the parties to whom they are addressed, are, in God's own time, and according to his sovereign will and pleasure, by him, brought into that to which they are said or supposed to be invited, and have that given to them which is said or supposed to be offered; or have that done in them by the Holy Spirit, or for them by Christ, as the case may be, which they are supposed to be exhorted or commanded to do; or else, without any natural power in themselves, are, by God's grace, enabled to do it. These, then, do not imply any power in the parties to whom addressed, to procure or possess themselves of spiritual blessings, especially salvation itself, or to perform spiritual acts.

Some of them, again, may be considered as having a secondary and figurative application to the spiritual Israel, with regard to spiritual matters, together with a primary and literal application to the national Israel with regard to temporal things. But in neither sense do they imply any natural, any self-possessing power as to spiritual blessings, or any natural power to perform spiritual acts.

If it should be said that some of these so-called "invitations and offers" are addressed to all men, it may be replied (without entering here into the question whether they are so or not), that if they are, they must, according to any proper signification of the terms, be such as all men have the power in themselves of availing themselves of, and refer to things of which all men have the power of possessing themselves. But as this is not the case with regard to spiritual things, such of the so-called invitations and offers, as refer to spiritual things, can. not be rightly considered as addressed to all men.

If it should be said that some of these (so-called) "exhortations and commands" are addressed to all men, it may be replied (without here entering into the question whether they are so or not), that, if they are, they must, according to any proper signification of the terms, refer to things which all men have the power of doing. But as this is not the case with regard to spiritual things, such of the so-called exhortations and commands as refer to spiritual things, cannot be rightly considered as addressed to all men.

With regard, then, to those passages which are supposed by some to refer to salvation through and in accordance with the Bible scheme, or to things connected therewith, and are looked upon as invitations, offers, exhortations, commands, in the proper sense of those terms, and are considered as addressed to all men; it will be found, if they are examined with proper care, and with due attention to the analogy of Scripture, and also with reference to such tests and classifications as the above, either that they do not refer at all to salvation through and in accordance with the Bible scheme, or things connected therewith, but rather to temporal things, such as temporal deliverances, privileges, mercies; or to external acts of duty, as the case may be; or that, if referring to salvation through and in accordance with the Bible scheme, or things connected therewith, so far from being addressed to all men, they are addressed exclusively to God's spiritual people, who, without any power in themselves with regard to spiritual things, are, by God, brought into that to which they are supposed to be invited, and have

that given to them which is supposed to be offered, or have that done in them by the Holy Spirit, or for them by Christ, as the case may be, which they are supposed to be exhorted or commanded to do; or else are, by God's grace, enabled to do it, without any natural power of their own or else that they are not invitations, offers, exhortations, commands, at all, in any proper sense of those terms, but rather intimations, or statements, that the subject matter of them is either desirable or proper in itself, made no doubt for the purpose of directing attention to what is desirable and proper, and probably with a view to humble the Lord's regenerate people, under a sense of their shortcomings and mis-doings, and to make them sensible of their spiritual impotence in themselves, and their entire dependance upon God for any spiritual work or state; thus increasing their admiration of the glorious Bible scheme of salvation, and enhancing their gratitude and love to their substituted punishment-Bearer and vicarious law-Fulfiller.

But supposing it to be the fact, that we cannot decide what this or that passage does mean, or what may be the particular object for which it is written; we still may be able to decide that it cannot have this or that particular meaning, from the fact that such meaning would be inconsistent with the whole scope and tenor of the Bible, by which alone can the supposed meaning of any particular passage be sufficiently tested.

But after all, what is the supposed tenor of those passages which are looked upon as general invitations to, and general offers of salvation? Is it this?"All you who had rather go to heaven than to hell may do so, irrespectively of any previous change of heart. You may enter heaven with your sins unrepented of, and relying upon your own fancied righteousness and supposed merits for salvation." Or is it this? "All you who had rather go to heaven than to hell, may do so; but you must first change your own hearts, repent unto salvation, become true believers in Christ; all which it is in your power to do if and when you please." Or is it this?" All you may be saved who are brought by the teaching and influencing of the Holy Spirit, to see your own unworthiness and vileness by nature and practice; to see your need of, and to desire salvation on God's own terms, according to his plan, believing in and relying upon Christ as the only Saviour, the only way of salvation; who are brought to and kept in this faith by the Holy Spirit; whose hearts are changed by the Holy Spirit from that state which is called carnal, and described as a state of enmity against God, to that which is spoken of as a state of reconciliation to God; and who are kept by the same grace and power that wrought the change, from returning to the previous state of enmity, however still subject to in. firmities, and even at times left to be overpowered by temptations, and to fall into actual sin."

In the latter case, that is to say, if this is their tenor, the (so-called) invitations and offers are not addressed to all men, but to a particular class, distinguished from others by particular characteristics; and to those to whom (in this case) they are addressed, they are rather pro.. mises than invitations or offers. Such not only may but shall be saved.

Some are so determined to adhere to the general redemption theory, that as the proposition that Omnipotence can be overpowered involves an obvious confusion and contradiction in terms-a moral impossibility -they have invented the theory that God permits his purposes to be frustrated. This appears to be endeavouring to escape from one, by rushing into a complication of difficulties. For the supposition that God determinedly adheres to a once formed purpose, applies his energies to the accomplishment of it, and yet that without any relaxation of desire, any suspension of effort to accomplish it, the said purpose is frustrated, the endeavour to accomplish it defeated, would but involve a denial of one of the essential attributes of Deity, that of omnipotence; while the theory that he permits his purposes to be frustrated, involves the denial of several, and presents, if carefully examined, a mass of inconsistency, an amount of confusion, that can hardly be looked at without bewilderment.

It involves the denial of his unchangeableness: because if a previous purpose is allowed to be frustrated, it no longer exists as a purpose as a purpose it is abandoned. Abandonment of purpose cannot, by any exercise of ingenuity (to say nothing of sobriety and sincerity of reason), be reconciled with unchangeableness, but obviously and necessarily implies changeableness.

It involves the denial of his perfection of wisdom. Because, if a previous purpose is abandoned, it must be either with or without suffi. cient reason. To say that God ever abandoned a once formed purpose without sufficient reason, would be to directly charge him with folly. To say that there was sufficient reason for abandoning it, would be as much as to say that there was not sufficient reason for forming it, or (in other words) that such purpose was not formed in the perfection of wisdom. If there is sufficient reason for abandoning a purpose, this reason must be that the abandonment is better than the retention and accomplishment of it would have been; that that which takes place of the thing purposed is better than the thing purposed; or, that the non-occurrence of that which was purposed is better than the occurrence of it would have been; and therefore that the purpose that the thing purposed should occur was not so good as the purpose that the thing substituted should occur was or would have been; or that the purpose that what was purposed should occur was not so good as the purpose that it should not occur was or would have been; in other words, was not so good as it might have been, was not the purpose of perfect wisdom.

Again, it involves a denial of his omniscience; his omniscience as to the future. For no one in his senses could commit so obvious, so flagrant an absurdity, as to say that God actually purposed that any particular event should occur, knowing at the time that it would not. If, then, he actually did purpose that any particular event should occur, it cannot be otherwise than that, knowing his invincible power to bring it about, he expected that it would occur. But if, notwithstanding his expectation that it would occur, it failed to occur, he was mistaken in his expectation. It need hardly be observed, that to say that God was

mistaken in his expectation is to deny his omniscience as to the future.

Moreover, whatever occurs in accordance with God's purpose is brought about by the exercise of his power, at a purposed time, and in a predetermined or purposed way. And in matters of grace this exercise of power is two-fold, doing and overcoming-doing his own work, and overcoming the obstacles opposed thereto by the devil and man's wicked heart.

Can any man, then, of the commonest understanding (unless, indeed, he believes God to be a being without any fixedness of purpose or will at all) say, in sincerity, that he believes that God ever purposed that any particular event or circumstance should occur, purposed the time when it should occur; predetermined and arranged the mode in which it should be brought about; anticipated the obstacles that would be presented by the devil and man's wicked heart, both to the thing purposed and to the purposed mode of bringing it about; determined to overcome these obstacles; determined the mode in which he would do so; and, knowing his invincible power in thus doing and overcoming, expected that the event or circumstance would occur, as purposed in every respect; and yet after all abandoned his purpose that it should occur-his intention of bringing it about--his purposed two-fold mode of doing so and allowed matters to turn out altogether different both from his purpose and expectation? And yet all this inconsistency and absurdity is involved in the theory that God permits his purposes to be frustrated.

Should it be asked, why all this anxiety to prove, as an abstract truth, that the Bible scheme of salvation was not framed with a view to the salvation of all mankind, it may be replied, it is a truth which has most important bearings, and therefore it cannot be unimportant to prove it. Neither can it be unimportant to disprove the theory opposed to it (the General Redemption theory), inasmuch as this resolves itself into a denial of one or more of the essential attributes of Deity.

It cannot be unimportant to disprove a theory that supposes the existence of confusion in the councils of the triune Jehovah, and want of unity of design between Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, which the General Redemption theory seems to do, inasmuch as according to that the Son went through his part of the Bible scheme of salvation with a view to the salvation of more than the Father elected to salvation, through and in accordance with the same, and the Holy Ghost regenerates with a view thereto.

It cannot be unimportant to disprove a theory which robs a regen. erated child of God of the comfort which arises from the persuasion that the work of grace, which he feels to have been begun in his soul, is the result of an eternal, unchangeable, unfrustrable purpose of salvation, including within itself whatsoever is necessary for its accomplishment, instead of being either the result of a purpose which may be changed, or abandoned by God, or frustated by the devil, or by the devil and man's wicked heart together, whether this be with or without

the permission of God who formed it; or else a work not proceeding from any previous purpose and leading to any certain beneficial result, but which may issue either in salvation, or in greater condemnation, according as it is either fostered and encouraged, or neglected and resisted by a heart which is by nature averse to all that is good, and disposed to all that is evil; and which will be so finally, unless a work of grace is not only begun in it, but also kept up and carried on to the end, by Him who is omnipotent in matters of grace as well as of providence. If what has been said above is according to the truth, how greatly do those pervert the truth who state, or imply, that the Bible scheme of salvation, as a whole, or in either of its parts, was frained and carried out with the purpose, desire, or expectation (on God's part) of the salvation of all mankind thereby, or in order thereby to place all men in a salvable state, as well those who die unregenerated by the Holy Spirit, as those in whom that blessed change has been or shall be effected how greatly in darkness on the subject themselves, or how unfaithful are they with regard to the degree of light given to them, if they intentionally so express themselves, or quote or apply Scripture in such a manner, as to admit of being understood thus to state or imply.

Supposing it to be allowable to keep back part of the truth, under certain circumstances, which, however, it is not here intended to admit, surely under no circumstances can it be justifiable either actually to misrepresent it, or by intentional want of explicitness to occasion or to connive at its being misunderstood.

THE PARTING HOUR.

I HAD often been called to the painful task of bidding adieu to those I loved, but never had my feelings been so peculiarly distressing as on the present occasion.

My father had laboured for many months under severe bodily indisposition, and it was the opinion of his medical attendants that he would never recover. "He may live for many months," they said, "but there is no doubt that the malady under which he suffers will terminate his existence." Oh, what soul-harrowing, heart-rending intelligence was this! It stifled the fond hope which I had been secretly indulging, that he would still be spared, and that I should yet be welcomed to the paternal roof by the dear head of the household. By it I was assured that, in all human probability, this would be my last interview!

Those around the beloved invalid were yet to be favoured with much of his society, if the physician's opinion proved correct; it would be their happy privilege to adininister to his necessities, and, as far as lay in their power, to make his passage to the tomb smooth and easy: but with me it was very different-I was now to be separated from him, to journey many miles, so that the painfully-anticipated period had virtually arrived. He affectionately commended me to God, and bade me confide in his love and in his power. But the moment of separation had arrived-the coach was in waiting for me. I took my father's hand, and my head dropped upon his in convulsive anguish. i had lost all control over my feelings; it seemed that I must die too! "Don't, my son," he exclaimed;"you will make me worse." Exerting myself to say, G-o-o-d-b-y-e-my father," I, as it were, tore myself away from Lim, and staggered out of the room.-My Father's Grave.