xvi. 16, 19. with Haggai ii. 10-14. and Hebr. x. What a view does it present of our own uncleanness, of the holiness of the Lord, and of the greatness of that atonement by which we have access unto God. The Lord increase in us the good hope, which this revelation of his name affords to the chief of sinners! If you take these for the texts of your next letter, you will be at no loss for a subject. LXV. TO THE SAME. March 1, 1820. MY VERY DEAR FRIEND,-I see a month has elapsed since I received your last welcome letter, and that is too long an interval. I have just finished a long letter to DK, and four of his associates, who sent me, some time ago, a strange kind of epistle in reply to my former. Theirs is rather abusive, and filled with the most ridiculous cavils, but betraying a mind and sentiments much aside from the truth. I shall be glad of your calling on him shortly, to ascertain whether he has received it, and how he meets it. Unless it please the Lord to bless it to them, I dare say it will increase the irritation they manifest, at my moving any question about the soundness of their profession. But till they shut the door to further communication, I am unwilling to drop them altogether, they verbally acknowledge so much important truth. Well does it become such as us to be "patient towards all men." See if they will communicate to you both the letters, theirs and mine. They make, or pretend to make, the strangest mistakes about my meaning. Explain it patiently, as long as they will let you. As to my intended reply to Mr. Haldane, I have not yet commenced it, and it is uncertain when I may. It is, indeed, a nice and solemn thing to publish any thing on the subject. So you have been preaching; and you are half sorry for it, and doubting whether you should have done so. It reminds me of a question, which you put to me in one of your first letters, which, I believe, in the press of more important matter, I never answered. I can enter fully into all your feelings on this matter. A disciple, sickened by the religious world, seeing the mass of iniquity that goes on under their so-called preachings, and that is mainly promoted by them, is very apt to turn with disgust from every thing that passes under the same name. But we are always ready, in running from one evil, to bolt right ahead upon another. Now let us consider— (putting out of our thoughts the sentiments, both of the Glasites, and of the popular religionists)-on what scriptural ground a Christian could be warranted in declining to tell his fellow-sinners, when they are willing to hear him—either in public or in private, according to his abilities and opportunities-what he has learned from the word of God. Shall he decline it because they have Moses, and the prophets, and the Apostles, authoritatively declaring to them, at all times, the things of God in the words of God; and because we, so far as we speak aright, can never speak but the same things which they testify? Specious as this may appear to some, yet, legitimately followed up, it would bind disciples in never opening their mouths on the truth, either among themselves or others, but in the very words of Scripture. And I have heard of a little party in your country (I know not whether now existing) who did go this length, and confined themselves in their own meetings to the reading of the Bible. But, in fact, there is absolute scepticism as to what is truth at the bottom of this, under the show of exclusive reverence for the words of the most High. If I see and am convinced of the divine truth, in any of the numberless passages of Scripture which have been awfully perverted by the cunning craftiness of men, (for instance in Hebr. xi. 6.) shall I be afraid, either by writing or speaking, of protesting against their ungodly perversions, and asserting its true import in any words the most intelligible, and best calculated to convey my meaning? Is it in the mere articulate sounds of the words of Scripture-as words-that any charm or importance lies? and not rather in the glorious things meant and intended by those words? I am aware of what some may say-" O! then the vain man thinks his own words better than those of the Holy Ghost." Let that be followed up; and it is in Greek and Hebrew the Scriptures must alone be read to men. But, as I said, the objection, under a show of reverence for the words, despises and questions the things of God. But, perhaps, your doubts and difficulties on the subject have arisen rather from your consciousness of the workings of your own vain and deceitful flesh in preaching. Shall I, then, decline speaking to my fellow-sinners on the great salvation, because my own heart would, at any time, make an ostentatious display of my zeal or eloquence, or my knowledge, and sacrifice to its own drag, at the very time that it pretended to be setting forth the glory of the Lord? If this were a good reason, I might well never open my lips and I confess, that long as I have been what is called preaching-(I hate the name if I could obtain another)—I have uniformly found it, on this account, the most trying engagement that I can attempt, and have peculiar cause to say, before engaging in it, and during and after the engagement— God be merciful to me a sinner ;-while I scruple not also to avow (what would stamp my character with a Glasite) that many is the watering I get in watering others. But to drop myself-a bad subject every way-are you at any loss to see the rankness of pride and unbelief concealed under that humble objection to a disciple's speaking to his fellow-sinners upon the one thing needful? Of course, I suppose, in any other matters in which he does venture to engage, either alone or with others, he is free from dangers from his own heart. Away with the thought! Shall I then lastly decline it, because some persons conclude, when they hear of my preaching, that I am led to it by the religious flesh, and am saying-" come see my zeal for the Lord." I am sure they cannot suspect too ill of me: : but what hypocrisy and seeking to please men would there be, in my accommodating my conduct to their views? I consider my preaching but as talking to a greater number at once. Many are offended at my being engaged in it so little, and others at my being engaged in it at all. What have I to do with the opinion of either party? I confess I hold the preaching opportunities very cheap in comparison of conversation; and I have often endeavoured to combine the two; as I find a quarter of an hour's conversation generally conveys my meaning more than twenty sermons. But many will hear me preach, who will not converse. When I say many, observe that my audience at 3 o'clock on Sundays when I speak, seldom exceeds a score, and is often smaller. You treated me better in Scotland, but I fancy it was because you did not understand me. I am half vexed at having filled my sheet with this subject: yet having entered on it at all, I was anxious to guard you against what I think a snare in the Glasite views. There may be a great deal of hypocrisy in our trying to avoid the appearance of hypocrisy. I shall be glad to hear of your being much engaged in talking to your neighbours, as long as you tell them the truth: while I am sure that you will talk to them in the mind of the truth, only so far as the mercy and power of God keeps you in the perception of its glory. When we lose sight of that, it is little matter whether we talk or be silent. Be strong, dear friend, in the Lord; and care not whether others think you carnally strong;-" Remember that Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead:" what more do we want, at any time, to bring us into the presence of the living God, crying Abba! Father! It will be a fight to the last, especially against our wicked hearts, bent to depart from Him, in departing from this truth. But the time is short: Salvation belongeth unto Him and He increaseth strength to those who have no might. We talk of our weakness, as if we had some little-though too little strength.-But remember our character-No might. Remember His-the mighty God -the God of Jacob. Write often. I like to hear from you. : LXVI. TO THE SAME. May 1, 1820. MY VERY DEAR FRIEND,-I am ashamed of having so long delayed answering your last; and that which I now write must be rather a note than a letter. I am about leaving town to-morrow morning for Dublin, and shall probably be absent for nearly six months. The uncertainty of my plans till within these few days partly caused my silence; but along with that, the circumstance of my being deeply engaged and fully occupied with a reply to Mr. Haldane. I have now nearly finished the rough draft, but in tran scribing shall have carefully to prune away every thing that might irritate him needlessly—such as a remark that he has much more marked separation in his tabernacle than we have in any of our churches the evidence that he has formerly seemed to countenance, by republishing my letters to Knox, many of the principles which he now most keenly opposes, &c. Yet my reply will abundantly confirm his abhorrence of my spirit and my sentiments, unless the God of all mercy open his eyes. The chief point I enlarge upon is the sameness of character in the hearts of believers and unbelievers-of man in all circumstances. And I find increased reason for thankfulness, for having had the occasion to take up my pen again; though I am sure that the more clearly my meaning is developed, the more it will excite a general feeling in all religious parties" away with such fellows from the earth." Dr. M- set off for Ireland last Saturday. He was disappointed with you on one point; and though I say little on it, I am much pained. I do not wonder at your discerning the indisposition in your own heart to look the subject in the face. If you gave a different account of yourself, I should not believe you. But when I see a professed disciple of the Lord walking after his own heart, in shrinking from the close consideration of a divine precept to which his attention has been called, I sigh and wonder just in proportion to the apparent clearness of his professed views of the truth. I do not at all wish you to lose sight of the wickedness of our interpretation of the precept, if it be wrong, nor of the carnal bias which you justly observe might prompt to it, even if it be right. But, my friend, if you see the glory of the only true God, and have life in His name, take that part of his divine word and consider what it means. It has some one definite import; look steadily what it is; and do not longer turn away your eye from it, contented to vibrate between various fancied interpretations, in no one of which you settle. If you once settle in an interpretation of it different from ours, in the love and fear of the Lord set about reproving and correcting us. If you should be convinced with us that the thing allowed under the law of Moses, but forbidden under the gospel, is— the swearing of any oath to bind our soul with a bond, with respect to what we shall say or do; but remain of opinion that the oaths administered in your country are not of such a nature, avow this: and then we shall know the ground of disagreement between us, and it will be narrowed for subsequent examination. At present, I do not know where to meet you; and I do not think I shall mention the subject again till you say in what sense you understand those words of the Lord-"Swear not at all." I have written more than I thought I should have been able. Farewell, dear Friend. 64 March 1, 1820. DEAR SIRS, I have had some doubt whether I ought to make any reply to your letter, from some of the characters which it bears. But I have had so much satisfaction lately in reading some pieces of Mr. Barclay which I had not before seen, and such increased confidence that he contended earnestly for the truth, and was a happy partaker of its blessedness, that I am unwilling hastily to drop the correspondence of those who profess agreement with him in sentiment. However, while I continue to write I must continue to write with plainness. That there may be no needless misapprehension of meaning between us, let me distinctly mark, that the man who prays, God be propitiated to me, a sinner"-in the sense which you choose to affix to the words-conceiving that God is yet to be propitiated through the sinner's "pitiful approaches"—or through any thing else, is decidedly an unbeliever. But I must say, that this sense is so plainly opposed throughout the tract on which you endeavour to animadvert, that your opposition to it might seem to indicate more disposition to cavil than jealousy for the truth. However, to avoid as much as possible all ambiguity of language in any future edition of the tract, I shall expressly protest against your construction of the words, and substitute such a paraphrase as this-be propitious to, or deal mercifully with me, a sinner-i. e. according to that mercy which thou hast revealed as belonging to thee, flowing to the chief of sinners through that propitiation for sin which thou hast provided and hast accepted. (See vol. 1, 543.) Such was the publican's prayer, and such will be the prayer of every believer to the end of the world. You think that he is described as an unbeliever, offering therefore the sacrifice of a fool; and yet in a more hopeful state, more accessible to the words of truth than the proud pharisee." Here is, indeed, a fundamental difference of sentiment manifested between us. I shall come by and by to the perverted scripture by which you support your sentiment. But at present let the contrasted opinions be brought distinctly under view. You plainly intimate either that a profligate unbeliever, or that one who has very lately been a profligate unbeliever, but is now becoming piously, but unbelievingly, exercised and solicitous about obtaining what he calls mercy, is more accessible to the words of truth, is in a more hopeful way-and, as you say, more to be justified-than the man who has long been a strict religious unbeliever. I say they are both alike dead in sin, without God in the world; and that none but he who quickeneth the dead, and calleth things that are not as though they were, and to whom nothing is hard, can give his truth entrance into the minds of either. But you refer to the Lord's words in Mat. xxi. 31, as containing your sentiment, very much as Mr. Haldane under |