TIMOTHY DVniG-HT 
 
 SERMON 
 delivered in Boston, 
 Sept. 16, 1813 
 
 v>; 
 
 F-33 
 D9676S 
 
.4 
 
 \ /, 
 
 5/^5 
 
V 
 
 SERMON, 
 
 DELIVERED IN BOSTON, SEPT. 16, 1813, 
 
 BEFOBC TUS 
 
 AMERICAN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 
 
 FOR 
 
 FOREIGN MISSIONS 
 
 AT THEIR 
 
 FOURTH ANNUAL MEETING, 
 
 BY TIMOTHY DWIGHT, D. D. L. L. D. 
 
 FBESIDENT OF TALE COLLEGE. 
 
 PUBLISHED Br REQ^UESf ^OF 'THE BOABD. 
 
 BOSTON: 
 PRINTED BY SAMUEL T. ARMSTRONG, 
 
 No. 50, CORNHILL. 
 iS13. 
 
SERMON, 
 
 JOHN X, 16. 
 AND OTHER SHEEP 1 HAVE, WHICH ARE NOT OF THIS FOLD. 
 THEM ALSO I MUST BRING; AND THEY SHALL HEAR MY 
 VOICE; AND THERE SHALL BE ONE FOLD, AND ONE SHEP- 
 HERD. 
 
 In this discourse our Saviour, adopting the beautiful 
 figurative language of the prophets on the same sub- 
 ject, styles his followers his sheep; and himself, the 
 good Shepherd. Perhaps, no image could have been 
 selected with greater felicity. It is suggested by the 
 voice of nature. The object of allusion has ever been 
 regarded by mankind as one of the most striking ex- 
 emplifications, found in the natural world, of inno- 
 cence, dependence, and amiableness. How often do 
 we hear the affectionate mother, smiling over her belov- 
 ed infant, utter all her tenderness and attachment in 
 language derived from this source. How often has the 
 poet selected this interesting subject as the theme, on 
 which he meant to lavish in his most melodious num- 
 bers the utmost elegance of his conceptions, and the 
 most gentle and amiable feelings of his heart. How 
 beautifully does the Prophet Isaiah present to us the 
 same flock, under the guidance of the same Shepherd, 
 when he says, " They shall feed in the ways; and they 
 shall be in all high places. They shall not hunger, 
 nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: 
 for he, that hath mercy on them shall lead them; even 
 by the springs of water shall he guide them.-^ Who, 
 that has either piety, or taste, has not found these emo- 
 
4 
 
 tions kindled in a moment by this exquisite picture of 
 the same unrivalled hand: '-'He shall feed his flock 
 like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his 
 arm, and carry them in his bosom.^'^ With what in- 
 imitable tenderness, and elegance, does David exclaim, 
 " The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want. He 
 maketh me to lie down in green pastm^es: he leadeth 
 me beside the still waters.''^ 
 
 It is hardly necessary to observe, that this allusion, 
 so beautiful, and forcible, in our own view, must have 
 had enhanced strength and beauty to the eye of a na- 
 tion, extensively devoted to the pastoral life; and, there- 
 fore, realizing at once all its fine scenes, and ail the 
 gentle and tender emotions, to which they gave biith. 
 Equally obvious is it to remark, that this discourse of 
 our Saviour must be considered as singularly happy, 
 and impressive, if we suppose it to have been deliver- 
 ed near the Sheep gate, and in the confines of Bethes- 
 da, or the House of mercy. 
 
 In the text, after having displayed in his previous 
 observations a tenderness, never exhibited by any oth- 
 er inhabitant of this w^orld, Christ proceeds to inform 
 us, that he had other sheep, beside those, of which he 
 had been speaking; that he must bring, or collect, 
 them; and that the two flocks should constitute one, 
 be sheltered by one fold, and be led by one shepherd. 
 
 ^' Other sheep,^^ says our Saviour, "I have.'''' Other 
 disciples, beside those of the Jewish nation, and the 
 present age, I have, belonging to my family. They 
 exist among the Gentiles in this age; and will exist in 
 every future period. The Gosj)el of the Kingdom, 
 which is to be preached in all nations, will every 
 where find those, who will cordially receive, and obey, 
 its dictates; those, who in the exercise of a living and 
 affectionate confidence will hereafter sjive themselves 
 
up to me, and become mine. They are now mine; 
 and were given to me from the beginnmg. "Them I 
 must bring. ^^ To collect them from every part of the 
 world is one of the great duties of my office; a part of 
 the glorious work, which my Father gave me to do: 
 and I shall not leave it unaccomplished. ''They shall 
 hear my voiceJ^ When I call, they will know and 
 acknowledge me as their Shepherd; and cheerfully 
 obey the summons. ''There shall then be onefold:^'' 
 a single church; a single assembly of my disciples; 
 one in name; one in their character, their life, and their 
 destination: and I, the good, the only, Shepherd will 
 lead them. ''They shall hunger no more, neither 
 thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, 
 nor any heat: but I will feed them, and lead them un- 
 to living fountains of waters.'''' 
 
 All real Christians, my brethren, belong to Christ; 
 and were chosen in him before the foundation of the 
 world; that they should be holy, and without blame, 
 before him in love. In him they have redemption 
 through his blood; the forgiveness of sins; according 
 to the riches of his grace. In this world they are often 
 hidden from each other; are separated by difierent 
 names, forms of worship, and modes of discipline; and 
 unhappily are in many instances, and in greater or less 
 degrees, alienated from each other by unworthy and 
 disgraceful contentions. The prophet Elijah, when he 
 fled from Jezebel to Horeb, the mount of Gob, told his 
 Maker, that he, even he only, was left of the prophets; 
 and that they sought his life, to take it away. How 
 must he have been astonished, when he heard that 
 glorious Being answer, "I have left me seven thousand 
 in Israel, who have not bowed the knee unto Baal.'" 
 In a similar manner the Church is exhibited by the 
 prophet Isaiah, as saying in her heart, after the gencr- 
 
al profligacy, which precedes the dawn of the Millen- 
 nium, and the sudden multiplication of converts which 
 shall follow; ^'Who hath begotten me these? seeing I 
 have lost my children, and am desolate; a captive, 
 and moving to and fro: and ivho hath brought up 
 these? Behold, I was left alone. These, where had 
 theij been?^^ The answer to this complaint, also, is in 
 the same spirit, as in that to Elijah, but immensely 
 more delightful and glorious. "Behold,^^ saith the 
 Lord God, '^I will lift up my hand to the Gentiles, 
 and set up my standard to the people; and they shall 
 bring thy sons in their arms, and shall carry thy 
 daughters upon their shoulders. And kings shall be 
 thy nursing fathers, and queens thy nursing mothers^ 
 All these, strangers as they are to Zion, are still her 
 children: and, however separated by distance, conceal- 
 ed by mutual ignorance, or arrayed against each oth- 
 er by unkind, uncharitable thoughts, are really, and 
 will ultimately appear to be, possessed of one charac- 
 ter. They will also constitute one visible church; 
 having one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. The 
 system of truth, revealed in the Gospel, is one: the 
 Church formed by it, is one: and the scheme of wor- 
 ship, enjoined in it, is the same. He, whose eye seeth 
 not as man seeth, discerns this iiow, with absolute 
 certainty; and distinguishes every one of his children 
 with an intuition, which cannot err, amid all the va- 
 rieties of name and character, which they assume, and 
 the biasses, errours, and oppositions, by which they are 
 often concealed from each other. The time will come, 
 when among all, who have put on the new man, which 
 is renewed in knowledge after the image of him, who 
 created him, there will be neither Greek nor Jew, cir- 
 i.:umcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian nor Scy- 
 thian^ bond nor free; but Christ will be all and in all. 
 
This visible and glorious union of Christians will 
 not, indeed, be perfectly accomplished, until the liaro- 
 ens shall he no more. Then the intercessory prayer 
 of the Redeemer will be completely answered in the 
 exact eventuation of the great purpose, which I have 
 specified. ^'Neither jjray Tfor these alone, but for 
 them also, ^ho shall believe on me through their 
 word: That they all may be one; as thou, Fattier, art 
 in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us; 
 that the world may believe, that thou hast sent me. 
 And the glory which thou hast given me, I have giv- 
 en them; that they may be one, even as we are one. 
 
 Still, the period is advancing; it is hastening; in 
 which Christians will be most honourably united in 
 the present world. The morning is even now ap- 
 proaching towards the horizon, and at no distant pe- 
 riod will actually rise upon this dark world, when all 
 distinctions of party and sect, of name and nation, of 
 civilization and savageness, of climate and colour, 
 will finally vanish. The day is approaching, when 
 the traveller, who takes his circuit over the globe, w^ill 
 find Christians in every clime, inhabiting every city, 
 and village, in his course. Churches will every where 
 gladden his eye; and Hymns of praise vibrate upon 
 his ear. From Zembla to Cape Horn, from Califor' 
 nia to Japan, the heralds of Salvation will repeat to 
 astonished audiences with an enchanting voice the 
 story, brought from heaven to the Shepherds of Beth- 
 lehem: " Unto you is born in the city oj David a Sa- 
 viour, who is Christ, the Lord.^^ Throughout this 
 vast extent, the happy race of Adam, united in a sin- 
 gle, solemn response, will exclaim, "//oto beautiful on 
 the mountains are the feet of them, that bring good 
 tidings; that publish peace; that bring good tidings 
 
of good; that publish salvation; that say unto Zion, 
 ''Thy God rcigneth'T 
 
 ^' Other sheep,'^ saith our Saviour "-'I have, which 
 are not of this fold.^^ The sheep, which Christ then 
 had, were Jews; inhabitants of a single country, and 
 living at that single period. Nay, they were a little 
 flock, gathered out of these. His other sheep, as he has 
 taught us in his word, are a great multitude, which no 
 man can number, of all nations, kindreds, and 
 tongues; born in every future period; gathered from 
 every distant land. "Them I must bring, and they 
 shall hear piy voice.^^ He who took such effectual 
 care of the little flock, which followed him during his 
 ministry, because it was their Father^s good pleas ' 
 lire to give them the kingdom, will be easily believed, 
 when he informs us, that he must, and will, bring into 
 his fold a multitude, by their number, and character, of 
 such immeasurable importance. For this very end 
 he hath ascended far above all heavens, that he might 
 fill all things. For this very end he is constituted 
 head over all thincrs unto his Church, This is the 
 third great division of his employment, as Mediator. 
 The first was to teach the will of God for our salvation; 
 the second, to expiate our sins; the tMrd is to gather 
 us into his heavenly kingdom. It is in this employ- 
 ment, and in reference to the great subject, which we 
 are contemplating, that he originally said, and that he 
 is now saying, ''Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the 
 ends of the earth: for lam God; and there is none else, 
 I have sworn by myself; the word has gone out of my 
 mouth in righteousness, and shall not return; that 
 unto me every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall 
 swear. Surely shall one say, "In Jehovah have 1 
 righteousness, and strength.^^ '''To him shall men 
 come; and all that are incensed against him^ shall be 
 
ashamed. In Jehovah shall all the seed of Israel be 
 justified, and shall glory. ^^ All the ends of the earth 
 will hereafter actually look unto him, and be saved. 
 Eveiy knee will bow to him. Every tongue will 
 swear; or, as it is rendered by the Septuagint, and St. 
 Paul, will confess; i. e. the reality, and glory, of his 
 character, and a final devotion to his service. ''In Je- 
 hovah have I r/ghteousness and strength,''^ will re- 
 sound wherever there is a heart to feel, and a tongue 
 to speak. All these blessings he has promised, and 
 promised with an oath. We need not ask whether 
 they will be accomplished. 
 
 To a mind, solemnly examining this subject, equal- 
 ly astonishing and delightful, powerfully addressing 
 itself to every expanded view of the intellect, and irre- 
 sistibly engrossing every exalted affection of the heart, 
 three questions present themselves, which involve 
 every thing, necessary for the direction of our plans, 
 purposes, and efforts. IFhat things are to be done, to 
 complete this glorious end? In 'what manner are they 
 to he done? and By whom are they to be done? Con- 
 cerning each of these particulars the following thoughts 
 have presented themselves to my own mind. 
 
 In answer to the question, IF hat things are to be 
 done for the completion of this end? I observe, 
 
 I. The Views of mankind concerning religious sub- 
 ]ects, are to be extensively changed. 
 
 It will not be questioned, that Truth is invariably 
 an object of the Divine complacency; and Err our, of 
 the Divine reprobation. As God rejoices in his 
 works; so it is impossible, that he should not be pleas- 
 ed with truth; which is only a declaration of the state 
 of those works, of his agency in accomplishing them, 
 and of his character, displayed in that agency. Errour^ 
 which falsifies all these things, must, with equal evi- 
 
10 
 
 dence, be odious to him. As little can it be question- 
 ed, that trutli is the instrument, through which we are 
 sandijied, and made free from the bondage of corrup- 
 tion. Beside the passages of Scripture, to whicli I 
 have directly alluded there are others, too numerous 
 to be mentioned at the present time, w-hich are equal- 
 ly express, and decisive. "The Gospel,^' says St. Fauly 
 Hs the power of GuD unto salvation, to evert/ one 
 that helitvetlV^ ''Of his own %oill begat he t«5," says 
 St. James, ''by the IVord of truth.^^ -'f'Fhowere born,"^^ 
 says St. Peter, ''not of corruptible seed, but of incor- 
 ruptible, by the fVord of God.^^ Hence, to know the 
 Iruth, to walk in the truth, to beoftht truth, to believe 
 in the truth, to receive the love of the truth, and to 
 abide in the truth, are phrases, synonymous w^ith the 
 eharacter of Christians, or good men; or, in other 
 words, with Evangelical virtue: while the contrary 
 phraseology is adopted every where in the Scriptures, 
 to denote, in the same definite manner, the opposite 
 character of sin. Nor can it be doubted, that truth, 
 with respect to every subject, is one thing only; like its 
 Author, the same yesterday, to-day, and forever. 
 
 But the views, w^hich mankind have hitherto en- 
 tertained concerning religious subjects, and those of 
 the highest importance, have been endlessly various 
 and discordant. Among the western heathen Philos- 
 ophers, Themistius declares, there were more than 
 two hundred sects, widely differing from each other 
 concerniiig these subjects. Varro was acquainted 
 with two hundred and eighty-eight different opinions, 
 adopted hy these persons concerning the supreme 
 Good; and with three hundred, concerning God. 
 Many volumes ha\ e been written, and many more 
 might be written without repetition, for the single 
 purpose of reciting, and explaining, the different ap* 
 
11 
 
 prehensions of this class of mankind concerning things, 
 of high moment in the religious system. Atnong the 
 various schemes, adopted by these men, w ilii respect 
 to each religious subject, it is mathematically certain, 
 that one only can be true. The rest> beyond debate, 
 are mere collections of'errours. These errours, also, 
 are in many instances radical: and those, who hold 
 them, cannot, so long as they hold them, be united to 
 the flock, or gathered into the fold, of the Redeemer. 
 Into this flock, into this fold, no man, who is a wor- 
 shipper of Jupiter, Venus, or Bacchus, can enter. 
 It is impossible for man to make his way to Heaven 
 by the oblation of human sacrifices; or by religiou 
 suicide. He, who prostrates himself, before a calf, o 
 a cat, or finds his god in the stock of a tree, cannot, 
 without an entire revolution in his character, be ac- 
 cepted by HuTi, who hath said, "Confounded be all 
 ihey that 'worship graven images. ^^ / 
 
 When Pilate proposed to the Jewish rulers and na- 
 tion to release Christ to them; they said, "Not this 
 man but Bar abb as.'' When he said again, '7r/zrt^to?7Z 
 ye then, that 1 shall do with him, whom ye call king of 
 the Jeit^sT' they exclaimed, "Crucify him; crucify 
 him:' When he washed his hands before the multitude, 
 and said, "I am innocent of the blood of this just per- 
 son;" they all answered, ''His blood be on us, and on our 
 children." To this day, the same spirit is retained by 
 their descendants. They are, still, more hostile to 
 Christ than to any other person, and to Christianity 
 than to any other religion. The very curse, which 
 their ancestors invoked, appears still to rest upon 
 them: and their hardness of heart is, according to 
 the prediction of their great prophet, a bye-word, and 
 an astonishment, to every nation, whither they have 
 bem driven, 
 
12 
 
 The glorious person, who was so furiously persecut ^ 
 cd by this unhappy nation, declared to his persecu- 
 tors, ''If ye believe not, that I am he; ye shall die in 
 your sins.''^ It cannot be doubted, that this declara- 
 tion extends its terrible efficacy, with equal certainty, 
 to every subsequent generation. The Jetcs, therefore, 
 can never be brought into the fold of Christ, until they 
 renounce their unbelief, and essentially change their 
 views concerning the Saviour of men, 
 
 The Koran, so far as it is not copied from the Jew- 
 ish and Christian Scriptures, is a mass of falsehoods; 
 and its author was by way of eminence the false 
 prophet; the most successful, and the most micchiev- 
 ous, impostor, who has ever attempted to pervert the 
 faith of mankind. Whenever men are turned unto 
 fables, they turn away their ears from the truth. 
 Even the sound doctrines, which their leader derived 
 from the Bible, and pronounced to be the word of 
 God, Mohammedans appear, from the beginning, to 
 have universally disregarded, and forgotten; and to 
 have confined their faith to the miserable inventions 
 of the deceiver. Christ, acknowledged by Moham- 
 med to be a prophet from God, they have entirely dis- 
 believed. Ills doctrines they have rejected from their 
 creed, and his precepts from their moral code. Their 
 faith, hope, and obedience, they have restricted to the 
 instructions, promises, and precepts, of the Koran. 
 This, indeed, is far from being strange. The iron and 
 the clay, although they may seem to be parts of the 
 same image, can never be united. The doctrines of 
 Mohammed are only hostile to those of Christ. He, 
 who receives the one class, will, therefore, certainly re- 
 ject the other. Besides, a judicial sentence has gone 
 but against the impostor, and his followers. ''If 
 any man,'' says St. John,''shall add unto these things:, 
 
13 
 
 God shall add unto him the plagues, that are urrilcn 
 in this book: and, ff any man si: all take away >'.n}}i 
 the words of the book ofthispropheci/, God sha^l inlie 
 away his part out of the book of life.^^ A change 
 therefore, a mighty change, must be made in the 
 views of the Mohammedan world, before its millions 
 can be numbered in tlie flock ol Christ. 
 
 Of the Antichrisiian doctrines it cannot be neces- 
 sary to make a very particular mention at the present 
 time. The idolatry of the Romish church is even 
 more reprehensible than that of the heathen; and is in- 
 fected with all the pollution, attributed in the Scriptures 
 to that of the Jews, The idols are, here, set up in the 
 temple of God; at the foot of the mercy seat; imme- 
 diately before the Urim and Thummim; and in the 
 very skirts of the Shechinah. The idolatry is practis- 
 ed beneath the cross; and openly insults the agonies of 
 the Savior. The endless train of external services also, 
 in which the whole of Religion is placed; the vain ob- 
 lations; the incense, that is an abomination; the new 
 moons, and sabbaths; the calling of assemblies, which 
 God cannot away with; the solemn meeting, which is 
 iniquity; the apjjointed feasts, which his soul hafcth, 
 and is weary to bear; the absolutions, and indulgen- 
 cies, in which the hierarchy exalts its throne above 
 the stars of God, and says, ''I will be like the Most 
 High;-' force upon us an irresistible conviction, that 
 these Augean impurities must all be washed away, be- 
 fore the Romish world can become clean in the sight 
 of the Creator. 
 
 Nor is it necessary to dwell, here, upon the vain 
 and deceitful philosophy of Infidels, which is after 
 the traditions of men, and the rudiments oj this world; 
 qnd not after Christ. The Atheist must believe, that 
 theic is a God; the Sceptic, that there is truth, of infi- 
 
14 
 
 nite importance to his future well-being; the Deist, that 
 there is a Revelation; the Materialist, that he has a 
 soul, accountable and immortal; the Animalist, that 
 there is good, superiour to sensual enjoyment, which 
 must be sought, and found, if he is ever to be happy 
 beyond the grave; and the Practical unbeliever, that 
 he must not only assent, but obey also, and obey with 
 the heart; before either can be blessed in this world, or 
 accepted in that which is to come. 
 
 Finally, the same change of views must be found in 
 Protestant nations. All the latitudinarian doctrines, 
 which the ingenuity and labour of man, which the pride 
 of Philosoph}^, the love of sin, the wish to perpetrate 
 it with quiet and safety, and the earnest desire to blunt 
 the stings of conscience here, and to escape from a ter- 
 rible retribution hereafter, have forced reason to in- 
 vent, or violently compelled the Scriptures to declare, 
 will all vanish away; and with the idols of the Heath- 
 en, he cast to the moles, and to the bats; before those, 
 w4io hold them, can be assembled in the fold of the 
 Redeemer. Christ must be acknowledged, not only 
 as a prophet, but as a Saviour; not only as our exam- 
 ple, but as our propitiation; not only as our forerun- 
 ner into the heavens, but as our intercessor, also, be- 
 fore the throne of God; not only as come in the flesh, 
 but as over all, God, blessed forever. With Paul, 
 men must determine to know nothing, as the way of 
 salvation, but Jesus Christ and him crucified; and 
 Ministers must feel the tremendous import of the 
 anathema, denounced against him, tvho jyreaches any 
 other Gospel, than that which Paul preached. Men 
 must cease to create meanings for the Scriptures; and 
 permit God to speak for himself. Universally, there 
 must be throughout the world one Lord acknowledg- 
 ed, one Mediator, and one faith. 
 
15 
 
 This change in the doctrines of men is indispensa- 
 ble to the gieat end, mentioned above, because tlie 
 character will ultimately accord with the doctrines, 
 which are actually believed, to such a degree, that no 
 man is better, and almost every one worse, than the 
 doctrines, which he embraces, declare; because truth, 
 only, conducts the heart to righteousness, while errour 
 leads it only to sin; and because truth is the sole instru- 
 ment of our sanctjfication. 
 
 2. A mighty change, also, must he ^wrought in 
 the Disposition of man. 
 
 To the accomplishment of the glorious purpose, an- 
 nounced in the ttxt, tiiat pride, which is the self grati- 
 fying consciousness of superiority, and that ambition, 
 which is the desire of it; b« th prime ingredients in the 
 Apostasy of our fust parents; that avarice, which 
 substitutes gold for God, and is thus a prolific root of 
 all kinds oi tvil; and that sensuality, which is the 
 great brutalizing principle of our nature; must lose 
 their s. -t in the heart, and cease to controul the life. 
 Equally necessary is it, that that torpid insensibility to 
 the sufferings of others, which winds its web around 
 the soul, and prevei its it from seeing, or feeling, any 
 thing, which is not destined to be its prey; and that 
 cruelty, which emulates the wolf and the tiger, and sa- 
 tiates itself only on suffering and slaughter; should re- 
 turn to those regions ot eternal sin, from which they 
 sprang. Nor is it less necessary, that the love of in- 
 justice, fraud, and falsehood, in which all these malig- 
 nant passions, these unclean spirits, find the means of 
 their efficacious operation, should, together with them, 
 go Gilt of the man; and no more find his heart empty, 
 S'wept, and garnished, for their reception. Nor is it 
 less indispensable, that impiety, and ingratitude to 
 God, and distrust of his wisdom, goodness, and truth. 
 
16 
 
 should cease to form any part of the human charah 
 ter, and no longer interrupt the communication be- 
 tvveen earth and heaven. 
 
 To these attributes will succeed, whenever mankind 
 shall be brought into the fold of Christ, that Love to 
 God, and to man, which is the fuljilling of the Iww^ 
 that Repentance towards God, and that faith in the 
 Redeemer, which are the primary obedience of the 
 Gospel. In the train of these great Evangelical attri- 
 butes will follow the meek and lowly virtues of Chris- 
 tianity, which so extensively occupied the instructions, 
 and so beautifully adorned the life, of the Saviour: 
 Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, 
 faithfulness, meekness, and temperance: all, glorious 
 fruits of the Spirit of Grace; natives of Heaven; and, 
 although for a time pilgrims in this melancholy world, 
 destined to return to heaven again. 
 
 3. The change xvill not be less in the Conduct 
 of men. 
 
 On this copious topic I must necessarily be brief. 
 To discuss it extensively would be to draw a picture 
 of the world, and to delineate the character of man in 
 all its endless varieties. Still, the nature of my design 
 demands, that a few particulars should be mentioned. 
 
 Permit me, then, to observe, that the private con- 
 duct of men will experience a mighty and wonderful 
 revolution. Profaneness will no longer pollute the 
 tongue; nor pierce with anguish the ear of piety. The 
 sabbath will be kept holy unto God; and beautifully 
 resemble that first Sabbath, when the Creator rested 
 from- his glorious liork, and all the sons of God 
 shouted for joy. No longer will the 'watjs of Zion 
 mourn, because few come to her solemn feasts. Stran- 
 gers innumerable will be made joyful in the house of 
 prayer; and that house will to endless multitudes be- 
 
i^ome, literally, the gale of Heaven, From the closet 
 also, and the family altar, i?ice?i,vt% and a pure ojf'ering, 
 will rise every moinini;' and every evening; and min- 
 gle in one vast exhalation, ascending to the throne ot* 
 God. 
 
 Truth, at the same time, will resume her empire 
 over the tongue, the pen, and the press. Slander will 
 wound no man's good name; Sophistry cheat no man 
 out of his salvation; Falsehood abuse no man's faith; 
 and Perjury destroy no man's property, reputation, 
 or life. 
 
 Honesty, also, will controul the dealings of men. 
 The cheat will be lost out of human society; the name 
 of fraud be forgotten; and a hard bargain be boasted 
 of no more. 
 
 In the same manner will unkindness vanish from 
 the habitations of mankind. The fire side will show 
 how good, and hoxv pleasant, it is for brethren to dwell 
 iogettier in unity: and the neighbourhood will be only 
 one great fireside. Parents will love their children. 
 Children will honour their parents. No profligate fath- 
 er, no graceless son, no ruined daughter, will spread 
 lamentation, mourning, and woe, over the domestic 
 circle, destined by God to be happy. No litigation, 
 no quarrel, will destroy the peace of neighbourhoods; 
 and no duel hurry the impenitent wretch to a fearful 
 retribution. 
 
 The stranger will every where find a home; and 
 the wanderer, an asylum. The heart of charity will 
 no longer be icy; nor her hand shut: nor will the cry 
 of suffering ever plead in vain. 
 
 Uncharitableness, also, between those, who profess 
 
 the religion of the Redeemer, will be found no more. 
 
 Little things will be esteemed little; and only great 
 
 things, great. Names will lose their fascination; rcali- 
 
 3 
 
IB 
 
 ties will take their place; and ail, who love Christ, will 
 love each other. In a word, men will be willing to 
 walk to heaven together, although the colour, or the 
 fashion, of their clothes should differ. 
 
 Nor will the Public conduct of mankind be less ex- 
 tensively inverted. The monarch will cease to op- 
 press, the statesman to plunder; and the politician to 
 sell his soul, to buy a place, or support a party. 
 Throughout the haunts of man there will not be an 
 electioneering trick, a cabal, or a demagogue. No 
 candidate for office will proclaim his merits to the 
 public; slander a rival; or solicit a suffrage. Wisdom 
 and worth will then engross every man's vote; and 
 take, as they ought, quiet possession of the hall of 
 Legislation, and the chair of Magistracy. 
 
 On the Bench will then be seen those, and those 
 only, who shake their hands from holding bribes; 
 stop their ears from hearing evil; and close their eyes 
 from seeing blood. At the bar of justice, prisoners 
 will cease to be found: the deserted jail will crumble 
 into dust: and the gibbet will be known only in the 
 tales of other times. 
 
 JFars, also, will be no more. The monarch, and 
 the Republic, will no longer summon their wretched 
 subjects to the field of battle; the great slaughterhouse 
 of mankind; for the purpose of adding to their domin- 
 ions tracts, which they do not want and cannot gov- 
 ern; of sating their cannibal revenge on the flesh of 
 man; of spangling a crown with another gem, or 
 twisting into a wreath of laurel another twig; of being 
 able to say, ''I have vanquished one more enemy;" 
 and of adding another cubit to the stature of pride. 
 The sound of the trumpet will no more startle the sleep 
 of the cradle; and the village will rise no more in flames 
 to heaven: the name of glory will be no longer writ- 
 ten in blood; nor the earth fattened with the corpses 
 
iiov whitened with the bones, of men. Tiic AngeU 
 Peace, will wave her olive branch over the nations 
 the tempest of six thousand years be hushed to silence; 
 and the creation sigh, and groan, and travail in pain^ 
 no more. 
 
 Then Religion will resume her proper station; and 
 no longer be subordinated to pleasure, gain, and glory; 
 to frantic scrambles about place and power, and the 
 aggrandizement of wretches, who steal into office by 
 flattery and falsehood, in order to riot on peculation. 
 From Heaven will she descend, clothed zciih a cloudy 
 and a rainbow upon her head: her face, as it tcere, 
 the sun; and her feet, pillars of fire. In her hand 
 she will hold a little book: and that book will be 
 opened to the eyes of all the nations of men. On its 
 pages they will read, in lines of light, ''Now is come sal- 
 vation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, 
 and the power of his Christ. God himself will dwell 
 among the great family of Adam, and be their God; 
 and they shall be his people. The joy, which is kin- 
 dled in heaven over repenting sinners, will be renewed, 
 not over one solitary convert, but over nations, born 
 in a day. The path to Heaven will become the great 
 highway of mankind; not wandered over by now and 
 then a lonely traveller, but crowded with hosts: 
 while the broad road to perdition will be untrodden 
 and desolate. The skies will pour down righteous- 
 iiess; and the earth open, and bring forth salvation. 
 Above, all will be sunshine, and smiles: below, all 
 will be a paradise. The Church will be clothed with 
 the sun; the moon will be under her feet; and upon 
 her head a crown of twelve stains will beam with im- 
 mortal splendour. 
 
 To the second question; "In what manner are 
 these things to be done?" I answer. They an^ to hr 
 
20 
 
 aecomplished, not by miracles, but b}' means. SL 
 Paul has in the most express and decisive terms giv- 
 en us the law of procedure, by which the kingdom ot 
 God is to be etitablished in every part of the habit- 
 able world. ''//oa%" says that Apostle, ''shall they 
 call on hhn, hi tchom they have not believed? and 
 hoto shall they believe in him, of 'whom they have not 
 heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? 
 So, then, faith cometh by hearing; and hemnng, by 
 the JVord o/*God," The Gospel, my brethren, is the 
 power of God unto salvation, to all them that believe. 
 Our course, therefore, is pointed out by the linger of 
 Heaven. To the numerous votaries of idolatry, and 
 supersHtion, are to be sent the Word of God, and the 
 Ministers, by whom it is preached. To these are to 
 be added, also, other books, less expensive and more 
 numerous, into which the Word of God is transfused; 
 together with Schoolmasters, and Catechists, to teach 
 the children, while Ministers are instructing the Par- 
 ents, in a word, the very means, by which men have 
 become Christians here, are to spread Christianity 
 through the world. 
 
 Permit me to add, that those, by whom these migh- 
 ty things are to be done, are themselves to exhibit the 
 spirit of the Gospel, as the great, controuling principle 
 of their conduct. Common sense has proverbially 
 declared, and all experience unilbrmly proved, that 
 precept without example is vain. To the intended 
 objects of this beneficence it would be worse than in 
 vain. From men, who do not practise what they 
 teach, instructions would be received, as the Mexicans 
 received them from the Spaniards, only with con- 
 tempt and indignation. 
 
 The process of this mighty work is, in this respect 
 also, exactly marked out by St. Paid, Salvation 
 
n 
 
 has come zinto the Gentiles, to provoke the Jens to 
 jealousy; or, as in the (Mveck. to excite them to emula- 
 tion. In other words, the Evzmgelical spirit ol the 
 Gentiles, as it will exist, and exhibit itself, at a period, 
 whieh is still future, will eonvince the Jeivs, that the 
 Gentiles are the chosen people of God; and au akcn 
 in them an emulous desire to obtain the same char- 
 acter, and the same blessings. This spirit, turning 
 with abhorrence from all the hatred, scorn, and perse- 
 cution, with which the Jexvs have been hunted 
 down by the nations of Christendom, will hcreafler 
 treat them kindly, justly, and truly. In their exile, it 
 will make their residence peaceful and pleasant; and, 
 in their attempts to reestablish themselves in their 
 own land, will furnish them every aid, which piety 
 can prompt, or benevolence provide. Under this hap- 
 py influence, enlightening, warming, and quickening, 
 like the Sun, the Jews will feel a new conviction of 
 the excellence of Christianity, and of the favor, 
 with which it is regarded by God; and new desires to 
 possess the honourable character of their benefactors. 
 The valley of death, the great receptacle of ^/?/' House 
 of Israel, will then begin to be reanimated with life 
 from Heaven. The bones, with which it is covered, 
 and whitened, will 'tcith a noise, and a shaking, come 
 together, bone to his bone. Sinetcs and Jlesh ncill 
 come up upon them: and the skin uill cover them 
 above. A voice will sound from Heaven; ''Thus 
 saith the Lord God, ''Come from the four ivinds, 
 Breath; and breathe upon these slain that they may 
 fee." " At this command, the breath of life will enter 
 these innumerable corpses; and they uHl live, and 
 stand upon their feet, an exceeding great army for 
 mnltiliide. 
 
The casting away of the Jews is the reconeiling 
 of the world: the receiving of them will 6e, to that 
 same world, life from the dead. When the voice of 
 joy and gladness shall again be heard in the streets 
 of Jerusalem; the voice of the bridegroom, and the 
 voice of the bride; the voice of them that shall say, 
 '- Praise the Lord of hosts, for the Lord is good, and 
 his mercy endureth for erer:" the world will look on, 
 and listen, with astonishment and rapture. This stu- 
 pendous event, this wonder of wonders, will awaken 
 in all nations a full conviction of the reality, and ex- 
 cellence, of Christianity; and force them to acknowl- 
 edge, that the truth of God, is as the great mountains, 
 steadfast and immovable. Life will every where 
 spring up from the dead: and the world, a vast ceme- 
 tery, in which souls are entombed, will be peopled with 
 beings, spiritual and immortal. 
 
 It is hardly necessary to observe, that the measures, 
 which will produce these mighty effects upon the 
 Jews, will have a similar efficacy, wherever they arc 
 employed. 
 
 The third question; '*By whom are these things to 
 be done?" admits but of one answer. They are to be 
 done by Protestant nations; and, extensively, by Us. 
 In other words, they are to be done by those, to 
 whom God has given the means, and the disposition. 
 
 On this subject there can be no debate. The time 
 for doubt is past. The work is begun. Missionaries 
 already in great numbers run to and fro: and knowl- 
 edge is, even now, greatly increased. The Gospel of 
 the kingdom is already preached in Greenland; in 
 Labrador; in Tartary; in Hindostan; in China; in 
 New Holland; in the Isles of the Pacific Ocean, and 
 the Carribbean Sea; in Southern America; and in the 
 African deserts. The voice of salvation^ the song of 
 
^3 
 
 praise io Jehovah, echoes already from the sides ot 
 Taurus, and trembles over the waves of the Gan<:;cs. 
 The Bible has travelled round the Globe. The Ks 
 quimaux now turns over the pages of the Gospel, 
 written in his own tongue: the wild inhabitant of the 
 Cuban has dropped the Koran; and reads with won- 
 der, hope, and joy, the tidings of the Saviour: and the 
 poor wanderer of Caffraria listens to the hymn, sung 
 from heaven to the Shepherds of Bethlehem. From 
 land to land, and from sea to sea, the Word of Jeho- 
 vah runs, and is glorified; and throughout its divine 
 career sheds, like its Author, light, and life, and happi- 
 nesS; on this benighted world. 
 
 In such an enterprise all, who engage in if, must 
 be united. Consider how vast the work is; over what 
 an extent of the earth it is to spread; what countless 
 millions it is to reach; what a multitude of hands must 
 be employed; what a multitude of hearts; what a mul- 
 titude of prayers; what extensive contributions arc 
 necessary to supply the expense; and how many her- 
 alds of salvation must proclaim the glad tidings oj 
 great joy. In such a work, should all Protestant 
 nations unite; and all the individuals, which those na- 
 tions contain; how imperfectly sufficient would their 
 labours appear, to the human eye, for the successful ac- 
 complishment of an enterprise so vast, a consumma- 
 tion so divine? 
 
 If Christians do not unite their hearts, and their 
 hands, they will effectuate nothing. Solitary eftbrts 
 will, here, be fruitless. Divided efforts will be equally 
 fruitless. Clashing efforts will destroy each other. 
 
 It is a shame for those, who wear the name of 
 Christians, not to unite with other Christians in such a 
 purpose, as this. It isnot the purpose of a sect, a party, 
 or a name. It is not a purpose of superstition, bigotry. 
 
cr enthusiasm. It is a purpose of God; ^n object ot 
 the highest complacency to Infinite wisdom. Shalt 
 not those, who have been made to drink into one Spirit, 
 show themselves, while professing to aim at such an 
 object^ to be of one accord, and one mind? Shall not 
 forms, and modes, here be forgotten; and, so far as the 
 attainment of this mighty end is concerned, all names 
 be lost in that of Christian, and all diversities amalga- 
 mated by the piety and benevolence of the Gospel? 
 Shall not those, who profess to be Christians, prove by 
 their harmony in this divine undertaking, that they 
 are, indeed, the flock of Christ; that they belong to 
 onefold; and that they are led by one Shepherd? 
 
 To enlist your hearts, and hands, my brethren, to 
 engage your prayers, and labours, in this honorable en- 
 terprise, let me set before you the following motives. 
 
 1. The worhy to 'which you are siiramonedj is the 
 Work of God. 
 
 My brethren, it is the chief work of God, which has 
 been announced to mankind. It is the end of this 
 earthly creation. It is the end of this earthly Provi- 
 dence. It is the glorious end of Redemption. It is 
 the subject of the first prophecy, ever delivered to 
 man. It was repeated in the second. It was reiterat- 
 ed in the long train, which followed, in a thousand 
 varieties of sublimity and rapture. The eye of the 
 seer, extending a divinely enlightened vision down the 
 vale of futurity, beheld, at an immense distance, this 
 glorious object, dimly ascending above the horizon. 
 Remote as it was; and obscurely as it was seen; it 
 warmed his mind with wonder and transport. The 
 prophet Isaiah, sublime beyond any other writer, ac- 
 customed to thoughts, fresh from heaven, and speak- 
 ing with a tongue, which emulates that of Angels, 
 rises, whenever this subject is presented to his view, 
 
25 
 
 ^bove himself; and lifts his wing ^ov a loftier flight to- 
 wards the angelic world. And shall not we, to whom 
 this dispensation is nigh, even at the doors, catch a 
 portion of his fire, and glow with a share of his ecsta- 
 sy? We profess to love God. Shall we not unite 
 w^ith all the heart, to further the divine puiposc, for 
 which he made the earth and the heavens? We pro- 
 fess, that we have believed in Christ. Shall we not 
 advance w^ith our utmost powers the exalted end of 
 his labours, and sufferings? Here, //e, for tvhom cpi^e 
 all things, and by whom are all things, is bringing 
 many sons unto glory. Here the Redeemer is multi- 
 plying the trophies of his cross, and the many crowns 
 of his final triumph. This is the great harvest of the 
 world. He is now about to send his amrels, to oath- 
 er his elect from the four tdnds. Who would not 
 unite himself with such labourers in such an employ- 
 ment? 
 
 2. The present is the proper time for this glori- 
 ous undertaking. 
 
 It is the proper time, as it is marked out by the 
 Spirit of prophecy. Almost all judicious commenta- 
 tors have agreed, that the Millennium, in the full and 
 perfect sense, will begin at a period, not far from the 
 year 2000. Christ, referring mediately at least, to this 
 great event, says, '' Behold I come as a thicj/^j. e. sud- 
 denly; and sooner than the world will expect. By this 
 declaration we are taught, that the duration of the 
 two last vials will be comparatively short; and that 
 the dawn of the succeeding day will be earlier than 
 mankind have been accustomed to believe. But, 
 should we fasten upon the year 2000, as the period in 
 which there shall be a complete accomplishment of 
 the predictions concerning this wonderful event, how 
 evidently is it necessary, that all the measures, bv 
 4 
 
^6 
 
 which it is to be accomplished, should be now formed, 
 and immediately begin to operate. Should we, should 
 all Protestant nations, awake out of our long sleep; 
 and shake ourselves as mighty men; should we bring 
 every heart, and hand, to this vast work; should we 
 pursue it with a firmness, which nothing can daunt, 
 and an ardour, which nothing can extinguish; how 
 uninterrupted, how rapid, how successful, must be 
 our progress, in order to find its consummation at 
 the date assigned? Think of the changes, which 
 have been mentioned in this discourse: how numer- 
 ous; how vast; how wonderful; how evidently indis- 
 pensable. Think what it must be for so many mil- 
 Jions of the human race to yield up their false systems 
 of Religion: systems, gross and rank with corruption; 
 hoary with the age of many centuries; bound to the 
 soul with the chains of bigotry; and armed for their 
 defence with the sword, the rack, and the faggot. 
 Think what it must be for pride to bow; for the iron 
 heart of avarice to dissolve; for ambition to feed no 
 more upon blood; and for sensuality to wallow no 
 longer in corruption. Think what it must be for pri- 
 vate and public crimes to be no more, for falsehood 
 and fraud, injustice and cruelty, to fly from the 
 thrones of princes, and the habitations of men. How 
 amazing must be the change, when the Romish cathe- 
 dral, the mosque, and the pagoda, shall not have one 
 stone left upon another, which shall not be thrown 
 down: when the Popish, Mohammedan, Hindoo, and 
 tJhinesian, worlds shall be created anew; and the 
 voice of angels exclaim concerning each, Jehovah 
 bless thee, habitation oj justice, mountain of holi- 
 ness: when a pestilential Simoom shall no longer waft 
 decay, and death over the moral wilds of Africa; 
 and the soul throughout that vast continent be illumin- 
 
27 
 
 ed by the beams of the Sun of Righteousness, and 
 quickened with life from Heaven: when Europe shall 
 no longer convert her wide domains into a stall of 
 slaughter; nor offer herself as a voluntary holocaust 
 upon the alrar of Moloch: and when the human 
 wolves, which have so long prowled around the 
 American deserts, shall assume the innocence, and 
 meekness, of the lamb. What a transmutation must 
 man have undergone, when there shall not be a tyrant 
 nor a slave, not a jail nor a gibbet, not a dram-shop 
 nor a brothel, not a lie nor a theft, from the j'ising of 
 the sun to the going down of the same. How aston- 
 ished must the earth be, how delighted the heavens, 
 to behold the Sabbath dawn with serenity and [)cace 
 upon Japan; and, moving slowly, and solemnly, 
 round tnis great world, shed its evening lustre upon 
 California; and see the earth one vast altar, and the 
 sky one magnificent temple, of Jehovah; perfumed 
 with incense, offered up by the immense congregation 
 of man? Who does not discern, that the centuries, 
 which will expire before the specified date, will be a 
 stinted period for the accomplishment of such a work 
 as this? Who will not rejoice, and take courage^ when 
 he hears it proclaimed from heaven concerning this 
 very work, ''I, Jehovah, tcji*// hasten it in its timeJ^ 
 
 The present is the proper time, also, because this 
 work is actually begun; and begun upon an astonish- 
 ing scale. How w^onderful is it, that so many per- 
 sons should have united in it; that such persons should 
 have united in it; that they should have acted with so 
 much Christian Catholicism; that so many prejudices, 
 which have hitherto been moles, and spots, on the di- 
 vine aspect of Religion, should have disappeared; that 
 contributions should have been so extensively, so liber- 
 ally, so ardently, made; that prayers should have 
 
28 
 
 mingled in one strain of supplication from a thousand 
 lands; that th.e Bible should have traversed the globe 
 with the flight of an Eagle; and that Missionaries 
 should already have proclaimed the tidings of eternal 
 life to the four corners of the earth? The streamlet has 
 already become a river: the river will soon expand 
 into an ocean. Should these efforts cease; should this 
 spirit expire: how many generations of men may 
 pass, before the same mighty advantages will return; 
 before even the attempt may be renewed? 
 
 There is a crisis in all human affairs. If seized, it 
 almost ensures success: if lost, every thing is lost with 
 it. Sow in season; and you will reap a rich harvest. 
 Sow out of season; and you will reap nothing. For 
 the great purpose before us the present time is that 
 crisis. Look at these men. God summoned them 
 together. Look at their efforts. God inspired them. 
 Look at their success. The blessing which created it, 
 descended from God. The voice of his Providence, 
 po-werful and full of Majesty, calls to us, " Go for- 
 'ward,^^ 
 
 Regard no difficulty, which has hindered, and no 
 disappointment, which has perplexed, this Evangelical 
 enterprise. Difficulties are merely trials of our faith, 
 and love. They exist, only to be surmounted. What 
 would have become of the children oi Israel, had they 
 stopped between Pi-hahiroth, and Baal-zephon? 
 
 3. The necessity of this work irresistibly demands 
 every practicable effort. 
 
 ''The whole world,^^ says SL John, speaking of his 
 own time, ''lleth in wickedness: lieth, (for such is the 
 indication of the original,) as a man slain lies welter- 
 ing in his blood. How extensively is this strong picture 
 a portrait of the world at the present moment? Cast 
 your eyes abroad oyer this great globe; and mark 
 
29 
 
 how vast a portion of its surface is, in the moral sense, 
 an immense field of death; a place of graves; a cata- 
 comb, where souls are buried, to wake no more. Look 
 narrowly. Not a limb mDves; not a bosom heaves. 
 Listen. Not a sound trembles on the ear. Life has 
 vanished: and solitude, and silence, brood over this re- 
 ceptacle of departed men. Who would not obey the 
 voice, which commands, ''Take ye a'xay the stone 
 jrom this cave;^^ while the Son of God stands before 
 the entrance, ready to call to each of its slumbering in- 
 habitants, ''Lazarus, come forthT^ 
 
 The gate, which in Asia, and Africa, was once 
 opened wide at the head of the way to eternal life, has 
 long since been barred; the path to Heaven forgotten; 
 and the communication with that happy world finally 
 cut off. Ignorance has benighted, sin bewildered, and 
 misery broken down, their wretched inhabitants. 
 Not an effort are they either disposed, or able, to make 
 for themselves. Shall we, when we behold them 
 wounded, and helpless, jpass by, with the frozen heart-, 
 ed priest and Levite, on the other side? Shall we not 
 infinitely rather, with the good Samaritan, pour oil 
 and wine into their wounds; and provide effectually 
 for their restoration to life and he.ilth? 
 
 Convey yourselves in thought, my brethren, to the 
 regions of Hindosian, Behold there 20,000 wretch- 
 ed females annually offered up, as burnt-offerings, on 
 the funeral piles of their deceased husbands; and thrice 
 20,000 orphans, in this manner bereaved, each of its 
 surviving parent, thrown upon the world without a 
 friend to protect, a hand to feed, or an eye to weep 
 over them. Advance to the wild and desolate do- 
 main of Juggernaut. See a region, more than one 
 hundred miles in diameter, white with the bones of 
 men, who have'perished in tlieir devotion to this orien 
 
80 
 
 tal Moloch, Mark the companies of dogs, jackals, 
 and vultures, fattening themselves, throughout this 
 wilderness of death, upon the flesh of men. See the 
 wretched victims crushed beneath the chariot wheels 
 of this gigantic idol, rolling over a path, paved with 
 corpses. Enter the caverns of Goa; where a living 
 Moloch sits on the tribunal of the Inquisition. Hear 
 the chains clank; the groans murmur; and the shrieks 
 burst the bosoms of the wretched prisoners, confin- 
 ed in this outer chamber of hell. Follow the bare- 
 footed victims, in their funeral habits, to the stakes, to 
 which they are bound, and the flames, by which they 
 are consumed to ashes. 
 
 To rescue man, poor, suffering, persecuted man, 
 from these tremendous evils is one bright and glorious 
 purpose of the work before you. The hearts, which 
 will not feel these objects; the hands, which will not 
 labor to sweep them from the earth; are the hearts and 
 hands of fiends. I will not insult my country with a 
 suggestion, that such can be found here. 
 
 But we are not to be confined in our researches to 
 Hindostan, to Asia, or to the Eastern Continent. We 
 are to range the World. Whithersoever we go, we 
 shall see ignorance, errour, and sin, sown every where; 
 iind every where producing misery, thirty, sixty, and 
 an hundred fold. This rank and baneful crop is ev- 
 ery where to be weeded out. Truth and righteous- 
 ness are every where to be sown, and to produce their 
 golden harvest of comfort, peace, and joy. 
 
 But, my brethren, all this is comparatively of small 
 moment. The great duty before us is to rescue men 
 from sin, and peidition. All numbers halt; all 
 comprehensionj beside that which is infinite, sits down 
 in despair; when the worth oi the soul, and the im- 
 port of its eternal happiness or eternal woe, are to be 
 
31 
 
 estimated. Ascend on the wing of thought to Ihe 
 world of life. Station yourselves before the throne of 
 infinite Greatness. Behold there an immortal mind, 
 no longer a rebel against its Maker, no longer an out- 
 cast from his kingdom; but a child, an heir of God; 
 a joint heir 'i£ith Jesus Christ to the heavenly inher- 
 itance: its sins washed away in the blood of the Lamb: 
 its conflicts ended: its victory achieved: its crown of 
 glory won: and its career of transport commenced, to 
 improve and brighten forever. Weigh this mind, and 
 the blessings treasured up for its enjoyment, with the 
 silver and the gold, the pains and the labours, which 
 you, and all others, may be supposed to contribute for 
 the accomplishment of its salvation: and you will pro- 
 nounce them a\\ nothing, less than nothing, and van- 
 itij. Weigh against such a mind, the world, which wc 
 inhabit. Weigh against it the universe, with all its 
 worlds, and suns, and systems: and you will pronouitce 
 them the drop of the bucket, and the small dust of 
 the balance. 
 
 But, my brethren, you are summoned, not to effec- 
 tuate the salvation of one such mind; but of thou- 
 ands, and millions. The whole earth waits, with ar- 
 dent hope for this manifestation of the sons of God; 
 this great jubilee of man; in which crimes and suffer- 
 ings shall cease; in which the bondage of corruption 
 shall terminate; and in which/^o/)^ the uttermost parts 
 of the earth are to be heard songs of exultation and 
 rapture; even ''Glory to the rightcousr The everlast- 
 ing Gosj^l is every where to be preached. Temples 
 are every where to rise. Churches are every where to 
 be gathered: and minds are every where to be born 
 of God. Nay the world is to become one tem- 
 ple, and the race of man to form one church, of the 
 Redeemer. All these millions are destined to endless 
 
S2 
 
 life; and will one day stretch their wings for the vi^ 
 gions of immortality. 
 
 The day, in which these blessings are to be ushered 
 in, has arrived. The day, in which the mighty work 
 will be seen in its full completion, is at hand. We 
 must labour; that those, who come after its, may enter 
 into our labours. We must sow: and in due time, 
 both we and our successors, if we sow bountifully, 
 shall reap a divine harvest. With every faithful en- 
 deavour of ours the Spirit of Grace will co-operate. 
 Js the earth bringeth forth her bud; and as the gar- 
 den causeth the things, that are sown in it, to spring 
 forth; so the Lord God will speedily cause righteous- 
 ness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. 
 Into the divine kingdom sanctified minds will fly as 
 a cloud, and as doxxs to their windows. 
 
 Forget, then, the little period, which intervenes be- 
 tween us, and this glorious day. Convey yourselves 
 on the wings of anticipation to the dawn of this great 
 SabbaCh of time. Survey what the prophet beheld 
 with exultation, at the distance of three thousand 
 years. The way to eternal life is no longer narrow, 
 and solitary. It has become a galaxy; ascending from 
 the East, and from the West, and centering in mid- 
 heaven. Up the broad and luminous path stars in 
 endless multitudes rise from both skirts of the horizon: 
 stars, differing from each other in glory; but all des- 
 tined to shine with pure and eternal splendour. 
 
 But your interest in these things, my brethren, is not 
 to terminate even here. You are not to rejoice merely 
 in beholding the renovation, virtue, and happiness, of 
 a world. You are not merely to follow in thought a 
 single sanctified spirit, or millions of such spirits, to the 
 realms of glory. The day is on the wing in whicl^ 
 we, and they, shall hear the voice of the Archangel, 
 
3S 
 
 md the trump of God, summoning all, u'ho are hi 
 iJieir graves to come forth. WlKit thoughts will it 
 then awake in the soul; with what emotions will the 
 bosom heave; when the eye looks round upon the di- 
 vine assembly of perfect minds, re united to bodies, 
 raised in incorruption, power, and glory; to be con- 
 scious, that eyen one immortal being has been rescued 
 from the second death, and placed in the possession of 
 endless life. How will the heart labour; how will the 
 soul expand with vast conceptions; when it beholds, 
 not one, but hundreds, thousands, millions, led by tlie 
 efforts of ourselves, and our contempoiaries, fiom the 
 east and the west, from the nortli and the south, to the 
 right hand of the Judge; and acknowledged before the 
 universe as his friends and followers. And O, my 
 brethren, with what ecstasy shall we accompany 
 them to Heaven; seat ourselves by their side; learn 
 from them the story of their salvation; and hear, pro- 
 nounced by their own lips with a gratitude, wliich will 
 increase forever, ''The glory of this delightful world, 
 the blessings of this immortal life, we owe first to God, 
 and next to you?" Unto H'/m, that loved us. and 
 washed us from our sins in his own blood; and hath 
 made us kings, and jmiests, unto God, even his Father: 
 to him be glory, and dominion, forever and ever! 
 Amen. 
 
34 
 
 The following gentlemen now compose the American Board 
 of Commissioners for Foreign Missions. The names of mem- 
 bers residing in the same state, are arranged according to 
 seniority. 
 
 IN fHE DJStRIcr OF AIAlNEy 
 GEJf. HENRY SEWALL, 
 lUv. JESSE APPLETON, D. D. President of Bowdoin College. 
 
 JN NEIV HAMPSHIRE^ 
 Hex. JOPIN LANGDON, Esa. LL. D. 
 Rev. SETH PAYSON, D. D. 
 
 IN VERMONf, 
 Rev. henry DAVIS, D. D. President of MiddleLui-y College. 
 
 IN MASSACHUSEffS PROPER^ 
 Rev. JOSEPH LYMAN, D. D. 
 Rev. SAMUEL SPRING, D. D. 
 His Ho, OR WILLIAM PHILLIPS, Esa. 
 WILLIAM BARTLET, Esa. 
 Hoxv. JOHN HOOKER, Esa. 
 Rev. JEDIDIAH MORSE, D. D. 
 Rev. SAMUEL WORCESTER, D. D. 
 JEREMIAH EVARTS, Esa. 
 
 IN RHODE ISLAND, 
 His ExcELLEifCY WILLIAM JONES, Esa. 
 
 IN CONNECflCU'r, 
 
 Ge!^. JEDIDIAH HUNTINGTON, 
 
 Hojf. JOHN TREAD WELL, Esa. LL. D. 
 
 Rev. timothy DWIGHT, D.D. LL.D. President of Yale College; 
 
 Rev. CALVIN CHAPIN, 
 
 IN NEW rORKy 
 
 Ho>-. JOHN JAY, Esa. LL. D. 
 
 Ho.v. EGBERT BENSON, Esa. LL. D. 
 
 Rev. ALEXANDER PROUDFIT, D.D. 
 
 Rev. ELIPHALET NOTT, D.D. President of Union CoUege. 
 
 IN NEW JERSETy 
 Hox. ELIAS BOUDINOT, Esa. LL. D. 
 
 Rev. ASHBEL GREEN, D.D. President of Princeton College. 
 Rev. SAMUEL MILLER, D.D. Professor in the Theological Semin- 
 ary of the Presbyterian Church. 
 Rev. JAMES RICHARDS. 
 
 IN PENNSTLVANIAy 
 ROBERT RALSTON, Esa. 
 
 The next annual meeting of the Board is to be held in New- 
 Haven, at the Philosophical Chamber in Yale College, on 
 Thursday, the 15th day of September, 1814. The Rev. Samu- 
 el Miller, D.D. is appointed to preach the annual sermon, 
 and the Rev. James Richakds is appointed his substitute. 
 
NEW BOOKSTORE, 
 
 JVO. 50, CORJ^'HILL, BOSTOX. 
 
 Samuel T. Armstrong, informs his friends and the publiq, 
 that he has opened a valuable assortment of Books at the above 
 place, which -will be sold on liberal terms wholesale or retail. 
 Every favor gratefully received. Printing in all its variety 
 executed at short notice. October 26, 1813. 
 

 Date 
 
 Due 
 
 i 
 
 mssrr 
 
 L'fh 
 
 
 
 (Uu^yr 
 
 LiXiJcLL 
 
 
 1 
 
 fttm^i 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 «"-r ^-.M«Mt> 
 
 
 
 
 ff"*-*-^^ 
 
 
 
 
 ^^^^^gmamk. 
 
 
 
 
 inniiii'MiiMiiifti'Mri 
 
 % 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 n 
 
 
 
 /ti 
 
 
 
 
 
 m 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ll)