and upbraid you with your Guilt and Danger? Don't your Reafon tell you, that the great Creator and Governor of the World is too holy to approve, and too just to overlook fuch a fixed Averfion to him; and fuch numerous Sins and Provocations against him, as you cannot but charge to your own Account?

But "God is merciful." True, he is fo, to all proper Objects of Mercy; and in a Way agreeable to the Laws of his immutable Justice and Holiness. But can you fuppofe, that God will give up his Juftice and Holinefs, as a Sacrifice to his Mercy, out of Compaffion to thofe, who deferve no Pity from him; to those who refuse the Offers of his Mercy in the Gospel, because disagreeable to their finful Defires and Imaginations?

But Repentance will entitle the Sinner to Par"don, without any other Atonement."---Are you fure of this? Certain it is, that Mankind have always, in all Ages, thought otherways. What else was the Meaning of thofe Sacrifices, that have every where obtained; and what the Meaning of thofe fuperftitious Aufterities, and fevere Penances, that have been fo commonly practifed in the Heathen World, if fome Atonement, befides Repentance, was not thought neceffary to pacify an offended Deity --Confider, I intreat you, that as Sin is contrary to the divine Nature, it must be the Object of God's Difpleasure. As it is contrary to the Rules of his governing the World, it most deferve Punishment.--If God be the Rector and Governor of the World, he must have some Laws to govern by. If he has Laws to govern by, they must have fome Penalties to inforce them. If his Laws have Penalties annexed to them, these must be executed; or else they would be but Scare-Crows, without Truth or Juftice.---I intreat you also to

соп

confider, how the Repentance of a guilty Criminal can answer the Demands of Juftice.---What Satiffaction will our Sorrow for Sin afford to the divine Being? How will it repair the Dishonour done to the Perfections of his Nature? How will it rectify our depraved Appetites and Paffions, and qualify us for the Enjoyment of his Favour? How will it vindicate his Holinefs, and difcover to the rational World his natural Averfion to Sin and Sinners? Or how will the Fear of God's Displeasure be a fufficient Restraint to Men's Lufts and vicious Appetites, if Sinners may suppose, that when they hive gratified their Lufts, and taken their Swing in Sin, they can repent when they please; and thereby have an eafy Access to the Favour of God? In a Word, What Evidence can you poffibly pretend to from the Light of Nature, that Repentance only will fatisfy the divine Justice, and reconcile you to God?

But after all, were it even fuppofed, that Repentance would neceffarily give us a Claim to Mercy, without any other Satisfaction to God's Justice, it must then be another Sort of Repentance than you feem to fuppofe. You must then allow, that this Repentance must be a thorough Change of Heart and Life. For you can hardly fuppofe, that we are qualified for God's Favour, while all the Powers of our Souls are in direct Opposition and Aversion to him. nd is this Repentance in our Power? Can we at Pleasure renew our own Souls, and give ourfelves new Affections, Difpofitions, Defires and Delights? Can we change the Bent and Bias of our Inclinations to the Objects of Sense, and bring ourfelves to love God above all Things, and to take our chief Delight and Complacency in him?—This must be obtained, in order to enjoy the Favour of God. And yet it is manifeftly out of our Reach. It must be the Effect of an Almighty Power.

I hope you may now fee the Neceffity of a Saviour, both to expiate your Sin and Guilt, which your Pepentance can never do ; and to fanctify your depraved Soul, and make you meet for the Service and Enjoyment of God.—If these are obtained, you must be certainly and eternally fafe: But if you dare venture into Eternity without them, I must needs fay, you don't want Courage.

You fee, I have addreffed you with an unreferved Freedom and Familiarity. I have overlooked the Distance of your Character; and treated you as if we were in the fame State of Equality now, as we shall quickly find ourselves before the Tribunal of our glorious Judge.--The Caufe requires this at my Hands; and I should have been unfaithful, I had almosft said unmerciful to you, if I had not failed of the Decorum, which would have been my Duty to have observed in any other Cafe. I fhall therefore depend upon your candid Interpre tation of this unpolished Addrefs; and your kind Acceptance of the faithful Designs and Defires of,

SIR,

Your most Obedient

humble Servant.

LETTER II. Wherein a brief and general View is given of the Evidences of the Chriftian Religion.

SIR,

O U tell " me, my Letter had almost thrown Yo 66 you into a Fit of the Spleen." But I can't but hope, from your "awful Concern, left you

"meet with the Confufion I have therein defcrib❝ed," that it will have a better Effect.-I ac

knowledge,

knowledge, that "a pathetic Declamation cannot "be received for Argument." And that, your "Faith must be built upon Evidences, that will "reach the Understanding, as well as the fofter "Paffions of the Soul." But what Evidence do you defire or want of the Truth of Christianity? Confider, Sir. Confult yourBooks and your Friends. Make your Demands as large as you or they can contrive; and whatever rational Evidence you are pleafed to ask for, fhall be at your Service.. I have myself, with particular Application been confidering, what reasonable Evidence can poffibly be confulted or defired, which the glorious God has not already given us, in Confirmation of the Christian Inftitution; and I find nothing wanting, which we are capable of receiving. And I cannot but prefume, that if you likewife would impartially and in earnest put yourfelf upon the fame Enqui ry, you must meet with a full and complete Satiffaction.

You will certainly acknowledge, that the great Creator is capable fome Way or other to communicate his Will to intelligent Beings, with fufficient Evidence that the Revelation is from him.-Now what I defire of you is to fit down, and confult upon fome fuch Means of doing this, as would ftrike your Mind with the strongest Conviction, obviate all your Doubts; and give you the fulleft Confirmation of the divine Original of fuch a Revelation. When you are come to a Point, confider the Credentials of Christianity; and see whether you can find what you yourself would demand, and what you fuppofe most likely to give you Satisfaction.

Would you expect from fuch a Revelation, a reafonable Account of our firft Original?-Look into the Mofaic Hiftory of the Creation; and there

you

you will find, how the World, and how yourself, originally fprang from the divine Fiat; and in what Manner we are the Offspring of God.

Would you expect a Narrative of fuch Circumstances of God's Difpenfations towards us from the Beginning, as would be correfpondent with our conftant Experience and Obfervation ?-The fame Hiftory will inform you of those irregular Affections, and vitiated Appetites and Paffions, which every Man finds in himself; and which have brought fuch Destruction and Mifery upon the World, in all its fucceffive Periods, fince Adam's Fall.

Would you expect, that there fhould be early Intimations of the Method of our Recovery from the State of Sin and Guilt, which we had brought ourselves into by our Apoftacy?—You will there alfo find the gracious Promife, that the Seed of the Woman fball break the Serpent's Head; and deliver us from the deadly Effects of his malicious Temptation.

Would you defire to find a particular Prediction of the promised Saviour, by whom we are to obtain a Redemption; his Lineage and Defcent, the Time, Place and Manner of his Birth, the Circumstances of his Life, Death and Refurrection, a particular Description of the Nature, the Subjects, and the continual Progrefs of his Kingdom?Read the Prophecies of the Old Testament; and read the History in the New; and you will find fuch a Correfpondence and Agreement, as will afford you Matter of fulleft Satisfaction, that they' are both from God.

Would you expect, that there should be fome Means to keep the promised Saviour in the continued View of God's People, before his actual and perfonal Manifestation; and to keep alive their Faith and Hope in him?-What were all their Sa

crifices,