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THE 
 
 FAMILY BAPTIST; 
 
 OR, 
 
 A TREATISE 
 
 ON THE 
 
 SUBJECTS, MODE, AND MORAL DESIGNS 
 
 OF 
 
 CHRISTIAN BAPTISM, 
 
 IN RELATION TO 
 
 INDIVIDUALS, FAMILIES, CHURCHES AND MISSIONS. 
 
 BY GEORGE NEWBURY, 
 
 Burnham, Bucks. 
 
 A FAMILY BAPTIST AND lNDLPENDENT MINISTER. 
 
 " And in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 
 
 Gen. xii. 3. 
 " And I baptized also the household (family) of Stephanas." 
 
 1 Cor. i. 1C. 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR, 
 
 AND SOLD BY KELLY & SON, HOUNDSDITCH. 
 
 SOLD ALSO, BY WESTI.EY AND DAVIS, STATIONERS' COURT ; HOLDS- 
 
 WORTH 3t BALL, ST. PAUL'S CHURCH YARD ; NISBET, BERNER'S STREET, 
 
 OXFORD STREET; WETION, MAIDENHEAD ; AND ALL BOOKSELLERS. 
 
 1830. 
 
[ENTERED AT STATIONERS' HALL.] 
 
 KELT.Y AND SON, PRINTERS, IIOUKDSDITCH. 
 

 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 The author of the following treatise, lias 
 for many years felt a conviction, that the 
 subject of Christian baptism had not been 
 exhibited in that united point of view, in 
 relation to familes, to churches, and to mis- 
 sions, which its importance demands, espe- 
 cially, when it is considered as the first and 
 leading rite of the Christian dispensation. 
 
 He has occasionally conversed with his 
 ministerial brethren on the subject, and has 
 expressed to some of them, his wish that 
 they would take it up, but he could not pre- 
 vail with them so to do. He has also read 
 most of the works on the subject, which have 
 appeared from time to time, and collected 
 and transcribed from them, those sentiments 
 which accorded with his own views, and ap- 
 
IV 
 
 pcarecl to him most worthy of notice. The 
 principal authors he has laid under tribute, 
 are, Rev. Dr. Williams, Ewing, Edwards, 
 Price, and Bass, and the late Mr. Taylor. 
 To these authors he would express his grate- 
 ful acknowledgments, for the assistance they 
 have afforded him. He has, usually, em- 
 bodied the sentiments of these writers in the 
 different parts of this work, where they ap- 
 peared most adapted to his purpose and plan, 
 and he has generally given them in his own 
 language. He has, therefore, made no re- 
 ference to any of their works, by way of 
 marginal quotation, with the exception of 
 Mr. Taylor's letters to the deacon of a baptist 
 church. The reason of his noticing the 
 latter, will appear obvious to the reader. 
 
 This plan he has adopted, in order to give 
 as clear a view of the subject, as his abilities 
 would enable him, and to prevent the mind 
 of the reader from being drawn away from 
 the relative bearings of those points im- 
 
mediately before him, on the whole question: 
 that his decision, either for the principles 
 here laid down, or against them ; might be 
 formed, on a review of the whole, and not of 
 particular or detached parts. 
 
 The author makes no apology for the sen- 
 timents advanced, as he feels a conviction, 
 that they are founded on the historical records 
 of the sacred scriptures ; at the same time, 
 he. feels some apology is needful, for the 
 imperfect manner in which the work is ex- 
 ecuted, and for the defects which may be 
 discovered in it. The author considers the 
 epithets, " a Baptist," and " the Baptist 
 Denomination," to be improperly and unjustly 
 assumed, as exclusively applicable to them- 
 selves, by those who deny family baptism ; 
 and that those who practice family baptism, 
 are equally entitled to the appellation, as 
 they believe baptism to be a scriptural or- 
 dinance, as really as their opponents, and 
 practice it to a greater extent. For this 
 
VI 
 
 reason, he has chosen for himself, and hi* 
 work, the title of " The Family Baptist." 
 This title he has adopted for two reasons. 
 
 I. It is more comprehensive, clear, defi- 
 nite, and appropriate, than that of " Paedo- 
 baptist," when applied to those so called, 
 because they do not confine baptism to in- 
 fants, but extend it to children of any age, 
 who are under the government of their 
 parents. 
 
 II. It is a title our opponents can never 
 appropriate to themselves. They may, it is 
 true, occasionally baptize all the individuals 
 of a family, both parents and children ; but 
 they baptize them only in their individual 
 capacity, on the personal profession of their 
 faith, by the same principle on which they 
 baptize persons who bear no family relation 
 to each other. They act on a principle quite 
 opposite to that, on which children are ad- 
 mitted in the right, and on the faith of their 
 
VII 
 
 parents, which is the principle on which the 
 families of Noah, Abraham, Lydia, and the 
 Gaoler, were admitted into their respective 
 dispensations, by its introductory rite ; and 
 thereby, placed under the same means of 
 grace with their parents, for their instruction 
 in the knowledge of those sacred truths 
 which God had revealed, and the certainty 
 of which he had confirmed and sealed to 
 them both, by the sacred rite he had ap- 
 pointed. 
 
 The author hopes, he shall not be charged 
 with unwarrantable presumption, if he sug- 
 gests a thought, or two, on this head. In 
 his opinion, those who practice family bap- 
 tism, are under a misnomer, and have no 
 distinctive appellation, which expresses cor- 
 rectly their principles or practice. Should 
 the terms, "family baptist and family bap- 
 tism," be adopted and made use of in con- 
 versation, preaching, and writing, they would 
 soon become established, and supersede the 
 
VIII 
 
 invidious and indefinite terms, "independent 
 and baptist. These terms are calculated lb 
 mislead, because independents hold with 
 baptism, and baptists, in general* are in their 
 church government, independent. These 
 distinctions, our opponents seem assiduous to 
 maintain, and by our forbearance, we pa- 
 tronize them therein. The author is also 
 fully aware, that this distinction has some- 
 times been employed to convey the insinua- 
 tion, that independents are indifferent to bap- 
 tism, or neglect it altogether, and they have 
 teen held up to scorn, and treated as unbap- 
 tized persons. 
 
 Let the following investigation speak for 
 them, whether they are not entitled to the 
 appellation of " baptist/' as well as their 
 opponents, and to be respected as such. 
 
 The author begs it to be understood, that 
 his work is not intended as a formal refuta- 
 tion, of the system of those who differ from 
 
IX 
 
 him on the subject ; therefore, when he has 
 introduced their sentiments, it has been by 
 way of comparison with his own, that the 
 reader might form his own judgment, and 
 adopt that side of the question, which his 
 onvictions may lead him to think, has the 
 strongest claim. The author has no personal 
 animosity towards those who differ from him 
 on the subject, and could he have done jus- 
 tice to his subject, by employing language 
 less strong and decided, than he has some- 
 times made use of, he would gladly have 
 done so. 
 
 It is the authors earnest desire and prayer, 
 that we may all be "baptized into one spirit," 
 if not into one form or sentiment, on the 
 subject, and that, we may continue fighting 
 against the common enemies of Christianity, 
 under the same captain of salvation, if not 
 under the same banner ; that by the united 
 exertions of christians of various dcnomina 
 tions, the kingdom of Satan may be clashed 
 
to the ground, and the kingdom of Imraa- 
 nuel advanced triumphantly, until all the 
 families and nations of the earth shall be 
 converted, and embrace " the truth as it is 
 in Jesus." He would devoutly say, "Let 
 the whole earth be filled with his glory 
 Amen and Amen." 
 
 G. NEWBURY. 
 
 Bumham, Bucks. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Baptism is a subject, which has divided 
 the professing church of Christ for ages, and 
 different communities have adopted different 
 systems respecting it : nor is this the only 
 division that has taken place ; but those who 
 have been united in the general outlines of 
 the same system, have differed respecting some 
 of its particular parts and designs. This has 
 been common to all the systems : so that the 
 advocate of one, cannot throw a stone at the 
 other, without having it rebound on his own 
 head. This should humble all, and produce 
 respectful deference to the opinions of each 
 other, however confident we may feel, that 
 we ourselves are in the right. 
 
 As this is the state of the question, it is desi- 
 rable, if possible, to reduce each system to its 
 first principles ; or to that fundamental pro- 
 position, whether simple or complex, on 
 which each system is built, and to place them 
 in contrast, by way of comparison. Whether 
 the following statement approaches near to 
 this point, must be left for each party to 
 judge for themselves ; and in any point in 
 
XII 
 
 which the author is incorrect, it will be for 
 the supporters of each system, to point out 
 the error, and present to the public their own 
 fundamental principle, in their own language, 
 and their reasons for holding it. 
 
 In the author's view, three systems have 
 been adopted, and three fundamental pro- 
 positions, on some one of which, each system 
 is built, in relation to the subject of baptism. 
 
 Proposition I. Christian baptism is rege- 
 neration ; wherein the subject is made a 
 member of Christ, a child of God, and an 
 inheritor of the kingdom of heaven. 
 
 II. Christian baptism is an ordinance 
 given to the church, for the admission of its 
 members into a full communion in its privi- 
 leges ; and to which none have a right, but 
 those who, by a credible profession of their 
 faith in Christ, can give evidences of their 
 regeneration. 
 
 III. Christian baptism is God's gracious 
 and confirming seal, to his own revealed 
 truth, and an introductory means of grace, 
 to bring its subjects into that relation to the 
 church, which places them under those mi- 
 nisterial instructions, which are the means, 
 through the influences of the Holy Spirit, of 
 producing regeneration, or of advancing the 
 spiritual growth of the soul, which has been 
 born again ; thereby, qualifying the subject 
 
XIII 
 
 to be admitted into a full communion with 
 the church, in all her privileges. 
 
 The truth of the first proposition, upon 
 the subject of baptism, the author denies, as 
 being unscriptural, and contrary to the na- 
 tural order of things, as it substitutes the 
 sign for the thing signified ; and ascribes to the 
 visible agent and sign, that which exclusively 
 belongs to the operations of the Spirit of God. 
 
 The truth of the second proposition is also 
 denied, upon the principle that it assumes 
 the right of establishing an absolute law, or 
 rule, as to the qualification required in the 
 subjects of baptism. It acts on a principle 
 which the apostles never acted upon, and as- 
 sumes a prerogative, to set in judgment on 
 the spiritual condition of the subject, of which 
 Christ alone can be the judge, and with 
 which prerogative, he never invested any 
 apostles, ministers, or church. 
 
 The third proposition, is held and maintained 
 in the following work, as the scriptural one. 
 
 There are also, two propositions maintained 
 in regard to the mode of baptism. 
 
 Proposition I. The scriptural mode of 
 christian baptism, is nothing less than a total 
 immersion, or plunging of the body under 
 water, in the name of the Father, and of the 
 Son, and the Holy Ghost.* 
 
 * The question has been asked — Whether the unwor- 
 thiness of the agent who administers the ordinance of 
 
XIV 
 
 II. The scriptural mode of christian bap- 
 tism, is the application of water to the body, 
 either by sprinkling, pouring, or plunging, 
 in the name of the Father, and of the Son, 
 and of the Holy Ghost. 
 
 The truth of the first proposition, that 
 plunging or immersion, is essential to the 
 administration of the ordinance, is denied ; 
 and it is affirmed, that sprinkling, or pouring, 
 are equally scriptural modes, as the essence 
 of the ordinance does not consist in one 
 mode, more than another, but in the sacred 
 names into which the subject is baptized ; 
 and the reasons for this decision, will be 
 found in the following pages. 
 
 The author would also advertize his read- 
 ers, that he has adopted the following rules 
 of interpretation. 
 
 Rule I. That the scripture is in accord- 
 ance with itself, and that one part is entitled 
 to be illustrated by another ; " comparing 
 spiritual things with spiritual." 
 
 II. That the evidence afforded, either 
 by the Old or New Testament, in support of 
 
 baptism, from the unfitness of his character, or his union 
 to a professing christian church, that is corrupt in some 
 of its doctrines and discipline : does, or does not, in- 
 validate the ordinance ? In the author's opinion, it 
 does not, as long as the original form of the institution 
 is retained, of baptizing the subject in the name of the 
 Father, &c. ; and for this reason, that the character of 
 the agent who affixes the seal to a deed, does not de- 
 stroy its validity. 
 
xv 
 
 the subject treated of, is admissible, for its 
 confirmation ; from the unity of their design ; 
 the analogy that subsists between one dis- 
 pensation and another ; as well as from the 
 frequent reference the New makes to the Old, 
 in relation to its doctrines, precepts, and 
 ritual institutions. 
 
 III. That the change from one dispen- 
 sation to another, which the church has un- 
 dergone in its external modes of worship, 
 has not altered nor destroyed the fundamental 
 laws, essential constitution, or identity of 
 the church, in respect to its rights and pri- 
 vileges. 
 
 IV. That rights and privileges once 
 granted and confirmed, continue unaltered, 
 and remain in full force through every suc- 
 ceeding dispensation ; except subsequently 
 abolished by a positive law, published and 
 made known by the lawgiver himself. 
 
 V. That there is an analogy between the 
 corresponding rites and ordinance of one 
 dispensation and another, in their design, 
 the rights of their subjects, extent of pri- 
 vileges, and moral ends. 
 
 Having premised these observations, as a 
 key to his work, the author must request of 
 his readers, to bear them in mind as they 
 proceed ; and then, he must leave them to 
 
XVJ 
 
 judge for themselves, how far his investiga- 
 tions and conclusion, bear him out in his 
 principles. 
 
 N. B. The author has avoided the use of 
 the term sacrament, as the propriety of its 
 use in reference to baptism is disputed, and he 
 has, in general, substituted the terms intro- 
 ductory or initiatory rite, ordinance, &c. in re- 
 ference to baptism ; and commemorative rite, 
 &c. in reference to the Lord's supper, &c. 
 
A 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 .__ 
 
 Chap. PART I. 
 
 I. Tlie different dispensations of the church from the 
 
 beginning - , to the coming- of Christ. 
 
 II. The history of John the baptist's ministry and baptism. 
 
 III. The history of Christ's personal ministry, as con- 
 nected with baptism, and his conduct to children. 
 
 IV. Christ's final commission to his disciples. 
 
 V. The disciples opening their commission on the day of 
 
 pentecost. 
 
 VI. The apostles' practice in baptizing- houses or families . 
 
 PART II. 
 THE MODE OF CHRISTIAN BAPTISM. 
 
 I. Preliminary observations. 
 
 II. The scriptural use of the terms, baptize and baptism. 
 
 III. Baptism by the Holy Ghost. 
 
 IV. Baptism by water. 
 
 V. A review of the principal grounds and reasons adduced 
 
 in support of immersion baptism. 
 
 VI. Miscellaneous observations on the mode of baptism. 
 
 PART III. 
 THE MORAL DESIGNS OF BAPTISM. 
 
 I. In its relation to former dispensations. 
 
 II. In its relation to the preaching of the gospel. 
 
 III. In its relation to those duties, which are subsequent 
 to baptism, as pointed out in the scriptuies. 
 
 IV. In its relation to families. 
 
 V. In its relation to ministers and churches. 
 
 VI. In relation to missions. 
 
ERRATA. 
 
 Page. 
 
 Line. 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 7. 
 
 Instead 
 
 of perforins, read perform. 
 
 1 
 
 9. 
 
 — 
 
 is — as. 
 
 6 
 
 11. 
 
 — 
 
 ministry — ministers. 
 
 12 
 
 15. 
 
 — 
 
 preuous — previous. 
 
 17 
 
 14. 
 
 mmm 
 
 of the very same distinguishing 
 property in, Lc. 
 
 21 
 
 11. 
 
 — 
 
 sanctifying' — sanctioning. 
 
 34 
 
 11. 
 
 — 
 
 he — Christ. 
 
 GO 
 
 11. 
 
 — 
 
 preaching- — teaclijng. 
 
 129 
 
 21. 
 
 — 
 
 they— then. 
 
 161 
 
 30. 
 
 — 
 
 our fruit — your fruit. 
 
 The author is sorry that, through his distance from the 
 press, the foregoing errata has crept into the work, which 
 he must heg the reader to correct. 
 
PART FIRST. 
 
 * 
 
 ON THE PROPER SUBJECTS OF 
 BAPTISM. 
 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INCLUDING THE DIFFERENT DISPENSATIONS OF THE 
 CHURCH, FROM THE BEGINNING, TO THE COMING 
 OF CHRIST. 
 
 In the performance of any religious duty, 
 our concern should be to execute it agreeably 
 to the revealed will of God, as given in his 
 word — His will being the proper rule of our 
 actions. 
 
 The sacred Scriptures, in reference to 
 human actions, performs a twofold part ; 
 they make more clear, certain, and authentic, 
 what human reason perceived is probable ; 
 they enjoin duties, which without them never 
 could have been discovered as obligatory. 
 From this twofold use of divine revelation, 
 arises the obvious distinction between moral 
 and positive law. This distinction, as such, 
 is clear upon this principle ; viz. in the 
 moral command, we discern the reason 
 of the precept in the command itself; but 
 
 B 
 
2 
 
 in the positive, the reason does not appear 
 so as to make it obligatory, except on the 
 mere authority of the lawgiver. Thus, to 
 love, fear, and serve God, are moral duties, 
 and the precept to do so, is sufficiently clear 
 of itself, from our relation to him. But the 
 mode how, and the season when, we should 
 render any external act of worship to him, 
 whether the fifth, seventh, or tenth day, &c. can 
 only be known by a positive injunction of the 
 lawgiver ; and this alone makes it obligatory, 
 whether we can, or cannot, discern the rea- 
 sons of its appointment. This principle 
 applies to all the positive* institutions given 
 in the word of God. 
 
 * All positive duties, or precepts, are of an external 
 nature. They are the boundary lines between the 
 church and the world. The very visibility of the 
 church, in its external form, consists in its positive in- 
 stitutions Those duties enjoined on man, the reason 
 and propriety of which did not appear previous to their 
 appointment, are of this nature. 
 
 If any positive and moral duties interfere, so that 
 one must be omitted, the question is, which of the two 
 must give place to the other. The Scriptures decide 
 that the positive must uniformly give place to the moral. 
 1 Samuel xv. 22. " Behold ! to obey is better than sa- 
 crifice." Matthew xii. 7. " But if ye had known 
 what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, 
 ye would not have condemned the guiltless." Obe- 
 dience to God is a moral precept; acts of mercy to 
 man, moral duties ; sacrifices are positive ones. Po- 
 sitive duties should never be neglected when they do 
 
3 
 
 The positive institutions recorded in divine 
 revelation, were appointed at different times, 
 and were connected with some particular 
 event in the church ; as, at the commence- 
 ment of some new circumstance in its history. 
 Fixing some remarkable epoch, connected 
 with some additional important promise made 
 at the time, to which the institution was 
 fixed as a seal and a sign, to pledge the cer- 
 tainty of the promise, till it had its accom ■ 
 plishment. Romans iv. 11-13. 
 
 The institutes and precepts appointed for 
 the practice of the church, since the fall of 
 man, are the following, viz. : 
 
 I. Sacrifices, and coats of skin. Genesis 
 iii. 15-21. 
 
 II. The introduction of Noah and his 
 family into the ark. Genesis vii. 1. He- 
 brews xi. 7-1. Peter iii. 20-21. 
 
 III. The bow in the clouds. Genesis ix. 
 13-17. 
 
 IV. Circumcision. Genesis xvii. 10-16. 
 
 V. The passover. Exodus xiii. 3-10. 
 
 VI. The cloud in the Red Sea. Exodus 
 xiv. 19. 1 Corinthians x. 1-2. 
 
 VII. Baptism. Matthew xxviii. 19. 
 
 not interfere with moral, and should always be per- 
 formed from moral considerations, drawn from the au- 
 thority of the lawgiver. 
 
VIII. The Lord's supper. Matthew xxvi. 
 27-28. 
 
 The coats of skin, the ark, and the cloud 
 in the Red Sea, were appointed to seal the 
 promises at the time to which they par- 
 ticularly referred ; but to cease in their prac- 
 tice, and remain to us as types and figures of 
 spiritual things. 1 Corinthians x. 7, 11. 
 1 Peter iii. 20-21 ; with others that might 
 be mentioned. The others were to be adopted 
 as universal rites, to be continued in practice 
 till the promises they sealed had their accom- 
 plishment. These were, 
 
 1. Sacrifices.* } These referred to the 
 
 2. Circumcision. > first advent of Christ, and 
 
 3. The Passover. } were then to cease. 
 
 4. Baptism. } These were to conti- 
 
 5. The Lord's Sup- >nue till the second ad- 
 per. ) vent of Christ. 
 
 -v This being the sign and 
 I seal of God's providential 
 rp, . , f promises to mankind, will 
 
 e > continue till the end of 
 time ; and may be con- 
 sidered as an appendix 
 / to the covenant of grace. 
 
 clouds. 
 
 i 
 
 • All propitiatory sacrifices, being not only seals, but 
 also types, of him who was to make a final atonement 
 for sin, had their accomplishment in that atonement, 
 and therefore ceased with all other sacrifices which de- 
 rived their virtue from the propitiatory; as also the Jew- 
 ish ritual in general. 
 
In some of these rites, there is a striking 
 
 analogy between those of the Old and New 
 
 Testament, in their use and design. 
 
 Circumcision 1 The initiatory rites of 
 
 and > their respective dispen- 
 
 Baptism. ) sations. 
 
 } The commemorative, 
 The Passover and f and confirming rites, of 
 the Lord's Supper. £ their respective dispen- 
 j sations. 
 
 In speaking of these universal rites as 
 seals, it is necessary to have a clear under- 
 standing of two things. First. The nature of 
 the blessing to be sealed ; and Second. The 
 manner in which they may be said to be sealed. 
 
 The blessings God seals by these divinely 
 appointed institutions, are the acts of his 
 own free and sovereign grace, made to man 
 as a fallen creature. These he gives as a free 
 charter of mercies, and establishes them by 
 his own covenant engagements, reveals and 
 proclaims them in his free promises, and 
 seals those promises by his institutions. This 
 charter of covenanted mercies, with their 
 seals, is not to be understood as a mutual 
 agreement between man and man, in which 
 each party stands on equal terms, and are at 
 liberty to accede to, or dissent from, its con- 
 ditions : no ! *but in the sense of those acts of 
 authoritv, which are published as the royal 
 b2 
 
(> 
 
 will of the sovereign, such as proclamations, 
 letters patent, charters, &c. which are granted 
 under his royal seal. In this sense, God, as 
 the king of heaven does seal, by these divine 
 institutions, the covenant of chartered mer- 
 cies, without the previous assent of sinful 
 mortals, who are laid by those acts of his fa- 
 vour, under the strongest obligations, to obey 
 his mandates, believe his promises, respect 
 his institutions, and seek the blessings exhi- 
 bited and confirmed thereon. That this is a 
 correct view of the seal, in reference to divine 
 institutions is more fully confirmed, when we 
 consider that God's ministry, as such, and as 
 his representatives, are the only accredited 
 persons appointed to administer (or super- 
 intend and appoint the administration, of) 
 those rites in his name, to certify the truth of 
 his word. 
 
 The principal blessing exhibited, is the 
 righteousness of faith ; or salvation and eter- 
 nal life through the mediation of our divine 
 Redeemer; and this he does exhibit, and 
 seal, to all wherever the gospel comes with 
 its institutions ; whether it be received or 
 rejected by those to whom the proclamation 
 is made. 
 
 In tracing the different dispensations of 
 chartered mercies and privileges, there is one 
 principle recognized in them all, and runs 
 
through the whole series of links, in this 
 beautiful chain of gracious dispensations ; 
 namely, children were admitted into an ex- 
 ternal relation to the church, in the right and 
 privilege of their parents, and by the same 
 act of initiation as themselves. 
 
 This principle was intimated to our first 
 parents : for in common with, and at the time 
 of giving, the first promise, — the seed of the 
 woman should bruise the serpent's head, which 
 is admitted to be au exhibition and promulga- 
 tion of gospel grace, God promised children to 
 them, and that the blessings exhibited in the 
 promise, were for their children's benefit as 
 well as their own, if not voluntarily rejected; 
 as may be seen in the history of Cain and 
 Abel, Genesis iv. — Hebrews xi. 4. 
 
 This principle was more clearly recognized 
 in the introduction of Noah and his family 
 into the ark. The privilege was this : — 
 " Come thou, and all thy house, (family) into 
 the ark ?" The ground and reason of it was 
 this, — " for thee have I seen righteous in this 
 generation." This introduction into the ark, 
 Peter says, is a figure of baptism, 1 Peter 
 iii. 20-21 ; but in what way it could be so, 
 except in the children's being admitted into 
 the ark in the father's right, is not easy to 
 be conceived. This view of it, is also con- 
 firmed by the apostle, Hebrews xi. 7. " By 
 
8 
 
 faith Noah being warned of God, prepared an 
 ark for the saving of his house (family.)' 
 Thus Noah answered a good conscience to- 
 wards God, in preparing the ark, wherein 
 eight souls were saved by water, or from 
 water, on the faith and conduct of Noah ; 
 and this, says Peter, is a figure of baptism. 
 
 If it be objected that Noah's family were 
 adults, this does not alter the principle ; for 
 the question is not what their age was, but 
 in whose right were they admitted, in their 
 own, or their parents 1 and the scripture is 
 uniform, in ascribing it to be in the right of 
 their parents. Heb. xi. 7. 
 
 If we pass on to God's dealings with 
 Abraham, we shall discover the same prin- 
 ciple, not only recognized, but fully esta- 
 blished in the most definite manner, so as to 
 exclude all doubt on the subject. God, in 
 his dealings with Abraham, did not only con- 
 firm the former blessings and privileges al- 
 ready given to the church, but greatly en- 
 larged them, with superadded favours and 
 promises ; which he ratified in the most so- 
 lemn manner : Genesis, chap. xii. 2, 3 ; xvii. 
 7; xxii. 15-18. 
 
 At the same time, God appointed circum- 
 cision, as an additional seal to the covenant 
 of chartered mercies, to be adopted for uni- 
 versal practice ; and to continue in force, till 
 
9 
 
 the promise it specially sealed, had its accom- 
 plishment: the essence of which was, to be 
 a God to him and his seed after him. Gene- 
 sis xvi. 9-14. 
 
 The principal promise given to Abraham 
 and his seed, in substance was the same as 
 that given to our first parents, and confirmed 
 to Noah: " That in him, and in his seed, 
 all the nations of the earth should be blessed." 
 Genesis xxii. 18. 
 
 This promise, the apostle declares, exclu- 
 sively belongs to Christ, and to him alone. 
 Galatians iii. 16. " Now to Abraham and his 
 seed were the promises made." He saith 
 not, and to seeds, as of many, but as of one ; 
 " and to thy seed, which is Christ." Gal. iii. 
 16-17. Thus God preached before the gos- 
 pel unto Abraham, saying, " in thee shall 
 all nations be blessed," ver. 8; "so that he 
 saw the day of Christ, and was glad." John 
 viii. 5-6. " And he received the sign of cir- 
 cumcision, a seal of righteousness, which is 
 by faith." Romans iv. 11. In the faith of 
 the divine promise, he circumcised himself, 
 and all the males of his house; and also 
 Isaac, when he was only eight days old, ac- 
 cording to the divine command. The reason 
 why the seal was to be applied in early in- 
 fancy, was this : — because the promise was 
 to the seed of Abraham, the same as to 
 
10 
 
 Abraham himself. The essence of the pro- 
 mise was this — to be a God to him, and his 
 seed; therefore, the confirming seal was to 
 be applied in early infancy. 
 
 Females, from the nature of this seal, 
 were not personal subjects of it; but they 
 were constant witnesses to it : and, it was a 
 seal even to Sarah, and her daughters, in the 
 same manner that sacrifices were, so that in 
 this instance the children were treated as the 
 parent; the males being treated as Abraham, 
 and the females as Sarah. 
 
 That this seal, in its primary appointment, 
 had respect to spiritual blessings ; and only 
 in a subordinate sense, a reference to tem- 
 poral blessings, in the inheritance of Canaan 
 by the Jews, will appear more evident, if we 
 consider the extent of its application. God 
 commanded Abraham, not only to circumcise 
 himself, and the children of his own body, 
 but that he should extend it to all the males 
 in his house, born in his house, or bought 
 with his money, which were not of his seed ; 
 (remarkable expression !) and consequently 
 they had no share in the inheritance of Ca- 
 naan ; even these, were to have the seal ap- 
 plied in the same manner, and for the same 
 end, as Abraham and his posterity ; so that 
 " the blessing of Abraham might begin to 
 come on the gentiles, from its first appoint- 
 
11 
 
 ment, even the righteousneous of faith." 
 Galations iii. 15-11. 
 
 It is also an observable fact, that in every 
 dispensation, temporal blessings were added 
 to spiritual ones. To our first parents bread 
 was promised, Genesis iii. 19 ; to Noah, 
 seed-time and harvest; to Abraham, Canaan, 
 Genesis viii. 22: by Christ, " seek first the 
 kingdom of God, and all these things shall 
 be added unto you." Matthew vi. 33. — 
 Paul, " Godliness is profitable for all things, 
 having the promise of the life that now is, 
 and of that which is to come." 1 Timothy 
 iv. 8. 
 
 These promises, with others that might be 
 mentioned, are as an appendix to the bless- 
 ings of salvation ; and are dependent thereon, 
 and of which the bow in the cloud is the 
 appointed seal. 
 
 Circumcision is not the first link in the 
 chain ; no, sacrifices were to continue till the 
 divine oblation was made ; and the bow, till 
 the second coming of the Saviour : but 
 though it is not the first link, yet, for its 
 definitiveness and preciousness, it nj|y justly 
 be termed the golden link. 
 
 Those grants and seals which had been con- 
 firmed to Abraham, were engrafted into the 
 Mosaic dispensation, particularly sacrifices and 
 circumcision, or more properly speaking, the 
 
12 
 
 Mosaic ritual was engrafted on them ; and 
 among its various institutions, (of which we 
 cannot at present particularly speak,) there 
 is one that claims our attention — the Passover. 
 
 This was a divine rite, instituted to com- 
 memorate Israel's deliverance out of Egypt ; 
 typifying and sealing spiritual blessings, es- 
 pecially our redemption by Christ. This ordi- 
 nance bears the same analogy to the Lord's 
 supper, as circumcision does to baptism. 
 
 In examining the history of the passover as 
 a divine ordinance, we shall find that it re- 
 quired qualifications for its celebration ; cir- 
 cumcision did not ; for while circumcision was 
 a precious necessary qualification, it was not 
 the only one required. 
 
 The passover required that every individual 
 who partook of it, should undergo a previous 
 personal purification. And so strict was the 
 law, that if any attempted to break through 
 it, he was threatened to be cut off from his 
 people : therefore, to prevent abuse, and in 
 order to accommodate those who were unclean, 
 or from home, &c. at the time of its first ce- 
 lebration, a second passover was appointed 
 to be kept on the 14th day of the second 
 month, Num. ix. 9-14. This order of things 
 pointed out to them, and to us too, that 
 somethiug more of a personal nature in reli- 
 gion, is required for the celebration of a 
 
commemorative ordinance, in which we are 
 active agents, than in an initiatory ordinance, 
 in which we are passive subjects. 
 
 If it be urged, that children underwent 
 the same purifications as their parents, and 
 did actually partake of the passover ; granted ; 
 but this they could not do as feasting on a 
 sacrifice commemoratively, before they had 
 a capacity to understand its design ; there- 
 fore, the Israelites were enjoined to instruct 
 them into its meaning, as soon as they had 
 capacity to understand it, Ex. xii. 26 ; that 
 they might partake of it commemoratively, 
 or as a commemorative ordinance. We see 
 that God judged them suitable subjects for the 
 initiatory seal, before they could be suitable 
 subjects of the commemorative ; and thus we 
 see that these ordinances, in each case, have 
 a closer analogy than appears at first sight. 
 In tracing the analogies in the initiatory or- 
 dinance, we see that it claims priority in point 
 of time ; to be administered but once to the 
 same subject, and in each case, the subject 
 is passive in its administration ; having the 
 rite performed upon him, by an appointed 
 agent : but in the commemorative, in each 
 case, the previous purifications were to be 
 repeated by each subject, as frequently as 
 opportunity offered for its celebration. 
 
 None could partake of it commemoratively, 
 c 
 
14 
 
 who had not a capacity to understand its na- 
 ture and design; yet, possessing this, they 
 were not entitled to the privileges, without 
 conforming to the rules prescribed for its 
 celebration, although subjects of the initia- 
 tory rite. 
 
 rn t> ? " No unclean person shall 
 
 lne Jrassover. ? . ,1 c „ 1 
 3 eat thereot. 
 
 The Lord's > " Let a man examine him- 
 Supper. $ self and eat of this bread." 
 Any person eating it as a commemorative 
 ordinance unworthily, in either case, is threat- 
 ened with a similar punishment. 
 In the Pass- > To be cut off from his 
 over. $ people. 
 
 T +li r d' } ea * s an( ^ drinks dam- 
 
 c > nation (or condemnation) to 
 
 supper. V i • i^ 
 ri 3 himselt. 
 
 Thus we see in the former case, a person 
 was judged a fit subject for the initiatory 
 rite, even for years before he could be a ca- 
 pable subject of, or qualified for the com- 
 memorative rite; and, therefore, the latter re- 
 quired higher qualifications than the former. 
 
 The analogy between the passover and the 
 Lord's Supper, has in general been admitted 
 by those who deny it between circumcision 
 and baptism ; but surely, the ground for the 
 latter, is equally as clear and strong as that 
 of the former : it rests on the same prin- 
 
15 
 
 ciple, and is supported by the same divine 
 authority. The same apostle who has said, 
 " Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed for us," 
 1 Cor. v. 7 ; has also said, Colos. ii. 11-12, 
 " In whom also ye are circumcised with the 
 circumcision without hands, in putting off the 
 body of the sins of the flesh by the circumci- 
 sion of Christ; buried with him in baptism, 
 wherein also ye are risen with him, through 
 the faith of the operation of God, wha hath 
 raised him from the dead." Now our present 
 inquiry is not the particular meaning of the 
 passage, but to notice, that the apostle draws 
 the same analogy between circumcision and 
 baptism in this passage, as he has done be- 
 tween the passover and the Lord's supper, 
 in the other. This shews the discrepancy of 
 the objection in the one case, as well as in the 
 other; and its discordance with the sacred 
 records. 
 
 In addition to the passover, one of the 
 most distinguishing features of the Mosaic 
 dispensations, was a system of divers bap- 
 tisms. The following list of them may be 
 noticed : — 
 
 I. The people were introduced into the 
 Mosaic dispensation, by being baptized unto 
 Moses, under the cloud, and in the Red Sea. 
 Ex. xiv. 22.— 1 Cor. x. 1-2. 
 
 II. The people were prepared, by a pre- 
 
16 
 
 vious baptism, or purification, for receiving 
 the law at Mount Sinai. Ex. xix. 14. 
 
 III. The tabernacle, with its furniture, 
 &c. was dedicated by baptism. Ex. xxiv. 6-8. 
 Lev. viii. 10-11. 
 
 IV. The priests were consecrated to their 
 sacred office, among other things, by bap- 
 tism. Ex. xix. 4; xxx. 18-21; xl. 12. 
 
 V. Various ceremonial uncleannesses were 
 among other things, purified by baptism. 
 Lev. xiv. 7-9 ; xvii. 15-16 ; xxii. 6. Num. 
 xix. 7-21. 
 
 These divers baptisms were of three sorts : 
 Sprinkling, Heb. ix. 13-19; Pouring, Lev. 
 xiv. 18 ; Washing. 
 
 The baptisms were in constant practice 
 among the Jews, from day to day, so that 
 their minds must have been as familiar with 
 them, as with any other practice of daily oc- 
 currence, and probably gave rise to the fol- 
 lowing practices among them in after ages. 
 
 I. Making it one essential article of their 
 faith, in entering into covenant with God. 
 If the person was a male, the articles of their 
 faith were three, circumcision, baptism, sa- 
 crifices ; if a female two, baptism and oblation.* 
 
 * An article in the Congregational Magazine for Oc- 
 tober, 1828, page 523, gives the following quotations 
 from Dr. Lightfoot's works, folio edition, page 107. 
 
 " All the nation of Israel do assert, as with one 
 
17 
 
 II. Their tradition of ceremoniously wash- 
 ing 1 , or baptizing* themselves before meat, 
 and their furniture and cooking- utensils after 
 meat. 
 
 III. The practice of baptizing 1 their prose- 
 lytes, on their admission into the Jewish 
 church, according to the note annexed : — ■ 
 Whenever any heathen will betake himself, 
 and be joined to the covenant of Israel; vo- 
 luntary circumcision, baptism, and oblation, 
 are required ; but, if a woman, baptism and 
 oblation. 
 
 These divers baptisms, before mentioned, 
 were the very same distinguishing property 
 of the Mosaic dispensation ; as sacrifices and 
 circumcision had been instituted and prac- 
 ticed in the church, for centuries before their 
 appointment. Now, seeing that these divers 
 baptisms were so intimately connected, and 
 so completely interwoven with all the Jewish 
 religious institutions, we need not wonder, 
 that the people went out so easily, in such 
 
 mouth, that all the nation of Israel were brought into 
 covenant among other things, by baptism. Israel, saith 
 Maimodies, the great interpreter of the Jewish law, was 
 admitted into covenant by three things, namely — cir- 
 cumcision, baptism, and sacrifice. Again, he says, 
 whenever any heathen will betake himself and be joined 
 to the covenant of Israel, voluntary circumcision, bap- 
 tism, and oblation, are required ; but, if a woman, bap- 
 tism and oblation." 
 
 c 2 
 
18 
 
 multitudes, to John's baptism. The ques- 
 tion, therefore, to which the Jews demanded 
 an answer from John, when they asked him, 
 why he baptized? was not, why he used 
 water, as the ritual sign of his ministry, but 
 what was the specific end for which he used 
 it ; and this is a point, to which our attention 
 will be directed in the next chapter. 
 
 There are many scripture prophecies that 
 refer to gospel times, that, include children 
 with their parents ; and as they stood in rela- 
 tion to God and the church, at the time of 
 their delivery, whatever the spirit of pro- 
 phecy promises in their favour, is adding 
 light to light. Some of these prophecies we 
 shall have occasion to notice as we proceed. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF JOHN THE BAPTIST'S MINISTRY 
 AND BAPTISM. 
 
 In the close of the preceding Chapter, allu- 
 sion was made to those prophecies, which re- 
 late to children participating in the privileges 
 of their parents, under the gospel dispensa- 
 tion. That remarkable one, Malachi iv.5-6, 
 is of this kind: — " Behold, I will send you 
 Elijah the prophet, before the coming of that 
 great and dreadful day of the Lord : and he 
 shall turn the heart of the fathers to (or with) 
 the children, and the heart of the children to 
 (or with) their fathers : lest ! I come, and 
 smite the earth with a curse." That this was 
 a direct prophecy of John the Baptist, is de- 
 clared by the angel, who came to announce 
 his birth to his father Zacharias. Luke i. 
 16-17 : " And many of the children of Israel 
 shall he turn to the Lord their God : and he 
 shall go before him in the spirit and power 
 of Elias, to turn the hearts of the father to 
 (or with) the children, and the disobedient to 
 the wisdom of the just ; to make ready a 
 people prepared for the Lord." 
 
20 
 
 One thing is plain in the direct application 
 of this passage to John, namely, the children 
 were to partake of the benefits of John's mi- 
 nistry and rite, in common with their pa- 
 rents; that the object of his ministry and rite, 
 was to turn the fathers to the Lord their 
 God; and also to turn the children to the 
 Lord their God ; and thus to turn them to 
 each other in the Lord their God ; laying the 
 parents under obligations to instruct their 
 children, and the children to receive their in- 
 structions in the knowledge of their Lord their 
 God ; and so turn the disobedient to the wis- 
 dom of the just, (or just one,) thus to make 
 ready a people prepared for the Lord ; even 
 the messenger of the covenant, who was sud- 
 denly or speedily to come to his temple, to 
 introduce both parents and children into that 
 dispensation, he was about to establish among 
 them. Malachi iii. 1 ; Matthew iii. 2. 
 
 There is a question on John's ministry and 
 rite, which it may be proper not entirelv to 
 overlook, viz. whether his ministry and rite 
 belonged to the Mosaic or christian dispensa- 
 tion, or partook of both ; or was a distinct 
 one in itself. 
 
 In my humble opinion, it did not strictly 
 or exclusively belong to either, but partook 
 of both, and formed an intermediate link be- 
 tween them ; instituted in order to prepare 
 
21 
 
 the minds of the people, for the cessation of 
 the one and the introduction of the other ; 
 making ready a people prepared for the 
 Lord. 
 
 In confirmation of this, it should be ob- 
 served, that John made no alteration in the 
 constitution of the Jewish church; nor did he 
 introduce any new or novel ceremony among 
 them, as they were accustomed to divers 
 baptisms in their temple worship, Heb. ix. 10, 
 as well as by their traditions, which they had 
 received to hold, Mark vii. 3-4. Such as 
 the washing or baptizing of cups, tables, beds, 
 &c. ; nor did they admit any proselytes from 
 among the gentiles into the communion of 
 their church, without previously baptizing 
 him and his children, as well as circumcising 
 them, so that such proselytes looked more to 
 their baptism, than their circumcision as the 
 adopted children of Abraham.* 
 
 We find that when John went into the 
 wilderness, on the borders of Jordan, to 
 preach and baptize, he acted as an extraor- 
 dinary purifying priest, and the people in 
 multitudes resorted unto him, and were bap- 
 tized by him; which, it may be presumed, 
 they would not so readily have done, had they 
 
 * Mitchel's dissertation on the Resurrection of Christ. 
 — Congregational Magazine. 
 
22 
 
 not been familiar with the ordinance from its 
 frequent practice among them. 
 
 It may be further premised, that in the 
 transition from one dispensation to another, 
 there has been a gradual process of interme- 
 diable steps observed, before it could be pro- 
 perly said, that the former had entirely 
 ceased, and the new one had fully commenced. 
 And so cautious and gradual have been these 
 changes, that they produced no sudden erup- 
 tion, nor created any chasm between the one 
 and the other. This is especially true re- 
 specting the Mosaic and gospel dispensations, 
 which latter had been establishing itself forty 
 years before the Jewish economy was com- 
 pletely dissolved, so that its decay was like a 
 moth-eaten garment. Heb. i. 10-12. 
 
 It should also be remembered, that the 
 transition from one dispensation to another, 
 did not alter the essential constitution of the 
 church, nor alter its relation to God, any 
 more than a man's changing his clothes or his 
 diet, alters his individual identity. And, it is 
 also evident, from the history of the church, 
 that those changes which have been intro- 
 duced from time to time, in connexion with 
 other circumstances, have consisted princi- 
 pally of two things. 
 
 I. Either in the revelation of some addi- 
 tional promise to the covenant of grace, with 
 
23 
 
 its confirming seal, as in the cases of Noah, 
 Abraham, and Moses. 
 
 II. The changing- of those seals, when the 
 promises which they confirmed were accom- 
 plished, for others more congenial to the dis- 
 pensation that was to succeed ; as in the case 
 of the gospel, which, among other circum- 
 stances, has changed the initiatory ordinance 
 of circumcision for that of baptism, and the 
 commemorative ordinance of the passover, 
 for that of the Lord's supper: consequently, 
 those essential grants and privileges, which 
 had been previously confirmed to the church, 
 continued in full force. 
 
 Now children had stood in relation to the 
 church for about four thousand years, and 
 that relation had been confirmed to them with 
 increasing evidence, in each succeeding dis- 
 pensation ; and as there is not a single pas- 
 sage in the New Testament to be found 
 which abrogates this relation, but several 
 which expressly confirm it ; therefore, it 
 must follow as an inevitable consequence, 
 that their relation to the church, and their 
 privileges in it remain unaltered, and in full 
 force, according to their capacity to enjoy 
 them, under the gospel dispensation, as under 
 the former. 
 
 Having premised the above considerations, 
 we shall now proceed to the examination of 
 
24 
 
 John's ministry and rite ; to see if there 
 is any thing in the history and nature of 
 thern, to bear out that remarkable prophecy 
 respecting him. That " he shall turn the 
 children with their fathers, to the Lord their 
 God."* 
 
 That the mission and baptism of John was 
 by divine appointment, appears ; 
 
 I. From the annunciation of the angel 
 Gabriel at his birth. Luke i. 17. 
 
 II. Christ's sanctifying his baptism. Mat- 
 thew iii. 13. 
 
 III. From the appeal Christ makes to it, 
 in answer to the question the Jews put to 
 him, respecting his authority. Matthew xxi. 
 23-27. 
 
 We learn from the history of John the 
 baptist, or baptizer, that he was a Jew by 
 birth, the son of a priest. That he was in- 
 troduced into the Jewish church at eight 
 days old, by the initiatory ordinance of cir- 
 cumcision. Luke i. 59. 
 
 The history of John's mission is short and 
 general, contained principally in Matthew iii. 
 
 * It is proper here to remark, that though John's 
 baptizing rite, was not a new or novel institution to the 
 Jews, yet it was new in its specific object, for which he 
 was commissioned from heaven to use it, namely, to ex- 
 cite in the people a spiiit of repentance and expec- 
 tation of the immediate appearance of the Messiah, 
 whose shoes he considered himself unworthy to unloose. 
 
25 
 
 Luke iii. 1-18. With some other occasional 
 references, which we may notice as we pass 
 along. 
 
 The express design of his ministry and 
 baptism was declared to be, " To prepare 
 the way of the Lord." To raise the expec- 
 tations, and direct the minds of the people in 
 general, to the speedy coming of the Messiah ; 
 and to apprize them, that he was about to 
 introduce a new and more excellent dispen- 
 sation amongst them, which he denominated 
 " the kingdom of heaven." 
 
 In expectation of this event, he exhorted 
 them to a general repentance ; and seconded 
 his message by a general purification, by the 
 ordinance of baptism ; the same as Moses 
 was commissioned to purify the people, pre- 
 vious to the giving of the law. Exodus 
 xix. 10-14. 
 
 The Jews readily acceded to his baptism, 
 as being in accordance with the divers bap- 
 tisms in use among them. Hebrews ix. 10. 
 
 John had been from his infancy a member 
 of the Jewish church, and so were those who 
 Avere baptized by him ; nor did he or they 
 cease to be so after their baptism. This may 
 seem strange at first sight, but it should be 
 remembered, that John made no alteration 
 in the church, he only acted as an extraordi- 
 nary purifying priest, in the manner and 
 
 D 
 
•26 
 
 spirit of the prophet Elijah. Malachi iv. 5. 
 Matthew xvii. 10-13. 
 
 That Johns disciples understood the or- 
 dinance of baptism, as a purifying ordinance, 
 appears from this fact, that they united with 
 the Jews in disputing or raising a question 
 on the subject of purification. John iii. 25. 
 
 Now, as John, and those he baptized, con- 
 tinued to be members of the Jewish church, 
 and from the constitution of that church, in- 
 fants were introduced into it, by the initiatory 
 ordinance of circumcision ; it will appear, if 
 the subject be properly weighed, that there 
 is reason to believe, that whatever was the 
 nature of John's cleansing rite, parents and 
 children partook of it in common. 
 
 This inference will be strengthened, if we 
 consider ; 
 
 I. That infants and children, were liable 
 to the same ceremonial pollutions with their 
 parents. 
 
 II. That infants and children, as well as 
 adults, were capable subjects of the ordinance 
 of baptism. 
 
 III. That general terms are intended to 
 include all the species that are capable, and 
 that such are the terms used in the history 
 of John's baptism, such as ALL judea ; — 
 ALL THE people ; — ALL the region round 
 about Jordan. Matt. iii. 5. And that all 
 
27 
 
 were baptized of him, in (or at) Jordan. 
 Mark i. 5. Such are the terms the Holy 
 Spirit uses, to express the congregated mul- 
 titudes promiscuously brought together, and 
 that he baptized them ALL. Yes, he bap- 
 tized them ALL, old and young, rich and 
 poor, master and servant, male and female, 
 parents and children ; ALL those vast mul- 
 titudes that came to him from day to day, 
 were baptized of John in (or at) the Jordan ; 
 whatever their age, sex, or condition in life ; 
 and that none were exempted that came to 
 his baptism. 
 
 We may therefore, ask, by what rule of 
 equity, or justice, are any authorized to set 
 up an excluding barrier against infants and 
 children, where the Holy Spirit has set up 
 none. 
 
 Two objections are raised against the 
 above conclusions. 
 
 I. That children are not mentioned in the 
 history of John's baptism ; this is true, 
 nor are women once mentioned in the same 
 history ; so that if the conclusion of exclu- 
 sion hold good against the one, it must also 
 against the other. The fact is, that this is 
 an argument in their favour rather than 
 against them ; for it is a common rule, in the 
 use of general terms, which include all the 
 species, not to mention the species distinctly 
 
28 
 
 where no special reason of exception required 
 it ; but where it is omitted, the general 
 terms are to be taken in their largest accep- 
 tation, and to be understood as including, 
 (instead of excluding,) all the species. 
 
 II. The second objection is this, — that 
 those who were baptized by John confessed 
 their sins. This is the strongest argument 
 that can be urged against infant baptism. On 
 the first view, this may seem to be fatal to 
 their claims, as far as John's history is con- 
 cerned; but, when fairly tried, it will be- 
 come scattered like chaff before the wind. 
 
 1. If we consider the nature of the lan- 
 guage used throughout the history, as refer- 
 ing to those who confessed their sins, this 
 they did as collective bodies, and not as indi- 
 viduals* separately: therefore, this taken in 
 all fair construction, can only be considered 
 as of a general nature ; such as we find in 
 other parts of scripture, as in Joel ii. 16 : — 
 " Gather the people, sanctify the congrega- 
 tion, assemble the elders, gather the children, 
 and those that suck the breast." 
 
 " They came to him in classes," Luke iii. 
 10-14. 
 
 The multitude at large, composed of dif- 
 
 * The only instance of individual baptism the history 
 gives, is that of Christ. 
 
29 
 
 I'erent ages, sexes, and conditions of life ; 
 also, the publicans, the soldiers, the phari- 
 sees and sadducees ; (at least, some of them,) 
 and John baptized them all, without distinc- 
 tion of sects or profession. 
 
 Now, as John baptized multitudes upon 
 multitudes, that came day after day to his 
 baptism, and refused none ; it cannot be sup- 
 posed for one single moment, that he deemed 
 them all true penitents ; no, the language he 
 addressed to them, at the time of their bap- 
 tism, is sufficient to prove this fact. He 
 charged not only the pharisees and sadducees, 
 but the multitude at large, with the appella- 
 tion of a generation of vipers. Luke iii. 7. 
 He warned them of the wrath to come ; ex- 
 horted them to future genuine repentance 
 and reformation ; cautioned them against 
 trusting in their external privileges, as the 
 children of Abraham ; assured them of the 
 judgment that would speedily overtake them, 
 if they continued unfruitful. For now was 
 the axe laid to the roots of the trees, &c. And 
 to crown the whole, he informs them that 
 though he did not attempt to distinguish their 
 true character, there was one who would 
 speedily succeed him ; (of whom he was but 
 the humble and unworthy forerunner) who 
 would, through the operation of the Holy 
 Spirit, thoroughly purge his church, as 
 d2 
 
30 
 
 the winnowing fan scatters the chaff of the 
 threshing floor. 
 
 It may be farther remarked, that to prove 
 the above objection of any force or value, it 
 must be proved, that John baptized none but 
 such as made an individual and personal con- 
 fession of their sins to him; but this conclu- 
 sion the history will not admit ; so that upon 
 the whole we may conclude, that, as in gene- 
 ral repentance and reformation, as well as in 
 general judgments, children are included with 
 their parents, though not expressly noticed ; 
 that the weight of evidence, that John bap- 
 tized infants with their parents, is much 
 stronger in favour of them than against 
 them. 
 
 But even if it could be proved to a de- 
 monstration, that John did not baptize a 
 single infant, yet would it not disprove their 
 right to christian baptism ; as his ministry 
 and baptism did not properly belong to the 
 christian or gospel dispensation, it was of 
 short duration, and ended in his own death. 
 The mode of John's baptism has been omit- 
 ted, till that part of the subject shall be 
 discussed, only observing that the multitudes 
 that were baptized by John from day to day, 
 and week after week, would render it impos- 
 sible for him to dip them all in Jordan, &c. 
 
 John's ministry and baptizing rite, met 
 
31 
 
 with almost universal acceptance, so much 
 so, that it became almost national. Mul- 
 titudes of people, of the different ranks of 
 society, not only round about Jordan, but 
 from all parts of Judea, and even from Je- 
 rusalem, came to be baptized of John in 
 Jordan ; not excepting, even some of the 
 pharisees and sadducees. It appears that 
 John had no personal acquaintance with 
 Christ, previous to his application to him for 
 baptism, for he positively declared, I knew 
 him not : but he that sent me to baptize with 
 water, the same said unto me, upon whom 
 thou shalt see the Spirit descending and re- 
 maining upon him, the same is he which 
 baptizeth with the Holy Ghost; and I saw, 
 and bear record, that this is the Son of God. 
 John i. 33 34. 
 
 Though John had no previous knowledge 
 of the person of Christ, yet he had a pre- 
 sentiment of mind, that he was the person 
 to whom his ministry and baptism particularly 
 referred, when he applied to him for bap- 
 tism ; which led John to a disposition to 
 decline the honour of baptizing him, as un- 
 worthy of the office, and as standing more 
 in need of being baptized by Christ, than to 
 baptize him : this objection was overruled by 
 Christ informing him, that it was needful at 
 that time, for the purpose of his manifest- 
 
m 
 
 aiion unto Israel; and thus to fulfil all right- 
 eousness, or to discharge that part of the 
 divine will which was required by this or- 
 dinance, as the means of his manifestation 
 unto Israel : this seems to be the meaning of 
 this passage, " to fulfil all righteousness," 
 and not to suppose that Christ needed bap- 
 tism on account of any moral, or ceremonial 
 uncleanness, (as some have supposed). No, 
 " he was holy, harmless, and undefined, and 
 separate from sinners," and sin too. Heb. 
 vii. 26. 
 
 Whatever conviction John had of Christ 
 being the Messiah, previous to his baptism, 
 he had not had as yet that accredited testi- 
 mony which had been promised him. This 
 took place at or immediately after his baptism, 
 in the visible descent of the Holy Ghost 
 resting on him, accompanied by a voice from 
 heaven, at the same time declaring him to be 
 the Father's beloved Son, in whom he was 
 well pleased. 
 
 About the same time that John baptized 
 Christ, the Pharisees sent a deputation of 
 priests and Levites from Jerusalem to John, 
 to inquire of him the character he assumed ; 
 whether that of the Messiah or not, and the 
 reasons of his following up his ministry by a 
 general baptism. This gave John a fair op- 
 portunity of declaring himself, and the recent 
 
33 
 
 baptism of Christ, with the extraordinary 
 and confirming circumstances attending it, 
 gave him a better opportunity to explain the 
 nature, design, and end, of his own ministry 
 and baptism ; and this he did by contrasting 
 its inferiority, with that of Christ's : ' I bap- 
 tize with water, he shall baptize with the 
 Holy Ghost, and with fire." His office was 
 to direct them to Christ — to manifest Christ 
 to them ; and having obtained this important 
 end of his office, he must now recede, to give 
 place to his more illustrious successor ; who, 
 though he came after him, was preferred be- 
 fore him, John i. 7-8-15. Thus John receded 
 like the morning star before the rising sun, 
 saying, " He must increase, but I must de- 
 crease." John iii. 30. 
 
 It appears that Christ continued to attend 
 the ministry of John, for at least some days 
 after his baptism ; and that he was standing 
 among the people at the time the deputies 
 were making their inquiries of John, i. 26 ; 
 John answered them, saying, " I baptize with 
 water, but there standeth one among you, 
 whom ye know not," &c. 
 
 The day after this event, as Jesus was 
 coming towards John, he pointed htm out to 
 the people, as the Lamb of God, that taketh 
 away (or beareth : margin) the sins of the 
 world ; and thus while he exhorted the peo- 
 
34 
 
 pie to repentance, he directed them to Christ, 
 both as the Son of God, and the only Saviour 
 by whom they could obtain the remission of 
 sins; and therefore baptized them as a means 
 of grace, in connexion with his preaching, to 
 promote their repentance and faith in Christ 
 for salvation, read John i. 29-«i6. 
 
 Passing by the temptation of Christ. 
 
 Shortly after those two concurrent cir- 
 cumstances of his baptism and the deputation 
 from Jerusalem took place, he began to call 
 his apostles, commissioned them to baptize, 
 and to unite with himself in preaching the 
 gospel. The strain of his preaching was 
 similar to that of John's; Christ preached, 
 saying, " the time is fulfilled, and the king- 
 dom of God is at hand : repent ye, and be- 
 lieve the gospel." Mark i. 14-15, compared 
 with Matthew iii. 1. While Christ was 
 preaching, and his disciples were baptiz- 
 ing, vast numbers flocked to him and were 
 discipled to him by baptism ; yes, by bap- 
 tism : after the same manner, John made 
 disciples, John iv. i. This gave some unea- 
 siness to some of John's disciples, who came 
 and informed him of the circumstance or 
 event: this gave John another opportunity 
 of confirming his former testimony and de- 
 clarations concerning Christ. And he de- 
 clared to them, that so far from giving him 
 
35 
 
 the least inquietude, it was a source of the 
 greatest satisfaction, and purest joy, to see 
 the ultimate end of his ministry and baptism 
 so speedily accomplished in the manifestation 
 of Christ to Israel ; and, therefore, he re- 
 commended their most serious attention to 
 Christ, declaring at the close (if not of his 
 public ministry) " he that belie veth on the 
 Son of God hath everlasting life ; and he that 
 believeth not the Son, shall not see life, but 
 the wrath of God abideth on him." John iii. 
 22-36. After this, Herod invited John to court, 
 made him it should seem, his domestic chap- 
 lain ; for a time heard him with gladness, and 
 attended to his advice till it came in contact 
 with his lusts, when by the stratagem of his 
 adulterous connexion, Herod sent him to 
 prison, and then beheaded him there ; and 
 this concludes the life, ministry, and baptism 
 of John, at the same time. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF CHRIST'S PERSONAL MINISTRY AS 
 CONNECTED WITH BAPTISM, AND HIS CONDUCT TO 
 CHILDREN. 
 
 John iv. 1-2, it is said, "that Jesus made 
 and baptized more disciples than John, 
 though Jesus himself baptized not, but his 
 disciples," (or apostles).* 
 
 We remarked above, that John's ministry 
 and baptism ceased with his own death. He 
 was like the bright and morning star, that 
 becomes eclipsed by the refulgent rays of the 
 rising sun. Hence, he said of Christ, He 
 must increase, I must decrease, John iii. 30. 
 Christ confirmed this fact, when he declared, 
 that the least in the kingdom of heaven, (or 
 gospel dispensation,) was greater than John 
 the baptist. Matt. ii. 2. 
 
 We read also, that some of John's dis- 
 ciples were baptized by the apostles, when 
 the gospel dispensation was introduced by 
 them. Acts xix. 3-5. It does not appear 
 
 * The term apostle lias been adopted, to distinguish 
 theui from those disciples they baptized. 
 
37 
 
 that John and the Lord Jesus ever acted 
 in connexion with each other, either in their 
 ministry or baptism, but kept perfectly dis- 
 tinct in the discharge of their respective 
 missions, as to place and action, although 
 they bore testimony to the divinity of each 
 other's mission ; their disciples were also dis- 
 tinctively marked either as the disciples of 
 John, or the disciples of Jesus : nor does 
 it appear, that while they remained the dis- 
 ciples of one, they were ever acknowledged 
 as the disciples of the other, at the same time. 
 
 We find also by the history, that while 
 John was baptizing in Enon, near Salim, 
 Jesus and his disciples removed to some 
 other part of the country, or neighbourhood, 
 and made and baptized more disciples than 
 John. John iii. 22-23. iv. 12. 
 
 This history informs us of one very im- 
 portant fact, namely, that the practice of 
 baptism by the apostles, under the direction 
 of Christ, was much more prevalent and 
 constant, than we have been accustomed to 
 think. It is said, that John baptized ALL 
 the region round about Jordan, &c. which 
 must have amounted to hundreds and thou- 
 sands. Then how vastly numerous must 
 those have been, which were baptized by the 
 apostles at the command of Christ ! ! We 
 would ask, could Christ, or his apostles, any 
 
 E 
 
38 
 
 more than John, esteem or believe, that 
 these multitudes were all truly converted 
 characters ? Surely not. 
 
 All that can in fairness be said, is, that as 
 assembled multitudes, they made a general 
 surrender of themselves in companies and 
 families to Christ, after the manner of John's 
 baptism. It should be particularly observed 
 also, that although women and children are 
 not mentioned in the history of John's mis- 
 sion, they are particularly noticed as com- 
 posing part of the numerous companies that 
 attended on Christ's ministry, and partook of 
 its benefits, according to their capacities. 
 
 There are four instances in which children 
 are particularly noticed in relation to Christ. 
 
 I. That He miraculously fed them with 
 the loaves and fishes, with the rest of the 
 multitude. "And they that did eat were 
 above four thousand men, besides women 
 and children." Matt. xv. 38. 
 
 II. Their praising Christ in the temple. 
 Matt. xxi. 15-16. And when the chief 
 priest and scribes saw the wonderful things* 
 that he did, and the children crying in the 
 temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of 
 David ; they were sore displeased, and said 
 unto him "nearest thou what these say?" 
 and Jesus saith unto them, "Yea; have ye 
 never read, out of the mouth of babes and 
 sucklings thou hast perfected praise ?" 
 
III. Parents bringing their children to 
 Christ to be blessed. Mark x. 13-1(3. And 
 they brought young children unto him, that 
 he should touch them : (that he should put 
 his hands on them, and pray. Mat. xix. 
 15) and his disciples rebuked those that 
 brought them, but when Jesus saw it, he 
 was much displeased, and said unto them, 
 ** Suffer the little children to come unto me, 
 and forbid them not : for of such is the 
 kingdom of God. Verily, I say unto you, 
 whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of 
 God as a little child, he shall not enter 
 therein." And he took them up in his arms, 
 put his hands upon them, and blessed them. 
 IV. And Jesus took a child, and set him 
 in the midst of them : and when he had 
 taken him in his arms, he said unto them, 
 (his disciples,) "Whosoever shall receive 
 one of such children in my name, receiveth 
 me : and whosoever shall receive me, re- 
 ceiveth not me, but him that sent me." 
 Mark ix. 36-37. Luke ix. 47-48. And Jesus 
 perceiving the thought of their heart, took 
 a child, and set him by him, and said unto 
 them, "Whosoever shall receive this child 
 in my name, receiveth me : aud whosoever 
 shall receive me, receiveth him that sent 
 me : for he that is least among you all, tin; 
 same shall be ureat." 
 
40 
 
 In reviewing the above passages as collated 
 together, the following remarks arise out of 
 them. 
 
 Still bear in mind, that these children 
 were members of the Jewish church, and so 
 also was Christ, and his apostles : and that 
 three of the above transactions, had an im- 
 mediate relation to religious acts, approved 
 of and vindicated by Christ ; who declares 
 those children to be the subjects of prophecy, 
 and actual subjects of the kingdom of God ; 
 and that they were to be received by the 
 disciples in his, and his father's name. 
 
 Moreover, from these passages, we have 
 not only a demonstrable proof, that children 
 composed a part of those multitudes, who 
 attended on the ministry of Christ ; but, that 
 they partook of the benefits of his mission, 
 according to their different capacities ; they 
 partook of the food miraculously provided 
 for the multitudes. They joined with them, 
 in their ascriptions of praise to Christ, on his 
 public entrance into Jerusalem ; and infants 
 who were incapable of these exercises, were 
 brought to him, and were blessed by him, as 
 members of his kingdom. To remove all 
 doubt, as to the visible relation they should 
 stand in to him, in the dispensation he was 
 about to establish, he took a child and set 
 him by himself in the midst of the disciples, 
 
41 
 
 aud then took him in his arms, and with the 
 authority of legislation, enjoined them to 
 receive this little child, and such little chil- 
 dren, in his name. He assigned two reasons, 
 why they should receive such little children 
 in his name. 
 
 I. From a regard to the will and example 
 of Christ, who admitted them to a visible 
 relation with himself. Mark x. 13-16. He 
 added in a parenthesis, by way of appendix, 
 the qualifications that adults must possess, to 
 become the proper subjects of his king- 
 dom. But this explanation of the disposi- 
 tions necessary in adults, could never be in- 
 tended to exclude those little children, he 
 had previously confirmed in the privilege of 
 being subjects of his kingdom ; especially, 
 as immediately after the explanation, (yes, 
 after the explanation !) he took them up in his 
 arms, and blessed them. Then it must be 
 certain, that Christ's declaration concerning 
 little children, and his conduct, to them, 
 could not be intended to exclude them, who- 
 soever it included besides. 
 
 When it is considered, that these children 
 were members of the Jewish church at the time 
 that Christ blessed tham, into which church 
 Christ had himself been initiated in his in- 
 fancy, by the same rite by which they had 
 been ; we cannot for one moment suppose, 
 e2 
 
42 
 
 that by blessing them, Christ intended to 
 dispossess them of a privilege they had en- 
 joyed, for more than four thousand years; no, 
 it was the completest confirmation, for the 
 season, that could be well expected or given. 
 
 If it should be replied to the above state- 
 ment, that there is no proof that Christ, (by 
 his disciples,) ever baptized one of those 
 infants that have been referred to, or any 
 other ; we answer, neither is there any par- 
 ticular mention made of either men or wo- 
 men having been baptized, the history only 
 informs us, that Jesus made and baptized 
 more disciples than John. John iv. 1. 
 
 That a very great interest was taken both 
 by Christ, and the parents, or others, on 
 behalf of the spiritual benefit of these 
 chidren, is evident ; and that Christ confirm- 
 ed them, as the subjects of his kingdom, and 
 as standing in a visible relation to him ; by 
 a legislative act, of the highest authority. 
 And therefore, from this additional evidence, 
 the same inference that was drawn in favour 
 of infants from John's baptism, is equally 
 applicable to them when baptism was per- 
 formed by Christ's disciples.* But it should 
 
 * It has been suggested, whether the disciples had 
 not previously baptized those children, which was the 
 reason they thought it needless to trouble their master 
 with them. This thought is not unworthy of consider- 
 ation. 
 
43 
 
 be clearly understood, and distinctly observed, 
 that the present stage of the inquiry is not 
 so much, whether they were or were not 
 baptized by Christ ; but whether Christ 
 abolished or confirmed that visible relation 
 of children to the church, which had subsisted 
 for (at least) four thousand years. And 
 from the above inductions it must appear, 
 that instead of his abolishing these privileges, 
 he repeatedly ratified them, by the most un- 
 equivocal sanction, they were capable of re- 
 ceiving from his high authority. 
 
 II. The Second reason he assigns for re- 
 ceiving them, is, that by this means materials 
 would be provided to fill up the church and 
 ministry, with a succession to the end of 
 time. It would also lay the church under 
 obligations to educate them in the principles 
 of the gospel. To receive any one in the 
 name of Christ, is to treat him as visibly 
 belonging to him This is evident from 
 Mark ix. 41. " Whosoever shall give you 
 a cup of water in my name, because you 
 belong to Christ: verily, I say unto you, 
 he shall not lose his reward." This may 
 have respect to the first act of recognizing 
 any one in his visible relation to Christ, or 
 to all subsequent acts, by which we treat 
 them as such ; Christ's assertion is applicable 
 to both, and enjoins both on his disciples. 
 
44 
 
 This act of legislation was confirmed, and 
 the injunctions given by Christ, as the me- 
 diator, head, and lawgiver to his church ; in 
 the midst of his disciples, in. their collective 
 capacity ; to whom, in that capacity, he was 
 about to intrust the establishment of his 
 kingdom in the world. And in order to 
 make this act of legislation more certain and 
 explicit, he took a little child, even an 
 infant, and introduced him among them in 
 their collective capacity, and first, set him 
 by himself, as an act of nomination. Second, 
 he took him up into his arms, as an act of 
 presentation, for admission into their society, 
 (though least among them all). Third, he 
 then called upon them to admit, or confirm, 
 the recognition of the act, by receiving this 
 child into their society ; and thus to acknow- 
 ledge him as their master and lawgiver : 
 and to honour both himself and his Father. 
 And that it should not be confined to this 
 child alone, but be established as a precedent 
 for all succeeding generations in his church, 
 to the end of time. 
 
 Therefore he enjoined it on them, and 
 their successors, as an act of religious ob- 
 ligation, to be engaged in from religious 
 consideration, and performed from religious 
 motives, and to be directed in its anticipations 
 to religious ends, "he that is least among 
 
45 
 
 you, (even this infant,) shall be great ;" and 
 to give the sanction of law to the whole, he 
 subscribes and seals it with his own name, 
 as the warrant of their conduct, and a di- 
 rection for their future practice. "Whoso- 
 ever," &c. 
 
 It is true, that adults, under certain cir- 
 cumstances, are compared to little children, 
 as Matt, xviii. 3 ; but this cannot be the 
 meaning of the term in this passage, as the 
 term "least," evidently refers to the little 
 child Christ had introduced into their society ; 
 and assigned as a reason for their receiving 
 him, that God could or would make him 
 great : the antithesis is plain, and the con- 
 clusion correct, and worthy the wisdom of 
 the lawgiver. There could be no reason at 
 all, in his saying, receive this little child, 
 because God can make that adult great, 
 whom you esteem least. This would be 
 nothing better than a solecism, and a gross 
 absurdity, when Christ declared that little 
 children were the subjects of his kingdom. 
 
 If it should be said, that in this historical 
 account of Christ's attention to children ; his 
 pronouncing them to be suitable subjects of 
 his visible kingdom ; his placing one among 
 his apostles, requesting them to receive him 
 both in his own and Father's name, as a 
 young disciple, and to treat all such little 
 
46 
 
 children with the religious respect with 
 which they would receive him and his Father ; 
 that nothing* is said about these children 
 being baptized. This is very true, nor is 
 there any thing- said specifically and distinctly 
 respecting the baptism of men and women, 
 in the same history. The inspired author 
 has related the fact in general terms. Ha- 
 ving once mentioned the fact, that Jesus, by 
 his apostles, made and baptized more disci- 
 ples than John, he did not think it necessary 
 to repeat it, as its practice was too common, 
 and too well understood, to require it. 
 
 The passage establishes one very interest- 
 ing and important fact, namely, that persons 
 were made disciples of Christ by baptism, 
 so that whenever any person is represented 
 in the gospel history, as belonging to Christ, 
 or as standing in a relation to him as a disci- 
 ple ; that we are to conceive of such as 
 having been baptized ; as baptism was the 
 mode, and the only mode, by which they 
 were discipled to him, whatever their age, 
 sex, or circumstances in life might be. 
 Therefore it is reasonable to believe, that 
 this child was admitted into their society, 
 as a young disciple, by the same rite. 
 
 It seems very natural to conceive, that 
 Christ's conversation with Nicodemus was on 
 the subject of baptism. The course of their 
 
47 
 
 conversation turned upon the means of en- 
 tering into Christ's kingdom ; and he pointed 
 out to him the necessity of entering into a 
 visible and external relation to his kingdom, 
 by the baptism of water ; and into a spiritual 
 and invisible relation, by the baptism of the 
 Holy Spirit. "For except a man be born of 
 water, and the spirit, he cannot enter into 
 the kingdom of God." And so explaining 
 and enforcing the necessity of the one, by the 
 practice of the other. Those mentioned, John 
 vi. 60-66, must upon the above principle, 
 have been baptized. They are distinctly 
 marked as disciples, and distinguished from 
 the apostles, and from Judas, who was one 
 of the twelve. These disciples are said to 
 have murmured at the doctrine Christ was 
 teaching them, respecting the spiritual na- 
 ture of his kingdom ; and were so offended, 
 that they went back and walked no more 
 with him. 
 
 66. Now the reply that Christ made to 
 these very disciples, is the most remarkable 
 and striking to be conceived of. 64. " But 
 there are some of you that believe not, 
 (though baptized into a profession of dis- 
 cipleship to me), for Jesus knew from the 
 beginning, who they were that believed not, 
 and who should betray him." Does not this 
 passage prove to a demonstration, that Christ 
 
48 
 
 admitted persons to be discipled to him by 
 baptism, previous to their giving proof of 
 conversion ; and that it must have been ad- 
 ministered upon a different principle, and for 
 a different purpose, than that of giving it as 
 a testimonial of conversion already under- 
 gone ; no, it evidently appears to be intended, 
 as a means of grace ; administered for the 
 purpose of placing its subjects under that 
 course of subsequent instruction ; which 
 might be the means of their conversion, and 
 belief in the doctrines of the gospel: upon 
 this principle Christ was proceeding at this 
 time, as he urged upon them the necessity of 
 real conversion, and of faith in him, as the 
 only means of obtaining salvation. And 
 was not this design and conduct of Christ, 
 to be a precedent to his ministers in every age ; 
 by baptism, as a means of grace, to disciple all 
 they can, that they may be brought into the 
 gospel dispensation, and so placed under a 
 course of instruction, which might, by the 
 blessings of God, who alone can give effect 
 to means, lead to the production of the 
 moral designs ; and upon this principle, a 
 child as well as an adult, might be discipled 
 to Christ by baptism. 
 
 It should be also kept in view, that the 
 gospel dispensation, at this period, was only 
 in a state of progressive arrangement for 
 
49 
 
 definitive settlement. The Lord's supper 
 was not as yet instituted, nor had the apostles 
 received their final commission respecting 
 baptism, as to its formula ; the extent of its 
 application ; and its immediate connexion 
 with preaching the gospel, as the ritual sign 
 and confirming seal of their verbal message ; 
 in discipling all nations into the visible king- 
 dom of Christ. For the confirmation of 
 these points, we must look into the succeed- 
 ing history of baptism ; and we have no 
 doubt, but it will carry us out in our prin- 
 ciples, with additional weight in the scale of 
 evidence. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 CHRIST'S FINAL COMMISSION TO HIS DISCIPLES. 
 
 It may not be improper here, to insert a 
 few of those prophecies that bear an aspect 
 to national conversions, under the gospel dis- 
 pensation. 
 
 Gen. xxvi. 4. " And in thy seed shall 
 all the nations of the earth be blessed." 
 Isaiah lii. 15. " So shall he sprinkle many 
 nations." 
 
 Zechariah ii. 11. "And many nations 
 shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and 
 shall be my people." 
 
 Mat. xxi. 43. "Therefore I say unto 
 you, the kingdom of God shall be taken 
 from you, and given to a nation bringing* 
 forth the fruit thereof." 
 
 That these prophecies, and others of the 
 same import, have a reference to gospel 
 times, and its dispensation, is generally ad- 
 mitted ; and, it is equally certain, that they 
 bear a national aspect, not of a political, but 
 of a religious, nature. The blessings these 
 nations were to participate, were to be in 
 Abraham's seed, or Christ. Gal. iii. 16. 
 
51 
 
 " Now to Abraham, and his seed, were the 
 promises made." He saith not, and to seeds 
 as of many, but of one, and to thy seed, which 
 is Christ. This is that gospel blessing- of 
 Abraham that was to come on the gentiles. 
 v. 8. And the scripture, foreseeing - that 
 God would justify the heathen through faith, 
 preached before the gospel unto Abraham, 
 saying", " in thee shall all nations be blessed." 
 These prophecies inform us, what was the 
 nature of those blessings, which were to de- 
 scend on them, through Christ. As nations, 
 they were to he joined to the Lord — to be his 
 people — to be sprinkled or dedicated to him. 
 That a nation, bringing forth fruit, were to 
 have the kingdom transferred to them ; upon 
 the same principle, and to the same extent, in 
 which it had been enjoyed by those from whom 
 it was to be taken. The only question that 
 seems to arise out of those passages is, 
 whether the term nation is to be taken literally 
 or figuratively ; for the whole, or only a part 
 — for adults only, or to include children. In 
 answer to these queries, we may ask, what are 
 the blessings to be transferred I We answer, 
 the kingdom of heaven. That its blessings 
 could not be of a political, but of a religious 
 nature, will appear from the nature of Christ's 
 kingdom, " not of this world ; " and the 
 political condition of the jews at the time this 
 
52 
 
 prophecy was delivered. The sceptre had 
 already departed from Judah. The jews were 
 reduced to a Roman province, and their lives, 
 and property, subjugated to a Roman go- 
 vernor. Therefore the prophecy, which has 
 a reference to a future event, must have 
 respect to their church state and constitution, 
 in respect to its internal and external pri- 
 vileges. For its constitution is not to be, 
 destroyed, but only to be transferred, with 
 those external changes only, which would be 
 better suited for its future enlargement and 
 fruitfulness. This prophecy, therefore, is a 
 key to the others; and, indeed, to all the 
 prophecies of a similar nature, and to Christ's 
 commission to his apostles. 
 
 Christ's commission to his apostles, Matt, 
 xxviii. 19-20. "And Jesus said unto his 
 disciples," or apostles, " go ye, therefore, 
 and teach all nations, baptizing them in the 
 name of the Father, and of the Son, and of 
 the Holy Ghost ; teaching them to observe 
 all things, whatsoever I command you ; and, 
 lo ! I am with you always, even to the end 
 of the world, amen." 
 
 Mark xvi. 15-16. " And he said unto 
 them, go ye into all the world, and preach 
 the gospel to every creature, he that believeth, 
 and is baptized, shall be saved ; and he that 
 believeth not, shall be damned. " 
 
63 
 
 I beg to submit the following- paraphrase, 
 as containing- the substance, and harmonizing 
 the commission as contained in the two evan- 
 gelists. "And Jesus said to his apostles, go 
 ye into all the world, and preach the gospel 
 to very creature ; teaching all nations, and 
 baptizing them in the name of the Father, 
 and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost ; 
 teaching them to observe all things, what- 
 soever I command you ; " assuring them, 
 that, " he that believeth and is baptized, 
 shall be saved, and he that believeth not 
 shall be damned : and, lo ! I am with you 
 always, even unto the end of the world, 
 amen. 
 
 The first thing we should attend to, in this 
 part of the inquiry, is this, namely; — that 
 this is not the original institution of baptism 
 by Christ to his apostles ; no, he had pre- 
 viously instructed them in the nature, design, 
 and subjects of this ordnance ; and had au- 
 thorised them to baptize disciples to himself, 
 under his own immediate inspection; and 
 that to a very large extent. 
 
 John iv. 1-3. "When, therefore, the Lord 
 knew how the pharasees had heard, that 
 Jesus had made and baptized more disciples 
 than John, (though Jesus himself baptized 
 not, but his disciples) he left Judea, " &c. 
 This fact sufficiently shews, that there was 
 f 2 
 
54 
 
 no necessity for Christ, at this time, to enter 
 either into the mode or subjects, of baptism, 
 but simply to announce it as a part of the 
 commission he was then investing - them with. 
 There are two things he particularly enjoins 
 on them. 
 
 First. That whatever had been its pre- 
 vious formula; in future it should be ad- 
 ministered in the name of the Father, and 
 of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 
 
 Second. That it should no longer be con- 
 fined to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, 
 but be extended with equal freedom and 
 latitude to the gentile nations, to the very 
 end of the world, and to the end of time. 
 
 Another circumstance we should par- 
 ticularly notice is, that Christ had previously, 
 and repeatedly asserted and confirmed, the 
 privilege of children, and even infants, as 
 members of his church or kingdom, to these 
 very apostles. He had introduced one into 
 their society, and demanded of them, that 
 they should receive it in his name. He had 
 also expressed his high displeasure, and given 
 them them his sharp rebuke, for their attempt 
 to exclude infants from a visible access to 
 him, as their divine friend and Saviour ; and 
 assigned as a reason, both for his rebuke, 
 and his receiving and blessing those infants, 
 that of such was the kinsrdom of heaven. 
 
55 
 
 Therefore it seems morally impossible, that 
 the disciples should understand their com- 
 mission in a sense to exclude infants from 
 their parents' privileges, in their external 
 relation to the church. A sense they never 
 had heard of; nay, a sense that never had 
 been heard of since the world began. 
 
 The principal objections raised against the 
 admission of infants from the commission, 
 are three. 
 
 ] . That they are not expressly mentioned 
 in the commission, and this consequently im- 
 plies their exclusion. 
 
 II. That there are qualifications required 
 for baptism, of which infants are incapable. 
 
 III. That teaching and believing are 
 placed before baptism. 
 
 These objections have a shew of reason in 
 them, certainly ; but it is only a shew, as 
 the following reasons, which stand against 
 them, will clearly prove. 
 
 1. There was no necessity to express them, 
 particularly, as their relation to the church 
 had been previously established, and con- 
 firmed by Christ himself. Now, it is a 
 universal principle, that privileges once le- 
 gally granted remain in full force, until 
 repealed by some subsequent law. But, 
 there is no such act even hinted at in the 
 commission ; nor in any other part of the 
 
56 
 
 New Testament- — our objectors themselves 
 being judges; for they do not attempt to 
 shew, that such a repeal is any where re- 
 corded ; and if they cannot shew this, the 
 objection, from its own discrepancy, falls to 
 the ground. 
 
 II. As to the objection, that there are 
 qualifications required in the commission, 
 of which infants are incapable. This will ap- 
 pear equally unfounded, if we properly weigh 
 the following considerations. 
 
 I. That the objection stands as much 
 against their salvation, as it does against 
 their baptism ; for the same reason, and on 
 the same footing ; for the same qualifications 
 which are required in the commission, for bap- 
 tism, are equally required for salvation : for 
 he that believeth not, shall be damned ; 
 whether young, or old — jew, or gentile — 
 baptized, or not. If it should be replied, 
 that the salvation of infants is inferred from 
 other parts of scripture, this is readily 
 granted ; and so is the right of infants to 
 baptism ; and of the two cases, the latter is 
 the most clearly proved. This shews, that 
 the qualifications required of adults, both 
 for baptism and salvation, cannot affect in- 
 fants, either one way or the other. 
 
 II. That infants are capable of possessing 
 
57 
 
 the very thing, which faith and repentance 
 are designed to receive, as external acts 
 performed by adults. These qualifications 
 are necessary in adults, to shew that they 
 are proper subjects ; as the want of them, 
 declares them to be open enemies, and 
 rebels against the Saviour. But, must 
 infants, who are incapable of these dis- 
 qualifying acts of unbelief, &c. be treated 
 as enemies and rebels, while they are 
 equally capable with adults ; of a partici- 
 pation of those blessings which adults are 
 supposed to possess, when they come for- 
 ward to be baptized : namely, infants are 
 capable of a divine union to Christ, and of the 
 influence of the Holy Spirit, with all the 
 beneficial effects ; such as regeneration, ac- 
 ceptance with God, and eternal life; and, 
 indeed, by this divine union to the Saviour, 
 they are capable of an actual participation 
 of the benefits of his death, burial, and re- 
 surrection. And are they incapable of the 
 seal and sign of that union? He that can 
 believe this, let him believe it ! 
 
 III. It is also evident that baptism, as the 
 initiatory ordinance of Christianity, has not 
 a respect to any particular mode of it ; but 
 to the essence, nature, and design of it ; not 
 to a particular part, but to the whole ; not to 
 a mere circumstance, but to the essence of it. 
 
It exhibits, regeneration, justification, re- 
 conciliation, sanctification, and eternal life. 
 It exhibits our mystical union to Christ, and 
 our need of the influences of the Spirit, with 
 all the beneficial effects in communion with 
 Christ, in all the saving 1 benefits of his death, 
 burial, • and resurrection; of which infants 
 are as capable of participating-, for all the 
 purposes of salvation, as professing and be- 
 lieving adults. Surely, then, while there is 
 nothing to hinder infants from receiving the 
 great blessings signified in baptism, they 
 must, be qualified to receive the sign and 
 seal of these blessings. 
 
 To the above we may add, that in the case 
 of circumcision, whether of a Jew or a prose- 
 lyte, those qualifications were never required 
 in an infant, which were required in the 
 parent; and for this plain reason, because, 
 the infant possessed the privilege in the pa- 
 rent's right ; nor durst the parent refuse the 
 right to the infant, while he claimed it for 
 himself; for it was as much the command of 
 God, to circumcise his Son, &c. as it was to 
 circumcise himself. So that we see, qualifi- 
 cations must be judged of, according to the 
 capacity of the subject ; and the ordinance 
 is not to be denied to those, who, by their 
 tender age, are incapable of exercising faith 
 and repentance, although they are required 
 
of men who are capable of impenitence, and 
 unbelief; without interdicting the ordinance 
 to the less qualified, because they are not 
 capable of producing- the qualifications of the 
 great. This analogy shews, how very dif- 
 ferently God judges of qualifications, to what 
 man judges. Therefore, it becomes us to 
 exercise humility and modesty on this subject, 
 and not to attempt to limit the most high ; 
 nor to separate what he has so evidently 
 joined together. 
 
 III. As to the objection, that teaching 
 and believing must precede baptism, and 
 that none ought to be baptized, who are in- 
 capable of being taught, &c. 
 Upon this objection we remark, 
 I. That adults, who are capable of re- 
 ceiving instruction, should be previously 
 taught, and express their belief in the gos- 
 pel, is admitted by all, who believe in bap- 
 tism ; but this cannot affect those who 
 are incapable of either, and consequently, are 
 never required to perform acts, of which 
 they are naturally incapable. Then, surely, 
 they are not on account of this incapacity to 
 be deprived of those rights and privileges, 
 which had been legally granted them : if 
 this were admitted, it would open a door for 
 the most daring injustice against them. No, 
 the same law that establishes their claim, 
 
60 
 
 lays a double obligation on those whose duty 
 it is to administer the rite ; to maintain in- 
 violate those privileges, against every attempt 
 to infringe upon them. 
 
 II. It appears obvious also, that the terms 
 teaching, believing, and baptizing, are con- 
 vertible terms, for as a single word would 
 not express all that was intended ; one word 
 must be placed first; thus, teaching and 
 believing might be placed before baptizing, 
 or baptizing might be placed before preaching 
 and believing ; and that these terms are con- 
 vertible, appears evident from this fact, that 
 teaching is enjoined after baptism, as well as 
 previously to it. So that we must judge of 
 the case, according to the ability of the sub- 
 ject to perform these external acts. Teach 
 those who are capable, in order to their 
 baptism ; and baptize those who are incapa- 
 ble, in order to their teaching, &c. 
 
 This objection is so weak, that it is hardly 
 worthy of a reply ; but, for the sake of those, 
 who may have their minds perplexed with it. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 THE DISCIPLES OPENING THEIR COMMISSION. 
 ACTS ii. 33. 
 
 The following prophecies are worthy of 
 notice, as connected with Peter's declaration. 
 Acts ii. 39. "The promise is to you, and to 
 your children." 
 
 Psalm cii. 28. "The children of thy ser- 
 vants shall continue, and their seed shall be 
 established before thee. 
 
 Isaiah xlv. 23. "They shall not labour in 
 vain, nor bring forth for trouble ; for they 
 are the seed of the blessed of the Lord, and 
 their offspring with them." 
 
 Acts ii. 39. " The promise is to you, and 
 to your children, and to all that are afar off, 
 even as many as the Lord our God shall 
 call." 
 
 That the first of these prophecies refers to 
 gospel times, is evident, as the apostle ex- 
 pressly applies the two previous verses to 
 Christ. Heb. i. 10-11-12; and that the se- 
 cond refers to the same period, seems equally 
 certain, and that it principally refers to the 
 restoration of the Jews to their former church 
 
62 
 
 privileges, under the gospel dispensation. 
 That Peter, (as well as the rest of the dis- 
 ciples), considered their commission, agree- 
 ably to such prophecies, as extending to 
 children is self-evident, by Peter's including 
 them in the first opening of his commission, 
 in common with their parents. He declared 
 that the promise, under the gospel dispensa- 
 tion, extended, in its benefits, to their chil- 
 dren, as well as to themselves, as it had done 
 under the former dispensation ; and that those 
 privileges should be renewed to their children, 
 and to their offspring to the same extent, 
 they had previously enjoyed them. The 
 terms, seed and offspring, literally mean the 
 lineal descent, whether children or children's 
 children ; so that whether the terms be ap- 
 plied to jew or gentile, or both, their chil- 
 dren are declared to be co-participators with 
 their parents, in those privileges and bless- 
 ings. This is fully confirmed by the apostle, 
 Rom. xi. 15-24, where he describes their 
 being first cut off ; and then their being in- 
 grafted again into the same olive tree, from 
 which, for their unbelief, they had been cut 
 off, again to partake of the root and fatness 
 of the tree. These privileges and blessings 
 must be either internal and real, or external 
 and relative. In the former sense they can- 
 not belong to them hereditarily, as their 
 
63 
 
 children, therefore it follows, that the latter 
 sense is intended. If it should be farther 
 said, that the passage means, that the church 
 of Christ should be a kingdom to continue in 
 perpetuity for ever, this does not alter the 
 case ; for it points out the manner and means 
 of its continuance, by the children. of pro- 
 fessors and their seed, being continued and 
 established in the church from one generation 
 to another. 
 
 In conformity to these prophecies, Peter 
 declares in the above passage, that " the pro- 
 mise is to you, and to your children, and to 
 all that are afar off", even to as many as the 
 Lord our God shall call." This passage 
 divides itself into three parts. 
 
 I. The promise is to you whom I address. 
 
 II. The promise is also to your children, 
 whether present or absent. 
 
 III. "The promise is to all that are afar 
 off, even as many as the Lord our God shall 
 call ; " whether jew or gentile, and con- 
 sequently, to their children. 
 
 Whether the promise mentioned by Peter 
 in this passage, refers to the promise of- sal- 
 vation, v. 20 ; or to the remission of sins ; or 
 to the gift of the Holy Ghost, v. 38 ; or to 
 the well-known promise made to Abraham, 
 to be a God to him, and his seed, and that 
 in him, as his seed, all nations should be 
 
64 
 
 blessed ; or to the gospel dispensation by 
 way of eminence, is not so much the subject 
 of enquiry at present, as what is the relation 
 the promise bears both to parents and children? 
 The first thing we should be desirous of 
 ascertaining from this passage, on which the 
 subject respecting the relation of children to 
 the promise so much hinges, is, what the 
 apostle meant by the declaration ; — " the pro- 
 mise is to you, and to your children," &c. ; 
 or how he meant to be understood by those 
 whom he was addressing, and calling to re- 
 pentance, faith, &c. The persons he was 
 now addressing, were principally jews, whose 
 children had always stood in a relation to the 
 church, from the days of their great pro- 
 genitor, Abraham. These he particularly 
 calls on to repent and believe the gospel ; 
 and he enforces his exhortation with an 
 assurance, that the promise was as sure to 
 them, and their children, under the new 
 dispensation. He called upon them to em- 
 brace the new dispensation, because their 
 privileges, and those of their children, 
 would stand on the same basis, as they had 
 done in the old dispensation, which he in- 
 vited them to leave. If he did not mean 
 this, what did he mean ? In what other sense 
 could those jews understand him? How 
 could you ? How could any parents under- 
 
65 
 
 stand an address, made in such direct terms, 
 including both themselves and children I 
 Could any deed of gift, which was made, 
 by one grant, to confer a favour both on 
 parents and children in common, be expressed 
 in more appropriate terms i Not the least 
 separating clause — no proviso — no condition 
 imposed on the children more than on the 
 parents ; but, as with one breath, the promise 
 exhibited benefits both for the parents and 
 children. We should bear in mind, that 
 this declaration was made by Peter, under 
 the immediate inspiration of the Holy Spirit ; 
 that it was made in the presence of the other 
 apostles, who were together with him, when 
 they received their commission from Christ. 
 And, it appears too, their joint testimony ; 
 how they understood their commission. It 
 seems impossible, in the nature of things, 
 that in such a vast multitude, in so populous 
 a city, with such an influx of visitors at 
 this season, called together on such a sudden 
 emergency ; that there should be no women 
 and children, and even infants among them. 
 And if so, by what rule were they excluded i 
 we would ask, was it from the promise, which 
 was to them and their children I And if the 
 testamentary grants are their's, then every 
 confirmation and sealing of them in their 
 behalf, is their's also ; of which nature is 
 g2 
 
66 
 
 baptism ; and the grant, and the seals, must 
 not be separated. 
 
 The phrase, " to you and to your children," 
 evidently intends parents, and children of 
 various ages ; not excluding infants. This 
 will appear if we consider Peter's declaration, 
 in its resemblance to the promise made to 
 Abraham, Gen. xvii. 7. "And God said 
 unto Abraham, I will establish my covenant 
 with thee, to be a God unto thee, and unto 
 thy seed after thee. And Peter's, Acts ii. 
 «i9. " The promise is unto you, and to your 
 children." 
 
 The resemblance in the phraseology of 
 these two passages, is remarkably striking. 
 In the one, "to thee, aud to thy seed;" in 
 the other, " to you, and to your children." 
 
 The analogy of these two passages is also 
 equally striking; for as the phrase, " to thee," 
 and " to you," must mean the parents ; so 
 the phrases, " to thy seed," and " to your 
 children," must mean their offspring. 
 
 Another striking resemblance is this, that 
 both the promises are connected with an 
 initiatory ordnance, at the commencement of 
 a new dispensation, to which the promises 
 have special reference. Another analogy is 
 remarkably striking ; namely, both these or- 
 dinances were used in the churches as uni- 
 versal rites, and seals of the same exhibited 
 
67 
 
 blessing ; even, the righteousness of faith : 
 " + he promise is to you and to your children, 
 under their respective dispensations. Under 
 the former, both parents and children were 
 included ; not only in the promise, but in the 
 initiatory seal also ; and the seal was ad- 
 ministered to the children in the earliest 
 infancy. It appears equally clear, that as 
 children are included in the succeeding dis- 
 pensations, so they are as certainly entitled 
 to the seal, as they are to the promise ; and 
 for this obvious reason, that the covenant 
 and seal, must not be separated. 
 
 It is in vain for any one to say, that 
 the term children, means posterity, in order 
 to evade this conclusion ; certainly it does — 
 it means lineal descent ; and is not an infant 
 of a day, as much so, as a man of fifty ; for 
 it means children in every stage of life. 
 We would further remark, that the promise 
 did not only include those parents, and chil- 
 dren that were present, but that it compre- 
 rehended adults, and children wherever it 
 comes. 
 
 The apostle designates the persons to 
 whom the promise applies, by those who 
 were present, and by those who were absent. 
 These he distinguishes two ways. " All 
 that are afar off;" "as many as the Lord 
 our God shall call ; " far, or near. To each 
 
of these classes, he applies the promise in 
 our text. To those present, " the promise is 
 to you, and to your children." To those 
 absent." To as many as the Lord our God 
 shall call, " the promise is to you, and to 
 your children." Let the promise come where 
 it may, or to whomsoever, far or near, jew 
 or gentile, male or female, bond or free ; — 
 the promise is to them and their children. 
 
 The promise, also, in its very nature and 
 essence, includes both parents and children ; 
 both parties being included as subjects of the 
 promise ; so that we cannot take one part 
 away without violating the very essence of 
 the promise; for it is essential to the promise, 
 that "it is to you;" and it is equally es- 
 sential to it, that "it is to your children." 
 We have no more right to say, that the 
 promise is to you, and not to your children, 
 than we have to say, it is to your children 
 and not to you; for it was God's design, 
 that the promise should be as truly for the 
 benefit of their children, as themselves ; and 
 for this reason, both are included in the pro- 
 mise. 
 
 The objection is raised against the above 
 interpretation, that the term "called" must 
 be taken in a restrictive sense ; and can only 
 refer to those children, who at any future 
 period might be called into a personal pro- 
 
69 
 
 fession of faith in Christ ; and, therefore, 
 infants as such, are from the nature of the 
 case, altogether excluded. This objection to 
 superficial, and prejudiced minds, may appear 
 very plausible ; but, by a little attention, it 
 will appear rotten at its foundation. For we 
 may ask, from what are they excluded ? Not 
 from the promise, surely; and if not from 
 the promise, what right have they to be ex- 
 cluded from the confirming seal ? 
 
 This excluding objection, does not comport 
 with the apostle's design, in forming so close 
 and inseparable a connexion, of the children 
 with their parents ; and making the former 
 as much the objects of the promise, as the 
 latter. Was it not, in fact, intended to 
 confirm the minds of the parents in the prin- 
 ciple, that the children stood exactly on tha 
 same ground, in relation to the promise?, 
 and their privileges, as they had done under 
 the former dispensation I If this was not 
 his meaning, for what reason could he men- 
 tion the children in such close connexion 
 with their parents, in respect to the pro- 
 mise ? We should be very careful to keep 
 in view an important distinction, on this part 
 of the subject. We should be careful to 
 keep distinct, God's call, and man's com- 
 pliance with it ; nor should we confound the 
 call of the gospel, with God's secret and 
 
70 
 
 efficacious drawing of the soul to himself; 
 as this would be to confound the call with 
 its effect?. 
 
 God's call is by the ministry of reconcilia- 
 tion ; by which he calls man to repentance, 
 and faith ; but what makes this call effectual, 
 is the influences of the Holy Spirit on the 
 minds of those who are called. 
 
 This belongs to a very different dispensa- 
 tion ; that of the spirit. This latter idea, 
 seems out of the present question, being 
 excluded by the nature of the subject ; and 
 to understand the proper force of the term, 
 we must seek the apostle's meaning in the 
 external call of the gospel. Thus, many are 
 called, but few are chosen. In reference 
 to this call of the gospel, we should re- 
 member, that a person, family, nation, or 
 people, are no sooner addressed, or evan- 
 gelized by the gospel call, or ministry, than 
 we can assure them that the promise is ob- 
 jectively proposed to them, and to their's. If 
 they reject the call, they have no right to 
 the promise ; and if they reject the promise, 
 they have no right to the seal. Besides, 
 individuals, families, tribes, and nations, are 
 proselyted into the visible church of God by 
 the gospel call ; and are not children, and 
 even infants, capable of being proselyted 
 with their parents, as parts of themselves ? 
 
71 
 
 As members of families, and as making a 
 very considerable part of those nations that 
 may be joined to the Lord? And if so, are 
 they not to be reckoned among the called ; or 
 what is to exclude them ? 
 
 In attending to his call, external com- 
 pliance with a prescribed rite, is sufficient 
 to secure whatsoever is given of an external 
 nature in the promise, grant, or covenant ; 
 and baptism being the initiatory seal, by com- 
 pliance therewith, it is secured. Thus the 
 apostles, as soon as any persons, professed 
 faith in Christ, baptized them with their 
 houses or families. But it requires a spi- 
 ritual and internal compliance, to secure to 
 us, whatever in the covenant, or promise, is 
 of an internal and spiritual nature ; bearing 
 this obvious distinction in mind, it will pre- 
 vent confusion, and the confounding, as to 
 the rule of application, things which are 
 distinct. 
 
 If it should be farther objected ; that the 
 promise was to all who were addressed, who 
 were capable of repentance : I answer, all 
 who were capable of repentance were called 
 to repent ; and all who were capable of 
 participating the blessings given in the pro- 
 mise, or divine grant, with its seal, were 
 included ; or for what reason were the 
 children included with their parents in the 
 
72 
 
 promise J And no one will deny, or can 
 deny, that infants are capable of bequeath- 
 nients and grants in their favour, and con- 
 sequently, the sealing of them. 
 
 Besides, the apostle addressed those who 
 were already called, for "they were pricked in 
 their hearts," &c. but he extends the promise 
 beyond them, even to their children. Now if 
 the apostle extends the promise beyond the 
 called in the first clause, by the same rule, 
 we must extend it beyond the called in the 
 second clause ; even to their children, so that 
 the objection appears nothing more than an 
 evasion. 
 
 When a positive institute is connected 
 with a promise, all who are contained, or 
 included in the promise, are entitled to the 
 ordinance or confirming seal. This principle 
 runs through all the former dispensations of 
 ti'ue religion, especially that of circumci- 
 sion, and the analogy is self-evident, and 
 remarkably striking, as Gen. xvii. 7-10 — and 
 Acts ii. 28-29. 
 
 "To thee and thy seed." 
 "To you and to your children." 
 In taking these passages in their con- 
 nexion together, it is particularly observable, 
 that the parents and children are not only 
 united in each promise, exactly in the same 
 way, but that the promise in both cases is 
 
73 
 
 connected with an initiatory ordinance ; and 
 in both places, the ordinance is made to result 
 from the promise, and the one is set down as 
 a reason for the other, that in Gen. xvii. 9. 
 " Thou shalt keep my covenant," therefore, 
 or because God had given him a promise. 
 That in Acts ii. 28. " Repent, and let eveiy 
 one of yours be baptized," for, or because, 
 the promise is to you and your children. 
 From the above statement, it plainly appears, 
 that when parents and children are relatively 
 united in the same promise ; and that pro- 
 mise is connected with a religious institute ; 
 that which gives each party a right to the 
 pi-omise, gives them the same right to the 
 ordinance. Hence, as parents and children 
 are connected with, and are united in, the 
 promise, and the promise is united with the 
 ordinance ; the children's right to the ordi- 
 nance, stands exactly on the same footing 
 with that of their parents ; and this con- 
 clusion is undeniable, when taken in con- 
 nexion with former dispensations. 
 
 For if we were to ask, who were to be 
 circimicised I the reply is, those to whom 
 the promise was made. If we ask again, 
 who are to be baptized ? the reply is, those 
 to whom the promise is made. But to whom 
 is the promise made ? to you, and to your 
 H 
 
74 
 
 children, adults and infants. So that we 
 see that to whomsoever the promise is made ; 
 the broad seal of heaven is to be affixed to 
 them ; to certify both to parents and children 
 the infallibility of the promise, to all who are 
 included in it ; and who shall, at some future 
 time, embrace the promise, and not reject it 
 through unbelief. 
 
 We would finally remark, that the promise 
 or gospel grant, is not a blessing conferred in 
 consequence of effectual calling ; but in sub- 
 serviency to it : for the promise is the war- 
 rant for our access to God, and an encourage- 
 ment to repentance, faith, &c. and not a 
 blessing subsequent. Other persons, fami- 
 lies, and nations, are called, that they may 
 comply ; and the promise with its seal, are 
 given as the inducement. 
 
 THE PRACTICE OF THE BAPTISM OF 
 HOUSES OR FAMILIES. 
 
 In a precept or practice referring to the 
 baptism of Children, we may expect to find 
 
75 
 
 them either expressed, or naturally implied, 
 as in company with their parent or parents, 
 in the terms used, with such particulars, as 
 demonstrate their participation in the ordi- 
 nance. 
 
 The term for house in the Greek, is 
 oikos,* and agrees exactly with the usage of 
 the English term. This term, when applied 
 to persons, has a two-fold meaning. 
 
 I. A continued line of descent of many 
 generations, as the house of Israel, the house 
 of David, &c. that is, the nearest line that 
 can be drawn by consanguinity, or blood to 
 Israel, or David. 
 
 II. It also signifies a family living at the 
 same time, and usually dwelling under one 
 roof. 
 
 With the addition of another syllable, it 
 changes its application, as household, (Greek 
 oikios), and now it means children, and the 
 attendants of a family, the servants of va- 
 rious kinds ; whoever belongs to the house, by 
 marriage, or adoption, may ingraft a member 
 of the household into the house, or family ; 
 but these are incidental, not natural pri- 
 vileges. 
 
 It should here be observed, that our trans- 
 
 * The author has adopted the Greek term, from the 
 late Mr. Taylor's letters to the deacon of a baptist 
 church, and depends on his veracity for its correctness. 
 
76 
 
 Iators use the terms house and household 
 interchangeably ; though the scriptures, in 
 the original, always preserve the distinction. 
 This has been one of the greatest causes of 
 confusion, on the subject of baptism: see 
 2 Tim. i. 16, "The Lord give mercy unto 
 the house of Onesiphorus," &c. iv. 19, 
 "The household of Onesiphorus." This is 
 calculated to mislead. It must at once strike 
 every one, that the term house, when used 
 to signify a building, can have no relation to 
 the baptism of persons ; nor can it, when 
 applied to a series of succeeding generations. 
 The term naturally restricts itself to the sig- 
 nification above, to that of a family, living at 
 the same time, and usually under the same 
 roof ; and had the term house, been at first 
 translated family, instead of house, no error 
 on this point could have arisen on the subject 
 of baptism. 
 
 The term house, when referring to a family, 
 naturally includes children, and children 
 too, in every stage of life, down to the infant 
 of a day old. A man and his wife are no 
 family. When a young woman is advanced 
 in a state of pregnancy, she is said to be in 
 the family way. When a living child is 
 born to a man, it is said, he has a family ; if 
 he has two or three children, he has a small 
 family ; if double that number, it is a large 
 
77 
 
 family, so that there can be no family, where 
 there are no children. Family implies chil- 
 dren. Families are composed of children 
 in every stage of life. 
 
 It is self-evident, that the term house, in 
 the Old and New Testament, means children. 
 Gen. vii. 1, "And the Lord said unto Noah, 
 come thou and all thy house into the ark." 
 Heb. ii. 7. " By faith, Noah being warned 
 of God, prepared an ark for the saving of 
 his house." The above passages emphati- 
 cally prove two things. 
 
 I. That the term house, when used me- 
 taphorically, both by the Old and New 
 Testament writers, means family. 
 
 II. That it means family, or children, 
 exclusive of the servants, or the household. 
 
 While the foregoing passages prove the 
 analogy of the term " house," both in the 
 Old and New Testament, the following will 
 prove, that the term does not only include 
 children in advanced age, but also minors, 
 and even infants ; consult the following 
 passages — 1 Tim. iii.4. The qualifications of 
 a bishop, he should be one, "who ruleth 
 well his own house, (family), having his 
 children in subjection with all gravity." v. 
 12, "Let the deacons be the husbands of one 
 wife, ruling their children, and their own 
 houses (families) well. 
 h2 
 
78 
 
 Chap. v. 14, "I will, therefore, that the 
 younger women marry, bear children, guide* 
 the house." No words could be more defi- 
 nitive than these. First, marry. Second, 
 bear children. Third, guide their offspring. 
 
 The bishops and deacons were to rule their 
 own houses, or families ; nothing can be 
 more a man's own, than the children of his 
 own body ; nor could these children be 
 adults, but young children under the father's 
 direction, command, and control, else the 
 term rule, would not properly apply. The 
 apostle also, changes the term ; the mother 
 is to guide, or take care of the infant ; the 
 father to rule the family ; how natural this ! 
 what order ! 
 
 Having thus fully established the fact, 
 that the term house, in the above sense, 
 means family, including infants and children 
 in every stage of life ; we shall proceed 
 next, to point out those families, which are 
 mentioned as christian, in the New Testa- 
 ment ; and the relation they bear to the sub- 
 ject of baptism. 
 
 I. The first instance that presents itself to 
 our consideration, is Cornelius, Acts x. 2, 
 " Cornelius was a just man, and one that 
 
 * The third term refers to that guidance, care, and as- 
 siduity, which mothers exercise with such lively anxiety 
 for their infant family ; nor can foster children be in- 
 tended as the apostle speaks of child-bearing. 
 
79 
 
 feared God, with all his house." xi. 14, 
 " Send for Peter, who shall tell thee words, 
 whereby thou, and all thy house shall be 
 saved," read the connexion. 
 
 I. When the word "all," or "whole" are 
 used in connexion with house, or family, it 
 means many, in lesser numbers, Matt. xiii. 
 46. So that we may fairly conclude, that 
 Cornelius's family was a numerous one ; and 
 consequently, some were much younger than 
 others, and for ought we know, infants. 
 
 II. It is evident, that the promise was 
 made, in the first instance, to Cornelius and 
 his numerous family. "He shall tell thee 
 words, whereby thou, and all thy house," 
 or numerous family, " shall be saved." For 
 the promise is to you, and your children ; 
 and consequently imports your call and theirs, 
 to a participation of its blessings. 
 
 III. Though the promise of salvation was, 
 in the first place, made expressly to Cor- 
 nelius, and his numerous family ; yet, his 
 heart was too large to wish to confine the 
 promised blessing to which they were to be 
 called, and invited by Peter's ministry, to 
 himself or to them : he therefore called to- 
 gether his near kinsmen, and friends on the 
 interesting occasion, v. 24. 
 
 IV. It is natural to suppose, that the 
 pious soldier, and the two domestics of Cor- 
 
80 
 
 nelius's household, who went for Peter, were 
 among the numerous assembly on whom the 
 Holy Spirit fell, and were baptized with 
 the rest ; but that they were not of his family, 
 though consecrated, and baptized with their 
 master, is perfectly evident; the history 
 marks the distinction, v. 2-7. 
 
 V. It appears, that the assembly baptized 
 at Cornelius's, were a kind of epitome, or 
 representative of the future gentile church ; 
 and, therefore, contained individuals of every 
 description ;— parents and children, young 
 and old, rich and poor, masters and servants, 
 natives and. foreigners. 
 
 VI. It may be objected, that though from 
 the history it may be inferred, that Cor- 
 nelius's family were baptized ; yet, it does 
 not prove, that they were baptized on the 
 faith of their father ; as the Holy Ghost is 
 said to have fallen on all who were present ; 
 and, therefore, from what can be proved to 
 the contrary, they were baptized on their 
 own faith. This point we will not contend 
 for in the present case ; we will even admit 
 it to be doubtful ; and, therefore, must look 
 to some other instance, in confirmation of 
 the principle ; we therefore, proceed. 
 
 II. To the case of Lydia, " whose heart 
 the Lord opened, that she attended unto the 
 things which were spoken of Paul ; and 
 
81 
 
 she was baptized, and her household." Acts 
 xvi. 14-15. 
 
 I. In this history, it is self evident, that 
 the family of Lydia were baptized with their 
 mother. 
 
 II. That they were baptized, expressly 
 on the credit, and in the right of their 
 mother's faith ; and it is thus spoken of, with- 
 out any expression of surprise, as connected 
 with her own baptism ; — as a matter of course, 
 "and when she was baptized, and her family." 
 
 III. The next case, in order, is that of 
 the gaoler. Acts xvi. 29-34. And the 
 gaoler fell down before Paul and Silas, and 
 brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must 
 I do to be saved ? And they said, believe 
 on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be 
 saved, and thy house, or family. " And 
 they spake unto him the word of the Lord, 
 and to all that were in his house. And he 
 took them the same hour of the night, and 
 washed their stripes ; and was baptized, and 
 all his, straightway." 
 
 I. The first thing which strikes us in this 
 history is this, namely, that the gaoler, in 
 his terror, only enquired for his own salva- 
 tion ; but Paul and Silas, in their answer, 
 include his house, or family. 
 
 II. This gaoler was one of those gentile 
 sinners, to whom the gospel call was now 
 
82 
 
 sent; and the promise of salvation was no 
 sooner proposed to him, than his family are 
 included, in the very same sentence, in 
 which it is made to him ; and. that, too, even 
 before they could have been addressed per- 
 sonally on the subject ; and this gives a fair 
 explanation of Peter's meaning. Acts. ii. 39. 
 Where he says, " the promise is to you, and 
 your children ; and to all that are afar off, 
 even as many as the Lord our God shall 
 call." 
 
 Could any coincidence of circumstances 
 more completely prove the fact, that Peter's 
 meaning was, that the children of those 
 gentiles, who were called to believe the gos- 
 pel, stood on the same footing, and were 
 entitled to the same external privileges, as 
 the Jewish children were ? 
 
 III. Like Cornelius, he brought all in his 
 power under the word ; all that were in his 
 house, v. 32 ; attendants and prisoners, to 
 hear the word ; yet, only his own family 
 accompanied him in his own baptism ; and 
 here it is spoken of with the same ease, and 
 coolness, as that of Lydia's, as the ordinary 
 course of events ; that the children should 
 accompany their parent, or parents, in their 
 baptism. The family appears, also, to have 
 been more numerous than that of Lydia's ; 
 by the word all being used. He rejoiced 
 
83 
 
 with, or over, all his numerous family, be- 
 lieving in God ; so that if any of his at- 
 tendants, or prisoners, believed, they were 
 baptized distinctly from the gaoler, and his 
 family. Why this distinction, if not to main- 
 tain the principle of family baptism ? 
 
 The church at Philippi, however small at 
 its commencement, affords two families that 
 were baptized, Lydia's, and the gaoler's ; 
 how many others, as families, underwent 
 the rite, we cannot say. 
 
 It is further worthy our notice, that the 
 head of one of these baptized families, was 
 the mother, and the other was the father. 
 This is quite conformable to what the apostle 
 says, 1 Cor. vii. 14. " The unbelieving 
 husband, is sanctified by the wife ; and the 
 unbelieving wife, is sanctified by the hus- 
 band : else were your children unclean, but 
 now are they holy." Also, Rom. xi. 16. 
 For if the first fruit be holy, the lump is 
 also holy : and if the root be holy, so are 
 the branches.* 
 
 * The gaoler, it is certain, became one of the Phi- 
 lippian brethren; and, certainly, it is reasonable to think, 
 that he would not lose the last opportunity, of attending 
 the consolatory exhorlation of Paul at Lydia's, with 
 others ; and bid his spiritual fathers farewell. This 
 shews the blindness, folly, or wicked design, of mak- 
 ing these brethren to consist exclusively of Lydia's 
 family ; and we may further ask, if they were adults 
 
84 
 
 IV. The next case, in order, is that of 
 Crispus. Acts xviii. 8. " And Crispus, the 
 chief ruler of the synagogues, believed on 
 the Lord, with all his house : and many of 
 the Corinthians hearing - , believed, and were 
 baptized. 
 
 I. In these concise words it is evident, 
 there are some particulars to be supplied, 
 and some to be taken for granted. 
 
 The family of Crispus is said to believe, 
 but is not distinctly declared, to have been 
 baptized; though it may be fairly implied. 
 To leave this believing family unbaptized, 
 would be to cut up believers' baptism by the 
 very roots. We learn the baptism of Crispus 
 from another quarter ; this we should never 
 have known ; especially who baptized him ; 
 but for the unhappy disputes at Corinth. 
 There were many others who had families at 
 Corinth, besides Crispus ; but how many 
 others, as families, were baptized we cannot 
 say. The apostle informs us, that he bapti- 
 zed one other family, namely, Stephanas. 1 
 Cor. i. 16. "And I baptized, also, the house- 
 hold of Stephanas : besides, I know not 
 whether I baptized any other." But that 
 other ministers had baptized others, not only 
 as individuals, but as families, appears fairly 
 
 how came they to be omitted in the apostles salutation, 
 to this church ? 
 
85 
 
 implied ; not only in the passage we have se- 
 lected, but by the different parties at Corinth ; 
 who appear to have arranged themselves, 
 under the names of those by whom they 
 had been baptized. 1 Cor. i. 12-13. 
 
 V. There are three other families, men- 
 tioned by the apostle, as christian ; Onesi- 
 phorus. 2Tim. i. 16-18, iv. 19. Aristobulus, 
 and Narcissus. Rom. xvi. 10-11. These 
 are described as being in Christ ; or being 
 in relation to him. 
 
 It is true, the word oikois does not occur 
 in the two last sentences ; yet, the phrase 
 evidently implies family ; and all translators 
 have hitherto so rendered it. The fact seems 
 to be this, that. Aristobulus, at this time, was 
 preaching the gospel in Britain. (Taylor's 
 Letters.) And Narcissus might, also, be 
 from home; or even dead, for what we 
 know ; and their families might not dwell in 
 one house, (oilcos ;) which might make the 
 term inapplicable ; and, also, be the reason 
 why their families were not addressed. 
 
 From the above induction, it appears, that 
 there are eight families, distinctly marked as 
 christian, in the New Testament. Now if 
 we admit, that the family of Crispus was 
 baptized, because we find it registered as 
 believing ; then we must admit the same 
 of all other families marked as christian ; 
 I 
 
$6 
 
 though they are not expressly described as 
 baptized. Here those who refuse to admit 
 what we are pleading for, may take their 
 choice, and take the consequences of either 
 side to themselves. 
 
 Having noticed those families expressly in 
 the New Testament, as Christian, let us 
 now lake a review of the evidence. 
 
 I. Christian families marked as baptized. 
 
 1. That of Cornelius. 
 
 2. Lydia. 
 
 3. The Gaoler. 
 
 4. Stephanas. 
 
 II. Christian families whose baptism is 
 not mentioned. 
 
 5. Crispus. 
 
 6. Onesiphorus. 
 
 III. Christian families whose baptism is 
 not marked, and who are not expressed by 
 the usual terms oikos, or family. 
 
 7. Aristobulus. 
 
 8. Narcissus. 
 
 Eight Christian families, therefore, bap- 
 tized. 
 
 Is there any other case besides that of 
 baptism, in which you would take eight fam- 
 ilies at a hazard, and deny the existence of 
 young children in them. Take eight families 
 at a venture, in the street above or below 
 your own house, or above or below your own 
 
87 
 
 pew, in your place of worship ; or any where 
 else you please, it matters not where. Will 
 there not be found more than one infant in 
 this number of families ? It should likewise 
 be constantly kept in mind, that absolute 
 infancy, or even infancy at all, is by no 
 means necessary to prove the point; as we 
 may without danger, take into the account, 
 children, at least, that are two or three years 
 old, if not seven or eight, or even older, 
 while under their parent's authority, but we 
 do not insist upon this here. 
 
 Now let us suppose, for the sake of illus- 
 tration, that one-half of these families con- 
 sisted of four children, and the other of eight; 
 the average is six, then the number of chil- 
 dren is forty-eight. Now calculate the 
 chances, that in forty-eight children, there 
 should not be one infant among them, or at 
 least, one under two or three years of age ; 
 the chances are hundreds of thousands to 
 one against the supposition, that there are not 
 any under that age. Nor are we to con- 
 ceive that these four families mentioned as 
 baptized, were the only families which en- 
 joyed this privilege ; these could be only a 
 specimen of hundreds and thousands of fa- 
 milies, which in the first propagation of the 
 gospel, enjoyed, as families, the same blessed 
 privilege. 
 
PART SECOND. 
 
 THE MODE OF CHRISTIAN BAPTISM. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PRELIMINARY OBSERVATIONS. 
 
 In treating- on the mode of christian bap- 
 tism, it is necessary to premise the following 
 things. 
 
 I. The inquiry is not so much, what may 
 be considered the original abstract meaning 
 of the word baptize, or baptism, as what is 
 the scriptural legislative, legal, ceremonial, 
 or ritual sense of the word. 
 
 II. Neither is the inquiry, whether a 
 person, or any community of persons, prefer 
 one mode of baptism to another ; either dip- 
 ping, pouring, or sprinkling ; but whether 
 they insist upon any one mode, as essential 
 to the ordinance, to the exclusion of all 
 others. 
 
 III. Those who deny family baptism, 
 usually insist, that christian baptism, is 
 neither more nor less, than a total immersion 
 of the whole bodv, in, or under the water, 
 
 i 2 
 
90 
 
 in the name of the Father, of the Son, and 
 Holy Ghost ; while those who held with 
 family baptism, in general, think that sprink- 
 ling, or pouring, are equally proper scrip- 
 tural modes ; as they do not believe that the 
 scripture has specified any one mode, to the 
 exclusion of all others : and that the essence 
 of the ordinance, does not consist in the 
 mode of application ; but in the subject ha- 
 ving the element religiously applied in the 
 name of the Holy Trinity, into which the 
 subject is baptized. 
 
 IV. It should also be clearly understood, 
 that the term immersion, used indefinitely, 
 is a very improper term ; as a person is im- 
 mersed, who stands in water only on his toes, 
 or up to his knees. The term, therefore, 
 conveys a false idea of the action, and the 
 word plunge, is the most proper to express 
 the action ; but the term plunge, would not 
 apply to some passages of scripture, it is, 
 therefore, cautiously avoided, by those who 
 make the plunging of the entire body under 
 water, essential to the ordinance. 
 
 V. It may be observed also, that there is 
 not any specific word in the English lan- 
 guage, whether pouring, sprinkling, plunging, 
 dipping, or immersion, that seems fully to 
 convey the import of the words baptize and 
 baptism ; but that some generic terms, more 
 
91 
 
 clearly and more fully express the scriptural 
 and ritual meaning- of it ; such as purifica- 
 tion, dedication, consecration, separation, 
 initiation, &c- This will appear more clear, 
 if we try the experiment by any one of these 
 generic terms, as for instance, let us try the 
 words purify and purification, Matt. iii. 11, 
 " I purify (plunge) with water, but he shall 
 purify (plunge) with the Holy Ghost, and 
 with fire." xx. 22, "Are ye able to be 
 purified with the purification I am purified 
 with ; plunged with the plunging I am plunged 
 with." This shews that the generic term is 
 the most proper to express the action.* 
 
 The scriptural use of the terms baptize 
 and baptism. 
 
 It is premised in the above preliminary 
 remarks, that the term immersion, used in- 
 definitely, is a very improper term to. express 
 the action, of what is called immersion bap- 
 tism ; as a man is immersed who stands on 
 his toes, or up to his knees in water, as truly 
 as he, over whose head the water flows. If 
 the term then be so indeterminate, it would 
 be chasing an ignis fatuus to follow it, when 
 facts are in question ; it illudes the test of 
 scripture, reason, and common sense. The 
 specific English term, for putting the whole 
 
 * Taylor's letters to a deacon of a baptist church. 
 
92 
 
 body under water, is to plunge it : — now mark 
 the proposition — christian baptism, is neither 
 more nor less, than plunging the whole body 
 under water, in the name of the Father, &c. 
 This affords a precise idea ; an idea, that 
 may be easily examined. 
 
 It at once conveys the proper nature of 
 the action to the mind, and ought to be used, 
 whenever the action of baptism is represented 
 by putting the whole body under water. 
 But if it be cautiously avoided, and the 
 more equivocal term immersion designedly 
 substituted in its place, there is reason to 
 suspect, that its advocates have a conviction, 
 that the term to plunge, would not make 
 sense of some passages of scripture, where 
 the term baptism is used ; and consequently, 
 would sap the foundation of the principle 
 contended for, viz. that christian baptism, 
 is nothing more nor less, than plunging the 
 whole body under water. 
 
 Now the question that arises from the 
 above remark, is this; does the original Greek 
 word baptism, wherever it occurs in scrip- 
 ture, denote plunging. In the New Testa- 
 ment, the verb bapto occurs thrice.* 
 
 Luke xvi. 24, " Send } That he may 
 Lazarus, that he may dip > plunge the tip of 
 the tip of his finger." J his finger. 
 * Taylor's Letter.*. 
 
93 
 
 John xiii. 26, " He to } 
 whom I shall give a sop, > 
 when I have clipped it." ) 
 
 Rev. xix. 13, " His} 
 
 name was called the Word f 
 
 A sop, when I 
 have plunged it. 
 
 Clothed in a 
 vesture plunged 
 
 a vesture dipped in blood." 
 
 The compound word embapto, is also used 
 thrice. 
 
 of God ; he was clothed in C - 
 
 Matt. xxvi. 23, " He ' 
 that dippeth his hand with ! 
 me in the dish." 
 
 Markxiv. 20, "One of' 
 the twelve that dippeth, 
 with me in the dish." 
 
 John xiii. 26, "Heto : 
 whom I shall give a sop 
 when I have dipped it 
 and when he had dipped 
 the sop. 
 
 He that plungeth 
 his hand with me 
 in the dish. 
 One of the twelve 
 ■that plunges with 
 me in the dish. 
 
 He to whom 
 
 I shall give the 
 
 •sop when I have 
 
 plunged it, &when 
 
 he had plunged it. 
 
 The noun baptismos, occurs four times. 
 
 Mark vii. 4-8, "The 
 washing of cups and pots, 
 and brazen vessels, and 
 tables." 
 
 Heb.vi.2,"Thefound-' 
 ation : the doctrine of - 
 baptisms." 
 
 Heb.ix.10, "Services 
 in meats and drinks, and ! 
 clivers washings." 
 
 The plunging 
 of cups and pots, 
 and brazen ves- 
 sels, and tables. 
 
 The doctrine of 
 plungings. 
 
 Divers plung- 
 inffs. 
 
94 
 
 In reviewing these passages, surely no one 
 will dispute, that they imply different modes 
 of performing that action, which the sacred 
 writers call baptism ; and happily their order 
 is favourable to the eliciting conclusive evi- 
 dence, both from their connexion and tenor. 
 
 Whoever have seen cups and pots washed 
 at a pump, or have washed their own face 
 and hands there, may judge whether they 
 were necessarily plunged. When we con- 
 sider the dimensions of those tables, say 
 from fifteen to twenty feet long, by four feet 
 broad, and about four feet high ; we may 
 judge whether they were plunged after every 
 meal taken upon them — convenient utensils 
 for plunging, truly! will language tolerate 
 the plunging the tip of the finger ; can any 
 man believe, that common decency tolerates 
 the plunging of two hands in the same dish, 
 at the same time ; can it be believed, that 
 Christianity tolerates the notion of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, being clothed in a garment 
 plunged in blood ; and yet, if we admit of 
 no other mode of baptism, these monstrous 
 notions must be believed, and tolerated. 
 Surely, this is straining at a gnat, and swallow- 
 ing a camel, with a witness. But why does 
 the sacred Writer describe the doctrine of 
 baptisms in the plural form, as one of the 
 foundations of Christianity, if there were 
 only one mode of baptism, that of plunging? 
 
95 
 
 This question answers itself; for the same 
 writer expressly says, that under the law, 
 were divers kinds of baptisms. Heb. ix. 10. 
 And by far, the greatest part of these we 
 know, were not plungings. 
 
 The word baptism, therefore, cannot pos- 
 sibly be restricted to plunging, but is used in 
 scripture, in reference to various things, in 
 senses distinct from it ; it becomes us, there- 
 fore, to examine its import, in reference to 
 persons. 
 
 III. 
 
 THE BAPTISM OF THE HOLY GHOST. 
 
 In reverting to the baptism of the Holy 
 Ghost, we may notice, that it was the subject 
 of John the baptist's repeated prediction. 
 Matt. iii. 11 : "He shall baptize you with 
 the Holy Ghost." It was also the subject of 
 our Lord's repeated prediction. Luke xxiv. 
 49 : "I will send the promise of my father 
 upon you : — ye shall be endowed with power 
 from on high. Acts i. 5: "Ye shall be 
 baptized with the Holy Ghost, not many 
 days hence." 
 
96 
 
 Acts ii. 2-4 : " And suddenly there came 
 from heaven ; — and appeared unto them clo- 
 ven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon 
 each of them, and they were all filled with 
 the Holy Ghost." The same occurred in the 
 case of Cornelius ; Peter says, the Holy 
 Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning. 
 Here Peter would specify the exact resem- 
 blance between the baptism of the Holy 
 Ghost, as received by Cornelius, and that of 
 the apostles, at the day of pentecost. Acts 
 xi. 15. He repeats the same declaration a 
 great while after. Acts xv. 8 : " Giving 
 them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto 
 us, putting no difference." 
 
 This baptism of the Holy Ghost, was not 
 metaphorical, or figurative. It was real and 
 indisputable ; visible to the senses. It was 
 seen by John the baptist ; by the apostles on 
 the day of pentecost ; by Peter, and the 
 brethren, at the house of Cornelius. It is 
 called cloven tongues of fire. Not only was 
 this baptism administered, by a mode distinct 
 from plunging ; but by one directly opposed 
 to it, and inconsistent with it ; indeed, the 
 administration of this baptism by plunging, 
 was impossible. 
 
 When the precise meaning of a word or 
 term is the subject of dispute, and there 
 exists a difference of opinion ; so that two 
 
9? 
 
 persons understand such word or term, as 
 conveying a meaning directly contrary to 
 each other ; it is of advantage to produce 
 those words which are synonymous, and convey 
 the same meaning which the Holy Spirit has 
 been pleased to employ, to fix the meaning 
 of such term or word. This is the subject 
 of investigation ; here we should depend on 
 the New Testament writers alone, who were 
 under the immediate inspiration of the Holy 
 Ghost, and were his instruments in explain- 
 ing "spiritual things" by "spiritual ivords." 
 This process will prove a crucible, that will 
 detect false propositions, and confute them ; 
 or like the/cm, it will drive away the chaff, 
 and leave the grain open to a minute inspec- 
 tion of its quality. 
 
 Let us try it in the case before us, and 
 then examine its results. The following pas- 
 sages will bring into comparative view, the 
 word synonymous with the term baptism. 
 
 /* Luke xxiv. 49 : "And, be- 
 
 I hold, I will send the promise 
 1. Sending J of my Father upon you." 
 down. J 1 Peter, i. 12: "With the 
 
 f Holy Ghost sent down from 
 
 ^heaven." 
 
98 
 
 2. Falling. < 
 
 3. Shedding. ^ 
 
 4. Pouring. 
 
 5. Descend- 
 ing, sitting, 
 or abiding. 
 
 f Acts viii. 15-16: "Who, 
 when they [Peter and John] 
 were come down [to Samaria] 
 prayed for them, that they 
 might receivetheHoly Ghost: 
 for as yet, he was fallen on 
 none of them." x.44:"While 
 Peter yet spake these words, 
 the Holy Ghost fell on them 
 
 ._ which heard the word."ii.l5. 
 
 f Acts ii. 33 : " Having re- 
 I ceived of the Father, the pro- 
 I mise of the Holy Ghost, he 
 ) hath shed forth this, which 
 ye now see and hear." Titus 
 iii. 5-6 : " And renewing of 
 the Holy Ghost, which he 
 ^shed on us abundantly." 
 
 Acts x. 45 : " Because, 
 that on the gentiles also, 
 was poured out the gift of 
 the Holy Ghost." 
 
 John i. 32: "And John 
 bear record, saying, I saw 
 the spirit descending from 
 heaven like a dove, and it 
 abode upon him — sat or rest- 
 ed on him." 
 
90 
 
 7. Fillim 
 
 8. Sealing. 
 
 9. Breathing-. 
 
 r Acts x. 37-38: "After the 
 \ baptism which John preach- 
 6. Anointing-. <!ed: how God anointed Jesus 
 J of Nazareth with the Holy 
 \ Ghost, and with power." 
 Actsix. 17: "And filled 
 with the Holy Ghost." 
 
 Eph. i. 13 : " In whom 
 i also, after ye believed, ye 
 were sealed with the Holy 
 Spirit of promise." 
 
 John xx. 22 : "He breath- 
 ed on them, and said unto 
 them, receive ye the Holy 
 , Ghost." 
 
 In taking a review of the above synony- 
 mous words, does any one of them, if taken 
 separately, or do the whole, if taken together, 
 convey to the mind the idea of plunging ; or 
 even, so much as approach to it ? Yet 
 they all refer to baptism. The prediction 
 was, that the apostles should be baptized 
 with the Holy Ghost ; the fulfilment is thus 
 noticed, " the Holy Ghost was poured out 
 upon them. 
 
 It will be admitted, or at least supposed 
 by all, that the most complete instance of 
 the baptism of the Holy Ghost, is given in 
 the baptism of Christ, and that beyond all 
 possibility of doubt, there was no plunging, 
 
100 
 
 or anything that resembled plunging ; al- 
 though so many terms are employed in the 
 relation of the fact, as descending, pouring, 
 anointing, &c. 
 
 From this, it must appear, even to a de- 
 monstration, that the baptism of the Holy 
 Ghost was conferred, by the baptismal ele- 
 ment (if I may so speak) descending on the 
 person, and not by the person being plunged 
 into the baptismal element. 
 
 IV. 
 
 BAPTISM BY WATER. 
 
 As the baptism of the Holy Ghost, is 
 uniformly described, by the baptismal element 
 descending on the subject ; our next enquiry 
 must be, whether there are any instances re- 
 corded, of the element descending in water 
 baptism, and if such instances occur, we 
 must understand them in their literal senses ; 
 or else, we render one part of the word of 
 God, repugnant to the other. 
 
 In 1 Cor. x. 2 : Israel is said to be bapti- 
 zed unto Moses in the cloud, and in the sea : 
 
101 
 
 that is, the whole natiou, men, women, and 
 children, were all introduced into the Mosaic 
 dispensation, under the tuition and discipline 
 of Moses, who was a type of Christ, by bap- 
 tism. Heb. iii. 2. 
 
 Here it is worthy of remark, that the his- 
 tory declares, that they went through the 
 sea on dry land, that the cloud was over 
 them, so they were under it ; therefore, the 
 water, which must have been the baptismal 
 element, must have descended on them from 
 above, in the form of dew or rain ; otherwise, 
 they could not have been said, to be in that 
 cloud, which was before described to have 
 been over them. This fact may be farther 
 illustrated in the case of Nebuchadnezer, 
 who was said to be wet, or baptized, with 
 the dew of heaven, which descended upon 
 him. 
 
 Hence, it appears, that when water is em- 
 ployed as the baptismal element, the term 
 descending, bears the same import in regard 
 to it ; which it bears when employed to de- 
 scribe the pouring down, pouring out, or 
 shedding forth of the Holy Ghost. 
 
 As all the emblematic terms employed, in 
 reference to the baptism of the Holy Ghost 
 imply descending from above, or from 
 heaven, so a scriptural view of baptism by 
 water, will lead to the same conclusion ; that 
 K 2 
 
102 
 
 the element should be applied to the subject, 
 and should be understood to be an effusion, 
 pouring down, or sprinkling, and never as an 
 immersion or plunging. 
 
 That this is the scriptural view of the 
 mode of baptism by water, as well as of 
 baptism by the Holy Spirit, will appear 
 more clear and certain ; if we regard the 
 reference that is made from the one to the 
 other, and the analogy that is established 
 between them. Matt. iii. 11 : John says, 
 " I, indeed, baptize you with water (not in 
 water) unto repentance ; but he that cometh 
 after me, he shall baptize you with the Holy 
 Ghost, and with fire." Christ confirmed 
 and fulfilled this promise to his apostles. 
 Acts i. 5 : "John truly baptized with water; 
 but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost 
 not many days hence." The mode of this 
 baptism is described in v. 8 : "And ye shall 
 receive power, after the Holy Ghost is come 
 upon you." And the fact of its accomplish- 
 ment, is recorded Acts ii. 3 : "And there 
 appeared unto them cloven tongues like as 
 of fire, and it sat upon each of them." Thus 
 John and Christ agreed in the analogy, which 
 their baptisms bare to each other, as to the 
 mode. John applied water to the body, or 
 some part of it, as the ritual sign ; and 
 Christ, by sending down the Holy Spirit, 
 
103 
 
 and causing it to rest upon them, applied the 
 blessing signified. 
 
 That this was the actual mode of John's 
 baptism, will be farther proved, if we turn 
 to Acts x. 44-47 : " And while Peter yet 
 spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell upon 
 all of them which heard the word ; and thev 
 of the circumcision were astonished, as many 
 as came with Peter, because that on the 
 gentiles also was poured out the Holy Ghost." 
 v. 47 : " Can any man forbid water, that 
 these should not be baptized, which have 
 received the Holy Ghost as well as we ? 
 And he commanded them to be baptized, in 
 the name of the Lord :" by having water 
 poured out upon them, as corresponding to 
 the manner, by which the Holy Ghost was 
 poured out upon them. 
 
 In Acts xi. 15-16 : When Peter rehearsed 
 this circumstance, he made the following 
 comment upon it. " Then remembered I 
 the words of the Lord, how that he said, 
 John, indeed, baptized with water ; but ye 
 shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost." 
 
 From the above passage, it may be re- 
 marked, that what is called " falling upon, 
 and pouring out of the Holy Ghost, chap. 
 x. 45, is expressly called baptism in chap, 
 xi. 16. The same term is applied both to 
 the baptism of water, and to the baptism to 
 
104 
 
 the Holy Ghost ; and as the baptism of the 
 Holy Ghost is here declared to be by pouring 
 out, or letting fail, his influence ou the sub- 
 ject; will any one be prepared to assert, that 
 the baptism with water, as practised by the 
 apostles, was not performed in the same 
 manner, by pouring out, or letting fall water 
 on the subject ? 
 
 Another circumstance in the history, is the 
 remarkable manner in which Peter was 
 struck at the exact resemblance there was 
 between this baptism of the Holy Ghost, and 
 the baptism of John. How could the apos- 
 tle, after so long a time, have been so strongly 
 impressed, if the resemblance were not re- 
 markably striking ? If it should be asked, 
 in what did this resemblance consist I The 
 answer is, in what the apostle saw. And 
 what did. he see 1 He saw the pouring down 
 of the Holy Ghost ; for this is the term ex- 
 pressly used, and what is called pouring 
 down, in Acts x. 45, is expressly called 
 baptism, in Acts xi. 16. 
 
 Would the baptism of the Holy Ghost at 
 the house of Cornelius, have carried back 
 the recollection of Peter, so instantaneously, 
 to John's baptism, had there been no re- 
 semblance between the two baptisms, as to 
 the mode of applying the element. 
 
 That this was what Pelcr referred to, will 
 
105 
 
 appear more plainly, if we try the passage 
 by the use of the word plunge, and the sy- 
 nonyms above. John plunged, &c. in water ; 
 but ye shall be plunged, immersed, dipped in 
 the Holy Ghost. What an abuse of lan- 
 guage, and of principle too ! Try the syno- 
 nyms. The Holy Ghost shall be poured 
 upon you, let fall upon you, shed upon you, 
 &c. as John poured water, shed water, let 
 fall water upon you. In this, there is no- 
 thing offensive, or contrary to fact, common 
 sense, the analogy of faith, or even of gram- 
 mar. When the term anointing is used, the 
 mode is preserved, though the element is 
 changed. 
 
 We may further enquire, is it not absurd 
 in the highest degree, to suppose, that the 
 same term which is used to represent the 
 application both of the sign and of the thing 
 signified, should be understood to mean two 
 modes of application diametrically opposite : 
 in the former case, to mean being plunged 
 into the element ; and in the latter, to have 
 the element poured down. 
 
 Is it possible to believe, that terms intended 
 to express the signs and antisigns, or types 
 and antitypes, of each other, should, in their 
 application, be understood in direct opposi- 
 tion to each other. That while in the anti- 
 type, or antisign, the Holy Spirit is posi- 
 tively declared to be poured out, or let 
 
106 
 
 fall from above, on the subject ; that the 
 right application of water in the sign, must 
 be by plunging the subject into it, until the 
 element rises over him, and overwhelms him, 
 or swallows him up. He that can believe 
 this, let him believe it ! 
 
 Those, therefore, who deny that pouring, 
 or letting water fall on the subject, is bap- 
 tism ; and allege, that nothing less than a 
 total immersion of the whole body under 
 water, is the scriptural mode of performing 
 the ordinance, must be prepared to disprove 
 this historical fact, as well as those other 
 facts, that have been previously noticed. 
 This they must do, not by advancing reasons 
 or suppositions, drawn from other grounds 
 and considerations, but by fully meeting the 
 fact itself. If, however, they cannot dis- 
 prove this fact ; then fundamental principles, 
 that absolute and total immersion, or plung- 
 ing, is essential to baptism by water ; falls at 
 once to the ground. 
 
 V. 
 
 \ REVIEW OF THE PRINCIPAL GROUNDS AND 
 REASONS PRODUCED IN SUPPORT OF BAP- 
 TISM, BY TOTAL IMMERSION. 
 
 Those who insist, that a total immersion 
 
107 
 
 of the body under water, is essential to water 
 baptism, lay the principal stress of their 
 reasoning on the terms going down into, and 
 coming up out of the water ; on John's bap- 
 tizing in the river Jordan, and at Enon, 
 because there was much water : on the figure 
 of being buried with Christ by baptism. 
 That the term baptism, in its original and 
 primary signification, means to dip a thing 
 under water. As it regards the terms, 
 " going down into," and "coming up out of 
 the water;" even allowing them all the weight 
 in the scale of evidence, which they can pos- 
 sess to serve the system they are brought 
 forward to support ; yet, they can afford no 
 certain evidence to prove, that a single in- 
 dividual, of the vast multitudes that were 
 baptized by John, or by Christ's apostles, 
 was ever plunged under water. That any 
 one ever was so plunged by either, rests on 
 the other hand the inference, that no one 
 ever was plunged under water, is by far the 
 most probable, and that for the following 
 plain reasons : — 
 
 We should bear in mind, that the acts of 
 going down into, and coming up out of the 
 water, are distinct, and separate from bap- 
 tism ; they are actions performed previous to, 
 and subsequent on the act of baptism itself ; 
 so that they afford no certain proof, whether 
 
108 
 
 the act of baptism was performed either by 
 sprinkling, pouring-, or dipping. It is also 
 a fact, generally admitted, that the Greek 
 particles here used, which correspond with 
 the English prepositions, into, and out of, 
 are often used to signify, to, from, by, near, 
 at, towards, &c. so that nothing can be po- 
 sitively decided on the subject by them. 
 
 One circumstance we should mark respect- 
 ing these phrases, that they were never used, 
 except when the ordinance was performed 
 out of doors ; and the subject had to go into 
 the place where the baptizer was stationed, 
 and then return from it. But we hear 
 nothing of going into, or coming out of ; nor 
 even going to, or coming from the water, 
 when the ordinance was performed within 
 doors : but simply, that they and theirs, were 
 baptized. 
 
 To make the terms, going down into, and 
 coming up out of the water, synonymous 
 with plunging the body under the water, im- 
 poses a false idea on the mind. But who 
 does not see the discripancy of this : for 
 upon that supposition, every horse, or any 
 other animal, that goes down into the water 
 to drink, and comes up out of it again, by 
 the same rule of implication, must have been 
 dipped under the water, though he only went 
 in up to his fetlock, or knees. 
 
109 
 
 We do not find in the history, that there 
 is so much as a single hint given, that 
 John ever stepped one foot into the water 
 himself, in the act of baptizing ; much less, 
 that he stood in it from morning till night, 
 and that too, from day to day. This he 
 must have done, had he plunged under water 
 the vast multitudes he baptized ; as we have 
 no proof, that any one assisted in the work, 
 the thing seems morally impossible. Nor 
 does the argument against, a total immersion, 
 rest only on this ; for the baptized must have 
 been dipped, either in their clothes, which 
 would have endangered their health, or out 
 of their clothes, which would have presented 
 one of the most indecent scenes, that had 
 ever been witnessed under the face of the 
 sun. It is in vain to presume any thing 
 about vestries, baptistries, and baptizing 
 garments, as the history does not even hint 
 at any such provisions ; though the garment 
 of the baptizer, with its appendages, is par- 
 ticularly described. Matt. iii. 4. 
 
 John's baptizing at the river Jordan, and 
 at Enon, because there was much water 
 there, seems by implication to convey the 
 inference, that the persons baptized must 
 have been dipped : or else, why need it be 
 so expressly mentioned, that there was much 
 water there? Ah! why, indeed ! This is 
 
 L 
 
110 
 
 the question. But a moment's reflection 
 will be sufficient to shew, that too much 
 water, would have been as fatal to total im- 
 mersion, or plunging-, as too little ; and in- 
 deed, that a small stream with a dam made 
 by the side, or across it, would have been 
 much more suitable and convenient for the 
 purpose, than a deep and rapid river. The 
 selecting a place, or part of the country, 
 where there was a good supply of water, 
 was for other purposes than because a large 
 supply of water was positively necessary for 
 baptism, even if it be granted, that all who 
 were baptized, were immersed. We read 
 John iii. 22-23. 
 
 "After these things, came Jesus and his 
 disciples into the land of Judea, and there 
 he tarrried with them, and baptized ; and 
 John also was baptizing in Enon, near to 
 Salem, because there was much water there ; 
 and they came, and were baptized," some by 
 John, and some by Christ, through his dis- 
 ciples, whom he had sanctioned, and super- 
 intended on the occasion. The history is 
 not introduced so much for the purpose of 
 noticing John's baptism, as that of Christ, 
 and the circumstances which arose out of it, 
 viz. the question which was raised respecting 
 the design of John's baptism, v. 25 ; the 
 jealousy excited by the great extent of 
 
Ill 
 
 Christ's baptism, and the preference that was 
 given to it, v. 26 ; the opportunity it gave 
 John of renewing* his testimony concerning 
 Christ, (which was probably the last he pub- 
 licly bore ;) and the satisfaction he expressed 
 in receding to give place to him, "He must 
 increase, but I must decrease :" v. 27-30. 
 
 The term much water, is usually under- 
 stood in this passage, to mean many streams, 
 or springs of water. The historian, in re- 
 cording that the baptisms of Christ, and of 
 John, were practised at the same time, and 
 in the same neighbourhood, seems intent to 
 inform us, that there were not only many 
 springs, or streams, at Enon, but that there 
 were many springs, or streams, in all that 
 part of the country. 
 
 It is probable, that Christ and his disci- 
 ples, were baptizing on the banks of the 
 Jordan ; and John also, at the same time, 
 was baptizing at Enon, because there were 
 many springs of water in all that part of the 
 country. There is nothing in this fact, to 
 prove immersion, it has mere inference, with 
 nothing better than a mere supposition to sup- 
 port it. The historian's design appears to be, to 
 give a plain reason, why two large companies 
 should be attracted to the same neighbour- 
 hood, where they might be, at the same time, 
 engaged, without interfering with each other 
 
112 
 
 in making the same religious use of water ; 
 as well as obtain a sufficient supply, both for 
 themselves, and their cattle to drink. The 
 latter reason, indeed, will appear to be much 
 more probable and important, than the former, 
 when we consider the multitudes that at- 
 tended from day to day, by whatever mode 
 baptism was performed. This shews the 
 futility of all the noise and wrangling that 
 this passage has occasioned, in the arguments 
 which have been deduced from it, to establish, 
 or confute immersion baptism. 
 
 One great and principle reason, why bap- 
 tism has been supposed to imply immersion, 
 is the expression used Rom. vi. 4, and Col. 
 ii. 12 : " Buried with Christ by baptism, and 
 in baptism ;" "and also to be risen with him, 
 in his resurrection." Both these passages 
 seem to have the same import, and the ques- 
 tion is, had the apostle any reference to the 
 mode of baptism at all, in these verses, or 
 had he not ; if he had, what was the nature 
 of that reference. Those who hold with 
 " immersion baptism," suppose he had ; but 
 this is only a supposition, and affords no direct 
 proof, that he had any reference at all to the 
 mode of baptism. 
 
 The apostle, in these passages, is not treat- 
 ing of the subject of baptism, but is en- 
 forcing the necessity of a conformity to 
 
113 
 
 Christ, in those who had been baptized into 
 a profession of faith, in his death and re- 
 surrection. He enjoins them, as baptized, 
 and not as nnbaptized persons; to put oft' the 
 old life of sin, and to seek a conformity to 
 Christ, in the new life of righteousness. 
 " Therefore, we are buried with him by 
 baptism into death, that like as Christ was 
 raised up from the dead, by the glory of the 
 Father, so we also should walk in newness 
 of life. 
 
 The apostle is treating of the connexion 
 between justification and sanctification, and 
 in doing this, he makes distinct allusions to 
 three things, to baptism, to grafting, and to 
 crucifixion. In these there must be points 
 of resemblance, and could we divest our 
 minds of ignorance, inattention, and pre- 
 judice, and candidly examine them, there can 
 be no doubt, but that they will appear na- 
 tural and striking, and in perfect agreement 
 with all other instances in the scriptures, of 
 the application of the word baptize. It 
 would be very extraordinary, that the term 
 baptize, which in every other part of scrip- 
 ture, evidently implies the act of pouring 
 out from above, should in this single instance 
 have a contrary meaning, and imply the act 
 of immersing in water, which is below. 
 
 The apostle does not in this passage, allude 
 l 2 
 
114 
 
 to our burial, but to Christ's : " Buried with 
 him by baptism into his death," not our own. 
 The question is not, how we bury, but how 
 Christ was buried. By burying, we usually 
 mean the lowering a dead body into the 
 grave, covering it with earth, and so leaving 
 it under the ground ; in this mode, there is 
 no resemblance to the burial of Christ ; in 
 this sense, he never was interred either above, 
 or below the surface of the earth. On a 
 little reflection, we shall also acknowledge, 
 that burying, includes the various operations 
 attendant on laying out the body for final 
 interment ; and it is in this sense alone, that 
 the term can be applied with propriety, to 
 the burial of the Saviour. It is said, 
 John xix. 40 : Christ was buried, " as the 
 manner of the Jews is to bury." It is in 
 their manner of burying, and not in our own, 
 we must seek a resemblance between burial 
 with Christ and baptism. After the death 
 of a person was ascertained, the first step 
 taken, was to wash the body. 
 
 In the account given of the death of 
 Dorcas, Acts ix. 37, this is mentioned, as 
 having taken place as a matter of course. 
 She was sick and died : whom when they 
 had washed, they laid her in an upper cham- 
 ber. When it was intended to anoint and 
 embalm the body, washing was uniformly a 
 
115 
 
 previous process, whether mentioned or not. 
 Now the burial of Christ, so far as proceeded 
 with, was *.* as the manner of the jews was to 
 bury." None surely will for a moment 
 doubt, that this universal practice of washing- 
 the body, was one of the first attended to, 
 with the body of the deceased and beloved 
 Saviour. 
 
 If we consider the state his body was in, 
 when taken down from the cross : marred 
 with spitting' and buffeting, lacerated with 
 scourges, and covered with blood from the 
 wounds occasioned by the thorns, the nails, 
 and the spear ; we may certainly assure our- 
 selves, that those who had bought about a 
 hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes, would 
 not omit the use of those stone water pots, 
 in common use among the jews, and those 
 towels round their waists. John xiii. 4-5. 
 In order to cleanse the body from that state 
 of defilement it was in, would they not begin 
 to pour on the head, the side, the hands, the 
 feet, and to wipe the body in its different 
 parts, with the greatest tenderness and care 
 with those towels, till they had thoroughly 
 cleansed it, and so prepared it to be anointed 
 with the spices, and wrapped up in the clean 
 fine linen cloth provided for the purpose, by 
 Joseph of Arimathea. John xix. 40. 
 
 This was a temporary embalmment, or 
 
116 
 
 anointing', to preserve the body from cor- 
 ruption, till after the sabbath, at the end of 
 which, the women intended to have com- 
 pleted their work. For this purpose, very 
 early in the morning*, they went to the tomb, 
 to accomplish the embalming- of the body of 
 Jesus, had they not been prevented by his 
 resurrection. 
 
 The next act they had to perform, was to 
 lay him in the sepulchre. Let us proceed 
 with the narrative. John xix. 41. "And 
 when Joseph had taken the body, [down from 
 the cross,] and wrapped it in a clean fine linen 
 cloth with the spices, [after it had been 
 washed,] and laid it in his own new tomb, which 
 he had hewn out of the rock, and had rolled 
 a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, 
 they departed."— Matt. xxvii. 59-60. "There 
 lay the body of Jesus, therefore, because of 
 the jews' preparation day ; for the sepulchre 
 was nigh at hand." — John xix. 42. "And 
 they took him down from the tree, and laid 
 him in a sepulchre. But God raised him 
 from the dead :" — Acts xiii. 29-30. 
 
 From the above historical narrative of the 
 burial of Christ, the questionjnaturally arises : 
 How was he laid in the sepulchre I His 
 body was not interred, by being lowered into 
 a grave, and then covered with earth. It 
 was not laid under ground, but carried 
 
117 
 
 into a tomb, and laid on a table in the middle, 
 or on one of the benches on the side of the 
 apartment. The place itself, was not a tomb 
 sunk like a cave, but what is called a se- 
 pulchre, hewn out of the side of a rock, 
 above the surface of the ground. — Isaiah 
 xxii. 15-16. The entrance into it was not 
 the mouth of a pit, but it is called a door. 
 Had this door been the covering of a pit, we 
 should have been told, that Joseph had rolled 
 a great stone upon the door ; but it is said, 
 he rolled it to the door of the sepulchre, and 
 departed. It is not said, that the disciples 
 went down into, and came up out of the 
 tomb. The door was like one on the ground 
 floor. It was a low door, which occasioned 
 the disciples to stoop to look in ; but when 
 they went in, it was like entering into the 
 door of a parlour, and not into a cellar. He 
 was not interred in a grave within the tomb, 
 for the women who saw. how the body was 
 laid, thought of no other difficulty of getting 
 access to the body, except the stone at the 
 door, which must be rolled away before they 
 could enter in. This obstacle caused them 
 some solicitude, as they were proceeding- 
 early in the morning after the sabbath was 
 ended, to finish the burial rites, for they 
 said, "Who shall roll away the stone for us." 
 These rites, however, they never finished, 
 
118 
 
 being* prevented by the resurrection — Mark 
 xv. 46 — xvi. 1-8. 
 
 The body of Christ was not, therefore, 
 lowered down into a grave, and raised up 
 out of it ; but was carried in, and Christ 
 came forth from the tomb as a mighty con- 
 queror : for it was impossible that the bands 
 of death, should hold him any longer. Acts 
 ii. 24. 
 
 In reviewing- the above historical facts, 
 attending the burial of Christ, it is asked, if 
 there is anything stated, that the history does 
 not mention, or suggest I Is there any co- 
 louring, any misrepresentation, any mistake : 
 if there be any, deduct it, and if necessary, 
 place it on the other side of the question ; 
 and then, may it not be asked, if there is a 
 single point of resemblance between the 
 burial of Christ, and the method of immer- 
 sion baptism 1 Is there one shadow of proof, 
 probability, or even possibility, that the his- 
 tory of the one should enjoin, or so much as 
 countenance, the practice of the other ? Is 
 it not from the history of the case, much 
 more natural and striking, when we think of 
 baptism, in union with, and as figurative of 
 the burial of Christ ; to think of the first, 
 and universal rite of burial, that of washing 
 the body with pure water : Heb. x. 22 ; as 
 the actual poiut of resemblance, rather than 
 
119 
 
 the last act of final interment, which in the 
 case of the Saviour, never did take place ? 
 Except this washing of the Saviour's body, 
 and the anointing- that followed it, as a part 
 of the same process, be the point of resem- 
 blance between Christ's burial, and our bap- 
 tism, there seems to be none at all. On the other 
 hand, if we were but enabled to direct our 
 minds from the notion of immersion, to that 
 of washing- and anointing-, we should then 
 see the beauty, and striking- nature of the 
 resemblance between our baptism, and the 
 burial of Christ. 
 
 One of the most important designs of bap- 
 tism, is to represent regeneration. It is not 
 regeneration itself, but a proper figure of it ; 
 and it points out to us the absolute necessity 
 of it. " For except a man be born of water, and 
 of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom 
 of God." — John iii. 5. And where regene- 
 ration actually takes place, the soul is brought 
 into actual and personal union to Christ, and 
 to the Father through him, by the operations 
 of the Holy Spirit. This union, with its 
 beneficial effects, is frequently referred to in 
 the scriptures ; both as to the sign, and to the 
 thing signified ; under the symbol of washing, 
 cleansing, purifying, &c. These expressions, 
 therefore, are in perfect accordance with the 
 facts, which are recorded, relating to the 
 
120 
 
 washing and anointing of the Saviour's body, 
 at his burial ; and these are the points of 
 resemblance, to which the apostle appears to 
 refer, when he compares baptism with the 
 burial of Christ. 
 
 It is also worthy of notice, that the sign 
 and the thing signified, are frequently men- 
 tioned together in the scriptures ; and the one 
 is used for the illustration of the other. 1 
 Cor. vi. 11 : "And such were some of you : 
 but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but 
 ye are justified, in the name of the Lord 
 Jesus, and by the Spirit of God." Here 
 our regeneration, and the blessings of justi- 
 fication and sanctification, are illustrated by 
 the figure of baptism. The name in which 
 it is administered, is the name of the Lord 
 Jesus; "the agent by whom the thing sig- 
 nified, is effected ; by the Spirit of our God ! 
 and the benefits connected with it, sanctifi- 
 cation and justification." — Titus iii. 5-6. 
 According to his mercy he saved us, by the 
 washing of regeneration, and renewing of 
 the Holy Ghost ; which he shed on us abun- 
 dantly, through Jesus Christ our Saviour. 
 Here baptism is the sign of our regeneration, 
 "being washed;" the thing signified is re- 
 generation itself, " the renewing of the Holy 
 Ghost ;" the mode of application, by the 
 spirit, being shed on the subject by perfusion, 
 
121 
 
 and not by the subject being - plunged into it, 
 the spirit, by a total immersion. 
 
 From the above historical facts, attending 
 the burial of Christ, and the reference that 
 is made to it, in relation to baptism, there 
 does not appear the least resemblance be- 
 tween it, and immersion baptism. Had not 
 the hypothesis, or sentiment, that the bu- 
 rial of Christ was a final and definitive 
 interment, early gained possession of the 
 mind, instead of an impartial examination into 
 the real history of the facts, respecting the 
 Saviour's burial ; we have reason to believe, 
 that the burial of the Redeemer, would never 
 have been set up, or even thought of, as the 
 main pillar of those who contend for im- 
 mersion baptism. This, therefore, is a fair 
 specimen of many other cases, in which a 
 superficial glance leads persons to conclude, 
 that a passage is perfectly decisive on the 
 one side of the question ; while an impartial 
 and thorough investigation into the facts of 
 the case, proves it, in reality, decisive on the 
 other. 
 
 The second allusion the apostle uses to 
 illustrate our union to Christ, is planting, or 
 grafting — Rom. vi. 5 : " For if we have 
 been planted in the likeness of his death, we 
 shall be also in the likeness of his resurrec- 
 tion." Some suppose, that the apostle in 
 
 M 
 
122 
 
 this passage also, is adverting to the ordi- 
 nance of baptism, by immersion. Here we 
 see, likewise, that an equally erroneous idea 
 has crept into the mind, on the subject of 
 planting, as had done on that of the burial 
 and resurrection of Christ. The foundation 
 of this error, seems to be in confounding 
 sowing with planting : but sowing and plant- 
 ing are performed by two distinct processes. 
 Plants are not seeds sown on the ground, 
 and then covered over with earth, but pro- 
 ductions from seeds. There are two methods 
 of planting ; one is, by taking the plant from 
 its original situation, or seed bed, where it 
 had been raised, and transplanting it into a 
 new situation. The other is, by taking the 
 branch of one plant, (called by gardeners 
 the cion,) and planting it into another stock ; 
 this is called grafting. The design of both, 
 is to place the plants in a new situation, for 
 the sake of improvement. When the apostle 
 speaks of our final interment after death, he 
 uses the similitude of sowing — 1 Cor. xv. 
 87. But when he speaks of our union to 
 Christ, and to the true church, he uses the 
 similitude of planting ; not, indeed, setting 
 the plant in the ground, much less under the 
 ground ; but in the stock of another plant : 
 '.' a plant of renown," Ez. xxxiv. 39 : "by 
 the operation of grafting," Rom. ix. 16-24. 
 
123 
 
 If this, therefore, has any allusion to bap- 
 tism, (as some suppose it has,) it imports that 
 baptism is a sign and seal of our ingrafting 
 into Christ, and the church ; and must ne- 
 cessarily refer to a very different act, from 
 that of plunging. 
 
 As all figures come short of spiritual 
 realities, so this defect may be observed here. 
 In ordinary grafting, the plant brings its 
 own nature with it, as an improvement on 
 the stock ; but here the plant is removed, 
 that it might lose its own nature, and be 
 improved by its connexion with the stock on 
 which it is ingrafted. For the accomplish- 
 ment of this, another ingrafting is spoken of. 
 Jam. i. 21 : "And receive with meekness the 
 ingrafted word," &c. This double ingraft- 
 ing, namely, the souls being ingrafted into 
 Christ, and the word being ingrafted into the 
 soul ; renders the union complete, for the 
 accomplishment of the end which is designed 
 by the new connexion : that of bringing 
 forth fruit unto God. 
 
 This gives an occasion for the use of another 
 metaphor, in which no grafting takes place ; 
 that of the vine and its branches. Christ 
 saith, " I am the vine, and ye are the branch- 
 es," &c. John xv. 1 : and in ver. 7, he illus- 
 trates this two- fold union : "If ye abide in me, 
 and my word abide in you, ye shall ask what 
 
124 
 
 ye will," &c. ; and from ver. 1-7, he points 
 out the sanctifying effects of the union ; by 
 distinguishing between those, who are only 
 discipled to him by the external sign of 
 water baptism, (by which they were visibly 
 discipled to him, John iv. 1, and vi. 59-71 ;) 
 and those who were vitally united to him, by 
 the baptism of the spirit ; being made clean, 
 through the word he had spoken to them ; 
 and that water baptism was the outward sign 
 of this washing of regeneration, by the word 
 Eph. v. 26. In this illustration of our 
 union to Christ, by the metaphor of the vine 
 and its branches ; there cannot be any allu- 
 sion to the mode of baptism ; nor can there 
 be in that of grafting, by which the apostle 
 describes the same union. The design of the 
 Saviour and the apostle seems to be one, to 
 shew the difference between a nominal and a 
 vital union to the Saviour, by the effects 
 that are produced. The apostle illustrates 
 the subject, by baptism, planting, and cru- 
 cifixion ; all to express the change that takes 
 place, and the effects which follow our vital 
 union to Christ. 
 
 The order of these metaphors, is in perfect 
 harmony with his design. Baptism, which 
 is placed first, has a respect to the found- 
 ation of our faith in the death, burial, and 
 resurrection of the Saviour ; as the ground 
 
125 
 
 of our hope for the remission of sins, and 
 washing- them away through his blood, &c. 
 The second, planting, is expressive of the 
 necessity of a personal union to Jesus, by an 
 ingraftment into him, thus to be a partaker 
 of the fatness of the root. — Rom. ii. 17. 
 And the third, crucifixion, expresses the 
 evidence of this union, in our crucifying the 
 flesh with its affections and lusts. This is 
 another instance of the consistency of scrip- 
 ture with itself ; and this passage, instead of 
 opposing a mode of baptism, which numerous 
 other passages represent by sprinkling, pour- 
 ing, &c. is in perfect union with them. It 
 also seems very evident, that the apostle's 
 principal design in the passage, was not to 
 describe the mode of baptism, but to point 
 out and enforce the moral designs and pur- 
 poses of its appointment. 
 
 As to the etimology of the word baptize, 
 whether it means to dip, to plunge, or sim- 
 ply to stain ; whatever be the mode by which 
 it may be performed, the case will not be 
 altered. The proper enquiry is, not what is 
 the original abstract meaning of the word, 
 but what is the scriptural and ceremonial 
 use of it ; and it has been proved demon- 
 strably, that the scriptural application of 
 the word, whether in reference to water, or 
 to the spirit, generally, if not always, in the 
 m 2 
 
126 
 
 New Testament, represents the act by pour- 
 ing- down from above on the subject, and 
 not by plunging the subject into the baptismal 
 element. The more the scripture is investi- 
 gated on this subject, the more clearly the 
 fact will appear, and the more will it be 
 confirmed and established. This is our polar 
 star, or rather the luminary of our day, that 
 will Wd us in a safer path, and bring us at 
 last, to a happier goal, than mere supposition 
 and hypothesis. 
 
 VI. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS ON 
 THE MODE OF BAPTISM. 
 
 After Christ had continued some time 
 in the neighbourhood of Enon, (where John 
 also was baptizing,) with his disciples, where 
 they both baptized great multitudes ; as it 
 was the design of God, that these two large 
 companies should be united together, only 
 by a gradual transference of them from John 
 to Christ; Jesus left Judea, and departed 
 again into Galilee, and he must needs go 
 through Samaria. Then comcth he to a city 
 
12? 
 
 called Sychar : now Jacob's well was there, 
 John iv. 1-6-7-15, by which the city was 
 supplied with water. A woman belonging 
 to the city, came while Christ was sitting on 
 the side of the well, and Christ's conversa- 
 tion with her, led her to return to the city, 
 and invite the inhabitants to go and hear him 
 for themselves. And many of the Sama- 
 ritans believed on him, because of the saying 
 of the woman, which testified, he told me all 
 that ever I did, and many more, because of 
 his own words. Can any one doubt, but 
 that the disciples baptized these new con- 
 verts : but can any one believe, that they 
 immersed them. If they did, there must 
 have been such a drawing from Jacob's well, 
 as had not taken place since the days of the 
 patriarch. 
 
 And where was the baptistry into which 
 the water was poured ? Were the troughs 
 into which the water was poured for the 
 cattle to drink, used for this purpose I The 
 quantity of water that would have been ne- 
 cessary, to have baptized nearly a whole city, 
 would probably have been more than the well 
 would have afforded. For the well was deep 
 before they reached the water, so that a man 
 could not give to himself, or his neighbour, 
 a cup of water, without something to draw 
 with. The inconvenience and indelicacy to 
 
128 
 
 which the women must have been exposed 
 by such a process, in such a situation to 
 say nothing of the men; makes the practice 
 
 Highly improbable, if not impossible. The 
 difficulty would have been even far greater 
 
 M e rf ty f water in ™»y pw£ 
 
 the holy land; where the universal practice 
 of the apostles, of making disciples t P Christ 
 by .baptism, would have required the use 
 
 In Acts second, there is nothing in the 
 history of the pentecostal baptism, to con! 
 vmce us, that Peter sent one individual 
 home dripping wet. Some mocked, others 
 said the apostles were filled with new wine 
 What would they have said, had they ™t 
 nessed the scene closed with the immersion 
 
 L P nl U eT n & Undei ; Water ' ° f three tbous ^ 
 people I Here also, not to mention the lu- 
 dicrous nature of the scene, the scarcity of 
 water makes immersion incredible. All the 
 pools in Jerusalem, would scarcely have been 
 sufficient for the purpose. The brook Ke- 
 
 offVSl£ 7 a ^ the common drain t0 take 
 
 oil the filth of the city,) would have pro- 
 
 He"b d r^ mg T T heT than "P u ™r/> 
 on thPt\r' J*? h f VG CmptlecI the cist erns 
 on he tops of the houses, would have pro- 
 bably created an insurrection of the whole 
 
129 
 
 city. The destruction of so many magazines 
 of corn, would probably have been a less 
 calamity. 
 
 The same inference may be drawn from 
 Acts viii. 12 : " But when they believed 
 Philip preaching- the things concerning the 
 kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus 
 Christ, they were baptized." Here it must 
 appear on the face of the history, that there 
 was no immersion. Can it be supposed, 
 even for a moment, to be credible, that the 
 comely and holy propagation of Christianity, 
 was accompanied on such an occasion with a 
 public, promiscuous, and simultaneous plung- 
 ing of both sexes, by a total immersion un- 
 der water, even if done in the most decent 
 manner. That men, who were strangers, 
 should take hold of women, without distinc- 
 tion of age, or condition, and plunge them 
 into water, and then raise them up again out 
 of it, and hold them up, and they expose 
 them in this dismal state, to the eyes of the 
 other sex, and to the gaze of the multitude ; 
 this seems utterly inconceivable, if not alto- 
 gether irreconcilable with the purity of the 
 gospel. Not only would the jews have ob- 
 jected to it, who were watching for every 
 occasion of objection, but more especially 
 would not the greeks, whose habitual jea- 
 lousy was such, that it was found necessary 
 
130 
 
 to appoint deaconesses, for the private in- 
 struction of their females — Rom. xvi. 1-4. 
 In our own happy land, at the present day, 
 the occasional public, total immersion of in- 
 dividuals, especially of females, requires for 
 its toleration, all the advantage of custom, 
 the respect Christianity has acquired, and the 
 liberal sentiments acquired by our religious 
 liberty. 
 
 The more we investigate the circumstances 
 of the two foregoing cases, the stronger will 
 the presumptive evidence be against immer- 
 sion ; and this will increase, as we proceed 
 to examine other passages, relating to the 
 subject ; especially in house-baptisms, or 
 when baptism was performed within doors. 
 
 In every house-baptism, it is supposed, 
 that there was always sufficient water at 
 hand for its administration ; and that the 
 baptism of the householders and their chil- 
 dren, was the first religious act that took 
 place, after they assented to the truth of the 
 apostle's doctrine respecting Christ, as the Son 
 of God, and Saviour of sinners, in the same 
 night, or on the same day ; and in some in- 
 stances, within the same hour. In all house- 
 baptisms, t-he water is always supposed to 
 have been brought into the room, or place, 
 where the company was assembled, and bap- 
 tism administered by an effusion of it on the 
 
131 
 
 head or face ; and not that the subject was 
 carried out of the room to a bath, pool, or 
 river, to be totally immersed. We never 
 read in these house-baptisms, a single word 
 about going" down into, or coming up out of 
 the water ; nor of going to, and coming from 
 the water. 
 
 In Actsx. 47-48, it is recorded that Peter 
 said, "can any man forbid water that these 
 should not be baptized, which have received 
 the Holy Ghost as well as we? And he 
 commanded them to be baptized in the name 
 of the Lord." Here it seems, that Peter 
 proposed that water should be brought in, 
 and that baptism should be administered to 
 the whole company in the room where they 
 were assembled ; and that it was so adminis- 
 tered by an effusion, by pouring or letting 
 water fall upon them, as an emblem of the 
 gifts of the Holy Spirit, which had been 
 poured out upon them ; and this was per- 
 formed before the assembly broke up, or 
 separated. Here again, the idea of immer- 
 sion seems incredible ! 
 
 In reading the baptism of St. Paul, Acts 
 xxii. 16, the same impression is made on 
 the mind. " And Ananias said to Saul, and 
 now, why tarriest thou ? Arise and be bap- 
 tized, and wash away thy sins, calling on 
 
132 
 
 the name of the Lord." Also, Acts ix. 18. 
 "And immediately there fell from his eyes, 
 as it had been scales, and he arose, and was 
 baptized ; and when he had received meat, 
 he was strengthened." Here Ananias re- 
 presents baptism as a sign, symbol, or figure 
 of washing ; but dipping - is not washing-, 
 things may be dipped that are never washed ; 
 washing is a distinct process subsequent upon 
 dipping-; and usually performed when the 
 thing dipped, has again been raised up out 
 of the water. This shews the error of mak- 
 ing dipping and washing- synonymous. Wash- 
 ing is very often performed by pouring- water 
 on the things to be washed. This is the 
 mode usually referred to in the scriptures ; 
 especially when applied to persons, by pour- 
 ing water on the hands and the feet of the 
 persons to be washed — 2 Kings iii. 11. John 
 xiii. 5. It also accords with our burial with 
 Christ in his death. There is nothing said 
 about the apostles going down into the water, 
 or coming up out of it ; he is demanded to 
 arise, and put himself into a position to 
 receive the ordinance, at the hands of Ana- 
 nias. The shock the apostle had received 
 at his conversion, and his fasting three days, 
 had reduced him to great weakness ; yet he 
 was immediately baptized, before he had 
 
133 
 
 received any meat, or renewed his strength. 
 Under these circumstances, could he have 
 been immersed ? Incredible ! 
 
 In looking into the cases of Lydia and 
 the gaoler, their baptisms seem to admit of 
 the same conclusion — Acts xvi. 14-15. "And 
 a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of 
 purple, of the city of Thyatira, which 
 worshipped God, heard us, whose heart the 
 Lord opened, that she attended unto the 
 things which were spoken of Paul ; and when 
 she was baptized, and her household, (oikas 
 or house) she intreated us," &c. It is more 
 than probable, that Lydia and her family, 
 were baptized with water taken out of the 
 river ; can we suppose that this first act of 
 religion, which followed her incipient faith 
 in the apostle's doctrine, was performed by 
 plunging her, and her family, into the river ; 
 and that to by strangers, whom, probably, 
 they never had heard of before ; and even 
 before she had had an opportunity of entering 
 into her own house, to prepare for such a 
 ceremony. The difficulty and monstrosity of 
 total immersion is proved by these facts, as 
 really as by the former. From the history 
 of her case, there is no more proof that she 
 and her family (who appear to have accom- 
 panied her in her baptism) were dipped in 
 the river, and sent home dripping wet, than 
 
 N 
 
134 
 
 there was that the gaoler and his family, who 
 were baptized in the prison house, ver. 33, 
 were. "And he," the gaoler, "took them 
 the same hour of the night, and washed 
 their stripes, and was baptized ; he and all 
 his straightway." Here we have not a 
 single word about a bath, or a tank, any 
 more than about a bason ; water was brought, 
 in some vessel, to wash their stripes ; and 
 water was brought in also to baptize the 
 family; and the apostle baptized the gaoler 
 and his family immediately, even before 
 they suffered themselves, or the gaoler and his 
 family, to take any refreshment ; as though 
 they could not discharge this first act of 
 their commission in full, without stamping 
 it with this broad seal of heaven, to confirm 
 the declaration that they proclaimed to him, 
 " believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou 
 shalt be saved, and thy house." 
 
 It may be replied, that the above inter- 
 pretations of those cases are conjectural 
 inferences, and, therefore, afford only a pre- 
 sumptive proof in favour of the mode of 
 baptism they are brought forward to support, 
 against immersion. This is freely granted, 
 and nothing more is intended by them, than 
 to afford collateral evidence, in support of 
 the more direct and positive evidence brought 
 forward in the former part of the work, 
 
135 
 
 both with respect to the baptism of the 
 spirit and of water ; and when both direct 
 and collateral evidence are taken together, 
 they present a body of evidence in favour of 
 sprinkling- or pouring, as being more scrip- 
 tural, and more conformable to the practices 
 of the apostles than immersion ; and which 
 can never, by mere hypothesis and supposi- 
 tion, be overthrown. 
 
PART THIRD. . 
 
 THE MORAL DESIGNS OF BAPTISM. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INCLUDES THE RELATION IT BEARS TO THE 
 ANALOGY SUBSISTING BETWEEN THE DIF- 
 FERENT DISPENSATIONS OF TRUE RELIGION 
 FROM THE BEGINNING. 
 
 In tracing the foregoing particulars, the 
 main object of the writer has been, distinctly 
 to mark out the analogy subsisting between 
 the corresponding rites of the Jewish and 
 christian dispensation ; especially the initia- 
 tory rites, and the relation which both bear 
 to parents, and to their children. That 
 there is a unity of design, of a moral nature, 
 in all the dispensations of heavenly grace to 
 man, is certain and evident ; and that they 
 all bear a relation to each other, in the com- 
 prehensive plan of chartered covenanted 
 mercies, as several parts of a whole. Each 
 succeeding dispensation was, in substance, 
 a republication of the first promise ; " the 
 n 2 
 
138 
 
 seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's 
 head ; " accompanied with such additional 
 revelations, promises, precepts, and con- 
 firming seals as God was pleased to give, 
 from time to time, for the edification of the 
 church, and the furtherance of his own 
 gracious designs. These revelations, and 
 confirming seals, were appointed for the 
 mutual instruction, both of parents and 
 children, in their succeeding generations ; 
 as well as to afford a standing testimony of 
 the certainty of the fulfillment, on the part 
 of the blessed God, of all his gracious 
 promises. 
 
 In this appointment of the various dis.- 
 pensations, children were not mentioned in 
 an accidental way merely, but they were 
 made a distinct part, or a constituent branch 
 of each ; and they stood exactly on the same 
 footing in their external relation to the dis- 
 pensation, as their parents did, and were 
 initiated into it by the same ceremonial rite, 
 and for the attainment of the same moral 
 ends. This principle of introducing the 
 children, as constituent branches, run through 
 the whole series ; and it became more dis- 
 tinct and clear, as they succeeded each other. 
 From the short history of the first dispensa- 
 tion, with our first parents, it is certain, 
 that sacrifices were appointed, as much for 
 
139 
 
 the benefit and instruction of the children, 
 as they were for that of their parents. W hat- 
 ever doubt, or uncertainty, might appear in 
 the first instance, it was more fully recog- 
 nized in the second ; by the introduction ot 
 Noah and his family into the ark ^ 1 he 
 same principle was definitely settled in the 
 case of Abraham, that the parent s rite, &c. 
 should extend to children in their earliest 
 infancy. The same principle was fully esta- 
 blished by the introduction of the people ot 
 Israel into the Mosaic dispensation. Parents 
 and children went together through the red 
 sea and were all baptised unto Moses m 
 the cloud, and in the sea. The same prin- 
 ciple became the frequent subject ot pro- 
 phecy, and especially in those prophecies 
 which refer to gospel times. The Old Tes- 
 tament closes with this principle. Mai. iv 
 5-6 The New Testament opens with it. 
 Luke i 16-17. Christ not only recognized, 
 but established it, beyond any reasonable 
 occasion of doubt, or disputation. This he 
 did by defending the children in the temple 
 against the pharisees, declaring them to be 
 the subjects of prophecy, Matt xxi. 15-lb, 
 Ps viiii 2, by rebuking his disciples for 
 attempting to obstruct their admission to 
 him, as their divine Saviour, by taking them 
 up in his arms and blessing them ; and as- 
 
140 
 
 signing as a reason for his conduct, " for of 
 such is the kingdom of God." Mark x. 15-16. 
 And, to establish their claim beyond all 
 dispute, he took a little child, and set him 
 in the midst of his disciples, in their collec- 
 tive capacity, as an assembled church ; and 
 demanded of them, that they should receive 
 that little child, or infant, and such little 
 children, in his own name, and in his father's 
 name. As their divine legislator, he enjoins 
 it on them to receive this child, and such 
 little children, with the same religious re- 
 spect, as they would receive both him and 
 his Father ; (sacred, solemn, and awful in- 
 junction !) and the reason he assigns for it, 
 is this, that such little children, should be- 
 come great in his kingdom — Luke ix. 47- 
 48. On the day of pentecost, the apostles 
 opened their commission on the same prin- 
 ciple, by declaring, that the promise was 
 to them and to their children, as well as to 
 those afar off; and that they and their chil- 
 dren, stood exactly on the same footing 
 under the gospel dispensation, as they had 
 done under the former. The apostles also 
 confirmed the same principles in their sub- 
 sequent ministry, by baptizing families, as 
 such ; as in the cases of Cornelius, Lydia, 
 the Gaoler, Crispus, &c. 
 
 We have thus presented to us, an unbroken 
 
141 
 
 chain of evidence, running through every dis- 
 pensation of true religion ; that children, were 
 made a constituent branch of each dispensa- 
 tion, in connection with their parents ; and we 
 cannot break into this arrangement, without 
 destroying that analogy, and beautiful har- 
 mony, which God has established between 
 them. This principle is common to them, what- 
 ever other changes they may have undergone, 
 in succeeding each other. It must, therefore, 
 be a vain attempt, to say the least of it, to 
 seek to destroy this harmony, by endeavour- 
 ing to prove, that baptism bears no analogy 
 to the former initiatory rites, especially to 
 circumcision, and by declaring that there is 
 no relation between them. As long as the 
 scriptures are open to our free inspection, it 
 may be proved, and that demonstratively 
 too, that the New Testament, by its frequent 
 references to the old, maintains this analogy, 
 with respect to the principles and practices 
 we have been establishing ; the right of 
 children to stand in an external relation to 
 the church, and to have that relation unto 
 them confirmed, by the initiatory seal, of the 
 dispensation under which they live. 
 
 It has been frequently asked, by those 
 who are opposed to the above principles : 
 what has the Old Testament to do with the 
 New Testament ordinance I They state, 
 
142 
 
 that they cannot understand the propriety of 
 looking into Genesis, for direction on the 
 subject. That they cannot feel the force of 
 arguments, drawn from the Abrahamic co- 
 venant, or the rite of circumcision : nor can 
 they see what connection it has with the New 
 Testament ordinance of baptism. It may 
 be remarked, that the question, with the 
 reasons by which it is supported, is founded 
 on mere sophistry, and the perversion of the 
 order of things. The question, when fairly 
 put, is not what the old Testament has to 
 do with the new on the subject, but what 
 the new has to do with the old ; and whether 
 it does, or does not, send us to the old on the 
 subject of baptism, for direction and con- 
 firmation. Surely, as the two inspired apos- 
 tles, Paul and Peter, invite us to accompany 
 them to these ancient records, to learn the 
 analogy between Noah's ark, circumcision, 
 and baptism, the objectors must feel perfectly 
 satisfied with the propriety of joining these 
 inspired men in this inquiry, and to learn 
 from them its reasons, without opposition, or 
 gainsaying ; but if they refuse, we must 
 leave them to reconcile their dissatisfaction 
 with these holy inspired men, or abide the 
 consequence. Let it never be forgotten, 
 that whether we refer to those rights that 
 have ceased in their practice, or to those 
 
143 
 
 which are to continue to the end of time, 
 the apostles wished us not to be ignorant of 
 their design, which was to be the means of 
 instruction in spiritual things. 1 Cor. x. 1-4. 
 
 II. 
 
 THE MORAL DESIGNS OF BAPTISM, IN ITS RE- 
 LATION TO THE APOSTLES' PRACTICE OF 
 ADMINISTERING IT, IN CONNEXION WITH 
 THE FIRST LESSONS OF CHRISTIANITY. 
 
 In Heb. vi. 1-2, baptism is declared to be 
 one of the first principles of the doctrines of 
 Christ. It is the leading rite of the chris- 
 tian dispensation, by which it distinguished 
 it from all other systems of religion, whether 
 Jewish or heathen ; and therefore, it is united 
 with preaching the gospel. Matt, xxviih 
 19-20 : " Go ye, therefore, and teach all 
 nations, baptizing them in the name of the 
 Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy 
 Ghost : teaching them to observe all things." 
 Here baptism is appointed a means of grace, 
 as well as teaching. They were to teach 
 and baptize, or baptize and teach, as the case 
 might be ; uniting the ritual sign of their 
 ministry, with their verbal message, to make 
 both the means of instruction to the nations. 
 
144 
 
 Upon this principle, the first inspired 
 teachers of Christianity acted. Wherever 
 they went, they preached the gospel; and 
 when an individual, or a company of persons, 
 shewed a disposition to be taught, and to be 
 directed by them, one of the first things they 
 enjoined on them, was to be baptized. This 
 they urged them immediately to submit to ; 
 and whether their convictions, or conversion, 
 was of a saving nature, or not, they exhorted 
 them not to delay, but to submit to the or- 
 dinance at once. In some instances, as soon 
 as water could be procured, they adminis- 
 tered it to them, even before they separated, 
 though they had never seen each other before, 
 and it was uncertain whether they should 
 ever see each other again ; and baptism, 
 seems to have been the concluding part of 
 the service. 
 
 This unhesitating promptitude of the apos- 
 tles in administering the ordinance, in con- 
 nection with the very first delivery of their 
 message, and of uniting it with the very first 
 lessons of Christianity, seems adapted to im- 
 press on the mind, the following ideas : 
 
 I. To give their hearers a deep impression 
 of the character of the gospel, as a new 
 dispensation of religion ; and as distinguished 
 from every other system, by the sacred names 
 in which they administered baptism, as well 
 
145 
 
 as by the application of the ordinance itself; 
 and that they considered it as consistent with 
 the design, spirit, and ultimate sign of their 
 commission, to administer it with the very 
 first lessons of Christianity. 
 
 II. By thus acting, they conveyed the 
 idea, that they could not proceed a second 
 stage in their work, nor expect a blessing to 
 attend it, without stamping their message 
 with this broad seal of heaven, in confirm- 
 ation of its sacred truth. 
 
 III. That it was necessary, for the pur- 
 pose of illustrating their verbal message, as 
 John had previously done, when he said, " 1 
 indeed, baptize you with water, but he that 
 cometh after me, he shall baptize you with 
 the Holy Ghost, and with fire." 
 
 IV. By this prompt administration of it, 
 the apostles evidently must have understood 
 its application, as a means of grace, instituted 
 for the purpose of introducing its subjects 
 into that course of spiritual instruction, 
 which through the divine blessing, might 
 produce those spiritual and moral ends, which 
 baptism represented. 
 
 From the history of baptism, we do not 
 learn, that it was ever administered as a 
 token, that the remission of sins had been 
 already attained ; but in connexion with ex- 
 hortations to repentance and faith, as means 
 o 
 
146 
 
 to obtain a knowledge of the way of forgive- 
 ness, as well as to obtain the blessing itself. 
 This is the uniform language of the scrip- 
 tures, in all the exhortations to baptism. 
 
 Matt. iii. 2-5-6 : Then preached John, 
 saying, "Repent ye, for the kingdom of 
 heaven is at hand. Then went out to him, 
 Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region 
 round about Jordan, and were baptized of 
 him in Jordan, confessing their sins." 
 
 Mark i. 4: "John did baptize in the wil- 
 derness, and preached the baptism of repent- 
 ance for the remission of sins." Luke iii. 3. 
 "And he came into all the country round 
 about Jordan, preaching the baptism of re- 
 pentance for the remission of sins." 
 
 Acts ii. 37-38 : " Then said Peter unto 
 them, repent, and be baptized, every one of 
 you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the 
 remission of sins." 
 
 Acts viii. 12-13 : "But when they believed 
 Philip preaching the things concerning the 
 kingdom of God, and the name of the Lord 
 Jesus, they were baptized, both men and 
 women. Then Simon believed also : and 
 when he was baptized." Ver. 37-38 : "And 
 Philip said, if thou believest with all thine 
 heart, thou mayest. And he answered and 
 said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son 
 of God. And he baptized him." 
 
147 
 
 Acts x. 47-48 : " Can any man forbid 
 water, that these should not be baptized, 
 which have received the Holy Ghost as well 
 as we I And he commanded them to be bap- 
 tized in the name of the Lord." 
 
 Acts xvi. 14: "Whose heart the Lord 
 opened, that she attended to the things which 
 were spoken of Paul. And when she was 
 baptized, and her household." 
 
 Acts xvi. 32-34 : "And they spake unto 
 him the word of the Lord, and to all that 
 were in his house. And he took them the 
 same hour of the night, and washed their 
 stripes ; and was baptized, and all his, straight- 
 way. And when he had brought them into 
 his" house, he set meat before them, and re- 
 joiced, believing in God, with all his house." 
 Acts xviii. 8: "And Crispus, the chief 
 ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord 
 with all his house ; and many of the Corin- 
 thians hearing, believed, and were baptized." 
 Acts xxii. 16: "And now why tarriest 
 thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away 
 thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." 
 "Acts ix. 18 : "And he received sight forth- 
 with, and arose, and was baptized. And 
 when he had received meat, he was strength- 
 ened." 
 
 In taking a review of the above passages, 
 as collated together, it is self-evident, that 
 
148 
 
 baptism was administered, in connexion with 
 the very first lessons of Christianity. In 
 seven cases out of the nine, this is plain on 
 the face of the history ; and we have no 
 reason to doubt, but that the same rule was 
 observed, with respect to the Samaritans and 
 Corinthians. 
 
 It seems to have been the united and uni- 
 form practice of the apostles, and of the first 
 inspired preachers ; even that, when any 
 person professed to believe in the truth of 
 their doctrine, and upon that confession, was 
 willing to submit to the ordinance, not to 
 delay their baptism, no, not for an hour. 
 They made no distinction between one subject 
 and another, on the ground of their conver- 
 sion being real, or not. There was no putting 
 any one aside, or holding him in suspense, on 
 account of doubts, as to his real conversion. 
 Neither was there any difference made be- 
 tween persons, as to their natural, acquired, 
 or even spiritual capacity, to comprehend the 
 important truths they were declaring to 
 them. All they required of them in this 
 stage of their administrations, was a pro- 
 fessed belief of their report respecting Christ, 
 as the Son of God, and the only Saviour ; and 
 a willingness to place themselves under the 
 instructions and discipline of the church, for 
 the furtherance of their knowledge, and for 
 
149 
 
 the confirmation of their faith in these truths; 
 as the means, by which, to obtain the remis- 
 sion of their sins, and the transformation of 
 their characters into the image, and their 
 lives into the spirit of the gospel. The 
 apostles refused none, who made such a de- 
 claration of their faith, and manifested a 
 disposition to unite themselves to them, and 
 listen to their counsel and doctrine, what- 
 ever might be their present conceptions, 
 convictions, or belief. On the contrary, all 
 that were willing to submit to the ordinance, 
 of whatever age, or condition in life, they 
 immediately baptized. Then Peter urged 
 them, and said unto them, " 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." 
 It is clear, that Peter exhorted those to 
 repent, who were already convicted and 
 pricked in their hearts, for the sin of mur- 
 dering the Lord Jesus ; but his exhortations 
 to repentance and baptism, are simultaneous. 
 He did not wait even for a day, to prove 
 those to be true penitents, whom he baptized 
 on the day of pentecost. Peter and the 
 other apostles, do not appear to have ad- 
 ministered it, upon the ground, that they 
 were true penitents, or that they were not. 
 Thev proceeded on the principle, and after 
 o 2 
 
150 
 
 the manner of John's baptism ; using the 
 rite as a means of repentance, as a motive 
 and encouragement to it, but not as an evi- 
 dence that the subject had already repented, 
 though convicted or convinced ; nor as a 
 certificate of the remission of sins. These 
 blessings were set before them in promises, 
 which regarded the future, and which should 
 be fulfilled, if their repentance should prove 
 sincere. It is true, that the clearer the 
 evidence of the genuine conversion of the 
 subject to be baptized, appeared, such evi- 
 dence would afford an additional reason for 
 their baptism. This, however, does not 
 appear to be the leading, original, or uni- 
 versal principle, on which the apostles admi- 
 nistered the ordinance. 
 
 The universal principle on which the 
 apostles, and first inspired ministers of the 
 gospel appear to have acted, was, that bap- 
 tism was a means of grace, designed to pro- 
 mote a spirit of repentance and saving faith, 
 where they did not appear to exist ; and to 
 strengthen and confirm them, where there 
 were appearances that did exist, as the case 
 might be, otherwise where was the propriety 
 of Peter's uniting repentance and baptism, 
 as simultaneous acts in connexion with the 
 promise in the future, and not in the present 
 tense. Besides, if it were intended to have 
 
151 
 
 been administered to the subject, as a token 
 of his real conversion, genuine repentance, 
 and saving faith ; would not the apostles 
 have placed its subjects under a previous 
 state of probation for a season, before they 
 administered the ordinance to them? Surely 
 they would ; but this they never did : no, 
 they administered it, in connexion with the 
 very first lessons of Christianity, and accom- 
 panied it with exhortations to repentance 
 and faith ; and enforced it by the promises 
 of the remissions of sins, and the gift of the 
 Holy Ghost, as blessings yet to be obtained. 
 Even in the case of the apostle Paul, of 
 whose genuine conversion, Ananias could 
 have had no doubt, yet he exhorted him to be 
 baptized, and to call on the name of the 
 Lord, as the means of washing away his sins, 
 as a blessing yet to be obtained ; of which, 
 baptism was to be administered, as the ritual 
 sign. It is also certain, that those instruc- 
 tions which Ananias gave him, respecting 
 the Messiahship of Christ, as the Son of 
 God, and the only Saviour, must have been 
 subsequent to his baptism ; and this, as in 
 the case of the eunuch, was the first article 
 of his faith, and the first subject of his mi- 
 nistry. Acts ix. 18 — xxii. 22. 16. 
 
 It seems then, to have been the united 
 sentiment of the apostles, and the first in- 
 
152 
 
 spired preachers of Christianity, that baptism 
 should not be delayed, no, not for an hour ; 
 whenever a person professed to believe their 
 doctrine, and was willing to submit to the 
 ordinance. The nature of the confession 
 they demanded of such, previous to their 
 baptismj was not in any one of the cases, 
 whether they were truly converted to God, 
 or not ; but whether they believed in Jesus 
 Christ, as the Son of God, and the risen 
 Saviour, and the truth of their message con- 
 cerning him. In all their exhortations, they 
 urged on them the necessity of sincerity, 
 both in their professions of repentance, and 
 faith: ""If .thou believest with all thine 
 heart, thou niayest."— Acts viii. 37. That 
 they must be brought to genuine repentance 
 and conversion, before their sins would be 
 blotted out. Acts iii. 19 : "Repent, and be 
 converted, that your sins may be blotted 
 out ;" " and that they must be born of the 
 spirit, as well as of water, before they could 
 enter into the spiritual properties, and pri- 
 vileges of the kingdom of God. — John iii. 
 3-5. But these exhortations and represent- 
 ations, are very different to demanding of the 
 subject a declaration, that he believes himself 
 to be really converted, and born again ; that 
 he has actually repented, and already ob- 
 tained the forgiveness of his sins, and that 
 
153 
 
 his faith, is the genuine faith of God's ope- 
 ration. Such professions as these were not 
 demanded in any of the cases recorded in 
 the scriptures, as a pre-requisite to baptism ; 
 nor even made by the persons that were bap- 
 tized. All that was required, or all that was 
 professed, was faith in the truth of those 
 things, that were declared unto them con- 
 cerning Christ, and the way of salvation 
 through him ; and as the means of obtaining 
 the remission of sins, through his name. 
 Having obtained this, they required no more, 
 but immediately administered the ordinance 
 to them. 
 
 The utmost that can be said of the con- 
 fessions of these first couverts to Christianity, 
 previous to their baptism, is, that they con- 
 fessed their sins to John at the time of their 
 baptism. That they gladly received the de- 
 claration of Peter, who made known to 
 them, that there was remission, even for the 
 heinous crime of murdering Christ, of which 
 they now stood convicted. 
 
 The Samaritans believed the preaching - 
 of Philip, and so did Simon Magus, who 
 was among them. Cornelius said to Peter, 
 that he and his friends were assembled to- 
 gether, to hear all things that God had com- 
 manded Peter to communicate unto them. 
 The Lord opened the heart of Lydia, to 
 
154 
 
 attend to the things that were spoken of 
 Paul. The Gaoler rejoiced in God with all 
 his heart, believing- on the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 by whom he might be saved, and his house ; 
 and the eunuch said, I believe that Jesus 
 Christ is the Son of God. 
 
 If we take all these confessions together, 
 they amount to this : they believed that Jesus 
 Christ was the Son of God, and that he was 
 the only Saviour by whom they could obtain 
 the remission of sins, and through whom they 
 could be saved. Their baptism followed 
 immediately on those declarations, without 
 the least delay; and this prepared the way 
 for their future instruction, in a more perfect 
 knowledge of those important truths. 
 
 It appears then, that the design of Christ, 
 in instituting baptism, as the first and leading- 
 rite of the christian dispensation, was to 
 appoint it, as one of the first means of grace ; 
 thereby, to bring the subject of it into that 
 relation of the church. Thus, they would be 
 placed more immediately under those other 
 means of grace, which should follow; which, 
 through the influence of the Holy Spirit, 
 might lead them into a saving knowledge of 
 those sacred truths they had been baptized 
 into the profession of, if they did not possess 
 it ; and to increase, strengthen, and confirm 
 it, where it was already enjoyed. These 
 
155 
 
 seem the moral ends for which baptism was 
 administered, and that it was never adminis- 
 tered as a certificate to the subject of his 
 real conversion, even admitting- he was con- 
 verted ; much less as a token of the remission 
 of sins already obtained ; nor as a passport 
 into the full and unlimited participation of 
 the privileges of the church. This, in all 
 cases, must rest on other grounds, by what- 
 ever mode, or under whatever circumstances 
 baptism might be administered. 
 
 THE MORAL PURPOSES AND DESIGNS 
 
 OF BAPTISM POINTED OUT BY 
 
 THE SCRIPTURES. 
 
 It has been said, that baptism, (as well as 
 the Lord's supper,) being an institution of a 
 positive nature, will not admit of analogical 
 reasoning, like moral precepts ; as it affords 
 no internal light, no data to reason from ; and 
 therefore, must be taken as it is, and our 
 only appeal must be to the law of the insti- 
 tution. But, surely it will not be denied, 
 that how positive soever any institution may 
 be in its own nature, and even in its appoint- 
 ment, that it was intended for moral pur- 
 
156 
 
 poses ; as it would be unworthy of God, (be 
 it spoken with reverence,) as the moral go- 
 vernor of man, to appoint any institution 
 that was not designed for moral purposes, 
 and directed in its application for moral ends. 
 Therefore, as to its end and design, baptism 
 is as capable of moral and analogical reason- 
 ing, as any other class of precepts. Now it 
 must strike every one, who thinks seriously 
 on the subject, that all our inquiries about 
 the circumstances of an institution, can 
 answer no valuable purpose, while we neglect 
 to inquire iuto the moral ends to be answered 
 by its appointment. Jt must be confessed, 
 that this has been too much overlooked, on 
 the subject of baptism, though it is of the 
 first importance in its nature, and most se- 
 rious in its consequence. If, it be asked, 
 what moral ends are to be inculcated by 
 baptism ? The answer is plain and self- 
 evident. It inculcates all the doctrines, 
 precepts, and duties, by which a reference is 
 made to it in the scriptures, either as a 
 doctrine to be believed, or a precept to be 
 obeyed. A reference to some of those pas- 
 sages where it is expressly mentioned, or 
 evidently referred to, will establish this point. 
 I. Baptism teaches us the doctrine of the 
 Trinity, and the relation that each person in 
 the Trinity, bears to the plan of redemption. 
 
157 
 
 It teaches the love of the Father, the me- 
 diation of the Son, and the influence of the 
 Holy Spirit. Go ye, therefore, and teach 
 all nations, baptizing them in the name of 
 the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy 
 Ghost— Matt, xxiii. 19-20—2 Cor. xiii. 14. 
 
 II. It teaches the necessity of regenera- 
 tion. "Except a man be born of water, and 
 of the spirit, he cannot enter into the king- 
 dom of God." — John iii. 5. " He saved us 
 by the washing of regeneration, and renew- 
 ing of the Holy Ghost." — iii. 5. 
 
 III. It teaches the necessity of repentance 
 and confession of sins. " Repent ye, for 
 the kingdom of heaven is at hand." — Matt, 
 iii. 2. "And were baptized of him in Jor- 
 dan, confessing their sins." — Mark i. 5. 
 
 IV. It teaches the necessity of faith in 
 Christ, (as well as baptism,) for the remission 
 of sins. " Preaching the baptism of repent- 
 ance for the remission of sins. — Luke iii. 3. 
 " Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh 
 away the sin of the world." — John i. 29. 
 " He that believeth, and is baptized, shall 
 be saved ; but he that believeth not, shall 
 be damned : although he has been baptized." 
 
 V. It teaches the necessity of an applica- 
 tion of the blood of Christ, to the conscience 
 by faith, in its cleansing influence, to remove 
 the guilt and pollution of sin. "Arise, and 
 
 P 
 
158 
 
 be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling 1 
 on the name of the Lord." — Acts xxii. 16. 
 "Let us draw near with a true heart, in full 
 assurance of faith, having- our hearts sprink- 
 led from an evil conscience, and our bodies 
 washed with pure water." — He.b. x. 22. 
 
 VI. It teaches the necessity of the in- 
 fluences of the Holy Spirit, to give a saying 
 efficacy to the verbal message of the word, 
 in preaching- the gospel, accompanied with 
 the ritual sign of water baptism. John 
 preached, saying, " I, indeed, baptize you 
 with water, but he shall baptize you with 
 the Holy Ghost, and with lire."— Mark i. 8. 
 " That he might sanctify and cleanse it with 
 the washing of water, by the word." — Eph. 
 v. 26. 
 
 VII. It teaches the necessity of putting 
 on a public profession of Christ. " For as 
 many of you as have been baptized into 
 Christ, have put on Christ." — Gal. iii. 27. 
 
 VIII. It teaches the necessity of a con- 
 formity to the death, burial, and resurrection 
 of Christ, by a daily mortification of sin, and 
 the progressive sanctification of the soul. 
 " In putting off the body of the sins of the 
 flesh by the circumcision of Christ : buried 
 with him in baptism." — Col. ii. 11-12. 
 " Therefore, we are buried with him by 
 baptism into death ; that like as Christ was 
 
159 
 
 raised from the dead by the glory of the 
 Father, even so we also should walk in new- 
 ness of life." — Rom. vi. 4. 
 
 IX. It teaches us to cultivate a spirit of 
 christian unity, whatever may be our station 
 or condition in life, or our lesser differences 
 on the subject of religion. " For by one 
 Spirit we are all baptized into one body, 
 whether we be jew or gentile, whether we 
 be bond or free ; and have all been made to 
 drink into one Spirit." — 1 Cor. xii. 13 — 
 Gal. iii. 27-28. 
 
 X. It teaches the necessity of a willing - - 
 ness to suffer with Christ, and for him, and 
 his cause. But Jesus said, " Ye know not 
 what you ask. Are ye able to drink of the 
 cup that I drink of, and to be baptized with 
 the baptism that I am baptized with l And 
 they say unto him, we are able." — Mat. xx. 22. 
 
 XI. It teaches us the necessity of seeking 
 to bring in fresh converts into the church, to 
 fill up the places of departed saints. "Else 
 what shall they do which are baptized for the 
 dead, [or in the place of the dead] if the 
 dead rise not at all ? why are they then bap- 
 tized for the dead ?"— 1 Cor. xv. 29. This 
 also teaches the necessity of exercising a 
 hope in the immortality of the soul, the re- 
 surrection of the body, and that eternal life 
 promised in the gospel. 
 
160 
 
 XII. It teaches the necessity of parents 
 answering a good conscience towards God, 
 by obtaining baptism for their children, as 
 well as themselves. Noah built the ark, and 
 introduced his children into it, both natural 
 and adopted, for their preservation from the 
 destruction of the wicked ; and for their 
 instruction under its protection, for their 
 future spiritual benefit. "The like figure 
 [to Noah's ark,] whereunto, even baptism 
 doth also now save us, (not the putting away 
 the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good 
 conscience towards God,) by the resurrection 
 of Jesus Christ." — 1 Peter iii. 21, compared 
 with Gen. vi. 13-19, and Heb. xi. 7. 
 
 In taking a review of the above passages 
 thus classed together, as well as of others of the 
 same import, in which baptism is connected 
 with the doctrines and precepts of the gospel ; 
 it is sufficiently evident, that instead of its 
 being restricted, more especially to the death, 
 burial, and resurrection of Christ ; that it 
 bears a relation to the doctrines and precepts 
 of the gospel, generally. Therefore, such a 
 restriction of its import is mistaken, partial, 
 and unjust ; and is calculated to excite such 
 prejudice in the mind, as will prevent those 
 comprehensive views of the subject, which 
 the scriptures have given of it, for the pro- 
 duction of those moral ends, which thev 
 
161 
 
 have pointed out, by uniting it with the doc- 
 trines and precepts of the gospel in general. 
 It is also evident, by this union of it with 
 the doctrines and precepts of the gospel, that 
 it was intended and instituted as a means of 
 grace, for the progressive instruction and 
 improvement of the baptized ; in the know- 
 ledge of the doctrines, precepts, duties, and 
 blessings of the gospel. In fact, this arises 
 out of the nature of the case itself ; for what 
 conception, could these converts of an hour, 
 have, even of the first principles of the 
 doctrines of Christ ? much less could they 
 understand the doctrines and precepts con- 
 nected with the sacred names, into which they 
 had been baptized. 
 
 But, by uniting these sacred doctrines and 
 precepts with their baptism, the scriptures 
 enjoin on its subjects, the imperative ne- 
 cessity and obligation, to use every means of 
 grace in the exercise of faith, for the purpose 
 of increasing their knowledge and experience 
 in an acquaintance with these spiritual truths : 
 and to seek to enter into their spirit and 
 design. They also teach us to seek a pro- 
 gressive, increasing, and suitable conformity 
 to them, in our lives and conversation, all 
 the days of our probationary pilgrimage on 
 the earth. To bring forth the fruits of the 
 Spirit, " that ye may have our fruit unto 
 p 2 
 
162 
 
 holiness, and the end everlasting life." "Re- 
 ceiving the end of your faith, even the sal- 
 vation of your souls." 
 
 The above passages, likewise shew, that 
 Christ and his apostles did not treat baptism, 
 with that indifference, and even contempt, 
 which some modern professors of religion 
 have done ; neither did they stigmatize it 
 with an unappropriate epithet, by calling it 
 a non-essential of religion, nor did they in 
 any one respect treat it as such. It is very 
 evident, that they made it very essential, 
 in uniting it so very closely with the doc- 
 trines and precepts of the gospel ; and the 
 constant reference they made to it, to enforce 
 them in their practical application. Thus uni- 
 ting the ritual sign and verbal message, as 
 means of grace, for the progressive instruction 
 and promotion, both of the faith and practice 
 of the baptized, these are the moral ends for 
 which it was designed. 
 
 THE MORAL DESIGNS OF BAPTISM, 
 IN ITS RELATION TO FAMILIES. 
 
 Upon the same principle of making bap- 
 tism, not only a confirming seal of the truth 
 
163 
 
 of their ministry, but also an introductory 
 means of grace; the apostles not only bap- 
 tized individuals as such, but also families, 
 as families, in their family capacity. When- 
 ever the parents professed sincerely, to be- 
 lieve in the truth of their doctrine, whether 
 male or female, their children were admitted 
 to the ordinance, in connexion with, and on 
 the faith of the parents, of whatever age, if 
 still under their government; and for the 
 same moral purposes. Then salvation came 
 to that house — Luke xix. 9, and parents and 
 children were brought under the immediate 
 care of the church ; that both might be con- 
 jointly placed under that course of instruc- 
 tion, which through the divine blessing, 
 might prove the power of God to their sal- 
 vation ; except, indeed, the children were 
 grown so old, and so hardened in sin, as to 
 rebel both against their Father in heaven, as 
 well as their parent on earth ; and in that 
 case, they must be left to their own respon- 
 sibility. 
 
 Upon the same principle, we are not only 
 warranted, but we are bound to baptize, not 
 only the parents, but their offspring with 
 them. In refusing to do so, we dare to set 
 in judgment upon a whole lineage, as though 
 there never had before been one of the whole 
 line of descent, and never would be one 
 
1G4 
 
 after, that would be a partaker of the blessing" 
 of the promise, that is made to us and to 
 our children ; as well as to the unabolished 
 promise made to Abraham, " to be a God to thee 
 and to thy seed after thee," and (hat "in 
 thee, and in thy seed, shall all the families of 
 the earth be blessed." We also disown an 
 ordinance, which God has appointed for the 
 confirmation of the promises, he has made to 
 us, and our children ; and refuse to follow 
 the practice of apostles and evangelists, of 
 primitive Christianity. We may farther add, 
 that if the apostles did not practice family 
 baptism on the day of pentecost, they did 
 not act as under the eye of their master, who 
 pronounced children to be members of his 
 visible kingdom, received them into his arms 
 and blessed them, and commanded his apos- 
 tles to receive them, ia his own and in his 
 father's name ; nor did they act according to 
 their final commission ; nor did they act in 
 conformity to their own declaration. "The 
 promise is to you and your children ;" nor 
 did they act, as they afterwards did, when 
 repentance was granted to the gentiles. 
 
 It is a plain and undeniable fact, recorded 
 in the Acts of the apostles, that baptism was 
 administered to those who professed their 
 belief in the truth of their doctrine, and to 
 their families upon the faith of their parents, 
 
165 
 
 and upon the very first declaration of their 
 faith. Nor were these family baptisms new 
 cases, nor singular cases, nor rare cases, nor 
 cases to be accounted for, or justified by any 
 peculiar circumstances ; such as had not 
 happened before, and might not soon happen 
 again. They were mentioned as matters of 
 course, without any particular expression of 
 surprise, or admiration rand to baptize them was 
 as much then a common practice, as it was 
 to preach the gospel to them. "And when 
 she (Lydia*) was baptized, and her house, or 
 family ;" the same is related of the Gaoler, 
 of Stephanus, and others. Although it is 
 in the Acts of the apostles, that family bap- 
 tism is first particularly and expressly men- 
 tioned, there can be no just cause to doubt, 
 but that it had been so administered, from 
 the beginning of the gospel dispensation ; 
 and even if this should be disputed, the 
 practice of the apostles afterwards, is a suf- 
 ficient ground, warrant, and rule, for our 
 conduct in baptizing families. 
 
 * It has been lately asserted, by some of the oppo- 
 nents to family baptism, that they could make it appear, 
 that Lydia was not a married woman, and consequently 
 had no children of her own. Wonders will never cease ! 
 What new discovery will not the century produce ! 
 More than a quarter of which, is already run out ! To 
 what extremities will not the hypothetical supporters of 
 a favorite system proceed in propping it up, when it is 
 discovering symptoms of decay. 
 
166 
 
 Should it be asked, can it be proved, that 
 there were any infants in all, or even in any 
 one of those families that were baptized I 
 Ihe direct and plain answer is this; the 
 term house, or family, iucludes infants in 
 its very meaning, as really as it includes adult 
 children. It includes children of all ages. 
 The question is not so much whether there 
 were infants in the family, as whether there 
 were children of any age, who were under 
 the control and government of their parents. 
 The question does not refer so much to the 
 age of the children, as to whose right they 
 had the ordinance administered to them in ; 
 was it their own, or that of their parents? 
 It is evident, that the families both of Lydia 
 and the gaoler, were baptized in the right, 
 and on the faith of their parents ; and their 
 cases bear an affinity both to Noah and to 
 Abraham. Noah's children were not only 
 come to years of discretion, but were mar- 
 ried ; yet they were under the control and 
 government of Noah, in respect to their 
 introduction into the ark. Both they and 
 their wives were admitted in the right of 
 their sire's faith— Heb. xi. 7. Abraham, 
 also, circumcised Ishmael at the age of 
 thirteen years, and Isaac at the age of eight 
 days. Nor is their in the gospel, any more 
 than in these cases, any exception made to 
 
16? 
 
 exclude children. Their continuance in the 
 family is a fair presumption, that they were 
 either under age, or were willing to remain 
 under the government, influence, instruction, 
 and example of their parents : and, if after 
 marriage they continued in the family, the 
 increase of infants is only the greater ; nor 
 is there in the nature, or circumstances ot 
 baptism itself, any thing to exclude them, 
 any more than there was in circumcision. 
 
 Baptism is the only ordinance that is given 
 to families, as families, under the gospel. 
 Mention is made of churches in the houses 
 of some, but we no where read, that a be- 
 liever and his family, or house, formed a 
 distinct church, or ever received the Lord's 
 supper. It is also a striking fact, that 
 there is not a single instance on record, from 
 the beginning to the end of the New Tes- 
 tament history, of the children of believers 
 being baptized when they had come to years 
 of maturity, on their embracing their parents' 
 faith, and publicly announcing it. If their 
 baptism had been left to adult age, would 
 there not have been some cases, nay, many, 
 of their embracing the faith of their parents, 
 and of their baptism on professing it ] How 
 is this total silence to be accounted for, but 
 upon the principle that they were previously 
 baptized with their parents, or under their 
 
168 
 
 direction ? Nor are we to conceive, that 
 the four families mentioned as baptized, were 
 the only families which enjoyed this privilege. 
 These were only a specimen of hundreds and 
 thousands of families, which, in the first 
 propagation of the gospel, enjoyed, as fami- 
 lies, the same blessed privilege. In tracing 
 the scriptures, in reference to the claims of 
 children, it is a subject that must strike 
 those with surprise and pleasure, who im- 
 partially attend to the particular notice they 
 take of the religious interest of children, in 
 connexion with their parents. Through each 
 dispensation, children are constituent branches 
 of it, in connexion with their parents, by an 
 introductory ordinance. Special injunctions 
 are given to instruct them in the knowledge 
 and practice of true religion ; and special 
 guards are set up against the innovations of 
 those privileges which had been granted to 
 them, in common with their parents, from 
 time to time ; as though the scripture fore- 
 saw, that a generation would arise, that 
 would seek to disinherit them ; from mistaken 
 notions, or some other causes. It would 
 afford a very interesting treatise, judicially, 
 to trace the different aspects the scriptures 
 take in reference to their religious interest. 
 
 When a man with his family, are either 
 degraded or ennobled, the children, of what- 
 
109 
 
 ever age, from their relation, are involved ; 
 not only in political changes, but also in 
 religions matters, both in reference to ex- 
 ternal privileges and judgments. Does not 
 the baptism of the parent convey the same 
 idea ; we have no proof that any of Lydia's 
 family believed, yet they were constituted 
 relatively holy, by their dedication to God in 
 baptism, in connexion with, and on the faith 
 of, their mother ; according to 1 Cor. vii. 14 : 
 " For the unbelieving husband is sanctified 
 by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is 
 sanctified by the husband : else were your 
 children unclean : but now are they holy." 
 By this relative holiness, they are entitled 
 to the introductory right of Christianity ; 
 and if a man, at the time of his baptism, 
 has not any children, yet, on the same prin- 
 ciple, if he should afterwards become a 
 family man, his children would be entitled to 
 the ordinance. 
 
 By this principle, that both parents and 
 children should be baptized, the apostles laid 
 parents under special obligations, to attend 
 to the instruction of their children, and 
 children to conform to their discipline. For 
 this reason, the apostles sent their salutations 
 and exhortations to christian familes, and 
 exhorted them, from christian principles, 
 with christian motives, and to christian ends, 
 
170 
 
 to a discharge of their relative duties ; as 
 husbands and wives, parents and children ; 
 as well as in the other relations of life, in 
 which, as christians, they stood to each other, 
 as masters and servants. But with what 
 consistency could they exhort persons to the 
 discharge of these duties, enforced by such 
 principles, motives, and moral ends, on a 
 system, by which they stood in no relation. 
 They would then be under no special obli- 
 gation to yield obedience, from considerations 
 drawn from that relation. All the apostle's 
 exhortations to relative duties, founded on 
 christian principles, must have been absurd ; 
 if the persons to whom he directed them, 
 stood in no kind of relation to the church, or 
 to that system of things, from whence he 
 drew his reasons for their compliance. 
 
 In what way could that relation be re- 
 cognised, but by their baptism. This laid 
 them under christian obligations, to attend 
 to their instructions, of whatever age, rela- 
 tion, or station ; and to discharge their duties 
 from christian principles, both as respected 
 the present life, and that which is to come. 
 Upon the same principle, it is clear, that pa- 
 rents, by their own baptism, and that of their 
 children, are laid under christian obligations, 
 or obligations both to Christ and his church ; 
 to train up their children in the nurture and 
 
171 
 
 fear of the Lord, and diligently to instruct 
 them in the principles and duties of Chris- 
 tianity, both by precept and example, and 
 they are highly responsible for their neglect. 
 For the same reasons, the apostle enjoined 
 that none should be chosen to offices in the 
 church, either as pastors or deacons, who did 
 not conform to this rule. Ruling their 
 houses well, having their children in sub- 
 jection, with all gravity; and thus, by setting 
 a proper example, give weight to their ad- 
 ministrations and exhortations, both to pa- 
 rents and children. But, how they could 
 train up their own children in the nurture 
 and fear of the Lord, and exhort others to 
 do the same, and instruct them in principles 
 and practices, founded on a system of things, 
 their children stood in no relation to, is not, 
 as far as consistency goes, to me, easy to be 
 conceived. 
 
 It is true, that exhortations to relative 
 duties may be given to parents and children, 
 and to persons in every other relation of life, 
 independently of baptism, as well as to those 
 who never have been baptized. These ex- 
 hortations must then be urged on other 
 grounds, than any relation in which they 
 stand to, or are bound to act from, christian 
 principles. It is equally certain, that many 
 good people, who do not hold with family 
 
172 
 
 baptism, pay every attention to the religious 
 instruction of their children, and of their ser- 
 vants also, &c. both by precept and example. 
 Many of their children have turned out pious 
 characters ; but then, they attended to those 
 things from other considerations, such as 
 parental authority, affection, and example ; 
 which, through the divine blessing, have 
 been overruled for their good. These be- 
 nefits have arisen rather from accidental 
 circumstances, or more properly speaking, 
 from a gracious interposition of a merciful 
 providence towards them, than from any 
 particular relation in which they stood, either 
 to their parents, or the church, founded on 
 christian principles. Though God, by his 
 gracious influences, overrules those instruc- 
 tions to those who have not been baptized ; 
 yet this is no just reason, why we should 
 neglect this introductory ordinance, since 
 God has appointed it as a means of grace, 
 for the benefit both of parents and children. 
 In the first propagation of the gospel, in 
 any place now, as well as in the days of the 
 apostles, cases of adult baptism will occur, 
 as adults are the subjects to whom the or- 
 dinance must be first administered. In such 
 cases, we meet with persons who profess to 
 renounce their false religion, and who declare 
 their belief in the truth of the doctrine of the 
 
173 
 
 gospel w i th apparent sincerity* like the eunuch, 
 we are bound in duty to baptize them ; and 
 tf they are family men, or women, to baptise 
 
 their children with them, with all convenient 
 
 speed. From this extraordinary case, we 
 descend to the ordinary practice of baptizing 
 
 the children of those, who have been thus 
 baptized, from one generation to another, on 
 
 the same principle that circumcision was 
 practised; with the additional enlargement 
 and liberty of the gospel, in the admission of 
 females upon the same grant. Gal. iii. 37- 
 28, and also, the choice of our own conve- 
 nient time, for the performance of the or- 
 dinance. In those places where the gospel 
 h;is long been established, when cases of 
 adult baptism occur, it should be adminis- 
 tered upon the same principle. 
 
 The subject of baptism is of the highest 
 importance to parents, both as it respects 
 themselves, and their children; especially 
 when a season occurs for its administration, 
 by an addition made to the family. It is a 
 season calculated, if properly improved, to 
 afford many important instructions to such 
 families, and their connexions. It affords a 
 new occasion of dedicating an immortal soul 
 to the service of God, as well as of renewing 
 the dedication of ourselves and families to 
 him. It affords opportunities for renewed 
 Q -2 
 
174 
 
 ratification of God's mercies to us, and our 
 seed. It is a season to awaken our attention 
 to the important trust committed to our 
 charge, and to quicken our zeal in the dis- 
 charge of family duties — to excite our gra- 
 titude for mercies and blessings received — to 
 strengthen our faith in the promises of future 
 good, both to us, and our seed after us. It 
 is a season, of a figurative representation of 
 washing away of sins, in the name of the 
 Lord ; of which, pouring of the baptismal 
 element of water upon the subject, is the 
 outward and ritual sign ; — it is a special 
 season to implore the quickening, and sanc- 
 tifying influence of the Holy Spirit, to rest 
 on the baptized, and all the family ; and to 
 intreat for the supplies of that grace, which 
 is all-sufficient to save the soul, and to pre- 
 pare it either for life or death ; and that 
 " the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the 
 love of God, and the communion of the 
 Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen." — 2 
 Cor. 13-14. 
 
 The author respectfully suggests to pa- 
 rents, as well as to others, the propriety of 
 being careful, always to treat the subject 
 with religious respect ; and to teach their 
 children, as well as others, to do the same. 
 They would do well to instruct them in the 
 moral ends for which it was appointed ; thai 
 
175 
 
 it is an introductory means of grace, for 
 their spiritual improvement; as well as a 
 confirming- seal, which God affixes to those 
 promises, that are given, in common, both to 
 parents and children. Parents, also, should 
 instruct them in the nature of the promises, 
 and endeavour to impress their minds with 
 the necessity, and importance, of seeking - a 
 personal interest in the promises, by an 
 application of their blessings, through the 
 influence of the Holy Spirit to their own 
 hearts. In every such instance of baptism, 
 it would be well if the head of the family 
 would make it more a season of family re- 
 ligion, than is often done. It should lead 
 parents to self-examination, and serious en- 
 quiry, as to how far they have discharged 
 those family duties enjoined on them by the 
 sacred scriptures ; what duties have been 
 neglected in the family — what circumstances 
 there are in the family calculated to coun- 
 teract the beneficial effects of family instruc- 
 tion, and family worship — what improvement, 
 could be adopted to bring the whole of the 
 family, more immediately, under its happy 
 influence, with special reference to the interests 
 of their immortal souls. The whole should 
 be accompanied with special, earnest, and 
 repeated prayer in the closet, and in the 
 
176 
 
 family, as well as in the sanctuary, 4 * for the 
 out-pouring of the influences of the Holy 
 Spirit upon every branch of the family ; of 
 which the pouring- of water on the subject 
 baptized is an emblem. These supplications 
 should be grounded on those promises given 
 to the families of the Lord's Israel, and 
 should be presented at the throne of grace, 
 in the exercise of a lively faith in them. 
 We should pray that God would be gra- 
 ciously pleased to fulfil these promises, both 
 to us, and to our's ; and especially that, where 
 he says, " from this day will I bless you." 
 The benefits that might be expected to result 
 from snch a procedure, on such an occasion, 
 both to the heads and members of families, 
 if conducted in a serious and devotional 
 spirit, and accompanied with suitable instruc- 
 
 * The author's humble opinion is, that baptism should, 
 if possible, be administered in public; and that if there 
 are other children in the family, who have been pre- 
 viously baptized, they should attend to witness the 
 ceremony, after having; been previously informed, that 
 they had been the subjects of the ordinance. They 
 should be instructed, according to their capacity, in 
 the moral ends of its institution. Those entertain- 
 ments which are usually given on such occasions, should 
 be conducted with a spirit of religious feeling as much 
 as possible. Perhaps it would in general be preferable, 
 to give the entertainment at another time, to prevent 
 the family from being diverted from the solemnity of 
 the occasion, and the opportunity to improve it. 
 
177 
 
 lion, cannot be calculated. It would have 
 a tendency to impress serious thoughts on 
 the minds of children, domestics, and others, 
 as to the religious nature of the ordinance ; 
 and to lead them to view it, not as a mere cere- 
 mony following on the birth of the child. It 
 would afford a special opportunity to in- 
 culcate the moral ends of baptism, both in 
 respect to the soul's salvation, and to the 
 various relations of life, in which the family 
 stand to each other; founded on the relation 
 into which they are brought to the dispensa- 
 tion of the gospel, by their baptism. It 
 might be the means of producing a revival 
 of religion in the family, and of bringing 
 upon it, abundantly, the promise made to 
 Abraham : " that in him should all the fami- 
 lies of the earth be blessed." 
 
 THE MORAL DESIGNS OF BAPTISM, 
 
 IN RELATION TO MINISTERS AND 
 
 CHURCHES. 
 
 The ministers of Christ derive their au- 
 thority to preach the gospel, and to baptize, 
 from Christ, and Christ alone. This autho- 
 rity they derive from him. Mat. v. 20. Acts 
 
178 
 
 «. 24, Eph. iv. xi., 1 Cor. ix. 16, indepen- 
 dently of any man, or any society of men, 
 by what name soever they may be called. 
 No man, or body of men, has a right to 
 dictate to the minister, whom he shall, or 
 whom he shall not baptize ; any more than 
 whether he shall or shall not preach the 
 gospel. When any man, or society of men, 
 or any church, attempts such dictation, it 
 not only invades the minister's right, but 
 also assumes the authority of Christ. No 
 minister ought to submit to such interference ; 
 for, in so doing, he virtually gives up that 
 part of his commission, which authorizes 
 him to baptize, as well as to preach the 
 gospel. Christ has not invested his ministers 
 with the delicate business of becoming the 
 inquisitorial judges of men's consciences, or 
 real characters ; and to divine, whether they 
 are truly converted characters or not, as a 
 pre-requisite for the ordinance of baptism. 
 Nor has he invested them with an authority 
 to receive or refuse any, upon the supposi- 
 tion of their fitness, or unfitness, for the 
 ordinance, resting on their own private judg- 
 ment. The apostles were not invested with 
 this authority, nor did they baptize any on 
 this principle. All they demanded was, an 
 acknowledgment of their belief in the truth 
 of their testimony, and a relinquishment of 
 
179 
 
 their former principles, whether Jewish or 
 heathen. On their making- these declara- 
 tions, if they were willing- to submit to 
 the ordinance, they had no choice, nor did 
 they assume any, but they baptized them 
 without delay. The authority to judge of 
 men's real characters, belongs to Christ, and 
 to Christ alone ; the authority he never 
 delegated to any creature. — John v. 22. 
 
 The minister's office is distinctly defined in 
 his commission : '■'■ Go and preach the gospel 
 to every creature, baptizing them in the 
 name of the Father, and of the Son, and of 
 the Holy Ghost : teaching them (the bap- 
 tized) to observe all things, whatever I have 
 commanded them." Thus they were taught 
 to lead them into that course of instruction, 
 which, through the divine blessing, would 
 discipline their minds, and conduct them 
 into the experience and practice of those 
 virtues, which would qualify them for an 
 unrestricted union to the church, and full 
 communion with it in all its privileges. 
 
 The ministers of the gospel possess a full 
 and independent authority from Christ, both 
 to preach and baptize, and to recommend 
 such"as they have baptized, to the particular 
 cognizance of the church, as visible members. 
 They may claim its special assistance, by the 
 union of influence, example, and prayers, in 
 
180 
 
 connexion with the ministry of the word ; 
 with a view to the production of those 
 moral qualifications, which shall entitle the 
 subject, in the judgment of the church, to a 
 full admittance into its fellowship ; yet, the 
 minister has received no authority from 
 Christ, and has no right to impose any one 
 on the church, for full communion, without 
 its consent, or contrary to its voice. Though 
 the church possesses no authority to interdict 
 the minister from uniting baptism with 
 preaching the gospel ; yet, in its collective 
 capacity, whether it consists of few or many, 
 rich or poor, it does possess a right given by 
 Christ himself, to judge of the sentiments 
 and conduct of those, who may apply for 
 admittance into its special fellowship and 
 communion. 1 Cor. v. 4 — Matt, xviii. 15-19. 
 Therefore, no minister, nor deacon, nor com- 
 mittee, or any select few, by whatever name 
 they may be called, have any authority or 
 power from Christ, to impose any persons on 
 the church for full communion, contrary to 
 its voice and consent. This appears to be 
 the line of demarcation, the scripture has 
 drawn between the minister's authority, and 
 that of the church. Where this rule of 
 conduct is observed by the minister and 
 the church, and where they mutually act 
 upon these principles, without intruding 
 
181 
 
 upon, or one officiously intermeddling with 
 the promise of the other ; and where they 
 cordially unite for the production of those 
 moral ends, which are designed to be accom- 
 plished by the institutions of the gospel : 
 we may pronounce a church happy, walking 
 in the commandments and ordinance of the 
 Lord blameless ; and there we may expect 
 to see them, in an increasing and prosperous 
 state. — 1 Peter v. 1-5. 
 
 One occasion of mistake, on the subject of 
 baptism, has arisen, from its having been 
 made a title as by right, to a full admission 
 into the fellowship of the church, and to a 
 participation of the Lord's supper. This 
 does not follow, as a necessary consequence. 
 It has already been proved, that though cir- 
 cumcision was a necessary previous qualifica- 
 tion, for a right participation of the passover, 
 it was not the only one required. There 
 were other subsequent ceremonies appointed, 
 which were to be punctiliously attended to, 
 before any person dared to partake of the 
 sacred feast. These ceremonies were to be 
 repeated, previously to every instance of its 
 celebration : sanctioned by an awful denun- 
 ciation, that those should be cut off from 
 God's people, who treated them with con- 
 tempt, or neglect. Although these cere- 
 monies were not considered in themselves of 
 
182 
 
 a moral nature, yet, they pointed out the 
 necessity of possessing suitable moral qual- 
 ifications, for a spiritual and profitable cele- 
 bration of this holy feast ; such as obedience 
 to the divine will, and faith in the design of 
 its appointment. Ex. xii. 2-6 — Heb. xi. 
 28— Num. x. 3-14. 
 
 It is also a fact on the face of the history, 
 that the first converts, both among the jews 
 and gentiles, were baptized previously to a 
 full admittance into the church, where one 
 existed, or of being formed into one, where 
 it never existed before. Other and sub- 
 sequent qualifications, of a moral nature, 
 were required, in addition to their observance 
 of the ritual ordinance, before they could 
 have been admitted to the full enjoyment of 
 such a privilege. Those who were baptized 
 on the day of pentecost, could have had no 
 distinct knowledge of the nature, moral ob- 
 ligations, or duties of a christian church. 
 The apostles could have had no opportunity 
 to prove, that they possessed such qualifi- 
 cations. They must have received subse- 
 quent instructions in the nature of those 
 things, before they could have obtained a 
 full admission. Their subsequent conduct, 
 and not their baptism, nor even the confes- 
 sion they made on the occasion, entitled them 
 to, and confirmed them in this privilege. If 
 
183 
 
 there were any who did not attend to such 
 subsequent instructions, there can be no 
 doubt, but that they were refused this pri- 
 vilege, though baptized. The three thousand 
 are not said to have been admitted into such 
 a fellowship with the church, as entitled 
 them to a participation of the Lord's supper, 
 on account of their baptism, or the confession 
 they made on the occasion ; but, that their 
 continuance with the apostles, and of their 
 stedfastness in their doctrine, entitled them 
 to the privilege of breaking bread with them. 
 The question has been asked, how this 
 agrees with Acts ii. 41 ? " Added to the 
 church the same day." We may notice in 
 the first place, this citation of the passage is 
 incorrect, for it is not said, "added to the 
 church," but added to them, or to their 
 number. This, indeed, may prove to have 
 a very different meaning, from being added 
 to the church, as expressed in the 47 ver. 
 "And the Lord added to the church daily, 
 such as should be saved." It is also neces- 
 sary to make a distinction between what took 
 place at the day of pentecost, and what took 
 place afterwards, in order to obtain a correct 
 view of the case. "Then they that gladly 
 received the word were baptized : and the 
 same day there were added unto them, about 
 three thousand souls." Here it is evident, 
 
184 
 
 that this verse closes the first day's trans- 
 action. 
 
 The difference in the phraseology used in 
 the following quotation, should be particularly 
 noticed. "And the Lord added to the 
 church daily, such as should be saved." 
 Why this marked distinction in the language, 
 if it was not intended to mark some differ- 
 ence in the circumstances, connected with 
 each transaction ? In the first instance, they 
 appear to be added to their number as bap- 
 tized persons : and in the second, they were 
 added to the full communion of the church. 
 The 42nd ver. commences a new series of 
 the history, and is an epitome of the history 
 of the church for some months, if not for a 
 longer period ; and the actions it refers to, 
 are related more at large, in several of the 
 following chapters. The first thing noticed 
 in this new series, is the stedfastness of those 
 who had been converted on the day of pen- 
 tecost, in the apostles' doctrine ; the cause 
 of it ; their continuance with the apostles, 
 to receive their repeated instructions ; the 
 privilege to which they were introduced, that 
 of breaking bread and prayer. And " they 
 continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine 
 and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, 
 and in prayers." It then goes on to describe 
 the continued preaching and miracles of the 
 
185 
 
 apostles, and concludes with: "And the 
 Lord added to the church daily, such as 
 should be saved." And were not the first 
 converts on the day of pentecost, amongst 
 the number added daily to the church, 
 through their continued sted fastness in the 
 truth I We cannot reasonably suppose, that 
 they were brought into the full confidence 
 and privileges of the church, without giving* 
 evidence of their stedfastness, subsequently 
 to their baptism. The evidence of this 
 stedfastness, must have been pi*oduced by sub- 
 sequent instruction and investigation, for this 
 was not a work to be accomplished in a day. 
 The same may be observed with respect 
 to the Samaritans, to the Eunuch, to Cor- 
 nelius, to Lydia, and to the Gaoler. In 
 these cases, we have nothing from the history 
 of their baptism, to shew that they were 
 immediately formed into a church by it ; nor 
 that the Lord's supper was administered to 
 them, either at the proposal of the apostles, 
 or their own request. We have no reason 
 to doubt, but that the apostles formed them 
 into particular churches. This was a part 
 of their office ; but it must have been a 
 business that followed their baptism. This 
 required farther explanation, as to the nature 
 of those moral principles and conduct, ne- 
 R 2 
 
186 
 
 cessary to qualify them for the proper enjoy- 
 ment of such sacred privileges. 
 
 The mission of John and Peter to Sa- 
 maria, we may reasonably suppose, had this 
 object in view, though it is not expressed in so 
 many words. But it is said, Acts viii. 15- 
 17 : " Who, when they came down, prayed 
 for them, that they might receive the Holy 
 Ghost : (For as yet, he was fallen on none 
 of them : only they were baptized in the 
 name of the Lord Jesus :) Then laid they 
 their hands on them, and they received the 
 Holy Ghost. This passage is remarkably 
 to the point ; and shews plainly, that persons 
 were by the apostles judged proper subjects 
 for baptism, previous to their receiving the 
 Holy Ghost. Whether this receiving of the 
 Holy Ghost, refers to his miraculous, or 
 sanctifying influences, does not affect the 
 question. It is natural to infer, that he 
 would not bestow his miraculous influences, 
 and withhold his sanctifying influences, 
 which was the final end of all his operations : 
 or may it not refer to a visible descent on 
 them, the same as was observed on the day 
 of penteco ;t, and at the house of Cornelius. 
 Be this as it may, we cannot but notice the 
 distinction that is made between their bap- 
 tism, and their subsequently receiving the 
 
187 
 
 Holy Ghost. This fully proves the fact, 
 that the first preachers of the gospel did 
 administer baptism to those, who simply 
 declared their belief of their message ; whe- 
 ther they had received the Holy Ghost at 
 the time, or had not ; and that something 
 more than this incipient faith, and their 
 baptism upon it, of a moral or spiritual 
 nature, was necessary, before they were 
 qualified for a full admittance into the fel- 
 lowship of the church. Peter was requested 
 to tarry certain days at Cornelius's, after 
 their baptism. This time, without doubt, 
 was occupied in giving them further instruc- 
 tions, in the nature of the gospel, and its 
 institutions, for the purpose of forming them 
 into a christian church. The same may be 
 said of Paul at Philippi, (as well as in every 
 other place) in his subsequent interview with 
 the baptized at Lydia's, before he left the 
 city. Acts xvi. 40 : "And when they had 
 seen the brethren, they comforted them, and 
 departed."* 
 
 In taking a review of the foregoing ac- 
 count of the history of baptism, as the first 
 and leading right of the gospel dispensation ; 
 
 * It is not improbable, the Eunuch revisited Jeru- 
 salem the first convenient opportunity, to obtain a more 
 perfect knowledge of the gospel, than he could obtain 
 in his transient interview with Philip. 
 
188 
 
 we see, that it was the constant and uniform 
 practice of the apostles, to unite baptism 
 with the preaching of the gospel, and to 
 administer it without hesitation, in connexion 
 with the first lessons of Christianity, to all 
 who professed their faith in its doctrines, with 
 their families, if they had any. They did 
 not wait, to learn, whether they had given 
 any evidence of having received the Holy 
 Ghost. They administered it, both as a sign 
 and as a seal, for the confirmation of the 
 truth they proclaimed, respecting Christ and 
 the resurrection, &c. They used it as an 
 introductory means of grace, to the baptized ; 
 to bring them under that course of instruc- 
 tion, which through the divine spirit, (who 
 like the wind, bloweth where he listeth — 
 John iii. 8,) might produce and confirm 
 those moral and spiritual principles, and that 
 experience and conduct, which would qualify 
 the subject for an admittance to the full 
 enjoyment of all the privileges of the church. 
 That the introduction of the baptized into 
 this visible relation to the church, lays the 
 church and its officers, especially its minis- 
 ters, under the most weighty obligation, both 
 to Christ, and to the baptized ; by instruc- 
 tion and example, to teach them to observe 
 all things which Christ has commanded ; 
 whereby, those moral principles may be pro 
 
189 
 
 duced, which shall entitle them to a full and 
 confirmed enjoyment of its privileges. That 
 the baptized are laid under obligations, to 
 seek and to attend to those instructions, with 
 the same design, and to pray for the influ- 
 ences of the Holy Spirit, to make them 
 effectual. 
 
 We no where find in the history of bap- 
 tism, that the apostles ever baptized any 
 one, after a longer or shorter period of pro- 
 bationary profession of faith ; nor on what 
 is usually termed, a credible profession of 
 faith ; neither did they baptize any, to tes- 
 tify that their conversion was real, or that 
 they had attained, as an absolute condition, 
 certain virtues. They did not administer 
 baptism, to give them a title to full and un- 
 limited fellowship with the church : but as a 
 means of grace, calculated to produce or 
 strengthen those gracious moral principles 
 and virtues, which through the divine bles- 
 sing, would qualify the subjects, for the en- 
 joyment of church privileges in their fullest 
 extent. 
 
 This principle, that persons are to be ad- 
 mitted to a full and unlimited fellowship 
 with the church, upon the ground of their 
 moral character, and not of their baptism, is 
 .strenuously maintained by most, if not by 
 all those churches who differ from us, re- 
 
190 
 
 specting the subject and mode of baptism. 
 These churches do not admit any person into 
 a state of membership with them, on the 
 ritual observance of baptism ; but on the 
 previous moral character, or what is by 
 themselves termed, a credible profession of 
 faith ; or a profession to shew. This is the 
 real principle on which they act in admitting 
 any person, either to baptism, or church 
 membership. This they do, because they 
 make the claim to baptism, synonymous with 
 that of a full admission to the privilege of 
 unlimited fellowship with the church ; if they 
 think otherwise, they greatly deceive them- 
 selves, and those they admit to their com- 
 munion. It is true, they insist upon the 
 absolute necessity of a person being baptized, 
 on a personal profession of his faith, and on 
 the evidence afforded of the reality of his Chris- 
 tianity, that he is the subject of a spiritual 
 change of heart. They also insist upon the 
 absolute necessity of their own particular 
 mode of plunging the body under water, and 
 that nothing less than this is christian bap- 
 tism ; and that none have any right to church 
 privileges, who do not conform to their pre- 
 scribed rules in this respect. By these 
 means, they make it the badge of their party, 
 the door of admittance into their own fel- 
 lowship, and the wall of separation from the 
 
191 
 
 fellowship of all other christian churches. 
 Thus they produce one of the most unna- 
 tural and arbitrary divisions in the church, 
 that ever distracted it, or that the world 
 ever witnessed. 
 
 Thus they assume the judgment- seat of 
 Christ, in dispensing the laws of his church, 
 with all the infallible dictum of the pope, 
 and the church of Rome. After all that 
 has been said, or written, on this part of the 
 subject ; the subjects of difference that 
 exist between them, and those congregational 
 churches, that hold with family baptism, are 
 simply the following. They demand of the 
 subject to be baptized, previous moral evi- 
 dences, of what they deem a work of grace 
 begun in the heart, agreeably to the rule of 
 judgment they set up to try it by ; we baptize 
 as a means of grace, for the production, or 
 confirmation of those principles, as the case 
 may be. They use baptism as a sign of 
 grace received into the heart, we as a sign 
 of grace revealed from heaven. They use 
 baptism as a testification, that the person is 
 already in a state of grace, or actually born 
 again ; we, as a declaration of the necessity 
 of divine grace to renew the heart ; that a 
 person must be born of the spirit, as well as 
 of water, before he can spiritually enter into 
 the kingdom of God. They employ baptism 
 
192 
 
 as an expression, that they are satisfied that 
 the person has already obtained the remis- 
 sion of sins ; we employ it as the baptism 
 of repentance, for the remission of sins. 
 They baptize, to confirm the subject in a 
 conviction of the sincerity of his own faith ; 
 we as a seal to the truth he is called on to 
 believe, and to the necessity of genuine faith 
 in that truth, for his salvation. They insist 
 upon a total immersion, or plunging the body 
 under water, as essential to a right perform- 
 ance of the ordinance ; we insist, that sprink- 
 ling, or pouring water on the subject, in the 
 name of the Father, of the Son, and of the 
 Holy Ghost, is equally valid ; because, we 
 do not believe, that one mode is essential to 
 the exclusion of all others ; and that the 
 essence of the ordinance, does not consist in 
 the mode, but in the sacred names into 
 which the person is baptized. They insist, 
 that none have a right to the ordinance, but 
 those who can make a personal confession of 
 their faith, &c. which young children are 
 incapable of doing ; we insist upon the va- 
 lidity of family baptism, whatever be the 
 age of the children, if they are under the 
 government of their parents, on the parents 
 declaring their belief of the truth of the 
 gospel. Which, of the two systems, comes 
 nearest, to the original design and moral ends 
 
of the ordinance, and to the practice of the 
 apostles ; the reader must be left to judge 
 for himself. 
 
 In a review of the two systems, as thus 
 contrasted, the author has not intentionally 
 mis-represented either ; but, if in any instance 
 he has done so through inadvertence, he is 
 open to conviction. Taking them, as they 
 stand, the following deductions appear to 
 arise out of them. To make baptism the 
 formal sign of grace received into the heart, 
 instead of making it the sign of the grace 
 of heaven, the confirming seal of gospel 
 truth, and a means of instruction in that 
 truth ; is not only to put it in the place of 
 the grace of heaven, but to put the creature 
 in the place of the oreator. Such an ap- 
 plication of it, is calculated to promote self- 
 conceit and spiritual pride in the false, bold, 
 and presumptuous professor ; on the other 
 hand, to fill the humble seeker and follower 
 of Christ, with hesitation and distressing 
 fears, whether he is a real partaker of that 
 grace in the heart, of which he is constrained 
 to confess he is a possessor, as a qualification 
 for the ordinance. Surely, this cannot be 
 right, as it is putting the motive in the place 
 of the effect. But, if it be administered 
 only as the confirming seal of the truth, and 
 as a means of grace designed to conduct its 
 
194 
 
 subjects to the attainment of the ends pro-* 
 posed, by promoting a spirit of repentance 
 and faith, then its design is at once specific 
 and clear : it then assumes a tangable cha- 
 racter : its appointment appears of the highest 
 importance : the reason of its being ap- 
 pointed the leading rite, and one of the fun- 
 damental rites of Christianity, would be clear 
 and self-evident : its administration, or union 
 with the preaching of the gospel, and with 
 the first lesson of the gospel message, would 
 be peculiarly appropriate. Upon this view 
 of it, it appears altogether worthy of the 
 wisdom, and of the benevolent design, of its 
 divine author. 
 
 Before he closes this part of his subject, 
 the author begs the liberty, respectfully to 
 address a few suggestions to his ministerial 
 brethren. He would ask, would it not be 
 proper to inculcate on the minds of our 
 hearers, the necessity of attending to the 
 moral ends and designs of baptism, more 
 than has frequently been done ; should this 
 be neglected from a defference to those, who 
 may not agree with us on the subject ? Is 
 it scriptural, or consistent with our com- 
 mission, to suffer the first and leading rite of 
 our holy religion, to be treated with indif- 
 ference, and even with scorn and contempt, 
 and that by some who profess the gospel I 
 
195 
 
 Is it proper to suffer the leading rite of 
 Christianity, to be degraded by the appellation 
 of a non-essential in religion ? Does it com- 
 port with ministerial fidelity, to keep the mo- 
 ral ends of the one out of sight, as much as possi- 
 ble, instead of inculcating them ; lest we should 
 displease some self-important, capricious, or 
 prejudiced person ? The less we enter into 
 the polemic discussion of it in the pulpit, the 
 better; but, will this justify us in neglecting 
 to inculcate its moral ends and designs ( 
 Surely not. If we were more frequently to 
 inculcate these ends, and to embody them in 
 our ministry, when they come fairly before 
 us, would it not have a tendency to fix in the 
 minds of our hearers, some definite and im- 
 portant ideas on the subject, to relieve their 
 perplexities, and to lead them to think more 
 seriously on the subject? Would it not tend 
 to lead them to treat it with more respect : 
 to correct partial and erroneous views : and 
 to establish their minds, and prevent their 
 being so easily drawn over to the opposite 
 system ? Did not the apostles treat it in 
 this manner 1 Did they not refer to it, il- 
 lustrate their doctrines by it, and urge its 
 moral ends on the consciences and practice 
 of the baptized ? A word to the wise is 
 sufficient. And I have a confidence in my 
 
196 
 
 brethren, that they will weigh these con- 
 siderations, and act upon them, as their 
 better j udgments shall direct. 
 
 THE MORAL DESIGNS OF BAPTISM 
 IN RELATION TO MISSIONS. 
 
 The apostles by uniting the ritual sign of 
 baptism, with their verbal message, distin- 
 guished the gospel from all other systems of 
 theology, whether Jewish or heathen. They 
 clothed their ministry with the highest au- 
 thority, and stamped it with the broad seal 
 of heaven, in the names of the Father, and 
 of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. It was 
 by these means, that they demolished the 
 strong holds of sin and satan, tore up ido- 
 latry by the roots, and diffused the knowledge 
 of the gospel far and wide, almost with the 
 rapidity of lightening, to the astonishment of 
 the world, and the confusion of its adver- 
 saries. 
 
 In taking a review of the apostles' method 
 of uniting baptism with the first lessons of 
 Christianity, and the astonishing effects that 
 followed their ministrations ; it becomes a 
 
197 
 
 question of no small importance, whether, in 
 our missionary exertions, we are acting in 
 conformity with the apostles' practice, who 
 united baptism with the first lessons of 
 Christianity I It is a question of equal im- 
 portance, whether we can expect that ex- 
 tensive success in our missions, which we so 
 earnestly and anxiously desire, until we 
 return to the apostolic practice in this respect ; 
 and without exception, hesitation, or delay, 
 baptize all who profess to believe the truth 
 of the gospel, to renounce their false religion, 
 and who are willing to submit to the ordi- 
 nance of baptism ? Startling as this ques- 
 tion at first sight may seem, from our pre- 
 conceived modes of thinking on the subject, 
 as well as from the manacles with which we 
 have been fettered, by the controversies in 
 which we have been engaged ; yet, we have 
 only to revert to the original practice, as 
 recorded in the history of the apostles, and 
 they will melt away, as the morning mist 
 before the ascending sun. The first thing 
 we should be concerned to establish, is the 
 moral designs and ends of its appointment. 
 If it be admitted, that its institution was 
 intended for the two-fold purpose, of giving 
 a confirming seal to the truth delivered, and 
 in connexion with this, as a means of grace 
 to introduce persons under the dispensation 
 s 2 
 
198 
 
 of that truth it seals and confirms ; then its 
 practice will appear, to be alone definite and 
 appropriate, as the initiatory ordinance of 
 Christianity. 
 
 If, in the first introduction of the gospel 
 to any place, or among any people, the apos- 
 tles' baptized those who professed a belief in 
 their doctrine, expressed a design of re- 
 nouncing their false religion, and were wil- 
 ling to be baptized ; in order to place them 
 under their tuition and direction, without 
 any probationary trial, to prove the sincerity 
 of these professions ; it then becomes a 
 question, whether we are not bound to follow 
 them in this practice, when placed in similar 
 circumstances 1 Nor should we presume, 
 that we possess more wisdom than they did ; 
 or that our prudence and caution in setting 
 up our private judgments, to decide on men's 
 characters, whether they are, or are not. 
 proper subjects, are superior to theirs. The 
 consequences that might follow the baptism 
 of some, whose conduct might afterwards 
 prove them unworthy of the privilege, must 
 be left to him, who has commanded us "to 
 baptize all nations, teaching them to observe 
 all things whatsoever he has commanded 
 them." By neglecting this command, we 
 expose ourselves to a heavy censure; and 
 briug on ourselves a severe reproof for our 
 
199 
 
 folly, in assuming a province, or right, ho 
 never committed into our hands. We may 
 also lay it down as a principle, that we can- 
 not expect that God will honor us, by crown- 
 ing our missionary labours with that universal 
 success, we are so anxiously desirous to 
 obtain, unless we are concerned to honor 
 him, by paying a due attention to his in- 
 stitutions. May we not entertain some fears, 
 that our deficiency in this respect, has been 
 one cause of the want of still greater success, 
 than we have hitherto witnessed ? 
 
 There are two things we should always 
 keep in view, and strictly attend to in our 
 missionary labours. In the first place, we 
 should direct our attention to the situation 
 of the heathen world, and seek to draw men 
 from their false systems of religion, by 
 preaching the gospel to them, in connexion 
 with every other means adapted for the ac- 
 complishment of this end ; and secondly, we 
 should at once place them under sacred ob- 
 ligations, to attend to the instructions of the 
 gospel, for the improvement of their know- 
 ledge, and for the transformation of their 
 characters into its holy image. This can 
 only be done by their baptism ; and in this 
 work, the first must always take precedence 
 of the second. This seems to have been the 
 original design of the ordinance, and upon 
 
200 
 
 this principle, the apostles evidently acted in 
 its administration. 
 
 When we look at the South Sea Islands, 
 or at any other missionary stations, something- 
 seems to be wanting, to give that universal 
 success to the labours of our missionaries, 
 which we have not yet had the happiness of 
 witnessing ; something to give a permanency to 
 the principles of Christianity, and to prevent 
 those future consequences, which might yet 
 disappoint our hope, and blast our brightest 
 expectations of universal and final success. 
 
 That interesting people, the South Sea Is- 
 landers, have professedly renounced idolatry ; 
 and yet, as a people, they have not been 
 brught into any special relation to the christian 
 dispensation, by being introduced into it, as a 
 system of divine truth ; and as the only way, 
 by which they may be taught the knowledge 
 of salvation, for the forgiveness of their sins, 
 and the complete and eternal salvation of their 
 souls. In what an anomalous state, are the 
 majority of these interesting people left ! They 
 are under no sacred tie, or moral obligation, 
 to any system of religion whatever. Are 
 not those among them, who have not been 
 introduced into a visible connexion with 
 Christianity by the initiatory rite, in a more 
 dangerous situation, in a moral point of 
 view, than before they renounced idolatry? 
 
201 
 
 Are they not in the greatest danger, of re- 
 lapsing again into idolatry ; or of embracing 
 any system of religion, that any false pre- 
 tender may introduce among them ; or of 
 becoming atheists and infidels 1 Are not 
 their children left in the same exposed situa- 
 tion ? This is a very serious consideration ! 
 May not all our labours and expences yet 
 be blasted, by some occurent circumstance, 
 if they are still left exposed in this unpro- 
 tected state 1 They have no special shield 
 to guard them against the numerous dangers 
 to which they are exposed ; no moral tie to 
 hold them to the principles of the gospel, 
 any more than any other system, that might 
 be intruded upon them ; nor are they under 
 any special obligation, to hold fast the form 
 of sound words, that has been declared unto 
 them. Would the apostles have left any 
 people under similar circumstances, in such 
 a situation ? Would they not at once have 
 persuaded them to be baptized, with their chil- 
 dren ? And thus have placed both parents 
 and children, under the protecting shield of 
 gospel truth ; and tlms have led them under 
 special obligations, to seek a personal interest 
 in its blessings 1 If we consult the history 
 of their practice, we must feel fully per- 
 suaded, that they would. The very first 
 thing the apostles did, was to persuade per- 
 
202 
 
 sons under similar circumstances, to be bap- 
 tized without delay. This was the very first 
 practical lesson they taught them, in ob- 
 serving those things, that Christ gave his 
 ministers, the commission to teach all nations. 
 By these means, they established the truth 
 upon earth, and his saving health among all 
 nations. When we go back to the same 
 principles, and follow up the apostolic prac- 
 tice, then, and not till then, may we expect 
 to see our missionary exertions crowned with 
 that success, which the promises of divine 
 truth authorize us to expect. 
 
 If, on a closer examination of the subject, 
 it should appear, that we have not been 
 acting on the apostolic, and primitive practice 
 of Christianity, in this first and leading rite 
 of our holy religion, particularly in our mis- 
 sionary exertions ; then it will be necessary 
 and proper, that we should retrace our steps, 
 and go back to the first principles of the 
 doctrines of Christ in this respect : Heb. v. 
 12. And that we should act more up to the 
 spirit of the commission of the Saviour, and 
 carry out our practice into the full dimensions 
 of the length and breadth of its original design ; 
 by refusing baptism to none, who profess their 
 sincere belief in Jesus Christ, as the Son of 
 God, and Saviour of the world ; and by 
 admitting their families, in connexion with 
 
203 
 
 the parents, to a participation of the same 
 privilege. By this means, we shall bring 
 both, into that relation to the dispensation of 
 the gospel, which shall place them under 
 those means of grace and instruction, in the 
 way of truth and righteousness, which, 
 through the divine blessing, may prove the 
 power of God to their final salvation.* 
 
 These remarks are respectfully submitted, 
 and simply suggested, to my ministerial bre- 
 thren, of whatever denomination, to the 
 directors of our different missionary societies, 
 and to the religious public at large, as a sub- 
 ject for serious examination and important 
 investigation ; for the purpose of inquiring, 
 whether we have not all been under the in- 
 fluence of some mistake, in reference to the 
 subject of baptism, especially with respect 
 to missions, in the moral uses for which it 
 was designed I We seem to have fallen into 
 these mistakes unwittingly, through the in- 
 
 • In letters received from the South Sea Islands, &c. it 
 appears, that the above principles are acted upon in a 
 partial degree ; but, in the author's opinion, they are 
 not yet fully admitted, nor acted upon, nor carried out 
 to that extent in their application, which the commission 
 of Christ demands, and the practice of the apostles 
 justifies. It might not be practicable, or prudent, to 
 make any sudden change in those stations, but to extend 
 it gradually, as opportunity might offer, till the prin- 
 ciple be fully established ; and in new stations, to com- 
 mence with it at once. 
 
204 
 
 fluence of long-established custom on the one 
 hand, and the difference of opinion existing 
 among us, on the other : and while the au- 
 thor would not assume the character of a 
 dictator, nor an alarmist, yet he does feel a 
 deep conviction of mind, that it would betray 
 a criminal negligence, not to give the subject 
 a very serious and impartial re-examination. 
 This he feels a confident hope will be the 
 case, as is it a subject of the deepest im- 
 portance in all our missionary exertions, to 
 convert the nations of the earth to the faith 
 of Christ. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 It has been frequently asserted, that the his- 
 tory of the apostolic churches, gives no sanction 
 to the practice of infant baptism. The best 
 answer to this assertion, is contained in the fol- 
 lowing extract from the Second Letter to the 
 Deacon of a Baptist Church, by the late Mr. C. 
 Taylor, published 1815, from page 12 — 20. The 
 following extract is given verbatim. 
 
 On whoever came to Jordan, John conferred 
 baptism : — why not ? since whoever received his 
 rite stood pledged to repentance and holiness. 
 On whoever desired baptism from the apostles, 
 they bestowed it ; for, how could they refuse to 
 consecrate to Almighty God, or to their Divine 
 Master, an applicant, from any part of Judea, at 
 first, — from any part of the earth, in the sequel ? 
 Their practice demonstrates their principle. But, 
 not a soul was subject to compulsion. Happily, 
 the history of the christian church has preserved 
 instances in proof of this proposition : for we 
 read of several, in after ages, and when Chris- 
 tianity was extensively promulgated, who were 
 baptized in adult years : these we consider as 
 being much in the same situation, as those chil- 
 dren who were left at home, when their parents 
 
206 
 
 travelled to the Jordan to John : or of those 
 children who, in the wilderness, under Moses, 
 did not receive circumcision, because the perils 
 of time and place forbad the safe performance 
 of the rite. These were afterwards circumcised 
 in adult years, from the necessity of the case, 
 though in strict compliance with the Divine law, 
 they ought to have been circumcised on the 
 eighth day after their birth. Now we most 
 cheerfully quote, and support, these instances of 
 adult baptism, recorded in church history ; be- 
 cause they demonstrate, that christian parents 
 " were not under bondage," — Divine benevolence 
 " preferred mercy to sacrifice." But then, be it 
 remembered also, that that same church history 
 unequivocally proves the baptism of little ones 
 to be a christian practice : and we accept its 
 testimony on this, with equal confidence. 
 
 Late in the second century, and within a hun- 
 dred and fifty years after the churches were 
 planted by the apostles, Tertullian wrote against 
 infant baptism. Now, he could not have wrote 
 against a custom, which custom did not exist ; 
 nor indeed, unless it prevailed. His reasons are 
 sophisticated by " the spirit of bondage" of the 
 ancient law : they are marked by that disposition 
 to dread and despair, which characterized the 
 Mosaic dispensation : — He argueSi — " Give to 
 them who ask thee, — but children cannot ask : 
 Do not forbid them to come : therefore, let them 
 stay till they can come : let them come when they 
 are grown up—when they understand— when 
 
207 
 
 they are instructed whither it is they are about 
 tv come : let them be made christians when they 
 can know Christ." [You best know, Sir, whe- 
 ther these arguments are retained, and to what 
 effect, in the present day.] " For reasons equally 
 valid, unmarried persons ought to be kept off 
 from baptism, who are likely to be visited by 
 temptation, — as well as those who never were mar- 
 ried (ought to be kept off) on account of their 
 coming to maturity, as those in a widowed state, 
 by reason of the miss of their conjugal partners." 
 Add, the thousand reasons which deter persons 
 engaged in the multifarious concerns of life, in 
 middle age, — add, the inevitable infirmities and 
 weaknesses, mental and bodily, of old age — and 
 baptism is postponed till doomsday. A hopeful 
 method, truly, of establishing the church of 
 Christ ! 
 
 But, after all, Tertullian had a shorter way of 
 confounding the popular practice, could he have 
 availed himself of it: he omits the strongest 
 argument that possibly could be employed 
 against the object of his aversion, had truth al- 
 lowed him to use it : the very battering-ram of 
 destruction against infant baptism, could he but 
 have wielded it. E. gr. — " This practice is a 
 novelty : it dates but of yesterday : it was 
 unknown to christians fifty years ago : it was 
 unknown to the first churches: it was un- 
 known to the apostles." He would willingly 
 have said this, for this must have condemned the 
 practice conclusively ; not another word was 
 
necessary : but he could not. He must twist 
 a few texts, or so, out of their perpendicular, in 
 support of his principles : or he might go so far 
 as to hazard a slight fib ; but on a downright 
 falsity the christian father would not venture ; 
 although intent on suppressing infant baptism 
 itself. 
 
 I know not which speaks most loudly, the 
 silence of Tertullian, notwithstanding what he 
 would have said, or the affirmation of his con- 
 temporary Origen, who, in express terms, ascribes 
 the practice of infant baptism to the apostles. 
 But we ought to remember, that Origen had 
 many advantages, not then common : that he 
 was of christian descent ; that his father was a 
 christian martyr ; that his grandfather, and great 
 grandfather, were christians also. Could a 
 family so early christianized, be ignorant what 
 had been the primitive rites and customs of the 
 apostles, and the apostolic churches? A mo- 
 ment's reflection answers this question. Origen's 
 words are, " For this also it was, that the church 
 received from the apostles, the injunction (or 
 tradition) to give baptism even to infants." 
 And in another place, "According to that saying 
 of our Lord concerning infants, — (and thou wast 
 an infant when thou wast baptized) — their 
 angels do always behold the face of my Father 
 who is in heaven." True it is, and I exceedingly 
 regret it, that we have these explicit passages in 
 a translation and abridgement of Origen's works, 
 from greek into latin. Had the original at large 
 
201) 
 
 come down to us, I feel persuaded, that we 
 should have found the sentiment stated more 
 fully — more explicitly it cannot be — and per- 
 haps, justified by instances. But this 1 am sure 
 of, — that if the testimony of Origen had stood 
 opposed to infant baptism, we should never 
 have heard one word on the disadvantage of 
 having his work in a translation only, or any 
 imputation on the competence or correctness of 
 his translator, Rufinus, from those who now 
 censure him. 
 
 It remains that we justify the practice of the 
 primitive churches, by observing, that whatever 
 opinions might obtain in different places, or 
 whatever difference in administration, no instance 
 of reproof from the apostles is recorded. Hap- 
 pily for us, though unhappily for themselves, the 
 Corinthian church transgressed in the adminis- 
 tration of the Lord's supper ; by the admonition 
 addressed to them on that occasion, succeeding 
 ages are taught, to the distance of thousands of 
 years ; — it were but a dubious specimen of chris- 
 tian charity to regret, that some occasion of 
 reproof on the subject of baptism did not occur 
 among the churches, by which we also might 
 have been instructed ; but from this silence it is 
 clear, that this sacrament had not, in the days 
 of the apostles, been misunderstood, or misap- 
 plied. 
 
 The churches, says Origen, acted upon tra- 
 dition : now, what is the meaning of the word 
 tradition, in the apostolic writings, and those of 
 t 2 
 
210 
 
 the early fathers ? We, in the present day, are 
 accustomed to fix to it the notion of a mere 
 rumour unsupported by documents, and there- 
 fore, liable to perversion ; — but this is directly 
 contrary to the import of the word among the 
 first christians. The apostle writing to the Thes- 
 salonians, exhorts them to " hold the traditions 
 they had been taught, whether by word, or by 
 our epistle." He makes no difference between 
 what he had written, and what his authorized 
 agents reported in his name ; and he called his 
 own epistles, traditions. The first epistle to the 
 Corinthians, is a collection of traditions ; for it 
 was delivered to the church at Corinth, by Ste- 
 phanus, and Fortunatus, and Achaicus, in the 
 name of Paul. It is a series of instructions 
 communicated by second hands ; it is composed 
 of written traditions, as it stands ; and suppo- 
 sing, which is very likely, that Paul added verbal 
 instructions, also, on some points, to Stephanus 
 and his brethren, these became unwritten tra- 
 ditions, when they were reported by those chris- 
 tians to their constituents, the Corinthian church. 
 And this — " instruction" — is the true meaning 
 of the word : — it is rendered precepta — tradi- 
 tiones, in Latin : in English, directions, [Instruc- 
 tions, Doddridge. Injunctions, Parkhurst.] Or- 
 dinances, in our public version — traditions, — 
 " tradition, which ye received of us:" So then, 
 the apostle calls his own teachings, traditions ; 
 that is to say, instructions, directions, injunctions, 
 or ordinances. It is clear, that Origen uses the 
 
211 
 
 word in the same sense. " The church," says 
 he, " received from the apostles, the tradition — 
 injunction — direction — instruction^ — ordinance, 
 to give baptism even to infants." This is very 
 credible in itself, on the authority of the relator ; 
 but, it becomes much clearer, if not stronger, by 
 a closer examination of the facts of the case. 
 
 It is certain from their own testimony, that 
 the apostles took care to establish means of 
 conveying their directions or injunctions — to suc- 
 ceeding generations ; for such, clearly, is the 
 import of the apostle Peter's language, " I will 
 endeavour, that after my decease, ye may each 
 of you make mention of these things ;" — and 
 thereby perpetuate the remembrance of them. 
 This is perfectly coincident with Paul's directions 
 to Timothy, "The things which thou hast heard 
 from me (8iu) for the purpose of instructing 
 many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful 
 men, who shall be able to teach others also." 
 And if the apostles, on their part, were so care- 
 ful, there can be no doubt, but the primitive 
 christians, their successors, were, on their part 
 also, equally anxious to be informed respect- 
 ing whatever accounts of the conduct of 
 Christ, and of his apostles, were in preservation 
 among them. So Irenseus (born A. D. 97) de- 
 scribes his anxiety to acquire information from 
 
 his master Polycarp : " / remember his 
 
 discourse to the people concerning the conversa- 
 tions he had had with John (the apostle), and 
 others ivho had seen our Lord ; how he rehearsed 
 
212 
 
 their discourses, and what he heard them who 
 roereey t f ^ ^ 
 
 Lord, and of his miracles and doctrines ;"_Now 
 this proves that Polycarp had diligently enquired 
 from those who could tell him, concerning our 
 
 m»« ^f ^ d ° Ctrine; he had made h^seif 
 master of whatever was to be known ; it proves 
 a so >, that such traditions were repeated by him 
 m his public discourses to the people : it wm 
 indeed, the best of all possible modes of tn- 
 structiop :-moreover, the fact shews, that these 
 discourses had made the deepest impression on 
 the memory of Irenams ; and that he did not 
 forget them to his dying day. In this, assured"? 
 em,T T SlngUlar , ; thousands of other hearerl 
 
 arTpJ T WU J t0 ^ 0W > Were e( l ualI V atten ^e 
 and equally affected. Here it is to our purpose 
 
 o recollect, that the same desire animated Or! 
 
 gen afterwards ; that for the purpose of acqui- 
 
 DlaLTh k T hdge \ he Visited the churc hes 
 Arnbl ■ b V heap °^ tleS: in Cappadocia, and 
 Arab a in GW and iW, w hile the main part 
 
 seat of fLT ?T "l** and P ^»^. the 
 
 seat of the first churches ; where he could not 
 
 tail of acquiring an intimate acquaintance with 
 their constitution, manners, and practice. THe 
 himself was a native of Alexandria in E-ypt 1 
 
 Let us reduce this to a tangible form. It ap- 
 Pnl^, + u ,S ? ry ? f hatIre ^«s, the disciple of 
 Polycarp the disciple of John the apostle, lived 
 long, and might bear his testimony to the truth 
 seventy or eighty years after the death of John ; 
 
:>l:3 
 
 — but to avoid cavil, I take the generations in 
 the family of Origen, and of those " faithful 
 men," to whom Timothy gave charge, at forty 
 years only ; and because Origen's father was 
 martyred, I take him for twenty -Jive years only. 
 It appears then, that the testimony of Paul, of 
 Timothy, of Timothy's " faithful men," and of 
 "others also," instructed by them, reaches down- 
 wards to the year 180 : Origen was born in 185 ; 
 add his father, twenty -five years; his grandfather, 
 forty years ; and his great grandfather, forty 
 years also ; we are brought (ascending) to the 
 year 80, when Mark the evangelist, had been 
 dead only twelve years at Alexandria. Certainly 
 Mark knew the practice of the apostles : he, too, 
 would select his " faithful men" to transmit his 
 instructions to his church in subsequent years : 
 St. John was still living — for twenty years — in 
 case any difficulty had arisen ; and the inter- 
 course by sea from Ephesus to Alexandria Avas 
 direct : but from Alexandria to Crete, the inter- 
 course was almost daily ; and here was Timothy, 
 or Titus, or some other of their " faithful men," 
 living contemporaries with the Origen family for 
 nearly a htmdred years ! Is it possible, that 
 under such circumstances, the practice of the 
 church, derived from the apostles, in a matter of 
 daily occurrence, could be forgot? — Could it be 
 perverted, abused, counteracted ? Could a rite 
 totally new, unfounded, diametrically opposite 
 to apostolic injunctions, be established, and pre- 
 vail ? Where was Timothy ? where were his 
 
214 
 
 'faithful men?" Not at their posts; not at 
 tneir duty; if suc h abominable transgression, 
 could be suffered, and not only be suffered but 
 be announced and acted on, as derived from 
 the apostles themselves ! What is this short 
 of impossible? 
 
 On the other hand, what is it short of impos- 
 sible to imagine that Origen had been imposed 
 upon— he who travelled for the express purpose 
 or acquiring information, who visited the apos- 
 tolic churches, and resided among the chief of 
 them What is it short of impossible, that he 
 should not know the christian observances in 
 his own family, from his father, his grandfather, 
 &c. derived from Mark the evangelist? In 
 short, Sir, were this a question on a fact of 
 -t-nglish history, said to occur a hundred, a hun- 
 dred and twenty, or a hundred and fifty years 
 ago would you, or would you not, deem the 
 evidence sufficient, and attach a credit to it, on 
 which to establish your belief ? 
 
 Such is the testimony of Origen in reference 
 to injunctions for infant baptism, derived from 
 the apostles : let us now direct our inquiries to 
 the records of the apostles' actions, and see how 
 far their practice agreed with their injunctions 
 and with the report of it as transmitted by 
 Urigen. J 
 
215 
 
 TABLE OF CONTEMPORARIES, 
 
 SHEWING THE DESCENT OF THE ORIGEN FAMILY. 
 
 JOHN, Apost. PAUL, 67. 
 
 96 Polycarp, dis- 
 
 ciple of John. 
 
 97 Irenaeus, bom. 
 
 101 JOHN, dies. 
 
 116 Polycarp, bi- 
 shop of Smyr- 
 na(Rev.ii.8.) 
 
 Timothy, 97. 
 
 170 Irenaus, bishop 
 of Lyons, disci- 
 ple of Polycarp, 
 mentions ** re- 
 born infants." 
 
 Faithful men, 140. 
 (2 Tim. ii. 2.) 
 
 Others also, 180. 
 (2 Tim. ii. 2.) 
 
 A. D. 
 
 MARK, Evan. 63 
 Origen's great 
 grand-father 80 
 
 100 
 
 Origen's grand 
 father 120 
 
 Origen's father 160 
 
 Obigen born 185 
 Origen's father 
 martyred 202 
 
 There can be no doubt, but what many apostolic persons 
 were living in Egypt, which had a daily intercourse with 
 Judea i— that many of the Jewish christians, after the de- 
 struction of Jerusalem, &c. would settle among their coun- 
 trymen at Alexandria ; and that from these, as well as 
 from other christians, in foreign (greek) churches, Ongea 
 would obtain correct information respecting all christian 
 rites, occasional or constant. But, this Table shews only 
 such contemporaries with his family, as we know from in- 
 disputable authority. 
 
LONDON : 
 PRINTED BY J. C. KELLY & SON 
 
 3», HOUNDSDITCH. 
 
"■ Jp /