BAPTISMAL 
 
 REGENERATION 
 
 COMPARED WITH 
 
 THE WORD OF GOD 
 
 STANDARDS OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND 
 
 IN PEPLY TO 
 
 THE REV. CAPEL MOLYNEUX, 
 
 REV. R BATHURST GREENLAW, M.A., 
 
 MINISTER OF ST. GERMAN'S CHAPEL, BLACKHEATH. 
 
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BAPTISMAL 
 
 REGENERATION 
 
 COMPARED WITH 
 
 THE WORD OF GOD 
 
 AND THE 
 
 STANDARDS OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND 
 
 IN REPLY TO 
 
 THE REV. CAPEL MOLYNEUX. 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. R. BATHURST^GREENLAW, M.A., 
 
 MINISTER OF ST. GERMAN'S CHAPEL, BLACKHEATH. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 B. FELLOWES, LUDGATE STREET, 
 
 HENRY S. RICHARDSON, GREENWICH; AND 
 
 C. SARGENT, WOOLWICH. 
 
 UDCCCXLI11. 
 
 .--. tt 7-r- 
 
 1/11 
 
PRINTED BY RICHARD AND JOHN E. TAYLOR.. 
 RED LION COURT, FLEET STREET. 
 

 NOTICE. 
 
 The following pages were published a few 
 months since under the title of 'Presbyter.' 
 The Author withheld his name at the time, 
 from an apprehension that it might be con- 
 founded with that of his Brother, the Rector 
 of Woolwich. As there was no fear of this 
 in his immediate neighbourhood, the Author 
 has invariably avowed the publication to be 
 his. 
 
 From the position occupied by the Rev. 
 William Greenlaw, it would have been ill- 
 suited to him to enter into any controversy 
 with a Clergyman officiating in his Parish. 
 The Author was differently circumstanced ; 
 and he felt it to be a duty incumbent upon 
 him to defend the Church of which he is a 
 Minister against the absurd inconsistencies 
 
IV NOTICE. 
 
 and Jesuitical delusions which Mr. Molyneux's 
 Tract would impute to it. It was with great 
 pain that the Author introduced many of his 
 remarks, but there are occasions when per- 
 sonal feelings must be sacrificed to duty. 
 
 The Author feels bound to declare, that 
 the publication was undertaken against 
 the wish of the Rector of Woolwich, who 
 was not made acquainted with any portion 
 of its contents until a published copy was 
 forwarded to him. 
 
 Blackheath, January 1843. 
 
 CORRIGENDA. 
 
 Page 8, line 2, dele " " 
 
 — 14, — 3, after godmothers insert in my baptism. 
 
 — 36, last line but one, dele out of the service. 
 
 — 54, line 10, after but insert to. 
 
 — 76, note, before Molyneux's insert Mr. 
 
 — 97, — 12, for read of. 
 
 — 101, — 10, detethey. 
 
 — 112, — 21, for these read they. 
 
 — 129, last line but one, /or teache read teaches. 
 

 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 It has been the Author's object in the 
 following pages to give a plain exposi- 
 tion of the Church of England doctrine 
 of Baptismal Regeneration, and to show 
 its close accordance with the Word of 
 God ; and he has endeavoured to accom- 
 modate himself to every class of readers. 
 In the interpretation of the Testament it 
 is necessary to have recourse to the lan- 
 guage in which it was written, and con- 
 sequently in the notes there are such 
 quotations and such observations as are 
 
IV 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 necessary to justify the argument of the 
 text. They are not, however, necessary 
 for a right understanding of the doctrine, 
 and, except for the reason mentioned, 
 might have been wholly omitted. 
 
 All men are equally concerned in so 
 important a question as the doctrine of 
 Regeneration. So gracious a gift of 
 God should never be slighted by any 
 upon whom it has been bestowed. " To 
 whomsoever much is given, of him shall 
 be much required*;" and again, " To 
 whom little is forgiven, the same loveth 
 little f ." We know not a stronger motive 
 for love than the conviction that God 
 has freely in baptism consigned to us the 
 benefits of our Redeemer's death ; and we 
 firmly believe it to be a main reason why 
 the lives of so many Christians belie their 
 
 * Luke xii. 48. 
 
 t Luke vii. 47. 
 
PREFACE. V 
 
 holy calling, that either in ignorance 
 they slight, or in obstinacy they contemn, 
 the unspeakable blessing of their bap- 
 tism. 
 
 It is not then to be endured that a 
 minister of the Church of England should 
 stand forward and decry the holy sacra- 
 ment and appointment of our Redeemer, 
 — rob it of its substantial properties, 
 — represent it as an empty sign, a sha- 
 dow, and thus trample under foot what 
 through Christ has been the salvation of 
 millions, and is the appointed door of 
 entrance into Christ's holy, catholic, in- 
 divisible church. 
 
 We earnestly invite the attention of 
 our readers to the following observations 
 of the present learned Bishop of Bangor, 
 and especially we suggest them to the 
 solemn reflection of the Rev. Capel Mo- 
 lyneux, seriously begging him to inquire of 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 himself, even if he be blind to the doctrine 
 of Gospel Regeneration, whether it would 
 not have been more consistent with " hu- 
 mility" and wise " moderation" to have 
 withheld such sentiments as he has put 
 forth, and which he must at the time have 
 known would " engender strife " : — 
 
 "The Services of our Church, connected 
 with this question, are formed on the 
 principles and expressed in the language 
 of the ancient Christians, and assert in 
 the most unequivocal manner their doc- 
 trine of Regeneration in Baptism. That 
 every baptized person, with the exception 
 of unworthy adults, is born again of wa- 
 ter and of the Spirit in this sacrament, is 
 an opinion which they affirm in a way 
 level to every capacity. If, therefore, 
 the ministers of our Church should pro- 
 pagate from the pulpit opinions widely 
 different from those which they teach 
 
PREFACE. Vll 
 
 when they are ministering the sacrament 
 of Baptism, let them consider what con- 
 fusion they will produce in the minds of 
 their hearers, what distrust in themselves 
 or in the Church whose ministers they 
 are. But what is perhaps still worse, 
 the desire to reconcile these Services to 
 doctrines entirely at variance with them 
 will tend to impair the sincerity and 
 
 SIMPLICITY OF THEIR OWN MINDS, by 
 
 giving them a taste for that unnatural 
 and artificial mode of interpretation, to 
 which an attachment to preconceived 
 opinions too frequently gives entertain- 
 ment. We are told that these Services 
 make use of a general phraseology, or of 
 hypothetical language, and expressions of 
 hope and charity. But plain sense, sober 
 criticism, and historical research, refute 
 these artificial attempts to affix to them 
 a meaning very different from that which 
 
Vlll PREFACE. 
 
 they bear at first sight, and foreign from 
 the views and principles on which they 
 were originally constructed*." 
 
 * Bethell on Baptismal Regeneration. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION 
 
 A tract has lately appeared in print, under 
 the title, " Baptismal Regeneration op- 
 posed, BOTH BY THE WORD OF GOD AND 
 
 the Standards of the Church of En- 
 gland." This position is so novel and so 
 startling, especially as being maintained by 
 a minister of that church, that it challenges 
 notice and consideration. We had hoped 
 that a more correct view of the subject would 
 have been set forth, but in this expectation 
 we have been hitherto disappointed; we 
 therefore take it upon ourselves to offer our 
 observations upon the question, and the 
 manner in which it has been treated. Our 
 
2 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 remarks, indeed, are drawn up in conse- 
 quence of the astonishment which has been 
 expressed, that the minds of persons who 
 ought to seek instruction in matters of reli- 
 gion from their spiritual rulers should so 
 long be subjected to the doubts which the 
 tract would tend to produce. A numerous 
 class of persons commonly adopt opinions 
 without consideration, upon the credit of a 
 writer ; and as readily they assume that such 
 opinions must be founded in truth, because 
 they are not contradicted and exposed. It 
 would be well, however, in regard to the sub- 
 ject of Baptismal Regeneration, if persons, 
 before they establish themselves in the per- 
 suasion that it is opposed by the word of 
 God and the standards of the Church of En- 
 gland, would examine and test some of the 
 arguments adduced by the author in support 
 of his position. 
 
 A reconsideration of the subject would be 
 not altogether unbefitting the author himself, 
 for his statements are made with a degree of 
 confidence which usually accompanies and 
 betrays a want of correct information. The 
 works of some of our divines, as Hooker, 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 3 
 
 Waterland and Wall, and especially the un- 
 answerable treatise of Bishop Bethell upon 
 the subject, would, it is presumed, present 
 to the author a view, which, as far as appears 
 from the tract, has never entered into his 
 imagination. His confidence would fail him 
 under a growth of doubt as to the validity of 
 his own reasoning and the correctness of his 
 statements. 
 
 The following cursory remarks may, it is 
 hoped, without presumption, be offered as a 
 refutation of the bold and extraordinary opi- 
 nion set forth, that baptismal regeneration is 
 opposed both by the word of God and the 
 standards of the Church of England. Though 
 they pretend to no novelty, they may yet as- 
 sist ordinary readers in discovering the opi- 
 nion of the Church of England upon the 
 subject, and may, perhaps, also tend to give 
 them clearer notions of their individual re- 
 sponsibility and the requirements of that 
 new relation in which they are placed, by 
 being the adopted sons of God. 
 
 The author opens his subject by stating 
 that he " addresses himself only to such per- 
 sons as identify regeneration with the new 
 b 2 
 
4 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 birth of the Holy Ghost." This is in close 
 accordance with the doctrine of the Church 
 of England ; and we close with these terms, 
 more especially as we are told that regene- 
 ration is "the change whereby a man be- 
 comes in very deed and truth a member of 
 Christ, the child of God, and an inheritor of 
 the kingdom of heaven." In thus quoting 
 the very words of the catechism, we think 
 there is an unfortunate fallacy; for the plain 
 declaration of the catechism is, that the child 
 is made so in baptism, " wherein I was made, 
 &c." The author cannot, therefore, inter- 
 pret these words in the same sense with the 
 church; for he declares, and it is the whole 
 purport of his tract to prove, that this change 
 does not take place in baptism. What, how- 
 ever, the author's real opinions are we cannot 
 discover, and it seems probable that they are 
 not very clear to himself; for in the same 
 page* of his tract, it is stated, that "baptism 
 may possibly be an occasion when regenera- 
 tion may be vouchsafed," and yet " regene- 
 ration is the pre-requisite for baptism ;" as 
 also in another part we are told, that the 
 
 * V?ge 41. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 5 
 
 Church of England teaches that "regenera- 
 tion* must precede baptism." It is stated 
 to be "the object of the tract not to argue 
 for right views of regeneration, but to con- 
 tend against wrong views of baptism :" but 
 it appears to us impossible to separate these 
 points ; the one necessarily involves the other, 
 for the question at issue is, — is regeneration 
 connected with baptism ? and we see not how 
 it is possible to determine this point, unless 
 a right scriptural view of regeneration be 
 established. We must therefore beg to as- 
 sume, that a "right view of regeneration" 
 should have been set forth, by which it would 
 have been better seen whether regeneration, 
 in the sense of Scripture, be connected with 
 the sacrament of baptism or not. 
 
 The questions which the tract embraces, 
 and which we propose to examine, are two ; 
 but we invert the order in which they stand. 
 We shall inquire first, whether baptismal re- 
 generation be or be not opposed by the stand- 
 ards of the Church of England; and when 
 we shall have shown that, according to the 
 
 * Pa^e 59. 
 
6 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 doctrine of the Church of England, regenera- 
 tion is inseparably connected with baptism, 
 we shall endeavour to prove that this doc- 
 trine is confirmed by the word of God. 
 
 It is rightly stated that the doctrine of the 
 Church of England is set forth in Article 
 xxv. : i( Sacraments ordained of Christ be 
 not only badges or tokens of Christian men's 
 profession, but rather they be certain sure 
 witnesses and effectual signs of grace and 
 God's good-will towards us; by the which 
 he doth work invisibly in us, and doth not 
 only quicken, but also strengthen and con- 
 firm our faith in him." 
 
 The framers of our Articles appear to have 
 employed as strong language as they could — 
 " sure witnesses " — " effectual signs." What 
 meaning can possibly be attached to the 
 words, excepting that which they commonly 
 bear? We are taught that the sacraments 
 (two) are witnesses upon which we can for a 
 certainty rely ; that they are not bare, naked 
 signs, but effectual (efficacia), i. e. efficacious, 
 operating in us. And of what are they sure 
 witnesses and effectual signs ? Of grace and 
 God's good-will towards us. The sacraments, 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 7 
 
 therefore, — or, to confine our observations to 
 baptism, as more immediately affecting the 
 question at issue, — baptism is declared by 
 the Article to be a witness, upon which we 
 may for a certainty rely, of grace, of which 
 also it is an effectual sign ; not merely a sign, 
 but an efficacious sign. And to guard against 
 the possibility of mistake upon the point, the 
 Article proceeds to state, that by means of 
 this sacrament (" by the which " *) God doth 
 work invisibly in us. In baptism, therefore, 
 according to the Church of England, there 
 is something beyond being made a member 
 of the visible church of Christ ; that rather, 
 there is, by means of the sacrament, some 
 invisible ivorking in us on God's part. This, 
 the more important ingredient, appears to 
 have wholly escaped the author's observation, 
 for he tells us, though, as we shall show in 
 a succeeding part, most erroneously, that faith 
 
 * Mr. Molyneux needs not to be reminded that the Latin 
 is per qucB, or to be told that the preposition per implies the 
 intermediate agency employed for effecting anything; so that, 
 according to the Church of England, the sacraments are the 
 appointed means of grace, — that kind of grace in particular 
 which is suited to the nature of each sacrament. 
 
8 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 is confirmed and grace increased, " not by the 
 act of baptism" but " by virtue of prayer 
 made unto God." 
 
 We will therefore endeavour to gather 
 from the Article itself the opinion of the 
 church in regard to this ee invisible working 
 of God in us ;" God " doth not only quicken, 
 but also strengthen and confirm our faith in 
 him." The author of the tract appears not 
 to have a clear conception of the meaning of 
 the Article, and according to the practice of 
 the Puritans of old, to confound the two sa- 
 craments, as though they were not designed 
 for different purposes. c( A variety of bene- 
 fits and privileges," says he, " are said to be 
 conveyed by means of the sacraments ; of 
 both sacraments, one as much as the other*." 
 
 That certain the same benefits accrue to 
 both is unquestionable; but it is especially 
 in regard to baptism that it is stated that 
 God " doth quicken our faith," i. e. arouse it 
 out of a dormant state : it is presumed that 
 the author does not mean to express that this 
 portion of the Article applies to the Lord's 
 Supper. Let us, however, turn to Article 
 
 * Page 45. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 9 
 
 xxvii. : " Baptism is not only a sign of pro- 
 fession and mark of difference, whereby 
 Christian men are discerned from others that 
 be not christened, but it is also a sign of 
 regeneration, or new birth, whereby, as by an 
 instrument, they that receive baptism rightly 
 are grafted into the church ; the promises of 
 the forgiveness of sins, and of our adoption 
 to be the sons of God by the Holy Ghost, 
 are visibly signed and sealed; faith is con- 
 firmed; and grace increased, by virtue of 
 prayer unto God." It is thus that the church 
 propounds her opinion in regard to the par- 
 ticular benefit attached to the sacrament of 
 baptism. This benefit is set forth by the 
 expression (( sign of regeneration, or new 
 birth." The Article is not to be taken by it- 
 self, but it necessarily carries us back to Arti- 
 cle xxv., where the church tells us, that sa- 
 craments generally are " sure witnesses and 
 effectual signs of grace, whereby God doth 
 work invisibly in us." In Article xxvn. the 
 particular kind of grace, of which baptism is 
 the sure witness and effectual sign, is more 
 specifically described, " regeneration, or new 
 birth." Is it possible, we may be allowed 
 
10 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 to ask, for the church to teach more clearly 
 that regeneration takes place at baptism? 
 For the present we say not what the church's 
 interpretation of regeneration is : the author 
 of the tract before us declares his to be " that 
 change whereby a man becomes in very deed 
 and truth a member of Christ, the child of 
 God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of hea- 
 ven." Let the matter be put plainly, that 
 it may be thereby ascertained how far a mi- 
 nister of the Church of England is justified 
 in propounding that "baptismal regeneration 
 is opposed by the standards of the Church 
 of England." Baptism is the sure witness and 
 effectual sign of grace, — that particular grace 
 designated regeneration, and therefore, ac- 
 cording to the author himself, baptism is the 
 sure witness and effectual sign of the change 
 whereby a man is made in very deed and 
 truth " a member of Christ, the child of God, 
 and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven." 
 The Article is, however, even yet more 
 precise, for it proceeds, " whereby," i. e. by 
 which sign of regeneration (per quod) or its 
 synonymous expression, "by which baptism, 
 as by an instrument, they that receive bap- 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 11 
 
 tism rightly are grafted into the Church ; — 
 the promises of forgiveness of sins, and of our 
 adoption to be the sons of God by the Holy 
 Ghost, are visibly signed and sealed ; faith is 
 confirmed, and grace increased by virtue of 
 prayer unto God." It appears, therefore, 
 from this, that a right reception of baptism 
 is considered by the church to be the instru- 
 ment or appointed means by which a man is 
 grafted into the church : the promise of the 
 forgiveness of sins, and of his adoption to be 
 a son of God by the Holy Ghost, is visibly 
 signed and sealed. We are hereby informed 
 what a the invisible working of God in us ** 
 is, and which is visibly signed and sealed. 
 Such is the substance of Articles xxv. and 
 xxvu., jet the tract informs us that "the 
 simple history and exposition of the doctrine 
 is this, namely, that baptism is the sign of 
 regeneration to the regenerate." This may 
 be simple, but yet it is not sufficiently clear 
 for our comprehension. The Article says, 
 that it is by means of the sacrament of bap- 
 tism that God doth work invisibly in us. No, 
 says the author of the tract, "the inward 
 work is then only outwardly testified of." 
 
12 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 The Article says, that the invisible working 
 of God consists in the remission of sins and 
 the adoption to be the sons of God. No, 
 says our author, " the party has been before 
 baptism inwardly born of the Spirit, and that 
 by baptism the party is outwardly signed and 
 sealed as belonging to the family of God." 
 
 Will the learned author allow us to call 
 his attention to Article ix. ? it states, that 
 " this infection of nature (original sin) doth 
 remain in them that are regenerated-" and 
 again in the latter part it observes, " that 
 there is no condemnation for them that be- 
 lieve and are baptized" Now in the Latin 
 copy, which, be it remembered, is of equal 
 authority with the English, one and the same 
 word is used, which in the English is in the 
 former case rendered regenerated, and in the 
 latter baptized. Again we ask, what can pos- 
 sibly explain in clearer terms that the Church 
 of England identifies regeneration with bap- 
 tism ? " Her authoritative teaching is to be 
 learnt from her Articles," and they employ 
 the terms regenerated and baptized as mean- 
 ing the same. 
 
 We have thus endeavoured to show that 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 13 
 
 baptismal regeneration is the doctrine of the 
 Church of England, as set forth in her Ar- 
 ticles ; and we have not to make that apo- 
 logy for the formularies and services of the 
 church which we find in the tract before 
 us : " Her formularies and services are ne- 
 cessarily supposed, and ought to be in ac- 
 cordance with them, and their sense and 
 meaning must be interpreted and determined 
 by them. Should any seeming contrariety 
 appear betwixt the Articles and services, the 
 latter must bend and give way, not the former. 
 The Articles are the foundation ; — touch that, 
 and the building as a whole falls to the 
 ground." The formularies and services, if we 
 mistake not, will be found to speak precisely 
 the same language as the Articles ; there is 
 no need for straining one part to make it 
 square with the other. In the service of 
 baptism, the minister and congregation, before 
 the ministration of the rite, pray that it 
 would please God to regenerate the child by 
 his Holy Spirit ; after baptism, they thank 
 God that it hath pleased him to regenerate 
 the child. Here is no charitable supposition 
 required, but the plain statement of a fact. 
 
14 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 So also in the catechism, the first answer 
 put into the mouth of every child is, " My 
 godfathers and my godmothers, wherein I was 
 made a member of Christ, the child of God, 
 and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven." 
 Again, in the service of Confirmation, the ' 
 prayer which the bishop offers up in the 
 name of the assembled congregation speaks 
 of all the candidates as regenerate : " Al- 
 mighty and everliving God, who hast vouch- 
 safed to regenerate these thy servants by 
 water and the Holy Ghost, and hast given unto 
 them forgiveness of all their sins, strengthen 
 them, &c." In like manner, in the service 
 for Christmas-day, the collect directs all her 
 members to speak the same language ; to ap- 
 peal to God, as " being regenerate and made 
 his children by adoption and grace." One 
 would imagine, that the case is so plain as to 
 defy all controversy ; yet the author of the 
 tract seeks to evade the common sense and 
 meaning of these " standards of the Church 
 of England." (i To whom," he asks *, " or 
 in whose case, does the Article declare bap- 
 
 * Page 48. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 15 
 
 tism to be a sign of regeneration ? To such 
 as receive it rightly : and who are they that 
 receive it rightly ? Such as receive it wor- 
 thily, or with faith. And, once more, who 
 are they that receive it with faith ? The re- 
 generate, and none else ; for none else have 
 faith ; it springs exclusively from regenerating 
 grace." But does the author forget that the 
 same Article declares that children are rightly 
 baptized, and if rightly, then they are rege- 
 nerated. " The baptism of young children is 
 in anywise to be retained in the church, as 
 most agreeable with the institution of Christ ;" 
 and if most agreeable with the institution of 
 Christ, we presume it will be admitted that 
 children are rightly baptized. 
 
 The catechism, as we have seen, teaches, 
 in strict accordance with this, that every bap- 
 tized child was regenerated in his baptism ; 
 yet we find the bold, we had almost written 
 daring, assertion, that " the catechism* with 
 the services and the articles severally and 
 collectively maintain that the fruits of rege- 
 neration, and hence regeneration itself, must 
 
 * Page 59. 
 
1G BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 precede baptism" How is this to be recon- 
 ciled with the tenor of preceding observa- 
 tions ? for it is remarked, that persons hold- 
 ing the doctrine of baptismal regeneration 
 6i assume *, that, having been baptized, rege- 
 neration has followed. They live and die in 
 this persuasion. All other means of regene- 
 ration are, as far as that particular end is 
 concerned, neglected, and considered, in re- 
 ference to themselves, quite inappropriate ; 
 all exhortations to become so, to them are 
 quite inapplicable." We are told at one part, 
 that the Church of England teaches that re- 
 generation must precede baptism, and at an- 
 other it is implied that baptized persons are 
 to be exhorted to become regenerate. If lan- 
 guage is to be taken in its ordinary sense, 
 there is a manifest contradiction. Regene- 
 ration must precede baptism, but baptized 
 persons are to be exhorted to adopt means to 
 become regenerate. 
 
 The language of the church in her services 
 is so clear, so definite upon the point, con- 
 necting baptism and regeneration, that the 
 
 * Paffe 3. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 17 
 
 holders of an opposite opinion are obliged to 
 assume that her language is framed upon " a 
 charitable supposition that the thing prayed 
 for is granted^ and that she speaks accord- 
 ingly." The same observation is made by 
 other writers, as also that the services are 
 framed for bodies of men generally, and not 
 as applicable specifically to individuals. It is 
 indeed unquestionable, that the general ser- 
 vices of the church are so constructed, but not 
 her particular services. In these latter she 
 presumes not to dive into the hearts of those 
 who are the subjects of the service, but as- 
 sumes, in all cases where it is possible for the 
 mouth to answer, that it speaks the genuine 
 sincere feelings of the heart. 
 
 For instance, in the churching of wo- 
 men, to the prayer offered by the minister, 
 u save this woman thy servant," the reply is 
 made by the congregation, " who putteth her 
 trust in Thee." The very fact that the party 
 presents herself in the house of God to 
 return thanks for her safe delivery, is as- 
 sumed by the church to be an evidence of 
 her trust in God. In other cases where per- 
 sons are incapable of giving such evidence, 
 c 
 
18 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 the church adapts her language to the par- 
 ticular circumstances. Thus, in the burial 
 of the dead, when the body is committed to 
 the ground, the " hope of resurrection to 
 eternal life " is said to be u sure and certain/' 
 because the resurrection spoken of applies 
 generally, and the certainty of our hope rests 
 upon the promise of God. But in the col- 
 lect concluding the service, the minister 
 prays in behalf of the congregation, that, 
 " when they shall depart this life, they may 
 rest in Christ, as their hope is this their bro- 
 ther doth." Here the church could not pro- 
 nounce more than a charitable hope. 
 
 The service of baptism is in like manner 
 special, and the language of the church cor- 
 responds. She appeals to the promise of 
 God, and by consequence she speaks with 
 positive certainty ; and as she believes that 
 God's promise is to be performed at the time, 
 and not deferred to some future occasion, 
 there is no hope expressed, but after baptism 
 a giving of thanks for God's goodness. Hope 
 applied to a benefit to be received at the time 
 of the service, would imply a distrust of God's 
 promise being performed. Thus analogy im- 
 
BAPTISMAL. REGENERATION. 19 
 
 pels us to understand the language of the 
 Liturgy in its plain ordinary sense. In the 
 burial of a Christian, as we have seen, the 
 church cannot determine whether the soul 
 is resting in Christ or not, and she pro- 
 nounces nothing more than her hope, i. e. her 
 pious wish. In the case of baptism, however, 
 she relies on the promise of God, and pro- 
 nounces accordingly that the child is rege- 
 nerated : " Seeing now, dearly beloved bre- 
 thren, that this child is regenerate and grafted 
 into the body of Christ's church, let us give 
 thanks unto Almighty God for these benefits, 
 and with one accord make our prayers unto 
 Him, that this child may lead the rest of his 
 life according to this beginning" Did the 
 church believe that any further change of 
 life was necessary, when so fitting an occa- 
 sion for supplicating this mercy of God, as 
 the time of baptism ? yet, on the contrary, 
 her prayer is, that the future life may be in 
 accordance with this beginning. 
 
 The same principle pervades the whole Li- 
 turgy, and forces upon us the same conclu- 
 sion, that baptism is the appointed means 
 for regeneration. A form of words is adopted 
 c 2 
 
20 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 throughout, bespeaking the feelings of a sin- 
 cere Christian. This applies to all cases 
 where the heart of man is concerned. With 
 regard, however, to blessings which flow from 
 God, and which are continually necessary 
 during the Christian's pilgrimage, these are- 
 all made the subject of prayer, whether they 
 be temporal or spiritual blessings; for in- 
 stance, we pray for " the true circumcision 
 of the heart ;" we pray " that we may daily 
 be renewed by the Holy Spirit;" "that we 
 may perfectly love God ;" " that we may have 
 grace to follow the blessed saints in all vir- 
 tuous and godly living." All these blessings 
 are made the subject of prayer; but where 
 throughout the service do we find a single 
 prayer for the regeneration* of any person? 
 On the contrary, the church founds her 
 prayer for the renewal of the heart upon the 
 very fact, that all her members are regene- 
 rate and made God's children by adoption 
 
 * How does Mr. Molyneux account for this ? and how 
 does he reconcile his notions of final perseverance with the 
 prayer of the bishop in confirmation, implying, as it does, 
 that the sons of God may fall : " Defend, Lord, this thy 
 child with thy heavenly grace, that he may continue thine 
 for ever." 
 
BAPTISMAL. REGENERATION. 21 
 
 and grace : " Grant* that we, being regene- 
 rate, and made thy children by adoption and 
 grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy 
 Spirit/ 5 Upon such grounds we fully agree 
 with the sentiments of a living divine of un- 
 questioned zeal and universally admitted elo- 
 quence : " That the Church of England does 
 hold, and does teach baptismal regeneration, 
 would never, we must venture to think, have 
 been disputed, had not men been anxious to 
 remain in her communion, and yet to make 
 her formularies square with their own pri- 
 vate notions. We really think that no fair, 
 no straightforward dealing can get rid of the 
 conclusion, that the church holds what is 
 called baptismal regeneration. You may dis- 
 like the doctrine, you may wish it expunged 
 from the Prayer-book ; but so long as I sub- 
 scribe to that Prayer-book, and so long as I 
 officiate according to the forms of that Pray- 
 er-book, 1 do not see how I can be com- 
 monly honest and yet deny that every bap- 
 tized person is on that account regeneratef." 
 The tract, however, does most strangely 
 
 * Collect for Christmas Day. 
 
 t Melvill's Sermons, vol. ii. Sermon 8. 
 
22 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 deny it, and attempts to justify the denial 
 upon another fallacious argument : " Nor is 
 the remaining statement, c a means whereby 
 we receive the same/ at all at variance with 
 this interpretation, as (if we will let the church 
 speak for herself) will appear in a moment ; 
 for, in the first place, observe, the statement 
 is a means, not the means. This is very re- 
 markable ! Why did not the framers of the 
 catechism declare it to be the means ? — be- 
 cause evidently they did not so regard it, 
 nor intend that their disciples should. A 
 means is all that they avouch concerning it ; 
 and a means it may be, doubtless sometimes 
 is — who disputes it ? But this is widely dif- 
 ferent from the means." This argument was 
 first brought forward by a learned and ex- 
 cellent divine, from whose work, we presume, 
 it was transferred into the tract before us*. 
 It surprises us that a divine of such deep 
 learning and discernment should have brought 
 into the field so fragile a weapon; and we 
 
 * Why not the mean and the pledge ? Truly, had this 
 form, the definite form to wit, heen used, the conferring of 
 regeneration would have been restricted to the sole instru- 
 mental mean of outward baptism. But another form, the 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 23 
 
 must presume to think that neither Mr. Fa- 
 ber nor the author of the tract would have 
 employed it, had they read more carefully 
 the work of the judicious Hooker. 
 
 By the word u Sacrament/' our church 
 teaches us we are to understand, " an outward 
 and visible sign of an inward and spiritual 
 grace, given unto us, ordained by Christ him- 
 self, as a means whereby we receive the same 
 and a pledge to assure us thereof/ 5 We pre- 
 sume it will be admitted by those who fancy 
 that they discover an argument in their fa- 
 vour in " a means/' " a pledge/' that u an 
 inward and spiritual grace," through the in- 
 definite article, refers to some other inward 
 and spiritual grace than the particular grace 
 conveyed through means of the sacrament. 
 As therefore the Church of England in this 
 very answer alludes to grace not conveyed 
 through the sacrament, it would have been 
 
 indefinite form to wit, is used: a mean and a pledge. 
 Hence, quite agreeable to Scripture, and quite in accordance 
 with the testimony of Augustine to the judgment of the 
 Primitive Church, the Church of England virtually deter- 
 mines, that Baptism is not the sole instrumental mean of 
 regeneration. — Faber's Primitive Doctrine of Regeneration, 
 page 349- 
 
24 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 no other than an absurdity to have declared 
 that a sacrament is the means of grace. 
 
 This may be shown in another way. What 
 is Grace ? It is the favour of God shown to 
 us by the various gifts of the Holy Ghost : 
 consequently, as these gifts are various, 
 grace will of necessity be of different kinds. 
 Every virtue is a grace, for it is engendered 
 in a man by his own exertions co-operating 
 with the aid of the Holy Spirit vouchsafed to 
 sincere prayer. The means of grace, there- 
 fore, are various ; for instance, prayer, medi- 
 tation, reading, are all means of grace ; but 
 not in all respects of the same grace as is 
 conveyed through specially appointed means, 
 the sacraments. And even in regard to these 
 means, though in many respects there may 
 be the same kind of grace conveyed, yet the 
 church teaches us that there is also a parti- 
 cular and different kind of grace conveyed 
 by each sacrament respectively. 
 
 It is, therefore, not at all remarkable, that 
 by sacrament we are to understand a means 
 of grace ; for it would be alike opposed by 
 the Church of England and the word of God 
 to say that there are no other means of grace 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 25 
 
 besides the sacraments. A sacrament gene- 
 rfcally is a means of grace ; each particular 
 sacrament is a means of grace, but the means 
 of that particular kind of grace which is 
 thereby conveyed. In other words, baptism 
 is by the church declared to be a or one 
 of the means of grace, but the or the sole 
 appointed means of that particular grace 
 designated regeneration. As the works of 
 Hooker, who has acquired for himself the 
 distinguished appellation of "the judicious/ 5 
 will not be at the command of all into whose 
 hands this little treatise may fall, and as 
 Hooker is a fair specimen of the opinions of 
 our Reformers, no apology will be necessary 
 for the following very lengthened quotation : 
 " Sacraments*, by reason of their mixed nature, 
 are more diversely interpreted and disputed of than 
 any other part of religion besides ; for that in so 
 great a store of properties belonging to the self- 
 same thing, as every man's wit hath taken hold of 
 some especial consideration above the rest, so they 
 have accordingly seemed one to cross another as 
 touching their several opinions about the necessity 
 of sacraments, whereas in truth their disagreement 
 
 * Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, Book V. Chapter 57. 
 
26 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 is not so great. For let respect be had to the 
 duty which every communicant doth undertake, and 
 we may well determine concerning the use of sa- 
 craments, that they serve as bonds of obedience to 
 God, strict obligations to the mutual exercise of 
 Christian charity, provocations to godliness, pre-, 
 servations from sin, memorials of the principal be- 
 nefits of Christ ; respect the time of their institu- 
 tion, and it thereby appeareth that God hath an- 
 nexed them for ever unto the New Testament, as 
 other rites were before with the Old ; regard the 
 weakness which is in us, and they are warrants for 
 the more security of our belief; compare the re- 
 ceivers of them with such as receive them not, and 
 sacraments are marks of distinction to separate 
 God's own from strangers : so that in all these 
 respects, they are found to be most necessary. 
 
 " But their chief est force and virtue consisteth 
 not herein so much, as in that they are heavenly 
 ceremonies, which God hath sanctified and ordain- 
 ed to be administered in his church ; first, as marks 
 whereby to know when God doth impart the vital 
 or saving grace of Christ unto all that are capable 
 thereof * ; and, secondly, as means conditional 
 
 * We cannot forbear transcribing a note which is inserted 
 in Hooker's Works, as edited by the Rev. John Keble, M.A. 
 The note is Hooker's upon an objection started to this por- 
 tion of his work. It is in his playful style, and may not be 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 27 
 
 which God requireth in them unto whom he im- 
 parteth grace. For sith [since] God in himself is 
 invisible, therefore, when it seemeth good in the 
 eyes of his heavenly wisdom, that men for some 
 special intent and purpose should take notice of 
 his glorious presence, he giveth them some plain 
 and sensible token whereby to know what they 
 cannot see. For Moses to see God and live was 
 impossible, yet Moses by fire knew where the 
 glory of God extraordinarily was present. The 
 angel by whom God endued the waters of the pool 
 called Bethesda with supernatural virtue to heal, 
 was not seen of any, yet the time of the angel's 
 presence was known by the troubled motions of 
 the waters themselves. The apostles by fiery 
 tongues, which they saw, were admonished when 
 
 altogether inapplicable to the occasion of these remarks : — 
 " The sacraments being a matter so much debated, it seem- 
 eth strange that you, which taketh upon you so great care of 
 the church, should never take the paines at the least for the 
 good of your own soul, to kuow that which every shopman 
 and prentise is now acquainted with in this matter. You 
 speake of sacraments as if by the space of these thirty or fourty 
 yeares you have lived in some cave of the earth, and never 
 heard in what points the church doth either varie, or agree 
 concerning them. It were strange that you should affect to 
 seeme ignorant in that whereof you have presumed to be a 
 judg. And yeat that you should be so raw as your wordes 
 make show of I cannot persuade myself." 
 
28 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 the Spirit, which they could not behold, was upon 
 them. In like manner it is with us. Christ and 
 his Holy Spirit with all their blessed effects, though 
 entering into the soul of man, we are not able to 
 apprehend or express how, do, notwithstanding, 
 give notice of the times when they use to make 
 their access, because it pleaseth Almighty God to 
 communicate by sensible means those blessings 
 which are incomprehensible. 
 
 " Seeing, therefore, that grace is a consequent 
 of sacraments, a thing which accompanyeth them 
 as their end, a benefit which he that hath, re- 
 ceiveth from God himself, the author of sacra- 
 ments, and not from any other natural or super- 
 natural quality in them, it may be hereby both un- 
 derstood that sacraments are necessary, and that 
 the manner of their necessity to life supernatural 
 is not in all respects as food unto natural life, be- 
 cause they contain in themselves no vital force or 
 efficacy ; they are not physical, but moral instru- 
 ments of salvation, duties of sendee and worship, 
 which unless we perform as the Author of grace 
 require th, they are unprofitable. For all receive 
 not the grace of God which receive the sacraments 
 of his grace*. Neither is it ordinarily his will to 
 
 * It is no uncommon tiling for the opponents of baptis- 
 mal regeneration to enlist Hooker on their side upon the 
 strength of this passage ; with what fairness and candour our 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 29 
 
 bestow the grace of sacraments on any, but by the 
 sacraments ; which grace also, they that receive 
 by sacraments or with sacraments receive it from 
 Him, and not from them. For of sacraments the 
 very same is true which Solomon's wisdom ob- 
 serveth in the brazen serpent : — ' He that turned 
 towards it was not healed by the thing he saw, 
 but by Thee, O Saviour of all !' 
 
 " This is therefore the necessity of sacraments. 
 That saving grace which Christ originally is, or 
 hath, for the general good of his whole church, 
 by sacraments he severally deriveth into every 
 member thereof. Sacraments serve as the instru- 
 ments of God to that end and purpose, — moral 
 instruments, the use whereof is in our hands, the 
 effect in his ; for the use we have his express 
 commandment, for the effect his conditional pro- 
 mise : so that without our obedience to the one, 
 there is of the other no apparent assurance ; as 
 contrariwise, where the signs and sacraments of 
 his grace are not either through contempt unre- 
 ceived, or received with contempt, we are not to 
 
 readers will be enabled to judge. His argument is, that 
 there is an inward grace besides the outward sign, and that 
 therefore a sacrament is to be received as the Author of grace 
 requireth. In regard to baptism in particular, he says that 
 regeneration is its peculiar grace, and that where this sacra- 
 ment is not received with contempt, and children cannot re- 
 ceive it with contempt, it really gives what it signifies. 
 
30 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 doubt but that they really give what they pro- 
 mise, and are what they signify. For we take not 
 baptism nor the eucharist for bare resemblances 
 or memorials of things absent, neither for naked 
 signs and testimonies assuring us of grace received 
 before, but (as they are indeed and in verity) for 
 means effectual, whereby God, when we take the 
 sacraments, delivereth into our hands that grace 
 available to eternal life, which grace the sacra- 
 ments represent or signify. 
 
 " There have grown in the doctrine concerning 
 sacraments many difficulties for want of distinct ex- 
 plication what kind or degree of grace doth belong 
 unto each sacrament. For by this it hath come to 
 pass, that the true immediate cause why Baptism 
 and why the Supper of our Lord is necessary, few 
 do rightly and distinctly consider. It cannot be de- 
 nied but sundry the same effects and benefits which 
 grow unto men by the one sacrament may rightly be 
 attributed unto the other. Yet doth baptism chal- 
 lenge to itself the inchoation of those graces, the con- 
 summation whereof dependeth on mysteries ensuing. 
 We receive Christ Jesus in baptism once as the first 
 beginner ; in the eucharist often, as being by con- 
 tinual degrees the finisher of our life. By baptism, 
 therefore, we receive Christ Jesus, and from him that 
 saving grace which is proper to baptism. By the 
 other sacrament also we receive him also, impart- 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 31 
 
 ing therein himself and that grace which the eu- 
 charist properly bestoweth. So that each sacra- 
 ment having both that which is general or common, 
 and that also which is peculiar unto itself, ice may 
 hereby gather that the participation of Christ, which 
 properly belongeth to any one sacrament, is not other- 
 wise to be obtained but by the sacrament whereunto 
 it is proper." 
 
 We have thus endeavoured to prove that 
 baptismal regeneration is a doctrine of the 
 Church of England, and we are almost in- 
 clined to apologize for it, as from its clear- 
 ness it would not need to be proved, but 
 for the bold flippancy with which private 
 fancies are set up against the evidence of 
 common sense and the solid arguments of 
 our profoundest divines. 
 
 It remains now, that we examine whether 
 baptismal regeneration be the doctrine of the 
 word of God. 
 
 In order to this, we must first ascertain 
 what the church understands by the term 
 " regeneration." It is on this account that 
 we stated that it is impossible to separate the 
 consideration of "wrong views of baptism" 
 from u right views of regeneration." We 
 
32 
 
 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION'. 
 
 have seen that the church connects regene- 
 ration with baptism ; her opinion, therefore, 
 as to the spiritual benefits attached to bap- 
 tism will explain her idea of regeneration. 
 Let us then first examine the Articles, and 
 for the confirmation of the church's opinion 
 as expressed by them, compare it with the 
 
 SERVICE OF BAPTISM and the CATECHISM. 
 
 In Article xvi., entitled u Sin after bap- 
 tism," we read, "Not every deadly sin, will- 
 ingly committed after baptism, is sin against 
 the Holy Ghost, and unpardonable, where- 
 fore the grant of repentance is not to be de- 
 nied to such as fall into sin after baptism. 
 After we have received the Holy Ghost, we 
 may depart from grace given, and fall into 
 sin." From this we justly infer, that the re- 
 ception of the Holy Ghost takes place at bap- 
 tism. The Article employs " after baptism" 
 and K after we have received the Holy Ghost" 
 as synonymous expressions. 
 
 In Article xxv. sacraments are defined to 
 be " not only badges or tokens of Christian 
 men's profession, but rather * they be cer- 
 
 * As Hooker expresses it — " Herein consisteth their 
 chiefest force and virtue." 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 33 
 
 tain sure witnesses and effectual signs of 
 grace and God's goodwill towards us, by the 
 which [sacraments] he doth work invisibly 
 in us, and doth not only quicken, but also 
 strengthen and confirm our faith in Him." 
 Thus far we gather that the Holy Ghost is 
 given in baptism, and that herein consists 
 God's invisible working in us, (for who can 
 see the Holy Spirit?) — that faith is quick- 
 ened and confirmed. In Article xxvu. we 
 have a more definite interpretation : "Bap- 
 tism is a sign" (and therefore as we have 
 seen in Article xxv.) — "an effectual sign of 
 regeneration or new birth, whereby (i. e. by 
 which baptism), as by an instrument, they 
 that receive baptism rightly are grafted into 
 the church ; the promises of the forgiveness 
 of sins, and of our adoption to be the sons of 
 God by the Holy Ghost, are visibly signed 
 and sealed ; faith is confirmed ; and grace in- 
 creased by virtue of prayer unto God." We 
 have already shown that the Article declares 
 infants to be rightly baptized, for it states 
 that " the baptism of young children is most 
 agreeable* with the institution of Christ." 
 * Optime congruat. 
 D 
 
34 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 We now, therefore, perceive that the fur- 
 ther especial benefit of baptism is, that the 
 baptized party is grafted* into the church; 
 in other words, made a member of that body 
 of which Christ is the head, that the pro- 
 mises of forgiveness of sins and adoption to be. 
 the son of God are visibly signed and sealed. 
 Perhaps we shall be excused for stating, for 
 the advantage of general readers, that in the 
 Latin, the language in which the Articles 
 were originally drawn up, a wordf is used, 
 which signifies that the bargain or contract 
 for the forgiveness of sins and adoption to be 
 the sons of God is then and thereby con- 
 cluded ; that a mark is then set, to which on 
 all future occasions an appeal may be made. 
 Through life, therefore, nay, after death to 
 the day of eternal judgment, we may appeal 
 to our baptism that our sins were then for- 
 given, and that we then became by adoption 
 the sons of God. 
 
 We are told, indeed, that " the subject of 
 baptism, it is assumed, has faith, has grace, 
 and then, at baptism, these are respectively 
 
 * "lam the vine, ye are the branches." — John xv. 5. 
 ■f Obsign-antur. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 35 
 
 confirmed and increased ; and that, moreover, 
 not by the washing of water, or act of bap- 
 tism (which is carefully defined to be the 
 sign of regeneration), but e by virtue of prayer 
 made unto God/ " It is not with a view of 
 arguing the question, whether faith and grace 
 are in all cases, or in any, imparted before 
 baptism*, that we introduce these words, as 
 they are separate questions, and beside our 
 present purpose ; but we would wish to cor- 
 rect an error into which the author of the 
 tract has fallen. He must excuse us for say- 
 ing that he appears not to understand the 
 Article, and perhaps he will allow us to ex- 
 plain it. The Article, then, states, that "it is 
 by the act of baptism, as by an instrument, 
 that faith is confirmed," and that too without 
 speaking at all of prayer made unto God. It 
 adds, that "by virtue of prayer unto God grace 
 is increased." The English Article is sufficient 
 to show this ; but if any doubt could exist, 
 it would be removed by a reference to the 
 Latin. It is there evident beyond contro- 
 
 * We think it quite consistent with Scripture to believe 
 that grace to a Certain degree, and faith in a certain sense, 
 are vouchsafed before the baptism of adults. 
 D 2 
 
36 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 versy, from the position of words, that the 
 expression " by virtue of prayer unto God " 
 is applied solely to the clause ee grace is in- 
 creased*/ 5 And that grace should on all 
 occasions be increased upon the sincere 
 prayers of the faithful, is only consonant with 
 our Saviour's promise. 
 
 Thus, upon the whole, we gather from the 
 Articles that, by the act of baptism, the Holy 
 Ghost is received ; God works invisibly in 
 us ; his working consists in the remission of 
 our sins and our adoption to be the sons of 
 God ; faith is quickened and confirmed ; and, 
 lastly, by virtue of prayer unto God, grace 
 is increased. 
 
 We have now to inquire how the service 
 of baptism corresponds with this. The lan- 
 guage is so clear, that we have only to select 
 out of the service those portions which apply 
 to the point. At the commencement, the 
 
 * Per quod (signum regenerationis, id est, baptismum) 
 tanquam per instrumentum recte baptismum suscipientes, 
 Ecclesiaeinseruntur, promissiones de remissione peccatorum, 
 atque adoptione nostra in fibos Dei per Spiritum Sanctum 
 visibiliter obsignantur, fides confirmatur, et vi divince invo- 
 cations gratia augetur. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 37 
 
 minister calls upon the congregation to "pray, 
 that the child may be baptized with water 
 and the Holy Ghost, and received into 
 Christ's holy church, and be made a lively 
 member of the same." What is this but, as 
 the Article expresses it, "that the party 
 may receive the Holy Ghost; may be en- 
 grafted into the church of Christ ; may 
 have faith quickened and confirmed " ? The 
 minister then accordingly prays, "that the 
 child may be washed and sanctified with the 
 Holy Ghost ; that he, being delivered from 
 God's wrath, may be received into the ark 
 of Christ's church, and being steadfast in 
 faith, and joyful through hope, may so pass 
 the waves of this troublesome world, that 
 finally he may come to the land of everlast- 
 ing life :" and again, more particularly and 
 definitely, " that the child may receive remis- 
 sion of his sins by spiritual regeneration, that 
 he may enjoy the everlasting benediction of 
 God's heavenly washing, and may come to 
 the eternal kingdom which God has pro- 
 mised by Christ our Lord." What again is 
 this but, according to the language of the 
 Article, " that the contract for the forgiveness 
 
88 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 of sins and adoption to be a son of God may 
 be concluded, that he may enjoy the ever- 
 lasting benediction* of appealing to this hea- 
 venly washing"? And even still more defi- 
 nitely, after an exhortation to the sponsors, 
 a prayer is offered, — "Give thy Holy Spirit 
 to this infant, that he may be born again, and 
 be made an heir of everlasting salvation ;" 
 and also in the prayer immediately preceding 
 the baptism, " Sanctify this water to the my- 
 stical washing away of sins," in the words of 
 the Article, again, that the child may receive 
 the Holy Ghost, that God may invisibly work 
 in the child, that the promise of forgiveness 
 of sins and adoption to be a son of God may 
 be signed and sealed. 
 
 So soon as the baptism has taken place, 
 thanks are immediately given to God, that 
 it hath pleased him to confer all these bless- 
 ings. We subjoin the entire prayer, as ex- 
 planatory of the doctrine of the church, 
 namely, that notwithstanding all the spiritual 
 
 * Whether he " -will enjoy the everlasting hencdiction of 
 his heavenly washing," and whether he " will finally come 
 tb the land of everlasting life, there to reign," is a separate 
 question, and will depend upon his future life. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 39 
 
 blessings conferred upon the child, its final 
 salvation will depend upon its future life. 
 
 If the child should live, " the old man has 
 to be crucified, the whole body of sin has to 
 be abolished/ 5 " We yield Thee hearty 
 thanks, most merciful Father, that it hath 
 pleased Thee to regenerate this infant with 
 thy Holy Spirit, to receive him for thine own 
 child by adoption, and to incorporate him 
 into the holy church. And humbly we be- 
 seech Thee to grant that he, being dead to 
 sin and living unto righteousness, and being 
 buried with Christ in his death, may crucify 
 the old man and utterly abolish the whole 
 body of sin ; and that as he is made partaker 
 of the death of thy Son, he may also be par- 
 taker of his resurrection ; so that finally, with 
 the residue of thy holy church, he may be 
 an inheritor of thine everlasting kingdom, 
 through Christ our Lord." 
 
 Thus far we conclude that a close harmony 
 subsists between the Articles and the service 
 of baptism in regard to the interpretation to 
 be put upon the term " Regeneration/' 
 
 The Catechism teaches precisely the same 
 doctrine : the baptized disciple is instructed 
 
40 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 to say, that " in his baptism he was made a 
 member of Christ/' or engrafted into the 
 church, — the body, of which Christ is the 
 head ; secondly, the child of God, or adopted 
 to be the son of God ; thirdly, an inheritor 
 of the kingdom of heaven ; or as it is express- 
 ed in Article xvn., i( At length, by God's 
 mercy, those made sons of God by adoption 
 attain to everlasting felicity." 
 
 This comparison might be pursued further, 
 but we trust we may conclude, beyond con- 
 troversy, that the Church of England teaches 
 in her Articles, her Service of Baptism, 
 and her Catechism, that Regeneration is 
 that gift of God by which the benefits of 
 Christ's death are, for the first time, brought 
 home and applied to the soul of an indivi- 
 dual ; that therein sins are forgiven ; the Holy 
 Ghost is conveyed to the party ; faith is con- 
 firmed, and an inheritance to everlasting life 
 given. We have endeavoured to confine our- 
 selves as much as possible to the language of 
 the church, but we add the description of 
 these benefits as they are given by other 
 writers. 
 
 Bishop Bethell states : 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 41 
 
 " Regeneration consists in the forgiveness of 
 sin, the gift, or earnest, or covenanted consigna- 
 tion of the influence of the Holy Ghost, considered 
 independently of its moral operations and legiti- 
 mate effects ; and a title to eternal life depending 
 on the performance of certain stipulated conditions 
 — that our own church, in conformity to the doc- 
 trine of Scripture and the opinion of Christian an- 
 tiquity, determines this grant of grace to the sea- 
 son of baptism, under a full conviction that when 
 the sacrament is administered agreeably to Christ's 
 institution, man receives the forgiveness of sin 
 and the gift of the Holy Ghost through its inter- 
 vention and instrumentality*." 
 
 Mr. Melvill says : 
 
 " We have only maintained, that by the opera- 
 tion of the Holy Spirit in and through baptism, the 
 child is brought into such a relation to God, so 
 purged from the guilt of original sin, so gathered 
 within the covenant of forgiveness, so consigned 
 to all the blessings of adoption, that it may be 
 declared impregnated with the elements of spirit- 
 ual life ; elements, which if not wilfully crushed, 
 shall shoot into efflorescence and vigour beneath 
 the creative word of the Gospel of Christ f." 
 
 * Bishop Bethell on Baptismal Regeneration, p. 115. 
 t Melvill's Sermons, vol. ii., Sermon 8, p. 244. 
 
42 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 Hooker observes : 
 
 " God will have baptism embraced not only as 
 a sign or token what we receive, but also as an in- 
 strument or mean whereby we receive grace, be- 
 cause baptism is a sacrament, which God hath in- 
 stituted in his church, to the end that they which ' 
 receive the same might thereby be incorporated 
 into Christ, and so through his most precious merit 
 obtain as well that saving grace of imputation 
 which taketh away all former guiltiness, as also 
 that infused divine virtue of the Holy Ghost which 
 giveth to the powers of the soul their first dis- 
 position towards future newness of life*." 
 
 With such an interpretation of regenera- 
 tion, of which the church considers baptism 
 to be the sole appointed means, we have to 
 inquire whether this doctrine be in accord- 
 ance with the word of God. 
 
 We might in this inquiry prefer a course 
 and line of proof selected by ourselves, but 
 as we feel compelled to expose the inconsist- 
 encies and strangely fanciful interpretations 
 of the author of the tract, we will proceed by 
 the path along which he conducts us. 
 
 But we cannot advance a step without ex- 
 
 * Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, Book v. chap. 60. 
 
BAPTISMAL, REGENERATION. 43 
 
 claiming and protesting against what is the 
 bare assumption of an individual, put forth 
 without proof, and, as we believe, contradict- 
 ed by the word of God : " The practice of 
 Christ, the founder of baptism, was to rege- 
 nerate souls without the use of baptism at 
 all." 
 
 Where in the Scriptures is the term rege- 
 nerated, or any other word bearing the least 
 resemblance of meaning to it, applied to those 
 who became followers of Christ during his 
 life ? There is no single instance, and there- 
 fore it is by no means surprising that " no 
 mention is made of Christ's converts having 
 been baptized with Christian baptism, — bap- 
 tism in the name of the Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghost." In fact, it could not by pos- 
 sibility be the case. Shall we be told that 
 St. John says, that " to such as received 
 Christ, to them gave he power to become the 
 sons of God " ? But such, it will be admitted, 
 were born of the Spirit, and we are expressly 
 told that " the Spirit was not yet given," and 
 the reason is added, " because Christ was not 
 yet glorified." With this all other declara- 
 tions harmonize : " It is expedient for you 
 
44 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 that I go away, for if I go not away, the Com- 
 forter will not come unto you, but if I depart 
 I will send him unto you *." 
 
 We might, therefore, at once dismiss the 
 first section bearing upon "the practice of 
 Christ, the founder of baptism ;" for there is 
 no warrant of Scripture to justify the appli- 
 cation of the term C( regenerate " to any per- 
 son during the life of our Saviour. The par- 
 ties to whom our attention is drawn were 
 doubtless accepted, and that for the sake of 
 Christ's merits, but they are not represented 
 as born of the Spirit. 
 
 Let us examine the first case mentioned, 
 that of the woman of Samaria. Our Lord, 
 according to his ordinary practice of taking 
 advantage of passing occurrences on which 
 to found his instruction, opened a conversa- 
 tion with the woman at the well by asking 
 her " to give him to drink/ 5 The woman 5 s 
 surprise was raised by the circumstance that 
 a Jew should hold communication with her- 
 self, a Samaritan, and she expressed herself 
 accordingly. Our Lord proceeds in reply 
 
 * John xvi. 7. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 45 
 
 further to excite her curiosity in regard to his 
 person, " If thou knewest the gift of God *, 
 and who it is that saith unto thee, Give me 
 to drink, thou wouldst have asked of him, 
 and he would have given thee living water." 
 Now in whatever latent sense our Lord in- 
 tended his words, the woman understood 
 them literally, as spoken of running water 
 in opposition to water drawn from a well. 
 Throughout the conversation the woman's 
 thoughts were upon a temporal benefit, and 
 it was only when our Lord evinced his know- 
 ledge of her sinful life that she considered 
 him to be a prophet. To discover the mean- 
 ing of our Lord's metaphorical language, we 
 must appeal to other parts of Scripture. 
 Now in the seventh chapter of St. John, verse 
 3*J, we read, that " In the last day, that great 
 day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, 
 If any man thirst, let him come to me and 
 drink/ 5 This refers to the occasion of that 
 solemn ceremonial when, in commemoration 
 of the water supplied in the wilderness, the 
 priest with great pomp and ceremony made 
 an offering in the Temple of water drawn 
 * " Hadst known what God gives." 
 
46 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 from the pool in Siloam. It was the opinion 
 of the Jews that this was typical of benefits 
 that should at some time or other be be- 
 stowed from heaven upon men. St. John, 
 speaking under inspiration, has supplied us 
 with the real intent of the observation : 
 " This spake he of the Spirit, which they 
 who believe on him should receive/* or (as 
 here it is necessary for us to be precise) which 
 believers on Mm were at a future time to 
 receive ; and the reason is added, " for the 
 Holy Ghost was not yet (given)/' i. e. was 
 not yet in the earth, " because Jesus was not 
 yet glorified." 
 
 This will explain to us the conversation 
 which our Lord had with the woman of Sa- 
 maria, and will also prove that no case which 
 occurred before our Saviour was glorified, can 
 be called a being " born of the Spirit." We 
 attempt not to know beyond what is revealed, 
 but the whole tenour of the Gospel leads 
 to the conclusion, that in every age persons 
 have been accepted of God in Christ, though 
 the particular grace of regeneration was not 
 vouchsafed till the redemption was fully ac- 
 complished. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 47 
 
 It is next asserted, that "the peculiar pe- 
 riod of the institution of Christian baptism, 
 which was coeval with the first establishment 
 of a visible Christian church upon earth, 
 naturally and necessarily induces the belief 
 that it was designed to be the initiatory rite 
 into that ; and not, therefore, the instrument 
 of regeneration, but the sign of profession 
 and seal of faith." Unquestionably baptism 
 was designed to be " the initiatory rite into 
 the visible Christian church upon earth ;" 
 but how it thence follows, that it "is not the 
 instrument of regeneration," is above our 
 powers to discover. 
 
 We would rather, considering the spiritual 
 nature of Christianity, infer, from the fact of 
 baptism having been instituted as the initia- 
 tory rite into Christianity, that it would be 
 the instrument of regeneration. But the rea- 
 soning in this section seems to us to be so 
 irregular and so inconclusive, that we know 
 not how we can better meet it than by set- 
 ting forth what we believe to be the authors 
 view of the matter. The public institution 
 of Christian baptism, it might be expected, 
 vould be coeval with the event with which 
 
48 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 it was mainly connected, and to which it was 
 intended to have especial reference. This is 
 presumed from the fact that the other sacra- 
 ment, the Lord's Supper, was instituted im- 
 mediately before the event to which it was to 
 refer was fulfilled, in other words, his death- 
 We have, therefore, to look for some novel 
 fact presented in the history of Christianity 
 associated with the institution of baptism, 
 and to which the ordinance "must, in all 
 probability*/ 5 have been intended to refer. 
 We find that the establishment of a visible 
 Christian church immediately followed. It* 
 is therefore concluded f, that baptism can- 
 not be more than the initiatory rite into the 
 Christian church. We may add, that the 
 same conclusion is sought to be drawn from 
 analogy, circumcision being the initiatory 
 
 * We cannot understand how a thing can he only "pro- 
 bable" while it must be. 
 
 f We wish for the conviction of such as ourselves, who are 
 unable to see the justness of Mr. Molyneux's reasoning, that 
 he had put this in the form of a syllogism, or, perhaps, 
 should the learned divine again publish his views, he will 
 allow us to ask this favour of him. We will ourselves at- 
 tempt to give his reasoning in the form of an Enthymeme, 
 " Baptism can have no property but one, for all admit that 
 it possesses that one." 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 49 
 
 rite for admission to Judaism, the period 
 for putting aside which had now arrived. 
 Now inconclusive as this is upon every prin- 
 ciple of just reasoning, we will still examine 
 the position ; and first let us endeavour to 
 acquire a right view of circumcision. It is 
 granted that it was the initiatory rite for ad- 
 mission to Judaism, but withal it was the 
 consignation of a covenant which God in 
 condescension to human conceptions allowed 
 to be made between Himself and man. The 
 words of St. Paul to the Galatians are, "For I 
 testify again to every man that is circumcised, 
 that he is a debtor to do the whole lavj *," 
 so that the Jew became bound by contract 
 to perform the whole law ; and as, on his 
 part, man was so bound, it pleased God to 
 confirm to him through this token all the 
 privileges attached to Judaism. Circumci- 
 sion, therefore, was something more than a 
 rite or ceremonial by which an entrance into 
 Judaism was afforded ; it was also a consig- 
 nation of certain privileges peculiar to Juda- 
 ism, and an engagement on the child's part 
 to the performance of certain duties. Ana- 
 * Chap. v. 3. 
 E 
 
50 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 logy would therefore incline us to consider 
 that baptism also contains properties beyond 
 that palpable one of being the initiatory rite 
 for admission to Christianity. We should 
 infer that baptism consigns to the subject of 
 it all the privileges, and binds him to all the 
 duties of Christianity. What these privileges 
 are, will be seen. 
 
 A view of the scheme of redemption will 
 lead us to the same conclusion. God having 
 designed to save the world by his Son taking 
 our nature upon him, and offering an atone- 
 ment for sin, prepared mankind for his com- 
 ing in the flesh by prophecies and a system 
 of carnal ordinances typical of spiritual things 
 under the Gospel dispensation. The type 
 in eveiy instance was inferior in all its pro- 
 perties and qualities to the antitype. The 
 lamb without blemish stood not compare 
 with the true Lamb of God. The promised 
 land of Canaan was utterly insignificant with 
 the heavenly Canaan. The brazen serpent 
 was indeed a dead image, though it repre- 
 sented the Son of God on the cross. The 
 Jewish sacrament of eating the passover 
 was the commemoration of deliverance from 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 51 
 
 Egyptian slavery : the Christian sacrament 
 of the Lord's Supper is the communion of 
 the body and blood of Christ in commemo- 
 ration of the far mightier deliverance from 
 the bondage of sin and Satan. Another sa- 
 crament was ordained of Christ correspond- 
 ing with the sacrament of circumcision, and 
 therefore analogy would lead us to consider 
 it to be endued with spiritual qualities re- 
 sembling in kind, but in a far superior de- 
 gree, the blessings communicated at circum- 
 cision ; and such in fact is the doctrine of 
 the Church of England. 
 
 It must not, moreover, be too readily con- 
 ceded, that "the church of Christ was to 
 be established openly and publicly in the 
 world/* u immediately after the Ascension/" 
 On the contrary, though the commission was 
 given immediately before the Ascension, the 
 execution of it was suspended till another 
 mighty event should occur, without which 
 the scheme of salvation was incomplete, — 
 redemption without it being unavailable for 
 man's final salvation. It is to the joint oper- 
 ation of the Trinity that man owes his sal- 
 vation, and the Holy Ghost had not yet taken 
 E 2 
 
52 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 up his abode on earth. The Apostles' com- 
 mission was suspended till this was accom- 
 plished : " Tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem 
 until ye be endued with power from on high*/' 
 The Holy Ghost was to take up his abode 
 among Christians, and hence we might pre- 
 sume, that, as the Apostles' commission was 
 suspended, baptism has some connexion 
 with the Holy Ghost taking up his abode 
 in the hearts of believers. Correct reasoning 
 should have led the author to this conclusion, 
 and this would also have explained to him in 
 what respect the initiatory rite of Christianity 
 excels that of Judaism, as we shall perceive 
 more particularly hereafter. 
 
 It is a bare assumption wholly devoid of 
 proof, that any person, whether patriarch or 
 prophet, or other holy man of old, or indeed 
 any individual during our Lord's ministry, 
 was regenerated — born of the Spirit. On 
 the contrary, this is contradicted by the de- 
 claration that the Spirit was not yet given, 
 — had not yet taken up his abode on earth. 
 We might ask, when were the Apostles re- 
 generated ? Shall we be told, when they be- 
 * Luke xxiv. 49. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 53 
 
 came followers of Christ? Why, then, did 
 our Saviour declare, and that too towards the 
 conclusion of his ministry, that " unless they 
 were converted and became as little children, 
 they could not enter into the kingdom of 
 heaven " ? They had not for a certainty at 
 that time entered into it ; indeed it was not 
 yet established. The Apostles had been en- 
 couraging notions and anticipations of tem- 
 poral distinction in their Masters kingdom, 
 and our Lord, knowing that his death, which 
 was near at hand, would prove a severe shock 
 and disappointment to their hopes, in com- 
 passion to their infirmity forewarned them, 
 that they must turn (be converted) from these 
 feelings of worldly pride and become hum- 
 ble-minded as little children, or they would 
 not enter into the kingdom which he was 
 about to establish. It is clear, therefore, 
 that as the Apostles had not yet entered, they 
 were not yet regenerated. 
 
 The author of the tract informs us respect- 
 ing baptism, that he believes it to be " a sign 
 of profession and seal of faith." It is to be 
 wished that he had been more definite, and 
 had informed us whether by this last expres- 
 
54 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 sion he understands the same as some of the 
 Greek fathers, who call it acfrpayU tt)? ttlct- 
 Teo)?. Would he submit himself to their au- 
 thority, they would give him clearer notions 
 of the spiritual nature of baptism than he at 
 present entertains. 
 
 The third section is introduced with the 
 following proposition : u The practice of the 
 Apostles was, not to baptize in order to re- 
 generate, but require regeneration in order 
 to baptize ; which teaches that regeneration 
 is not to be looked for as a consequence of 
 baptism, but insisted on as a qualification 
 for the reception of the rite." 
 
 We have now arrived at the section in 
 which the cases of baptism recorded in Scrip- 
 ture have to be examined. The first case 
 adduced is that of the Ethiopian eunuch. 
 The chamberlain of Candace, a Jewish prose- 
 lyte, had gone up to worship at Jerusalem. 
 Returning in his carriage, he was occupied 
 in reading the fifty-third chapter of Isaiah. 
 Philip had been desired of the Holy Ghost 
 to attach himself to the chariot ; and when 
 he found the eunuch reading the prophecy, 
 he inquired of him whether he understood 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 55 
 
 what he read. The eunuch's reply was, How 
 can I, except some man should guide me ? 
 Philip was then invited into the chariot, 
 who, (i beginning from that same Scripture, 
 preached unto him Jesus/' We are not ex- 
 pressly informed of any particulars ; but the 
 context proves that baptism must have been 
 brought prominently forward, and its neces- 
 sity enforced, for upon the first sight of 
 water he exclaims, ei See, here is water, what 
 doth hinder me to be baptized?" How is it 
 possible to interpret this circumstance in 
 any other way than that the eunuch, being 
 desirous of deriving to himself the benefits 
 of Christ's atonement*, sought the applica- 
 tion of that which Philip had taught him was 
 the appointed means? He sought baptism, and 
 his request to be baptized is complied with. 
 
 * It should not fail to be noticed, that the fifty-third 
 chapter of Isaiah is the well-known prophecy of Christ suf- 
 fering death as an atonement for sin. The narrative in- 
 forms us that the eunuch believed what Philip had taught 
 him, and therefore he was desirous of bringing home to his 
 own soul the blessings of this atonement ; he consequently 
 sought the application of the means. Nor should it be for- 
 gotten, that Philip had just before been baptizing many in 
 Samaria, both men and women. 
 
56 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 It is remarked upon this case, that " cordial 
 faith was declared to be the absolute pre- 
 requisite." That faith, a belief that Jesus is the 
 Son of God, is, in the case of an adult, a pre- 
 requisite for baptism, is universally admitted. 
 Thus far we cordially agree with the author ; 
 but he adds, that this cordial faith, the pre- 
 requisite for baptism, is the fruit of regene- 
 ration. This we positively deny, and to justify 
 our denial we need not more than theverypas- 
 sage of the first chapter of St. John^s Gospel, 
 which we are most surprised to find brought 
 forward to uphold the contrary opinion. We 
 cannot conceal our astonishment at the obser- 
 vations made upon this passage : " i As many 
 as received him, to them gave he power to 
 become the sons of God, even to them which 
 believe on his name ; which were born, not of 
 blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the 
 will of man, but of God/ Here, to believe on 
 his name is declared to be the result from being 
 born of God, to be the fruit of regeneration" 
 What ! the word came unto his own and his 
 own as a body received him not, but as many 
 (whether Jew or Gentile) as received him, 
 upon them he bestows a certain privilege. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 57 
 
 Shall it be said that the gift of this privilege 
 was antecedent to their reception of him ? We 
 cannot sufficiently express our astonishment, 
 nor can we possibly account for such a strange 
 interpretation* ; but we trust we shall not be 
 accused of want of charity to a brother, if we 
 quote the words of Bishop Bethell as not 
 altogether inapplicable to the case before us : 
 a I refer to this — only because it exhibits a 
 specimen of popular and current errors, and 
 of the hardihood with which men, in their 
 eagerness to condemn opinions which they 
 have been accustomed to look upon with sus- 
 picion and dislike, substitute conjecture and 
 imagination for facts." In our simplicity, we 
 had apprehended that so far from faith being 
 ** the result from being born of God," that it 
 was the condition upon which " the power to 
 become the sons of God" was conferred. Had 
 
 * We claim for ourselves a right feeling of charity to- 
 wards a brother ; but yet, under a solemn sense of duty, we 
 are compelled to protest against such gross perversion of 
 Scripture. We do not believe it to be wilful ; but we do not 
 perceive how it is possible to represent it otherwise than 
 either wilful or ignorant. We most earnestly hope that Mr. 
 Molyneux is more correct in his exposition of Scripture from 
 the pulpit. 
 
58 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 we read, that to such sick persons as applied 
 to a physician, to them gave he directions to 
 recover iheir health, we should have thought 
 that the recovery of their health had resulted 
 from the sick persons making application to 
 the physician. No, says the acute author/ 
 the sick persons' application to the physician 
 is the result of the recovery of their health. 
 Persons "receive" Christ, or "believe on his 
 name," and to them he gives " the power to 
 become the sons of God." Though this gift 
 is limited to those who perform a condition, 
 we are told that the condition is the result — 
 the fruit of the gift. We repeat it, we cannot 
 sufficiently express our astonishment at what 
 every person of the most ordinary understand- 
 ing must pronounce an utter absurdity. 
 
 The passage, however, is worthy of parti- 
 cular notice on various accounts, and not the 
 least on account of a latent intimation that 
 they who receive their new birth receive it 
 through some intermediate agency. St. John 
 declares, "that our Saviour gave the power 
 or authority* to become the sons of God." 
 
 * In this passage we think that the word eEovaia means 
 " authority," or " right," or " privilege." We are aware that 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 59 
 
 The power to become so was given to them, 
 and yet they were born of God. The fact 
 that men receive authority to become or to 
 be made sons of God> does not derogate at 
 all from the reality that they are "born of 
 God." The remark of Hooker upon this 
 point is unanswerable: "They that receive 
 grace by sacraments or with sacraments^ re- 
 ceive it from God and not from them. For 
 of sacraments the very same is true which 
 Solomon's wisdom observeth in the brazen 
 serpent, i He that turned towards it was not 
 
 the late learned and excellent Magee argues against this in- 
 terpretation. That eZovoia bears either meaning, " power " 
 (whether innate or delegated) or " authority," is unquestion- 
 able. As an instance of the former, we may adduce the words 
 of our Saviour, Luke xii. 5 : " Fear him, which, after he 
 hath killed, hath power to cast into hell." In support of 
 the latter we would quote the words of the Jews, Matthew 
 xxi. 23: " By what authority doest thou these things? and 
 who gave thee this authority ?" With great and sincere 
 submission to the late learned Archbishop of Dublin, we 
 think that it does not argue less for the divinity of Christ, 
 that he gave to believers the authority to become sons of 
 God, than that he bestowed upon them the power to become 
 such. The gift in either case is his, and as the effect of this 
 gift is adoption into the family of God, we conceive that the 
 Being who made this present, whether power (ability) or 
 authority, must himself be God. 
 
60 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 healed by the thing he saw, but by thee, O 
 Saviour of all! 5 " 
 
 Nor is this all that is remarkable in the 
 passage of St. John, though this short treatise 
 is not sufficient for a full evolution of the prin- 
 ciple and doctrine which it tends to establish. 
 Our Saviour gave the authority to become the 
 sons of God to those who believe into his name. 
 
 Without entering fully upon the principle 
 to which we allude, we may observe, that 
 there is a marked difference observed be- 
 tween " believing " and " believing into." 
 The former is a pre-requisite for coming to 
 Christ, the latter implies an union with Christ, 
 howsoever produced before the descent of the 
 Holy Ghost, — after that event, produced 
 through baptism as the instrument. We 
 cannot forbear inviting attention to this im- 
 portant difference on the part of all, whose 
 acquaintance with the original language of 
 the New Testament will enable them to exa- 
 mine and form their estimate of the difference 
 so generally observed. To assist them in this 
 examination, we annex two lists* of references 
 
 * Matthew xxi. 25, 32 lis, xxvii. 42 ; Mark i. 15, xi. 31, 
 xvi. 13, 14 ; Luke i. 20, xx. 5, xxiv. 25 ; John ii. 22, iv. 21, 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 61 
 
 to all the passages in the New Testament, 
 where the word "believe" is employed with 
 any word subjoined. As instances, — of one 
 
 50, v. 24, 38, 46, 47, vi. 30, viii. 31, 45, 46, x. 37, 38, xi. 
 26, 27, xii. 38; Acts viii. 13, 37, xiii. 12, xv. 11, xvi. 34, 
 xviii. 8, xxiv. 14, xxvi. 27, xxvii. 25 ; Rom. iv. 3, 17, x. 9, 
 16 ; 1 Cor. xiii. 7 ; Gal. iii. 6 ; 2 Thess. u. 12; 2 Tim. i. 
 12 ; Titus iii. 8 ; James ii. 23 ; 1 John iii. 23, iv. 1, 16, v. 10. 
 
 Matthew xviii. 6 ; Mark ix. 42; John i. 12, ii. 11, 23, 
 iii. 15, 16, 18, 36, iv. 39, vi. 29, 35, 40, 47, vii. 5, 31, 38, 
 39, 48, viii. 30, ix. 35, 36, x. 42. xi. 25, 26, 45, 48, xii. 11, 
 36, 37, 42, 44, 46, xiv. 1, 12, xvi. 9, xvii. 20 ; Acts ix. 42, 
 x. 43, xi. 17, xiii. 48, xiv. 23, xvi. 31, xix. 4, xxii. 19 ; Rom. 
 iv. 5, 24, Lx. 33, x. 11, 14 ; Gal. ii. 16 ; Phil. i. 29 ; 1 Tim. 
 i. 16 ; 1 Pet i. 8, 21, ii. 6 ; 1 John v. 10, 13 bis. 
 
 In regard to these passages we will observe, that in the 
 first list there are two places in the Acts, xvi. 34. and xviii. 
 8, where we meet 7rioTevw and a dative in place of ets or 
 e7ri, but in some manuscript copies of the Testament the 
 reading is in the former eiri tov Qeov and in the latter eh 
 tov Kvpwv. In 1 John iii. 23. Triarevd) is followed by t(j> 
 ovojxctTi ; but as St. John is addressing believers who were 
 already baptized, and is giving them a command, it would 
 have been wrong to have used e«s, and some manuscripts 
 have in place of ovo/xaTi, v\t£ clvtqv. In several passages 
 of the second list the preposition e~i is used, where the 
 phraseology may be explained by Acts xi. 21, woXvs re. 
 apiQjjios 7ri(TTevaas kireaTpeipev eni tov Kvpiov. We may 
 here notice, that in 1 John v. 13. many manuscript copies 
 have oi Triarevovres in place of tcai 'iva TciGTevrjre, which 
 words give a plain and very impressive sense, "These things 
 
62 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 class, John iv. 21, " Believe me, that the 
 hour cometh," &c. ; of the other class, John 
 vi. 35, " He that believeth on (into) me shall 
 never thirst." Acts xiv. 23, "And when they 
 
 have I written unto you that believe on (eis) the name of 
 the Son of God, that ye may know that ye who believe on 
 (els) the name of the Son of God have eternal life." We 
 doubt not that a critical examination of the above passages, 
 and a comparison with other similar phrases, would go far to 
 establish the fact, that baptism is implied in all these pas- 
 sages, and that the doctrine of baptismal regeneration was 
 so universally understood, that els became joined to -marevw 
 without the introduction of (3a7TTiZo[xai. 
 
 The principle to which I have here alluded is the same 
 upon which Bishop Bethell argues so effectually in the fifth 
 chapter of his work on Baptismal Regeneration : " It is an 
 undeniable rule of interpretation, that in passages which are 
 plainly parallel, what is wanting in one text must be sup- 
 plied from others that are fuller and more explicit. Thus 
 since we are taught that we must be born of water and of 
 the Spirit, that baptism doth save us, that we are saved by 
 the washing of regeneration, and that fie that believeth and 
 is baptized shall be saved, when we meet with passages in 
 which Christians are said to be sons of God, to become chil- 
 dren of God, to have been born again, or to have been bora 
 of God, without mention of baptism, it follows that baptism 
 is implied, and virtually contained in these phrases. In 
 fact, if we suppose that our Saviour's precept was strictly 
 complied with, and that the expressions connected with it 
 were familiar to the church, siuce such phrases as to be born 
 again, or to be born of God, would naturally suggest the 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 63 
 
 had ordained them elders in every church, 
 and had prayed with fasting, they commend- 
 ed them to the Lord on whom they believed" 
 (into* whom they had believed). 
 
 In the case of the eunuch, Philip required 
 a declaration of the pre-requisite for baptism, 
 a sincere and hearty conviction of the truth 
 of the things which he had been preaching to 
 him. In the reply the eunuch says, " I be- 
 lieve (the fact) that Jesus Christ is the Son 
 of God." Upon this he is baptized. 
 
 It is argued that the rule of Philip ought 
 to be taken as the rule of all the Apostles, 
 and that upon the undeniable ground, that 
 there would be a consistent, harmonious 
 practice observed by all the Apostles. We 
 
 idea of baptism to the disciples, the express mention of the 
 sacramental action would be unnecessary. When, there- 
 fore, believers are said to have had power given them to 
 become the children of God, and to have been born of God ; 
 when God is said to have begotten us with the word of his 
 truth, and to have begotten us again to a lively hope ; and 
 when we are said to have been bom again, not of corrupt- 
 ible seed, but of incorruptible by the word of God, according 
 to this sure principle of interpretation, Baptism is implied 
 in these passages, as a subordinate and collateral mean of 
 grace." 
 
 * CIS OV 7T67n(7T6Vlcei<jav. 
 
64 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 admit it; but this does not decide the ques- 
 tion at issue. Is this pre-requisite for bap- 
 tism what the Scriptures denominate a "being 
 born again," or " of God " ? The passage in 
 the first chapter of St. John declares, that a 
 reception of Christ is a pre-requisite for being 
 born of God. The Church of England de- 
 clares the same to be a pre-requisite for bap- 
 tism (in the case of adults). In the second 
 chapter of the Acts we find that converts 
 were similarly instructed by St. Peter : "Re- 
 pent," that is, (considering the meaning of 
 the word, and the address which St. Peter 
 had been making to the Jews,) a Turn from 
 your disbelief of the claim of Jesus which in- 
 duced you to slay him, and upon the evidence 
 which you now behold, believe that he is 
 true, and be baptized." What, let us inquire, 
 was the object of St. Peter's address, but to 
 induce his countrymen to avail themselves of 
 the blessings which Christ had procured for 
 them ? and what means does he enjoin upon 
 them to this end ? a Be baptized : " the be- 
 nefit resulting therefrom is added, " for the 
 remission of sins." If words are to convey 
 any meaning, the address of St. Peter amounts 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 65 
 
 to this : You have been guilty of great sin and 
 wickedness in crucifying Jesus, whom God 
 hath made both Lord and Christ. Do you 
 desire that your sins should be put away 
 from you? then be baptized. Had St. 
 Peter wished to confirm his word by the de- 
 claration of Jesus himself, he would have 
 added, " He that believeth and is baptized 
 shall be saved." We must also observe, that 
 besides the remission of sins, St. Peter de- 
 clares the gift of the Holy Ghost would en- 
 sue from baptism : " Repent, and be baptized 
 every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ 
 for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive 
 the gift of the Holy Ghost." 
 
 The case of Lydia, to which our attention 
 is next called, tends to confirm us as to the 
 high importance of baptism ; for no time was 
 lost after she was persuaded of the truth of 
 what St. Paul preached, before she was bap- 
 tized. It may be advisable, however, to cor- 
 rect an error into which the author of the 
 tract, in common with the opponents of bap- 
 tismal regeneration, has fallen. We are told 
 that " the Lord opened her heart, and dis- 
 posed her to a reception of the truth." This 
 
 F 
 
66 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 is rather a perversion than exposition of Scrip- 
 ture. In the first place, " opened her heart " 
 refers to the understanding, and not to the 
 disposition of the mind. Our Saviour, when 
 conversing with the two disciples on the road 
 to Emmaus, after his resurrection, utters this 
 lament — not, as is too commonly understood, 
 rebuke — " O fools and slow of heart to believe 
 all that the prophets have written." They 
 believed to the best of their understandings, 
 but they were slow of heart to apply the pro- 
 phecies ; our Lord therefore, in compassion 
 to their ignorance, explained to them the 
 predictions respecting himself. In II. Mac- 
 cabees, i. 4, we meet with the self-same ex- 
 pression : K and open your hearts in his law 
 and commandments," where the words can- 
 not be understood to mean other than en- 
 large your understanding *. 
 
 But even were we to grant that the sacred 
 Scriptures declare that the Lord disposed the 
 heart of Lydia, still we have no authority for 
 
 * Themistius uses the same expression, " My breast and 
 my heart are opened, my soul becomes brighter, and the 
 eyes of my understanding sharper ; therefore I see things 
 which before I was unable to see/' 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 67 
 
 saying, that the Lord disposed her heart to 
 receive, i. e. to believe and embrace the truth. 
 What we are told is, that Lydia was disposed 
 a to attend" to give heed to the things spoken 
 by St. Paul. It had pleased God to call 
 Macedonia to the knowledge of the Gospel, 
 and it was but consistent with God's good- 
 ness, and indeed with the promise of Christ *, 
 that devout Lydia should have an opportunity 
 afforded her of hearing the glad tidings of 
 salvation by the name of Jesus. All the in- 
 struction that we can derive from the narra- 
 tive is, that a desire to do God's will is fa- 
 vourably noticed by Him. Devout Lydia was 
 vouchsafed the opportunity of hearing the 
 preaching of St. Paul ; she was persuaded of 
 the truth, and was, in consequence, baptized. 
 There is not a word in the narrative upon 
 which there can be suspended the thought that 
 any regeneration took place before baptism. 
 What, again, is the case of Cornelius ? The 
 Apostles did not yet comprehend the full and 
 extensive nature of the Gospel dispensation ; 
 in their contracted notions they confined it to 
 their own countrymen. It required a special 
 
 * John vii. 17. 
 F 2 
 
68 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 miracle from heaven to convince as well them, 
 that God had opened the door of salvation to 
 the Gentiles, as the Gentiles themselves, that 
 God designed to confer upon them all the spi- 
 ritual, and therefore invisible, blessings of the 
 Gospel. A visible token was needed, and such 
 was granted. St. Peter, we are informed, pro- 
 ceeded to the house of Cornelius in obedience 
 to an heavenly vision, and preached Jesus. 
 We are expressly told, that the Apostle ut- 
 tered these words: "To Him give all the 
 prophets witness, that through his name who- 
 soever believeth in (into) Him receiveth remis- 
 sion of sins ;" and this was the time when the 
 interposition of Heaven was needed to assure 
 the Gentiles of the truth of St. Peter's de- 
 claration, and this interposition was vouch- 
 safed ; the Holy Ghost visibly descended on 
 all who heard the word. How, then, was 
 Peter to act ? As he said in his defence at 
 Jerusalem, " What was I that. I could with- 
 stand God?" The descent of the Holy 
 Ghost proved the will of Heaven in regard to 
 the Gentiles. This miraculous effusion was 
 not for the sanctification of those who received 
 it ; it was a merciful sign from heaven to the 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 69 
 
 Gentiles, as the like sign had been before 
 given to the Jews. The Gentiles were now, 
 in common with the Jews, to receive remis- 
 sion of sins, believing in the name of Christ. 
 St. Peter therefore, as he says, dared not to 
 withstand this heavenly sign ; and how does 
 he act in order that he may comply with its 
 intent? Be it observed, that the visible de- 
 scent of the Holy Ghost was the assurance 
 that remission of sins was to be granted to 
 the Gentiles ; and as St. Peter dared not to 
 oppose God's will, he commands that Corne- 
 lius and his household should be baptized : 
 " Can any man forbid water that these should 
 not be baptized, which have received the 
 Holy Ghost as well as we? And he com- 
 manded them to be baptized in the name of 
 the Lord." If the context did not, in the 
 plainest possible manner, show the end to be 
 thereby obtained, we might appeal to St. 
 Peter himself. His exhortations after the 
 first descent of the Holy Ghost on the day of 
 Pentecost declare the end to be obtained by 
 baptism : " Repent, and be baptized every one 
 of you for the remission of sins, and ye shall 
 receive the gift of the Holy Ghost" 
 
70 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 In all these cases of adults a pre-requisite 
 was undoubtedly necessary ; but the promi- 
 nent feature bearing upon the question at 
 issue is, that remission of sins is attached to 
 baptism. We presume, that if sins are re- 
 mitted, i.e. put away, the soul is at that time 
 holy ; though, as our church maintains, " the 
 infection of nature doth remain.' 5 The cases, 
 then, to which the author of the tract calls 
 our attention, prove that remission of sins 
 takes place at baptism. 
 
 The history of St. Paul's conversion will 
 surprisingly confirm this view. We are 
 rightly told that " Ananias expressly declared 
 that the Lord had sent him to Paul, that he 
 might receive his sight and be filled with 
 the Holy Ghost;" and we must refer to the 
 Scripture account to see how these objects 
 were carried out, for we might presume that 
 the Scriptures would give us an account. The 
 words in chapter ix. are, " And immediately 
 there fell from his eyes as it had been scales, 
 and he received his sight forthwith." Thus 
 far the^r^ object of Ananias's visit was ef- 
 fected. St. Paul had also to be " filled with 
 the Holy Ghost;" we might therefore ima- 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 7^ 
 
 gine that the succeeding words would ex- 
 plain how this object of Ananias's visit was 
 effected; and as we have seen that Ana- 
 nias was the instrument for the miraculous 
 restoration of sight; we might infer that he 
 would also be employed as the instrument 
 for St. PauFs receiving the Holy Ghost. 
 Indeed this follows from Ananias^s declara- 
 tion, that he had been sent, that Saul might 
 be filled with the Holy Ghost. The succeed- 
 ing words are, " And he arose and was bap- 
 tized." Surely, without further remark, we 
 might draw the conclusion that the Holy 
 Ghost was conveyed in baptism. We are 
 not, however, left to our own conjecture, for 
 the Scriptures, as will be conceded to us, 
 K cannot be various and contradictory ." Ana- 
 nias states that he was sent for two ob- 
 jects, namely, a that Saul might receive his 
 sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost." 
 The narrative informs us, that "he received 
 his sight," and thus far the first object was 
 effected. Corresponding to and in explana- 
 tion of the second object of Ananias's visit, 
 we are told, " and he was baptized." Now 
 St. Peter had exhorted the Jews to be " bap- 
 
72 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 tized for the remission of sins, and they 
 should receive the Holy Ghost." If the 
 Scriptures, then, speak harmoniously and 
 consistently, need we further proof that the 
 second object of Ananias's visit was accom- 
 plished by Saul being baptized. It appears 
 to us that no honest, no straightforward 
 reasoning can get rid of the conclusion, that 
 Saul was filled with the Holy Ghost in and 
 by his baptism. 
 
 In confirmation of this conclusion we must 
 appeal to the Apostle himself. In chapter 
 xxii. of the Acts, when he pleads before the 
 chief-captain, he relates the circumstances of 
 his conversion, as far as he himself was a 
 party concerned and a witness. The parti- 
 culars of Ananias's visit are thus detailed : 
 " And one Ananias, a devout man according 
 to the law, having a good report of all the 
 Jews which dwelt there, came unto me, and 
 stood and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive 
 thy sight. And the same hour I looked up 
 upon him. And he said, The God of our fa- 
 thers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldst 
 know his will, and see that Just One, and 
 shouldst hear the voice of his mouth; for 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. J3 
 
 thou shalt be his witness unto all men of 
 what thou hast seen and heard. And now 
 why tamest thou? Arise, and be baptized 
 and wash away thy sins, calling on the name 
 of the Lord." Upon the authority of the 
 Apostle, therefore, we are assured that his 
 sins were not washed away or remitted, i.e. 
 put away, till he was baptized. He was a 
 chosen vessel; he had been vouchsafed a 
 miraculous appearance of the glorified Jesus ; 
 he had submitted himself to his Redeemers 
 will, "Lord, what wilt thou have me to do ?" 
 His Saviour had even declared, " Behold he 
 prayeth;" his sight is miraculously restored 
 to him, and yet, notwithstanding all these 
 tokens of God's good- will towards him, his 
 sins were not yet put away ; on the contrary, 
 he is exhorted by Ananias (who, be it re- 
 membered, had been sent by our Lord him- 
 self) to be baptized, in order that his sins 
 might be washed away. It is no wonder, then, 
 that this same Apostle who had had his own 
 sins thus remitted in baptism, should inform 
 Titus, that God, " according to his mercy, 
 doth save us by the washing of regeneration 
 and renewing of the Holy Ghost." Upon 
 
74 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 this passage we shall have occasion to re- 
 mark, but we cannot forbear introducing it 
 here, in order to show the harmony which 
 runs through the Scriptures, when they are 
 interpreted in their plain, consistent sense. 
 The admirable Hookers sentiments upon 
 this point are worthy to be transcribed* : 
 " I hold it for a most infallible rule in expo- 
 sitions of sacred Scripture, that where a lite- 
 ral construction will stand, the farthest from 
 the letter is commonly the worst. There is 
 nothing more dangerous than this licentious 
 and deluding art, which changeth the meaning 
 of words as alchymy doth, or would do, the 
 substance of metals, making of anything what 
 it listeth, and bringeth in the end all truth to 
 nothing. Or howsoever such voluntary ex- 
 ercise of wit might be borne with otherwise, 
 yet in places which usually serve, as this doth 
 concerning regeneration by water and the 
 Holy Ghost, to be alleged for grounds and 
 principles, less is permitted." 
 
 We have now to examine section iv., in 
 which our author declares that " Scripture 
 positively teaches that regeneration is instru- 
 * Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, book v. chap. 59. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. *J5 
 
 mentally effected, not by baptism, but by the 
 word of God*." 
 
 Before we examine the texts by which this 
 position is attempted to be maintained, we 
 may remark that the opponents of baptismal 
 regeneration seem not to agree among them- 
 selves as to the means by which regeneration 
 is effected. By another writer, to whom I 
 have already referred as of acknowledged 
 credit and learning, it is affirmed, that moralf 
 regeneration is produced in three different 
 ways. In one of these three ways the author 
 of the tract agrees, namely, that it is pro- 
 duced by the word of God ; in opposition, 
 however, to Mr. Faber, he declares that re- 
 generation is not effected by baptism. In 
 proof of his position, we are referred, first to 
 the declaration of St. Peter, 1 Peter, hi. 21: 
 " The like figure whereunto even baptism 
 
 * Page 21. 
 
 t It would take us into too wide a field to argue against 
 the position of the learned Mr. Faber upon this point ; but 
 we would observe, that though Mr. Faber speaks of several 
 opinions held upon the subject of regeneration, he appears 
 not, to me, to take the one opinion of the Church of England, 
 and to argue upon it. 
 
76 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 doth (also*) now save us; not the putting 
 away the filth of the flesh, but the answer of 
 a good conscience toward God, by the resur- 
 rection of Jesus Christ/ 5 
 
 To examine this sentence we must divide 
 it. Two things are spoken of, a type and 
 an antitype, — the ark the type, baptism the 
 antitype t; it is also declared, that as the ark 
 did actually save persons, so does baptism 
 now save. 
 
 So closely do the type and antitype cor- 
 respond, that, we may observe, Noah and his 
 family were saved by entering into the ark, 
 and so likewise are Christians saved by en- 
 tering into the water of baptism. Such is 
 the parallelism drawn by St. Peter, who, 
 doubtless fearing that ignorant persons might 
 estimate baptism by the outward ceremony 
 only, warns Christians that they are not so 
 
 * " Also " is unfortunately omitted in Molyneux's tract. 
 It is unfortunate, because the word is important in declaring, 
 according to St. Peter, that there is actually a salvation 
 through baptism, as there was through the ark. 
 
 t The word " figure " is literally antitype, that which 
 answers to the type ; we might express the same by " the 
 mould " and " the cast," or rather by " the plan" and " the 
 building," " the model " and " the original." 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 77 
 
 to estimate the sacrament, as though it were 
 " a putting away of the filth of the flesh/ 5 
 which could not be salvation, but rather they 
 should remember its spiritual nature, (i the 
 answer of a good conscience towards God;" 
 or, the answer which a good conscience makes 
 towards God. St. Peter therefore, if we un- 
 derstand him rightly, says, that we are ac- 
 tually saved by baptism, as eight persons were 
 saved by the ark ; that baptism is to be un- 
 derstood as something beyond the outward 
 visible ceremony of washing the flesh,, and 
 rather as the answer which a good conscience 
 is thereby enabled to make towards God. In 
 order that a conscience may in purity answer 
 towards God, the sins of the soul must be 
 put away, as this same Apostle has on various 
 other occasions declared, that they are re- 
 mitted in baptism. 
 
 We are next referred to St. John, hi. 5, 
 and Titus iii. 5, because the church inter- 
 prets these passages of baptism. The former 
 of them is the emphatic declaration of our 
 Saviour, a Except a man be born of water 
 and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the 
 kingdom of Heaven." 
 
/» BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 Before we enter upon this passage, we will 
 quote the judicious Hooker upon the point* : 
 u To hide the general consent of antiquity 
 agreeing in the literal interpretation [of this 
 passage] , they cunningly affirm that ' certain ' 
 have taken those words of material water, 
 when they know that of all the ancients there 
 is not one to be named that ever doth other- 
 wise either expound or allege the place than 
 as implying external baptism. Shall that 
 which hath always received this and no other 
 construction, be now disguised with the toy 
 of novelty? Must we now, at the only show 
 of a critical conceit, without any more deli- 
 beration, utterly condemn them of error, 
 which will not admit that fire in the words 
 of John is quenched with the name of the 
 Holy Ghost, or with the name of the Spirit, 
 water dried up in the words of Christ ? 
 
 " When the letter of the law hath two things 
 plainly and expressly specified, water and the 
 Spirit, — water as a duty required on our parts, 
 the Spirit as a gift which God bestoweth, — 
 there is danger in presuming so to interpret 
 it, as if the clause which concerneth ourselves 
 * Hooker's Ecclesiastical Polity, book v. chap. 69. 
 
BAPTISMAL. REGENERATION. 7$ 
 
 were more than needeth. We may by such 
 rare expositions attain perhaps in the end to 
 be thought witty, but with ill advice" 
 
 It was attempted in Hooker's time to 
 swamp the water (if I may be allowed the 
 expression), for it was far too troublesome 
 while it remained. Drain it off, — dry it up, — 
 or otherwise get rid of it by a figure, for, so 
 long as it stands literally water ', it allows of 
 no escape. Since the days of Hooker the 
 same sentiments have been held ; but now, 
 forsooth, our author, who floats along upon 
 the surface, without diving very deeply, starts 
 a new criticism. We cannot do justice to 
 such a rare specimen of biblical criticism 
 without quoting the observations at length : 
 " Our Lord says in the text just quoted, John 
 iii. 5, e Except a man be born of water and 
 of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the king- 
 dom of God/ Now let this text speak for 
 itself, and no addition be made to the state- 
 ment it contains, and what connexion, I ask. 
 is here seen to exist between baptism and re- 
 generation ? The necessity of being born 
 both of water and of the Spirit is urged, it is 
 true ; but what is said to intimate that they 
 
80 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 are necessarily attendant one on the other, 
 or united as cause and effect — means and 
 end ? Had our Lord said, i Except a man 
 be born of water and so of the Spirit/ then 
 their necessary connexion, and dependence 
 of the latter on the former, had been decisively 
 proved ; it might well have been maintained, 
 and none could have denied it; but as the 
 sentence now stands, there is not a syllable 
 to show it. The utmost it expresses is, that 
 two things are requisite, baptism and regene- 
 ration, — or, to be born of water and of the 
 Spirit. These things may be connected and 
 dependent one on the other, or they may not. 
 The one may be the means of the other, or 
 it may not, but this is not determined here ; 
 and to attempt therefore to determine it in 
 such a case, and to assume, on the ground of 
 such a passage, that baptism is the specially- 
 appointed means of regeneration, is to form 
 our principles, not from the Bible, but from 
 our own preconceived notions ; is to go to 
 God's word, not to be taught in God's way*, 
 
 * And so, — all the commentators and interpreters of the 
 Testament, the Greek and Latin fathers, the reformers, the 
 divines to the present day, " have gone to God's word, not 
 
BAPTISMAL, REGENERATION. 81 
 
 but to interpret in our own. From this text 
 then, whatever else we may learn, we certainly 
 do not learn the doctrine of baptismal rege- 
 neration ; the most that it can be thought to 
 teach is, I repeat, that baptism and regene- 
 ration are both requisite ; but as to their 
 connexion, or dependence one on the other, 
 not a word is said, and no such doctrine can 
 therefore with any propriety, or without the 
 greatest impropriety, be assumed from it." 
 Such criticism, we presume, was not intended 
 for persons at all acquainted with the original 
 language of the New Testament, and there- 
 fore we omit all allusion to the utter impos- 
 sibility of such a meaning being extracted, 
 with a feeling which we should be sorry to 
 express ; yet we cannot forbear stating, that 
 in our judgment such criticism, opposed as 
 it is to the phraseology of the English lan- 
 guage in every -day conversation, is positively 
 an insult to the understanding of ordinary 
 
 to be taught in God's way!" and the Rev. Capel Molyneux, 
 B.A., is the first since the days of St. John who surfers him- 
 self " to he thus taught in God's way." " We may," says 
 Hooker, " by such rare expositions, attain perhaps in the end 
 to be thought witty, but with ill advice." 
 G 
 
82 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 readers. What would be thought of the 
 acumen of a critic, who, upon being told that 
 a vessel ivas loafted by the wind and tide, 
 would argue that persons were thereby to 
 understand that the vessel was wafted today 
 by the wind, without tide, and tomorrow by 
 the tide without wind ? 
 
 Such is our author's reasoning upon the 
 words of our Saviour to Nicodemus : — if That 
 the necessity of being born both of water and 
 of the Spirit is urged is true, but what is said 
 to intimate that they are necessarily attend- 
 ant one on the other? Had our Lord said, 
 e Except a man be born of water and so* of 
 the Spirit/ then their necessary connexion 
 and dependence of the latter on the former 
 had been decisively proved." We had 
 thought that the instruction to be derived 
 from our Saviour's words was, that the Al~ 
 
 * It is to be wished that Mr. Molyneux had, in a note, 
 stated how he thinks this would have been expressed in the 
 Greek language, and also what he thinks the Greek would 
 have been if our Saviour had intended, what it has always 
 been heretofore considered that he did intend, namely", that 
 in every Christian there has taken place a birth brought 
 about by the joint agency of water and the Spirit : the words 
 are k\ vvaros Kcti TTvevfiaTos. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 83 
 
 mighty, designing to confer a spiritual benefit 
 upon mankind, and that through the opera- 
 tion of the Holy Spirit, was in mercy pleased 
 to associate therewith a material substance, 
 in order that men, relying on his promise, 
 might know of a surety that in the use of the 
 outward means the spiritual blessing was in- 
 visibly conveyed. He moreover was pleased, 
 for our benefit, to select that outward token 
 which would most aptly represent to our 
 senses the Spirit's invisible working upon 
 souls. As water cleanses the body from the 
 defilement which it may have contracted, so 
 does the Spirit cleanse the soul of its defile- 
 ment; but as the body in its daily occupa- 
 tions, so the soul in its ordinary associations 
 is liable to contract fresh defilement. Thus 
 far the parallel holds ; but the Spirit abides, 
 and will avail to a repeated cleansing, — to a 
 renewing so often as its aid is sought with 
 sincerity and settled purpose. 
 
 We may further observe, that we learn 
 
 from the passage before us, that our Saviour 
 
 was pleased to teach us that no man has the 
 
 power of entering into his kingdom but by 
 
 G 2 
 
84 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 the means designated, — a being born of water 
 and the Spirit ; and thus the passage throws 
 light upon St. John's words in the 1st chap- 
 ter : " As many as received Him to them gave 
 he power to become the sons of God, which 
 were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the 
 flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." 
 The passage, we say, explains how it is that 
 men should have the power to become sons, 
 and that, when so born, they should be born 
 of God, for they are born of water and of the 
 Spirit. We have therefore to employ the 
 means enjoined upon us, and then, in full 
 faith, to rely upon God that he will, by his 
 invisible working, give spiritual effect to his 
 appointed ordinance. 
 
 The passage from Titus iii. 5. receives a 
 more lengthened notice than any other ; but 
 we cannot imagine that the author could ever 
 have been aware of the fact, that the unani- 
 mous voice of antiquity interprets this pas- 
 sage of baptism — nay, that all the most en- 
 lightened interpreters of modern times are 
 agreed upon the point. As an instance, Mr. 
 Faber in his work on the doctrine of rege- 
 
BAPTISMAL. REGENERATION. 85 
 
 neration adduces the passage in a list to 
 prove that baptism is a means* of regenera- 
 tion. With this universal agreement of the 
 learned in ancient and modern times, it would 
 really be as idle as presumptuous to allege 
 any argument in support of it. This would 
 be needless in the case of others, and inef- 
 fectual for one who could put into print the 
 following conclusion to six pages of remarks 
 upon the text : " Adopt, then, what inter- 
 pretation we will, and we are at a loss to per- 
 ceive how any argument can be furnished by 
 this passage in favour of the doctrine of bap- 
 tismal regeneration. It seems to have no re- 
 ference to it, nor any connexion with it, what- 
 ever." So says the author of the tract ; and 
 with the most entire self-complacency, the 
 most perfect self-confidence, with all the as- 
 surance which ignorance alone could give, 
 pronounces his condemnation of all the learn- 
 ed men of every past age of Christianity, — 
 all of the present day, one of the deepest 
 
 * This learned divine, who must ever be spoken of with 
 respect, considers and endeavours to prove that there are 
 other means of moral regeneration. We know of only one 
 regeneration, and one means for it. 
 
86 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 scriptural research and acute criticism. Had 
 the author's remarks extended over, not six, 
 but sixty or six hundred pages, we must be 
 allowed to think that not many persons would 
 be swayed by criticism of which the six pages ■ 
 afford a sample. We may safely leave it to 
 the judgment of our readers to estimate the 
 learning and the acumen displayed in the fol- 
 lowing simple exposition of the sacred word 
 of God : i: Our Lord plainly expresses that 
 baptism and regeneration are two things — 
 distinct things — for he does not say, c born of 
 water or of the Spirit/ but ' born of water 
 and* of the Spirit' ; and therefore to interpret 
 
 * Mr. Molyneux being a clergyman of the Church of En- 
 gland, and also a Bachelor of Arts of one of our Universi- 
 ties, must have undergone some examination. Were it not 
 for this evidence offering a presumption that he is acquainted 
 with the Greek language, we should have been inclined to 
 imagine, that the writer of such a remark was ignorant of 
 even the Greek characters. We cannot, however, acquit 
 Mr. Molyneux of the most culpable neglect in not opening 
 his Greek Testament upon the passage. It would have 
 saved him from so committing himself as he has done. 'E£ 
 vdaros — did Xovrpov TraXiyyeveaias — Xoyip dXt]9eia$ 
 did tov evayyeXiov — kic GTropqs — did Xoyov — all forms of 
 expressions are jumbled together. We recommend to Mr. 
 Molyneux's most serious consideration the following remark 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 87 
 
 the passage before us, or any other, so as to 
 identify them, is manifestly erroneous and 
 inadmissible," We must confess, that we, 
 in our simplicity, should have imagined, had 
 our Lord made use of the expression, " born 
 of water or of the Spirit," that it had been 
 his intention to authorize two births, by either 
 of which an entrance into the kingdom of 
 heaven might be obtained. For persons of 
 simple understanding like ourselves we may 
 state, that if we had been told that we might 
 proceed to London by water or by land, we 
 should have understood that there were two 
 means open to our choice, and we think that 
 ordinary readers would understand the same. 
 In like manner we had imagined, that by 
 the words employed by our Lord we were 
 to learn that one effect, denominated a birth, 
 is brought about by the combined agency of 
 two very different things, one of these being 
 
 of Locke, and especially so, if he desires " to go to God's word 
 to be taught in God's way, and not to form his principles 
 from his own preconceived notions :" — " A verbal concord- 
 ance leads not always to texts of the same meaning ; and 
 one may observe how apt that is to jumble together passages 
 of Scripture, and thereby disturb the true meaning of Holy 
 Scripture." 
 
88 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 a material substance, "water/ 5 — the other 
 being " the Spirit." We might have ima- 
 gined that this interpretation, if it needed 
 elucidation, might have been confirmed by 
 a simple example, namely, that a house may 
 be built of bricks and mortar ; for we pre- 
 sume it will be understood by the expression, 
 that these two substances are so moulded 
 together as by their artificial combination to 
 form a dwelling ; yet the author of the tract 
 explains to us that this expression is to assure 
 us that there are two houses, — distinct houses, 
 — one built of mortar, and another of bricks. 
 
 We now proceed to notice some texts 
 which are adduced to prove that a regenera- 
 tion is not effected by means of baptism, but 
 through the instrumentality of the word of 
 God." They are the following : James i. 18, 
 "Of his own will begat He us with the word of 
 truth." 1 Peter, i. 23, " Being born again, not 
 of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by 
 the word of God." 1 Cor. iv. 15, " In Christ 
 Jesus have I begotten you through the Go- 
 spel." Upon these passages in general we 
 would offer two remarks ; first — 
 
 It would be difficult to find any important 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 89 
 
 doctrine of the Gospel which may not appear, 
 at first sight, to be contradicted by other 
 passages of Scripture, though the application 
 of acknowledged rules of criticism removes 
 the apparent contradiction; it is therefore 
 not at all surprising that such should be the 
 case in regard to the doctrine of baptismal 
 regeneration. Secondly, as it could not be 
 necessary that the direct means of regenera- 
 tion should be expressed on all occasions, if 
 by other passages it is proved to take place 
 at baptism, then baptism is implied in all 
 those passages where it is not expressed. 
 
 Now in regard to the last of the texts 
 quoted, namely, u In Christ Jesus I have be- 
 gotten you through the Gospel," we may set 
 it aside, as not at all bearing upon the ques- 
 tion. St. Paul is not speaking of Gospel re- 
 generation, "I write not these things to shame 
 you, but as my beloved sons I warn you. For 
 though ye have ten thousand instructors, yet 
 have ye not many fathers ; for in [not into] 
 Christ Jesus I have begotten you through 
 the Gospel." St. Paul here speaks of his own 
 paternity, and the correlative terms father 
 and son at once exclude Gospel regeneration. 
 
90 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 The Corinthians were St. Paul's sons, he was 
 their father. In whatever sense, therefore, 
 the expression is intended, the Corinthians 
 were born of St. Paul, and not "of God." 
 The Apostle, in his Epistle to Philemon, em-" 
 ploys the same phraseology respecting Onesi- 
 mus, verse ] 0, "I beseech thee for my son 
 Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my 
 bonds :" and also in his Epistle to the Gala- 
 tians, iv. 19, "My little children, of whom I 
 travail in birth again until Christ be formed 
 in you." These passages are sufficient to 
 show that he is not speaking of Gospel rege- 
 neration, but adopting a style of language to 
 mark his affectionate feeling towards the 
 parties whom he had brought over to Chris- 
 tianity. 
 
 Let us now examine the passage from the 
 Epistle of St. James, i. 18 : " Of his own will 
 begat He us with the word of truth." This 
 is one of the texts of which it is declared that 
 they " need no comment ; that in the plainest 
 possible terms they assert the truth, that re- 
 generation is not effected by means of bap- 
 tism, but through the instrumentality of the 
 word of God." Comment certainly would 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 91 
 
 be needless on the part of one who, from any 
 cause whatever, can fancy that our Lord 
 speaks of two births under the expression, 
 " born of water and of the Spirit," or who 
 can imagine that in the phrases "born o/\vater 
 and the Spirit," — " begat us with the word of 
 truth," — " born again of incorruptible seed by 
 the word of God," — " begotten you through 
 the Gospel," the particles (even in the English 
 translation) "of," "with," "by," "through," 
 are all to be taken in the same sense. As, 
 however, we are not prepared so to read our 
 Bibles, and especially as we remember that 
 three very different forms exist in the ori- 
 ginal to express these four words, we must be 
 allowed to comment on the texts, and seek 
 from the context in each case the intent of 
 the writer. This, in the case of St. James, 
 will show that " the word of truth " makes 
 not the remotest allusion to the instrument 
 or mean of regeneration. It was manifestly 
 St. James's object to establish in the minds 
 of those to whom he was writing a confident 
 reliance upon the promise of God. In verse 
 6 he says, " Let a man ask in faith, nothing 
 wavering. For he that wavereth is like a 
 
92 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 wave of the sea driven with the wind and 
 tossed; for let not that man think that he 
 shall receive anything of the Lord/ 5 In the 
 11th and following verses the argument is, 
 that earthly things come to an end; but that 
 the Christian who "is tried shall receive the 
 crovm of life which the Lord hath promised 
 to them that love him." So in the 1 7th verse, 
 "Every good gift and every perfect gift is 
 from above, and cometh down from the Fa- 
 ther of lights, with whom is no variableness, 
 neither shadow of turning ;" and then imme- 
 diately follow the words quoted, " Of his own 
 will begat he us with the word of truth" 
 The question then upon which these words 
 were introduced was, not whether they were 
 begotten, or by what means they were begotten, 
 but, " was the promise implied in their being 
 begotten of God to be relied on ?" In other 
 words, was the promise a word of truth or 
 not? This question St. James answers. It 
 was of God^s own free will that he begat us ; 
 and as with him there is " no variableness, 
 neither shadow of turning," there is nothing 
 that can prevent his unchangeable will and 
 object in our birth of Him being accom- 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 93 
 
 plished : u He begat us with the word of 
 truth" so that we may confidently rely upon 
 his promise. This will be sufficient to show 
 that the expression "word of truth " was 
 never employed by St. James to allude to the 
 instrument or mean of regeneration, as in- 
 deed it would have been beside his purpose 
 to speak of it. 
 
 Still less can it be gathered from the pas- 
 sage of St. Peter that regeneration is effected 
 by the word. This text, again, deserves a 
 little "comment," though it will be of the 
 same kind and to a similar purport with that 
 which we made upon the previous passage. 
 The expression here rendered "by the word 
 of God " is adduced in proof of the imperish- 
 able nature of the new life. It would be well 
 in this case to inquire what was the question 
 before the Apostle ; what was the tenor and 
 drift of his argument? It was to explain, 
 not how Christians are begotten again, i. e. by 
 what means, but what the nature of the new 
 birth is ; is it corruptible or incorruptible ? It 
 was St. Peter's object to encourage Christians 
 in a " hope to the end for the grace [gift] 
 that is to be brought unto them at the revc- 
 
94 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 lation of Jesus Christ," and to urge upon 
 them a corresponding practice, inasmuch as 
 they had been born, not of corruptible seed, 
 but of incorruptible*;" and in proof of this, 
 he asserts that " the word," i. e. the declara- 
 tion, " of God liveth and abideth for ever :" 
 ie Pass the time of your sojourning here in 
 fear," for the life of man upon the earth is 
 short ; but you are begotten again of an in- 
 corruptible seed, " through the word of God, 
 which liveth and abideth for ever." This ex- 
 pression, then, as employed by the Apostle, 
 proves the imperishable nature of the new or 
 second birth. The two succeeding verses, 
 quoted from the Psalms, remove all doubt 
 upon the subject : " For all flesh is as grass, 
 and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. 
 The grass withereth, and the flower thereof 
 falleth away ; but the word of the Lord en- 
 dureth for ever :" and the Apostle adds, " and 
 this is the word which by the Gospel is 
 preached unto you," or the promise which 
 has brought glad tidings upon (into) you. 
 
 * Here we are to understand the word " of " in the same 
 sense as in the words of our Saviour, " Except a man be 
 born of water and the Spirit." 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 95 
 
 Yet these are the texts which, it is alleged, 
 prove that "regeneration is effected through 
 instrumentality of the word of God ;" and in 
 further confirmation of the point, we are re- 
 ferred to the declaration of St. Paul, Cor. i. 
 14, " I thank God I baptized none of you, 
 but Crispus and Gaius." 
 
 Having shown the utter inapplicability to 
 Gospel regeneration of the passage quoted be- 
 fore, " In Christ Jesus I have begotten you 
 through the Gospel/ 5 we might safely pass by 
 the practice of St. Paul as stated to the Co- 
 rinthians ; but it is one of those plausible ar- 
 guments that pass for solid proof with per- 
 sons who seek only to establish their own 
 principles. It must be remembered that re- 
 ligious differences had sprung up among the 
 Corinthians, who appeared to range them- 
 selves under different leaders, saying, every 
 one of them, " I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, 
 and I of Cephas, and I of Christ." These 
 divisions struck at the root of Christianity,— 
 the cross of Christ ; and therefore the Apo- 
 stle reproves the Corinthians, and at the same 
 time expresses his satisfaction that he had 
 baptized but few of them, " lest it might be 
 
96 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 said that he had baptized in (into) his own 
 name/' Now the first instruction which we 
 may derive from this account is the necessity of 
 baptism; for the Apostle directly implies, that 
 all the Corinthian converts were baptized : 
 we are also supplied with an indirect proof of 
 baptismal regeneration, for thereby only can 
 we with perfect consistence account for St. 
 Paul addressing them all as " having been 
 sanctified in Christ Jesus/' as " called/' as 
 " saints/' as " members of Christ/' and as 
 ( - those whose bodies were made the temples 
 of the Holy Ghost, which was in them/' — 
 while at the same time these Corinthians, 
 of whom we presume it will be admitted 
 that they were regenerate, were " carnal and 
 not spiritual." And all this is perfectly con- 
 sistent too with the Apostle's declaration, that 
 Christ a sent him not to baptize, but to 
 preach." The preaching the Gospel, whether 
 to Jews or Gentiles, required especial powers 
 and qualifications, those miraculous gifts of 
 tongues, &c. with which the Apostles were 
 endued from on high ; while inferior mini- 
 sters were sufficient for the purpose of bap- 
 tism. The gift of God depended not in any 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 97 
 
 degree on the minister who baptized. This 
 will explain why the Apostles in their jour- 
 neys always took with them assistants*. 
 
 The terms of the Apostle's commission, as 
 given by himself, are adduced in proof that 
 the regeneration of souls is effected, K not by 
 baptism, but by preaching the Gospel." 
 " Christ's own words," we are told, " are, ' I 
 send thee [to the Gentiles] to open their 
 eyes, and to turn them from darkness to 
 light, and from the power of Satan unto 
 God, that they may receive forgiveness o 
 sins, and an inheritance among them that are 
 sanctified, by faith that is in [into] me.'' " 
 Thus we perceive the object of St. PauPs 
 converting the Gentiles is by the express 
 words of Christ himself declared to be, that 
 they might receive remission of sins and an 
 inheritance among them that are sanctified by 
 faith into him. By what instrument or means 
 this object of their conversion f is brought 
 
 * See Acts x. 23 ; xv. 39, 40. 
 
 f Let it be carefully observed, tbat St. Paul's commission 
 was to convert the Gentiles with a view to a. further spiri- 
 tual benefit to be derived to them,— -forgiveness of sins and 
 a a inheritance to life. 
 
 H 
 
98 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 about is not expressly stated, we must there- 
 fore appeal to other parts of Scripture for 
 the information. Now in chapter xxii. of 
 the Acts, St. Paul tells us how, in his oivn 
 case, this object of his conversion was ob- 
 tained. He was converted on the road to 
 Damascus, and remained three days without 
 sight before Ananias was sent to him, when, 
 as St. Paul informs us, his sins were washed 
 away in baptism. As, therefore, his commis- 
 sion was to bring over the Gentiles by preach- 
 ing the Gospel with a view to their receiving 
 remission of sins, and as St. Paul himself, 
 after his conversion, received this blessing 
 through baptism, the natural inference is, that 
 the like benefit was conveyed to others by the 
 same means. Indeed, as the Gospel is an har- 
 monious system, this must have been the 
 case, for St. Peter enjoined upon the Jews to 
 repent and be baptized for this object,— for 
 the remission of sins ; and our Lord himself, 
 when he commissioned the Apostles to preach 
 the Gospel, adds as the object, " He that be- 
 lieveth and is baptized shall be saved." An- 
 other Evangelist gives this commission in 
 the words, " that repentance and remission of 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 99 
 
 sins were to be preached to all nations.' 5 
 What then, though St. Paul did not baptize ? 
 — what then, that his commission was to preach 
 the Gospel ? The end to be obtained was still 
 remission of sins, and this remission was to 
 be obtained through baptism. St. Paul's 
 commission was to prepare* the Gentiles for 
 this solemn ordinance. The commission to 
 all the Apostles was unquestionably the same ; 
 that which St. Paul received was no other 
 than that which our Saviour had given to 
 the rest. This we have seen was to preach 
 the glad tidings of salvation, and to enjoin 
 baptism as the means by which this was to 
 be obtained. In conformity with this com- 
 mission, and in accordance with the practice 
 of St. Paul, we read that St. Peter preached 
 
 * We would here call attention to the precise and exact 
 manner in which our church follows the practice of the 
 Apostles. It was their especial office to prepare men for 
 baptism, though this office might be delegated to ministers 
 appointed for the purpose. Thus Philip the Deacon was 
 sent into Samaria. Now, by the Rubric prefixed to the 
 " Baptism of such as are of riper years," it will be seen that 
 the minister of a parish (the curate) has no authority to 
 baptize such, until the Bishop, or some minister appointed 
 by him, has ascertained the fitness of the party. 
 H 2 
 
100 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 Jesus, and though he did not himself baptize, 
 he commanded baptism to be administered. 
 In the case of Cornelius and his house, we 
 read, that Peter said, " Can any man forbid • 
 water that these should not be baptized as 
 well as we? and he commanded them to be 
 baptized in the name of the Lord/ 5 
 
 We now arrive at the last section, in which 
 it is stated, that, " in opposition to baptismal 
 regeneration, Scripture teaches that certain 
 effects invariably follow regeneration, which, 
 in multitudes, and far the greater proportion, 
 do not attend baptism/' 
 
 This, we believe, is commonly considered 
 the stronghold that the opponents of bap- 
 tismal regeneration take up, and therefore 
 it does not surprise us that it is main- 
 tained by the author of the tract before us. 
 The error of persons who allege the wicked 
 lives of baptized persons as an argument 
 against baptismal regeneration consists in 
 this, — they confound regeneration with the 
 duties which are obligatory upon persons re- 
 generated. The former is the sole undisput- 
 ed, unmerited gift of God, — the latter is the 
 test by which the regenerated will be judged. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATTON. 101 
 
 The former is that act by which a party is 
 placed in a condition to work out his final 
 salvation, — the latter regards the manner in 
 which the party avails himself of the privi- 
 leges to which he has been admitted. 
 
 As the purpose of God in the regeneration 
 of a man is his final salvation, the Scriptures 
 when they speak, not of individuals, but of the 
 essential character of a person regenerated, 
 they ascribe to him those qualities which 
 God manifestly intended should be promi- 
 nent features in him, and which will invari- 
 ably show themselves in all who continue to 
 entertain a right sense of the relation in which 
 they stand to their God. 
 
 The subject to which this section of the 
 tract alludes having been treated by Bishop 
 Bethell in such a masterly style and with the 
 deep gravity which its importance requires, 
 we most earnestly recommend to our readers 
 to examine for themselves the arguments and 
 statements of that learned prelate*. With 
 a recollection of the feelings produced in our 
 
 * A General View of the Doctrine of Regeneration in Bap- 
 tism, by the Right Rev. Christopher Bethell, D.D., Lord 
 Bishop of Bangor. 
 
102 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 minds by the perusal of those arguments, we 
 acknowledge ourselves utterly inadequate to 
 do justice to the subject. We mean not, 
 however, to pass it by; but before we attempt 
 to offer our opinion, we would desire to cor- 
 rect an error into which the author of the 
 tract, in common with other opponents of 
 baptismal regeneration, has fallen. He says, 
 that Simon Magus, though he was baptized, 
 was not regenerated : this excites our asto- 
 nishment, and shows to what palpable con- 
 tradictions an unscriptural view of regenera- 
 tion necessarily leads. In page 17, we are 
 told that " no persons were baptized, whose 
 baptism is recorded in the Scripture, who 
 were not first supposed* to be regenerate." 
 
 * We cannot imagine that Mr. Molyneux introduced this 
 word as a loop-hole for escape, and vre are persuaded that 
 he would not seek to avail himself of what would in our 
 judgment he little hetter than a subterfuge. We consider 
 that Mr. Molyneux in the passage intended to avow, that in 
 all the recorded cases of baptism, regeneration preceded 
 baptism. In justification of this opinion we have to state, 
 that in all the cases mentioned in Section hi., evidence is 
 sought in matters antecedently to baptism, without any allu- 
 sion being made to after habits of life. The eunuch believed, 
 the ripe fruit of regeneration; the three thousand were 
 " pricked (bowed down) in their heart," and therefore were 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 103 
 
 In the same page we are also told, " that to 
 believe on the name of Christ is declared to 
 be the fruit of regeneration, — that faith is the 
 effect, regeneration the cause f but yet Simon 
 Magus, of whom it is expressly stated that 
 he believed, is not allowed to have been re- 
 generated. 
 
 Now let us examine this interesting and 
 important case ; important, for we fear that 
 it reflects the image of too many Christians 
 of the present day. In the Acts, chapter viii., 
 we read that c: Philip went down to the city 
 of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them;" 
 and when the people saw the miracles which 
 were performed, "they believed Philip preach- 
 ing the things concerning the kingdom of 
 God, and the name of Jesus Christ, and they 
 were baptized, both men and women." Ac- 
 cording to the doctrine of the tract, the par- 
 ties were regenerated, for they showed the 
 
 regenerate ; Lydia's " heart was opened to attend to the 
 tilings spoken of Paul," and so she was regenerate. Cornelius 
 and his household received the miraculous powers of the 
 Spirit, and no further proof of their regeneration is required. 
 St. Paul was visited by Ananias that he might-" receive his 
 sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost," and the attain- 
 ment of the first blessing was proof of his regeneration. 
 
104 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 fruits, — faith ; and if this was the case with 
 them, why, we ask, was not Simon regene- 
 rated? The Scriptures pointedly and expressly 
 declare the same things of him which they 
 do of the others, and even in more emphatic 
 words. It is said of him, " then Simon him- 
 self believed also; 5 ' or, as the author, we pre- 
 sume, needs not to be told, " moreover, even 
 Simon himself believed." How then, we 
 ask, (and we do it with a solemn feeling of 
 reverence for the inspired word of God,) how- 
 shall any man of the present day, with his 
 own unassisted powers, dare to deny the 
 truth of the inspired penman ? He has de- 
 clared in the plainest terms (terms which 
 successfully resist the strongest powers that 
 may be employed to distort them), that "even 
 Simon also believed." There is not even the 
 shadow of a peg on which to suspend the 
 thought, that his faith at the time was less 
 sincere than that of others who believed and 
 were baptized : on the contrary, it is added 
 of him, that he " continued* with Philip and 
 
 * We do not attach too great importance to the word 
 " continued," but it implies more than English readers would 
 commonly imagine ; in a case precisely parallel, it is rendered 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 105 
 
 wondered^ beholding the miracles and signs 
 which were done." As the Scriptures de- 
 clare the same, though in stronger terms, of 
 Simon that they do of the others, if they were 
 regenerated, then was Simon, — if he was not 
 regenerated, then were not they. We hold, 
 however, that they were equally so, and that in 
 their baptism. The succeeding part of the 
 history demands consideration, as offering 
 matter in elucidation of our subject ; and the 
 examination will expose some errors into 
 which the author, in common with other 
 writers, has fallen. We read that the Apo- 
 stles, when they " heard that Samaria had re- 
 
 " continued stedfastly" " they continued stedfastly in the 
 Apostles' doctrine and fellowship," Acts ii. 42. We suhjoin all 
 the passages in which the word is found in the New Testa- 
 ment : Mark hi. 9, " And he spake to his disciples that a 
 ship should wait on him because of the multitude;" Acts i. 
 14, " And these all continued with one accord in prayer and 
 supplication ;" ii. 42, quoted above ; ii. 46, " And they con- 
 tinuing daily in the temple ;" vi. 4, " We will give ourselves 
 continually to prayer;" x. 7, " Cornelius called two of his 
 household servants, and a devout soldier of them which 
 waited on him continually" Rom. xii. 12, " Continuing 
 instant in prayer;" xiii. 6, " For they are God's ministers 
 attending continually upon this very thing ;" Col. iv. 2, 
 " Continue in prayer." 
 
106 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 ceived the word of God, sent down from 
 Jerusalem Peter and John, who prayed for 
 them, that they might receive the H oly Ghost," 
 that is, the miraculous powers of the Spirit, 
 as the context shows ; then, as the account 
 proceeds, " they laid their hands on them, 
 and they received the Holy Ghost; and when 
 Simon saw that through laying on of the 
 Apostles 5 hands the Holy Ghost was given, 
 he offered them money, saying, Give me also 
 this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, 
 he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter 
 said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, 
 because thou hast thought that the gift of 
 God may be purchased with money. Thou 
 hast neither part nor lot in this matter ; for 
 thy heart is not right in the sight of God." 
 Now what are we to understand by this last 
 expression, " this matter" ? It is too com- 
 monly, but most erroneously interpreted, of 
 the blessings of the Gospel-, it refers solely 
 and exclusively to the matter just spoken of, 
 namely, the power of giving the Holy Ghost 
 by the imposition of hands. St. Peter, in 
 other words, spurns the impious proposal : 
 u There is not for thee any part or lot in this 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 107 
 
 miraculous gift of the Holy Ghost, for thy 
 heart is not right in the sight of God." In- 
 dignant, however, as the Apostle justly was, 
 he forgot not that he was addressing a bro- 
 ther in Christ ; and therefore, with affection- 
 ate compassion, instructs him by what means 
 he may be restored to God's favor : " Repent, 
 therefore, of this thy wickedness, and pray 
 God if the thought of thine heart may be 
 forgiven thee." Here is no direction that 
 Simon should pray for regeneration, though, 
 doubtless, had such a prayer been consist- 
 ent, it would have been enjoined upon him. 
 He is, however, directed to repent, and to 
 pray for forgiveness-, and not only so, but he 
 is told that it is St. Peter's belief, that he 
 would in such case be forgiven*. 
 
 When St. Peter, on the day of Pentecost, 
 told the Jews that they had with wicked 
 hands crucified and slain Jesus of Nazareth, 
 
 * el apa cKpeQrjaeTat, if, in consequence of thy repentance 
 and prayer, it will be forgiven thee, as I (Peter) am par- 
 suaded that it will. Ei with a future indicative implies the 
 persuasion of the writer or speaker that the thing will hap- 
 pen, and hence it is frequently translated by " since." 
 
108 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION'. 
 
 a man approved of God among them, he 
 urged them to " repent, and be baptized for 
 the remission of sins." When Simon made 
 his impious proposal, the same Peter enjoins 
 upon him to " repent, and pray to God for 
 the same object, the remission of his sins" 
 This history, therefore, supplies us with the 
 terms upon which Christians may expect 
 that they will be restored to God's favour, — 
 repentance and prayer. 
 
 But, forsooth, we are reminded of St. Pe- 
 ter's words to Simon, " Thou art in [into] the 
 gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity." We 
 fear that the author of the tract has a very 
 imperfect view of the matter, and we call his 
 attention to the circumstance. Our translation 
 is sufficiently clear for all practical purposes ; 
 but if an erroneous doctrine be attempted to 
 be foisted upon the passage, it is necessary 
 that we gather the precise meaning of St. 
 Peter's expression. It is rather this, " for I 
 perceive that thou hast come into the (or a) 
 gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity." It is 
 difficult to express, according to the common 
 phraseology of our language, the full mean- 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 109 
 
 ing of St. Peter's words ; it is, " for I per- 
 ceive that thou art in, having come into*/' 
 It is important to notice this feature in Si- 
 mon's case ; for if he is told by St. Peter that 
 he had " come into a gall of bitterness and 
 bond of iniquity/' common sense will tell us 
 that he was not in it before ; and we need 
 not to be informed that it was the impious 
 proposal that he made to St. Peter that 
 brought him into it. We have no reason to 
 suppose that antecedently to this he was in 
 it. This passage therefore affords a colla- 
 teral proof in favour of baptismal regenera- 
 tion ; for it inclines us to infer, that at Simon's 
 baptism he had been set at liberty from all 
 bond of iniquity. It is not altogether un- 
 worthy of attention, that Simon " was pricked 
 in his heart" by the Apostle's advice to him, 
 for he supplicates Peter and John to pray 
 for him, thinking that the prayers of these 
 
 * Motion is always implied in els, into, and therefore 
 where there is no verb of motion expressed, one has to be 
 supplied from the context. Acts xii. 4, " He put him in 
 [into] prison," i.e. he took him into and placed him in prison ; 
 xiii. 29, " They took him down and laid him in [into] a se- 
 pulchre," i.e. carried him into and laid him in ; xxxvii. 40, 
 " made toward [into] shore," i.e. kept the ship in the direc- 
 tion that it might drive to (into) the shore. 
 
110 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 faithful servants of God would avail more 
 than his own : " Pray ye [emphatic] to the 
 Lord for me, that [so that] none of these 
 things which ye have spoken [may] come 
 upon me." 
 
 The information which the Scriptures fur- 
 nish respecting Hymenaeus inclines to the 
 same conclusion; for St. Paul says, 1 Tim. 
 i. 19, 20, "Holding faith and a good consci- 
 ence, which some having put away, concern- 
 ing faith have made shipwreck, of whom is 
 Hymenaeus and Alexander." As, therefore, 
 Hymenaeus is said to have a put away from 
 himself a good conscience/' he must have 
 been in possession of it before he put it away ; 
 and from this we naturally infer that he had 
 been regenerated. The metaphorical expres- 
 sion, " have made shipwreck concerning the 
 faith," implies the same, for they must have 
 been before sound in the faith. The little that 
 we read in the 2nd Epistle to Timothy respect- 
 ing Phygellus and Hermogenes is of the same 
 tendency ; for their names are brought in by 
 way of contrast, and Timothy is urged, in 
 opposition to their example, to " hold fast 
 the form of sound words." 
 
 The author has forgotten to mention an 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. Ill 
 
 associate of these who turned away from St. 
 Paul in Asia. It is to be wished that the 
 author had pronounced his sentence upon 
 Demas ; for not only are we told that he had 
 forsaken St. Paul, but the reason is added, 
 " Having loved this present world." Is De- 
 mas, we ask, to be placed among the " un- 
 regenerate"? If so, it seems strange that 
 St. Paul, an inspired apostle, should make 
 honorable mention of him in conjunction 
 with Luke, and should have allowed him for 
 a length of time* to have been his fellow- 
 labourer. Coloss. iv. 14, cc Luke, the beloved 
 physician, and Demas, salute thee; 5 ' and 
 Philemon, 23, 24, " There salute thee, Epa- 
 phras, my fellow-prisoner in Christ Jesus ; 
 Marcus, Aristarchus, Demas f, Lucas, my 
 fellow-labourers/' 
 
 * This must have been for several years ; for honorable 
 mention is made of him in St. Paul's Epistles to the Colos- 
 sians and in that to Philemon, and his desertion of St. Paul 
 is mentioned in his 2nd Epistle to Timothy, and it is implied 
 that it had occurred not long before. 
 
 f Could the omission of Demas have arisen from St. Paul's 
 words respecting Alexander having suggested themselves to 
 Mr. Molyneux as not altogether inapplicable to the case of 
 Demas and himself, Xiav yap dvOetrTrjKe rots tj/xerepoi? 
 \6yois ? 
 
112 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 We come now to examine the passages 
 adduced from the 1st Epistle of St. John, of 
 which it is alleged that they ei teach that cer- 
 tain effects invariably follow regeneration, 
 which in multitudes, and far the greater pro- 
 portion of cases, do not attend baptism." 
 Now it will scarcely fail to strike the most 
 inattentive reader of the Bible, that there is 
 a remarkable similarity in the sentiment and 
 style of expression between the 1st Epistle 
 of St. John and the conversation which 
 our Lord held with his disciples a short 
 time before his crucifixion, detailed by the 
 same Apostle in chapter xv. of his Go- 
 spel. A careful perusal of this chapter is 
 strongly recommended, as offering the best 
 commentary and clearest exposition of va- 
 rious expressions employed in the Epistles. 
 Our Saviour, in reference to individuals, 
 speaks of " branches in him not bearing fruit ;" 
 he tells his disciples that " at that time these 
 were clean" but he urges them that they 
 should "abide in him;" that in such case 
 only could they "bear fruit." This he re- 
 peats again and again, and states that their 
 " abiding in his love," i. e. the continuance of 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 113 
 
 his love towards them, depended on their 
 " keeping his commandments." It must not 
 fail to be remembered that our Lord is speak- 
 ing of " branches in him ;" for we presume it 
 will be admitted that such as are brought into 
 this close connexion with him are regenerated. 
 Before they became engrafted their life was 
 supported in the ordinary way, but afterwards 
 the branches, partaking of a new nature, re- 
 ceive their nourishment and subsistence from 
 the vine to which they have become united. 
 The sap or juice which it diffuses through all 
 its branches enables them to bear fruit. Our 
 Saviour's words, therefore, being spoken of 
 the branches, are utterly unintelligible, un- 
 less they be interpreted as implying that rege- 
 nerate persons may fall, — may cease to pre- 
 serve that close connexion with him which is 
 necessarily understood by the expression, 
 "branches in him*;" and, moreover, that 
 
 * It may be advisable to state, that though our Lord's 
 words were addressed immediately to his Apostles, he de- 
 signed them to apply to all his disciples in all ages of the 
 world ; for at the conclusion of his discourse he generalized 
 them by his prayer, " Neither pray I for these alone, but for 
 them also which shall believe on me through their word 
 
114 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 this connexion is preserved through their 
 loving Christ and keeping his command- 
 ments. 
 
 Now it is not likely that the beloved dis- 
 ciple, who has detailed these observations of 
 our Lord, would in his own teaching set him- 
 self up in opposition to his Master. On the 
 contrary, we are only drawing a legitimate in- 
 ference when we say, that St. John's Epistle is 
 to be interpreted in accordance with the prin- 
 ciples laid down in chapter xv. of his Gospel : 
 nay, that if the phraseology of the Epistle, 
 written, as that Epistle was, to combat certain 
 errors, be in any of its expressions ambiguous, 
 its explanation and right meaning must be 
 gathered from our Saviour's words. It is the 
 more reasonable on this account, that St. 
 John's Epistle commences with a manifest 
 allusion to this conversation of our Lord's. 
 In chapter i. verse 4, St. John writes, " These 
 things write we unto you, that your joy may 
 be full," as our blessed Lord had said, " These 
 things have I spoken unto you that your joy 
 
 that they all may be one, as thou, Father, art iu me and I in 
 thee, that they also may be one in us, that the world may 
 believe that thou hast sent me." 
 
BAPTISMAL, REGENERATION. 115 
 
 might be full*," the things spoken by our Lord 
 and written by St. John being the same, the 
 necessity that the disciples should abide in 
 Christ and keep his commandments. This 
 feature manifestly runs through the Epistle, 
 the object of which is expressly declared to 
 be, that those who were in Christ should not 
 sin : " My little children, these things write 
 I unto you, that ye sin not-j%" in words 
 drawn from the Gospel, that they should 
 " keep Christ's commandments and abide in 
 his love." We apply, therefore, to the Go- 
 spel of St. John as a key to the right under- 
 standing of those passages in the Epistle 
 where u certain effects are said to attend 
 those who are born of God." Were we to 
 understand these passages as stating that 
 certain effects invariably attend all persons 
 born of God, it would be in manifest contra- 
 diction of the Apostle himself, who states it 
 to be the object of his epistle that those ivho 
 had been born of God might not fall into sin ; 
 and also of our Saviour, whose exhortations 
 to his disciples, that they should abide in him, 
 would be useless and even absurd, if those 
 
 * John xv. 11. f 1 St. John ii. 1. 
 
 I 2 
 
116 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 once born of God could not do otherwise than 
 abide in him. 
 
 The instruction which we are rather to de- 
 rive from the Epistle is this — that we should 
 make it our constant endeavour to keep 
 Christ's commandments, and especially that 
 we should love one another in order that we 
 may abide in him. Understanding the Epistle 
 as speaking in harmony with the declarations 
 of our Lord himself, and with all the varied 
 exhortations to holiness which stand promi- 
 nently forward in the Catholic Epistles, there 
 is nothing which offers any solid ground to 
 allege the wicked lives of Christians as an 
 argument that they were not regenerated in 
 their baptism. The passages adduced receive 
 their interpretation from the preceding con- 
 text, 1 John v. 4, " Whatsoever is born [has 
 been born] of God overcometh the world." 
 St. John had just been urging upon his bre- 
 thren to whom he wrote that they should 
 " love one another*." This was their duty 
 (their debt), and it is by this alone that the 
 children can know that (( God remaineth or 
 abideth in them" — it is by this love of the 
 
 * 1 John iv. 12. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 11/" 
 
 brethren that the love of God is perfected, 
 made complete. As he says in verse 1/, 
 " Herein is our love [love with or among us] 
 made perfect*,— that as he is, so are we in 
 this world." Without this essential ingre- 
 dient (we may say) in perfect love, there is 
 in reality no such thing as love of God. In 
 chapter v. St. John commences by saying, 
 that " every one who believes that Jesus is 
 
 * "We have omitted the clause which expresses the end of 
 this love being made perfect, " that we may have boldness 
 in the day of judgement " ; and our reason has been that 
 we may more readily perceive wherein it is that our love 
 is made perfect. In verses 9 and 10, on is, under precisely 
 similar circumstances, rendered " that," and the clause cor- 
 responds with the words " hereby," " herein ". In verse 
 13, the word is translated " because, " which we are to 
 understand in the same way, and to consider the clause as 
 an explanation of " hereby " at the beginning of the verse. 
 This is not conjecture, but is proved by the last verse of the 
 preceding chapter, where " the Spirit being given," is the 
 evidence upon which we know that " God abideth in us." 
 " And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit 
 ivhich he hath given us." This same sentiment is expressed 
 in chapter iv. 13. " Hereby we know that we dwell in him 
 and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit." In 
 verse 17, " because" is to be understood in the same way ; 
 our resembling Christ in this world, i. e. in the love which 
 he showed to the brethren, is, that wherein our love is made 
 perfect. 
 
118 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 the Christ is born * of God," and how does 
 he bring this to bear upon his subject ? This 
 new relation in which a Christian is placed 
 in regard to his God lays him under an ob- 
 ligation to love his brethren. " Every one 
 that loveth him that begat, loveth him also 
 that is begotten of him." The beloved Apostle 
 proceeds to argue that this love implies a 
 keeping of his commandments, and " his 
 commandments," he adds, "are not griev- 
 ous." In proof of this he introduces the 
 verse before us. " For whatsoever is born of 
 God overcometh the world," which is the 
 same as he expresses in the fourth verse of 
 the previous chapter, " Greater is he that is 
 in you, than he that is in the world ;" i. e. every 
 one who is born of God is endued with a 
 power which is superior to that of the world. 
 This po\^er may be suffered to he dormant, 
 and in such case the world will not be over- 
 come. It appears to escape the observation 
 of those who allege that St. John represents 
 certain effects as invariably attending rege- 
 
 * This follows immediately upon belief in Christ, accord- 
 ing to our Saviour's declaration, " He that believeth and is 
 baptised shall be saved." The eunuch lost no time before he 
 was baptized; in like manner Cornelius and his household 
 and so others. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 119 
 
 neration, that in the two chapters where he 
 speaks of the ability with which the sons of 
 God are endued, he says, in one case, " ye 
 have overcome" in the other, u overcometh" 
 not hath overcome, his intention being to 
 signify, — in the former case, that those, born 
 of God, had successfully withstood the false 
 prophets who denied that Christ was come 
 in the flesh, — in the latter, that whatsoever * 
 has been born of God is of power to overcome 
 the world. 
 
 In regard to the second passage quoted, 
 1 John, hi. 9, "Whosoever is born of God 
 doth not commit sin ; for his seed remaineth 
 in him ; and he cannot sin, because he is born 
 of God/' The context appears to us to ex- 
 plain sufficiently that St. John is speaking 
 as our Saviour does, not of every one who is 
 born of God, but of every one who (having 
 been born of God) abidelh in that state. The 
 reason given for certain parties not sinning, 
 is stated, first, that God's seed abideth in 
 
 * It is a question among commentators whether " what- 
 soever " is to be understood as " whosoever ; " we are in- 
 clined to think that St. John used the neuter form, intend- 
 ing it to be understood generally, and to imply the same as 
 he had done in chapter iv. 14 ; we might give the meaning, 
 " God is greater than the world." 
 
120 
 
 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 them ; and, secondly, that they have been 
 born of God. Now let us examine the pre- 
 vious part of the chapter, where we shall find 
 a remarkable similarity and parallelism run- 
 ning through several corresponding verses. 
 This running comparison forms a clear com- 
 mentary, and fully explains the sense in which 
 St. John intended himself to be understood. 
 He seems to argue that the Christian who 
 abides in Christ studies to avoid all sin, 
 whether transgressions of law, or sin that 
 originally proceeded from the devil. We 
 will place the corresponding verses beside 
 one another. 
 
 Verse 3. Every one who has 
 this hope in him purifieth 
 himself even as he is pure. 
 
 4. Whosoever committeth 
 sin transgresseth also the 
 law : for sin is the trans- 
 gression of the law. 
 
 5. And ye know that he 
 was manifested to take away 
 our sins ; and in him is no 
 sin. 
 
 6. Whosoever abideth in 
 him sinneth not : whosoever 
 sinneth hath not seen him, 
 neither known him. 
 
 Verse 7. He that doeth 
 righteousness is righteous, 
 even as he is righteous. 
 
 8. He that committeth sin 
 is of the devil, for the devil 
 sinneth from the beginning. 
 
 For this purpose the Son 
 of God was manifested, that 
 he might destroy the works 
 of the devil. 
 
 9. Whosoever is born of God 
 doth not commit sin; for his 
 seed remaineth (abideth) in 
 him, and he cannot sin, be- 
 cause he is born of God. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 121 
 
 We think it impossible for any person to 
 read these verses, thus placed in juxtaposi- 
 tion, without at once perceiving that the 
 ninth verse is explained by the sixth ; and 
 therefore, that where St. John says, " Who- 
 soever is born of God doth not commit sin, 
 for his seed remaineth in him," he is to be 
 understood in the sense of the sixth verse, 
 "Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not." 
 This interpretation reconciles the Epistle with 
 the Gospel, — the instruction given by the 
 beloved disciple with that given by our Lord 
 himself. 
 
 One other passage is quoted by the author 
 of the tract in support of his position, namely, 
 Rom. viii. 14 : "As many as are led by the 
 Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." 
 We beg, however, to inform him that St. 
 Paul intends something very different from 
 what the author imagines. The context 
 shows that in verse 12 the Apostle draws a 
 conclusion from his previous reasoning, 
 namely, that " we are debtors, to live not to 
 the flesh" but to the Spirit; and he proceeds 
 to say, as he had shown before, that a living 
 after the flesh would lead to death, but " if 
 
122 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of 
 the body ye shall live." And how does the 
 Apostle prove this assertion * ? They who 
 " through the Spirit mortify the deeds of the 
 body," — in other words, " they who are being 
 led by the Spirit of God, — they are the sons 
 of God" (that is, none but the sons of God 
 are led by the Spirit) ; " for ye have not re- 
 ceived the spirit of bondage again to fear, 
 but ye have received the spirit of adoption, 
 whereby we cry Abba, Father ; — and if chil- 
 dren, then heirs, heirs of God, joint heirs with 
 Christ ; if so be that we suffer with him, that 
 we may be glorified together." The real 
 intent of the passage, therefore, is to urge, 
 and that too upon the sons of God, a morti- 
 fying the deeds of the body, for if they pos- 
 sess this evidence, they may feel assured that, 
 being sons, and therefore joint-heirs with 
 Christ, they will be glorified with him. 
 
 If the interpretation which, in the pre- 
 
 * He does it by several steps, which we will thus describe. 
 They who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God ; 
 they who are sons of God are heirs of God, joint-heirs with 
 Christ ; and these having suffered with him, will also be 
 glorified together. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 123 
 
 ceding pages, we have put upon the Word 
 of God be correct, we have removed every 
 ground upon which the fanciful doctrine of 
 final perseverance, and its twin brother, in- 
 defectibility of grace, can stand. We mean 
 not to make further allusion to them, as we 
 trust we have sufficiently shown that baptis- 
 mal regeneration, according to the interpre- 
 tation of the Church of England, is the doc- 
 trine of the Word of God ; and if so, final 
 perseverance and indefectibility of grace must 
 be the vain conceits of man. 
 
 Before we conclude our treatise, it may be 
 advisable that we should give a brief sum- 
 mary of the evidence upon which the doctrine 
 of baptismal regeneration, as set forth by the 
 Church of England, is supported by the Word 
 of God. Her doctrine is this, that all men 
 are born in sin, or are sinful, and this sin- 
 fulness of nature remains not an inactive 
 principle, but in every man breaks out into 
 the commission of actual sin; that Christ, 
 
124 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 the Son of God, having by his death made 
 an atonement for the sins of the whole world, 
 ordained a sacrament by which the benefits 
 of his death might, for the first time, be 
 brought home to individuals ; that these 
 benefits, thereby conveyed, consist of remis- 
 sion of sins, and the gift of the Holy Ghost ; 
 by which last blessing the baptized party 
 becomes a child of God, and is thereby en- 
 titled to an inheritance in the future and 
 eternal kingdom of heaven ; that this sonship 
 binds the party by the most solemn and 
 sacred ties to a constant compliance with all 
 the holy requirements of the Gospel ; and 
 that the attainment of eternal life will de- 
 pend upon the Christian conforming himself 
 thereto ; and, moreover, that one of the bless- 
 ings of this regeneration is, that the Holy 
 Ghost takes up his abode in the baptized 
 party, and is there ever and on all occasions, 
 when sincerely and faithfully applied to, 
 ready to exert his influence, and to supply 
 powers for the sanctification of the believer. 
 
 We would now give a summary of the 
 evidence upon which the Church of England 
 rests this doctrine, which has been handed 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 125 
 
 down to her as the unanimous voice of Chris- 
 tian antiquity. 
 
 Our Saviours life was in all respects (sin 
 only excepted) the counterpart of our own. 
 Whatever he did was necessary *, not on his 
 own account, but for our sakes. He was 
 baptized, and while he was coming up out of 
 the water the Holy Ghost visibly descended t 
 upon him. This descent could not have been 
 necessary on his own account, as from con- 
 ception % he was filled with the Spirit ; it was 
 therefore for man's sake : but as our Lord's 
 miracles sufficiently attested § his divine 
 power, this visible descent of the Spirit at 
 his baptism is considered as a prophetic token 
 and surety that the Holy Ghost is invisibly 
 communicated in Christian baptism. One 
 less || than the least in the kingdom of heaven 
 was the minister employed for Christ's bap- 
 tism, yet the Holy Ghost descended^ upon 
 the baptized Jesus. Moreover, while this 
 visible descent was taking place, the voice** 
 
 * Hebrews ii. 17. Matth. iii. 15. f Matth. iii. 16. 
 
 X Luke i. 35. 
 
 § John v. 36, x. 38, xiv. 11, xv. 24. Acts ii. 22. 
 
 || Matth. xi. 11. 1 Matth. iii. 16. ** Matth. iii. 17. 
 
126 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 of the Father from heaven pronounces the 
 baptized Jesus to be the beloved Son, in whom 
 the Father was well pleased. The Church 
 therefore infers, that, as this must have been 
 designed for man's benefit, it was intended to 
 signify that in the baptism which Christ would 
 establish the parties would become the adopt- 
 ed sons of God. The Scriptures again teach 
 that our Lord gave power * or authority to 
 such as received him to become the sons of 
 God, — who would thereby be born of God j 
 that he himself declared more definitely that 
 a new birth was necessary for every person, 
 that he might enter into the kingdom of hea- 
 ven ; that he designated this new birth, a 
 birth t of water and the Spirit; that this 
 truth was announced with the solemn asseve- 
 ration of Divinity itself, twice repeated, Ve- 
 rily, verily, I say unto thee. 
 
 The Scriptures, beyond all controversy, 
 relate that our Lord instituted, in commemo- 
 ration of his death, a sacrament J which be- 
 tokens the necessity of having spiritual life 
 sustained, the outward and visible sign of the 
 
 * John i. 12. f John iii. 5. 
 
 % Matth. xxvi. 26. John vi. 53, 54. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 127 
 
 sacrament being elements by which natu- 
 ral life is supported ; and the Church con- 
 cludes that this seemed to refer to a spiritual 
 life previously communicated: a sacrament 
 having been ordained for the sustaining spi- 
 ritual life, she reasonably supposes that there 
 would be some visible token ordained for the 
 first communication of this life. She finds 
 another sacrament ordained by Christ, the 
 visible sign* of which betokens that cleansing 
 by which alone the soul could be said to be 
 spiritually alive\ and it was with this same ele- 
 ment that our Lord had associated the Spirit 
 as necessary in what he denominated a birth 
 (a beginning of life) for a man to enter into 
 his kingdom ; and it is the same element from 
 which he was ascending at his baptism when 
 the Holy Ghost lighted upon him, and he 
 was pronounced from heaven the Son of 
 God. This sacrament is baptism ; and to 
 this the Scriptures inform us that our Sa- 
 viour attached salvation^ and, according to 
 another evangelist J, remission of sins. In 
 accordance with our Lord's directions, the 
 apostles suspended the execution of their 
 
 * Matth. xxviii. 19. t Mark xvi. 16. J Luke xxiv. 47. 
 
128 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 commission* to preach the Gospel and to 
 enjoin baptism, until the scheme for human 
 salvation was fully developed by the descent 
 of the Holy Ghost. Immediately, however, 
 upon this event occurring, not a day is suf- 
 fered to intervene, but baptism t is urged and 
 administered for the remission of sins and for 
 the reception of the Holy Ghost. All the 
 cases of baptism recorded in the Scriptures 
 directly assert, or indirectly imply, that the 
 baptized parties had their sins remitted in 
 baptism, and had the Holy Ghost communi- 
 cated to them. Baptized parties are spoken 
 of in such terms as represent a merciful gift 
 of God communicated to them, even the remis- 
 sion of sins; for they are addressed as holy§ 9 
 sand ified\\, washed 9 ^, saints**. The word of 
 God also employs a variety of figurative ex- 
 pressions ft to baptized parties, which can 
 only be explained consistently with the rest 
 of Scripture by the doctrine of baptismal re- 
 generation, namely, that sins are remitted in 
 baptism, and that the Holy Ghost takes up his 
 
 * Luke xxiv. 49. f Acts ii. 38. § Ephes. i. 4. 
 || 1 Cor. i. 2. fl 1 Cor. vi. 11. 
 
 ** Rom. i. 7, v. 1, 2, viii. 1. 
 ft Rom. vi. J. ; Gal. iii. 27; 1 Cor. iii. 16, vi. 19. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 129 
 
 abode in the baptized party. Lastly, the 
 Scriptures declare that baptism had been 
 typified in former ages by various events 
 which had occurred, in each of which the 
 prominent feature is a salvation*. In ad- 
 dition to, and in confirmation of this weight 
 of Scripture evidence for the doctrine of bap- 
 tismal regeneration, it must not fail to be 
 mentioned, that the unanimous voice of the 
 Church to the present day, and of all eccle- 
 siastical writers till Calvin lived, interprets 
 Scripture as teaching that regeneration takes 
 place only in baptism. 
 
 We had hoped to have concluded ere this, 
 but we feel impelled to point out to our 
 readers, and to impress upon their most se- 
 rious and solemn consideration, that this 
 gracious, merciful gift of God, regeneration, 
 places a man in an aiofully responsible condi- 
 tion. He has received much, and accordingly 
 much will be required of him. He has a ta- 
 lent committed to him, even the unspeakable 
 gift of the Holy Ghost. This talent, the 
 Scripture informs us, and the Church teache 
 us, is to be improved. It may be suffered to lie 
 
 * 1 Cor. x. 2 ; 1 Peter iii. 21. 
 K 
 
130 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 dormant in us, it may be laid up in a napkin, 
 to be received again by our Lord when he shall 
 take account of his servants ; but such was not 
 the condition of the gift. It was stipulated 
 that we employ the talent; and they who form 
 a right estimate of its value will avail them- 
 selves of the power that it affords. With 
 its aid they will work effectually in their 
 Masters service, cherishing the hope of a 
 glorious inheritance with Christ ; they will 
 abide in him, and purify themselves even as 
 they know he is pure. 
 
 We will conclude our observations by com- 
 paring the Church's doctrine of baptismal re- 
 generation with the representation given by 
 St. Paul. This representation is the more 
 important, because it was given with the ex- 
 press object to warn Christians of the danger 
 there was lest they might finally fall. He 
 laboured in his vocation, that he might be 
 found faithful in the end ; for his sanctifica- 
 tion he kept under his body, and brought it 
 into subjection ; for by this alone could he 
 entertain the hope that he should not him- 
 self be a castaway. To enforce his own ex- 
 ample as a pattern for the Corinthians, he 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 131 
 
 introduces the circumstances of the Jews 
 passing through the Red Sea, and afterwards 
 journeying through the wilderness ; declaring 
 that these events represent the condition of 
 Christians, the passing through the Red Sea 
 being a type of Christian baptism. We have 
 already seen that the preservation of Noah 
 and his family in the ark was, according to 
 St. Peter, typical of salvation by baptism; 
 but, though this representation was perfect 
 in itself, it took no notice of the condition of 
 Christians after baptism. The object which 
 St. Paul had in view, namely, to warn Chris- 
 tians against a dangerous reliance on their 
 privileges, obliged him to refer to this con- 
 dition, and therefore the instruction which 
 the comparison will afford may be most 
 beneficial to us. We will briefly consider 
 the case of the Jews, in order that we may 
 thereby discover how far the doctrine of bap- 
 tismal regeneration is supported by the com- 
 parison. 
 
 The passage through the Red Sea was a 
 positive deliverance from a state of bondage, 
 — an actual salvation from enemies; this de- 
 liverance and this salvation being achieved 
 
132 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 solely by the power of Heaven, though Moses 
 was allowed to be the agent for its accomplish- 
 ment. The Egyptian enemies were for ever 
 destroyed in the sea, as the Jews rose from 
 its waters. The Jews were therefore actually 
 saved from every enemy behind them, and 
 were thereby placed in a condition of freedom 
 perfectly new to them. They had been pro- 
 mised the possession of the land of Canaan ; 
 but their baptism in the Red Sea, however 
 great a salvation in itself, did not give them 
 possession of that promised land. Had they 
 not passed through the sea, it would have been 
 impossible for them to have gained the land 
 of Canaan. After their passage they had still 
 to travel through the wilderness, which how- 
 ever afforded no means of sustenance and 
 support. Of vain ornaments they had brought 
 abundance with them from their land of 
 slavery; but they lacked the staff of life. 
 Without this, their salvation by the sea would 
 have been useless to them : their new life had 
 to be sustained by food miraculously supplied 
 to them, — water struck for them from a rock 
 (which rock, we are told, was in the antitype 
 Christ), and manna continually supplied ac- 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 133 
 
 cording to their daily wants. These blessings 
 were given to all the Jews. "All* our fathers 
 were under the cloud, and all passed through 
 the sea ; and were all baptized unto Moses 
 in the cloud and in the sea; and did all eat 
 the same spiritual meat ; and did all drink 
 the same spiritual drink." Yet, with the 
 far greater part of them, God was not well 
 pleased; and, in consequence, they were 
 overthrown in the wilderness ; they never 
 reached the promised land. The goodness 
 of God in having saved them from their ene- 
 mies, in having supplied them with the means 
 of sustenance during their sojourn in the wil- 
 derness, became unavailing to them, because 
 they disobeyed God^s commandments. They 
 came not into possession of the promised 
 land, because, during their passage through 
 the wilderness, they lusted, — they were ido- 
 latrous, — they committed fornication, — they 
 tempted God, — they murmured. 
 
 Now all these events, St. Paul says, are 
 
 types of Christians ; let us, then, endeavour 
 
 to trace the parallelism in the antitype. In 
 
 Christian baptism men are saved from all 
 
 * l Cor. x. l. 
 
134 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION'. 
 
 their spiritual enemies behind them, their sins 
 are put away from them, and thus Christians 
 are by baptism placed in a condition of free- 
 dom from spiritual bondage, — of safety from 
 every thing behind them, with a prospect of 
 the heavenly Canaan before them. Their 
 baptism does not give them possession of this 
 promised land, though nothing but their dis- 
 obedience can deprive them of it. They 
 have, however, to pass through the wilder- 
 ness of life; and so barren is it, that Christians 
 possess in themselves no means of providing 
 support for that spiritual life which was first 
 communicated in baptism. They need the 
 bread of life, and this, their need, is richly 
 supplied from heaven. They are furnished 
 with the means of strengthening and refresh- 
 ing their souls, — with the body and blood of 
 Christ : u Except ye eat the flesh of the Son 
 of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life 
 in you*." But, as with the Jews, so with 
 many Christians, God is not well pleased, 
 and unless they will suffer themselves to be 
 instructed and guided in heart by what the 
 Apostle has expressly declared was written 
 
 * John vi. 53. 
 
BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 135 
 
 for their admonition, they will be overthrown 
 by God in the wilderness, far away from that 
 land of eternal promise to which God's 
 righteous servants will undoubtedly attain. 
 Would they desire that their baptismal pri- 
 vileges should avail them to their final sal- 
 vation, they must flee those vices which 
 provoked God's anger against the Jews in 
 the wilderness, — they must be ever vigilant 
 in their walking, remembering the Apostle's 
 admonition, " Wherefore let him that think- 
 eth he standeth take heed lest he fall." 
 
 We have thus endeavoured to compare the 
 doctrine of Baptismal Regeneration 
 with the W T ord of God and the Standards of 
 the Church of England; and we think we 
 may without presumption entertain a con- 
 fident hope, that our remarks are sufficient 
 to refute the fallacies, to expose the incon- 
 sistencies, and to correct the mis-statements 
 which have been lately put forth upon this 
 subject. " It is incumbent on those who de- 
 sire to be faithful ministers and members of 
 the Church of England, to do what they can 
 to vindicate her purity, and rescue her prin- 
 
136 BAPTISMAL REGENERATION. 
 
 ciples from such a charge" as has been so 
 audaciously put forth. 
 
 We will only add our hope, that Christians 
 will learn ever gratefully to acknowledge the 
 gracious gift of God in having regenerated 
 them in their baptism, and that they will 
 pray that, being regenerated, they may daily 
 be renewed by God's Holy Spirit, endeavour- 
 ing in their lives to u be followers of St. 
 Paul, even as he also was of Christ." 
 
 THE END. 
 
 by Richard arm John E. Taylor, Red Lion Court, Fleet Street .