Imatges de pàgina
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Trout on the race of loach renew their meal,
While teeming fpawn gluts the devouring eel.
Pearch, ever warring, wafte the minnowy fry,
And trembling roach before the pick'rel fly..
On thefe fweet banks, one vernal morn, my foot
Strook, near an aged willow's warty root,
A pike's drum-rattling hide, his fpiked jaw
Had ill fecur'd him from an otter's paw.

I. That water wolf, of fpecies undefin'd,
Or fish or quadruped, or both conjoin'd;
The honeft Angler's hate, the huntsman's joy,
Let fpears tranfix him, and let dogs destroy.

M. My fortune then injoy'd that scene of blood,
Dogs men and horfes rufhed into the flood.
There, here he vents, a lucky jav'lin thrown
With firenuous arm, infix'd him in the bone.
He dives, be mounts again, one hardy hound
Tenacious plunges with him to the ground.
All difappear, all reafcend from far,

Redoubled clamours urge the watry war:
Now fainting, panting, close purfu'd by death,
To the whole worrying pack he yields his breath.

I. Let injur'd nations, with like vengeance, chafe
All tyrants, otters of the human race.

I hear a voice, fome fhepherd's call; behold
He leads his bleating people to the fold.
My fpirits flagg, and aking legs advise
Reft and the cate which empty veins fupplies.
The fibres by excefs of toil we ftrain,
Brac'd, flowly brac'd to vig'rous tone again.

M. Yon fmoaking cot, beat by the mountain wind,
Harbours a good and hofpital Hind.

Unmurmuring his annual tithe he pays,

His friend he welcomes, and on Sundays prays.
There, on found beef our ev'ning we'll regale,
And crown the fober cup with nut-brown ale.

* We wonder Myfta fhould fo foon forget, or that he should refufe, the carp fo kindly proffered by his friend, in the earlier part of the 'dialogue. Befides, would it not have been more natural for our Anglers to have regaled on the produce of their day's fport?-We can by no means approve of that beef-fupper.

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Seventeen

Seventeen Sermons, on various important Subjects, viz. On original Guilt; Original Depravity; Human Impotency; the Trinity; the Deity of Chrift; fuftification by Chrift's Righteoufnefs; the Nature and Ufe of Faith in the Sinner's Juftification; on the Chriftian Warfare; the Chriftian's Course; the Chriftian's Stedfaftness; the Chriftian's Crown; Love to an unseen Jefus. Several of which were defigned by the Author for the Prefs, and are now published, with fome others of his Sermons, for the Benefit of his Widow and Children. By the late Rev. Mr. Samuel Hayward. 8vo. 6s. Field.

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HESE Sermons are dedicated, by J. Conder, the Editor, to the Church and Congregation lately under the care of the Author; at whofe defire, we are informed, they are publifhed; a defire (fays he) which flows from your cordial love to his memory, and genuine efteem for his labours, which were fo acceptable and ufeful among you when alive; and with a view to be in fome degree beneficial to his dear and tender family now he is removed.' We cannot help obferving, that this kind of apology, fo commonly made for the publication of pofthumous works, (thofe in the Sermon way efpecially) is too eafily admitted by the public, to the everlasting difgrace of many a good and pious man.

Not content with the esteem and reputation our Author seems to have met with among his own flock, and those of his own party and perfuafion, his over zealous friends are willing to ftretch his fame to lengths it can never reach. As the worthy and religious man, we make no doubt, he has been refpected in his life time; but, as an Author, this officiousness of his Intimates and Admirers, can ferve only to make him remembered for thofe little imperfections which a due and well judged refpect to his memory would have wifhed to conceal, and suffer to be buried in oblivion. But as Charity, which is urged also, Charity to his dear and tender family' may be thought a ftronger plea, we fhall only further obferve, that the fame liberality might have been expreffed almoft in any other way, to better purpose, than by fubfcriptions to this performance.

The chief purport of the three firft Sermons, is, to reprefent human nature in as dark colours as it is poffible, from these words of the Apoftie to the Gal. iii. 22. But the Scripture bath concluded all under Sin. The following are the three general views under which he would reprefent the truth contained in his text, viz. I. We are all under the guilt of Sin. II. We are all under the pollution of Sin. III. We are all under its power and government.

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The fourth Sermon bears this incomprehenfible title. A Trinity of Perfons in the Unity of the Divine Effence. The text is 1 John v. 7. latter part-And thefe Three are One. In treating this fubject, our Author discovers himself to be profoundly orthodox; that is, in the vulgar acceptation of the word; for as to juft, rational, and confiftent notions of Chriftianity, which is true Orthodoxy, his mind appears to be too much under the power and influence of prejudice to admit them: indeed either as a Reafoner or as a Critic on the Scripture Hiftory, and its original language, his abilities are too flender to bear him out, thro' fuch fubtle difquifitions, with any fuccefs, or reputation, among the judicious and difcerning.

The Difcourfe opens with this high encomium on the doctrine of the Trinity, The doctrine of the Trinity is one of the glories of Revelation, and therefore highly deferving our particular confideration and efteem. However it may be treated with ridicule, and viewed as an abfurdity, by many, because it is myfterious and incomprehenfible, it is one of the capital articles of the Chriftian's Creed, it enters into the very effence of his comfort, his holiness, and his falvation, and therefore he receives it with the utmost readiness and chearfulness.' Having, after this, given a fhort account of the context, he enters upon the difcuffion of this incomprehenfible point; but as if he thought his text not quite fo fit for his purpofe, he chufes to fubftitute the words of the Affemblies Catechifm, as more fully expreffive of the doctrine he is to maintain. The truth then,' fays he, that appears from this part of God's word, is this, viz. What the Afiembly's Catechifm has fully expreffed." That there are three perfons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and Holy Ghoft, and thefe three are one "God, the fame in fubftance, equal in power and glory." I fhall confider this in its feveral parts, fo that the whole may appear clear and evident; as I. Prove that there are three in the Godhead. II. That thefe are three diftin&t Perfons. III. That these three Perfons are the one Supreme God, equally par• taking of one common undivided Nature or Effence. And then, IV. Confider the use and improvement of this Truth.'

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We fhall give the fubftance of what our Author delivers under the third of thefe particulars, as a fpecimen of his fentiments on this doctrine, and his talent of reafoning. After having acknowleged the Trinity to be a great mystery, a mystery in which we are entirely loft, he fays, However fome may efteem it a reproach upon their understanding, to believe what they cannot fully comprehend, I defire to esteem it none, and there'fore freely own my ignorance, how the facred Three are diftinct as to perfonality, and yet One effentially. Thefe are

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fubjects of an infinite nature, and therefore cannot come with• in the reach of a finite mind. Nothing but Infinity can take in Infinity; and therefore it difcovers the greatest pride and vanity in a fhort-fighted mortal, to refufe to give credit to a • doctrine fo immediately relating to Deity, becaufse it is incomprehenfible. If we muft believe nothing but what we can entirely account for, we must turn abfolute Sceptics.' But our Author fhould not have taxed thofe that difbelieve the Trinity, with pride and vanity, on this account; fince their disbelief is grounded, not upon their being unable to comprehend the mode of the exiftence of Deity, but because they apprehend that the doctrine of the Trinity is abfolutely contradictory both to Reafon and to Scripture.

But this doctrine (it is faid) is not contrary to Reason, tho' above it. We do not fay that three Perfons are one Perfon, or that they are three diftinct Beings or Gods, but that the ⚫ three Persons are one God. The Father is almighty, the Son is almighty, and the Holy Ghoft is almighty; and yet there are not three Almighties, but one Almighty. The Father is eternal, the Son is eternal, and the Holy Ghoft is eternal; and yet there are not three Eternals, but one Eternal.' So much by way of illuftration, to fhew its manifeft confiftence with Reason. Let us now fee how ingeniously he supports the truth of this doctrine, on Scripture proofs.

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That this is the doctrine of Scripture, appears plain, both ⚫ from the Old and New Teftament. Some have thought that it appears in Pfal. xxxiii. 6., where it is faid, that By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the word of his mouth.' There is fomething fo curious in the quotation of this text, as a proof of this wonderful mystery, and at the fame time fo myfterious, that we cannot excuse ourfelves from giving our Readers the following key to the underftanding the force of it. The Word then fignifies Chrift; the Lord fignifies the Father; and the Breath of his Mouth fignifies the Spirit. Not lefs curious is the following quotation in proof of the Trinity and Unity.' Numb. vi. 24, 25, 26. The Lord bless thee and keep thee, the Lord make his face to fhine upon < thee, and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. Here the firft Lord fignifies the Father, the fecond Lord fignifies the Son, and the third Lord fignifies the Holy Spirit.

Our Author, however, thinks he can produce ftronger proofs of this doctrine than these paffages, which he owns are not direct proofs of it. His account of the matter is as follows.

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< What we have in If. vi. 3. feems more peculiarly defigned to fpeak this great truth. "And one cried unto another, and faid, holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hofts, the whole earth is "full of his glory." There is no impropriety in faying, that this thrice holy refers to the Trinity. This glorious Lord of Hofts Ifaiah faw in his vifion, is in one place referred to the Son, and in another to the Holy Ghoft, John xii. 41. and Acts xxviii. 25. And the fame Lord, in verfe 8, fays, who will go for us. So that it appears as if the Prophet had a vifion of the facred Three, and heard the Spirits furrounding ⚫ the throne celebrating the praise of each; and if fo, it evidently fhews, that they are the one Supreme God, equal in all divine glories, and therefore demanding equal praises from all creatures. But this appears more particularly in the New Teftament. Thus it is a truth evidently contained in the order of Baptifm. In this form the Son and Holy Ghoft are equally mentioned with the Father, without the leaft appearance of inferiority. If they are not one in effence, it is strange ⚫ that those who are baptized should be as much given up to the Son and Spirit as to the Father; that they fhould thereby be • brought under an equal obligation to pay religious honours to all, and that by a divine appointment, when all Revelation is against it.'

By this time our Readers will be able to judge how strictly orthodox this performance is, without giving them any further fpecimens from the two Sermons that follow the above mentioned, viz. On the Deity of Chrift, and on Juftification. The remaining five are of a more practical nature, and seem more fuitable to the abilities of this pious Divine. But we must not conclude, without remarking the ftrange indifcretion of the Editor of this volume, who not content with publishing the Sermons, fome of which, we are told, were defigned for the prefs, has taken the freedom, in his Dedication, to prefent the world with a private Epiftle or two of the deceased, which instead of doing honour, as might be intended, to the memory of Mr. Hayward, can ferve but to expose both the Author and the Editor to equal contempt.

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FOREIGN Books, continued from page 473.

De l'Origine des Loix, des Arts et des Sciences, et de leurs progrès chez les anciens peuples. Trois tomes in 4to. A Paris, chez Defaint et Saillant, 1758. That is,

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