understood by the things which are made even his eternal power and Godhead, (Rom. i. 20.) The heavens must declare God's righteousness and truth in the congregation of the saints. (psal. lxxxix. 5.) And in short the whole system of nature, in one voice of analogy, declares and gives us ideas of his glory, and shews us his handy work. We cannot have any ideas of invisible things, till they are pointed out to us by revelation: and as we cannot know them immediately, such as they are in themselves, after the manner in which we know sensible objects, they must be communicated to us by the mediation of such things as we already comprehend. For this reason the scripture is found to have a language of its own, which does not consist of words, but of signs or figures taken from visible things: in consequence of which the world which we now see becomes a sort of commentary on the mind of God, and explains the world in which we believe. The doctrines of the christian faith are attested by the whole natural world: they are recorded in a language which has never been confounded; they are written in a text which shall never be corrupted. of the trinity is conveyed to our understandings by ideas of sense; and that the created substance of the air, or heaven, in its three-fold agency of fire, light, and spirit, is the enigma of the one essence, or one Jehovah in three persons. The unity of essence is exhibited by its unity of substance; the trinity of persons by its trinity of conditions, fire, light, and spirit. Thus the one substance of the air, or heaven, in its three conditions, shews the unity in trinity; and its three conditions, in, or of one substance, the trinity in unity. For (say this denomination) if we consult the writings of the old and new testament, we shall find the persons of the Deity represented under the names and characters of the three material agents, fire, light, and spirit; and their actions expressed by the actions of these their emblems. The Father is called a consuming fire; and his judicial proceedings are spoken of in words which denote the several actions of fire. Jehovah is a consuming fire-Our God is a consuming fire. (Deut.iv. 24. Heb. xii. 29.) The Son has the name of light; and his purifying actions and offices are described by words which denote the actions and The Hutchinsonians main offices of light. He is the true tain, that the great mystery light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. (John 1. 9. Mal. iv. 2.)-The Comforter has the name of Spirit; and his animating and sustaining offices are described by words, for the actions and offices of the material spirit. His actions in the spiritual economy are agreeable to his type in the natural economy; such as inspiring, impelling, driving, leading. Matt. iv. 1. The philosophie system of the Hutchinsonians is derived from the hebrew scriptures. The truth of it rests on these suppositions:-(1.) That the hebrew language was formed under divine inspiration, either all at once, or at different times, as occasion required; and that the divine Being had a view in constructing it to the various revelations which he in all succeeding times should make in that language; consequently that its words must be the most proper and determinate to convey such truths as the Deity, during the old-testament. dispensation, thought fit to make known to the sons of men. Farther than this: that the inspired penmen of those ages at least were under the guidance of heaven in the choice of words for recording what was revealed to them: therefore that the old testament, if the language be rightly understood, is the most determinate in its meaning of any other book under heaven.—(2.) That whatever is recorded in the old testament is strictly and literally true, allowing only for a few common figures of rhetoric: that nothing contrary to truth is accommodated to vulgar apprehensions." In proof of this the Hutchinsonians argue in this manner: The primary and ultimate design of revelation is indeed to teach men divinity; but in subserviency to that, geography, history, and chronology, are occasionally introduced; all which are allowed to be just and authentic. There are also innumerable references to things of nature, and descriptions of them. If then the former are just, and to be depended on; for the same reason the latter ought to be esteemed philosophically true. Further: They think it not unworthy of God, that he should make it a secondary Mr. Hutchinson maintained, that the hebrew scriptures no where ascribe motion to the body of the sun, nor fixedness to the earth; that they describe the created system to be a plenum, without any vacuum at all; and reject the assistance of gravitation, attraction, or any such occult qualities, for performing the stated operations of nature, which are carried on by the mechanism of the heavens, in their three-fold condition of fire, light, and spirit, the material agents set to work in the beginning. end of his revelation, to unfold the secrets of his works; as the primary was to make known the mysteries of his nature, and the designs of his grace; that men might thereby be led to admire and adore the wisdom and goodness which the great Author of the universe has displayed throughout all his works. And as our minds are often referred to natural things for ́ideas of spiritual truths, it is of great importance, in order to conceive aright of divine matters, that our ideas of the natural things referred to be strictly just and true. Mr. Hutchinson found that the hebrew scriptures had some capital words, which he thought had not been duly considered and understood; and which he has endeavoured to prove, contain in their radical meaning the greatest and most comfortable truths. The cherubim he explains to be a hieroglyphic of divine construction, or a sacred image, to describe, as far as figures could go, the humanity united to Deity and so he treats of several other words of similar import. From all which he concluded, that the rights and ceremonies of the jewish dispensation were so many delineations of Christ, in what he was to be, to do, and to suffer; that the early jews knew them to be types of his actions and sufferings; and by performing them as such, were so far christians both in faith and practice.* HYPSISTARII, (formed from vodos, highest) a denomination in the fourth century; thus called from the profession they made of worshipping the most high God. The doctrine of the Hypsistarians was an assemblage of Paganism, Judaism, and Christianity. They adored the most high God with the christians; but they also revered fire and lamps with the pagans, and observed the sabbath and the distinction of clean and unclean things with the jews.t ACOBITES, a denomina- or Zanzalus, a Syrian, and a tion of eastern christians disciple of Eutyches and Dyin the sixth, and beginning of oscorus. His doctrines spread the seventh century; so deno- in Asia and Africa to that minated from Jacob Bardens, degree, that the denomina Hutchinson's Works, vol. iii, p. 10. Spearman's Inquiry, p. 260-273. Hodge's Elihu, p. 35. Lee's Sophron, vol. i. p.31, vol. iii. p. 663. Jones's Lectures, pp 9, 10. Skinner's Ecclesiastical History of Scotland, vol. ii. pp. 673-676. Sewal's Manuscript Lectures, Encyclopædia, vol. ix. p. 48. tion of the Eutychians were swallowed up by that of the Jacobites, which also comprehended all the Monophysites of the East; i. e. such as acknowledged but one nature, and that human, in Jesus Christ; by that taking in the Armenians and Abysines. They denied three persons in the trinity; and made the sign of the cross with one finger, to intimate the oneness of the Godhead. Before baptism they applied a hot iron to the foreheads of children, after they had circumcised them; founding that practice upon the words of John the baptist: He will baptize you with the holy Ghost, and with fire. Matt. iii. 11. The Jacobites are of two sects; some following the rites of the Latin church, and others continuing separated from the church of Rome. There is also a division among the latter, who have two rival patriarchs.* JANSENISTS, a denomination of Roman Catholics in France, which was formed in the year 1640. They follow the opinions of Jansenius, bishop of Ypres, from whose writings the following propositions are said to have been extracted :—(1.) That there are divine precepts which good men, notwithstanding their desire to observe them, are nevertheless absolutely unable to obey; nor has God given them that measure of grace which is essentially necessary to render them capable of such obedience.-(2.) That no person, in this corrupt state of nature, can resist the influence of divine grace, when it operates upon the mind.— (3.) That, in order to render human actions meritorious, it is not requisite that they be exempt from necessity; but that they be free from constraint.-(4.) That the SemiPelagians err greatly, in maintaining that the human will is endowed with the power of either receiving or resisting the aids and influences of preventing grace.—(5.) That whoever affirms that Jesus Christ made expiation, by his sufferings and death, for the sins of all mankind, is a SemiPelagian.† This denomination were also distinguished from many of the Roman Catholics, by their maintaining that the holy scriptures and public liturgies should be offered to the perusal of the people in their mother tongue; and they look upon it as a matter of the * Encyclopædia, vol. ix. p. 52. Bayley's Dictionary, vol. ii. + Pope Innocent the tenth, at the entreaty of the Jesuits, condemned the propositions of Jansenius. INSTITU DANVERS. IBE highest moment to persuade all christians that true piety does not consist in the performance of external acts of devotion; but in inward holiness, and divine love.* 179 IBERIANS, a denomination of eastern christians, which derive their name from Iberia, a province of Asia, now called Georgia: hence they are also called Georgians. Their tenets are said to be the same with those of the Greek church. See Greek Church. JESUITS, a famous religious order in the Romish church, established in the year 1540, under the name of the Company of Jesus. Ignio, or Ignatius Loyola, a Spanish gentleman of illustrious rank, was the founder of this order, which has made a most rapid and astonishing progress through the world. The doctrinal points which are ascribed to the Jesuits, in distinction from many others of the Roman communion, are as follow:-(1.) This order maintain that the pope is infallible; that he is the only visible source of that universal and unlimited power which Christ has granted to the church; that all bishops JES and subordinate rulers derive * Mosheim's Ecclesiastical History, vol. iv. pp. 373-379. This is the representation which is given by the adversaries of this order. The compiler of this work had not an opportunity to see any of the Jesuits* own writings. 4. |