of their purfuit, fo their acquifitions were their reward;" while military chiefs who barter their blood for fame, are juftly entitled to it, whatever Mr. Macpherson may imagine to the contrary. The military, however, are not the only objects of the author's averfion; the priesthood comes in for its proportion of hatred; but this clafs, having lefs fhare in temporal affairs, have the good luck to come lefs frequently under Mr. Macpherfon's lafh. Religion itself is fcarcely ever mentioned but by the name of fuperftition; while the author, wandering widely from his fubject, and feizing with avidity even the moft diftant profpect of injuring the objects of his averfion, fays (vol. iv.), that in China every thing is turned to the beft account, and the farmer enjoys the whole fruits of his labour, for there are no ecclefiaftical tythes to diminish his profits, or difcourage his industry." America is alfo (in vol. iv. p. 325.) held out as yielding very great encourage. ment to every kind of industry, as being entirely free from tythes and predominant religious establishments. Thus, according to this author, the fetting apart a certain portion of our income for the fervice of him, to whom we owe the whole, is an act of injuftice to ourselves; and the governments which fanction it, are to be held up to public view, as guilty of difcouraging the induftry of their fubjects, and depriving them of their well earned profit. In like manner, a tenth part of the produce of the earth is in vol. i. p. 457, pronounced to be an oppreffive tax. But, indeed, neither the political, nor religious fentiments of the author can excite any furprife, when we find him fo frequently quoting Gibbon as being remarkable for accuracy and judgment. Vid. vol. i. pp. 112, 205. &c. (To be continued.) ART. X. Sermons on the Miffion and Character of Chrift, and on the Beatitudes; comprehending what were preached before the University of Oxford, in the Year 1803, at the. Lecture founded by the late John Bampton, M. A. Canon of Salisbury, By John Farrer, M. A. of Queen's College; Rector of the United Parishes of St. Clement Eafcheap and St. Martin Orgars, London. 8vo. 395 pp. 75. Rivingtons, &c, 1804. THE appointed number of Sermons to be preached at the Bamptonian Lectures is eight, but fome of the Lecturers have chofen afterwards to extend their matter in the publi 3 " cation. The motives of the prefent author for fo doing are briefly thus explained in his preface. "It may readily be conceived, that a fubject of this nature cannot always, without disadvantage, be exactly apportioned to a prescribed number of Lectures or a limited measure of Difcourfe. This he hopes will be accepted as his apology to the University for taking a larger compafs in his work, when prefented to the public, than he had opportunity of doing, when delivered from the Pulpit. It may be proper to ftate, that two additional Ser mons are inferted, namely, the fecond and the fifth, adapted to the two great Solemnities of the Chriftian Year, the Nativity and the Paffion of our Lord. And the portion of difcourfe on the Beatitudes, which was delivered in two parts, is amplified into a feries of Sermons correfponding to the fubjects of the feveral Beatitudes." P. viii. By thefe amplifications the regular number of Difcourfes is doubled in the prefent volume, and, as it is divided into two parts, each containing eight Sermons, it may be confidered as a double courfe. The intention of the author is to give in one part a view of the teftimonies of the Chriftian Faith, and in the other of the elements of Chriftian Doctrine. Both parts, however,' are imperfect. The former touches only particular heads relating to the Miffion, and character of our Saviour; connecting the facts of his life with fome of the principal prophecies relating to him. The latter part dwells diftinctly upon the eight Beatitudes, which, though they give a very extensive view of doctrine, cannot without fome force be made to comprehend the whole; and furely were not intended by the facred teacher to be fo underflood. To the Sermons on the Beatitudes, an introductory dif courfe is prefixed, and a diftinct conclufion fubjoined. These however are not intended apparently as feparate difcourfes. From that introduction the following part may properly be taken, as it contains matter of a critical nature. "But before I proceed to difcourfe upon them feparately, it may be convenient to premife a few remarks on their structure and arrangement, for that may be of ufe in unfolding their defign. Now it deferves our notice, that as they are formed on the model of certain introductory fentences in the Pfalms, which pronounce a bleffing on virtuous difpofitions*, fo they are delivered in the fame fententious and proverbial style. Hence they bear the com. Pfalms i. xxxii. xli. cxix, plexion plexion of the Poetry of the Hebrews, which, in its prevailing character, is combined of parallel fentences and claufes, wherein propofition correfponds with propofition, and term is anfwerable to term. Thus every fentence in this feries is compofed of two claufes, of which the former pronounces a certain difpofition blefled, and the latter states wherein this bleffednefs confifts. But befide the general parallel that pervades the whole, the fentences appear to be difpofed in couplets, bearing a ftill clofer analogy to one another both in conftruction and in fpirit: as will be more diftingly feen, if we read them in the order, which they hold in fome very ancient and well-approved manufcripts of the Gofpel, and in which they are quoted by fome diftinguished Fathers of the Christian Church. "Bleffed are the Poor in fpirit: for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. "Bleffed are the Meek: for they fhall inherit the Earth. Bleffed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they fhall be fatisfied *." "According to this arrangement, the fecond fentence is parallel to the first. The Meek are of a kindred character with the Poor in fpirit: and the inheritance of the Earth bears an evident antithefis to the poffeffion of the Kingdom of Heaven. A fimilar correfpondence holds both in difpofition and in recompenfe between the third and the fourth: they that mourn are comforted: they that hunger and thirst arc fatisfied. "This arrangement I am the more difpofed to note, as it contributes in fome degree to the perfpicuity of the fentences, and fixes in fome cafes a precifion of meaning, which, in the common order of reading, is not fo obfervable. We fhall more diftinctly understand who are meant by the Poor in fpirit, on which there is fome difference of opinion, when we find them collated with the Meek. We fhall more clearly apprehend who are meant by them that mourn, on which there is alfo fome degree of doubt, when we find them collated with them that hunger and thirst after righteoufnefs." P. 234. In his conclufion to the fame difcourfes Mr. Farrer thus gives the fummary of duty relative to them. "It may fuffice to ftate, that this is the Order of the Cambridge Manufcript both in the Greek and the Latin Text: which is further fanctioned by the following lift of authorities from Wetstein's Edition :-Verfio Latina, Clemens, Origenes, Eufebius, Gregor. Nyff, Juvencus, Ambrofius, Chromatus, Hie. ronymus." " I. In 1 "I. In this feries of Beatitudes we behold the neceffary eonnexion between holiness and happinefs. To the feveral virtues of "the Christian life are feverally affigned their appropriate rewards. -But far be it from us to infer from hence, that the feparate cultivation of any fingle virtue, or indeed of any number less that the whole, will fuffice to the attainment of the happiness propofed. All the virtues here commended, though feparately confidered, are connected together by one indiffoluble chain. They must all indifpenfably combine to form the perfect man of God; nor can one of them be omitted without infringing the integrity of the Christian character, and in confequence annulling our title to the fulness of divine beatitude. It is the ftrong expreffion of the apostle James; Whofoever fhall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." And the reafon is, that the feveral commandments form one entire and indivifible code, being fo many branches of the fame royal Law, and breathing the fpirit of the fame divine Lawgiver. For he that faid, Do not commit adultery, faid alfo, Do not kill." And what the apoftle thus affirms of the prohibitions, will equally apply to the pofitive injunctions. Whofoever fhall attempt to cultivate all the other virtues, yet fhall indulge himself in an habitual dif regard of one, is deficient in the Chriftian life, and hazards his intereft in the Chriftian recompence: for the fame Lawgiver, who faid, Bleiled are the Poor in fpirit, and the Meck, faid alfo with the fame anthority, Bleffed are the Merciful, and the Pure in heart. To all, who have enrolled theinfelves under the banners of the Chriftian difcipline, it is not permitted to choose their favourite virtues, to the neglect of others, which may not be fo agreeable to their prevailing habits and inclinations. As connected in fpirit, they must not be feparated in practice. As equally enjoined by the fame divine Lawgiver, they must be equally obeyed by all, who acknowledge his authority to require their obedience. If we would be complete in him to whom we profefs allegiance, we muft cultivate the whole without excep tion, we must exercife ourselves without referve in all. To this purpofe is the exhortation of the apofile, that "giving all dili. gence, we add to our faith, virtue, and to virtue, knowledge, and to knowledge, temperance, and to temperance, patience, and to patience, godlinefs, and to godlinefs, brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, charity. For if these things be in us and abound, they will make us neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jefus Chrift." If we thus affiduously labour to be perfect in the whole will of God, not however de pending on our own powers, but on his grace, not trufting in our own merits, but in his mercies, we may hope for the united-re compence of all the Chriftian virtues in the fulness of the blefing of the Gospel of Christ. "Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let us be ftedfaft and unmoveable in the work of the Lord, forafmuch as we know, that our labour fhall not be in vain in the Lord." P. 387. The great fault of the author's plan, in forming thefe Lectures, was the want of unity. The purchafer of the book, indeed, who buys two Courses for one, has no reason to complain; but when the two topics were blended in the original delivery this fault must have been ftriking; notwithstanding the writer's endeavour to unite the two as general divifions of one great fubject. There is nothing that is particularly ftriking either in the language or the thoughts of thefe Lectures, while at the fame time they appcar perfectly free from any thing which could expofe the author to cenfure: a character which has before feemed to us to belong to productions from the fame pen +. BRITISH CATALOGUE. POETRY. ART. 11. The Death of the Hero. Verfes to the Memory of Lord "Hide, haughty Gallia, hide thy humbled head; There are alfo a few tolerable verfes at the close; but this is all the praise we are enabled to give to the execution of the poem ; though it's spirit and tendency have our warmest applause. * 1 Cor. xv. 58. + Mr. Farrer published a volume of Sermons on the Parables, noticed in our 19th volume, p. 423. A fecond volume has fince appeared, but has been overlooked. |