Imatges de pàgina
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situation, he would, after all his exertions
and fears, be naturally exhausted, and
was most likely placed in the hold or
bottom of the vessel, where he continued
in safety for three days and three nights,
i. e. until the storm subsided, which
would probably be about thirty-six hours,
one whole day, and part of two others,
when he was safely landed by this vessel,
whose distinguishing name, mark, or
head, was a whale. Thus we have ships
called after the name of fishes, Dolphin,
the Nautulus, the Sea-horse, &c. At
all events, Jonah could not mean to say,
that he had been in the belly, or the bot-
tom of such a Hell as our Calvinist bre-
thren advocate; nor, that from thence
he prayed to God. Jonah's Hell con-
sisted of salt water, waves running moun-
tains high; not of fire and brimstone.
It is related of Hercules, that Neptune
sent a sea-dog against him, that the dog
swallowed him, and that he remained in
the dog's belly uninjured for three days.
This, perhaps, is only another edition of
the preservation of Jonah by the dog.
In the same point of view we may con-
sider the circumstance which is related
of Arion, the musician and poet of
Lesbos, who, in escaping from the mur-
derous hands of some mariners, jumped
from the vessel where he was, upon the
back of a dolphin that was close by it,
which, having been charmed by his music,
carried him safe on shore."-Pp. 495-
497.

The Lecturer considers Hades to be synonymous with Sheol, but he does not satisfactorily explain our Lord's using this term in the parable of Dives and Lazarus, to signify a place of torment. He seems to us to be fettered in this part of his inquiry by his system as a materialist, which however, he frankly avows, asserting in the most unqualified manner, (pp. 530, 536, 566,) that "neither Moses nor the prophets were authorized to make any communications respecting futurity!" We cannot subscribe to this hypothesis, and if we could, (so differently are human minds constituted,) we doubt whether we should be able to admit that the Old Testament contains a Divine Revelation.

On Gehenna, rendered Hell in the New Testament, Mr. Scott says, "This is not a Greek word, but is

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compounded of yn (ge), land, and Evvoμ,
hinnom, a proper name; in order to make
it correspond as nearly as possible to the
Hebrew for the valley of Hinnom; called
by Joshua, (chap. xv. 8,) the valley of
the son of Hinnom,' who assigns its situ-
ation near Jerusalem, to the south east.
It was the place where the idolatrous
Jews anciently celebrated the horrible
rite of burning their children in sacrifice
to Moloch, an idol of the Ammonites :
a fire was continually kept there for this
and other idolatrous purposes. To put a
stop to such an unnatural and detestable
practice, Josiah, about six hundred years
before Christ, defiled or profaned the
place, by filling it with human bones, as
we learn from 2 Kiugs xxiii. 10-14. It
was afterwards the custom to carry out
the dead carcases of animals, the filth
and offal of the city, into this valley; in
order to consume this nauseous assem-
blage a fire was kept continually burning.
Jeremiah informs us, (chap. vii. 32, 33,)
that it became also the common burying-
place for the poor inhabitants of Jerusa
iem, who could not afford the expense of
tombs or of embalming. Here also were
burned the bodies of those criminals who
were denied burial: and, indeed, some
are said to have been there burned alive.t
The Pharisees, whose opinions concern-
ing the state of the dead were chiefly
adopted from the Heathens, and certainly
not from Moses and the prophets, had
been long accustomed to designate the
considered to be wicked, by the name of
future punishment of those whom they
this horrible place: horrible it really was,
whether we consider the shocking inhu-
manity in which the first fire originated,
or the loathsome disgustfulness which
occasioned the second."-Pp. 566, 567.

In quoting and explaining Matt. x. body, and are not able to kill the 28, (Fear not them which kill the soul; but rather fear him which is hell,) and the parallel place, Luke able to destroy both body and soul in xii. 4, 5, the Lecturer does not attempt to reconcile his previously avowed materialism to these seemingly strong assertions of a substance that survives the body: his comment is in our view unsatisfactory, though

"That the valley of Gehinnom was a place of sepulture, may be proved by reference to various authorities, Heathen, Jewish and Christian. Clarke's Travels,

"See Fragments to Calmet's Dic- Vol. IV. p. 353, note." tionary, No. cxliv. p. 103."

+"See Lowth's Isaiah, notes."

we are not certain that we understand it.

"Our Lord here clearly designates the future punishment to be inflicted on those who do not fear God, by a metaphorical allusion to this mode of punishing criminals. It was a human, not a divine sen

tence; it was temporal in its nature and origin; a reference to it, therefore, could not be understood as intending to convey the idea that the future punishment of those who did not fear God would be eternal, like the Hell of the Assembly's Catechism; nor did he hint, in the most distant way, that the sentence to which he alluded, was an association with the Devil and his angels."-Pp. 575, 576.

Lecture XXIII. is from Isaiah xlv. 7, and the design of it is expressed in the following comment upon the

text:

"The prophet here rejects, from Jehovah himself, the idea of an evil being, the cause of evil and misery of any kind to the human race, and asserts from Him, that He alone is supreme and omnipotent; that, besides Him, there is no powerful, omnipresent being, no universal principle of action, no source of good, no author of evil to any of his rational creatures: I, JEHOVAH, am the author of all these things.'"-P. 591.

In this Lecture, Mr. Scott considers the question, "Whether the rejection of the Devil out of the Christian system, will not remove a salutary check from the minds of men, by inducing them to cast off not merely the fear of him, but also the restraints of religion

and the fear of God."

"To this it may be briefly replied, that the principle of fear is not the principle of obedience which is recommended in the Christian Scriptures. They who believe a Devil to be necessary to keep men in the fear of God, and render them submissive to the Divine will, compare the kind and benevolent Father of mankind to a slave-holder, and themselves to slaves, requiring a slave driver, the Devil, to be continually following them with his instrument of punishment, lest their fears should relax, and they become inattentive to the task allotted them. Is it, then, my brethren, the Devil who keeps you honest? Are the commands of God insufficient for this purpose? When you have a fair opportunity of defrauding others without detection, is it the Devil who steps in and prevents you? When you are going to tell a wilful, deliberate falsehood, to serve some vile, base end,

does the Devil present himself to your, shaking his instrument of flagellation at you, restrain you, and instantly make you speak the truth contrary to your intention? When you are about to defame others or to injure them, by any means, in their reputation and character, are you induced to desist by the Devil threatening to burn your tongue with fire and brimstone? When you are about to commit a crime, or to indulge in any vice, are you prevented by the fear of the Devil coming and carrying you off with him into his infernal dominions? If such be the nature of the motives which influence your conduct, you are the worshipers of the Devil and not of God, whose authority with you is perfectly nugatory; it is the Devil who is all-sufficient with you. Your principles of obedience are not gospel principles; for the Christian Scriptures command us to honour, serve and obey God from a principle of love, and not from a slavish fear or dread."-Pp. 597, 598.

The XXIVth and last Lecture is upon Future Punishment, which the author maintains will be temporary and remedial. Here again he opposes "the Heathenish notion," (as he freely calls it,)" of there being a principle in man which is naturally immortal." This description of a tenet held by the majority of the wise as well as the vulgar of all sects in all ages, is perhaps not to be censured in a work professedly polemical; but we would suggest whether it be quite correct or altogether candid to say, as the Lecturer says, p. 627, that "the doctrine of a continuation of being at death, by one part of the human frame being immortal, is in opposition to the teachings of Christ and his Apostles, and must, therefore, be antichristian"?-The practical reflections which conclude the Lecture are truly excellent. Mr. Scott closes with an exposition of his design in taking up such a subject and defending so unpopular an hypothesis, and with a solemn appeal to the understanding and conscience of his audience.

We have said nearly all that we intended upon this work. The reader will have seen that we consider it highly creditable to the talents, industry and moral courage and Christian faithfulness of the preacher. It contains a mass of information, taken from the best authorities, on every

topic to which it relates; and may be regarded as a text-book on the subject of Demonology. The author's desire to leave out nothing important on any part of the inquiry has caused the volume to swell to a great bulk: this of course limits the number of readers, but it makes the work more valuable to such as have leisure and resolution to study it throughout.

Our sincere respect for the author has not restrained us from stating some objections to his argument; and he will, we are sure, take it in good part, if we say further that there are some epithets and descriptions in the Lectures which appear to us to be wanting in gravity and even in charity. We refer generally to the epithets "Devil-Believers," 66 Devil's Advocates," and the like; to the phrase (p. 188) "head of the Holy Alliance;" to the remark (p. 241), that the Devil was "not either a native or foreign Jew" to the fractional division of the legion of Devils (p. 346) which once procured a semi-profane nick name for a certain dignitary of the church, his only distinction with posterity; to the appeal to the multitude (p. 401) on their not liking to be "on bad terms" with the Devil; but particularly to the adoption, by quotation (Note, p. 261) of Mr. Wake. field's unworthy exclamation on a comment of Archbishop Secker's, "So easily are the wretched criticisms of bigotry and superstition put to shame!"

The author has prefixed to the volume a table of the texts preached upon and an Index of those explained or referred to, but not an Index of subjects, which we have experienced the want of, and which in so large a work, comprising so much miscellaneous matter, is almost indispensable.

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to be met with in Mr. Ackerman's Forget me not," or Mr. Relfe's tastefully decorated" Friendship's Offering." Its claims to notice are of a far more humble and unpretending character; and while other productions of the season are calculated for display in the drawing-room, this is recommended as a companion for the young in their more serious moments, and as a means of fixing their attention upon more important subjects.

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The first division of the book is written in poetry: the remaining two are in prose. The prose parts sist almost entirely of extracts." The former of these contains a brief chronological sketch of the mission of Jesus; the dates, as we are informed in a note, being entirely adopted from Dr. Carpenter's valuable "Introduction to the Geography of the New Testament." This we think will be of considerable use in furnishing the juvenile reader with an intelligible account of the life of Jesus, by laying before him the events recorded in the different gospels in a regular and unbroken connexion. The extracts from Scripture are so numerous in this part of the book, that it may be considered as the language of the New Testament merely, with the addition of dates.

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The "account of Christmas-day," appears to be compiled chiefly from Rees's Cyclopædia. It concludes with a copious extract, in which the arguments for and against the religious observance of this day are fairly though concisely stated.

But the "Poetical Allusions to our Saviour's Life and Sufferings," form the most important part of this little "Present." These are classed under the following heads : "The birth of Jesus.-The goodness of God in sending a Saviour, and the permanence of his reign. The baptism of Jesus.The Beatitudes.-The hatred of the Jews and the conduct of the Apostles.-The death and resurrection of Jesus.-The Saviour's patience and resignation.-The ascension of Jesus, and his second coming.-The blessings of our Saviour's Mission designed to be universal."-And, lastly, obligation of Christians to imitate and obey their Lord and Master."

The

The following passage, (p. 15,) will at once give the reader an idea of the general character of the poetry, and serve as the foundation for a remark.

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In an eternal strife?

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When not the wolf that roams the plainne aquider har
With kindred blood its teeth will stain,
Or take its fellow's life!

But man, more savage than the beast,
Still glories in the human feast,

And wields the blood-stained
Still triumphs in the trumpet's blast,
Sighs when the vengeful fight is past,
And union is restored.

Blessed are those the strife who stay,
And drive the demon War away,

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And bid the tumult cease!
They are the favourite sons of heaven;
To them the glorious prize is given
Of everlasting peace!"

These verses are intended as a paraphrase on Matt, v. 9, "Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God." The turn

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in stating it as our opinion, that it would soon find way into general circulation, and become one of the most useful little works for Sunday

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we recollect to have met with. These hints are by no means intended to depreciate its character in the shape which it now assumes, which, as Christmas Present for Young Persons," we can recommend with the greatest sincerity and confidence to our readers. O. P. Q

given to this passage in the above schools and Can families which lines is well calculated for poetical effect, and for this reason it seems to have been adopted by our author. But it appears to us that the spirit of the passage would have been more nearly preserved, if the words of I our Lord had been taken in a more restricted sense, and applied only to the circumstances of private and domestic life. Here, too, we may remark, that if the word happy had been uniformly adopted in the Beatitudes, as it some.. times is, instead of blessed, correctness and consistency would have been preserved, while the character of the poetry would have remained uninjured. These observations, it is hoped, will not be deemed fastidious and hypercriticals They are well intended, and, we have no doubt, will be taken in good part.d

If this little book should come to a second edition, we would recommend the author to give it a more general character. By the addition of a poetical version of some of the most interesting of our Lord's para bles, and select passages from such of his discourses as are best calculated to arrest and fix the attention of the youthful mind, it might be made to assume a still more attractive dress than it already wears; and, under this new form, we feel no hesitation

ART. IV. The Apostle John an Unitarian. A Letter to the Rev. C. J. Blomfield, D. D., Rector of St. Bətolph's, Bishopsgate, and Archdeacon of Colchester, occasioned by kis "Five Lectures on the Gospel of St. John as bearing Testimony to the Divinity of our Saviour." By W. J. Fox. 12mo. pp. 50. For and Co.; Hunter and Eaton. 1823.

DR.

R. BLOMFIELD has great reputation as a Greek scholar, but judging by the extracts from his Lec tures that are given in this little traet, he is not likely to obtain much theolo gical fame. Mr. Fox's answer to his arguments is complete. So we think, and nothing would give us more satisfaction than to hear that the Doctor proposes to shew that our judgment is wrong.

Controversy is in general of less value on account of its vagueness and generality. Where disputants are fixed

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to one point, the result is more likely to be favourable to truth. The Archdeacon has chosen a narrow arena for the display of his polemical power and dexterity, and his opponent keeps strictly within the lists. We do not pretend to be impartial in the contest, but laying aside prejudice as far as we can, we feel authorized to pronounce, that the issue is decidedly favourable to Unitarianism.

The "Letter" is highly honourable to Mr. Fox, on account not only of the logical ability which it eminently displays, but also of the good temper in which it is written, there being no one phrase in it that the least friendly reader can object to on the ground of uncharitableness.

In the investigation of particular texts the Letter-writer is successful, but the general remarks towards the end are particularly valuable. There is a force in them which we see not

how any candid inquirer can resist. Besides these, Mr. Fox has given (pp. 44-46) a table of propositions, supported by references to the Gospel of John, which justify the title of his Letter and prove the Apostle to have been an Unitarian.

ART. V.-The Scriptural Meaning of the Title "Saviour" as applied to our Lord: a Sermon preached at Glasgow, July 28, 1822, at the Annual Meeting of the Scottish Unitarian Association. By James Yates, M. A. F. L. S. Member of the Geological Society, one of the Ministers of the New MeetingHouse, Birmingham. 8vo. pp. 46. Eaton. 2s. 1823.

HIS is a very able discourse;

for an unlearned auditory, but well deserving serious study in the closet. It has too the recommendation, rarely found in a Sermon, of some novelty, being the exposition (and it is a judicious and clear exposition) of a peculiar theory. The author will best explain his own design :

"The prosecution of this inquiry will lead you, I apprehend, to consider the term Salvation as denoting in its most common scriptural sense, deliverance, not from eternal misery in the next world, but from guilt, ignorance and wretched

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ness in this; and, when you acknowledge Jesus as your SAVIOUR, to regard him as preserving you, not (according to the immediate reference and genuine force of that title) from damnation in the life practices of this present evil world.' It to come, but from the principles and is true, that all Christians, who shall attain to the bliss and glory of the heavenly state, will ascribe this deliverance, no less than the other, to the influence of their Christian faith; and, since the cultivation of Christian virtues here is the direct and appointed method of procuring unspeakable happiness hereafter, the acliverer from spiritual darkness and corkuowledgment of Jesus Christ as our deruption, implies an acknowledgment, that he is also our deliverer from shame and wretchedness in the life to come. nevertheless appears evident, and I hope to prove it to the satisfaction of candid and impartial minds,-that the terms under consideration are not most commonly used with any immediate reference to the effects of the gospel upon our condition after death; but that they are stances, to describe its beneficial operation used, except in comparatively rare induring the present life; and I advance this interpretation with the greater confidence, because I am supported in it by the authority of some critics, held in high estimation by Christians of every sect; and especially by the authority of Dr. Henry Hammond, who gives place to none in long-established reputation for learning, diligence, accuracy and fidelity; and who, in his Commentary upon the New Testament, maintains in its fullest extent the view of the subject, which it is my design to lay before you.”—Pp. 6,

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"See especially his Note on Luke xiii. 23: Are there few that be saved? He shews the import of this question to

embrace the Gospel? He has also long and instructive notes, in support of the same views, on Rom. x. 1, and xiii. 11. Le Clerc, in his Additional Notes to Hammond, follows the same principle of Dr. John Taylor (see his Key to the Aposinterpretation; which is also adopted by tolic Writings, $ 93, 94): by Mr. Kenrick, in his Exposition of the Historical Books of the New Testament;' by Mr. Belsham, in his valuable work, recently published, on the Epistles of St. Paul; and by the late Mr. Buckminster, of Boston, N. America, in his excellent Sermons, No. 18, on Eph. ii. 5.”

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