good he did, if he had remained preaching in Bedford, instead of being shut up in Bedford prison. Doctor Taylor, of Norwich, said to me, Sir, I have collated every word in the Hebrew Scriptures seventeen times; and it is very strange if the doctrine of atonement you hold, should not have been found by me.' I am not surprised at this: I once went to light my candle with the extinguisher on it. Now, prejudices from education, learning, &c. of ten form an extinguisher. It is not enough that you bring the can. dle; you must remove the extinguisher. Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.' A man may live in a deep mine in Hungary, never having seen the light of the sun: he may have received accounts of prospects, and, by the help of a candle, may have examined a few engravings of them; but let him be brought out of the mine, and set on the mountain, what a dif. ference appears! I have many books I cannot sit down to read; they are, indeed, good and sound; but, like halfpence, there goes a great quantity to a little amount. There are silver books, and a few golden books; but P have one book worth more than them all, called the Bible; and that is a book of bank notes. When some people talk of religion, they mean they have heard so many sermons, and performed so many devotions, and thus mistake the means for the end; but true religion is an habitual recollection of God, and intention to serve him; and this turns every thing to gold. We are apt to suppose that we need New Series. VOL. II. something splendid to evince our devotion; but true religion equals things; washing plates and cleaning shoes is a high office, if performed in a right spirit. If three angels were sent to earth, they would feel perfect indifference who should perform the part of prime minister, parish-minister, or watchman. Ministers would overrate their labors, if they did not think it worth while to be born, and spend ten thousand years in labor and contempt, to recover one soul. I feel like a man who has no money in his pocket, but is al. lowed to draw for all he wants upon one infinitely rich; I am, therefore, at once both a beggar and a rich man. A COPY OF THE EXORDIUM OF MR. NEWTON'S WILL, DATED JUNE 13, 1803. In the name of God, Amen. I, John Newton, of Coleman street Buildings in the parish of St. Stephen, Coleman Street, in the city of London, Clerk, being through mercy in good health, and of sound and disposing mind, memory, and understanding, although in the seventy-eighth year of my age, do, for the settle. ment of my temporal concerns, and for the disposal of all the worldly estate which it has pleased the Lord in his good providence to give me, make this my last will and testament as follows: I commit my soul to my gracious God and Saviour, who mercifully spared and prevented me, when I was an apostate, a blasphemer, and an infidel, and delivered me from that state of misery, on the coast of Africa, into which my obsti nate wickedness had plunged me W and who has pleased to admit me (though most unworthy) to preach his glorious gospel. I rely with humble confidence upon the atonement and mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ, God and man, which I have often proposed to others as the only foundation whereon a sinner can build his hope, trusting that he will guard and guide me through the uncertain remainder of my life, and that he will then admit me into his presence in his heavenly kingdom. I would have my body deposited in the vault under the parish church of St. Mary Woolnoth, close to the coffins of my late dear wife, and my dear niece Elizabeth Cunningham; and it is my desire that my funeral may be performed with as little expense as possible, consistent with decency. Mr. Newton composed an Ep. itaph for himself, desiring that it might be put up near the vestry door. His executors, have complied strictly with his injunctions. The following is a correct copy: JOHN NEWTON, once an Infidel and Libertine, was by the rich mercy of our Lord and Savior preserved, restored, pardoned, near 16 Years as Curate and Vicar of Olney, in Berks; daughter of the late George Catlett, whom he resigned to the Lord who gave her, The above Epitaph was written by the Deceased, are deposited in the Vault RELIGIOUS COMMUNICATIONS. Messrs. Editors, As an important object of your publication is the support and diffusion of the doe. trines of the reformation, and particularly those, which were embraced and inculcated by John Calvin, the following extract from that acute and justly celebrated writer,will, it is presumed, be highly gratifying to all your Calvinistic readers. It is, therefore, with much satisfaction and confidence offered for publication by a real CALVINIST, CALVINISM. t 1. THERE ariseth a hard question out of other places, where it is said that God boweth and draweth at his will, Satan himself and all the reprobate; for the sense of the flesh scarcely conceiveth how he, working by them, should not gather some spot of their fault, yea, in his common working be free from all fault, and justly condemn his ministers. Upon this was devised the dis. tinction between doing and suffering, because many have thought this doubt impossible to be dissolved, that both Satan and all * Our correspondent will find the object of our work more precisely and correctly stated, in the following paragraph from our proposals, to which we are pledged to adhere. "That the public may entertain no doubts concerning the religious faith of the editors, or what doctrines and views of christianity they mean to support, they explicitly avow their firm adherence generally and for substance, to what have been called the Doctrines of the Reformation. These doctrines, with modifications, and retrenchments, which affect not their essence, are recognized in the Articles of the Church of England, in the Confession of the Presbyterian churches in Scotland, and the United States of America, in the Assembly's Shorter Catechism, and by the great body of the New-England Churches. These doctrines constituted the religious faith of our venerable forefathers; and by the editors are embraced, as the truths of God, revealed in the Holy Scriptures. Nothing manifestly inconsistent with these doctrines, can ever be admitted into this publication." The chapter of Calvin's Institutes, the wicked are so under the hand and power of God, that he direct. eth their malice unto what end it pleaseth him, and useth their wicked doings to the executing of his judgments. And their modesty were, peradventure, excusable, whom the show of ab. surdity putteth in fear, if it were not so, that they wrongfully and with a lying defence go about to deliver the justice of God from all unrightful blame. It seem eth to them unreasonable, that man should, by the will and commandment of God, be made blind, from which the following is extracted, treats "of the knowledge of God the Creator," and is thus headed bythe author, "That God doth so use the service of wicked men, and so boweth their minds to put his judgments in execution, that still himself remaineth pure from all spot." This chapter is divided into four sections. Under the first, the author undertakes to shew, "How God doth not only permit, but appoint the things to be done, which wicked men do. Under the second he shews that "The providence of God is a governess, which directeth all the inclinations of the mind of man, whether they bend unto good or evil.” Under the third, he shews that, "there are not contrary wills in God, although he forbid the doing of evil, and yet be willing to have it done; but our blindness, wherein we discern not how these two do agree, maketh us to imagine that they disagree, when in truth they do not." Under the fourth section, which ourcor respondent has omitted, the author shews, that "Wicked men are justly condemned for the evil, which they do, although God have appointed it to be done." EDITORS, and so, by and by be punished for his blindness; therefore they seek to scape by this shift, that this is done by the sufferance, but not by the will of God. But he himself plainly pronouncing that he doeth it, does reject that shift. As for this, that men do nothing but by the secret com. mandment of God, and do trouble themselves in vain with deliberat. ing, unless he do by his secret direction stablish that, which he hath before determined, it is prov. ed by innumerable and plain testimonies. It is certain that this, which we before alleged out of the Psalms, that God doeth all things that he will, belongeth to all the doings of men. If God be the certain appointer of war and peace, as it is there said, and that without exception, who dare say that men are carried causelessly with blind motion, while God knoweth not of it, and sitteth still? But in special examples will be more lightsome plainness. By the first chapter of Job we know that Satan doth no less appear before God to receive his commandments, than do the angels, which do willingly obey. Indeed it is after a diverse manner, and for a diverse end; yet so that he cannot go about any thing, but with the will of God. Although there seem afterward to be added a bare sufferance of him to afflict the holy man, yet because that saying is true, "the Lord hath given, the Lord hath taken away," as it pleased God, so is it come to pass; we gather, that God was the author of that tri. Job.i.2. al of Job whereof Satan and the wicked thieves were ministers. Satan goeth about to drive the holy man to despera. tion, to madness. The Sabeans cru. ellyandwickedly do invade and rob his goods, that were none of theirs. Job acknowledgeth that he was by God stripped of all his goods and made poor, because it so pleased God. Therefore whatsoever men or Satan himself attempt, yet God holdeth the stern to turn all their travails to the executing of his judgments. It was God's will to have the 2 Kings, xxii.20. false king Ahab deceived; the devil offered his service thereunto; he was sent with a certain commandment to be a lying spirit in the mouth of all the prophets. If the blinding and madness of Ahab be the judgment of God, then the device of bare sufferance (permission) is vain; for it were a fond thing to say, that the Judge so doth only suffer, and not also decree what he will have done, and command his ministers to put it in execution. It was the Jews' purpose to destroy Christ. Pi. Acts iv. 28. and ii. 23. and iii. 18. 2 Sam. xvi. 22. late and the soldiers do follow their raging lust; and yet in a sol. emn prayer, the disciples do con, fess, that all the wicked men did nothing else, but that, which the hand and counsel of God had determined; even as Peter had before preached, that Christ was, by the decreed purpose, and foreknowledge of God, delivered to be slain. As if he should say; that God, from whom nothing is hidden from the beginning, did wittingly and willingly appoint, that which the Jews did execute; as in another place he rehearseth, that God, which shewed before by all his prophets, that Christ should 2 Sam. xii. 12. Jer. 1. 25. Isaiah v. 26. and x.5. and xix. 25. suffer, hath so fulfilled it. Absalom defiling his father's bed with incestuous adultery, committed detestable wickedness, yet God pronounced that this was his own work; for the words are these: Thou hast done it secretly, but I will do it openly and before the sun. Jeremiah pronounceth that all the cruelty that the Chaldeans used in Jew. ry, was the work of God, for which cause Nebuchadnezzar is called the servant of God. God every where crieth out, that with his hissing, with the sound of his trumpet, with his pow. er and commandment, the wicked are stirred up to war. He calleth the Assyrian the rod of his wrath, and the axe which he moveth with his hand. The des. truction of the holy city and the ruin of the temple, he calleth his work David, not murmuring against God but acknowledging him for a righteous Judge; yet confesseth that the cursings of Shimei proceeded of the commandment of God. The Lord (saith he) commanded him to curse. We often find in the holy history, that whatsoever happeneth, it cometh of the Lord, as the departing the death of the sons of Eli, and verymany things of like sort. They that be meanly exercised in the Scriptures, 1 Sam. ii. 34. do see, that for 2 Sam. x. 10. of the ten tribes, 1 Kings xi. 31. shortness sake, I bring forth, of many testimo. nies, but a few, by which yet it appeareth plainly enough, that they do trifle and talk fondly that thrust in a bare sufferance (permission) in the place of the prov. idence of God, and so his judg ments should hang upon the will of men. 2. Now with respect to se cret motions-that which Solo. mon speaketh of the heart of a Prov. xxi. 1. king, that it is bowed hither and thither, as pleaseth God, extendeth surely to all mankind, and is as much, in effect, as if he had said;-whatsoever we conceive in mind, is by the secret inspiration of God, directed to his end. And, truly, Ezek. vii. 25. if he did not work in the minds of men, it were not rightly said, that he taketh away Lev. xxvi. 36. the lip from the true speakers, and wisdom from aged men, that he taketh the heart from the princes of the earth; that we oft read, that men are fearful SO far forth, as 1Sam. xxvi. their hearts be tak. en with his fear. So David went out of the camp of Saul, and none was ware of it, because the sleep of God was come upon them all. But nothing can be desired to be more plainly spoken, than where he so often pronounceth that he blindeth the eyes of men, and striketh them with giddiness ; that he maketh them drunk with the spirit of drowsiness, casteth them into madness, and hardeneth their hearts. These things also many do refer to sufferance (permission) as Eccles. vii. 3. if in forsaking the reprobate, he |