been shown, there can be no absolute man was not decreed, but only foredecree of God regarding free agents, known by the infinite wisdom of God, undoubtedly the prescience of the De- it follows that predestination was not ity (which can no more bias free an absolute decree before the fall of agents than the prescience of man, man; and even after his fall, it ought that is, not at all, since the action in always to be considered and defined as both cases is intransitive, and has no arising, not so much from a decree itexternal influence) can neither impose gelf, as from the immutable conditions any necessity of itself, nor can it be of a decree. Vol. I. p. 62. considered at all the cause of free actions. If it be so considered, the very "Since then it is so clear that God name of liberty must be altogether has predestinated, from eternity, all abolished as an unmeaning sound; and those who should believe and continue that, not only in matters of religion, in the faith, it follows that there can be but even in questions of morality and no reprobation, except of those who indifferent things. There can be no- do not believe or continue in the faith, thing but what will happen necessarily, and even this rather as a consequence since there is nothing but what is fore- than a decree; there can therefore be known by God. no reprobation of individuals from all 6 That this long discussion may be eternity. For God has predestinated at length concluded by a brief summa- to salvation, on the proviso of a general ry of the whole matter, we must hold condition, all who enjoy freedom of that God foreknows all future events, will; while none are predestinated to but that he has not decreed them all destruction, except through their own absolutely; lest all sin should be im fault, and, as it were, per accidens, in puted to the Deity, and evil spirits and the same manner as there are some to wicked men should be exempted from whom the gospel itself is said to be a blame. Does my opponent avail him- stumbling-block and a savour of death. self of this, and think the concession Vol. I. pp. 84, 85. enough to prove either that God does not foreknow every thing, or that all With these views accord the senfuture events must therefore happen timents of his poem: necessarily, because God has foreknown them? I allow that future events, which God has foreseen, will “ they themselves decreed happen certainly, but not of necessity. Their own revolt, not I; if I foreknew, They will happen certainly, because Foreknowledge had no influence on the divine prescience cannot be de their fault, ceived, but they will not happen neces Which had no less proved certain, unsarily, because prescience can have no foreknown. Par. Lost, III. 95. influence on the object foreknown, inasmuch as it is only an intransitive ac On the external efficiency of tion." Vol. I. 51-53. God, the first work of God noticed, is the generation of the Son. Ap“ From what has been said it is suffi- prehending that, on this subject, he ciently evident, that free causes are would be at variance with the opinot impeded by any law of necessity nion generally received as orthoarising from the decrees or prescience of God. There are some who, in their dox, he bas devoted a hundred zeal to oppose this doctrine, do not he pages to the discussion, and exhisitate even to assert that God is him bited more of reasoning than on self the cause and origin of sin. Such any other topic. His opinion, so men, if they are not to be looked upon far as we discover in this chapter as misguided rather than mischievous, the workings of his mind, originäshould be ranked among the most aban- ted from the theory that exhibits doned of all blasphemers. An attempt generation from the Father as beto refute them would be nothing more than an argument to prove that God ing literally the foundation of the was not the evil spirit." subsistence of the Son. For his Vol. I. p. whole reasoning proceeds on this basis, and the absurdity of suppos“Since then the apostasy of the first ing this generation to have taken pp. 66 place, eternally, by physical neces- The coincidence in the time of sity; or otherwise than by the composing the two works would free will of the Father, in time. seem to show, that the opinions of He ascribes to the Son as much of the poet and the theologian were divinity as could be ascribed to one the same. The expressions in his not self-existent and eternal; hold- Epic, supposed by Sumner to faing that the Father imparted of vour the opinion of the supreme " the divine substance itself” to divinity of Christ, are these : the Son, With this view of the « In him all his Father shone, original nature of Christ, he defines the incarnation to consist in the Substantially expressed.” hypostatic union of two natures." "He is called both God and Man, Equal to God, and equally enjoying “throned in highest bliss, and is such in reality; which is God-like fruition.” expressed in Greek by the single and appropriate term OsavagWTOS." “never shall my harp thy praise In accordance with this Arian Forget, nor from thy Father's praise scheme respecting the Son, he disjoin." Book VII. 140. 305. 414. considers the Holy Spirit, when spoken of as a person of distinct Yet if we recur to the peculiar subsistence, to be “a creature," views expressed in the present "produced of the substance of work, it would have been consistGod," " inferior to the Son." ent for Milton to speak of the Son, The earlier views of Milton are begotten of “the substance" of known to have accorded with the the Father, to be a “substantial ex 6 Trinitarian hypothesis. In the first pression of him; and it is observaof his controversial writings, pen- ble that he predicates equality to ned soon after the commencement God in his song, not of the subsistof the civil war, occurs this form ence of the Son, but of his throne of invocation : and fruition. Whose 6 praise he would not disjoin from the Father's, “Thou, therefore, that sittest in light appears, from the introductory line and glory unapproachable, Parent of of the passage, to be one in the angels and men next thee I implore, rank of creation: omnipotent King, Redeemer of that lost rempant whose nature thou didst assume, ineffable and everlasting Love ! “ Thee next they sang, of all creation And thou, the third subsistence of di- first, vine infinitude, illumining Spirit, the Begotten Son.” joy and solace of created things ! one tripersonal Godhead!" At least, the words admit the in terpretation given in the Christian The period at which he changed doctrine—the first, in the order of bis views, appears not. The trans- time and rank both, among the lator of this work supposes that, in works of creation. the Paradise Lost, he is wavering On the subject of creation, he and contradictory. On the author- not only avers matter to be “ the ity of his biographers, it appears, productive stock" of all, that he was occupied in the last days of the commonwealth one first matter all three great works, Paradise Lost, a Endued with various forms, various Latin Thesaurus, and a Body of degrees Divinity ;“all which, notwithstand- of substances, and in things that live, ing the several troubles that befel of life;" him in his fortunes, he finished after his majesty's restoration." but maintains also the singular opi on nion, that matter itself is not only and“ any Christian whatever is quafrom God, but of God, who contains lified to administer baptism,” and (to use the language of the school. “entitled to the privilege of dismen) the material as well as the pensing the elements” in the saefficient cause of all things, in his cred supper, in opposition to the own substance and being: exclusive right of ministers. On the primitive state of man, The Sabbath has been abrogated he introduces the subject of mar- with the whole Mosaic code; and riage, maintaining, not only, as was one day is no more holy than analready known, the legality of di- other with Christians who are left, vorce, on the ground of disaffec- at will, in each independent church, tion, but holding surprising and so select their times of public worstrenuous argument on the lawful- ship. ness of polygamy. • The visible church is the multiHe divides the sin of mankind tude of the called, who openly into that which is common to all worship the Father through Christ, men, and the personal sin of each in any place, either individually, individual; making the sin of the or in conjunction with others. first parents one in which the 66 Individually: for although it is whole race are joint partakers. the duty of believers to join them “ The satisfaction of Christ” is selves, if possible to a church duly 6 the satisfaction of divine justice constituted; yet such as cannot do on behalf of all men” “ made by this conveniently, or with full sahim in his two-fold capacity of tisfaction of conscience, are not to God and man." Milton combats be considered as excluded from the the evasion of those who “ main- blessing bestowed by God upon the tain that Christ died not in our churches.” The practice of Milstead, but merely for our advan- top was accordant with this state of tage.” We fault him not here. individual worship in the latter Renovation is accomplished by part of his life. " He was not," the external call of the gospel; re- Bishop Newton remarks, “ a progeneration requires the supernatu- fessed member of any particular ral operation of the Spirit ; in sect of Christians; he frequented wy! ch distinction, we recognise no public worship, nor used any that semi-pelagianism which puts religious rite in his family.” Wheit in the natural power of the sin- ther his blindness and infirmities, ner, by means of the gospel call, to or the peculiarities of his faith, acturn to God; and which throws count for this, we pretend not to him on the resources of the Spirit affirm. in accomplisbing the entire work “ A particular church is a socieof his sanctification. ty of persons professing the faith, Christian liberty is “an enfran- united by a special bond;" “in itchisement through Christ our Deli- self a perfect church, so far as reverer, " " from the rule of the law gards its religious rights;" compeand of man.” The Antinomian tent to the choice of ministers, and will here find a chapter accordant the administration of discipline. with his views. Coincident with the work of final Baptism, one of the external judgment," beginning with its seals of the covenant of grace, is to commencement, and extending a be administered to believing adults little beyond its conclusion, will anly, by immersion“ in running take place that glorious reign of water;" Christ on earth, with his saints, so often promised in the scriptures." Baptizing in the profluent stream.” A new view of the millennium ! Par. Lost, XII. 44). So far, for the opinions exhibit 2 66 ed in this recently discovered trea- bout the close of the common- “ Somewhere or other, I trust, may ity, as they call it, without schoolmenced the work, to make it a sys terms and metaphysical notions, which have obscured rather than explained tem of purely exegetical theology, our religion, and made it difficult withbears upon it an aspect highly con- out cause.” Vol. II. p. 165 Note. gruous with the supreme authority juslty ascribed by Protestants to the At that age, we may add, morescriptures, as the guides of faith over, it was peculiarly desirable and worship. At that age, too, At that age, too, that the example should be prowhen the reformers were rescuing posed to the ministers of religion religious truth from the rubbish of a purely scriptural theology. under which it had been concealed It would have encouraged and acduring the dark reign of papal su- celerated that attention to the phiperstition, when all the systems of logical interpretation of the scriptheology extant were molten at the tures which had already been proforge of Aristotle as much as upon posed to the Protestants by Flac, the altar of revelation, it were no and which was cultivated with such wonder that Milton, lifted so far assiduity in the succeeding century by his puritanic independence of by the constellation which arose in mind above all servility, should the days of Ernesti. Perhaps the grasp at a simpler mode of hand- work, had it appeared in the day ling the Christian doctrine. In this of its birth, rickety as it now very treatise, while on the subject seems, might have done a real serof the perspicuity of the scrip- vice to the cause of Christian doctures, he himself expresses the dis- trine, so far, in bespeaking of all its satisfaction he felt towards the pre- ministers a primary attention to valent modes of managing the sub- the philological interpretation of ject of theology the word of God, as the true source of Christian knowledge. “Through what infatuation is it, that We mean not to imply, in these even Protestant divines persist in dark remarks, that we would have eveening the most momentous truths of religion, by intricate metaphysical com ry treatise on theology, in its form, inents, on the plea that such explana- strictly biblical, We would not retion is necessary; stringing together duce the method of inculcating it, all the useless technicalities and empty to the mere task of collocating distinctions of scholastic barbarism, for passages of scripture under distinct the purpose of elucidating those scrip- heads, as in Gaston's Collections. tures which they are continually ex- We do not object to a “ Pars Dogmatolling as models of plainness? tica, Elenclitica, Practica, HistoriVol. II. p. 165. ca," more than to the “ Pars Exe The form is not the His desire to see religion treated getica.” on the plan suggested in this work, thing. There may be as great he also intimated in one of his con aberrations from truly biblical thetroversial publications, * issued a- ology under the exegetical as well as under any other of the departConsiderations on the likeliest Means to ments of theology we have mentemore Hirelings out of the Church. tioned. But what we plead for, and what the exegetical form di- given us, in a paragraph on annihirectly recognises as its basis, is, lation, under the head of creation . that whatever we pretend to receive or inculcate as Christian doc- “ There are other reasons besides trine, be derived directly from the that which has been just alleged, and language of the scriptures, inter which is the strongest of all, why this doctrine should be altogether exploded. preted (if we except prophecy) as First, because God is neither willing, it must have been by the first nor, properly speaking, able, to annihireaders. late any thing altogether. He is not The influence of the reformation willing, because he does every thing has tended to exalt this branch of with a view to some end; but nothing theology to its just height, (by can be the end, neither of God nor of throwing off the ministers of the any thing whatever. Not of God, begospel from reliance on the deci cause he is himself the end of bimself; not of any thing whatever, because sions of the church, to reliance on the word of God only; and the Pro- thing. Now, nothing is neither good, good of some kind is the end of every testants, let the Papist say what nor in fact any thing. Entity is good ; he will of the divisions that have nonentity consequently is not good ; sprung up among them in their de- wherefore it is neither consistent with parture from the pretended Foster- the goodness or wisdom of God to make Mother, have brought a stretch of out of entity, which is good, that which research and a labour of criticism to is not good, or nothing. Again: God is not able to annihilate any thing althe investigation of the original together, because, by creating nosciptures to render them too lumi- thing, he would create and not create nous ever to be clouded again in pa- at the same time, which involves a pal night; which bring an eclipse contradiction. If it be said that the over the age of Milton, and render creative power of God continues to his work, though pursued with as operate, inasmuch as he makes that much philological skill and as good that there are two things necessary to not to exist which did exist; I answer critical helps, perhaps, as the age constitute a perfect action, motion afforded, a century too late in its ap- and the effect of motion : in the prepearance to impart any new impulse sent instance the motion is the act of or offer real assistance to the stu- annihilation; the effect of motion is dious. none, that is nothing, no effect: The plan on which Milton un- Where there is no effect there is no dertook to exhibit the Christian efficient.” Vol. I. P. 242. doctrine, so accordant with the first principles of Protestantism, and so Again: On the subject of the lijustly needed at the day in which teral traduction of souls, which Milhe wrote, of deriving it from the ton connected with his ideas of malanguage of Scripture only, is lia- terialism: ble to two abuses ; both of which are chargeable in some degree, on “God would in fact have left his creMilton :-one, of not abiding by ation imperfect, and a vast, not to say the rule; the other, of bringing a servile, task would yet remain to be things to its decision which lie not performed, without even allowing time within its special jurisdiction. We for rest on each successive sabbath, if he still continued to create as many say nothing here of incorrectly in- souls daily as there are bodies multiterpreting the rule itself of which plied throughout the whole world.” he might also, in several examples, Vol. I. p. 253. be proven guilty, A most singular instance of de- How far afield of the high road parture from the rule, by adopting of scripture! Who could have exanother ground of decision than pected this from one who comscriptural language, Milton has menced witb a system professedly |