which God dispensed through these inspired persons, was progressive; diffusing into the hearts of those who received it clearer views of the divine nature, than man by the use of reason could have obtained. That every successive revelation gave an additional motive to the practice of virtue, by giving additional assurance that virtue was pleasing in the sight of God; and that a departure from the laws of truth, and justice, and piety, and mercy, would bring down the wrath of Deity upon the offender.

By these lights the prophets prepared the way for him, who was to be the way, the truth, and the light; and to unfold the divine nature and the scheme of Providence with an effulgence and an efficacy beyond their commission or their power to impart. To Him give all the prophets

witness; to Him, who, besides adding the sanction of divine authority to all that reason had discovered of moral truth, was to give such instructions as should tend to lay a surer foundation for the practice of the moral virtues, than the wisdom of man had been able to conceive.

All this, that God had by the prophets promised, was by the coming of the Son of God accomplished. By him the counsels of God were published. By him the scheme of Providence was so far displayed as was necessary towards effecting the purposes of the dispensation of grace; the additional knowledge afforded being of such a nature as could never without divine revelation have been obtained, and such as had, in every instance, a tendency to increase and strengthen the principles of moral

virtue.

By

By Moses and the prophets God had been declared to be a God of holiness. By them he was represented as hating sin, and punishing all manner of iniquity. But in how much brighter colours was this displayed. by Jesus Christ in what he saw fit to unfold of the scheme of redemption!

By Moses, God had promised to the Israelites to grant them especial assistance, on certain conditions of obedience; and while they performed their part of the covenant, God did not fail of performing his. This assistance was offered and bestowed towards procuring for them national blessings, advantages that were temporal and external, and the duties. enjoined them to perform in order to obtain it, were in many instances also external.

Let us now examine whether we

have any offers analogous to this made to us by the Son of God; and how far the analogy extends. Let us see what are the nature of the promises and threatenings he came in the name of his Father to publish; and what the nature of the duties we have to perform in order to entitle us to the reward; and whether, in the performance of them, we have reason to expect the divine assistance, and upon what conditions.

To the least enlightened understanding it must plainly appear, from the whole tenor of the Gospel, that our Lord came not, like Moses, to institute a law that was to have a temporary authority, but a law that was to endure for ever. He came not to offer to those who accepted of him the promise of any particular advantages in this world, nor did he threaten those who refused with any

temporal

temporal punishment; but he came commissioned by God to give the assurance of eternal happiness to those who accepted the offered terms of salvation, and of eternal misery to those who refused! He came to make this glorious offer of neverending felicity, and this awful denunciation of never-ending woe, not merely to the persons of his own country, and his own times, not to any particular nation, or to those who could be known or classed by any external badge, but individually to all who then heard, all who should hereafter hear, the words of the gospel of peace To you and to me, my dearest Lady Elizabeth, were these promises and threatenings addressed. We may accept or we may reject them. But unless we can control and alter the counsels of the Most High,

VOL. II.

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We