seek the Lord. Dr. Adam Clarke tells us that "Rab. David Kimchi gives the true sense of this passage: Seek ye the Lord because he may be found; call upon him because he is near.' This affords a somewhat different meaning from that of the common version, and at once leaves the end for which you quoted it unattained. For your comfort, however, I must say that Dr. Clarke adds the good Rabbi's gloss, containing a sentiment which the prophet neither expressed nor intimated, but which is precisely to your purpose: "Repent before ye die, for after death there is no conversion of the soul."

But these scriptural "warnings and cautions" imply endless misery! Why should a sinner be exhorted to repent and work righteousness if there be no danger of eternal torment? That is a question that my good Methodist friends cannot solve, and upon it are predicated ́many of their objections to Universalism. Think you Paul would ever have ceased to persecute the Church, if Christ had not revealed to him his exposedness to endless burnings? True but where is the proof of such a revelation? Oh, there is a thus saith the Lord, that is, it may be inferred from what has not been revealed at all! Such, Br. Remington, is your "positive proof."

Endless punishment may be inferred from the space which God has given to man to repent and prepare for eternity. Quoting from " a late author," you say, "There is space given

to every sinner in which to seek God, repent, and work out his own salvation. To this work he should apply himself vigorously." To subserve your purpose, the space of time given the sinner for repentance must be of such a length, and attended by such favorable circumstances, as would lead us to believe, or at least fully justify us in believing, that its termination will be followed by no farther opportunities of reformation, but that the future condition of such as do not most wisely employ it in working out their salvation, will be nothing else than endless and unmitigated misery. Now who has the hardihood to assert that such is the fact? We see individuals cut suddenly off, at all ages and under every diversity of circumstance; in christian and heathen lands; educated and

uneducated; some having abused great opportunities, and others having most judiciously and yet ineffectually improved the poorest. We see a comparatively good man suddenly perishing under the hand of the assassin, dying with one sin unrepented of; and we see that assassin enjoying ample space and opportunity for repentance; and can we persuade our selves that an eternity of wo awaits the good man and an eternity of bliss the murderer? Can we persuade ourselves that such a space of time was granted to the former as would justify God in consigning him to endless torments? But how is it in heathen lands, where the light of the gospel has never shined, and the name of God has never been heard? Has space been given them to seek God, and repent and work out their salvation? Br. Remington, here are some dark places in your theology, which it would be alike to the credit of your head and your heart to clear up. You believe that since the fall the condition of man "is such that he cannot turn and prepare himself by his own natural strength and works to faith and calling upon God." You know that the heathen have not heard the gospel and are totally ignorant of the way of salvation, and indeed of salvation itself; and yet as if you loved to indulge in contradictions and absurdities, you tell us "there is space given to every sinner in which to seek God, and repent, and work out his own salvation!!"

"The scriptures," you say in the fifth place," deny salvation to certain classes of sinners, which denial evidently implies their endless punishment." Ah, do the scriptures deny salvation to certain classes of sinners? This is quite a new doctrine among Methodists, and especially for those who contend that "there is space given to every man to seek Gud, repent, and work out his salvation." Then it is not true that Christ died for all, or that God will have all men to be saved!

But I will examine what I suppose you mean, and not what you say. You mean, I presume, that certain classes of sinners. are not saved while they remain sinners, that is, while they retain their present characters. No man can be a christian whose righteousness does not exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees. No man can see the kingdom of God

except he be born again. No murderer nor whoremonger nor unclean person, has any inheritance, or shall have any, so long as he sustains such a character, in the kingdom of heaven. See Matt. v. 5, John iii. 3, Gal. v. 21, Eph. v. 5. All this Universalists believe quite as fully as you or Mr. Lee, from whom, without credit, you borrowed this fearful argument. They know that "no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him;" they know that no sinner, no man still in love with evil-doing, is in possession of the kingdom of God, which is righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost; but they do not know, nor do you, that "the scriptures deny salvation to certain classes of sinners." If the scriptures do not speak falsely, Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, and sinners, too, of every class; and again, if they do not deceive me, he must reign till he has made an end of sin and brought in everlasting righteousness-till he "hath put all things under his feet," when God shall be all in all. For myself, I cannot entertain the idea that Christ came and suffered in vain; and particularly so, when the Scriptures are express in asserting that "he shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied." If you can believe that millions of those for whom Christ died are still denied salvation-if you can believe that the Friend of sinners can be satisfied with such a result of his labors and love, you are entirely welcome to your faith and all its comforts. But for myself, let me believe God and his word, and rejoice in hope of his glory. Yours, as ever,

LETTER XV.

Dear Sir-Your sixth proof of endless misery, borrowed as usual without credit, from Mr. Lee, is drawn from "what the Scriptures say of the portion, end and last state of the wicked," which you think "necessarily leads to the conclusion that their punishment will be endless." In illustration of your views on this subject, you refer to several passages of Scripture, in which the words italicised above occur. The argument is not very formidable, but yet I must not pass it without some examination.

In the first place you call our attention to what is said of the portion of the wicked. Our Savior speaks of certain individuals to whom he would appoint a portion among hypocrites and unbelievers. Matt. xxiv. 51 and Luke xii. 46. What this portion is, you show from Rev. xxi. 8. "But the fearful and unbelieving, &c. shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone; which is the second death." All this is marvellously plain no doubt to you. But will you allow me to ask you what is meant by the second death, i. e. what did the inspired writer mean? Where, and what is the lake of fire and brimstone? and when are these characters to take their portion in it? A critically scriptural answer to these questions is desirable and might lead you to other conclusions than those you have now adopted. Again, who were those whose portion was to be appointed them with hypocrites and unbelievers; and when was this allotment to be made? Our Savior was speaking to his apostles and disciples, and forewarning them of the dangers arising from unfaithfulness and apostacy. He was about to leave them, and his second com. ing "in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory”—an event which was to take place during that very generation— was to be followed by a judgment. Then the Scribes and Pharisees, so often called "hypocrites," and the Jews generally, the "unbelievers" of that age, were to be punished with

a terrible overthrow. And with them, those who had professed christianity, but had proved themselves "evil servants;" who had said, “My Lord delayeth his coming, and began to smite their fellow servants and to eat and drink with the drunken," were also to partake in the same calamities, and suffer the same punishment. But were these punishments reserved for the future world? Were they not, on the contrary inflicted as our Savior most clearly foretold, before that generation in which he lived, had passed away? And yet, such passages as these are quoted, and dwelt upon to prove endless misery! Perhaps they are the best proofs the Scriptures afford of that God-dishonoring dogma.

So also of the end of the wicked. David says, Ps. lxxiii., that he was envious at the prosperity of the wicked, but when he entered the sanctuary he learned their end. "Surely, thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down to destruction; they are utterly consumed with terrors. Now it requires no miraculous insight to perceive, and one should think, no uncommon frankness to acknowledge, that the Psalmist was here speaking exclusively of what is exhibited in this world. That he made any allusion to the final condition of men in the eternal world, cannot be proved, and you know, or ought to know, that it is undeserving the faith of any christian. Yet you assume that the Psalmist looked forward to eternity and spoke of the sinner's end there. In the same spirit of presumptuous ignorance you quote Jer. xvii. 11, 2 Cor. xi. 13, 15, Phil. iii. 18, and Heb. vi. 8. In these several passages the word end occurs, and you assume that it means the fixed state of the wicked, but you do not expose your weakness by attempting any kind of proof. This I suppose is your thus saith the Lord, of which you boasted in the outset, and which was to decide the controversy, and establish the doctrine of endless torments.

Once more, "In Luke xi. 24-26," you tell us, we have an account of a man, who after the unclean spirit had gone out of him, was re-possessed by seven other spirits more wicked than the first; and we are told that the last state of that man was worse than the first! Will the Universalists tell