confuits their prefent peace and profperity, and therefore, for the fake of the latter, never fubmits to facrifice the former — • Temporal happinefs bearing no proportion to eternal. And when th'e ftate has once fixed this for the bafis of its government, that the chriftian religion is the only fure way to eternal happinefs, then the next ftep is to maintain it, and to fecure the obfervance of it by all whole- fome laws ; in which the wifdom of our ftate has not been wanting. It has provided many ex- cellent ftatutes for the fupport of true religion, and has thought it very conliftent with the mild- nefs and lenity of its government, to deprive every Englifliman of the rights and privileges of a natural-born fubjeft, who Ihould be proved guilty of that infidelity and blafphemy, of which ^very Jew is guilty. Upon this footing, nothing •could 286 ANSWER TO THE could be more abfurd in its nature, or more con- trary to the maxims of our own policy, than to allow the natural enemies of the chriftian religion to be the natural fubjefts of the chriftian ftate : becaufe this is, in faft, giving up its funda- mental principles, and admitting them into its communion, who break thofe very bonds of union, by which the ftate is cemented. And this reafoning I will confirm from the authority of that oracle of the law my Lord Coke, who has given his opinion very clearly, and his opinion is fufficient to determine, what is the common law of the land in the prefent cafe. In the 7th vol. of his Cafes he fays — *' The Jews, and all other infidels, are, in the *' eye of the law, aliens, in the higheft degree, *' perpetui inimici, perpetual enemies : for the law " prefumes not they will ever be converted ; " for between them, as with the devil, whofe 'Vfubje£ts they be, and the chriftian, there is perpetual hoftility, and can be no peace." The Jews then, in the eye of the common law, were always looked upon as aliens-»-neither na- tural-born fubjedts, nor capable of being natu- ralized— but perpetual aliens, becaufe there is no reafonable ground to expe£t they will ever be converted, their oppofition to the chriftian be- ing as implacable as the oppofition of the devil ; for they are his fubje£ls, not Chj'ift's, and as fubjefts to the devil, they are in perpetual hofti- Jity with Chr'fr, fo that there can be no peace bctvveeii CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 2S7 between them and chriftians. Thus far the great Lord Coke. This is his opinion in the ■ prefent cafe, which is confirmed by one of the greatefl: Jiving ornaments of the law, whofe au- thority I hope I may ufe without offence. " The Jews born here are, in every refpe6l, to " be deemed natural-born fubjefls, and may con- fequently purchafe and hold what land eftates " they pleafe, is to me a doctrine that feems quite inconfiftent with- the whole tenor of our *' laws, and with the very eflence of our confti " tution. That a Jew born, either here, or be- " yond fea, may purchafe a land eftate, I fliall " readily agree, but that he can hold it any " longer than the King pleafes, I will pQfitivcly fay, neither is, nor ever was, nor ever can be, the law of this kingdom, until it be made " fo by ASt of Parliament : for that is the only method by which the common law can be ** altered ; and that a land eflate, purchafed by " a Jew, belongs to, and may be feized by, " the King, is now, and has always beei^, the " common law of this kingdom, ever fince chrir- " ftianity was eftablifhed ; for even that law of " Edward the Confeflbr, was but declaratory of " the common law, as appears by the verv " words of it. vVnd notwithftanding the great " favours granted by William the Conqueror, " and his fuccelTors, to the Jews, they took care " not to alter this part of the common law, but, ** on the contrary, enforced it, by often feizing . 5 " upon a88 ANSWER TO THE upon the lands mortgaged to the Jews : for *' in thofe days, the purchafes made by the Jews, " and even by chriftians, were generally by way ^' of mortgage ; and fomctimes the King would *' grant a releafe to the mortgager, wiihout the *■ concurrence or confent of the Jew mortsagee. " Can we fuppofe, that from the conqueft to *' the eighteenth year of Edward I. a period of " two hundred years, there were no Jews born " in England ? Yet, in all that time, did we " ever hear of a dillin6^ion between Jews born *^ within or without the King's dominions ? They " were both equally the King's property : they *' had equally a right to purchafe and to hold, " that is to fay, till it pleafed the King to take " it from them. Did we ever hear of fuch a diftinftion before the prefent age, fo fertile " in novelties of every kind ? It is a diftin£lion *' cxprefsly contrary to the common law of this *' kingdom, by which every Jew, whether born *• here or abroad, and all that belongs to him is " the King's property ." I have given the opinion of this able lawyer at length, becaufe the reafoning is clear, and the evidence convincing : and his authority, joined to my Lord Coke's, is fufficient to deter- mine the point, relating to the Jews being na- tural-born fubjefts. The common law of the land, it appears, is againft them ; and fome of their advocates allow it : but they pretend that the common law is not unalterable, and that, if the CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL, the parliament fee good reafon to repeal any part of it, they may, and ought, and accordingly they did repeal this part of it for the public utility. All this may be true and right : public utility mio:ht be the motive, and a laudable motive it is. But then it deferved the moft ferious confi-» deration, whether, by naturalizing the Jews, w^e fliould not facrifice a greater and certain good for a lelTer and uncertain good. The commoa law, in the prefent cafe, was the very bafis of our Gonftitution, and came in aid and fupport of the divine law, and public utility was then a mo- tive not worthy of the public attention, when it could not be purfued without facrificing to it both the common law and the divine law ; for this is the moft material point, that our com- mon law againft naturalizing the Jews is found- ed upon the law of God. We do not plead for it, merely becaufe it is the law of the land, though fome regard ought to be paid to it up-! on that account, but becaufe it has the fan6tion of the divine law. We are bound not to repeal it from the authority of fcripture. CHAP. IIL The Jews not natural-born Subjects — proved from the Authority oj the Laws of God. VERY little ftrefs has been laid upon this argument, although they deferve the greateft j becaufe t,^0 ANSWER TO THE becaufe the favourers of the Jews have tried every art of railery to make it appear ridiculous. That there fiiould be any provifion in fcrip^ ture againft naturalizing the Jews, was a fub- je61 which they treated with utter contempt. But if it be made evident, that there are feveral exprefs ftatutes againft it, then it may be rea- fonably expe6ted, that they will give this mat^ ter a more ferious confideration ; and, like wife and good magiftrates come to a refolution to fupport the lav/s of God by their authority. One of his laws, which was never repealed, feems very decifive in the prfifent ca^s, " If any man love not the Lord Jefus Chrift, kt him " be anathema maranatha," i Cor. xvi. 22. Thefe words were antiently ufed in the moft dreadful fentence of excommunication, when they who loved not the Lord Jefus were fepa- rated, and caft out from all chriftian fociety and communion : but the Jews are fo far from lov- ing, that they hate and blafpheme our Lord Jefus in thehighell: degree, therefore they ought, by this divine law, to be feparated and caft out of our chriftian fociety and communion. He w^ho loves not the Lord Jefus is anathema, but the Jews love not the Lord Jefus, therefore they are anathema. And will you then receive into your fociety perfons anathematized of God fox their infidelity ? And this argument will be unanfwerable by every perfon who calls himfelf a chriftian, if he confidcrs CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 29I confiders the divine command relating to the treatment, which believers ought to give the infidel Jews. " Whofoever tranfgreffeth and ** abideth not in the do£lrine of Chrift, hath *' not God : he that abideth in the doftrlne of «' Chrift, he hath both the father and the Son : if there come any unto you, and bring not " this doftrine, receive him not into your houfc, " neither bid him God fpeed : for he that bid- *' deth him God fpeed, is partaker of his evii *' deeds," 2 John 9, 10, 11. But the Jews tranfgrefs, and abide not in the doQrine of Chrift, and have not the true God, therefore we aQ in direft oppofition to this divine com- mand, if we receive them into our houfes, or bid them God fpeed : for by giving them t]iis countenance, we make ourfelves partakers of their evil deeds. It were much to be wifhed this authority had been infifted upon in its proper place : for if fcripture had been fuffered to de- termine the point, no reply could have been made to this decifion. Whbever abideth not in the doftrine of Chrift, ought not to be received into our houfes, but the Jews abide not in the doftrine of Chrift, therefore they ought not to be received into our houfes. Will any advocate for the Jews undertake to reconcile this with the lawfulnefs of naturalizing them ? The reafon of thefe divine laws, and the expediency of fubmitting to them, are very clearly afiigned in thefe words : « Be ye not un- " ec^ually igt ANSWER TO THE " equally yoaked with unbelievers : for, what " fellowfliip hath righteoufncfs with unrighte- " oufnefs? And what communion hath light " with darknefs ? And what concord hath " Chrift with Belial ? And what part hath he " that believeth with an infidel, &c. ? Where- " fore come out from among them, and be ye ** feparated, faith the Lord." z Cor. vi. 14, 15, &;c. Come out from among thefe unbelievers and infidels, faith the Lord, and be ye feparated from them. This is God's exprefs command. Every chriftian ought to feparate himfelf from unbelievers, but the Jews are unbelievers, there- fore every chriftian ought to feparate himfelf from them. Now, if you naturalize the Jews, and incor- porate them among you, do you not violate all thefe divine laws, and ofi'er great indignity to the fupreme law-giver? Certainly thefe confiderations are very ftriking, and fufficient to convince any perfon, who will fufFer himfelf to be convinced by "fcripture. I will leave the evidence of them upon the reader's mind, de- firing him to remember, that the prefent Jews follow the example of their forefathers' infidelity, and entertain the fame blafphemous opinions of Chrift and of his religion, and therefore, inftead of being admitted into any privileges or honours among chriftians, they ought to be put upon the following footing, as the divine ftatute in this very cafe made and provided ena6ts. " For " there CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 1^^ there are many unruly and vain talkers and ** deceivers, efpecially they of the circumcifion, " whofe mouths muft be flopped, who fubvert " whole houfes, teaching things which they ought * not, for filthy lucre's fake," Titus i. lo, ii. CHAP. IV. That the Jews are not natural-horn Subje5ls— proved from the reajon of the Thing. The Evidence fummed up. IT appears then from all thefe arguments, that the Jews, who are born in the king's domi- nions, are not natural-born fubjefts. Our antient hiftories and records unanimoufly declare, that they were the vaffals of the crown ; and that they cannot be treated as natural-born fubjefts, without overturning the verybafis of our laws, and without breaking thofe divine ftatutes upon which our laws were founded. From hence arifes. Fourthly, The abfurdity of reckoning them free-born. It is contrary to reafon and common fenfe : for who are thefe foreign natural-born fubje6ts? Are they not Jews? And what are Jews ? Are they not • the only people upon the earth, whofe principles lead them to abhor and perfecute 494 ANSWER TO THE perfecute chrlftians ? And will -the flate allow them to be our fellow fubje£ls, who are our profeft enemies ? Will it incorporate them into our communion, whofe tenets difpofe them , to dcftroy the communion ? This is a moft unnatural prr,6lice, and what in a fimilar inftance appears unnatural enough to the promoters of this very bill : -for they would not naturalize a chriftian foreigner, if he happened to difler from them concerning the lawfulnefs of the revolution ; becaufe this, fay they, is fapping the very root of the prefent eftablifnment ; and yet they will naturalize a Jew foreigner, who differs from all chrillians concerning the lawfulnefs of the chrif-' tian religion, although this be fapping the very root of our conftitution both in church and ftate. But it has been faid, that the prefent Jews are not fo oppofite to the chriftians as they were formerly : they have loft fome of the perfecuting fpirit of their anccftors. The proof of this is not fo manifcft, as the confidence of them, who affert it : for the caufe of their hatred ftill re- mains ; but, thank God, they want opportunity to fhew how much they hate us. Their princi- ples are as oppofite to us as ever. Their doc- trines and their pra61ices lead them flill to deteft us moft heartily. And why then fliould not their enmity to us operate as ftrongly, as it ufed to doj if they could once get the civil fvvord into their CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILt. 29^ their hands ? Every chrillian ftate, except ours, is perfuaded it would operate as ftrongly, and therefore they are every where put under the fame incapacities, as the wifdom of our laws put them under, until this bill was made in their favor ; which fhews what opinion the common fenfe and reafon of all chriftians lead them to form of the Jews. They never thought it con- fiftent with prudence to naturalize their avowed enemies. And the very Turks think the fame ; they refufe to admit a Jew into their communion : for they entertain fuch a bad opinion of the Jews' principles, that they will not receive a con- vert from among them ; but whenever a Jew profefTes his defire to become a Mahometan, they oblige him firft to turn chriftian. This practice is fuppofed to be agreeable to their law, which in the rank of prophets, places Mahomet firft, Chrift fecond, and Mofes third j and they think no Jew can be a true believer in Mahomet, who difbelieves Jefus Chrift ; and therefore they naturalize no Jew, unlefs he firft turn chriftian. Whereas we naturalize them with all their infidel tenets and immoral pra£Vices, which fliews, that we have lefs concern about our own fafety, and lefs regard for Chrift's honor than the very Turks have. From all thefe authorities, I hope, it is now evident, that a Jew, born in the king's dominions, is not therefore a natural-born fubjed. Our laws 2C}G ANSWER TO TKi. laws have always confidercd his infidelity as art. abfolute difqualification, and accordingly I. Our hiftories unanimoufly declare, that the: Jews were never confidercd as free-born fubjefts t)f this realm : but their condition v^'as vafiTalagCj and their perfons and their fortunes were the king's property : and II. Our laws confirm thefe hiftories : the Jews valTalage appears from many records, and from the fundamental principles of our conftitution, which oppofe the Jews' admiflion into it. A believer and an unbeliever — Cbrift and Anti- chrill: — The church of God and the fynagogue of fatan — A chriftian ftate formed upon Jew principles, or a Jew ftate upon chriftian princi-' pies — Thefe are things of heterogeneous natures, which it is impoffible to reconcile ; and if any civil conftitution lliould try to reconcile them, it. would not be able long to endure the violent fliocks of thefe difcordant qualities. For III. God has declared himfelf againft fuch unnatural mixtures : he has frequently cautioned us againlt living among infidel Jews, and has given his reafons, which every day's experience confirms, and which may be alfo farther con- firmed IV. From reafon and common fenfe. Nothing can be more abfurd, than to think of uniting them with us in the bonds of fociety, whofe enmity to us is implacable : for who ever heard of CON-SIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 297 ojTiiftaking fuch foreigners our natural-born fel- low fubjetts, who had a natural-born enmity to us ? This is worfe than tying a living man to a dead carcafs. The Jews murdered Chrift, and would murder us if they had power : they blaf- pheme Chrift and his religion ; fo that they are murderers and blafphemers convi£l ; and who ever heard of a natural-born murderer, or a natural-born blafphemer? For murdering and blafpheming Chrift, God drove them out of the Holy Land, and made them vagrants all over the earth, and who ever heard of a natural-born vagrant ? Of a -natural-born Englifli-foreign- Jew ? i. e. a free flave — born in the liberty of bondage. And yet, however abfurd this may feem, we have thefe native foreigners lately imported among us. We have murderers, cru- cifiers, blafphemers, vagrants, all become natural- born Jew-Engliflimen — in oppofition to our hif- tory and records — to our conftitution and laws — to the laws of God, and 'to reafon and common fenfe — which declare with one voice — That no infidel Jew can be a free-born fubjeft of our chriftian fociety. I have infifted the longer upon the proof of this point, becaufe the author takes it for granted throughout his pamphlet, that the Jews, born in England, are natural-born fubjefts : he builds all his reafoning upon it, and therefore I have endeavoured to prove it to be a fallacy : and I Vol. VIII. U hope 2^3 ANSWER Trf THE hope the reader now fees it in this light. If fie does not, it will be of no fervice to him to read any farther : but if he does, he will eafily follow me in the particular confutation of our author's* performance ; which he has drawn up in the form of an anfwer to the city petition, pur- pofing to fliew that the bill is " not diflionorable " to the chriftian religion — Not dangerous to the " conftitution — Not highly prejudicial to the " intereft and trade of the kingdom in general, nor to that of the city in particular." CHAP. V. The naturalization of Jews a dijiionor to the Chrijlian religion. THE five firft pages of the Confiderations contain a general account of the bill, and are built upon the diftinftion of native and foreign Jews— A diftinflion which the citizens of Lon- don were not acquainted with ; they confidered all Jews, whether born here or abroad, as fo- reigners and aliens. The law made no diftinc- tion between them, and therefore they made no difference : but fuppofed that the naturalizing of ■any Jew would be a difhonor to the chriftiaiv religion ; CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 299 teligion : for what can diflionor it fo much, as the giving to its blafphemers the civil honors of the ftate. Every Jew-Engli(hman reflefts a difgrace upon that conftitution, which natu- rahzed his blafphemies : for you cannot feparate the political Jew from the blafpheming Jew— 7'he fame perfon is both — and confider him in what light you will, he cannot, while he is a Jew, ceafe to be a blajfphemer, and confequently to be a difgrace to Chrift. Every Jew looks upon Chrift as an impoflor, and juftifies the A£t of his fore-fathers, who put him to death for a malefaftor ; and fuch is their implacable hatred of him and his doctrines, that they would crucify him again, if they had him in their power, of which we had the mod glaring proofs in their frequently crucifying chriftian children on Good- Friday, in contempt and mockery of Chrift's crucifixion. On the contrary, our government declares, that Chrift was not an impoftor, and abhors the thoughts of his being put to death for a malefaflor, and inftead of crucifying him again, adores and worfliips him as the true God, who is over all blefled for ever. Thus the opinion of our government is diametrically op- pofite to the opinion of the Jews : for their im- poftor is our Saviour — and their malefa£l:or is our Almighty God. We ferve and honor him— they condemn and blafpheme him : and there- fore fince we do him honor, by treating him ac- U a cording 300 ANSVv'ER TO THE cording to his nature and dignity, certainly they mud diflionor him, who treat him otherwife ; who try to rob him of his pcrfeftions, and to fteal his glory from him : for what is it to make him a malefactor and impoftor, but to render him the moll bafe and dilhonorable perfon that ever breathed upon this earth ? This is a true ftate of the cafe, and upon this footing the attempt to naturalize the Jews is an attempt to naturalize difgrace upon Chrift, and every Jew naturalized, naturalizes frefh diflionor upon the chriftian religion, becaufe every one of them is a blafphemer of Chrift and his religion, and. to admit them, as fuch, into our chriftian community, is giving to blafphcmers the honors of that community, which cannot be done with- out making blafphdmy againft the chriftian reli- gion honorable. In anfwer to all this, the apologift for the Jews, replies, p. 6. " And iirft, with regard to its " being diflionorable to the chriftian religion ; it " would be kind if we were told how^ long it has *' been held fo, and when this maxim was firft broached." Since his ignorance is for once inquifitive, I will be fo kind as to inform him. It was held fo ever ftnce there was a chriftian fociety, and it has been held fo in every chriftian fociety, until the prefent age, fruitful in prodigies, firft began to aft contrary to the fenfe of the whole chriltian world. The maxim w^as firft broached CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 30I broached in this ever memorable year of think- ing it no difhonor to Chrift, to admit blaf- pheming Jews into one and the fame fociety with believing chriftians ; and I dare maintain, that the prefent fet of is the only one fince the time of Chrift, that would have countenanced fo antichriftian a meafure. But though it be a novel maxim, yet perhaps it may be the means of converting the Jews to the chriftian faith. Their apologift dwells upon this from the 7th to the i ith page. The follow- ing reafons will I hope clear up this matter. Firft, Naturalizing the Jews cannot be the means of con'/crting them, becaufe the very at- tempt of it is a proof of their infidelity, and argues the improbability of their being converted at this time. Their own law enjoins them to make no covenant with the nations (Exod. xxiii. 22, 33. ch. xxxiv, II — 17. Dcut. vii..2.) but, by the a6t of naturalization, thev have made a co- venant with our nation, therefore thev have broke their own law. And Secondly, As they have given up their faith, fo have we given up ours : for if we had believed perfectly in Chrid, we tliould never have fuffcred the Jews to obtain fuch a fettlement among us, as he declares they Ihould not have, while they continued to rejeft him for their Meffiah. The fcripture fays, that' they were to be difperfcd ?mong the nations — naturalizing them is collect- ing / 302 ANSWER TO THE ing the dlfperfed into one body. Among the nations they were to find no eafe, neither was the fole of their foot to have any reft, but we try to give them all the eafe and reft which our laws can give to natural-born fubjefts. So that it was an aft of infideHty on both fides — they gave up the law, and we gave up the gofpel : and was this then the Hkely means of converting them ? Was it not rather an argument to harden them in tlieir unbeHef, to fee us aft againft the principles of that religion which we profefs ? For it would be wonderful indeed, if our rejeft- ing the chriftian faith (hould prove the efFeftual method of converting them to it. But the Jews' apologift fays, p. 8, the fcripture declares, that the Jews are objefts of conver/ion, and that this is a likely ftep towards it. Both thefe aflertions are unfupported. For, Firft, This argument has been urged long ago, and we have the experience of feveral ages to prove, that there is no force in it. When the Jews were banifhed from moft countries in Eu- rope, they were received into Italy, upon this very pretence ; but we read of no conver/ions. P, Heylin, in his Microcofm, p. 570, mentioning the great number of Jews in Rome, and in the Pope's dominions, fays, " The reafon why they " are permitted to live thus under our hoi)* father's nofe, is forfooth, an expeftation of •* their converfion, which is a mere pretence, 2 " the CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 303 the reafon being indeed, the benefit hence arifing to his holinefs's coffers, &c." Secondly, This fame argument was ufed in the time of Cromwell. The Jews were then brought in under a pretence of its being a very probable means of their general call and converfion : but hitherto no fuch good effe6l has been produced. We have had experience of them near one hundred years, and how many converts have been made in all that time ? So few, that for our own honor, we had better conceal their number. Thirdly, I cannot find any one paffage in thfe Old Teftament or the New, which authorizes us to fuppofe, that the whole nation of the Jews is ever to be converted. Their apologift makes a large quotation from Romans xi. and infers from it, that the " Jews fliall believe and be all faved:" from what words he draws this inference, he does not mention — probably from the 23d and 26th verfes, for they are the two ftrongeft paffages to his purpofe. " And they (the Jews) alfo, if they abide not fllll in unbelief, (hall be graffed " in : for God is able to graft them in again.'* Obferve the conditional claufes, if they abide not ftill in unbelief ; it is not, they fhall not abide, which is the form of God's promifes and decrees — And God is able, the apoftle does not fay, is refolved or has decreed," but only has power to do it. " And fo all Ifrael lhall be " faved." ANSWER TO THE " faved." Ifrael ftands here for the M-hoIe body of believers : for they are not all Ifrael which are of Ifrael — All the natural offspring are not called Ifrael, but only the Ifrael of God. And when the fullnefs of the Gentiles is come in, and joined to the remnant, according to the ele6lion of Grace, when believing Jews and Gentiles fhall have filled up the number of God's cleft, then all the Ifrael of God, who are the feed of Abraham, according to the faith, not fiefh, fhall be faved. But fuppofing the Jews are to be converted to the chriftian faith, yet there are many objeftions, and fome of them infuperable, againfl natural- izing them, as the proper means to attain that end. For if the converting them be the princi- pal motive, as this plea fuppofes, why do you naturalize none but rich Jews ? Have not the poorer fouls to be faved as well as the rich ? And is God any refpecter of perfons r Is not a poor man's foul as valuable in his fight as a rich man's ? And why then do you fet a greater value upon the one than the other, by granting the means of converfion to none but the rich. And why do you invite thofe rich Jews from all other countries to come into England to be converted } Have you any authority to fuppofe, that this ifland is to be the place of their con- veriion You have no authority from fcripture, nor none from tradition, not even Jewifli, that I can CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 305 can find. And the reafon of the thing Is agalnft you : for- are there not as able divines in other countries, as we have here ? I wifli no man could fay abler : and do they not live as good lives as our divines? I wifli no man could fay, better : and therefore are not their arsruments and their lives more likely to convert the Jews than ours ? However, if we muft have the Jews converted by Englilh divines, would it not be fafer and eafier to fend our miffionaries over to them, than to bring them over to us ? I dare promife, in this all candid age, no gentle humane preacher would refufe the trouble of being a miffionary into any part of the globe. Efpecially when he is in- formed, tliis has been God's ufual method of converting nations : he fent miniflers to convert them in the countries where they lived, and did not call them into a foreign land to hear the gofpel. And 'this method of converting the Jews, is prefcribed by the council of Bafil, A. D. 143 1, " That all diocefans fliould yearly, at " appointed times, provide certain men, well *' learned in holy fcriptures, and in the tongues, " to preach and explain the truth of the catholic " faith, in fuch places where the Jews and other *' infidels did dwell, in fuch fort, that they, " acknowledging their error, might forfake the " fame." Let our bifliops take this excellent method of converting thofe Jews, who are al- ready among us^ and when they arc all turned to 3o6 Answer to the; to the chrlftian faith, then no good man will oppofe our bringing in more of them in order to be converted. But till we have fome con-? verfions among the native, what reafonable hopes are there of converting the foreign Jews ? But granting all that this plea requires — grant- ing that the Jews are to be converted — and that England is to be the place of their converfion — and that our learned and pious divines are to be the inftrumcnts of converting them — yet all this proves nothing for the expediency of naturalizing them at prefent, as a proper ftep towards their converfion : for the Jews do not defire to be con- verted. They had no fuch views in foliciting the bill. I have lived much among them, and know them well, and I foleranly declare, that I never met with one Jew, who had any inclina- tion to be converted ; neither do the Jews them- felves urge this as an argument for naturalizing them. If it had come from them, it would have deferved our moft ferious attention : but it has no weight, as it comes from men, who only ufe it by way of apologizing for an odious meafure they have taken. Money matters, it is well known, were the chief objefts which they and we had in view. Their intereft and ours were the fprings which fet this naturalization in mo- tion. But what effefts it might have upon our religion and theirs never came into debate, until long after the meafure had been refolved on. The CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 307 The Jews did not petition to be naturalized, in hopes that making them EngHflimen would help to make them chriftians. They had no fuch in- tention, and if they had, their great friends would have laughed at them heartily for declaring it. They had no views but to their own intereft. Money moved them and not religion. They wanted to purchafe our lands, and to be mem- bers of our ftate ; but had no thoughts of turning to our faith, or of becoming mem- bers of our church. This was moft certainly the Jews* motive, and is fo ftill — they have no defire, they do not feek to be converted, and therefore the naturalizing them can be no ftep towards their converfion, but will rather tend to hinder and retard it, as appears from the fore- mentioned arguments. Our apologift leaves this point, p. 11, and remarks, " but it is faid the Jews are a finful *' race" — this he allows, and notwithftanding would prove they are proper obje£ts of naturali- zation from Ezek. xviii. 20 — 23, where God promifes to receive the greateft finners upon repentance. And what then ? Certainly fince God's example herein is to be ours, we are not to receive the Jews until they repent, but they have not yet repented, therefore we aft contrary to God's example, if we receive them at this time. He proceeds, " It is faid, moreover, that they are enemies to Chrift s" and being fo, one would 3oS "ANSWER TO THE would think no good chriftian could be a friend to Chrift's profeft enemies. Yet he tries to get over this d-rfficulty, though it be at the expence of prophaning a little fcripture, and running a little way from common fenfe. " As to their " enmity to Chrift," fays he, " let his own words fay the treatment he recommends chri- ftians to ufe to enemies," St. Luke, ch. vi. 27, 28. " But I fay unto you which hear, love your enemies, do good to them that bate you, *' blefs tljem that curfe you, and pray for them " that defpitefully ufe you." If this text be ap- plicable to the prefent cafe, then he allows that the Jews are our enemies, and that they hate us, and curfe us, and defpitefully ufe us, but in the n.ext page, and in feveral places, he repre- fents them as our friends and well-wifliers, iVlen who write in a bad caufe fliould have good memories : for do his Jews hate us, and love us too. How will he reconcile this abfur- dity ? And as to his text, tlie anfvver is obvipus. Every chriftian can pray for the Jews, and I hope does. Every thing in our power we would gladly do to promote their falvation. We love their perfons ; but their principles we do and muft deteft. Their infidelity and immoralities we cannot love : and we think Chrift's com- mand to love our enemies, no more proves that the Jews ought to be naturalized, than it re- quires CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 509 quires us to take our implacable enemy into our bofom, even while he is attempting to de- ftroy us. The next paragraph, p. 13, is the mofl: ex- traordinary that was ever written by any man under the charadler of a chriftian — " A danger," fays he, " is apprehended that I have not touch- " ed on : the Jews may endeavour to make con- " verts ; but this all who are converfant with " them know is merely ideal, for they do not " attempt it. This, at firft fight, may feem ex- " traordinary ! but proceeds from a quite dif- " ferent reafon, than is generally imagined. " They acknowledge, that the Protellants have " a right notion of the Deity, and moral virtues, " therefore are objects of falvation : to Avhat " end would it ferve to convert, as they think " none bound to their ceremonies for falvation " but themfelvcs r If this be true, arc thev " not much nearer to us in faith than vve think, " and may it not be doubted, whether m^Jiy of " them have any enmity to the dodtrines of chriftianity, as they ov/n falvation poflible ia " the chriftian faith Firft, Here are more abfurdities tlian words, and more horrid blafphcmies than propofitions : for if there be fo little difference between the proteftants and the Jews, why fliould the Jews be fo averfe to turn proteftants ? Efpecially fmce this would fave them the trouble of Natu- ralization jTd Answer to tne ralization Bills, and would reconcile the minds of the Engllfli to them at once. For, Secondly, It feems, " the Jews acknowledge, ** that the proteftants have a right notion of the ** Deity." Here the infidel forgot that he was acting the part of a chrillian : for are not all proteftants agreed about the doftrine of Chrift's being a perfon in the Deity ? And do not all the Jews reje6l this do£trine with abhorrence ? And is not their rejecting it, that which makes them Jews ? Our God is an impoftor with them — they execrate him whom we worfliip ; and therefore, what an abominable fahhood was it to aflert, " that the Jews acknowledge we " proteftants have a right notion of the Deity," fince the notion of the Deity is the funda- mental article about which we differ. Thirdly, What he fays about the Jews allow- ing us to have right notions of the moral virtues, is equally falfe : for the morality of chriftians is not, in any one refpe£t, like what thefe infidels call morality: they have different foundations — dif- ferent principles — and different practices. For inftance, an oath obliges a chriilian's confcience, becaufe it is an appeal to God for his falvation, and he dares not break it, becaufe he has called upon God for the truth of what he fwore, and has defired that God would help him with his mercy and truth, accordingly as he had fworn the truth before men. This makes a chriflian's oath CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILf,. ^ti oath fo obligatory, that when once lawfully- taken, no human power can diffolve it. And this is the ftrongeft tie fociety can have over a man for his performance of the moral virtues. But the Jews' oath is in no refpeft like this, be- caufe, when he takes it to a chriftian, it is nor. looked upon to be obligatory. Their oral law teaches them to keep no faith with us, allow- ing them both to break the oath, and alfo pre- fcribing the very manner of doing it. One of their great do£l:ors. Rabbi Mofes, of an oath writes thus, cap. 6. *' Becaufe he has taken a " foolifh oath, and without confideration, if he ** repent of his oath, and perceive that he *' muft fufFer if he keep his oath ; and if he has " changed his mind, or any thing happen, " which he did not think of when he took the " oath, let him confult one wife man, or three " of the common people, where a wife man is *' not to be met with; they fliall dififolve his ** oath, and afterwards he may lawfully do what ** he fwore he would not do, or may omit what " he had fworn to do." You may fee numbers of inftances in Waggenfel's Sota, p. 786, and Pug. Fidei. 716. This is the morality of the Jews. They are fo moral, that no oath can bind them. And are thefe then proper perfons to tj^ admitted into any fociety, of whofe alle- giance the ftate can have no fecurity ? Is this any thing like proteftant morality ? And what effronterv 312 ANSWER TO THE effrontery was it in this apologifl: to aver, that the morality of the Jews does not differ from the morality of the proteftants ? Fourthly, His inference from thefe pofitlons is illogical and impious, viz. That becaufe we proteftants have right notions of the Deity and- cf moral virtues, " therefore we are objefts of " falvation." He feems to approve of this infer- ence by adopting it, although it be a two-edged fvvord, that will both flay himfelf and cut down his friends : for if every man who has right no- tions of the Deity, and of moral virtues, be an. obje6l of falvation, then what becomes of his chriftian faith, which all proteftants hold to be abfolutely necelfary to make a man an objeft of falvation. Thus he proves himfelf to be no chriftian. and by an argument which proves the prefent Jews to be as ftiff-neckcd obftinate a race, as their fore-fathers were : for if they have the fame notions of the Deity and of moral vir- tues, which they acknowledge render us objefts of falvation, why do they refufe to be of our communion ? Why will not they accept of fal- vation in our way ? But he fays they almoft will. They are almoft chriftians : " for they " are much nearer to us in faith than we think." If they have any faith, they are indeed much r^ear- er to us than we think, and it is a great furprize to find they are coming near us at all : for we have always fuppofed the Jews had no faith — The CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 313 The proteftant faith, which is founded on and centers in Chrifl;, they certainly have not : be- caufe they abhor and blafpheme the name of Chrifl: ; and therefore in this faith they are not near us, but differ from us as widely as the eaft does from the wefl:. What kind of faith then have they ? It feems, it is a faith which teaches " them to have no enmity to the do6lrines of " chrifl:ianity, becaufe they own falvation pofli- " ble in the chriftian faith." This is confi- dently afferted againft the plain authority of fcripture, and againft matter of fa£t. The Jews have no faith. For they are all infidels — and infidel faith is a contradittion in terms : and then to aver, that thefe infidels have " no en- " mity to the doflrines of chrifl:ianity," is a mon- ftrous abfurdity ; becaufe infidelity confifl:s in re- jetling thofe doflrines of chrifl:ianity, to which it is fuppofed to have no enmity, even altl'.ough it reje6ts them ; which is the faith of infidelity — it believes what it difbelieves — it is Jewifh infi- delity, and yet chrifl:ian faith at the fame time,. O rare Jew difputant ! Which fhall we firft admire ? Thy head or thy heart ? Or which fhall we moft wifh thee ? Underftanding ! or virtue ? Fifthly, Our good wiflies cannot come too foon, for in the very next words he {lands in need of them. He advances a paradox worthy of himftif " Do we not carry our affertions Vol. VIII. X « too ANSWER to THE too fur, when- we infift, that the prefent race *' of Jew6 are enemies to proteftantlfm ?" How top far ? Are they not our enemies ? Enemies both to our religion and to our perfons ? Is not their infidelity the very oppofite to the chriftiait faith, and their inimoralities the very reverfe of the chriftian virtues ? Do not they hate and curfe our perfons ? Do they not pray to God to deftroy us ? In their public and private de- A'Otions they ])ray conftantly for the fudden and univerfal extirpation of Chrift's kingdom, and of all his chriftian members. Is not this as far as hatreil -can go, without cutting pur throats ; and therefore how can we be faid to carry our 'afTertibns " too far," when we infift, that the prefent race of Jews are enemies to proleftant- ifm ? After thefe remarks, he fums up the evidence, relating to religion, p. 14. "I have fhewn you," fays he, " that this Bill is no way con- trary to the chriftian tenets :" for I fuppofe ■he thinks it quite indifferent to the chriftian ■teneis> whether Chrift be God or an impoftor. " No way dilhonourable or dangerous to the Ghrifi:ia;n religion :" for it is no dilbonour to chriftianity to blafpheme it — nor no danger to cbriftianity to naturalize them, whofe princi- -'ples lead them to deftroy it. " Not difagree- able to Ghrifi: by his own words :" for he has Chaift's own words, that it was not difagree- . •, able CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 315 able to him his crucifiers ftiould be naturalized in England in the year 1753. But where are thefe words ? Why did not he produce them ? He certainly knew they were apocryphal, and therefore durft not quote them : " Nor do the " Jews endeavour the converfion of others to " their faith" — By faith, he means infidelity : But why do they not endeavour it ? They have endeavoured it whenever they had power : at prefent they are taken off from it by another fcheme. Money is their idol. Money they niofl: ardently worfliip. And the faving of fouls is with them a ridiculous purfuit, compared to the importance of getting money : and, there- fore, they do not try to convert others, becaufe they can get nothing by it. Make it a more lucrative job than plundering the public, and there will not be one Jew left in 'Chans:e-allev. They will go through fea and land to make pro- fclytes, if they can but make a fortune by it. But he goes on. " They are received and protected by all, or " moft, chriftian countries." He knew this to be falfe when he faid it, and therefore has foft- ened it a little. All chriftian countries do not receive them — Sweden and Ruflia do not — ■ Spain and Portugal do not — Several ftates in Germany do not — The Republic of Genoa does not — That all receive them is a manifeft falfliood, and -that any receive them, in the fame manner X 2, as 3l6 ANSWER TO THE as we intend to do, is a wilful falfliood ; I fay wilful, becaafe the apologift knows it to be falfe : he knows that the Jews are not the na- tural-born fubjecls of any chriftian fociety, and that they cannot be treated as fuch, while the fociety continues chriftian. He was fatisfied in his confcience this was matter offa£t, and there- fore he went on to affert a more outrageous paradox than this, in hopes the monftroufnefs of the one would hide the other : p. 14. he fays, " Our country has had experience of the " Jews a long time, on the fame, or a more ex- " tenfive footing, than they will be in confe- « quence of this A£l." But Firft, We have had no experience of the Jews on the " fame footing :" they could not be natural-born fubje£ts ; becaufe there can be no greater abfurdity in politics, than to allow them to be the natural-born fubjefts of any chriftian fociety, who are the natural enemies of thofe fundamental maxims, upon which every chri- ftian fociety is formed : fo that a natural-born foreign infidel Jew is fuch a monfter in a chri- ftian conftitution, that we can have no experi- ence of them upon the *' fame footing," as this Bill puts them, and therefore much lefs, as our apologift afferts. Secondly, On a more extenfive footing : for the prefent Bill was not made to limit the power and influence of the Jews. It was certainly an Aa CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 317 A£l in their favour. It was to give them fome privileges, which they had not before ; and whatever they were, they could not be increafed without being extended : and therefore, our Jew apologifl: will ftand in need of all his chi- canery to prove, " That we have already had " experience of the Jews, on a more extenfive footing than they will be in confequence of this A£t." For before he can get any Englifh- man to believe him, he muft firft fliew, that the more you extend a thing, the more you limit it — which may be good philofophy among the Jewi(h Rabbies, but it is vile nonfenfe among Englifli chriftians. In this ftrain he ends — ^ And therefore I muft " conclude, that the introducing the Jews, by " private or particular Bills of Naturalization, " tends no way to the diflionour or detriment of " the chriftian religion." How unnaturally this conclusion follows from his premifes I leave the reader to judge, only reminding him, that the Jews are blafphemers convift, and to give ho- nour to the blafphemers of chriflianity, is moft undoubtedly doing dilTionour to chriftianity it- felf — and they are alfo the open avowed ene- mies of chriftianity, and to give the open avow- ed enemies of chriftianity power and influence in the ftate, is moft undoubtedly doing detriment to chriftianity itfelf. CHAP. :i8 ANSWER TO THE CHAP. VI. tArguments to prove that naturalizing the Jews tends greatly to endanger our excellent Conjlitutipn. OUR conftitution in church and ftate is, at prefent, chriftian — founded upon the principles •of chriftianity ; an^ whatever openly and avow- edly oppofes thefe principles, mufl: endanger the conftitution fo far as its oppofition has pow- er. But there are no two religions in the world more oppofite, than the infidelity of the Jews, and X\e faith of the chriftians : for the Jews are the open and avowed oppofers of thofe princi- .ples of chriftianity, upon which our conftitution is founded, and the prefent Aft in their favour, cannot be carried into execution without in- creafing the power of their oppofition, and con- fequently it muft fo far endanger the conftitution, as it increafes the power of its oppofers. No unprejudiced perfon can refift the force of thefe truths : for what can be more felf-evident, •than that the Jews are the enemies of our con- ilitution, and t]iat putting power into their hands, muft endanger the conftitution. And in- (deed thefe fafts are fo felf-evident, that our Jew apologift himfelf can fee and confefs the truth of them in every cafe, except the prefent. In p. 16. CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. ^K). p. 1 6, "he acknowledges, that the eflabhflied church cannot confiftentl}-, with her own fafely, lodge any power in the hands of the Papifts, or in the hands of the Proteftant dilTenters:- if flie had no laws to reftrain them, flic might be in danger; but fhe l\as nothing to fear from-> the Jews. Is not this extraordinary? For can' any perfon devife what fliould induce a chri- ftian church to prefer foreign bJafphemers be- fore thofe proteftants, who differ from her only- about trifles ? But a reafon he has afligned, and a very Angular one it is, and fuch as a man mufl: really be under the blindnefs of Jewifli in- fatuation, if it convinced himfelf, or made him imajrine it could convince anv bodv elfe. " But " the Jews," favs he, " can have no view to " give the church the leaft trouble, as we have " already remarked they do not attempt mak- " ing pfofelytes, and that the Proteftant religion " is more fimilar to their own than any other." What then ! Are they fo fimilar, that the dif- ference is fcarce perceptible ? .Will it be a very fmall miitake, if you take Judaifm for Protellant- ifm, or Proteflantifm for Judaifm Are they fo vafLly alike^ that you muft have good eyes to know them afun(|er — the fame fpirjt animating both — the fame features — with the fame fliape and air ? What a flrange metamprphofis is tWs ! and how unkno\yn t© all the chriftian world un- til this day ! Por we have always apprehended, that 320 ' ANSWER TO THE that the proteftant religion was more diffimilar to the Jewifli than any other — the Jewifli being all infidelity and blafphemy — and the proteftant all foundnefs and truth. This is molt certainly the opinion of all proteftants, and how then could he flatter himfelf, that on his bare word Ave fliould believe truth and error were become fimilar, fince Chriftians and Jews are Hill fo un- like, that the weakefl: eye can fpy an effential difference between them ? For Do we not effentially differ concerning the promifed MefTiah ? Their Mefllah is not yet come. They look for him daily, and are always praying for his coming. And fuppofe they fliould fet up Mr. G n for their Melfiah: for they have often fet up a more unlikely per- fon : and fuppufe they fhould raife a rebellion, and take up armiS to fupport his title, would not this endanger the conflitution ? Moff certainly it would. But to this our apologiff has a reply ready. He fays, p. i6, " As to a ridiculous " fear that has been talked of, even by fome *^ fenfible perfons, that they might try to raife a falfe Meffiah, 'tis furprizing, that any one, " who has read the New or Old Teftament, " can think of fuch a thing; they all expe£l " the Meffiah's appearance in the Holy Land Our fears of a falfe Mefliah are not fo ridiculous as he would reprefent them ; becaufe the reafon, which he gives to remove them, is contrary to matter CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 32I matter of fa6l. It is a glaring falQiood to affirm, « That all the Jews expe6t the Meffiah's ap- *^ pearance in the Holy Land :" for our apologift muft know very little of hiftory, if he has never r^ad of falfe Mefliah's out of the Holy Land ; and if he has read of them, what are we to think of the goodnefs of his heart, who could try to deceive us in fo plain a cafe ? falfe Mef- fiah's have certainly arifen in other parts, and why then may they not arife in England ? Why may not Mr. G n make them as promifmg a Meffiah as Oliver Cromwell ? For I find Oliver's chara£ler anfwcred all their expe61ations : indeed he was fo perfefil; a copy, that they miftook him for the original ; and if Cromwell would have acted the part, they would have fet him up for the Meffiah. There is a curious anecdote of this affair in Raguent's Hift. d'Oliver Cromwell, p. 290, which I will give the reader at length. " About ** the time Rabbi Manaffeh Ben Ifrael came to " England to folicit the Jews' admiffiion, the " Afiatic Jews fent hither the noted Rabbi " Jacob Ben Azahel, with feveral others of his nation, to make private enquiry, whether " Cromwell was not that Meffiah whom they " had fo long expe£led. Which deputies, upon " their arrival, pretending other bufinefs, were " feveral times indulged the favor of a private " audience from him. And at one of them, propofed 3^1 A-NSvVpn TO T?!£ " propofed buying the Hebrew books^ and *^ nKuiufcripts belonging ^ to the Univerfity of *< Cambridge, in order. to- have an opportunity, under pretence of viewing them, to inquire " amongft his relations in Huntingdonflure,, "where he was bornj whether any of iiis an- *f (jeftprs could be proved of Jewifli extra£l." This projecl o£ theirs vyas very readily agreed to, (the Uoiverfity being. at that time under a " cloud, on account of their former loyalty to the " king) and accordingly the embaffadors fet for- *' wards upon their journey. But difcovering " bv their much longer continuance at Huntm":- " don than at Cambridge, that their bufinefs, at " the laft place, Vv-as not fuch as was pretended, *' and by not making their enquiries into Oliver's " pedigree with that caution and fccfefy which " wa-s neceffary in fuch an affair; the true purpofe " of their errand, into England, became quickly " known at London, and was very much talkej^ " of ; which caufuig great Icandal among the " faints, h€ was forced fuddenly to pack them out " of the kingdom, without granting any of their " requefts." In reading this hiftory, 1 obferve, Firft, That the Jews have expected a falfe jNIeliiah in England, and -therefore they may ex- peft one again. Secondly, They fuppofe that his charafter will be like Oliver Cromwell's (I leave the reader to judge CONSIDERATIONS' ON THE JEW BILL. 323 judge what an accompliflied villain tKtn he will be). And, Thirdly, That therefore he is to fight his way to empire, by the total deftru6tion of our con- ftitution both in church and ftate. Our Jew apologift expefls this happy day, and hopes to live to fee us all led in chains attending his MefiTiah's triumphal car ; and does he think our conftitution will not be then in danger ? But he tries to take our eyes off from this our dif-^>ial overthrow, by turning them to our Handing army. " Our foldiery, (fays he, p. 17. who " have lately quelled fo confiderable a number " of difobedient fubjefts, although affiled by " foreign powers, muft treat, with the greateft *' contempt, the thought of a difarmed, unfup- " ported crew's giving us the leaft uneafinefs ; " permit me. Sir, to fay, Bayes's army is not near " fo ridiculous as fuch a notion." 1-Iere he tries to impofe upon us. The queliion is not, what our army could do, but what they may be called, to do: We believe our foldiers would not want courage, nor their arms fuccefs, againfl: any falfe Meffiah, whom the Jews may fot up. This we may believe with reafonable alTurance. But this is going from the point. The queflion as it effefts the Jews is this : Is it probable they fhould fet up a Mefliah : We maintain it to bo •very probable : becaufe they have fet up many, and they ftill expeft one. More probable ftill, 2 - when 3^4 ANSWER TO THE when all the rich Jews in the world, invited over by this bill, are arrived here : and if they fliould fet up fuch an one, and fight for him, would not our conftitution then be in danger ? Was it not in danger in the year 1745 ? And will it not be more in danger, when all the rich Jews in the world, and their jure divino Mefliah at the head of them, fhall take up arms on purpofe to over- throw our conftitution ? And The probability of their fetting up fuch a Mefliah receives a ftill greater degree of evidence, from what our apologift mentions in the next para- gi-aph, p. 17. " It has been urged, that their " tenets are repugnant to curs, or any other *' conftitution." Are they not repugnant ? No, fays he, their conftitution was like ours. He may fancy them alike : but the tenets of the conftituents are more unlike than light and darknefs. Our principles are founded in truth and reafon — theirs in infidelity and contradiction —they have not the fame religion, the fame God, nor the fame morality — indeed their morality muft be falfe, fmce their obligation to it arifes from a falfe religion, and a falfe God. By what tye then can the ftate fecure their obedi- ence to its laws ? There is abfolutely none : for an oath, which is the greateft fecurity the ftate can have, lays them under no obligation (fee p. 311) and muft not the admiffion of fuch per- fons prove dangerous to the conftitution ? Do we CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 32.5 we not exclude the Papifts for this very reafon, becaufe they will keep no faith with us ; and are the Jews, who hold the fame doftrine, worthy to be admitted ? Certainly the Papifts are not quite fo bad as the Jews, and why then fliould admitting the Jews be fuppofed not to endanger the ftate, and yet admitting the Papifts to en- danger it ? What can be the reafon of judging thus differently, in one and the fame cafe, will remain a fecret, until the apologift vouchfafe to give us fome cabaliftical account of it. In the mean time, we muft conclude from reafon and fafts, that no chriftian ftate can admit the Jews into its fociety without endangering itfelf : becaufe it can have no fecurity for their good behaviour; it can lay their confciences under no obligation, and a heathen or a profeft atheift would make as good fubjefts as the Jews. But what then ? Would you perfecute us : Cries he, p. 18, 19, and he tries to reprefent the oppo- fition made to their naturalization, as the begin- ning of a general perfecution againft all thofe who diflent from the eftabliflied church. " And " the pretext, he fays, may be to begin with the " Jews, as the weakeft." Poor good man ! what has conjured up thefe frightful fpeftres, that fo horribly terrify him ? He could laugh and ridi- cule Bayes's army but now, and behold a more fportive fcene throws him into a pannic. Oh fadnefs ! 22(> ANSWER TO THE fadnefs ! does perfecution, that Portuguefe hob- goblin haunt him even in England ? Why, here It is not able to frighten a fucking child : for who is to perfecute the Jews ? The cflabliflied church. And ip what part of the eftabliflied church dwells this perfecuting fpirit ? Not in the ruling part of it I am fure, and the reft is out of the queftion. But indeed this is no perfecuting" age. Our apologift may take courage. Let him recollecl the naturalization bill, and certain- ly this will rid him of his fears : for they who could think the Jews worthy to be naturalized, will never think them fit to be perfecuted. The apologift here concludes that part of his defence which relates to the conftitution ; and now let the reader judge, whether ^he na- turalizing of the open avowed enemies of the conftitution would not endanfrer it ? And rich O ertemies too, brought in to purchafe land eftates among us, and to get fuch power and influence, as is infeparable from holding thofe eftates ; and will not thefe enemies endanger our conftitu- tion ? efpecially fmce thefe rich Jews may have influence enough over the poor to get fome falfe Mefliah fet up, and to make our country a fcene of blood and dcfolation ; will not this endanger our conftitution ? Or if they fhould not fet up a falfe MeflTiah, yet their law allows them to hold no faith with us — no oath can bind them j and win CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 327 will not fuch men endanger the conftitution ? Certainly our conftitution muft be' a very ftrange one, if that which deftroys all crthers, does not even endanger it. CHAP. VII. A general Anfwer to the remaining Part of the .ConJi- deratians, with Remarks on the chief Fallacies con- tained in it. THE Jew apologift, frOtti the 20th page, to thp end, difcuffes- feveral points, in which the ne- ceffity and expediency of ihe prefent bill is w^ay affected. He confiders the motives vvhigji urged the JeWs to defire fuch a bill — the pr^- grefs of it — and the principles upon ^which - it M as oppofed. But thefe particulars are of -v/£xy little confequence. The reafons which miglit induce the Jews to folicit, or others to oppofe it, are quite foreign to th^ main point. Thp only thing that ought to be confidered, is the mature and tendency of the bill itfclf* . Is agreeable to the laws of God ; is it confift'Cnt with the laws of the Jand t Can it be car- ried into execution, without detriment to the conftitution? If it cannot, then fuppofingfonK^ unfair methods had been taken to defeat it^ thoug'h 328 Answer to the though none fuch, I maintain, were taken, yet thefe would not affc£l the merits of the caufe ; for it would be very hard, if truth fliould fuffer for the faults of its defenders. Men will be men. They will mix their weaknefles and infir- mities with the befl: things : for nothing upon earth is abfolutely perfe£l. But in the prefent cafe, there was as little of human infirmity as any religious oppofition was ever managed with ; and I verily believe there was lefs. And yet, was it lefs or more, truth was fl:ill the fame. It was the part of every candid judge, not to con- fider by what perfons, or in what manner the Jews bill was oppofed, but by what reafons : he was to regard the merits of the caufe, and to weigh the evidence — which was, juft what it was, were there much or little of unruly warmth and paffion on one fide, or on both. The remaining part of the pamphlet then leaves the main quellion, and goes to debate what had been much better let alone. The Jew apologift recriminates. He accufes the city — accufes the merchants — accufes all who have oppofed the bill, of unfair dealing, of heat, of zeal, and Jacobitifm. Such heavy charges can do his caufe no fervice. Men are exafpera- ted enough already. It was not his bufinefs to try to inflame them more; efpecially by accufa- tions which he cannot fupport; and leaft of all, againft bodies of men, who have no enmity to the CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 329 the perfons of the Jews, who have lived, and could ftill live with them upon good terms, it" they could be content with their former fituati- on, and would ceafe to difturb the public peace and tranquillity with their ambitious and unlawful views: for they have given his raajefty's good fubjedls all this uneafinefs, dnd as if they had not occafioned difcontent enough already, they publifli defences of their fcheme, full of the grofTeH: abufes againft every Engliihman, who has ajuft fenfe or value for his natural-born rights, and is not willing to throw them away upon his natural enemies: for muft it not increafe our dif- content to fee fuch invefilives, as this pamphlet is full of, againft the whole body of the city and of the merchants? and the inveftives too of Jews— of men who owe their very being here to the lenity of the crown — Of men, not one of whom has any legal fettlement among us, ex- cept the few who have taken the benefit of the aft of 1740. And is not this very treatment of us, before they are made our fellow fubjefts, a good reafon, if there were no other, againft ma- king them fubjefts at all? For the very city where they live, the merchants with whom they liave connexions, cannot efcape their inveftives, and all this malice arifes from our oppofing them in a fcheme, in which, if we had not oppofed them, we fliould have been the vileft poltroons that ever breathed EngliOi air. And yet truly. Vox., Vin, y _ ' when 33° ANSWER TO THE when we endeavour publickly to defend our- felves, then they cry, we raife a clamour againft them, as if they had not been the firft caufe of the clamour, and as if they did not ftill fpread it, by juftifying- their proceedings. The way to flop the clamour is to give no farther occafion for it, and there is but one wav to do that, which is to infifl: no longer upon their favorite fcheme; and yet our apologift's defence of it proves, that they are determined not to give it up. And therefore a defence on our fide is become neccf- fary. The charafters of the magiftrates and merchants of the city, whom he has afperfed, ought to be vindicated, and the cafe ought to be ftated clearly and fairly, that the pub- lic may judge, on which fide truth prevails. And in order to fet the matters of fa£t in a juft; light, it muil be previoufly remarked, that all the Jews reafoning in this latter part of his pam- phlet is builded upon feveral crazy pillars, and what he has creeled upon them, is a poor rotten ftru(Sture, which will inevitably tumble to the ground, fo foon as it appears. Firft, That the Jews born here are not natu- ral-born fubjects. This is the foundation of all, and if you remove this, down falls the tottering performance. He takes it for granted, that -Jews born in England are to all intents and pur- pofes natural-born Engliflimen^ although our hiftories and records — the laws of Godr— and the .laws CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 33I laws of the land — reafon and common fenfe — • prove, that they were never placed upon the fame footing with the free-born fubje^ls of this kingdom, and could not be fo placed, while Chriftianity continued to be our religion, and Judaifm theirs: becaufe the two religions are the mofl oppofite and inconfiftent that can be ima- gined. No two things were ever more con- trary. The very fervice and ceremonies of the one, are nothing but folemn abufe and blafphemy againft the other. The very prayers which arc daily offered up to God in the fynagogue, and thrice a day in private by every Jew, implore the total extirpation of chriftianity, and of all chrif- tians; with which they beg the Almighty would deftroy us in the moft dreadful manner, tliat we may live without hope, and die without mercy. How can it ever be thought, that any chrillian Hate could allow fuch profeffed enemies to be admitted into its privileges, much lefs to be on the fame footing with its own natural-born fub- jefts. It was never allowed till the prcfent at- tempt was made. All chriflian focieties before were agreed to exclude them: for Chrill is the head of all chriftian ftatcs; they are formed upon his laws, and fupportcd by his divine authcrity; even emperors and kings hold under him, and it is in virtue of his commands, that the people pr^y them obedience. Now while Chrifl: is the head of the (late, and the king a£l:s as his deputy, and Y 2 tlje J32 ANSWEH TO Trfe the fubje^s obey their king under that charaflcf,^ how can we, confiftently with thefe principles, admit the Jews into our chriftian ftate, who deny {1-11 the fundamental maxims of our civil and reli- gious eftabli(hment; and to mix fuch irreconcile- dble qualities up with the eftablifliment is a moll unnatural mixture. A natural-born Jew in a chriftian ftate is a monftrous produ6lion. A na- tural-born traitor is not a greater contradi6tion and therefore we may conclude, that no Jew ever was, or is, or can be, a natural-born fubje£t of thefe realms, unlefs he be created fo by a£l of parliament. _ The Jew apologift in what follovps from p. 20, dwells fo much upon the diftin£lion of native and foreign Jews, that you will not leave him even the appearance of an argument, if you over- throw this diftinftlon; and from the reafons before affigned, I hope the reader is now con- vinced, that there is no foundation for it. It is a mere fallacy. A Jew born here has no more privileges than a Jew born in Tartary ; and there- fore all his pleadings for the reafonablenefs of na- turalizing foreign Jews, becaufe this would be granting them no more privileges, than what the native Jews enjoy, are quite inconclufive. Ac- cording to our conftitution they are foreigners and aliens, wherever they happen to be born. They are no more free fubje6ts, becaufe born in England, than the children of an attainted traitor 5 would- CONSIDETIATIONS OT!l THE JEW BILL. 333 would be reftored in blood, becaufe born in En- gland. The Jews ftand outlawed, both by the common law and exprefs llatutes. This was well known to the citizens and merchants, and therefore they could not avoid expreffing a dif- Jike of a novel illegal opinion, which tended to take away all diftinftion, bet\tecn natural^born -chriflian Engliflimen, and foreign blafpheming Jews; and they have not yet heard any thing faid in defence of this opinion, which could re- concile them to it. They ftill think it novel and illegal. Moft of its advocates take it for granted, as our apologift does, and when you call upon them for proof, they either give you ftrong af- fertions, or elfe run into bitter inv£fiives: for thefe are the only methods, by which they can prove, that Jews, born in England, are the free- born fubjp£ts of this realm. This is our apolo- gift's firft miftake, which runs throughout his performance, and the Second miftake arifes from it, viz. That the bill was not intended to naturalize the Jews, who refide among us, but only rich foreigners. This has been always urged as a ftrong argu- ment in favour of the bili, but there is an incon- ififtency in the thing itfeif, and a farther iuconlift- «ncy in the apologift's account of it. The thing is not confiftent with truth, and matter o ' fact. For the moft opulent Jews are refident in Hol- land, and it daes not appear, that any Datch '334- ANSWER TO THE Jew, and much lefs numbers of them have foli- cited fuch a bill, neither has this been ever menr tioncd, and yet it would have been fo plaufi- ble a pretence for applying to parliament, that filence about it implies there is no fuch thing. The great importation of rich Jews is not to be made from Holland. From whence then are they to come? Let us look around us, and fee from what part of the world we are to expe£l them. Not from Spain and Portugal — they have no rich Jews. From Germany then and Po- land? They have no rich Jews. From the Weft Indies? One American Jew, who took the be- nefit of the a£t in 1740, has brought over into England a large fortune; I hear not of a fecond: if there be more, they want no Naturalization Bill to invite them over. In France there may be fome rich Jews, but we cannot expe£t them; becaufe they have given out, that they have alrea- dy more privileges there, than they will enjoy here by virtue of this bill, and the Jews certainly know their intereft too well to leave greater pri- vileges for lefler. From Italy indeed, from Bar- bary, and Turkey, we may expeft rich Jews, if fuch there be inthofe countries: but there is not any probability, much lefs any certainty of fo many rich Jews coming from all parts,, of the world, as will do the ftate near fo much fer- yice, as the inviting them over by this bill is like to do it by dilTervicc. But CONSIDERATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. 335 . But in fa£l the naturalizing of tliefe rich fo- reign Jews is only' a preterice. It was not the true reafon for foliciting the bill. There were other motives, and others too are afligned by the apologift, which prove him to be inconfiftent with himfelf. In p. 40, he fpeaks out, " Per- " haps they had fome fecret caufes for foliciting " the bill." With thefc fecret caufes therefore the public were not acquainted — the true caufe was kept out of fight; but introducing rich Jews was openly given out; it was not a fecret caufe, therefore it was not the true caufe. He goes on, " Perhaps fome private attempts were made " upon their rights as fubjefts, which might have " made them defirous of afcertaining what they " were." — They were defirous of afcertaining, not what rights tlicy already enjoyed, but what the parliament would of their grace and favour enable them to enjoy. They had no rights as fubjecis ; for fubjccts they were not, and could not be, and never can be, but by a£t of parlia- ment; becaufe our ftate can have no natural-born fubje£ls but Chriftians, and a natural-born Jew Chriftian Foreign Englifliman, is fuch a medley of contraditlions, that all the Rabbics in the world will never be able to reconcile them. At laft the true caufe comes out, " Some of them " (fome of the natural-born Jews) had turned " their thoughts to buying landed cllates, and " might be willing every obftacle fliould be re- moved, ANSWER TO THE "moved, before they purchafed." This fen* tence confutes his whole book: for if they had been to all intents and purpofes natural-boni fubje£ts, certainly they were qualified to pur- chafe land eflates ; but fince they found obfta^ cles in the way, which this a£l of parliament was to remove, then it follows by the clearefl: inference, that they were to no one intent and purpofe natural-born fubje£^s. Every natural-born fubjeft can purchafe a land effate without aft of parliament, but the Jews could not purchafe a land eftate without aft of parliam.ent, therefore they are not natural-born lubjefts. Thirdly, In p. 24, 25, the apologifl: gives us fuch a firing of falfehoods, that if he goes on ir; this fcience, he will in time outlie his very father : fpeaking of the propofed naturalization, he fays, *' It was on this foandation the application was *' made in a general and public manner, after *' which they publiflied it among their acquaint- ance, and it was a common topic of converfa- " tion, p'articularly at the clofe of the feffions of " 1752. It met a general (not to fay an unani- " mous) approbation, it was then thought pro- *^ p they did not want any Jew arguments to reafon them into it ; they faw evidently how much it tended to their own in- tereft, as well as to the public utility. Every trader found his account in it ; and if there was any merit in figning the aflbciation, every man v.-ho figned it niuft have his fhare, and the Jew can claim no more. Indeed, if the Jews had invented this aflbcia- tion—had firfl fet it on foot— had unanimoufly figned it — and then brought the chriftians in, by- convincing them it was their intereft to (ign — all this would have been a matter of merit, and I (hould not have tried to rob them of it. But OU THE JEW BILL. 365 Tince they had not even the honor of inventing^ the fcheme, I muft think their claiming it a good argument againlt their naturalization j becaufe they claim it in reward for fervices, v/hich it appears they never did. The apologift has but one lignal fervicc more to urge in his clients fav^or, and that is 4. Their lending money on the land-tax. Ik doing which, I am not able to difcover the lead grain of merit ; though I can fee the old Jew principle wwking ftrongly. For they did them felves a double piece of fervice, by what they call, ferving the flate : for had they not good interefi r And though not enough to make it the moft lucrative job they had during the war, yet there was one circumftance which made it then the bed to them. The land-tax was on feveral accounts the bcft fecurity the Jews could get, and in this time of danger, the beft fecurity was very valuable ; and therefore J would willingly be informed, wherein conlifted the merit of thofc men, whofe fortunes lay in nioney, and who lent it upon the beft fecurity the ftate could give them ? And was this the merit which deferved naturalization r Have they any claim upon the public, who do nothing for ite public without intereft r And wherein then lies the great merit of thefe Jews ? who defire us to naturalize them, not becaufe they ever did this kingdom any real fervice, but only becaufe they 366 ANSWER TO THE they perfe£^ly underftand their own interefl, and have always purfued it moft invariably. From thefe fa6ts, the reader, I hope, will be difpofed to conclude with me, that the apologift has been very unhappy in the inftances, which he has brought to prove his clients merit: he made them enter volunteers into the fervice, when in fa£l: they were preft men : he gave them honor for importing fpecie, when it was their utter difgrace, that they had before fmuggled it out of the kingdom, and now got more than 7 per cent, by bringing it back again : he af- cribed great glory to them for the fcheme of taking bank notes at par ; which they neither invented, nor were inftrumental in promoting more than other merchants : and he extols them to the Ikies for lending money upon the land- tax, when they received prefent intereft in one hand, and had the befl: fecurity the nation could give in the other. In thefe inftances the Jews did nothing, that the public need thank them for. And indeed here in the city we are blind to all this Jew merit, which makes fuch an eclat at the court end of the town. Merit they cer^. tainly have there, though they have none here. And whatever it be, their apologift has not told us the truth. There is fome Jew merit which it was not thought proper to bring to hght. Wo can only guefs at it. Perhaps it may be their great {kill in the myfteries of jobing. During CONSIDERAtlONS ON THE JEW BILL. 367 the lafl: war, we had fome pretty fmart proofs of their merit in this way, and if thefe are to be the foundation of their prefent claim, we have felt enough of them already to make us wifh moft heartily, that we may never have any more ex- perience of Jew merit. CHAP. xir. "The ahfvrdky of introducing Forty into this Debate^ when there is no pretence for any Oppojition be- tween Chrijlians and Chrijlians — the Cvntejl being entirely between Chrijlians and Jews. WHEN all the other arts of calumny and •falfliood fail, then the Jews betake themfelves to ■party diftinctions, trying to raife a new Jew in- bereft in this kirigdom, in oppofition to the old chrirtian intereft: to which end they endeavour to divide the nation about their affairs, and to fupport their caufe by party, fince they find they can no longer fupport it by argument. And they Imve already made fuch a proficiency in the fcience of faction, that they venture publicly and in print to call all their enemies, enemies to the government. Whoever oppofes the Jew in- lereft muft be a jacobitc, or a tory at leaft : for ,he 368 ANSWER TO THE he who docs not befriend the Jews, can be no iriend to the houfe of Hanover. The apologifl: has been very free and hberal of thefe odious names. Whenever he is at a lofs for a good reafon to anfwer the objections of the citizens and merchants, then he always has recourfe tq fome of his party appellations ; to which a feri- pus reply is fcarce needful, becaufe the very ufe of them implies the want of better materials, and is no proof that the oppofers of the Jewsj are Jacobites. It only proves, that our Jew enemies have fpent all their powder and ball upon us, and they have nothing left to annoy u^ "with but Jacobite ftinkpots, which they firft throw plentifully upon us, and then accufe us, and find us guilty, of being polluted yvith jacobiUi ordure. We are not furprized at the Jews taking thefe diflioneft methods of dividing us among our- felves ; becaufe they are fenfible, that if thefe (hould fail them, their caufe is defperate. Un- lefs they can attach thcmfelves to fome party, their intereft is loft. They therefore labour this point. It is their laft refource, and it is a moft iniquitous one ; becaufe it tends to introduce fome new divilions among his majefty's good fubje£ls, whofe great misfortune it is, th^t they are already too much divided. The citizens and merchants went upon a different footing. Thev tried to flop the fource 9f CONSTDES-ATIONS ON THE JLW BILL. 3S9 pf future contention : for they forcfaw what uneafinefs and difqniet the propofed naturaliza- tion would give to their fellow fubjefts, and therefore they tried as -nujch as was in their power to do their duty to their king and to their country. It was their aim in petitioning to prevent any innovation in church and ftate : they requeued, as it became true patriots,"' that the conftitution might be preferved upon its ancient footing, having learned from the experience of former ages, that the greatefl: commotions, which liave ever happened to any ftate, took their rife from fome ill-judged change or novelty in reli- gion. It is now vifible, that they were good politicians. And at laft the Jews and their friends begin to open their eyes. They fee their miftake ; but unwilling to re6lify it, they weakly imagine, that the public can belmpofed upon by an hard word — and that all things will become quiet again, after they have called the enemies of the Jews Jacobites. This method of juflify- ing themfelvcs is a weaker ftep than the thing which they juftify : for mankind is "convinced that there is no more reafon to call the enemies of the Jews Jacobites, than to call all them, who happened not to be circuracifed, Jacobites. If the Jews and their friends had attended to fome untoward inferences, which may be drawn from their reflections upon the merchants, they would, I hope, have been more fparing of them. They 37® ANSWER TO THE They call every one of us who is an enemy to this propofed naturalization, a jacobite. And would they have us to believe them., or not ? If not, then why do they try to fupport their caufe by the vile arts of falfliood ? But if they would have us to believe them, the confequence will be fuch as they will not like : for then all the chriftians in the kingdom are Jacobites, becaufe they are to a man again ft the Jews, excepting a few, whom the Jews have lifted into their party. And would they have the public believe this ? If they would, I am fure they are not friends to the government, for the very infinuation would arglie difaffeciion in any other perfon, but a Jew. Nay, if we purfue this confequence as far as they go with it, it will prove all the chriftians in the world to be Jacobites : for they all oppofc the Jews. Yea, it will prove all the twelve opoftles to be Jacobites, except Judas : for they all were enemies to the Jew§, and they all op- pofed Jew money, but him. I hope we have no Judas's among us : if we have, they will be the iirft to call hard names. For a man who has once taken a wrong ftep, is always uneafy when he is detected. If he cannot vindicate his con- du£l, then he will throw hard names plentifully about him, and every one, that dares cenfure his meafures, fliall be fure of being treated as difr affe£ted, a tory, or in the heat of his rage, a jacobite ; not confidering in what a contempti- ble CONSICT.RATIONS ON THE JEW BILL. $'Jt ble light he places the government, if we do believe him ; or in what a bad light he places himfelf, if we do not believe him. The Jews ought to have been the laft people in the world guilty of this crime ; and leaft of all upon this occafion. When they propofed their naturalization, we had a right to call upon them for found arguments, and they had no right to put us off with hard words. If they had been our mafters, they could have treated us no worfe, but as they are only our vifitors, it was their intereft to have treated us better. What are we to expeft from fuch men, if they {hould ever become our mafters ? But I hope that day is far off. And I believe it is made much far- ther, by their late attempt to bring it nearer. The nation will be more upon its guard againfi: the ambitious views of the Jews, and if it fliould allow them to continue among us in their former fituation, that will be indulgence enough, and indeed it is much more than they deferve. It is greatly to be wiflied, that there was no other diftinftion in the kingdom, but Chriftians and Jews. Happy would it be for us all ! but the iniquity of the times finds its ufe in party- diftinftions. We are to be divided about a meafure, which no way concerns any one party in the kingdom. And why divided ? Becaufe certain chriftians are divided againft certain Jews. Well ! and are there any chriftians who 372 ANSWER TO THE CONSIDERATIONS, are not againll thefe Jews ? Yes ? we have fuch prodigies, as Chriftian-Jews : and among the marvellous produftions of this marvellous age this is not the leaft, that thefe Chriftian-Jeu-s have dared publicly to maintain, that the citizens, the merchants, and all the other chriftians who cppofe them are Jacobites. But the citizens ajid merchants arc not to be terrified with an hard name. They can appeal to their conduft. Their lives and anions thall an- fwer the calumnies of their enemies : for thefe fpeak ftronger than words ; and let thefe declare to the public, who is the bell friend to the go- vernment— the Chriftian— or the Jew The chriftian, who is a natural-born fubjecl, and who ferves his God, his king, and his country out of principle : or the foreign outlawed Jew, who Jias no God, no king, and no country, and who rever a6ts upon any higher principle, than felf■^ jntereft, A N ESSAY O N PSALMODY, Cive thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deedi among the people: fmg unto hira, fing pfalms unta him. I Chron. xvi. 8, 9. PREFACE. In the fervice of the church of England there is great ufe made of the pfalms. They are read in every day's fervice, both at morning and evening prayer, and are conftantly fung in pubUc worfhip. It is much to be wifhed they were better under- ftood, that the daily reading and fmging of them might be the means of grace. Very few, it is to be feared, receive the profit from them, which as an ordinance of God they were intended to adminifter. I have long feen the defign of them greatly mif- taken, and have long lamented the con- tempt put upon them. At laft I have been perfuaded to try to make the fubje6t of thefe divine hymns plain and clear, and to reftore the fmging of Lhem in the congre- gation to their primitive ufefulnefs. This is my prefent attempt. Succefs in it de- pends ^jk PREFACE; pends on help from God. He revealed the book of pl'alms, and he alone can make the Tinging of them profitable. 1 hope he ivill. Ma)' he accompany my well-meant performance with his prcfcnce, and profpei" it with his grace. If it bring any honor to his holy name and wordj thanks be to him. If any body reads it, and is ftirred up to fmg more and better, if our public finging of pfalm^s be reformed, and become in the Icaft like the great eoncert of faints and angcis, this will be altogether his doing ; may he have all hi^ praife. I deferve none, being: onlv in his church and fervice what he is pleafed to make me. Through his grace I with to live to his glory, and to be iifeful in my day to his caufe and intereft. Help mc, reader, to exalt him in life and death. May it be tiiy happinefs to do the fame: for which thou haft the hearty prayer of thy fervant in him. W. R. AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. MEN AND BRETHREN, E are the creatures of God, dependent on him for being and for v/ell being. He gives us all our faculties, both of riiind and body, and he requires us to ufe them in his fervice and to his glory. This is our bounden duty. It is the peculiar dignity of man, who never acis more nobly than when he employs the powers beftowed upon him to the praife of the giver. None of them fliould be ufelefs, but each fliould be exerted, whenever an opportunity offers of glorifying God. In the common a£tions of life, this may, and ftiould be done : the rule is, " Whether ye eat " or drink, or whatfoever ye do, do all to the " glory of God," but it is far more needful ia fpiritual matters, which have an immediate relation to God and his worfhip. Thefe he has Vol. VIII. Bb appointed 378 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. appointed to be the means of fliewing forth his praife. Among them finging of pfahns is not the leaft. It is frequently commanded, and with a promife — faithful is he who hath promifed — he will render the means effeftual to anfwer the end. When believers employ the faculties of foul and body in finging of his goodnefs and greatnefs, he docs accept the fervice, and teftifies his acceptance. He does indeed communicate to them by his Spirit joy and peace, and he renders fmging, to the Lord, with melody in the heart, the means of increafing the melody and joy. But where is fuch finging ? In what church ? Among what people ? There are fome. May their number increafe. It is worth while to try to increafe them, efpecially as this ordinance is fo much negle£i:ed. The holy atfe£lions, which fliould be ftirred up. by fo heavenly an exercife, are generally damped by it. When it is per- formed with coldnefs and indifference, how can it produce fenfations fuitable to fuch exalted means of grace ? Or when contempt is put upon it, how can it convey any of the promifed bleflings ? ■ Many things have contributed to the prefcnt neglc61; and abufe of this ordinance, and I have been led to the following reflections, in order to try to bring it again into repute. Happy, indeed, fliall I think m\ felf, if the Lord fliould be pleafed 2 to AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 379* to make ufe of them, as any way conducive to the finging of his praifes with the underftanding. I fliall pray and labor for it: may he give his abundant blefling. One of the firft and great caufes of negle£ling the finging of pfahns, feems to have arifen from not attending to CHAP. I. The Subject of the Book of Pfalms. The teftimony of Jefus is the fpirit of prophe- cy: for to him give all the prophets witnefs. With one voice they fpeak of his wonderful per- Ibn, of his divine undertakings, and of his com- plete and eternal falvation. It is the fpirit of their writings to reveal and to teach the good knowledge of the Lord. Whoever underftands them perfectly will find the prophets treating of the coming of Immanuel in the flefli as clearly as the evangelifts. When this moft bleffed event was to be accomplifhed in the fulnefs of time, a new teftament witnefs^ filled with the Holy Ghoft, prophecied, faying, " Bleffed be the " Lord God of Ifrael, for he hath according to " his promife vifited and redeemed his people, " and hath raifed up an horn of falvation for us " in the houfe of his fervant David, as he fpakc B b z " by 380 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. *' by the mouth of his holy prophets, which hare " been fince the world began." The Lord never left hinifelf without witnefs. Ever fince the world began he had prophets, who foretold what Chrift was to be and to do, who teftified before- hand of the fufferings of Chrift, and the glory that fliould follow. This is the fubjeft of the book of pfalms. It treats of Chrift, and contains the praifes of the Father's love, and of the Spirit's grace, as they were manifefted in the perfon and work of Jefus Chrift The falvation of finners through him is the greateft difplay of the covenant mercies of the eternal three; therefore the pfalms celebrate his wonderful perfon, and his divine undertak- ings— they defcribe his obedience and fuffer- \ ingS — -his conflicts with, and viftories over, all his enemies — his refiirredlion and afcenfion — his fitting upon the throne, the great king of all worlds, vifible and invifible — his gathering together, and perfecting the number of his eleft — his coming at the lafl: day to judge men and angels — and the glory which he will beftow upon his redeemed, when they fliall be with him, and like him, kings and priefts unto God and his Father, and ihall reign with him for ever. What fubje£l can be more noble in itfelf than this: here are the greateft tranfa£tions of the greateft perfonages, that poffibly can be-~the ever ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 381 ever ■blefTod trinity purpofing and covenanting to bring many fons unto glory — difplaying their wifdom, and love, and power, in an infinite de- gree, through the incarnation, obedience, and fufFerings of the God-man, Jehovah Jefus, and through the efFeftual grace of the holy Spirit, calling and bringing the eleft to experience the Father's love to them by faith in the Son's perfed falvation, and then guiding them fafe by his council and might unto the glory provided for them^ This wonderful theme is treated of in the book of pfalms in a manner fuitable to its dignity — it is not only fpoken of, but alfo cele- brated— not merely defcribed, but alfo praifed. The language therefore is exalted. The fenti- ments are fublime. The poetry is divine. And no wonder: the author is equal to the fubjeft. He is capable of extolling the mercies of that covenant, which reaches from eternity to eter- nity, and of extolling them according to their true greainefs. The pfalms are the compofition of the all-wife Spirit: for the Holy Ghoft fpake by the mouth of David, and of the other infpired penmen. He guided both their hearts and their hands. The fentiments and the words are his: for the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God fpake, as they were moved by the Holy Ghoft— they fpake as he moved them—they indited the pfalms under his infpiration. The praifes therein given of the 382 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. the perfon and work of the exer bleffed Imma- nuel are not human, but truly divine. What may not be expefted from fuch an author? Who is by eflential union one i\i the Godhead with the Father and the Son, and who is by his office to teftify of Jefus, and to glorify Jefiis. If the pfalms be read under his influence, they will be found equal to the fubjeft, in every view fuit- ed to exalt the incarnate God, and, if they be fung with grace in the heart, they will increafe the faith and hope of every devout worfhipper. There are feveral pfalms which are applicable to none but Jefus Chrift, and many expreffions which could not be truly fpoken by any one, but by him who was God and man in one Chrift. Many will receive new luftre and em- phafis, when viewed in the fame light. The proper pfalms, which are appointed to be read on the feftivals, do certainly treat of the birth, death, refurreftion, and afcenfion of the Lord Chrift, and of the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of pentecoft, in confequence of Chrift's afcenfion: for, fays he, " If I go not away, the " comforter will not cotne unto you; but if I go « away, I will fend him unto you." Our re- formers certainly underftood thofe proper pfalms to be defcriptive of Chrift, and took them in t4ie fame fenfe our Lord and his apoftles did; who have quoted the book of pfalms eighty-two times. Their manner of quoting it demonftrates, that ..AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 383 that they took it for granted it was written con- cerning Chrift. Indeed manv parages cannot be applied to any one, but to him : for inftance— he appeals to God to be tried according to his innocence — to be rewarded according to his righteoufnefs--he defires to be judged ac cording to the cleannefs of his heart and hands — could anv one of us fav, " Search me to " the bottom, O God, and know my heart; try " me and know my thoughts, and fee if there " be any way of wickednefs in me." All have finned. All we like flieephave gone aftray, and if we were to be tried according to the holy law by a heart-fearching God, every mouth would be ftopped, and all the world would becomeguilty be- fore him. O what would become of the bed of us, if God was to judge us as we are. The cxixth pfalm is a defcription of the love of Chrifi; to the law, his ftudy in it, and his perfe6l obfervance of it. O what love have I unto the law — with my whole heart have I fought thee — 1 have not de- parted from thy judgments — " I have fworn" (with the oath of the covenant) " and I will " perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judg- " ments." Are not thefe -the peculiar defcrip- tions of the work of the god-man, in which he was alone, and of the people there was none with him — any more than there was in the offer- ing for fin, when he trod the winc-prefs alone, and of the people there was none with him, of which 384 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. which the xlth pfalm treats— any more than there was in bringing in everlafting righteoufnefs, for which the church praifes him in feveral pfalms, particularly in Ixxi, and will triumph in his righteoufnefs, and in his only for evermore. The glory is his. No offering, no righteoufnefs, but his, can fave: the praifes therefore of the great falvation of our God, which run through the book of pfalms, are the peculiar prerogatives of the king of faints. They are his crown and diadem. The honors are folely his, and he will wear them with unrivalled fame. His name is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, and the ar- mies of heaven follow him with one mind and one heart, afcribing unto him honor and glory, and bleffing and praife, for ever and ever. Amen. But although the work was altogether his from firfl: to laft, none being capable of any pan, but he who is God as well as man, yet eternal bleflings on him, he did it for us and for oar fal- varion. His people have an interell in what he is — God in our nature — they have their fliare in what he did and fuffered for them, and they have an unfpeakable benefit in what he is now doing for them in the prefence of the Fathei-. By believing they have pardon and peace through his ofF;iring on the tree. By believing they put on the Lord Jefus Chrift, and find acceptance in bis righteoufnefs. By believing they commit their AN ESSAY ON PSALMODT. 385 * their perfons and concerns into his hands, and he ever liveth their prevailing interceffor to obtain for ihem every needful bleffing. Thus they learn to truft him, and in trufting, to experience his faithfulnefs. He gives them caufe to love him, and to rejoice in him. For having received a new birth and life in him, they can fing the pfalms of his nativitv, and join angels and men in afcribing glory in the higheft to the incarnate God. They read of his dying love in feveral pfalms, and they wor (hip him forbearing theirfins, and fhame, and curfe, in his body and foul up- on the crofs: the lamb that was flain and redeem- ed them to God by his blood is the conftanf theme of their grateful fongs. When they read or fing the pfalms of his refurre6tion, they look upon him as the firft fruits of the dead, the eair- neft of the whole haiveft, and with grateful hearts they blefs him for making, and for keep- ing them alive to God. They fliare in all his victories and triumphs, being his happy fubje£ts ; for he has a kingdom, which is celebrated in many of the pfalms. Thefe treat of his almighty power to rule all beings and things, and of the fweet fccptre of his love, by which be governs his willing people. He manifefts to them the greatnefs and majefty of his kingdom, fo that under his royal proteftion they find deliverance from the temptations to fin, and from the mife- ries of fin, and through his fpecial love he gives them 386 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. them here in the kingdom of his grace a happi- nefs, which all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them, cannot poffibly give. They live happy indeed: for he makes them fmg of the good of his chofen: they do rejoice in the gladnefs of his nation, and they glory in his inhe- ritance. Thefe are high privileges; but they are only the earnefts of that kingdom, which en- dureth for ever. O what glorious things are ipoken of thee, thou city of God, in which the great king delighteth to dwell, and to manifeft his glory. Wonderful things are written of this everlafting kingdom in the book of pfalms with which his happy fubjefts mix faith, and can then fmg them with a hope full of glory and immor- tality. The pfalms throughout fo defcribe the king of faints, that they who partake of his grace may find in them continual exercife ot their faith, and continual improvement of it : for they have an intereft in all he was, and in all he is. Was his trufl: in God unfliaken ? They hope he will make theirs ftedfaft. Was his walk ho- ly, harmlefs, and undefiled ? They depend on him for ftrength to tread in his fteps. Were his tempers perfe£tly holy? They admire his exam- ple, and through his fpirit they daily put off the old man, and put on the new. Was he carried through the greateft fufferings with entire refig- Ration? They look up under all their trials for his promifed fupport. Has he all his enemies under AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 387 \inder his feet? They are waiting in joyful hope for the fruit of his conqueft. Is he now in our nature in the higheft glory? It is promifed them, their eyes fliall fee the king in his beauty. O blelTed profpe61;! They fliall foon be with him, and like him too, when they fliall fee l\im as he is. The pfalms are fo written of Chrift, that every believer may find comfort in what he reads or lings. Chrift being the head of the body the church, all the members do ftiare with their head in what he is and has, in his incarnation, life and death, refurreSion and interceihon, yea, they fiiall live and reign with him for ever and ever. That my meaning may be better underftood, I will give an inftance in the firft pfalm. Let us confider, how it is to be underftood of Chrift, and in what manner it is ufeful to thofc, who through faith are one with Chrift, As it treats of Chrift, it is a proper preface to the whole book. It gives an account of the fubjecf, and is an abridgment of it, containing in fubftance what is largely handled in the other parts. For Chrift is here defcribed under the character of that perfeft perfon, who was to re- trieve for his people all the lolTes of the fall. He was in their nature, and yet he was by na ture and practice, in heart and life, feparate from finners ; negatively he had not the leaft commu- nion with them, being without one fpot of fin, pofitivcly he was perfectly holy. He fulfilled all the 388 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. the righteoufnefs of the law in its higheft re- quirements, both in obedience to its precepts, and alfo in fuffering its peijalties. Thus he be- came to his people the tree of life, having life in himfelf, as God felf-exiftent, and having life communicatively, as God-man, to bellow upon every branch in him. — I am the vine, fays he, ye are the branches, by him they are quickened, in him they live, through him they become fruitful, and by his influence they profper and bring forth much fruit to the glory of God. Herein they are di- jre£lly contrary to the wicked, who are never quickened by him, but left to perilh in their fins. PSALM I. 1. Succefsful are the fteps of that perfon, who never walks in the council of tranfgreflbrs, and in the way of linners never ftands, and in the feat of mockers never f:ts. 2. But in the law of Jehovah is his delight, and in his law will he meditate day and night. 3 For then he fhall be like a tree that was planted by the ftreams of waters, which will yield its fruits in their feafon, and its top-flioot fliall never fade, but whatfoever he fliall take in hand he fhall be able to make it profperous. 4. It fliall not be fo with tranfgreflbrs, but they fhall be like the chaff which the wind blows away. 5. Be- AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 5. Becaufe the tranfgreflbrs fhall not be fet up in judgment, nor finners in the congregation of the righteous. 6. For Jehovah acknowledgeth the way of the righteous, but the way of fmners fliall be deftroyed. This pfalm is a general defcription of the fuc- cefs of Jefus in his work, fhewing what fteps he was to take for the falvation of his people: he was to be a man like us in all things, excepting fin ; from which he was perfeftly free: no thought of it ever entered his mind, not one moment did he decline from the way of duty, but always afted under the influence of divine love, in his life, and by his example, reproving thofe who made a mock at fin. He was holy, harmlefs, and undefiled in his nature, and feparate from finners in his practice: for He was perfeftly acquainted with the divine law: it was his continual ftudy, and to obey it was his continual delight — It was his meat and drink — " Lo I come," fays he, " to do thy will, " OGod:" He rejoiced to fulfil its precepts by his life, and he was a willing facrifice lo fuffer its penalties in his death. In both he magnified the law, and made it infinitely honourable. And Thus it became him to bring majiy fons unto glory. Whatfoever he undertook for them had perfe£lfuccef3. He was the tree of life watered with AN ESSAY OU PSALMODT. with abundant ftreams of grace, the fpirlt being given not by meafure unto him; a tree fubje£l to no change, but always growing and flourifli- ing, always bearing forth fruit, and making every branch in it a partaker of the heavenly in- fluences of the ftock upon which it groM'S. But, the tranfgrefTors, who are not grafted into him by faith, have no fpiritual life, nor fruit — thev are lighter than vanitv itfelf: and they (hall be driven from the judgment feat of God, as eafilv as anv liffht chaff is driven about by a ftrong wind, and they fhall be juftly banilh- ed for evermore from the general affembly and church of the fir ft born. For Jehovah always approved of the way of the righteous, whom he chofe and called, and juftified freely by his grace through the redemp- tion which is in Chrift Jefus, but the way of tranfgrefiTors he difapproves, and they fhall foon utterly perilh. In this fenfe the pfalm is true of Chrift, but believers have their fhare in the bleflins:s of which it treats: for in his fuccefs they partake. They have fellowfhip with him in every ftep which he took to work out their falvation. When they have redemption through faith in his blood, and free acceptance through faith in his righteoufnefs, then they walk humbly with him, and he puts his ftar wlihin them. He teaches them to An essay on psalmody. to depart from evil, they do not walk in the council of the ungodly, nor ftand in the way of finners, nor fit in the feat of the fcornful. But he puts his law in their inward parts, and writes it in their hearts: in their renewed mind ihey are brought to delight in it; they make it their continual ftudy, and through grace to walk in it is their continual praftice. Yea, they live by the faith of the Son of God, as branches in the tree of life: becaufe he lives they fhall live alfo ; drawing from their life-giving root every thing needful to mortify fin in them, and to ena- ble them to bring forth fruit unto God. Thus he feparates them from tranfgreflbrs, who live and die in their fins, thefe are like chaff, which the wind driveth av/av. Becaufe they fliall not fiand in the judgment of God, nor come into the church of Chrift. For the Lord with his loving kindnefs regarded the way of the righteous, but the way of tranf- greffors fliall perilh. Thus believers look upon the pfalms. They confider them as treating of the glorious perfon and work of the God-man, and confidcrins: them- felves in him, as members under him their head, quickened by his fpirit, and receiving all the blefiTings of fpiritual life out of his fulnefs, they can undevftand and fing the praifes of Immanuel, with melody in their hearts : for they can apply to thcmfeh es the benefits of his atonement and righteoufuefs, 2^2, AN ESSAY ON PS Al.MODT. righteoufnefs, of his interceffion and glory, and this renders the Pfahns precious, and finging them an high ordinance. Their God does meet them and blefs them in finging pfalms. While they exprefs their love to him he communicates his love to them, and they have fellowfliip with the Father, and with his Son Jefus Chrifl by the Spirit. But this will be more evident from confider- ing fome particulars relating to the fubjeft : fuch as CHAP. ir. T/je fcripiure names of the Pfalms. There are three Hebrew names often ufed in the titles of the Pfalms, which the Septuagint have tranflated pfalms, hymns, and fongs. The word rendered by them hymns, is Thehilim, which is the running title to this book, expreffive of the general defign, and is an abridgment of the whole matter. It comes from a Hebrew word, that fignifies the brifk motion of light, fliining and putting its fplendour upon any object, and this makes it bright and illuftrious. Hence comes the propriecy of the word, as it is ufed to praife, which is to fet an obje6t in the light 3 that the rays fliining upon it may render it fplendid and AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. ^93 and beautiful, and thereby glorious and praife- worthy. Such are the Pfalms. They are rays of light — Enlighteners, (if I might ufe fuch a word, and it is the literal fenfe of the Hebrew- hymns) intended to manifeft the glory of the perfon, and to fliew forth the praifes of the work of God-Jcfus : for light, in its various ufes in nature, is the appointed emblem of the Lcrd Chrift. He is - diftinguiflied by this name throughout the Old Teftament ; and he applied all the paffages to himfelf in the New, when he declared — " I am the light of the world" — " I am not only the creator of light in the " material world, but alfo in the fpiritual " world — darknefs covers the earth, and grofs " darknefs the people, until I, the light of life, " arife upon tlieir fouls : and when I come with " healing in my rays, in that day fliall the deaf " hear my words, and the eyes of the blind " fliall fee out of obfcurity and out of dark- " nefs." Jefus gives eyes to fee with, and fight to fee by : he opens the eyes of the underftanding and makes fpiritual objects vifible : fo that, whoever is enlightened with faving knowledge, has it all from him, and it Hiould all lead to him. He is the blight day ftar which fliines throughout the volume of revelation j but in no part with clearer rays than in the book of pfnlms. Here he is exalted in his meridian glory : for the Vol. VllL C c whole 394 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. whole fcripture does not give greater light into what he was to be, and to do, and to fufFer, his life, his temper, his employment from his tender age until his crucifixion, than is to be found in thofe divine hymns : nor are there are any more full defcrrptions of his paflion, death, refurrec- tion, afcenfion, and his kingdom which ruleth o\ er all. In the Pfalms, he himfelf read and meditated day and night, while he was growing in wifdom and ftature. And in them will every true believer meditate, that he may have more of the light of the knowledge of the glory of God, as it fliines in the perfon of Jefus Chrift. As the eyes of his underftanding are more en- lightened with this Caving truth, he will more happily enjoy in his heart the benefits of the humiliation, and exaltation of the incarnate Jehovah. May this, reader, be thy happy cafe : may every pfalm be as the fliining light, leading thee to a growing knowledge of Jefus, and fhining on clearer flill unto the perfeft day. Zemer is another Hebrew word which the Septuagint tranllates pfalms y as a verb, it fig- nifies to cut and prune trees, as a noun, it is a branch cut off and pruned, and by way of emi- nence, the branch, the man whofe name is the branch, who was known and diftinguiflied by this title in the fcripture. He was the eternal God, and he was in the fulnefs of time to be made flelh, and to be cut oS^hiit not for him- felf. AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 395 felf. This was the great tranfa£lion in the everlafting covenant—" Thus faith the Lord of « hofts, (Zech. iii, 7, 8,) Behold I will bring " forth my fervant, the branch," the promifed branch, which was to fpring from the root of Jefle J and again, Zech. vi. 12, 13. " Thus " fpeaketh the Lord of hofts. Behold the man " whofe name is the branch, and he (hall grow " up out of his place, and he fliall build the " temple of the Lord, (in which the Godhead " fhall refide) even he fliall build the temple of " the Lord, and he fliall bear the glory, and *' fliall fit and fliall rule upon his throne, and *' he fliall be a prieft upon his throne, and the counfel of peace fliall be between them " both," between Jehovah and the branch r for the branch having grown up in his place was in the temple of his body to ratify the counfel of peace : he was to eftablifli it in his life, and to fulfil it in his death, and having by dying con- quered death, and him that had the powder of death, he was to rebuild the temple of the Lord, as he faid unto the Jews — " Deftroy this temple, " and in three days I will build it up which he fulfilled by building up the temple of his body natural, and thereby he denionftrated that he will jn due time perfectly complete the tem- ple of his body myftical, which is his church : for he is a head to all his members. He quickens them by his grace, and actuates them by his in- fluence. By union with him they live, by com- C c 2 munion 396 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. munion with him they grow. His Spirit breathes tlirough the church, which is his body, and enables the members to grow up into him in al{ tilings, who is the head, even Chrift ; whereby he teaches them, and it is a great part of their growth, how to acknowledge their obligations v»'ith increafing humility to their glorified head. He renders the falvation of Jefus finilhed upon the crofs, the fweet fubjett of their fpiritual fong. His dying love they would keep ever in mind ; they would have it always warm upon their hearts, and always upon their tongues. His paflion on the tree is their never ceafing theme : God forbid, fay they, that w'e fhoiild glory, except in the crofs of our Lord Jefus Chrift. In this they glory, and in this alone, with their voices, and with every mufical inftru- ment, but chiefly with the melody of their hearts, they endeavour to praife him, who was flain, and hath redeemed them unto God by his blood. It becometh them well in the houfe of their pil- grimage, thus to fmg the triumphs of the worthy Iamb : for it is to be in their father's houfe the moft blefied fubje6t of their endlefs fong. The ten thoufand times ten thoufand, and thoufands of thoufands of angels, and the great multitude which no man could number of all nations and kindreds, and people and tongues, harping wath their golden harps, in full concert join in praifing the crucified Immanuel. — " Worthy is the lamb " that AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 397 " that was.flain to receive power and riches, " and wifdom and ftrength, and honor and " glory, and bleffing. j4men. Hallelujah." There is another Hebrew word, SHeR, which the Septuagint conftantly render a fong, frequent- ly applied to the pfalms. It fignifies rule and government, and is ufcd for any principality among men. Hence it is very properly fpokcn of. him whofe kingdom ruleth over all. The prince of peace is one of his high titles. He is called the prince of the kings of the earth — a prince for ever — of whofe government and peace there fliall be no end. Tolhis empire he had an un- alienable and indefcifable right, being in the one Jehovah poflefTed of the fam.e perfc£fions with the Father and the holy Spirit. But the moll common view in which the pfalnls confider him, is that of the God-man, King-mediator, whofe principality is the moft glorious reign of grace. He fits upon his throne freely to beftow all divine bleflings upon his redeemed, and he is Mefllah the prince who was raifcd to his king- dom by the covenant of the eternal three : in which he engaged to be a furety for his people ; and in their nature, and in their ftead, to fatisfy all the offended attributes of the Father, by his holy life and death, and th,e Father engaged to give him a kingdom with all power in heaven and earth. Accordingly in the fulnefs of time he was manifefted in the fie (h, and for the joy that was 398 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. was fet before him, he endured the crofs, and defpifed the fhame, and is fet down at the right hand of the throne of God. He is greatly ex- alted, far above all principality and power, and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but alfo in that which is to come. The once crucified is now the enthroned Jefus, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, almighty to fave his people from all their fms, and from all their enemies. The glories of Immanuel in this refpe£t are celebrated under the name SHeR, in feveral of the pfalms. In the xlviith pfalm for inftance, all the people are called upon to clap their hands for joy, and to fliout unto God with the voice of triumph, be- caufe Jehovah Jefus is the great king over all the earth. His happy government, under which believers receive all their bleffings, was to be the conftant fubjefl: of their grateful fong. Singing was ufing words and founds to exprefs the praifes of the king of faints, and their joy in him. It was fo much the ruling and leading fubje6l, that every hymn reminded them of Mefliah the prince. Whenever they were happy in their hearts, they exprefTed it by finging the praifes of that moft glorious perfon, who was made flefli, humbling himfelf to be obedient unto death, even the death of the crofs, and who thereby became the head of all principaUty and power. He ruleth the almighty Immanuel over Qvery creature, and every AN ESSAY ON PSALMODT, 399 every thing, God-man upon his throne, till all his enemies, death itfelf be deftroyed, and then he will reign with the father and the fpirit for €ver and ever : for his reign is everlafting, and of his kingdom there fhall l>e no end. This was the delightful theme in the book of pfalms. The Old Teftament faints were never weary pf celebrating Mefliah their prince, the Lord and Saviour of his people, made an offering for their fins, dead, rifen, and afcended to his throne. This is ftill the fweeteft fubje£l in the church of God. Happy are they, who have the Lord Chrift ruling over their outward eftate. Thrice happy they, who have him ruling in their fouls. O what happinefs is it to have fet up within them the kingdom of God ! which is righteouf- nefs, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghoft. None have greater reafon to rejoice with joy and finging, than they who have Chrift dwelling in their hearts by faith. It was one principal defign of thofe facred hvmns to keep up this holy joy, that if any were merry they might fing pfalms and be glad in the Lord. Senfible of his tender care and royal protection, with what joyful lips will they extol their king ? They would have all within them to blefs his ho y name, and would be praifing him with pfalms, and hymns, and fpiritual fongs, rejoicing all the way to Sion, and making heavenly melody in their hearts unto the Lord. Thefe 400 AM ESSAY ON PSALMODY. Ihefe three names take in the fubjeft of the whole book — the hymns contain the praifes of Immanuel, our fun of righteoufnefs — the pfahiis treat of his taking our nature, and in it being cut off for his people, that through his death they might live — the fongs celebrate the glories of his kingdom, both in earth and heaven, in time and eternity. Befides thefe names of the book of pfalms, there are feveral other things written in fcripiure concerning them, which confirm the account here given of their reference to the ever-bleffed Mefliah, king of faints, and which will be farther illuftrated under the con- fideration of CHAP. III. Some PaJJages of the Old Tejlament, concerning the 'book of Pfaims. Xhese paffages are either fuch as command the finging of pfalms, or fuch as lay down rules for finging them properly : of the firft fort we find frequent mention. " Give thanks unto the " Lord, call upon his name, make known his " deeds among the people : fing unto him^ fing *' pfalms unto him : O fing unto the Lord a new " fong, fing unto the Lord, all the earth : fing <^ "unto the Lord, blefs his name, fliew -forth his falvation from day to day. Make a joyful " noifc AN E-SSAY ON PSALMODY. 40I " noife unto the Lord, all the earth, make a loud *' noife, and rejoice, and give praife : fmg unto the Lord with the harp, and , the voice -of " a pfalm. O clap your hands, all ye people, " fliOut unto God with the voice of triumph : " tor the Lord moit high is to be feared : He is " the great king over all the earth: fmg forth " the honor of his name, make his praife glori- " ous : fmg pfalms unto God, fing pfalms; ling " pfalms to our king, fmg pfalms, for. it is " good to fing pfalms to our .God: for it is " pleafant, and praife is comely : fmg ye praifes " with the underftanding : fmg ye praifes with " the whole heart: let every thing that hath " breath praife the Lord. Amen. Hallelujah." In obedience to thofe commands, believers exhort one another to tliis delightful exercife : " O come let us fmg unto the Lord, let us make " a joyful noife to the rock of our falvation, *' (Heb. our Jefus). Let us come before his " prefence with thankfgiving, and make a joy- " ful noife unto him whh pfalms." And what ■was thus exprefled in the congregation, every believer in private applies to himfelf and prac- tifes. Blefs the Lord, O my foul, and all that " is within me, blefs his holy name : while I " live will I praife the Lord, I will fing praifes " unto my God while I have my being : I will " extol thee my God, O king, and I will blefs " thy name for ever and ever." We 402 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. We have abundant authorities in the lives of believers to prove, that finging of pfalms was very early in the church. Mofes compofed a pfalm, which he and the whole congregation fang to the glory of their almighty deliverer from Egyptian bondage. On the viftory obtain-- ed over Sifera the captain of Jabin's hoft, Deborah and Barak fang a hymn of thankf- giving, recorded in the book of the wars of the Lord. David was the fweet finger of Ifrael, raifed up of God to indite the praifes of the glorious Immanuel : the book of pfalms, which he fpake by the Holy Ghoft, has been in ufe in the church ever fmce his time, They made part of every day's fervice in the temple. They were fung by Chrift, and by his apoftles.. Paul and Silas in prifon, with their feet in the flocks, and at midnight, had liberty in their hearts to fing a pfalm unto the Lord. We know for certain from facred hillory, confirmed by profane authors, that when the whole church was come together into one place it was part of the public fervice to fing pfalms : for which there were rules laid down both in the Old Teftament and in the New. The principal rule was about the end propofed in finging. Why did God enjoin it in his fervice? And with what view did he require it to be performed by his people ? He has herein clearly revealed his will. He intended to teach them I to AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 403 to acknowledge his infinite love in Jefus, through whomalltheirbleffingsflow, andtopraifehim, and to thank him wirh joyful hearts and lips. Singing was the outward expreflion of their inward joy» and therefore it was accompanied with inftru- ments of all kinds to proclaim in the grandeft manner their joy in the Lord. While the daily facrifices were burning on the altar, they cele- brated with believing hearts the atonement of the lamb of God, and exprefled their triumph- ing in it with "all the powers of vocal and inftru- mental mufic. Thus they were commanded. Num. X. 10. " In the day of your gladnefs, and ^' in your folemn days, and in the beginning of " your months, ye (hall blow with the trumpets " over your burnt offerings, and over the facri- " fices of your peace offerings, that they may " be to you for a memorial before the Lord " your God: I am the Lord your God." This commandment Hezekiah obferved. After he had cleanfed the temple from the pollutions of his profane predeceffor, " He fet the Levites in <*' the houfe of the Lord with cymbals, with " pfalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, and of Gad the " king's feer, and Nathan the prophet : for fo " was the commandment of the Lord by his " prophets: and the Levites ftood with the " inftruments of David, and the priefts with the " trumpets: and Hezekiah commanded to offer « the 404 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. " the burnt offering upon the altar, and when " the burnt offenng began, the fong of the Lord *' began alfo with the trumpets, and with the in- " liruments ordained by David king of Ifrael: " and all the congregation worfliipped, and the " fingers fang, and. the trumpeters founded, and " all this continued until the burnt offering was " finiflied." 2 Chron. xxix. 25, &c. Their mu- fic was not merely to pleafe; it was expreffive. For it was a mem.orial. It was to call to mind the facrifice of Immanuel, and the joy flowing from it, the greatefl joy that pofhbly can be : for all the facrijices pointed to him, and were inftituted to keep up faith ^nd hope in him. He was the lanib who verily was forc-ordained before the foundation of the world, who was llain in type from the foundation of the world, and who in the fulnefs of time appeared to put away fin by the facrifice of himfelf The apoftie has proved at large in the epiftle to the Hebrews, that all the facrifices under the law were types tmd figures of the facrifice of Chrift, and that the benefits afcribed to them were to fignify the graces which flow to his redeemed from his fa- crifice: for through this alone juftice was fatif- fied, wrath appeafed, atonement made, the con- fciencc purged from guilt, the finner freely par- doned, fully jtiflified, yea fan£lificd and perfe£ied for ever: fo that by his one offering he fav.es be- lievers from ^ all fins and all mifei'ies, and gives them AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 40^ them enjoyment now of all bleflings, and will fecure to them eternal enjoyment."* Here is the fountain of all joy. From hence flows peace with God, and love to God with every blefiing of his love. All comes through the bleeding lamb, and is the fruit of his crofs and paffion. This is the glorious fubje£l treated of in the pfalms, and the finging, and the mufic of the old teftament, were entirely in praife of this. While the burnt offering was confuming on the fire of the altar,, all that found could poffibly do with voices and inftruments was exerted to roufe the attention, and to inflame the affeftions. The full concert was to excite the higheft fentiments of thankfulnefs in the view of that one offerin?, which was to bear the fire of "the father's wrath, and thereby was to become an odor of a fweet fmell, a facriflce acceptable, well pleafing to God- No blelhng is beyond this. No joy is to be compared with the joy of this. If any one had been prefent who did riot know the occa- fipn of this wonderful rejoicing, and had aflced good Hezckiah wliat they meant by this mutic, which made the very earth ring again, he would have gracioufly iijformed the enquirer — We are now triumphing in fledfaft faitli of the fulfilling of the proniife, that God will be incarnate, and will come to take away fin by his facrfficc: therefore we enter into his gates with thankfgiving, and into his courts with praife, We rejoice 4o6 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. fejoice in our hearts in the future offering of the Iamb of God. ' Although we have divine wordsy in which to exprcfs our joy, yet our prefent fenfe of it is only according to our faith. When this is lively our joy is unfpeakable and full of glory: for it brings a foretafte of that fulnefs of joy, which we fliail have, when we fhall receive th^ end of our faith, even the eternal falvation of our fouls. Then all the bleffmgs, all the glories of heaven will come to us through the redemption that is in the blood of the lamb. Hence, while the burnt offering is confuming on the altar, we make the moft joyful noife we poffibly can, fing- ing and triumphing in the offering of Immanuel : for we believe it will be a fweet fmelling favor unto God, and through it we fliall enter within the veil, even into heaven itelf. There we fliall take up the fame moft bleffed fubjeft, and cele- brate the lamb that was flain with never-ceafmg praife. The anfwer, which I fuppofe Hezekiah would have given, is perfe£tly rgreeable to David's own account of this matter. He relates very clearly for what end The pfalms were revealed, and were fung in the temple fervice. We find it thus defcribed, i Chron. xvi. " David ap- " pointed the Levites to minifter before the ark, *' and to record, and to thank and praife the " Lord God of Ifrael," ver. 4. and again, ver. 7. *' Then on that day David delivered firft this " pfalm AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 407 ** pfalm to thank the Lord into the hand of Afaph " and his brethren: give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds *' among the people: fmg unto him, fing pfalms " unto him, talk you of all his wondrous works: ** glory ye in his holy name, let the heart of them " rejoice that feek the Lord." We have in this paffage a very clear defcrip- tion of the defign of the book of pfalms. It was firft to record ; the word fignifies to caufe to be remembered. The pfalms were a ftanding me- morial, to bring into mind the wonderful love of the ever bleffed trinity in faving finners through Jefus Chrift, and to keep it frefli and lively upon the hearts of believers. We are apt to forget this our greateft good, and therefore God has gracioufly recorded it in his word. Therein he haspromifed to fan6\ify the memory to retain it, and in the ufe of the pfalms he beftows this blefT- ing. When they are read and mixed with faith, then they are meditated on with delight, fung with melody, and help to keep the heart warm in its attachment to the beloved Jefus. When they are thus treafured up in the mind, and brought into conftant ufe, believers learn, in fmging, them to rejoice in the infinitely perfeft facrifice of Immanuel, and to triumph in his di- vine righteoufnefs. The pfalms are the means appointed of God to anfwer thofe ends; and they do by his grace. They ftir up the pure minds 4o5 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. minds or' his people ;by way of remenabrance. They afFpi\4 them proper matter, and choice ;VVords, and when fung with fignificant founds-, they excite afiedtions to Jcfus, as holy and as happy, as they can be on this fide of heaven. The ufe of the pfilms was alfo to thank: " O " give thanks unto' the Lord: for his mercy en- " dureth. for ever," feems to have Ueen the chorus of all' the ancient hymns. The word which \ye tranflate to ,thank, fignifies to give the hand to God, as an acknowledgments that^ all power was his. The hand is power. Our power extends as far as our Jianfl reaches. The hand of God is every where, and his power is infinite. The cuftom, pf paying hornage, in ajir cient times explains this ufage of the., word, I Chron. xxix. 23. Thein Solomon fat on the " throne of the Lord as king, inftead of David " his father, and profpered, and all Ifrael obeyed " him. — 24. And all the princes, and the mighty " men, and all the fons likevvife of king David " fubmitted themfelves unto Solomon the " king— Heb. gave thphand under Solomon the " king." This was an expreflivc cerqmony: they kneeled down, and put their hands under his; thereby confel^ing that their. power v\'as fub- je6t to his.: and in this manner they paid hjm homage. , There is a curioys letter extaqt of king Hezekiah, \yhicb farther explains both the ex- prclhon and . the^ cuftom. He lays in it to the 2 people, . AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 409 people, 2 Chron. xxx. 8. " Be ye not ftiff- " necked as your fathers were, but yield your- " felves, Heb. give the hand unto the Lord," fall down before him, and afcribe all your power to the Lord — acknowledge him to have all power in heaven and earth. Thus give the honor due unto his name. Confefs that all your good comes from him, and that he keeps you from all evil. Every bleffing which you receive in earth, or hope for in heaven, acknowledge to be from the good pleafure of his own will, and to the praife of the glory of his free grace. Moll of the pfalms were written, and fliould be fung, with this fpirit. What David felt in his own heart at the free-will offerings of the people to- wards the building of the temple, the fame he would excite in others, when they read or ling the pfalms. i Chron. xxix, lo, &c. " Where- " fore David bleffed the Lord before all the " congregation, and David faid, Bleffed be " thou Lord God of Ifrael, our father, for ever " and ever : thine, O Lord, is the greatnefs, and " the power, and the glory, and the victory, and " the majefty : for all that is in the heaven and " in the earth is thine : thine is the kingdom, O " Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all : " both riches and honour come of thee, and thou " reigneft over all, and in thy hand is power and " might, and in thy hand it is to make great, " and to give ftrength unto all : now therefore " our God we thank thee, and praife thy glori- VoL. VIIL D d ' ous \ 416 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. " ous name." How delight fully does he here defcribe one great end of finging pfalms. It was to afcribe to the Lord all the glory of his word and works and ways — with voices and inftruments, "but chiefly with the mufic of the heart to praife him for his goodnefs, and to blefs him, becaufe his mercy endureth for ever. There is another word ufed, i Chron. xvi. 4. The pfalms were to record, and to thank, and to praife (Heb. Hellel) the Lord God of Ifrael. But this has been treated of in the beginning of the fecond chapter. • It is the running title of the pfalms, and fignlfies the aftion of light in the material world, and from thence is applied to the aftion of the fun of righteoufnefs in the fpiritual world. Singing pfalms was not only to remind us of him, but alfo to lead us to afcribe to him all the bleflings of nature and grace, of earth and licaven. All are from him — the gifts of his free unmerited love, and call for the tribute of con- ftant thankfulnefs. He created the fun, and or- dained it to difpenfe every earthly bleffing, that it might be a lively pi£ture of the true light, who communicates fpiritual life, with all its comforts. While the believer looks upon the mofl: glorious Immanuel in this view, and has a warm fenfe of his obligations to him, how fwect is the exercife of faith ! He finds the courts of the Lord to have fome of the blelTednefs of the palace itfelf Such they were to him, who faid, " BlefTcd are they ^' « that An essay on PSALM0DY. 411 *' that dwell in thy courts, they will be ftill " praifing thee. Selah." They wiJl be ftill acknowledging their debt in pfalms and hymns and fpiritual fongs: which is the very employ- ment of the faints round the throne, and which is the divine ordinance to exprefs our communi- on with them, and to bring us a foretafte of their happinefs. From this pafTage in Chronicles we fee the ufe of the pfalms in the old teftament, and for what end they were then fung in the church. It was to remind believers of the wonderful perfon and of the divine works of the incarnate Jehovali, that they might admire his matchlefs beauty, and adore him for his moft precious love. With happy and thankful hearts they ufeH daily to fing of him in the temple fcrvice. The concert will never be excelled upon this earth, and the effe£t which accompanied it, will only be equalled in heaven. The fubjeft — the number of voices and inftruments — tlie excellence of the mufic and of the performance — and the divine approbation which crowned the whole, by a mi- racle confirming the faith and ftrengthening the hopes of the congregation ; thcfe are moft nobly defcribed in 2 Chron. v. 11,12, &c. So],omon had finiftied the temple, and had brought the ark of the covenant into the holy of holies: " And it " came to pafs, v/hen the pricfts were come *' out of the holy place :' for all the priefts that t) d a ' were 412 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. " were prefent were fanftified, and did not " then wait by courfe : alfo the Levites, who " were the fingers, all of them of Afaph, of He- . " man, of Jeduthun, with their fons and their " brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals, and pfalteries, and harps, flood at " the eaft end of the altar, and with them an " hundred and twenty priefts founding with " trumpets: it came even to pafs, as the trum- " peters and fingers were as one, to make one " found to be heard in praifmg and thanking the Lord. And when they lift up their voice " with the trumpets^ and cymbals, and inftru- " ments of mufic, and praifed the Lord, faying, " for he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever : " that then the houfe was filled with a cloud, " -even the houfc of the Lord : fo that the priefts *' could not ftand to minifter by reafon of the " cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the " houfe of God." All Jfrael met upon this oc- cafion, a very great congregation, from the en- tering in of Hamath,unto the river of Egypt. They came to the dedication of the temple, knovi^- ing that it was a type of the body of Chrift, snd prefigured his coming from heaven to dwell with men on the earth. The filling the temple with glory was to teach them that a perfon in Jehovah was to tabernacle in the manhood of Chrift. In him the fulncfs of the Godhead was to dwell bodily, and out of his fulnefs they fliQuld AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 4I ^ filould receive grace for grace. WhiJe they were looking forward with joyful hope, and fing- ing the praifes of this moft bleffed event, the Lord gave them the fenfible proof, that he would come and inhabit the temple of his body, and would alfo come and dwell in their hearts by faith. Once in the end of the world God was manifeft in the flefli, but in every age he has vifited his people with his prefence, and bleffed them with his love, while they have been with thankful hearts afcribing to him all the glory of their falvation. When he has thus difpofed them to give him the honor due unto his name, then he has brought them into a pro- per temper to receive the greatefl: communica- tions of his grace. For the raofl: high and holy one that inhabiteth eternity vouchfafcs to dwell in the humble and contrite heart. The King of Kings admits the meek and lowly to the neareft approach, yea to the moft intimate familiarity with him. The higheft refides with the loweft. With them the almighty fovereign keeps his court, according to his promife — " I will dwell " with you, and v/ill walk among you, and I ' *will be your God, and ye fliall be my people." When he fmiles upon them with his reconciled countenance, and excites in them holy love and humble adoration : O what an happinefs is it to beho'ld the king in his beauty, even here by faiih. The foul thus enamoured with him will find 414 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODV, find it a mofl delightful employment to fing his praifeSj and cannot help breaking out into pfalms and hymns of thankfulnefs. Thefe are the appointed means of teftifying its facred joy. In them the faints above have their heavenly ex- ercife, and the faints below have often in the life of the fame means a foretafte of the glory to be revealed. When Zerubbabel and his brethren began to rebuild the temple after the captivity, the work was entered upon with finging pfalms. *' And *' when the builders laid the foundation of the " temple of the Lord, they fet the priefts in their *' apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the " fqns of Afaph with cymbals, to praife the " Lord,. after the ordinance of David king of If' " rael; and they fang together by courfe, in *' praifing and giving thanks unto the Lord: be- *' caufe he is good: for his mercy endureth for *' ever towards Ifrael," Ezra iii. lo, ii. The words to praife, and to give thanks are the fame, as in the forecited place in Chronicles, and ap- plied to the fame perfon, even to the deiire of all nations, who was to come and fill the fecond temple with his glory — " The glory of this latter houfe fhall be greater than of the former, faith the Lord of hofts:" Hag. ii, 7. which was really accomplilhed, when the word was made flefli and dwelt among us. Then the Lord came to his templcj and his difciples faw his AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY, 41^ liis glory, the glory as of the only begotten of The father, full of grace and truth. Of him alfo fang Nehemiah, as nientioned in chap. xii. He repaired the wall of Jerufalem, and ended it with praifing and giving thanks to the Lord God of Ifrael, finging pfalms unto him with voices and inftruments of mufic, ac- cording to the commandment of David the man of God. From thefe inftances it is plain that the general fubjefil of the pfalms was to afcribe to the incarnate Jehovah all the honor of faving finners. The fweet pfalmift of Ifrael frequently calls upon the church to fmg pfalms to the Sa- viour's praife, particularly in pfalm xcii. which was conftantly fung on the fabbath, the day of praife, in Pfalms xcv,xcvi,xcviii,&;c. And he does this very remarkably in the hundredth pfalm, wherein he calls upon believers to join in this de- lightful work, and affigns feveral reafons for their encouragement to do it with the warmeft grati- tude of their hearts. The title is A Pfalm of Confeflion, viz. to God for his goodnefs, and for the wonders which he hath done for the children of men, I. O all the earth, make the air ring with the praifes of Jehovah. 2 Serve ye Jehovah with heart-felt joy — Come ye into his prefence with the higheft praifes you can give. 5 3- Be AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 3. Be ye eertain, that Jehovah is the very Alehim, he hath made us, and not we ourfelves, we are his people, and the flock under his paf- toral care: 4. Enter ye into his gates with confeffion, into his courts with afcribing to him the praife of giving you every thing ufeful, pay ye homage to him, blefs ye his name : 5. For Jehovah is good, his mercy is for ever, and his faithfulnefs is from generation to genera- tion. When believers in their church fervice ufed to fmg this pfalm, they acknowledged in ^t the goodnefs of God to them, and had in their hearts fentiments of his loving kindnefs, fuch as thefe-— 1. O all ye inhabitants of the world, who have found redemption through faith in the blood of the Lamb, join together to make his praife to be heard : fmg unto Jehovah a new fong, fmg praifes unto him luftily with a good courage : 2. Serve ye Jehovah with a free fpirit, fmging and making melody jn your hearts unto him: come ye into his prefence, having now accefs with confidence, and let the high praifes of God be in your mouth, afcribing to him all the glory of your falvation : 3. Be ye certain that Jehovah is the very Ale- him, the three in covenant to fave fmners: for he ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 41 y has made us, and not we ouifelves, we neither made ourfelves creatures, nor new crea- tures in Chrifl: Jelus — he gave us our being, and our well being — we have nothing of our own but fin; and he has made us his free fubje6ls by redeeming us from the bondage of fin, yea we are his beloved flock, and he is our good fliep- herd, who will give grace and glory to his peo- ple, and to the flieep of his pafture: 4. O come ye then into his gates with thank- ful acknowledgment of his infinite goodnefs to your fouls — meet him in the great congregation, and join all the redeemed, who in earth and heaven are with one heart giving blefling and honor, and glory and power, to God and the lamb. 5. For Jehovah is good, and doeth good, his mercy is to be celebrated in his church militant from age to age, and his never failing faithfulnefs is to be your fubjecl of never ending praife in the church triumphant. O for fuch holy afl?'e£lions as this pfalm re- quires. Reader, art thou acquainted with the fubjecl, and art thou indeed a partaker of that thankfulnefs, of which it treats. O beo- of him then to give thee a growing fenfe of thine utter unworthinefs of the leaft mercy. This is gof- pel-poverty of fpirit, and this will lead thee to pray for a more thankful acknowledgment qf the goodnefs of God, flowing from the happy expe- rience 4l8 AH ESSAY ON PSALMODY. rience of its bleffings, and influencing the whole man to praife him for them. To this grateful tem- per the very reading of the pfahn will be as an ordinance, and the fmging of it with the melody of the heart will be a feaft. From thefe authorities of the old teftament it is plain, that the fubjeftof the book of pfalms, and the finging them, were intended to excite in believers the warmeft fentiments of gratitude. The Ipve of God manifefted in faving fmners through Jefus Chrift, is herein defcribed with the true fublime both of ftyle and fentiment ; and when any pfalm was fung, if the heart felt the fubje£l, and made harmony there, then it be- came a delightful, as well as an acceptable fer- vice. But we fhall fee clearer evidence of this matter, if we attend to CHAP. IV. Some Fajfages in the New Tejlament concerning the Book of Pfalms. The quotations are very numerous. Chrifl: and his apoftles often refer to the pfalms, and make a dire6t application of them: for they all treat of him, as indeed the whole volume of re- velation does. He is the fpirit and life of all the bible; but there is no part fo particulaxly, and fo frequently applied to him, as the book of pfalms. We know the fubject of the cxth from AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 415' from infallible authority — it is the heavenly government of king-mediator, who is David's fon, and yet David calleth him his Lord : for he was God and man in one Chrift. His own ufe of the pfalms is very remarkable : he fung them, and quoted them. At his lafl: pafTover he joined with his apoftles in the pfalms commonly ufed upon that occafion. St. Matthew fays, " When they had fung an hymn," which is fup- pofed to be part of the grand hallelujah, be- ginning at the cxiiith, and ending with the cxviiith pfalm. Hereby our Lord not only made ufe of, but alfo applied thofe divine hymns to himfelf, he being indeed the very pafchal lamb flain in type from the foundation of the world, and now about to take away fm by the facrifice of himfelf. And after he had by his fufferings and death made a full atonement, and was rifen from the dead, he re- proved his two difciples as they were going to Emmaus, and he faid unto them, Luke xxiv. 25, *' O ye without underftanding, how flow of *' heaft are ye to believe all that the prophets *' havefpoken ! Ought not Chrift to have fuffer- ** ed thefe things, and to have entered into his *' glory ? And beginning at Mofes, he expound- *' ed unto them from all the prophets, the things *' written of himfelf in all the fcriptures." And among the reft he expounded unto them out of the pfalms, as his cuftom was : for when he ap- peared 42^q AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. peared to his apofilcs to confirai them in the belief of his refurreclion, he faid unto them, " Tl^efe are the words, which I fpake unto you, *' while I was yet with you, that all things muft *' be fulfilled, which were written in the law of *' IMofes, and in the Prophets, and in the Pfalms *' concerning me. Then openea he their under- ftandings that they might underftand the fcrip- tures." Here he declares that the pfalms were written concerning himfelf. Not only here and there a paffage, or an illufion, not only the quota- tions in theNewTefl:ament,but the whole volume throughout is concerning hirn. Upon whatever occafion the pfalmift compofed any of them, yet it was only a cafe to fpeak upon, in order to intro- duce what was to be faid concerning the divine perfon, and the divine work of the Mefliah. This is the fpiritual ufe and defign of the pfalms. And every man, whofe underftanding the Lord has opened, as he did his difciples, can fee them in this light. The veil being taken away, he be- iipl4s Chrift with open face, and every pfali-q fhews to him fome lovely feature of his moft lofely Saviour. Therein he reads of the divine an4 human nature of Immanuel, his life and death, his refurreclion and afcenfion, his kingdom and glory. He underftands the fcriptures, and with the joy of his heart receives what is thcreiu written concerning the God of his falvation. I Agreeably AN ESSAY ON rSALMODY. 42I Agreeably to our Lord's own life of the pfalms, we find the whole church of believers with one accord ufing them in the fame manner. The inftance recorded in Afls iv. is remarkable, 'becaufe the reference, which they made to the pfalms, indifputably proves, that they are writ- ten concerning Ghrift. Peter and John had been imprifoned for preaching Jefus, but being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priefts and elders had faid unto them : and when they heard that, they lift up their voice to God with one accord, and faid, " Lord, thou art God, who hafl: made heaven and earth, and the fea; and all that in " them is : who by the mouth of thy fervant " David hall faid, why did the heathen rage, " and the people imagine vain things ? The " kings of the earth ftood up, and the rulers *' were gathered together againft the Lord and " againft his Chrift : for of a truth againft thy " holy child Jefus, whom^thou haft anointed, *' both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the gen- " tiles, and the people of Ifrael, were gathered " together, for to do whatfoever thy hand, and thy counfel determined before to be done." Here the whole church under the fpecial influ- ence of the holy Spirit applies the iid pfalm to Chrift, and declares its accomplifliment in him — he being of a truth the very perfon of whom it treats : Which is decifive evidence, and muft determine 422 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. determine the point even to a demonftratioit "with all that believe the fcriptures. It is not to be wondered then, that the apoftles fliould follow the fame rule in explaining the pfalms. Peter quotes them and refers them to Chrift. In his ■ firft fermon recorded Adls ii. he applies the xvith pfalm to the refurre£lion of Chrift, and he brings the cxth to prove, that Chrift had all power in heaven and earth, and fliould fit at the right hand of Jehovah, until all his enemies fliould be made his footftool. In the fourth chapter of the A£ts, he ftiews that Chrift was the ftone fet at nought by the Jewifli builders, who neverthclefs fliould be made the head of the corner, as it is in the cxviiith pfalm. Peter had no doubt concerning the application of the pfalms to Chrift, and his Beloved brother Paul fliews he was of the fame opinion. We have an account of his manner of preach- ing among the Jews : " He ufed to reafon with *' them out of the fcriptures, opening and al- " kdging, that Chrift muft needs have fuffered, *' and rifen again from the dead, and that this *' Jefus, whom I preach unto you is the Chrift." And among the other fcriptures he did not forget the pfalms : for we, in Acls xiii. have a whole fermon of his, an ineftimable treafury of his fcripture learning, in which he quotes fcveral pfalms, and dire£tly applies them, to Chrift, as he alfo does in his other writings. His epiftle to the AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 42^ tKe Hebrews abounds with references, twenty- nine at leaft. The iiid and ivth chapters are a comment on the xcvth pfalm : as the viith chapter is on the cxth: and the xth is on the xlth. Whoever will attend to the manner in which the apoftle reafons upon thefe paffages, will readily perceive, that he does not enter upon any formal proof of the defign of the book of pfalms, or of Chrift's being the fubjeft of them. He does not aim at any fuch thing; but takes it for granted, and argues upon it as an eftabliflied truth. Indeed it was at that time the belief of the whole church. There was then no doubt but all fcripture treated of him — " To him give " ALL the prophets witnefs" — He was their one fubjeft. But more efpecially in the pfalms he was fet forth, and was to be highly exalted, with all the powers of poetry, and with the fweeteft founds of inftruments and vdices. Thefe hymns were infpired to celebrate his matchlefs fame and renown 3 that whenever believers felt themfelves' happy in the knowledge and love of Jefus, here they might find proper matter and fuitable words to raife their gratitude, as high as it can be on tHis fide of heaven. We have alfo the apoftle's pra6tice and experience to recommend his ufe of the pfalms. He fung them with delight, as well as quoted them whh propriety. His love to Jefus run as high, as love ever will upon earth. He fpeaks of him con- tinually 424 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODr. tinually as the perfect delight of his Ibul, oil ■whom he had placed all his afFeflions, and whom he found every day worthy of more love, than his narrow heart could contain. O how precious ■was his Saviour, when he could fay — " What things were gain to me, thofe I counted lofs " for Chrift : yea doubtlefs, and I do count all *' things but lofs for the excellency of the *' knowledge of Chriit Jefus my Lord, for whom " I have fuffered the lofs of all things, and I do " count them but dung, that I may win Chrift." Happy Paul ! what muft he have feen in Jefus, •who could account it an honor to fufFer fliame for his name, and an infinite gain to win Chrift, though with the lofsof all things? Ohappy, thrice happy man, who could carry the crofs of Chrift, and efteem it as his crown. God forbid, fays he, that I fliould glory in any thing, except in the crofs of our Lord Jefus Chrift : for I count not my life dear to myfelf, fo as I may but live and die fulfilling his will. And this was not a flight of fancy, or a mere rant of enthufiafm, but it w as cool fober love, and arofe from real experi- ence of the precioufnefs of Jefus to his heart. This heavenly lover was the fubjeSt of his fongs in the worfl houfe of his painful pilgrimage. He was fo truly in body and foul and fpirit de- voted to his Jefus, that how much foever he fuffered, yet he could rejoice in the Lord. O what a proof did he give of it ! — fufficient to fliamc Air ESSAY DN PSALMODY. 42^ fliame our higheft profeflions of attachment to the dear Redeemer. When he had been beaten with many and cruel ftripes, put into a difmal dungeon, and even there, with his feet in the Hocks, his heart was then full of gratitude, and in tune to make delightful melody unto the Lord, yea, brake out into pfalms of praife— , " At midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and fang " praifes unto God," with a loud voice : for the prifoners heard them. O for more faith in Jefus to fill us more with this thankful and praifmg fpirit. Lord, pour it out abundantly for thy mercies fake upon all thofe, who believe in thy holy name : let us make ourboaft of thee all the day long, and praife thy name for ever. From thefe inftances it is evidentj that the New Teftament church underftood the pfalms in the fame light, as the Old. Believers always fung them with the fame view, with hearts and voices making melody unto the Lord Chrift. He himfelf confirmed this ufe of them : for he joined in this part of religious worfliip. The apoftles quoted the pfalms, and diredly applied them to their blefl'ed Lord. Yea, when the church met together in one place, the pfalms were not only read and fung, but fome abufes in finging them are corrected, which will lead me to confider Vol. Vlir. E 0 426 AN ESSAY ON F3ALM0DT# CHAP. V. Jinlei laid down in fcripture for Jinging them aright. Singing of Pfalms is a divine ordinance, ancf has an inward and an outward fervice. The inward confifts in the proper frame and affeftion of the renewed and fpiritual mind : for no mart can ufe the pfahns as an ordinance of God, who has not received the Spirit of God: without him we can do nothing, being dead in trefpafles and lins. And after he is received, he is the con- tinual breath of fpiritual life, yea, as much as the air we breathe is of natural life. Every fpiritual fenfation of peace, comfort, and joy in God the Father, is from the divine agency of the Lord the Spirit. Every a6i of religious wor- lliip is performed acceptably by his ilrengthen- ing us mightily in the inner man, and giving us the will and the power. If we pray aright, it i* in the Holy Ghoft. If we hear aright, it is by his bleffmg on the word preached. If we ling aright, it is by the fame fpirit : and therefore we are not only commanded to feek his aflift- ance in all we do, but alfo a growing and in- creafmg meafure of his graces and gifts. Thus the apoftle dire£\s the Ephcfians in their finging of An essay on psalmody. 427 of pfalms, " Be ye filled with the Spirit, fpeak- " ing to yourfeives in pfalms," &c. This is not meant of receiving him at firfi: ; for it is fpoken to believers, who had the fpirit, but it relates to their thirfling after more, how much foever they had attained, ftill more of the Spirit's fulnefs, it being in him infinite, and always in us finite. We never have fo much, but we may have more ; and when we have the mofl, our thirll is then the greateft. This is an holy thirft, to which there is a divine invitation — " Ho, every one " that thirfteth, come to the waters of life.' And a divine promife — " In the lafl: day, that " great day of the feafl, Jefus flood and cried, " faying. If any man third:, let him come unto *' me, and drink ; but this fpake he of the *' Spirit, which they that believe on him fhould re- *' ceive." And when this promife is fulfilled, and the holy Spirit is received, we are ftill in faith to ufe means for the increafing of his graces and gifts ; among which means the apof- tle recommends — " Speaking to yourfeives in " pfalms," &;c. He fuppofes their finging would tend to their mutual edification : for the words are in the plural number, and denote their joining together in this holy exercife. He alfo commands the Coloffians to inftru£t and to admonifhone another in pfalms, and hymns, and fpiritual fongs, herein uling the grace given both for its exerqife, and alfo for its improvement. E e 2 And 428 AH ESSAY ON ¥SALMODT,- And this true mannei of finjrlns comes from the* spirit, and increafes the fruits of the Spirit. It comes from the Sphit ; becaufe none can perform it, but the new creature in Chrift Jefus. It is a fpiritual fervice, in which only the fpi- ritual man can join. No one can make any melody acceptable to Got!, who has not been firft a partaker of the Holy Ghoft. He is the Lord and giver of life ; without him all men- are dead in trefpaffes and fins. He only can quicken and make the foul alive to God. It requires his almighty power, and it belongs to his covenant office. And when he, the Spirit of life, makes any one free from the law of lin and death, then he is a child of God. He is mad« to know it, and to believe it : for he ha& received the fpirit of adoption, whereby he cries Abba, Father.- In the fenfe of this love flied abroad in his heart by the Holy Ghoft, he begins to rejoice in God, as his God. Trufting to- what Jefus is to him, that he has fatisfied for his fins, has wrought out his righteoufnefs, and is now ftanding in tlic prefence of God for him, he fees himfelf accepted in the beloved, an heir of God, and a joint heir with Chritl. Hereby his heart becomes reconciled to God, and he finds the truth of what is written — ^' We love him, " becaufe he firft loved us." Now he has David's affection, and he can join heartily in finging with him— Blefs the Lord, O my foul, and AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. t^Z^ and all that is within me, blefs his holy name. — Blefs the Lord, O my foul, and forget not all bis benefits : who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy difeafes : who redeemeth thy life from deftru6lion, who crowneth thee with loving kindnefs and tender mercies. Thus the right fmging the praifes of God comes from the Spirit, and it alfo iwcreafes the fruits of the Spirit. It is one -of the appointed means of improving them. True grace is always operative, and grows by the fruit which it bears. If the believer be rejoicing, fmging will add to his joy, as it is written, Is any in " a happy frame ? Let him fmg pfalms and that will make him happier. It is the divine promife, and cannot fail ; he fhall increafe his joy in the Lord. Is any afflifted ? Pfalms will refrefli and comfort him : Paul and Silas fore whipt and put into the flocks, fung a pfalm at midnight. The fulnefs of the fpirit in the fweet fmger of Ifrael, went out much this way. He fang moft, and praifed beft of all the faints of God. He fang in all frames, and upon all oc- cafions : let us follow his example, and be fpeaking much and often to one another in pfalms, and hymns, and fpiritual fongs, feeking thereby to be filled with a growing meafure of the holy fpirit. If thou enquircfl, how fliall I obtain this ineftimable bleffnig ? The command is— afk and it fliall be given you, feek and ye fliall find — whoever 43° AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. whoever is made fenfible he (lands in need of the affiftance of the holy Spirit is only required to aik, and the promife is — " Every one that afk- *' eth receiveth, and he that feeketh findeth : if a fon fliall afk bread of any of you that is a father, *' will he give him a ftone ? or if he afk a fifli, will he for a fifli give him a ferpent ? or if he *' afk an egg, will he give him a fcorpion ? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good *' gifts unto your children, how much more fliall ** your heavenly Father give the holy Spirit to *' them that alk him r" How gracious are thefe words ! How encouraging arc they to every one, who has any concern about his falvation, to defire the holy Spirit may be given to him, to enable him to truft in Jefus, and to find the Fa- ther's love in him : and they leave every man without excufe, who lives and dies without thofe bleffings, which God has promifcd to give to every one that afketh. Whoever is a partaker of the Spirit, has a new nature in Chrift Jefus, and has a new under- flanding given him, whereby he is enabled to clifcern and to judge of fpiritual things : for thus runs the promife — " He fliall lead you into all truth:" And the apoftle prays for the fulfilling of it to the Ephefians — " May the God of our Lord ^' Jefus Chrift the Father of glory, give unto you the fpirit of wifdom and revelation in the ?' knowledge of him, that the eyes of your un- derftanding A5T ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 43I « derftanding may be enlightened." The holy Spirit a6ts upon men as rational creatures. He does not treat them, as if they were ftones or brutes ; but he makes the truths of the gofpei clear to the mind, and defireable to the will. He opens the eyes of the underftanding to fee the objeft, and then prefcnts it in its glorious beauty and attrafting lovelinefs. The renewed mind beholds, admires, and loves it ; and then animated with this love can fing its praifes. Holy men of God in the Old Teliament fung with knowledge. Ignorance was not the mother of their pfalmody. They were well acquainted with what they fung. The royal prophet fays, he employed his underftanding in this devout ^xercife, as well as his harp, and his voice. Hear him, how earneftly he calls upon others to «xtol his beloved Jefus — " Sing praifes to God, " fmg praifes ; fing praifes unto our king, fing " praifes : for God is the king of all the earth, " fing ye praifes with underftanding." He would have them to mind what they were about, and to underftand what they fung ; Icaft they fliould utter lies unto the Lord, or offer to him a facrifice without a heart : confider whom you have to deal with — how great and good a God— obferve, how you praife him : engage all your rnental powers in this delightful work-, that it may be holy, acceptable to God, and a reafon- able fervice. The 432^ AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. The apoftle agrees in fentiment with thepfalm- 5ft: for thus he fpeaks to the Corinthians : " If I *' pray in an unknown tongue, my fpirit pray- ** eth, but my underftanding is unfruitful : what *' is it then ? I will pray with the fpirit, and I *' will pray with the underftanding alfo : I will *' fing with the fpirit, and I will fing with the *' underftanding alfo." Singing is unfruitful, unlefs the underftanding go with it. Unlefs the mind be profited, and God be honored, it is only empty found. But when we fing by the Spirit, then he will teach us to fing with the under- ftanding alfo. He will open the fubje£t to us, will give a fixt attention to it, will bring the mind into tune, and will keep us looking at the fenfe, more than at the found. Is it fo with thee, O my foul ? Enquire care- fully. Art thou led by the Spirit in thy finging ? Does he enlighten thy mind, and guide thee into the knowledge of the fubjeft, in which thou art engaged ? Take heed, and be often examining thyfelf--^how thy mind is affected— leaft thou fhouldeft prefent unto the Lord the fong of fools. But chiefly keep thy heart diligently : be- caufe out of it are the iffues of life. The man is what his heart is. If this be dead to God, iiothing in hirn is alive : if this be right with God, all will be right. If he has a clean heart, and ilM ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 435 nnd a right fpirit renewed within me, the holy Ghoft has made him a new creature in Chrill Jefus, and has won the will and the affe£lion3 over to God. This is his principal office in the converfion of fmners. He therefore difcovers truth to theunderftanding, in order that it may feecome defneable, and that the heart may be properly influenced by it. The heart is the com- manding faculty. When this has once tailed the fweetnefs of the Father's love in Jefus, it will engage the whole man to feek for more. Love is very a£tive, and will do or fufFer much to obtain and to preferve the beloved objeft. Set this fpring a going, it will move all the wheels. The hands will work for God. The feet will run the way of his commandments. Love will make heavy burdens not grievous to be borne : love will carry them a long time, and faint not. Jacob ferved feven years for Rachel, and they feemed unto him but a few days for the love which he had unto her. The labor of love is always delightful. When we know God to be our Father in Jefus, and have his love ftied abroad in our hearts by the holy Ghoft, then his fervlce becomes perfe£l freedom : then duty is ennobled into privilege : then obedience becomes willing, and filial : the beloved child finds free accefs to the Father's throne, and receives bleffed communications of his grace : fpr which his tha^ikful heart offers the facrifice of 434 ESSAY ON PSALMODY. of praife, and it comes up with a fweet favor acceptable to God through Jefus Chrift. This is the melody of the heart. While it feels its infinite debt to free grace, is deeply convinced of its utter unworthinefs, and is kept humble by the abiding fenfe of its imperfeftions, and of its indwelling corruptions, it is in a right frame to exalt the exceeding riches of divine mercy. Then it is difpofed to give God all his glory. This he requires, as his due, and it becometh well the righteous to pay it. When the heart is made willing to afcribe every good to his holy name, then it is right with God. All w'ithin is now in tune to join every golden harp, and .every joyful tongue in heaven, which are afcrib- ing bleffing and honor, and glory and power to him that fitteth upon the throne, and to the lamb for ever. This is the chief requifite in finging pfalms. The heart makes the beft mufic. The fineft compofitions, ever fo well executed with inftru- ments and voices are not a divine concert, un^ 3efs the heart accompany them. David knew this well, and therefore he fet his affections to the highefl pitch of praife, and he brought all of them to join. His whole heart entered into the performance, and rendered the concert full. — " i will praife thee, O Lord my God, with all " my heart, and I will glorify thy name for ever- more : for great is thy mercy towai'ds me." Thy AN ESSAY ON PSALMOBY. 435 Thy fpccial covenant mercy is fuch towards me, that my very thoughts cannot rife up to its great- nefs : How then can I utter forth all its praife ? I cannot; no, not even half of it. But though the debt be fo great, that I cannot count it up, yet I will the more extol chee for it from day to day : I would engage my afFe£tions, and give them all up to this heavenly employment. I would have my whole foul in it. And yet the debt remains, rather increafes. O for a more enlarged heart ! My praifes continued are only- acknowledgments, and I want them continued with growing humility — more in earth and more in heaven. There I fliall praife better, when my heart yvid have nothing in it, but humble gratitude. Yet here I will not give over ; but will carry on my joyful fong, till 1 can fing in a higher ftrain. " Praife the Lord, O my foul, and all within me blcfs his holy name; O give thanks unto him for he is good, and his mercy " endureth for ever. Hallelujah." The apoflle Paul had his portion in the fame mercy, and had the fame grateful fenfe of it : he fang the pfalms of David with the fpirit of David. What he praftifed himfelf he has recommended to others. He has given us fome rules about fmging in the congregation, and he chiefly con- fines them to the heart accompanying the voice. Thus he dire£ts the Ephefians — " Be not drunk " with wine wherein is excefs, but be ye filled «« with 43^ AN ESSAY OK PSA©MODY- with the fpirit, fpeaking to yourfelves in " pfalms and hymns, and fpiritual fongs, fing- ing and making melody in your hearts unto the Lord, giving thanks always for all things ** unto God and the Father in the name of our " Lord Jefus Chrift." He would not have them meet together, as they formerly had done, to feaft without fear, and to drink unto drunkennefs, inciting one another to greater riot and excefs by wanton and profane fongs : which was the cuftom at moft of the heathen banquets. They ufed to try to fill one another with wickednefs. But ye have not fo learned Chrift. Seek ye to be filled with his fpirit,. and ufe the means ap- pointed for that purpofe : among which, finging of pfalms, and hymns, and fpiritual fongs, is one of the chief. Thefe feveral names are expreflive of the different fubjefts treated of in the facred poetry ; hymns are in praife of Immanuel, fpiri- tual fongs are in praife of his fpiritual kingdom, according to the fenfe of the words in the He- brew, and according to the tranflation of them in the Septuagint, as was before fliewn. The manner of finging them, it is here faid, was by joining together with their voices, but efpcci- ally with their hearts. From thence comes the beft melody. Harmony in found is pleafant in our ears ; but harmony in affection is the mufic which enters into the ears of the Lord of hofts. *' My fon, give me thy heart ;" he will have no fervice A>5 ESSAY ON PSALMODY. ^.^J fervice without it. Prayer, obedience, praife, every offering mull come from the heart. He looks at this, and this in ail, and above all. This lie accepts, and teftifies his delight in : for it is the fame facrifice of praife, which will for ever delight him. The church triumphant has begun the fong, which will be perfectly and for ever pleafing to the Lord : and when we meet below with one faith to glorify our one Lord, then we enjoy the communion of faints. We have one heart with them — join In the fame fubje6l of praife to their Lord and our Lord — our harmonv is theirs — our happinefs is theirs — it is one and the fame communion with the Father and the Son by the Spirit. And though we cannot raife our fong to fo high a pitch, or continue it without ceafing, as the faints above do j yet we entirely agree with them, and are trying to make better mufic in our hearts every day, until we fee their Jefus and our Jefus face to face. He loves us, as well as them : for he is our Immanuel : and our fouls rejoice in him together with them. We love him, we ferve him, we blefs him, as hum- bly, and as thankfully, as we can ; yea in all things we would be giving of thanks to his holy name. O for more love, more thankfulnefs, ■wore devotednefs to our precious Lord Jefus Chrift. This is our daily prayer, and our con- ftant purfuit. Bleffed and eternal Spirit purify our hearts by faith, and increafe in them a fenfe. Qf 5 43^ An essay on PSALMOUf. of his wondrous love to us, that we may be growing in love to him, until he vouchfafe to admit us into his prefence, and give us to thank him with never ceafing fongs of praife. In another place the apoftle treats of the fame fubjecl, only varies the expreflion a little. He recommends finging of pfalms to the CololTians* as an ordinance of God for increafmg the graces of his people — " Let the word of Chrift dwell *' in you richly in all wifdom, teaching and ad- *' monifliing one another in pfalms, and hymns, " and fpiritual fongs, finging with grace in your hearts to the Lord : and whatfoever ye do in ** word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord ** Jefus, giving thanks to God and the Father " by him." The Coloflianshad put on the new man, and the apoftle exhorts them to put on the ornaments and endowments peculiar to their new nature, and he mentions feveral of them : in which he would have them to be growing daily : and he propofes to them the word of God, as the bcft means for this purpofe. He would have it treafured up in their hearts, and inwardly digefted — " dwelling richly in them in *' all wifdom" for knowledge and praftice. He includes both : becaufe this wifdom was for edifi- cation— they were to teach and to admonifli one another. What each had learnt out of the fcrip- tures was to be of public benefit to the church. And the way of doing this is particularly menti- a oncd AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. oned — They were to fing together with grace in their hearts. All isdifcord within, until we are taught by grace, free effectual grace. But when we believe the dodrines of grace, then harmony comes in, and we learn to afcribe every good to the mere mercy of God. We receive' his bleflf- ings, and he receives all the praife of them. Then grace is in the heart : it is there not onlv to reconcile the finner to the way of falvation by faith alone, but alfo to make him in love with it, and to keep him willing to praife God for it with his lips and life. O how good a thing is it, that the heart be thus eftabliflied with grace ! for then the affeftions will be fixt upon the right ob]e6t, and the whole foul will be in harmony with the truth as it is in Jefas. Free grace doc- trines felt in their power in the heart make hea- venly melody. Every faculty is in tunc, and in- clined to bear its part in blefling the name of the Lord. The underftanding fees it right, the will choofes, the heart loves to give him all the praife, aiid the mouth joins to glorify him with joyful lips, finging unto the Lord — The God-man — Immanucl is the fubject of this happy fong. He is the God of all grace. It is a joyful and plea- fant thing to be thanking him for it : yea, it is a foretalte of the faints' fulnefs of joy. The truly humble believer, feeing the exceeding riches of grace, gladly joins his elder brethren round the throne in praifing the Lord Jcfus Chrill. And. when 440 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODfr* when the temple of God fliall be complete, and the laft believer joined to the fpiritual building, then the topftone fliall be brought forth with Ihouting — grace— grace unto it— glory be to free grace for ever and ever. To the famepurpofe the apofile James,ch.v. 13- teaching believers how to behave in every ftate directs them, " Is any among you afflifted ? let " him pray. Is any meny ? let him fmg pfalms." Affliction fliould fend him to prayer, for grace to bear it and to improve it : joy to finging of pfalms to exprefs thankfulnefs to God. Is any merry ? that is a proper feafon, though not the only feafon. Prayer is neceffary at all times, though it be moft needful in affli6tion : and fo tinging ; it is not only needful when we are rejoicing, in order that our joy may center in the Lord, but fometimes finging will beget fpiritual joy, and will awaken it in the afflifted heart. Paul and Silas were in great outward diftrefs, yet they fang a pfalm in prifon. The apoftles fang an hymn after the facrament, although they knew their Lord was going to fuffer, and the/ were greatly troubled. In that forrowful hour they fang. Singing is always feafonablc, but efpecially when the heart is happy. " Is any " among you merry? Let him fing pfalms." Is he in a good frame of mind, rejoicing in the bounty of God, cither for temporal or fpiritual mercies? Let him fing, pfalms to the praifc and glory AN ESSAY ON P'ALMODY, 441 glbry of his benefa£ldr : this is A proper ex~ preffion of gratitude for favors received, and will be the means of fecurinof them: for fmce his happinefs comes from a good God, and arifes from communion with God in Chrift, it is fit and meet, that he fliould afcribe it to the right objeft, and in a vvsy of God's own appointing A divine hymn upon the fubje£t of praife (of' which there are many) fung with heart-felt thankfulnefs is a grateful fcrvice. The Lord requires fuch an acknowledgment, and it be- come th well the juil to be thankful — yea he has vouchfafed to reveal the very words, in which he requires it to be paid him : and when all within us blcffes his holy name, rejoicing in the Lord, he would have the outward man to join and to declare with the melody of his lips, how happy he is in his heart. Thus in finging the praifes "of our God we fliall find frefli reafon to praife him. He will certainly meet us in his own means, and blefs us in his own ways. We fliall not wait upon him in vain. The means of his appointing cannot fail of anfvvering the end. He has promifed to put honor upon his own ap- pointments, and his word cannot be broken. The joyful chriftian is commanded to fing the praifes of his God, and his heart fliall be thereby- kept in holy joy, yea it fliall be increafed. His joy fliall abound : and when believers fing, as they are commanded, with one another, it fliall Vol. VIII, Ff Und 44^ AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. tend to their mutual edification. It fliall llir them up to greater thankfuhiefs, and excite warmer affeftion to the God of their falvation. Singing pfalms is a church-ordinance, and as fuch it is bleflfed. The Lord will not forfake the affembly of his faint£. When they are met together to praife him, he will be in the midft of them, and will manifeft his acceptance, both of their perfons and ferviccs. This will make their attendance upon him delightful. When he lifta up the ligh^of his countenance upon them, how can they help finging what they feel ? Now they experience he has bought them with his blood, and faved them from hell, has wrought out their righteoufnefs, and will give them his heaven, it becometh them well to praife him, and to rejoice in his holy name. He has made them bleffed at prefent, and they fliall be bleffed for evermore. Their bleffednefs comes from a never-failing fpring. They are the one true church, of which it is faid — " Joy and. gladnefs fliall be found therein, thankfgiving " and the voice of melody." Singing is their heaven in the church triumphant. They have the fulnefs of joy from God and the lamb, and they acknowledge it with humble adoration, and. a grateful fong of never ending praife. The in- numerable company of the redeemed will find, their heaven of heavens in' enjoying communion •with the holy Trinity, -aiid in fmging the glories I of • AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 443 of that mercy, which is from everlafting to cver- lafting. Jn this paffage the apoftle James fuppofes, that joy and finging agree well together. So they do. They depend on one another jjs the caufe and the effe£t. The melody of the heart breaks out, and expreffes itfelf with tlie melody of the mouth. A heart made fenfible of God's love in Chrift has the greatelt reafon to rejoice, ' and will be ready to fliew it in every way of God's appointment, particularly in finging the praifes of his wondrous love. Docs the prophet happy in his foul declare ? My mouth fhall " praife thee with joyful lips" — truechriftians can gladly join him. They have returned to God in faith, and have found redemption through the blood of the lamb. They know in whom they have believed, and are fatisfied of the Father's love to them in his dear fon. Now they can delight in God. It is their privilege to rejoice in him, as their God : yea it is their bounden duty (he calls upon them) to exprefs their fenfe of his good- nefs in fongs of praife. This joy in God is one •of the chief ingredients in pfalm finging. The heart cannot make pleafant melody, unlefs joy be there : for the Lord God has an unalienable right to the fervice of the whole man, but we never acknowledge it, until we become his chil- dren through faith in Chrift Jefusj in whom we F f 2 have 444 -'^^^ £SSAV 0>r PSALMODt- « have free accefs unto the Father. Then, p3r- fuaded of his precious love to us, we love hiirt again, and in thankfulnefs give up ourfelves with all we have, and are to his fervice and glorv. From hence arifes our joy in God, and every exprelTion of it ; wliich were required of all men by the holy law, but are only fulfilled by thofe, who have the faith of the gofpel. An unpar- doned finner cannot pofiibly rejoice in God : be- caufe this holy joy is a fruit of the Spirit, and is the confequence of believing. Thus David— The Lord is my ftrength and my fhield, my " heart trufled in him, and I am helped, there- *' fore my heart greatly rejoiceth, and with my *' fong will I praife him." What the prophet had experienced himfelf, the fame he wiflies for others — " Let all thofe that put their truft in *' thee rejoice, let them ever fliout for joy, be- caufe thou defendeft them ; let them alfo that " love thy name be joyful in thee." And when a company of thefc happy people meet together, it is the delight of their hearts to join in praifes to their God, and Saviour. " O come let us *' fing unto the Lord ; let us make a chearful noife to the rock of our falvation : let us come *' before his prefence with thankfgiving, and *' make a joyful noife unto him with pfalms." With thefe words we always begin the reading of the fcriptures in our church fervice. And what could be more fiiitablc ? How proper is it AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 44^ in a CO ngregation of believers to call upon one another to join in the praifesof the common Sa- viour, that we may ftrengthen our mutual joy in him. AH true joy comes from him, and every acknowledgment of it inward and outward is therefore required, ni order to preferve and to i-ticreafe our rejoicing in the Lord Jefus Chrift. He deferves all our joy — the lovclinefs of Im- manuel — his love to us — the bleffings of his love — how many — how great — how lafiing ! thefe fliould encourage us to be glad in him now with great joy. But the well-grounded profpe6l, which hope has, of finding in him infinite and everlafting bleflings, fliould lead us to rejoice in him with joy unfpeakable and full of glory. This profpeft has brightened the darkeft day : it has enabled fufferers greatly to rejoice, when in hea- vinefs through manifold temptations ; it has fup- ported them under every fiery trial. Nothing could extinguifli the joy. It has lived, and tri- umphed in the martyr's bread, even in the ago- nies of the moft painful death. Faith reads, and with hope looks out for (and it is a hope that will never be alhamed) the accomplifliment of this faithful promife™" The ranfomed of the " Lord rtiall return and come to Sion with fongs, " and everlafting joy upon their heads, they " fliall obtain joy and gladnefs, and forrow and " fighing fhall flee away." Doft 44^ AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. Deft thou find, O my foul, any of this hoTy joy ? Canft thou fing pfalms with the under- flanding, with the heart, and with gladnefs in thy heart, rejoicing in the Lord r Canft thou give thanks always for all* things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jefus Chrift ? This is the privilege of every true believer. Be- ing faved from fm and hell, made an heir of God, and a joint heir with Chrift, he has an in- tereft in all things : for they are all working to- gether under God for his prefent and eternal good. While he lives by faith, he knows it, and has the comfort of it. His heart is kept in tune, and whatever befalls him, he has reafon to rejoice in the Lord his God. Thus the Lord would have his people to rejoice in him always. It is not only true in theory, that they may, but it is alfo true in practice, if the outward walk be in concord with the do6trine of the pfalms. This is another elTential pare of pfalra finging. The believer fhould live as he fmgs. His life fliould be in harmony with his principles'. If he fees the truth as it is in Jefus, and loves it, and rejoices in it, the effect of all this will certainly be outward and vifible. The inward melody will be expreffed in his tempers and behaviour. There will be a confiftency throughout. As he lives, fo he will walk, by the faith of the Son of God. Fraftice and prin- ciple AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 447 ciple will fweetly accord. The fame found that comes from his ' lips comes alfo from his heart, and his whole life will be an unifon. His alli- ens fing, his tempers are in harmony, his be- haviour makes up the chorus, abroad and at home, the mufic of his heart and hfe gives one certain note — Jefus is mine all — I live in him — on him — to him — I would have all within me to praife him, and all without me to fliew forth his praifes — bleflings on him for ever and ever. Amen. If a man's life be not thus confident with his fmging, he mocks God, he deceives his neigh- bour, and he gives the lie to his own words.; Aftions are furer evidences than founds : for they difcover the fettled, and the laft purpofe of the mind. They fliew not only what a man talks of, but what he is determined to live by. The true charafler cannot be known, but from them, God only fees the heart. We know what is in it, by what com.es out of it. We judge of the fountain from the ftream. IF the words and works be evil, fo is the heart : for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders* adulteries, fornications, &c. thefe are clear facts to judge by. If fuch a man was to fmg with a voice like an angel, it is a voice and nothing more. His anions prove it to be mere air and empty found : yea, they demonftrate, that his heart is in perfect difcord with God. He fay-* oive 448 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. one thing, and does the contrary. He feems to praife God, as if he was happy in his love, but he cleaves to the world and feeks his happinefs in it. He lings — " Whom have I in heaven but thee," yet fliews his fupreme joy is in the earth. How can any thing, that fuch a man lings be an acceptable fervicc, while his heart and life are in direct oppofition to the holy will of God. A Jew can fing, a Turk can join in concert with him, an infidel may play well up- on an inftrument, a company of Jews, Turks, and infidels may perform the finefl: piece of mu- fic, and with the moft harmonious founds. They may go through the oratorio of the Meffiah with- out one difcord. But here is no melody to the Lord. They have no defign to fhew forth the praifes of Immanuel : and what is not done in faith, and to his glory, is fin. Their mufic is as hateful to him as any of their other vices : for felf is the burden of their fong. They fing to pleafe themfelves, and to pleafe God is not in all their thoughts. O confider this, ye that come to church, and join in finging the pfalms. Is it with you an ordinance of God ? Do you look upon it as fuch, and find it fuch ? Does your underftanding go with the pfalm, and your heart pnter into it ? Is it the joy of your heart ? Do you fing rejoicing in God ? And do you find him your -one fupreme blefi"ednefs all the day long ? So that your life is a continued fong of praife^ AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 449 praife, and every aftion of it being fubje£l to his holy will, preferves the harmony, and keeps up the heavenly joy. Is it thus indeed ? Who is like unto you, O people faved by the Lord. May nothing caufe difcord between you any more : but may increafmg faith witnefs with growing comfort that you are one with God, and he is one with you. Look to Jefiis. Let your eyes be fixt upon him, expecting all out of his fulnefs. Keep clofeto him. Thus you fliall go on your way rejoicing ; and foon you fiall fee him face to face, and your joy (hall be full. Jf all thefe things be put together, then we learn that finging pfalms is an ordinance cf God, and one of the means of grace, inllituted for the exercife and for the improvement of grace. It is commanded with a promife, and the promife h made good to this very day, as thoufands of living witnefles can tcftify. When they have met together, underftanding the fubjecf of the pfalm, and finging it with melody in their hearts, then the Lord has accepted their praifcs, and increafed their joy in him. They have found their affe6lions drawn nearer to him, and he has warmed them with a fweet fenfe of his love. And this has not been a tranfient vifit. It did not ceafe when they had done finging; but tli^ harmony was preferved in a well ordered walk, direaed by the faith of the Son of God. They lived their fongrs. Peace and love dwelt in ^ their 430' AN ESSAY ON PSALMODV, their hearts, and their joy abounded in the; Lord. But where is this fort of finging, in what place, or among what people? Who are they that find thofe heavenly affeftions exercifed in it, and thofe happy effefts from it ? It is much to be lamented, that all finging of pfalms at pre- fent is not upon the right plan, and does not an- fwer the end of its inftitution. I fpeak not of the contempt, Avith which is is treated by the lage, or of the negleft of it by many profeffors, but of the prevailing abufes of it among them, who would be thought altogether chriftians. CHAP. VI. Thefe Abufes 1 zvould particularly mention, and hum^ bly propofe a Remedy for each of them. Some of thefe may feem not worthy of notice, they are fuch fmall matters j but I think there is nothing little in divine worQiip. The majefty of God ennobles, and exalts every part of it, He has commanded us to fmg pfalms, and what- ever he has been pleafed to command, has his authority to enforce it : and whatever he has engaged to blcfs, has his promifc to make it the means of blefling. In keeping of it there is at prefcnt £reat reward. His prefence will be in it. AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY, 43I it, when it is rightly performed, and he will ren- der it efFe£tual. He will hear, he will accept, he will witnefs his acceptance of the praifes of his people: Therefore every thing relating to them fhould be done decently and in order. We, lliould always fmg with a reverence, becoming the greatnefs and goodnefs of our God, in fuch a manner as may beft exprefs our happinefs ia his love, and as may tend mdft to mutual edifi- cation. If thefe things be confidered, it will not be thougjht an indifferent matter, whether the pfalms be fung at all, or how they be fung — whether with, or without any heart devotion, with or without any melody of the voice — whe- ther every believer in the congregation fliould fing, or no — whether finging fliould be a trial of fkill, who can bawl loudefl — whether the pof- ture fliould not be expreffive as well as the voice — whether fuitable portions of the pfalms fliould be chofen, or the perfon who gives them out fliould be left to choofe them, often without any judgment — whether ^race fliould be exercifed in finging, or not—whether we fliould fing, i^ order to increafe grace, or not — whether we fliould fing for amufcment, or for the glory of God. It is not a trifling matter — how you de- termine thofe points : they enter deep into an important part of religious worfliip, yea into a very high aft of it, one in which we pay the no- blcll 452 AK ESSAY ON PSALMODY. bleft fervice we can upon earth, and indeed the nearell we can come to the fervice of faints and angels. How then can it be an indifferent thing, whether a believer fings pfalms, or not, or whether or no he fings them with melody in his heart unto the Lord? Certainly if he would pkafe God in finging, he fliould attend to the fcripture rules before laid down for directing his conduct, which compared with the analogy of faith will regulate every thing relating to the divine ordinance of pfalm finging. One great abufe is the general ignorance of the fubjeft of the book of pfalms. No portion of God's word is lefs known: many in our con- gregation very feldom underfland what they are linging. The}' have not Chrilt in their eye, nor his glory in their view: although the defign of all thofe hymns is to defcribe the love of God to finners in Chriil Jefus. They all treat of him ia lome view or other: for there are mai^iy extenfivc, and all very glorious views, in which his per- fon, offices, works, and ways, may be confi- dered. Some treat of h;s iiigh praifes as God- man, defcribing his perfon, as the infinite trea- fury of grace and glory. Some celebrate the matchlefs deeds of his life, as the Lord our lighteoufnefs, and the complete atonement made for fin by the facrifice of himfelf. Others in lan- sua^e and fentiments trulv fublime, fin^ the end- lefs vitlorics of his refurreclion, and the prevail- ing AN ESSAY ON PSALMOBY. 453 ing efficacy of his intercefTion. Several of them treat of his moft blefTed government, when he fets up his throne in the hearts of his willing people, and faves them from fin, and death, and every enemy: while others foretel the great day of the Lord, when he will come to judge all flefli, will take his redeemed home, and the whole heaven fhall be filled with his glory. Befides, the pfalms treat of this wonderful perfon, not only from the beginning of time, but alfo from the ages of eternity: they difcover tlic undertakings of his loVe before all worlds in the covenant of the trinity — his fulrilling the covenant engage- ments in time — and his bellowing covenant blcfi"- ings from henceforth and for ever. What an extenfive view do they give us of the loving kind- nefs of Immanuel, reaching from everlafi:ing to everlafting! And in all thefe refpe£ts the pfalms are of ineftimable value with believers: for their ufe the holy Spirit has recorded them ; and here- in they learn, what fentiments they are to form of God the Saviour, with what gratitude they fliould fpeak of him, and with what holy joy they fhould fing the triumphs of redeeming love. The pfalms were fitted for this purpofe by infi- nite wifdom: for holy men of God fpake them as they were moved by the holy Ghofl:: and they are bleflTed for this purpofe, when with the apof- tle any one can fay, " I will fing with the Spirit, " and I will fing with the underftanding alfo." In 454 ESSAY ON PSALMODY. In order to remedy this great evil, I have pre- fixed the fubjeft of every pfalm in this colleiStionj that the congregation might have a key to the true fenfe, and each might know, what particu- lar grace was to be exercifed in finging it. This will help fomewhat to keep up harmony in the underftanding. But it will not be without fome difcord, until the fubje£l treated of in the book of pfalms be made very plain, and their applica- tion to Jefus Chrift be well fettled. For this end I have fini{hed fome years ago a tranflation of the pfalms, with a treatife upon the ufe and defign : it was computed to make two large volumes in oftavo, entitled, " An elTay towards a new tranf- " lation of the bible" — In which I have been en- gaged, as opportunity has offered^ above thirty years J but I fliould have publifhed nothing more of it in my life time, than this elfay, in which the tranflation of the book of pfalms would have been given as a fpecimen of the work. It has laid by me fo long, that I am not very fan- guine about the publication. Yet if this little trafl: fliould be favorably received, and God fliould be pleafed to make it ufeful: if fome pro- vidence Ihould afford me leizaire to revife my pa- pers, of which I have no profpe£l at prefent, and if they fliould then appear to me likely to promote the honour of God, and the good of .his church, I fhould think it my duty to let my light fliine before men. Yet in this, and in every An essay on psalmodt. 455 every thing elfe, I do earneftly pray — Not my will. Lord, but thine be done. Another very great abufe arifes from not treat- Jng pfalm finging as becometh a divine ordi- nance. There fhould be great refpeft paid io what God has appointed, and in the ufe of which he has promifed to meet and to blefs his people. We commonly call thofe the means of grace, to which grace is promifed, and by which grace is received, and through which it is in- creafed in the heart. Singing of pfalms is un- doubtedly one of thofe means, but it is amongfi: us very much neglected, and when ufed, it is done in fo irreverent a manner, that the end of its in- ftitution is not attained. God, as has been al- ready proved, has enjoined, and enforced it by repeated commands. He has alfo affigned the reafon of them, namely, that whenever we find ourfelves happy in him, he would have our joy to flow out this way. And what more proper and fignificant ? Singing is only expreffing out- wardly the melody of the heart: and God has required it of us, as a juft ferviee of praife. He has furniOied us both with matter and words. He has given us k divine collection of moft per- fect hymns. And when we ufe them in humble faith, God will render them the means of ex- citing, of preferving, and of increafing our holy joy: for the promife is — " The meek alfo fliall " increafe their" joy in the Lord, and the poor " among men fliallrejoice in the holyoneof Ifrael." * This 45-6 AN ESSAY ON PSALMOCr. This promife has been made good in alt ages. The blelling has come in the ufe a( means. Ihe chlirch of Chrift in praifing him has found frefli reafon to praife him. While its happy members have been finging toger ther, he has vouchfafed to them his gracious prefcnce, and has given them fweet commu- nications of his heavenly love. They have fung till their hearts burnt within them, inflamed with a fenfe of his goodnefs. Then they had delightful experience of the pfalmift's words--^ " Praife ye the Lord; for it is a good thing to " give thanks unto the Lord, and to fing praifes unto thy name, O mofl high: for it is pleafant, " and praife is comely." Reader, deft thou find it fo? Is it a pleafure to thee to fmg pfalms? Doft thou fing them, as an ordinance? Doft thou in faith expe6t a bleffing upon thy finging? And is it indeed to thee the meians of grace? If it be, ufe them more, and thou wilt find an increafing blelhng; if it be not, confider well what has been faid — repent of thine abufe of this precious ordinance-— and pray for grace to obferve it to the honor of God, to the edification of others, and to the pro- fit of thine own foul: the Lord give thee a right underftanding in this matter. The negle6t of it as an ordinance has Jed. many people entirely to neglecf it. I have fcarce ever feen a congregation, in which every one joined ia finging. This h a very great abufe. AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 457 abufe, becaufe it is defeating the end of God's inftitution. He commanded pfalms to be fung for mutual edification. It was to be the fervice of the whole church. All were to join ; where- as among us it is performed by fome few, and they are fometimes fet by themfelves in a fing- ing gallery, or in a corner of the church, where they fmg to be admired for their fine voices, and others hear them for their entertainment. This is a vile proftitution of church mufic, and con- trary to the letter and fpirit both of the Old Teftament and alfo of the New. The firfi: facred hymn upon record was fung by Mofes and the children of Ifrael, in which Miriam, and all the women joined, and fang the chorus. The fecond hymn mentioned is faid to be fung by the people of Ifrael without any diftinftion. When the ark was brought up to the city of David, he and all Ifrael played before God with all their might, and with fing- ing: moft likely they fang the Ixviiith pfalra ac- companied with harps, and pfalteries, and with timbrels, and with cymbals, and with trumpets. David frequently fpeaks of finging pfalms, as an ordinance in which every one fliould bear his part, that God might be glorified, and all might be edified—" Make a joyful noifc unto God, all " ye lands; fing forth the honor of his name, " make his praife glorious. All the earth Hiall " worfliip thee, and fhall fing unto thee, they Vol. Vin. G g " fliall 458 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODT. " fliall fing unto thy name. O let the nations " be glad, and fing for joy, fing unto God, ye " kingdoms of the earth: O fing praifes unto " the Lord." The fvveet finger of Ifrael choofes this for his fubjeft — " All thy works " fliall praife thee, O Lord, and thy faints ftiall " blefs thee" — and he purfues it through the cxlviiith pfalm. He begins with hallelujah, and intending to have a full chorus to join him in afcribing all glory to God in the higheft, he calls •upon the holy angels and the heavenly hofts to afliftj then he addrefles himfelf to the aflive powers in nature, which praife God by doing his will and obeying his decree; afterwards he calls upon the earth with every thing in it, and on it, animate, and inanimate : for thefe fulfil his commandments, and keep his laws, and fo praife him : at laft he comes to mankind, and requires high and low, kings and all people, princes and all judges of the earth, both young men and maidens, old men and children, to join with him in praifing the name of the Lord : for his name alone is excellent, his glory is above the earth and heaven : he alfo exalteth the power of his people, the praife of all his faints, even of the children of Ifrael, a people near unto him. Hallelujah. This was the ftate of the cafe in the old tefta- ment. We know from prophane hiftory,» that the firft chriftlans^ in all their meetings, ufed ta fing AN ESSAY ON PSALMODV. 459 fing the praifes of Jefus their God. They would not fit down to meat, or rife up without a pfahii. Jerom fays, you might have heard the plough- men and reapers in the fields finging pfalms : yea, feveral of th?m could repeat the whole book in Hebrew. Church hifiory relates many par- ticulars upon this fubjeft. But the divine re- cord is decifive. It contains directions how to fing in the congregation : they were to fpeak, not inwardly, but to themfelves, one to another, that they might be heard, and the pfalms which they fung might tend to each others benefit. Iq another place the apoftle commands believers to teach and admonifh one another in pfalms and hymns, recommending fuch-finging as would edify the congregation. Confider thofe authorities, ye that have flighted this ordinance. Has it been the uniform practice of the church of God "in all ages to join in finging his praifes } Was it by his exprefs com- mand ? Has he given us a colle6lion of hymns, the very words which we are to fing? Has he pro- mifed to accept our thanks and praifes, and while believers have been offering them with graceful hearts, has he conftantly made them the means of increafing their joy in the Lord ? - Was it for the benefit of others, that the church might receive edifying, and that each might bear his part by ftirring up and exciting thankfulnefs in one another O do not then neglea fuch a G g 2 bleffed 460 AN ESSAY ON PSALMOfif. blefled ordinance : but rather pray the Lord enable you to rejoice with them that rejoice, to fing with them that ling. Have you not mercies to afk ? Why then will you not join the church in alking ? Have you not mercies out of number to thank God for ? Why then will you not take your part in praifmg him for his goodnefs ? Why will you rob yourfelf of the pleafure of doing it ? Why will you not profit your neighbour ? And why will you not give God the glory due unto his holy name ? Be alTured it becometh you weil to be thankful at all times and in all places, cfpecially in the great congregation. May yoa have your lhare in the fervice, and your fliare in the blefling promifed to it. If you are convinced it is part of the public worfliip of God, in which you are required to join, as much as in the prayers or in hearing the word, then take heed you join properly. You may fing, and yet greatly abufe this holy ordinance. There are many fingers in the church, who take no pains either to keep the time, or to follow the tune, and who thereby iliew they think it of no confequence, how the praifes of the mod high God are fung. Solomon differed much from them. He thought it a great perfe6lion in praifingGod, that among the many thoufands of voices and inftruments, which were founding forth his praife at one time, there was not a fingle difcord to be heard. The fcripturg AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY, 461 fcripture has taken notice of it — " They all gave " one found." Why fliould not we do the fame ? Nay, is it not the pra£lice of the people of the world ? Will they fuffer difcords in any of their concerts ? A public performer would only rife in repute with them, as he plays or fings well, Chriftian, confider this. Shall they for their mere amufement, ftudy to have their mufic free from every thing ofFenfive to the ear ? And fliall not we be equally careful ? More efpecially as we fing to the honor of God and to the edifying pf the brethren. We have a mofl. noble fubje£t — divine matter — divine words : we fing of one Lord with one faith O for harmony in fome meafure fuitable ! it is much to be wiflied. I jhope it will be attained. Let me earneftly recommend it to every one to fing, and to all who do fing, to learn to fing well ; and till you do, endeavour to avoid another matter of offence. There are many in our congregations, who feem to think they fing befl, when they fing loudefl. You may fee them often flrain them- felves with fliouting, till their faces are as red as fcarlet. The worfl fingers commonly offend this way, A bad coarfe voice quite out of tune is to be heard above all, and will take the lead in the congregation : and whenever a number of fuch meet together in their fliout- ijig humour, they put all into confufion. They I diforder 462 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. diforder thofe, who would fing with feeling and affeftion. They drown the mufical voices of good fingers. They offend the outward peo- ple. And they do no good to themfelves : fo they entirely defeat the end of finging. If thefe lines fliould fall into the hands of any, who are fenfible they have offended in this way, I would beg of them to reform this abufe. Examine your motive — Why would you be uppermofi; in the congregation ? Is your voice the beft ? Do you think fo ? Alk one, who is a judge ? Perhaps he may perfuade you, I wifti I could prevail with you, to fing lower. Indeed, if you once come to feel what you fing, you will reform yourfelf. A great part of your finging will then be between God and your own foul ; you will try to keep up melody in your heart, and that will mend both your voice and judge- ment. However, it will certainly put you upon trying to pleafe both God and man in finging. There is another very great and common abufe, which confifts in the choice of improper portions. The perfon, to whofe judgment this is left, is not always one of the wifeft in the congregation. He may not undcrfiand the pfalms. He may mifapply and prophane them. It is not a rare thing for him to make them perfonal, and to apply the glorious things fpoken of Chrift to trifling parifh bufinefs. I have heard the quarrels among neighbours fung over on Sundays. AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 463 Sundays. The clerk has chofen fome paffage, applicable entirely to the enemies of the Lord and his Chriit, and has moft grofsly perverted it. The congregation had nothing to do with the difpute, and yet it was brought before them, and they were called upon in an ordinance to intereft themfelves in it. No doubt, this, ^nd fuch like abufes are a very great infult upon God's word and ordinance, and ought to be reformed. The people fliould underftand the pfalm, which they are going to fing, and fhould be well acquainted with its relation to Jefus Chrift. They are all required to join ; and therefore fuitable portions fliould be chofen, in which all, or the greateft part of them, are interefted : they fhould fing with one mind, and one heart, as well as in one tune : for -which end the knowledge of the pfalm, and of whom, and of what it treats, are abfolutely jiecefTary. How can any one fing aright unto the Lord with grace in his heart, unlefs he underftands, whether the pfalm relates to praife or thankfgiving, to afking mercies of God, or praifing him for them, what grace was to be exercifing in feeing faith, or hope, or love j and what blefling was to be expe£ted from it ? Thefe things fliould be well known, that iinging may be a reafonable fervice, and the means of grace. And to render it fuch, I have coUefted portions fuitable to moft cafes -of a chriflian's experience, and have alfo pre- fixed 464 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODV, fixed the fubjeft of each. I have alfo direfied the believer with what frame of mind to fing, and what benefit to look for from the word of promife in finging. I wifli the attempt may help to make the ordinance better obferved, and then I am fure it will be more blefied. There is another thing relating to the pfalms, I cannot call it an abufe : for it is a total negleft of them. They are quite rejected in many con- gregations, as if there were no fuch hymns given by infpiration of God, and as if they were not left for the ufe of the church and to be fung in the congregation. Human compofitions are preferred to divine. Man's poetry is exalted above the poetry of the Holy Ghoft. Is this right? The 'hymns vs'hich he revealed for the life of the church, that we might have words fuitable to the praifes of Immanuel, are quite fet afide : by which means the word of man has got a preference in the church above the word of God J yea, fo far as to exclude it entirely from public worfliip. It is not difficult to account for this ftrange pra6lice. Our people had loft fight of the meaning of the pfalms. They did not fee their relation to Jefus Chrift. This hap- pened when vital religion began to decay among us, more than a century ago. It was a gradual decay, and went on, till at laft there was a general complaint againft Sternhold and Hopkins. Their tranflation was treated, as poor fiat ftuff. The wits ridiculed it. The prophane blaf- phemed AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY, 465^ phemed it. Good men did not defend it. Then it fell into fuch contempt, that people were ready to receive any thing in its room, which looked rational and was poetical. In this fituar tion, the hymn-makers find the church, and they are fulFered to thruft out the pfalms to make way for their own compofitions : of which they have fupplied us with a vaft variety, collection upon colleQion, and in ufe too, new hymns ftarting up daily — appendix added to appendix— fung in many congregations, yea, admired by very high profeffors to fuch a degree, that the pfalms are become quite obfolete, and the finging of them is now almoft as defpicable among the modern religious, as it was fome time ago among the prophane. I know this is a fore place, and I would touch it gently, as gently as I can with any hope of doing good. The value of poems above pfalms is become fo great, and the fmging of men's words, fo as quite to call out the word of God, is become fo univerfal (except in the church of England) that one fcarce dare fpeak upon the fubje6l : neither would I, having already met with contempt enough for preferring God's hymns to man's hymns, if a high regard for God's moft bleffed word did not require me to bear my teftimony; and if I did not verily believe, that many real chriitians have taken up this praftice without thinking of the evil of it ; and when they come to confiderthe matter carefully, they 4^6 AH ESSAY ON PSALMODY. they will rather thank me, than cenfure me for freedom of fpeech. Let me ohferve then, that I blame nobody for finging human compofitions. I do not think it linful or unlawful, fo the matter be fcriptural. My complaint is againll preferring men's poems to the good word of God, and preferring them to it in the church. I have no quarrel with Dr. Watts, or any living or dead verfifier. I would not wifh all their poems burnt. My concern is to fee chrlftian congregations flmt out tiivincly infpired pfalms, and take in Dr. Watts's flights of fancy ; as if the words of a poet were better tlian the words of a prophet, or as if the wit of a man was to be preferred to the wifdora of God. When the church is met together in one place, the Lord God has made a provifion for their fongs of praife — a large colletlion, and great variety — and why fliould not thefe be ufed in the church according to God's exprefs ap- pointment ? I fpeak not of private people, or of private finging, but of the church in its public fervice. Why fliould the provifion which God has made be fo far defpifed, as to become quite out of ufe ? Why fliould Dr. Watts, or any hymn-maker, not only take the precedence of the Holy Ghoft, but alfo thruft him entirely out of the church ? Infomuch that the rhymes of a man are now magnified above the word of God, even to the annihilating of it in many congre- gations. If this be right, men and brethren, judge AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 467 judge ye. Examine with candor the evidence, which has determined my judgment, fo far as it is conclufive may it determine yours. Firft, the pfalms are the word of God, with which no work of man's genius can be compared. His attributes are manifeft in every page, and prove the author to be divine. His infinite wifdom fliines throughout — his goodnefs appears to be matchlels — his truth in every tittle infalli- ble— his power almighty to blefs the hearing, reading, and finging of his word. None that trufted in it was ever afhamed : for his faith- fulnefs to it can never fail. The word of the Lord has been tried, and in very great difficulties, yea, in feeming impolhbilities, but it was always made good. In every trial he " magnified his word above all his name," he made it the means of bringing glory to his name and nature, and every perfe£tion in deity has been exalted, by the faithfulncfs of God to his word. In this viev/ of the pfalms, what is there to be put in competition with them ? What man is like their author ? What poetry is to be compared with the pfalms of God ? Who can make the finging of any hum.an verfes an ordinance, or give a bleffing to them, fuch as is promifed and is given to the finging of pfalms ? for what reafon then are they fet afide in the church ? Why are the words of man's genius preferred to the words of infpiration ? Singing of pfalms is commanded by divine authority, and commanded as a part of divine 4^8 AN -ESSAY ON PSALMODY. divine worfliip ; not left to man's wifdom, hovf to provide for it, but it is exprefsly provided for in the good word of God. And is not great contempt put upon this infinitely wife provifion, when it is quite difufed in the church, and man's word is preferred to it ? What would you think of them, who fliould throw afide all the fcrip- ture, and never read it at all in the congregation ? And is it not an offence of the like nature, totally to negleft a part, a chief part of it, which was recorded for the ufe of the church, and in which its members were to fmg the high praifes of their God ? It is hereby treated as ufelefs and good for nothing. A very grofs affront is put upon the love and wifdom, which revealed this divine colleftion of hymns, and the church is depriv^ed of the blelTmg promifed to the finging of them, whereby it is robbed of one of its choicefl treafures. If any thing be facrilege, this is. The pfalms are flolen out of the church, and thereby the members are deprived of the bleffings promifed to the finging of them : for God will not give you the end, if you negle£l the means. Frequent are his commands in the Old Teitament to fing pfalms, and we have feveral in the New : for inflance, let the word (not fomething befides it) but the word of Chrift itfelf dwell in you richly in all wifdom, teaching and admonifliing one another in pfalms, and hymns, and fpiritual fongs — thefe are not differ- ent things, but different names for the fame colleftion An essay on psalmody. 465 tollettion of pfalms, as they treat of different fubje£ls. Pfalms in praife of Immanuel, fuch cfpecially as have Hallelujah at the beginning or end, are called hymns, and the pfalms which relate to the fpiritual things of Chrift and his kingdom, have the title of fong fet before them by the holy Spirit, fuch as, 7, 18", 30, 45, 46, 48, 65, 66, 67, 68, 75, 76, 83, 87, 8», 92, 108, from no to 135. Thefe hymns and fpiritual fongs were part of the fcripture, and part of the pfalms, fcripture hymns and fcripture fongs i for the word of Chrift in finging them was to dwell in them richly ; not man's word, but Chrift's, and when the apoflle is fpeaking of them altogether, he calls both the hymn and fpiritual fong a pfalm. We render the word 4/ciXKov1eg making melody, but it means finging the pfalm, and is as if he had faid — when you life a hymn to the praife of God, or a fpiritual fong to any fpiritual purpofe, fing the pfalm fo that one may teach and admonifli the other. It was a fervice in which each is commanded to join, and each was to endeavour in it to profit the other. They were to try fo to fing with the melody of the heart to the Lord, as at the fame time to confult each other's profit, that while the Lord was glorified, the church might receive edifying. Here is a full authority for the ufe of pfalms in the church, and a very clear direction how to fing them, and as following this direc- tiQii was the divine means of making the word of 47® AH ESSAY ON PSALMODY. of Chrift to dwell richly in believers, how poortf muft it dwell in them, who flight and defpife the command, yea, fo far as never to fing any pfalms at all ? If any real chriftian would attend to this rea- foning, how can he oppofe it ? Here is a collec- tion of hymns appointed to be fung in the church by divine authority ; but the authority is defpifcd, and the collection is thrown afide. It comes from the infpi ration of the Almighty, but the church entirely refufes to ufe it ; is not this doing defpite unto the fpirit of grace ? The colleftion is large and very particular in fetting foith the praifes of the adorable Immanuel ; is it not a grofs affront to him to fing none of his praifes in the words which the Holy Ghoft teacheth, as if any praifes were good enough for him, or as if he could be praifed better in the words, which man's wifdom teacheth* Men and brethren, confider whether this be not a very grofs affront to the word of God, to the Spirit of God, and to the Son of God. Confider it well, and the Lord give you a right underftanding in this matter. Secondly, The finging of men's poems in the church, and fetting afide the pfalms given by infpiration of God, is contrary to the prophecies of the Old Teflament, and is an attempt to defeat them. They defcribc the ftate of the gofpel church, and declare there fliould be great z joy AN ESSAY ON PSALMODf. 47I' joy and gladnefs found in it ; particularly they mention finging of pfalms, as the outward ex- preflion of their inward joy in the Lord. Thus we read, i Chron. xvi. 23, 2f. " Sing unto the " Lord all the earth, fliew forth from day to day " his falvation : declare his glory among the " heathen, his marvellous works among all the " nations :" Of the fame thing fpeaketh the prophet Ifa. Ivi. 6, 7. " Alfo the fons of the " ftranger that join themfelves to the Lord to " ferve him, and to love the name of the Lord, *' to be his fervants, even every one that keep- " eth the fabbath from polluting it, and taketh " hold of my covenant, even them will I bring " to my holy mountain, and make them joyful *' in mine houfe of prayer ; their burnt offerings " and their facrifices (hall be accepted upon " mine altar : for mine houfe fhall be called an " houfe of prayer for all people." How this joy was to be exprefled, is mentioned in Pfalm xcv. The prophet fliews how believers Ihould ftir up one another to rejoice in fmging pfalm s : and St. Paul fays this was written of the New Teftament church. According to his explana- tion of the pfalm given in the 3d and 4th chap- ters of the Hebrews, the Holy Ghoft here calls for the folemn worlhip of our Saviour, and re- quires him to be praifed with pfalms : he prefles this duty, together with public prayer, ver. 6, 7, and then demands obedient attention to the word AN ESSAY ON J'SALMODV. word of God, againft which no man fliould harden his heart through unbelief : from whence it appears, that praifing God folemnly, with finging pfalms, with pubHc prayer^ and with hearing the word, are ftill the ordinances of Chrill, and are to continue to-day, even while it is called to-day, unto the end of the world. Thefe prophecies have been fulfilled. The bleffed gofpel has brought joy and gladnefs into heathen lands, and this very day, pfalms have Leen fung, and a pure offering of praife has been prefented unto the Lord, and it will be prefented unto him fo long aS there is a true church upon earth. What then fliall we think of thofe pretended reformers, who have turned the pfalms out of the church, and who are a£t- ing as if they would try to defeat thefe prophe- cies ? I wifli they may not be found fighting againft God : for they cannot flop their accom- plifhment. His word cannot be broken. As long as the earth fliall continue, pfalms fliall be fung in the church of Chrift : in it there will always be found thankfgiving and the voice of melody, and thefe will be expreffcd in God's own way, in the matter, and words, and form of God's own appointment. Confider this, ye who believe the fcriptures to be the word of God : if you obey from the heart the form of doflrine therein delivered, you will begin to reafon thus ; yea, racthinks I hear AN ESSAY Ol^r pSALMODV. 4/.? hear one cf you fay — Since God, by his fovcrcigii grace, has put a new ibng in my mouth, it add3 to my joy, that he has revealed the very words in which he would have me to praife him. He has foretold that the gofpel fliould be received among the heathen, and that it fliould produce fuch effefts as I now experience. Glory be to him, he has made me happy in Jefus, and my happinefs is not only kept up, but I fiild it en- creafes by fmging the infpired pfalms of the holy GhoH. Whoever leaves off the frnfi-irijT of pfalms, God forbid I fliould be of that number. I hope never to a£l fo contrary to the honor of God, and to the profit of mine ovVn foul. Thirdly. Of the fame fentiments has been the church of Chrifi; in all ages 5 which is a ftrong argument in favof of pfalni finging. We know, from very clear teftimony, that the pfalms were fung in the temple until its final deftru61ion. We are certain that Chrift made ufe of the pfalms. His apoftles fallowed his example. The churches of Corinth, and Ephcfus, and Colofs, made the finging of pfalms part of their public worfliip. Such of the twelve tribes as %vere fcattered abroad, being perfecuted for Chrift's fake, did ling pfalms when they were in^sn Imppy frame: for they were commanded to do it by the apoftle James. The church hiftory affords abundant evidence of the ufe of the pfalms in every coun- try converted to the faith, and of their being Vol. VHI. H h fung 474 ESSAY ON PSALMODY. » fmifj in the church, as a part of public worfliip; This has been the cafe in every age •without in- terruption. The primitive cliriftians fung in all tlieir church meetings. Eufcbius fays, in the fccond century, they fung pfalms in praife of Chrifl and his deity. In the thne of Juftin Mar- tyr inftrumcntal mufic was aboliflied, and he highly commends finging with the voice, becaufe, fays he, pfalms, with organs and cymbals, are fitter to p!eafe children, than to inftruft the church. In the third century we read much of pfalm fingrng. Arius was complained of as jr perverter of this ordinance. St. Auguftina makes it an high crime in certain heretics, thaf they fnng hymns compofed by human wit. The fenfe, in which the church of Chrifl underftood this fubjeft, has been, till of late years, always- one and uniform. Now we leave the antient beaten petli. But why} Have w-e found a- bet- ter? How came we to be wifer than the pro- ,phets, than Chrifl, than his apoflles, and the pri' r.iitlve chriflians, yea than the whole church of God? They with one confcnt have fung pfalms m every age. Here I leave the reader to his own reflexions. There is one plain inference to be. made from hence, none can eafily miftake it:- May he fee it in his judgment, and follow it irj. his practice. Fourthly, Singing of pfalms in the church is ari ordinance, commanded of God, prophet An essay on psalmody. 4.75 cied of in the old tedament, and hithcrio fulfilled in the new. That pfalm finging is one of the means of grace has been fliewn^ before. It is part of public worfliip, enjoined of God, and to which he has promifed his bleffing. Now when you lay afide pfalms in the church, you at the fame time caft out the ordinance : for they are infeparably one. The pfalm is the ordinance. Your pratlice fpeaks, as if you faid — " We will " negleSt the means of increafing our joy in God 5 " for we want no growing love to him, nor ** freOi communications of his love to us." Surely this is the language of thofe perfons who live in the conftant neglccl of one of the divine ordinances. God appointed it in vain as to them. They make no more ufe of the pfalms, than if there were no fach hymns in being. And is not this oppofing his authority ? Is it not un- grateful to throw away his appointed means, and to think you can pleafe him better, with fing- ing your own poetry, than his ? Is it not hurtful to yourfclves; for in feeking the promifed blefl- ing in the way of v/ill-worHiip, you certainly cannot find it. Becaufe Fifthly, The blefling is promifed to the ordi- nance. You cannot have the end without the means. The pfalms were revealed, that we might in finging them exprefs our joy in God, and thereby improve it. They were for the ex- ercife of grace, and for the increafe of grace ; I J h 2 that 47^ AN ESSAY ON PSALMODf. that we might ling with grace in our hearts, and make one anothers hearts warmer by finging. The word is one of the means of grace : by hearing it, faith cometh ; by conflant hearing, faith is eftablifned. If the word was never heard, how could faith come? If the word be entirely neglected, how can faith grow? Prayer is one of the means of grace : it is appointed in order to keep up communion with God, and to bring down daily fupplies of mercies from him : Could thefe be had without afking? Certainly they could not. Singing of pfalms is alfo one of the. means of grace: How can the blefling pro- mifed to the means be received, if no pfalms be fung? What fort of a church would it be, in which the word was never read, nor prayers, nor finging of pfalms, nor any means of grace ufed? It could not be a church of Chrifl; : be- caufe his prefence with, and his bleffings to his people, are promifed to them in the ufe of the means. The bleffing accompanies the ordi- nance, and is proraife"S unto h; God has joined them together, and they mud not be put afun- der. He will give honor, he does give honor to his own means. He makes them anfwer the end of their inftitution. When the pfalms are fung in faith, they do rejoice the heart. The holy Spi- rit blefles the finging, and caufes mutual joy to abound, ^^hich is Sixthly, AN ESSAY on psalmody. 477 Sixthly, Another rtiafon for preferring divine pfahiis to man's poems. The pfalms were for church fervice. When the members met, we read of their Tinging together both in the Old TeftamentandintiieNew. Itwas their joiiit offer- ing of praife. The pfalms were appointed to ho fung in the congregation, that one might admo- nifli another, which we do, by joining with them, by making the word of Chrift dwell more richly in them, and by exercifing their graces with ours. Thus we fliew our fellowfhip in the gofpcl. When we all fing the fame pfalm, it is as if the church had but one mouth to glorify God. And we never enjoy more of the prefence of God, than while we are thus praifing him to- gether with thankful hearts. The Lord, who jnftituted the ordinance, promifed this blefling to it : but when his pfalms are thruft out, and human compofitions fung in their room, what reafon have the fingers to expc6l that he will give his good Spirit to quicken their hearts, and to inflame their devotion ? He did not promife mutual edification, but to the ufe of his own means. He would have believers to teach and to exhort one another, but it was in finging his own pfalms : and when they do, he has met them and bletfed them, and always will : but he has given no promife to be prefent, whenever the church m.eet together in public to fing their own £ompofitions, or to make them full of joy with the 47^ AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY, the light of his countenance, when they have been doing defpite to his Spirit, and putting difhonor upon his word. Perhaps thefe fentiments may arife from my great attachment to the word of God, with which others may not be aflefted as I am : for I am per- fuaded it is not polTible for me to fct too high a value upon the holy fcr'ptures — as the revelation of the will of God, I want words to exprefs my refpeSt for them — as the revelation of his good will in Jefus, I reverence them next to himfelf. What more precious ! What more delightful ! They are indeed more precious than gold, yea than much fine gold : and the pfalms are fweeter than honey, yea than the honey dropping from the comb. I find them fo. They are my daily' iludy, and daily delight. I do not boaft, but praife. The more I read, the more I admire them. The defcription of Jefus in chem is fweet : the meditation of him is fweeter than all other fweets. It often taftes fo much of heaven, that it feems to me I cannot poffibly beflow fo much admiration upon the pfalms, as they deferve. This is my fettled judgment, confirmed by ex- perience. I cannot help taking particular no- tice of this, becaufe it fully confirms the argu- ments which have been before ufed. Experience demonftrates, that God does blefs the finging of pfalms in the church, and does not blefs the finging of men's hymns. It is a melancholy AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY, 479 melancholy matter of hdi, that in many cor g ro- gations there is no reading of God's word, no finging of God's word. It is ahnoft laid afide, even the great ordinance of God for all faving purpofes. And what has followed ? Truly, what might be expefted ; yea, what could not but follow. The holy Spirit has been grieved, and has withdrawn his powerful prefcnce. For want of which a deadnefs that may be felt is in fuch places. Of this good men have complained to one another, and are humbled for it before God. They find public worfliip without power. Prayer is lifelcfs. Preaching is voice and no- thing more. It may be the truth, but the hearers are apt to fall afleep over it, and the preacher is no more animated, than if he was telling an old ftory. The channel of divine communication is quite ftopt up : hence Ichahod may be feen and felt too upon fuch congreg?.* tions. Reader, if ihou art alive to God in thine own heart, thou knoweft this to be true. And how does it afFeft thee ? Certainly thou wilt join with me in begging of God to revive his work among us, and to put glory upon his ordi- nances. O that the Lord would return with his gracious prefence to his worftiipping people. May the holy Spirit lead them to fee their error in neglefting his eftabliflied means of grace, efpecially his word read and fung. And when- ever he doest iis^ and wherever they put honor ypon 4^0 AN ESSAY ON PsAlMODV- upon his word, there will he certainly put life and power into the ordinances, and the congre- gations fliall again experience, that God is among them of a truth. And as God does not blefs the fmging of human compofitions in his church, fo it is a certain matter of fa61, that he does blefs the finging of his own pfalms. If the eyes of your underflanding be opened, look around ; where is the power of God moft to be found ? Among whom is he chiefly carrying on his work ? ^nd where aretheliveliefl: congregations ? Ifyou khovv the prefent ftate of religion in this land, you can eafily find them. God has rnade them very con- fpicuous. A city th.at is fet qn an hill cannot be hid. The builder of it did not intend it fhould. His gifts and graces are therefore conferred, that the giver may have all the glory. And who are moft enriched with his gifts and graces ? Are they not fuch as he has brought to ufe the means inoft ? Who honor his word, never failing to make the reading of it part of public worfliip, and who never meet, but they fing out of the word the praifes of their God } Among thefe the Lord the Spirit doeg work with power, and they do find in finging his pfalms what they never find in fmging men's poems. He makes all their church ordinances lively and edifying. He en- ables them to draw near to God in prayer, and they have happy communion with him : he hears, anc^ AN ESSAY ON PSALlViODY. 481 »nd anfwers. The word preached is mighty- through God. Sinners are awakened. iVlourn- ers are comforted. Believers are ftrengthened. The word fung is alfo accompanied with the fame power: the pfalms are made an ordinance indeed. The holy Spirit works in and by them to keep up holy joy in believing hearts. He promifed this, and the promife is tulfilled at this very hour — " The Lord fliall comfort Sion, he *' will comfort all her wafte places, and he will " make her wildernefs like Eden, and her defert " like the garden of the Lord, joy and gladnefs " fhall be found therein, thankfgiving and the ^' voice of melody." Bleffed be God for thefe favors now bcftowed upon the church of Eng- land. This prophecy is ours. Adored for ever be his love. He is now with us of a truth, and he has turned our wildernefs into the garden of the Lord. We do not triumph for this in our- fdves. We do not look down with contempt upon others. No, no. We acknowledge it to be the Lord's doing, to the praife of the glory of his own grace ; and to him we look for the continuance of this ineftimable bleffing. Q that he would beftow it abundantly upon thofe congregations, who have the form without the power. This is the fervent prayer of my heart. I am fure our joy will increafe by their fliar- jng with us. May the good Lord revise his 3 worlt 482 AN f.SSAY ON PSALMODY. work in all his churches, and may the life jind power vouchfafed to fomc be found in all What can any unprejudiced perfon infer from hence ? Is not the cafe plain ? Where is the prefence of God mofl to be found ? Among the fingers of poems, or the fingers of pfalms ? What fays matter of fa6t ? It fpeaks to the point, and determines in favor of God's word. The holy Spirit does not put honor upon man's poems, when fet up in the church in oppofition to his divine hymns. Yea, he difgraces them. He pours contempt upon them, as it might be expe£^ed he would : for he leaves the lingers to iherafelves, and then their performance is witli- out life and power. It keeps up no commu- nion with God. It adminifters no holy joy. It is not the means of grace, but degenerates into a mere entertainment, and is the fame thing in the church, that mufic is in the play- houfe. How can that be, fays one, I am a witnefs to the contrary : 1 have found profit in finging hymns, and I am fure I have received pleafure. You may fancy fo, but perhaps it is only fancy : for your praQice confutes your profefiion, God has revealed the pfalms for the ufe of the church, he has commanded them to be fung in it, and has promifed to meet his rejoicing people, and AN ESSAY aV PSALMODY. 483 in ringing to make their joy abound : but you defpife the command, and therefore you can have no title to the promife. You cannot have the end without the means : while you flight the ordinance, how can you pofTibly receive the blefling promifed to it? For the holy Ghoft will not vouchfate his joy to them, who feek it ill oppofition to his fovereign will : fo that yo\i might be pleafed, but profited you could not. The profit is God's bleiling upon the ufe of his own means, but you did not ufe the means, nay you defpifed his, and followed your own felf- will. What profit could fuch finging bring you ? What fellowfhip could you have with God in it, or what joy inGodincreafedby it? You m.ay bring your poems into the church, and may be vaftly delighted with performing them. So is the vain- eft creature alive at the opera. The pleafure in both cafes arifes from the fame caufe. The ear is pleafed with the harmony, fome animal joy is excited, a fine tune, well played, well fung, a very agreeable entertainment ; but there could be no more fpiritual edification in one than in die other: becaufe neither of them was the ordinance of God. What ! fay fome, is it unlawful to fing human compofitions in the church ? How can that be ? Why, they fing them at fuch a place, and fuch a place : great men, and good men, aye, and lively 484 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODr. lively minifters too fing them : will you fet up your judgment againft theirs ? It is an odious thing to fpeak of one's {e]f, except it be to magnify the grace of God. What is my private judgment ? I fet it ttp againft no body in indilferent things : I would wifn to yield to every man's infirmity : for I want the fame indulgence myfelf. But in the prcfent cafe the fcripture, which is our on}y rule of judgment, has not left the matter indifferent. God has given us a large colleftion of h.ymns, iias commanded them to be fung in the church, and has promifed his blefling to the fmging of them. No refpett here muft be paid to names or authorities, although they be the greateft on earth : becaufe no one can difpenfe with the command of God, and no one can by his wit compofe hymns to be compared with the pfalms of God. I want a name for that man, who flionld pretend that he could make better hymns than the holy Ghoft. His collection is large enough : it wants no addition. It is perfetl, as its author, and not capable of any improvement. Why in fuch a cafe would any man in the world take it into his head to fit down to write hymns for the ufe of the church It is juft the fame as if he was to write a new bible, not only better than the old, but fo much better, that the old may be thrown afide. What a blafphemous attempt I AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 485 attempt ! And yet our hymn-mongers, inadver- tently I hope, have come very near to this blaf- phcmy : for they thut out the pfahns, introduce tlieir own verfes into the cliurch, fing them with great delight, and as they fancy with gfeat profit ; akhough the whole pra61ice be in dire6i oppofition to the command of God, and there- fore cannot poflibly be accompanied with the blefling of God. If any one be offended at my freedom of fpeech, I am forry for it. I thought I had liberty to give mine opinion, efpecially in a matter, wherein the honor of God and of his word re- quired me to fpeak openly. Let this be mine apology. If you are not convinced, if you will llill fing human compofitions in preference to divine ; pray do not quarrel with me. I am a man of peace. Go on your way, and let me go on mine. Let me fing God's pfalms, and you may fing any body's hymns. I have borne my teftimony. Forgive me this once, and iifter I have clofed up the evidence with a very good witnefs, againfl: whom the admirers of hymns can have no objection, I promife herein to offend you no more. lie is no lefs a perfon than the great Dr. Watts himfelf. 1 le fpeaks full to the point, and gives his teflimony very diftinftly. He never intended, he fays, to thrufl the pfahns of God out of the church. His words in the preface to his hymns are thefe — " Far be « it 486 Ait ESSAY OX P6ALM0DY. " it fioiTi my thoughts to lay afide the book of " pfalms in public worfliip : few can pretend fd " great a value for them as myfelf : it is the " moft artful, moft devotional, and divine col- lection of poefy ; and nothing can be fup- pofed more proper to raife a pious foul to " heaven, than fome parts of that book ; never " was a piece of experimental divinity fo nobly written, and fo juflly reverenced and ad- " mired." Happy would it have been for the cbriftian world, if his followers had ftopt jufl where he did. He declares it v\ as far from his thoughts to do what they have done. It nevef came into his head to lay afide the book of pfalms in public worfliip. Think of this, and w-eigh it carefully, ye that idolize Dr. Watts, and prefer his poems to the infallible word of God. It would be well for you, if you valued pfalms as much as he did : for he fays none valued them more. Then you would have look- ed upon them in his light : for having already in your hands the niofl devotional and the moft divine colleftion, you would not have thought of any other, know^ing it was impoflible to have a better, but you would have ufed this, and would have found it too, as Dr. Watts did, the moft proper to raife the foul to heaven. BlefTed fentiments ! I honor the memory of Dr. Watts for this' glorious teftimony, I can fay nothing that can besft harder upon thofe peifons, who, 5 contrary AN ESSAY ON PSALMOUV. 487 contrary to his opinion, have entirely left off Ting- ing the pfalms ot God in the church. He never intended to countenance fuch a practice. He declares it was far from his thoughts, yea, he abhorred the very thought, and in fo faying he has upon record condemned it. Here I reft the matter. If the admirers of Dr. Watts will not be determined by his authority, I am fure they will not by mine : and therefore I take my leave of them. Farewell. May the Lord guide you into all truth. There are feveral abufes among us relative to the muTic, wliich I wifli to fee reformed, and fome of which I would point out. We have rhany good pfalm tunes, excellently compofed and fitted for public worfhip. Tliefe fliould be ftudied, in order that they may be well fung, and properly applied — Sung -well to avoid the tedious drawling manner in ufe in moft of our churches, which gives offence to v/orldly people^ and makes the ordinance dull and heavy to be- lievers— Properly applied, and fuited to the fub- je£t, that the found may as near as poflible ex- prefs the fenfe : for want of undcrftanding or attending to this, we very often hear a light tune to a mournful prayer, and heavy mufic fet to a joyful pfalm, which are grievous difcords. In the fervice of God every thing thould be folemn, Ourown minds require it, as well as his greatnefsj but efpeeially in praifing him, we (hould try to 488 AN ESSAY ON I-SALMOUt. filut out whatever would diftraft us, or diflionof him. When the heart is afFcfled, or defires to be duly affefted with a fenfe of the exceeding riches of his mercy in Jefus, the pfalm and the tune fliould help to excite, and to keep up the heavenly flame. If the pfalm be proper for this purpofe, the tune fliould not defeat it. This was much ftudied in the primitive church. They had great fimplicity in their pfalm fmging, which we are told was corrupted by the heretics. Com- plaint is made particularly of Arius, that he per- verted finging into an entertainment. He had a tafl:e for muiic, a-nd he compofed feveral light frothy tunes, by which he fought to pleafe tri- fling people, who with him neither loved the God, nor the praifes of the God of the chrifl:ians. Herein-he fucceeded. His mufic was admired, and did a great deal of hurt. Let us take warning from hence. As far as we can let our praifes of Godbefung with fuch mufic as will folemnize our hearts, and keep them in tune to make melody unto the Lord. I will only mention one thing more, which is a great impropriety, and to me very offenfive, and that is the pofl^ure generally ufed among us in finging. Suppofe there had been nothing at all faid about it in the fcripture, judge ye with yourfelves, men and brethren, whether it be refpedlful and becoming to fit down to fing. When fubjcds go upon any joyful oeeafion to addrefs AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 48c) addrefs their fovereign, is it a cuftoni in any nation of the world to do it fitting? Does the perfon who pays homage fit, or he who receives k ? But it is not left to ourfelves, or to what we may think right or wrong. The cafe is de- termined iri fcripture, and there ^re precedents to go upon. The fingers and muficians flood, when they performed in the temple fervice : fo did all the people, i Chron. ii. 28, &c. " The " ofBce of the Levites was to wait on the fons of Aaron for the fervice of the houfe of the " Lord iri the courts and in the chambers, and ^' in the purifying of all holy things, and the " work of the fervice of the houfe of God : and " to ftand every morning to thank and praife the " Lord, and likewife at evening." This was th^ir appointment ; and Vv'e read of tlieir fulfil- ling it, 2 Chron. v. 12. where it is faid, " they " flood at the eaft end of the altar :" and we are certain that all the congregation gf Ifrael flood at the fame time : for it is exprefsly menti- oned. When the royal prophet is encouraging the priefls and j)eople in the heavenly work ot praife, he thus addreflfes the pricfts, Pfalm cxxxiv. " Behold, blefs ye the Lord all ye fervants of " the Lord, who by night fland in the houfe of the Lord : lift up your hands in the fan£luary " and blefs the Lord. The Lord that made ^' heaven and earth blefs thee out of ibion." So again fpeaking to priefls and people, Pfal. cxxxv. Vol. VI j I. 1 i « Fraife 490 AK ESSAY ON PSALMODY. " Fraife ye the Lord, praife ye the name of the Lord, praife him O ye fervants of the Lord : " ye that ftand in the houfe of the Lord, in " the courts of the houfe of our God, praife ye " the Lord, for the Lord is good : ling praifes " unto his name for it is pleafant." Standing to fing is recommended in thofe fcriptures, and was accordingly praclifed both by clergy and laiety : when they thanked the Lord morning and evening in the words of David the man of God, they fung hrs praifes (landing. It is a decent poiture. People of fafliion think it fo : for they ftand up even in the play-houfe, at the Hallelujahs in the oratorio of the Mefliah. Our very good church people think fo : for if they fit down at the pfalm, tliey are fare to Hand up at rile gloria patri. It is indeed highly becoming , the maicfty of the great king of heaven and earth, and it is alfo exprelhve of our readinefs to join our brethren in praifmg his holy name. As fach I would recommend it. The vener- able practice or antiquity has fomething more to enforce it, than mere propriety : at leaft it calls upon me to try to keep up an uniformity with the church of Chrift in this particular. But if you think otherwife, and prefer fitting, lolling, or any lazy indolent pofture, I will not unchri- Itian }ou. We may differ, and not quarrel : nay, I will not quarrel with you, if you will but let me obfcrve, when I fee any perfou -.. ■ irreverently AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 491 irreverently fitting down, after he has been called upon to fing to the praife and glory of God, and after a fuitable pfalm has been given out, it feems to me, as if he faid— indeed his behaviour fpeaks louder than any words can— " You may fing, but I wont— I will exercife no " grace— I want no more grace— I have no melody in my heart, and therefore I will " make none with my mouth— I'll take mvfelf " away while you are finging, and I'll fit down to fliew that I have no part with you in this " ordinance." The abufes here complained of are not to be eafily remedied. I know they are not ^ but I have done my duty. Some of them are of Jong ftanding, not foon to be rooted out. Some are the confequences of mere profeffion, which ren- ders all ordinances ineffeaual; for they are only blclTed to any one, as he obferves them in true faith. Others are not looked upon to be propha- nations of the ordinance, but refinements of it - agamft fuch I only deliver my fentiments, not from the chair, as a Pope; but I beg Jeave to give my opinion, and if I could, I would do it without offence. If any one be offended, I am forry for it. I would not hurt a worm. How- ever, we are all agreed I hope in one thing, and let us improve that. It is our joint defire to pleafe God in finging his praifes. If this be purfued, it will tend to reform every abufe re- ^ 2. lating 492 AN ESSAY ON PSALMCDY. lating to this ordinance. His glory fliould be aimed at with a fingle eye. When this is the rr.ling principle, the heart would enter into the fervice, and then it would foon influence the outward man. There would be no negleft, no eontempt, no mifbehaviour, if gratitude to God in Chrift infpired our fongs. We (hould love to prefent fuch praifes and in fuch a manner, as would beft exprefs our thankfulnefs, and we fhould ftudy to avoid every thing which would render them unprofitable to ourfelves or others, or diflionorable to him. Let me intreat you, men and brethren, never to forget this point. Set God always before you, whenever you are going to fing pfalms. Do it as in his prefence and to his glory. If you think it your bounden duty to fing with your voices to be heard of one another, take heed that you fing with vour hearts unto the Lord. Let it be the fervice of every faculty, and each exerted to the utmoft. Praife your bleffed Immanuel with your warmeft gratitude. Give him the beft you have. He richly deferves it. And remember you there- by pay him nothing again : you only give him his own. Your gratitude is the gift of his grace, and by it yoi;, only make acknowledgement of your vaft obligations to him. O beg of him then to enable you to praife 4iim with a growing fenfe of your debt, and of his increafing favors. And may you fo praife him, as to find frefh reafor? to continue AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 493 continue your praifes from day to day, and for evermore. Whoever is in this humble happy frame, w ill be kept from a temptation, into which mofi: of our hymn-fingers have fallen. I have heard feveral of them, who would by no means be thought common rate underftandings, object to Sternhold and Hopkins. They wonder I would make ufe of this verfion, which they think is poor flat lluff, the poetry is miferable, and the language low and bafe. To which I anfwer : they had a fcrupulous regard for the very words of fcripture, and to thofe they adhered clofely and ftrictly : fo much as to render the verfifica- tion not equal to Mr. Pope. I grant,' it is not always fmooth : it is only here and there bril- liant. But what is a thoufand times more vak able, it is generally the fentiment of the holy Spirit. That is very rarely loft. And th's n.oald filcnce every obje£tion — li is the word of God. Moreover the verfion comes nearer to the original than any I have ever fcen, except the Scotch, which I have made ufe of, when it appeared to me better expreffed than the Englifli. You may ' find fault with the manner of ekeing out a vcrfe for the fake of rhyme ; but what of that ? Here is every thing great, and noble, and divine, although not in Dr. W^tts's way or ftile. It is not, like his, fine found and florid verfe ; as good old Mr. Hall ufed to call it, IVatts's jingle. 1 do 494 -AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. I do not match thofe pfalms with what is now- admired in poetry ; although time was, when no lefs a man than the Rev. T. Bradbury, in his fober judgment, thought fo meanly of Watts's hymns as commonly to term them Watis's zvhyms. And indeed, compared to the fcripture, they are like a little taper to the fun : as for his pfalms, they are fo fur from the mind of the Spirit, that I am fure if David v^'as to read them, he would not know any one of them to be his. Befides, you are offended at the fcripture ftyle, and Dr. Watts mud mend it. This is owing to a very falfe tafte. For the fcripture wants no mending ; nay, it is always worfe for mending. It is plain in majelly. God has not written it to pleafe the imagination, but to convert the heart, and to comfort and to edify the foul ; therefore the infpired writers have ufed great plainnefs of fpeech. They difclaim all painted language and oratorical colouring. One of them, fpeaking for the reft, fays — " We have received not the " fpirit of the world, but the Spirit vv'hich is of " God, that we might know the things which " are freely given to us of God ; which things ^' alfo we fpeak, not in the words which man's wifdom teacheth, but which the holy Ghoft ?' teacheth." To his words the underftanding fliould bow, and with reverence receive them : becaufe they are his. Curiofity fliould be dumb. It fliould make no enquiry : " Are they fine words AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 495 " words, poetical, dreft up with flowers and metaphors, brilliant as Cowley, fmooth as Pope." No, they are not ; but they are revealed to make the man of God wife unto fal- vation, and they do. As fuch, the fineft poetry of man is no more to be compared with them, than man is to be compared with God. His word is the great inftrument of falvation. It is the ordinance of God for every faving purpofe. He works in it and by it, and therefore it is plain and limple, that tlie giory may not be given to ■the means themfelves, but to his almighty grace, which makes them efteftua]. How unlikely is the word preached fo to change afmner's h^art, thafhe fliall be as much a new creature, as if a devil was made an angel ; and yet this effett is daily produced, and by plain preaching too. Thus the moft fuccefsful preacher that ever was, ■declares — " My fpeech and my preacliing was " not with enticing words of man's wifdom, but " in demonftration of the Spirit and of power ; " that your faith fliould not (land in the wifdom of man, but in the power of God." And his power is promifed, and is alfo experienced to this very day in the ufe of the means of grace. God does give his bleffing to them. What more •limple than the facraments ? Yet through Chrift working mightily in them, they do anfwer the •end of their inilitution ? What fo unlikely as j.rayer to obtain all needful blefhngs ? and yet it 496 AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. it is certain m for thou wilt read thine own intereft in all that Chrift AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 45I Chrlfl: is and has, and wilt make ufe of it too, receiving from him grace for grace. This will infpire thy foul with warm devotion to the Lord Chrift, and will lead thee greatly to prize this bleffed book. Thou wilt de- light to 2. Study the fcripture names of it. Doft thou attend to them? Have they their proper weight with thee, fo as to convince thee tho- roughly, that the Saviour in his feveral offices and works is the perfon treated of in the book of pfalms ,? The different names are only to de- fcribe him in different views as the giver of every blefling in earth and heaven, hymns to celebrate his praifcs, fpiritual fongs to fet forth the glory of his kingdom, and the happinefs of his fLibje6lsj pfalms and hymns and fpiritual fongs altogether intended to raife the affections of the foul to as high a pitch of love to Immanuel, as we are capable of, while in the body, 3. When thou art reading the Old Teftament or the New, and obferving the p^aflTages, in which the pfalms are mentioned, do they far- ther confirm thee in the belief of their being written concerning Chrifl > And mixing faith witjh them do they warm thy heart with gratitude to Jefus, and flir thee up to fing his praifes with increafing delight } But above all, confider Vol. VIII. Kk 4. How AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 4. How thou fingeft the pfalms. Examine. Art thou made a new creature in Chrifl: Jefug, and a partaker of his Spirit ? Doft thou then frag with thine underftanding, and with thy heart, finging pfahns as an ordinance of God to exercife grace, and to increafe the grace, which he has given ? And doft thou indeed find it profitable to thyfelf, and edifying to others ? 5. Doft thou keep up the harmony in thy life ? Is thy walk in concord with thy pfalms ? Art thou fliewing forth the praifes of Jefus in thy converfation ? What ! is all confiftent and of a piece ? Are thy heart and voice and life in tune to thank the Lord for his goodnefs, and to de- clare the wonders which he hath done for thy foul ? O this is heavenly mufic. Happy man, to whom it is given thus to live the chriftian. May there be no difcord in thy tempers and walk, but may all within and without thee con- fpire in fvveet concert to hlefs thy Lord and thy God. 6. If the Lord has thus enabled thee to fing, and to love his praifes, then art thou humble enough to ftudy to pleafe others as well as thy- felf in finging, that they may be edified ? If there has been any abufe in this ordinance, doft thou fland corrpctedj and art willing to reform ? Is it they defire in public finging to give no offence to outward people, but above all, to give none AN ESSAY ON PSALMODY. 453 to the church cf God? This is the chriilian temper. Shew it. Let it appear that the mind is in thee, which was alfo in Chrift Jefus. Aim in finging at the profit of others. Look not to thyfelf alone, that thou beareft thy part, with thine underftanding, heart and voice, but en- deavour alfo to edify the church. See thy neighbour be benefited according to the com- mand " Teach and admonifli one another in " pfalms," &c. Let this, and all other things in the congregation be done to edifying. If, upon careful enquiry, thou dofi: underftand thofe trutlis, doft thou experience the power and comfort of them ? Art thou indeed a living chriilian, capable of finging them with melody in thy heart unto the Lord ? If this be thy hap- py cafe, then accept this collection of pfalms, which I here prefent to thee, not in preference to any of thofe here omitted, or to exclude any of them, but only as a fufficlent number for our regular fjirvice. Go, and make ufe of them, and the Lord be with thee. May he render them profitable to thine own foul, and edifying to his body the church. Pray for grace to glo- rify him more in this ordinance. It will foon be thy whole employment. Yet a very little while, and thou wilf have nothing to do, but to enjoy and to piaife Immanuel for evermore. May thy |ieart now feel fomething of this heaven : and if K k 2 it 454 ^'^ ESSAY ON PSALMODY. it pleafe him, may thy happinefs daily increafe, in the enjoyment of, and thankfuhiefs for, all covenant mercies, till thou art admitted to the general aiTembly and church of the firft-born, to join with them in afcribing all the glory of thy falvation to Father, Son, and holy Spirit, three perfons in one Godhead, to whom be equal and everlafting praifes. Amen. FINIS. LIST OF SUBSCPvIBERS. A. AbREY, J. Great Warner-flreet Abrey, S. Nurfery-row, St. George's-fields Adams, W. Efq. Camberwell Aikin, T. City-road Allnatt, C. A. Wallingford, Berks Andrews, W. Panton-ftreet Andrews, Mr. Reading Angell, Mr. Cornhill Afhlin, W. Bolton-ftrcet, Long-Acre B. Baylie, W. Haddenham, Bucks Bainbridge, P. London Bates, B. Upper Thames-ftreet Bate, Mifs, Park-row, Brind Barran, Mr. Shrewfbury, Salop Barnard, Peter, Efq. Southampton Baker, B. Lower-ftreet, Iflingtou Baldwin, Mr. Paternofter-row, 25 copies Balme, J. Horton, near Bradford Barratt, Mr. Halfwayhoufe, Portfea Barret, J. Yarmouth Bartlett, J. Efq. Hackney Beadle, R. Whitechapel-road LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. Beafley, Mrs. Lanib's-Conduk-ftrcet Bei risford, J. Belper, Dcib\ flure Berrage, Mr. Round-court, Strand Bird, J. Biniopfgate-ftreet Bickky, Mr. Hcrdly, Salop Biddulph, Mrs. Bath Binns, Mrs. Leeds, 25 copies Blair, J. Bowen, J. Efq. Caftle Gorford, Carmarthenlhire Bourn, Mrs. Spalding Bond, J. Northam, near Southampton Bodcll, E. Fore-ftreet Bowden, A. Mcllor, Derbyfliire Bower, R. New Mills, Mellor, Derbyfliire Bowden, T, ditto ditto Booty, T. Shoreditch Bruce, P. Denmark-llreet, Soho Brown, T. High-llreet, Lambeth Bream, S. Yarmouth Brownfield, Rev. J. Whitby Broadby, T. Bradford Broadby, S. ditto Brownlow, Mr. Fleet-ftreet Briggs, Mrs. Queen's-houfe Brown, W. GoJdcn-lane Brumwell, G. Threadneedlc-ftreet Bradford, G. WallingFord Burton, R. Efq. Craven-ftreet Burnett, J. Kennington Burford, Countefs of Burnett, Mr. Cumberland-row, Kennington-greca Burgoyne, Mr. Richbuilt-coun, Lamb's-Conduit-llreet Bumllead, j. St. Mary's-hill Bullock, J. Turnham-green Butler, E.jun. Benfon, Oxfordlliire List of subscribers; C. Cafllcman, T. Chrift-church-fquare - Carlefs, C. Chapel-ftreet, Tottenham-court-road Cadogan, Re\'. Mr. Reading tape], J. Royal Exciiange Cardalc, W. Efq. Bcdford-row Cabell, W. Efq. Ncwington-pl ace Cartwright, Mr. Huntingtoii, Salop Challis, T. Catlierine-fireet Channing, Mrs. Gower-flrcet Chapman, Mrs. Greerlhithe, Kent Chapman, J. Petcrfliam, Surry Chambers, J. London Chapman, J. Southampton Clamp, R. Clark, L. B. Yarmouih Cole, Mr. Oxford-llrcet Colborne, W. Southampton Collifon, Mr. Garlick-hill Cooper, J. Lud worth, Derbyflihc Collins, J. St. Mary-hill Councell, J. Canic-ftrcct, Alderfgate-flreet Cooper, T. Ncwbiggen, Norfolk Cooper, J. St. Saviour's, Soutliv.-ark Cook, T. Lewes, Suffex Cope, T. Leather- lane Cox, Mrs. E. Hungcrford Cooke, J. Stratford, Eflcx Cook,.T. Shrewfbury, Salop C rapper, Mrs. Bath Cruden, Mrs. Norton Falgate Crouch, J. Monkwell-ftreet Cuffins, Mr. Yarmouth Culham, R. P. Curtis, G. LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS* D. Dawfon, W. Iflington Dale, Rev. Mr. Lewes, Suflex Dell, W. Southampton Dealey, Capt. A. Brixham, Devonfliire Direwick, Mr. Godfrey-court, Milk-ftreet Dixon, Mr. High-flreet, Borough Dickenfon, B. P. Efq. Tiverton Dixon, Mr, Goudg-Ilreet, Tottenham- court-road Da^v'ner, N, Biihopfgate-ftreet Drury, T. Covenf -garden Dunkley, W. Little Eaftcheap Dyde, Mr. Tcwkefbury, 6 copies E. Edwards, Mr. Bank of England Ernell, T. Mellor, Derbyftiire Evans, J, Everinsjham, W. Mitcham Eve, J. Bridge-ftreet Weftminfter F. Faiilknor, Rev. Mr. Minifterof Ely Chapel Fabian, Mrs. Bath Faden, W. Charing-Crofs Farncorabe, Mr. Lewes, Suflex Fergufon, Mr. Hordly, Shropfhire Fern, J. Mellor, Derbyfhire Fielder, Mr. Newgate-ftreet French, Mrs. Reading Gale, J. Shadwell Gawthorne, T. R. Belper, Derbyfliire Gawthorne, Mifs, Belper, Derbyfliire Gearing, N. Bolingbroke-row Girdler, Mr. Southampton ' Gilbert, P. Cockfpur-ftreet Goutty, W. Eaft Dereham, Norfolk ;^IST OF SUBSCRIBERS, Goulding, T. Southwrak Goode, Rev. Mr. Blackfriar's, London Griffith, Rev. R. Carnarvon Green, Rev. W. Bath Groome, Mr. fen. Caftle-ftreet, O.\ford-ftreet Green, T. Alfreton, Derby/hire Grant, C. Efq. Clapham-common Gurnett, J. Lewis H. Harding, Mr. Pall -Mall Harris, R. Brook's-Market Hart, H. Southampton Harrifon, W. Mellor, Derbyfiiire Hadfield, J. Raworth Haynes,J. Belpore Hall, Mr. Borough Hallfworth, Mrs. Belper, Derbyfliire Hal ford, W. Dover Hampton, J. Wood-ftreet Haycock, R. Well, Norfolk Hatfield, G. Deptford Hadley, S. Efq. Sweeting's-alley, CornhiU Hale, Mrs. St. Andrew by the Wardrobe Hall, William, Dublin Harper, Right Hon. Lady Frances Hegginbottom, R. Mellor Hind, J. Albemarle-flreet Higgs, Mr. Hill-ft reet Hill, T. Lewis Hill, Mr. Checker-alley . Hill, Sir R. Upper Harley-ftreet Holt, J. Jan. Whitby Horfley, J. Hopkins, Mr. Leadenhall-flreet Horfey, Mr. Portfea LIST or SUBSCRIBEftSi Hogarth, J. Bi'okes 's-row Holmes, H. Leeds, 6 fetts Hopps, W. Cannon-ftreet Hopps, J. Caflle-fti eet Horne, Mr. Dukc-ilreet, York-buildings Hodder, W. Wardrobe-place, Doftors-Commcfns Hunter, J. Thamcs-ftreet Huxley, T. Middle Temple Hughes, H. Eyre-flrcet 1. Ireland, J. Efq. Briftol Ireland, Mifs, Ditto J. James, Mr. St. Paul's Coffee-houfe Jawbfon, Mrs. Plymouth Jackfon, G. Belper, Dcrbyfhire Jay, T. Yarmouth Jarvis, T. Charing-crofs Jana^vay, Mr. Cheapfide Jefferies, J. Lambeth Jones, Mr. Gofwell-ftreet Jones, Rev. T. Boltbri JollifTe, Mr. Lambeth Walk Johnfon, Mrs. Reading Jones, W. Cockfpur-ftreef Jones, M. Efq. Kilvenderge, near Cardigart Jones, J. Efq. Gracechurch-ftrcct Johnfon, T. Northampton K. Kenward, W. Lewis Kingsbury, Rev. William, Southampton Kindlefidc, Mrs; Bath L Lawrence, Mr. Cheapfide Lane, Mifs, Plymouth ilST OF SUBSCRIBERS. Lai kin, W. Black friars Lainbard, Mifs, Seven Oaks, Kent Lewis, Mr, Crooked-lane Lee, G. Birches, Shropfhire Litchfield, Mrs. Bclpcr, Derbyfliij-e Lord, P. St. George's-fields Looker, H. W. Leadenhail-ftreet Lock, Mrs. Plymouth Lockwood, R. Whitby Longman, Mr. Paternofter-row, 25 fetts Lovekii), C. London-Houfe-Yard Lock, W. Efq. Devizes Lloyd, Mrs. Vauxhall Lynes, Mr. A^ho^^^ WarwickOn're M. Macklin, T. Southampton Marfhall, B. Redcrofs-fquare Mathe^vs, J. Strand May, Rev. Mr. Potter/bury Marfh, W. Efq. Reading Matthews, Mr. Crancheftcr, Cambridge Mackenzie, J. Lyth, near Whitby Martin, J. Caftle-ftreet, Oxford-road May, E. Lewis Manners, Lady Robert, Grofvenor-fquare M. B. London Medley, G. Medley, R. Mcndham, R, Jim. Wells Miles, Mr. Guildford-ftreet, Foundlinff-Hofi Mills, T. Briftol Minchen, T. A. Efq. Gofport Miller, Mrs. Knight/bridge Mouncher, J. Southampton Morgan, A'Ir. London-road LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. Mora}', Mrs. Reading Mottram, Mr. Aflibourne, Derbyfhire Moufe, P, Yarmouth Morfe, Rev.-S. Kilrhedgn, Pembrokefliire Morland, Mr. Clapton Mudie and Sons, Edinburgh, 25 fetts Murr)', Right Hon. Lady Catherine N. Newton, T. Tenter-ground, Moorefields Newton, Mrs. Frefliford, near Bath Neall, J. Aylefbury Nelfon, Mr. Eaft Dereham, Norfolk Norman, E. RadchfFe-row O. Oborne, Mr. Plymouth Obee, T. Ludlow, Shropfhire Ogle, J. Edinburgh, 25 Setts Oliphant, Mr. White-crofs-ftreet Olerenfhaw, Rev. Mr. Mellor, Derbyfliire Olney, C. Efq. Shrewfbury Oldham, J. O. Efq. Holborn Owen, T. Tiverton P. Paul, P. Silver-ftreet, Golden-fquare Pafliley, Mr. Houndfditch Pafcoe, J. New-court, Fore-ftreet Page, J. Cheapfide Paine, Mrs. Newgate-llreet Palmer, D. Yarmouth Palmer, N. fen. ditto Palmer, N.jun. ditto Parfons, L. Lewis Parker, T. Dunwich, Suffolk Parker, D. Efq. King's-mews Payler, W. Efq. Craven-ftieet, Strand tlST OF SUBSCRIBERS, Pennington, Mifs, Reading Peerfon, J. Ludlow Pinder, Mifs, Alderfgate-ftreet Pinder, Mifs Elizabfeth, ditto Pledge, R. Kennington Plant, T. Finfbiiry.place Piatt, Rev. W. F. Holywell-mount Pockering, J. Southampton-court Potter, P, South Lambeth Pooley, T. St. Margarett's-hill, 3 fetts Powell, Mrs. Great Bath-ftreet Potts, J. Newington Butts Poole, C. Limchoufe Price, Mr. Leadenhall-flreet Proaor, Mr. Fleet-ftreet Pratt, R. Fulham Price, R. D. Leadenhall-nreet Qumce, Mr. James's-buildings R. Radcliffc, W. Mellor, Derbyfhire Reynolds, C. E. Seffions-houfe, Old-Bai!ey Reeve, J. Liule Eafton, Derbyfhire Read, R. Bifhopfgate-within Rentoule, Mr. Union-buildings Rip^ y, Mifs D. Whitby Rice, J. Belper, Derbyfhire Rice, B. ditto Riddle, J. New-flreet, Shoe-lane Rogers, Mrs. Ratcliflfe Robinfons, MefFrs. 25 fetts Robertfon, Mr. Midford-place Rofby, Mr. Spalding Rogers, J. New-flreet, Shoe-lane Robafon, G. High-ftreet, Southwark LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS, Roberts, T. Efq. Charter-houfe-fquare, 3'fe Romainc, Dr. Reading S. Saward, R. North-ftreet, Knightfbridge Satchcll, T. Kilfby, Nortliamptonfhire Saunders, E. Worcefter Samber, R. Efq. Bridge-ftreet Samber, W. Efq. St. Andreu-'s-liill Sadler, J. Fulham Sennock, T. Lewis Serle, A. Efq. Jamcs-flreet, 2 fctts Shorter, T. Leather-lane Sliilfton, J. Tottenham-ftreet Shepherd, Rev. J. Reading, 2 copies Sharp, S. Belper, Derbj'fhire Shelly, J. Yarmouth Sharp, Mr. Magdalen, Norfolk Shepherd, S. W. Efq. Plymouth Simmonds, W, Broadwall, Chriftchurch Simpfon, J. Belper, Derbydiue Simpfon, C. Newgate- flxeet Sills, J. Upper Thames-ftreet Skelton, Mr. Plymouth Smed'.ey, R. St. Andrew's-hill Smith, Mr. Bath Smith, Rev. T. Kingfton Lifle, Berks Smith, Rev. J. Lopham, Norfolk Smith, S. Windley Snaith, G. Oxford-ftrect Spencer, W. Belper, Derbyfliire Sparks, Mrs. Red-Lion-ftreet, Clerkenwel! Stretch, Mrs. Bath Stokes, Mr. Friday-ftreet Stone, J. Fetter-lane Stillingfleet. Rev. J. Hoiham ■LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. Stlllii)g3te% Mifs, KHfield, Yorkf, i e Stillingfleet, Rev. Mr. Prcl enJary of Woixeller Stillingflcct, Mrs. Worcelter Stevens, W. Stanford, Mrs. Lewes Stanley, D. St. Martin's-Ie-Grand StafFord, Rev. J. "VVhitworth Sutton, J. Efq. Buckingham-flreet, York-buildings Sutton, S. ditto Sutton, R. Efq. Artillery-place Symonds, Mr. Patcrnofter-row, lOo fets T. Taylor, T. Wood-irill, near Southampton TayJor, W. Efq. Partfvvood Green, near Southampton Taylor, Mrs. ditto Taylor, S. S. Efq. 'Southampton Thatcher, Mr. Fleet-flreet Thornton, J. Borough Thomas, C. Trump-ftreet Tutt, T. Royal- Exchange V. Van, W. Lyon's-inn Vanhoufe, W. Grange-road, Bermondfey V alance, T. Cheapfide Vinal, Mrs. Lewis w. Warne, Mr. Newcaftle-place, Clerkenwell Watts, J. Bartholomew Clgfe Watkins, Mr. Bath Warne, J. Newcafllc-place Walton, W. Bank of England Watts, E. Efq. Galparnpton-houfe Walker, J. Harp-alley, Fleet-market Warner, W. Green-walk, Surry Waid, C. Efq. High Wycombe LIST OF SU££Caifl£R3, Weftcott, J. London Welman, T. Efq. Poundsfotd Pai k Weaver, T. Student at Hoxton Whitridge, J. Efq; Balaam-hill Whetftone, F. Broad-ftreet, RatcliTe Wheatly, T, SomersTown Whittenbiuy, Mr. Mancheflier Williamg, T. Southanipton Willey, W. Suny-flieet Williamfon, J. Virginia-llreet Wild, Mr. Mellor, Derbyfhire Winch, Mr. Turnagain-lane Wilfon, T. Winfley-ftreet WilHams, Mr. Zion-gaidens Willats, Mrs. Reading Wilks, Rev. M. Old-Hreet Wilfon, Captain, Gravel-ftreet Wills, Rev. T. London Wilkinfon, T. Wellclofe-fquare Wilkinfon, Rev. Mr. Hoxton Wilfon, W. Milk-ftreet Woodford, R. Southampton Woodford, J. Portfea Wood, W. Efq. Caverfham, Oxon Wood, T. Shrewfbury, 7 fetts W right, R. Union-ftreet, Hackney Wyatt, J. London-Houfe-Yard Y. Yates, A. Queen's-gate Young, Mrs. Ludgate-ftreet