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S U.M./M.A R Y VIEW
OF THE
MILLENNIAL CHURCH,
OR.
UNITED SOCIETY OF BELIEVERs.
(COMMONLY CALLED SHAKERS.)
COMPRISING
THE RISE, PROGRESS AND PRACTICAL ORDER
OF THE SOCIETY;
TOGETHER PI/ITH
THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF THEIR FAITH
AND TESTIMONY.
PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE MINISTRY,
IN UN HON WITH 'TIRE CHURCH,
In the days of these kings shall the God of Heaven set up a kingdom.
which shall never be destroyed. DANIEL.
ALBANY:
prinTEd By PACKARD & VAN BENTHUYSEN.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
PREF ACE,
--sºº,
The increasing attention which, within a few years, has been
directed to the principles and practice of the people called Shakers,
by travellers and writers of various classes and descriptions, has
occasioned much enquiry among almost all classes of people.
Publications have been issued from the press in almost every form.
Historians of the various denominations of religion, writers of
travels, compilers of Geographies and Gazetteers, the editors of
periodical essays, and the publishers of common newspapers, have
all in their turns, thought proper to notice, in some way or other,
the people so much “wondered at.” But in consequence of the
various and contradictory accounts of many of these writers, and
the false and erroneous statements concerning the principles of
the people, which are so manifest in the generality of those accounts,
the Society has been earnestly solicited by many candid and in-
telligent persons to publish a plain and correct statement of facts
relative to the history of the Society, in a concise form, containing
its origin, progress and present state; with a fair view of the reli-
gious faith and practice of the Society, and the principles on which
their peculiar tenets are founded.
In compliance with these repeated calls, and with a view to af.
ford the candid and unprejudiced of all classes a fair opportunity
of examining for themselves, and obtaining a correct knowledge
of the truth from the proper source, the following pages have been
written, and are now offered to the public in a form which may
easily be obtained and readily perused by every one who desires it.
We have not written merely with a view to multiply books, nor
to supersede the necessity of those already published by the Soci-
ety, and which have proved highly useful, and done much towards
affecting the important object for which they were intended; es-
pecially that entitled, “The Testimony of Christ's Second Ap-
pearing,” which has had an extensive circulation.” And if its
irresistible truth, and the plainness of its doctrines have excited
a few sneering comments, and thus disclosed the rancor of one or
two ecclesiastical dignitaries; yet no one has ever been able to
* We refer the reader to that book, and to Dunlavy’s Manifesto, for further information.
iy r - PREFACE.
overthrow the principles contained in it; nor has any person
possessing the spirit of candor and discernment ever attempted it.
Nor have we written with a view to excite controversy, nor pro-
voke the resentment of any class of people whatever. Our only
object is to satisfy candid enquirers, and to give information con-
cerning our faith, principles and practice, in plain and intelligible
language, to all who are willing to receive it. And as for those
who care for none of these things, and have no disposition to hear
our testimony, we are quite willing they should enjoy their own
opinions, and let ours alone: we do not wish to disturb them.
We live in a country which boasts highly of the freedom of its
religious institutions; and religion is, or ought to be an object of
free choice with every one.
We are not ignorant that much has been written and published,
from time to time, from a spirit of enmity and detraction, by those
who would gladly renew against us, those scenes of religious intol-
erance which formerly deluged the earth in blood, were it in their
power. However doubtful this may appear to those who know
not the enmity of such characters, experience has taught us that
the spirit of persecution is the same now that it was then, and
would display itself in the same manner, were it under no re-
straint. The spirit of persecution is not governed by truth and
right reason; nor is the tongue of calumny guided by candor and
impartiality. And whatever pretences any of our calumniators
may make to either, their writings sufficiently prove that they
were under the government of their malignant passions.
It has always been the fate of truth to be stigmatized and slan-
dered by falsehood. Whenever the spirit of truth has, in any age,
been revealed to any people, the father of lies has never failed to
dispense among his children, a sufficient portion of the spirit of
falsehood to combat the spirit of truth, and scandalize all who
maintain it. The great Captain of our salvation was subjected to
the scorn and derision of the children of the wicked one, and en-
dured the reproaches of the emissaries of Satan. He was charged
with gluttony and drunkenness, and reproached with associating .
with publicans and sinners. He was also accused of casting out
devils by Beelzebub the prince of devils; and he repeatedly assur-
PºS. FACE, Wy
ed his followers that they would suffer the same indignities and
reproaches. “If they have called the master of the house Beelze-
“bub, how much more them of his honsehold? If they have per-
“secuted me, they will also persecute you. If ye were of the
“world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of
“ the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the
“world hateth you.”
It is well known that the primitive christians were greatly stan.
dered and stigmatized by their heathen neighbors, and every false
report that scandal could bestow or malice dictate, was put in cir-
culation, and urged upon the public as positive facts that could,
easily be proved by eye and ear witnesses in abundance. And
when we take into consideration the remarkable similarity that
appears between the reports against the primitive christians, and
those that have been circulated against the believers in the present
testimony since it was first made known in this country, especially
in the earlier period of their faith, it seems as though the most
obstinate unbelievers could not but see and acknowledge the strik-
ing resemblance, and conclude that these reports must all have
originated from the same source, and that they are directed against
the same sort of people.
Celsus the epicurean, upon what he called good authority, charg-
ed Jesus Christ with being the offspring of adultery; and asserted,
“That the mother of Jesus being great with child, was put
away by the carpenter who had espoused her, he having convicted
her of adultery with a soldier named Pantheras.” Celsus further
adds, “that having been turned out of doors by her husband, she
wandered about in a shameful manner, till she brought forth Jesus
in an obscure place.”f Such are the charges of this ancient hea-
then calumniator against the Virgin Mary. And influenced by
the same malignant spirit, some modern Celsuses, upon what they
call good authority, have charged Ann Lee with lewdness and
intoxication. But those who best knew the Virgin Mary, knew
that the story of that ancient calumniator was false; and those
who best knew Ann Lee, know that the stories of these modern
calumniators are false. r
* Matt, x. 25, and John xv. 19, 20, ## t See Lardner's Works, vol. viii. p. 19,
wi PREFACE,
The apostles and primitive christians were charged with being
drunk with new wine; because under the operation of the Holy
Ghost, they worshipped God in a manner so different from that
practiced by the Scribes and Pharisees, and the rest of the unbe.
lieving Jews. The unbelievers and enemies of the cross could theis
say they saw it with their own eyes, and could therefore report it
as an undeniable fact. And doubtless many unbelievers who heard
and believed this report, thought it as presumptious in Peter and
the rest of the apostles to pretend to deny it, as to deny that their
accusers had eyes, seeing their conduct was so visible to all around
them. Peter however did deny it with boldness and confidence;
but we do not find that their enemies were willing to believe him :
for their enmity and opposition still continued. Yet this new wine,
as they called it, had a powerful effect in producing faith in the
multitude, and in turning many souls from the error of their ways:
But the apostles suffered much persecution in consequence of it.
The charge of drunkenness alleged against Ann Lee and her
companions, had no more foundation in truth, than the same charges
alleged against the apostles and primitive christians at the day of
Pentecost. The truth is, they were under the operation of the same
Spirit; and it was attended with the same effects on those who
received it, and excited the same opposition in their enemies, and
gave rise to the same false accusations. And tho this and other
charges of immoral conduct have originated entirely from the blind-
ness and opposition of their accusers, who viewed every thing
which was said and dome among the believers, through the eyes of
enmity, prejudice and unbelief; yet these calumnies are still main-
tained by the enemies of the cross, and eye witnesses are not want-
ing, who can attest to these things with as much assurance as the
unbelieving Jews could testify that the apostles were drunk at the
day of Pentecost, because they saw it with their own eyes.
“But every tree is known by its fruit.” It would indeed be a
most extraordinary phenomenon in nature for grapes to spring
from thorns, or figs from thistles. Nor would it be less extraordi-
nary for a religion productive of the best moral principles and
practice, to spring from drunkenness and debauchery; or in other
words, from leaders and founders who were so notorious for base-
tº REFACE. vii
mess and immorality as the first leaders of the United Society have
been represented. It is truly surprising that the propagators of
such reports cannot themselves see the inconsistency, and no
longer expose themselves to ridicule for believing and propagating
reports which, to all men of sense, must appear incredible. -
It is much to be regretted that any writers who are not person-
ally acquainted with the United Society, should have recourse to
the malignant slanders of the basest characters for information; or
that they should even suppose that they could obtain any correct
information from such a source. Tho these slanders have, in a
variety of instances, proceeded from persons who have occasionally
visited the Society, and from their natural opposition to a life of
purity, joined with an inherent propensity to slander, have after-
wards taken occasion to indulge that propensity for their own grati-
fication; yet they have mostly originated from those who have
apostatized from the Society, or were excluded from it for their
own immoral conduct.
And it is well known that apostates from any religious society
whatever, will naturally incline to seek the friendship of the world,
and endeavor to justify themselves to the public for their apostacy;
and the only reasonable prospect of success many such can have,
depends on successfully slandering the society from which they
have apostatized. This is a matter of such frequent occurrence in
all societies, that it cannot reasonably be disputed. Indeed it is the
natural consequence of their apostacy: for they very well know
that if they should speak or write favorably of the society from
which they have apostatized, every body would be ready to re-
proach them for their folly. And tho some who have left this So-
ciety, have been candid enough to tell the truth, and acknowledge
their folly; yet the greater part have found it more to their present
interest to charge the fault of their apostacy upon the Society, than
to take it to themselves, even if they were obliged to admit that
the Society possessed some good qualities.
But there is no man nor woman, who is well acquainted with
the Society and its principles, and who has spoken and writted
from a principle of candor and conscious integrity of mind, that has,
Hilder the influence of this principle, ever written or spoken any
viii - PREFACE. -
thing whatever, against the established principles and practices of
the Society. This we can assert with confidence; because we
know that such a character will not do it. Doubtless much has
been spoken and written from false information, and erroneous
impressions, by those who never had any personal acquaintance
with the Society, which is, in many respects, quite unfavorable,
and for which the writers may find some apology in their want of
correct information, without being chargeable with any design to
calumniate the Society. But those who write for the public, ought
to consider their responsibility to the public for the truth of what
they publish, and not run the risk of scattering false information
through the world, and imposing upon public credulity by neglect-
ing a careful examination into the truth of what they are about to
publish.
As to the misconduct of individual members of the Society, ſt
has generally, proceeded from those who have afterwards left the
Society; and in several well known instances, such individuals
have accused the Society of crimes which they themselves had
committed, and for which they were excluded from the Society.
Nor need it appear strange that those who have been excluded
from the Society by their own unfaithfulness, should prove to be
the calumniators of the Society which they have left, especially
when they very well know that there are so many in the world
who are always more ready to believe evil reports, than to seek
after the truth. But truth is truth, and the truth will stand, when
ałł falsehood and deception will entirely be done away. The
world will yet know the real ſoundation of all those false charges
and base calumnies, and be fully convinced of the basemess of those
characters who have so maliciously fabricated and propagated them.
Tho we feel unwilling to hold up names to public censure; yet
justice and truth require that we should bear testimony against in-
justice and deception. Of all classes of writers we consider the
malignant slanderer as the most vile and contemptible, and the
least deserving of attention. And tho numbers of that class have
endeavored to distinguish themselves by their writings against the
Society; yet we have never met with any that we considered as
deserving a serious reply on our part; and if we should ever at-
PREFACE. IX
's
tempt a direct reply to any such writer, it must be merely for the
sake of those who are in danger of being deceived and imposed
upon by them, and for no other cause. Tho we have no wish to
injure them in person or character; yet as they have exposed
themselves by their malignant calumnies, it becomes necessary
for us to caution the public against imposition from such characters.
The great professions of truth and impartiality, and the impos-
ing appearance of honesty and candour in the writings of some of
these calumniators, have doubtless deceived many. So a counter-
feiter may impose his trash upon the public by imitating genuine
bank bills, and may deceive thousands; yet all the arts of decep-
tion can never make a bad bill good, nor transform falsehood into
truth; the deception will be discovered and the deceiver will be
detected in the end. Nothing but the plain and simple truth will
pass the final trial; and every man’s work will eventually prove
what he is. -
Among all the accounts of the United Society that have ever yet
appeared before the public, from under the hands of those who
have apostatized from the Society, whatever the writer’s preten-
sions might be, we have never yet seen one that has met our ap-
probation, or that we could justly consider as entitled to the char-
acter of truth, honesty or impartiality. And all who have drawn
their accounts from such writers, have only deceived themselves
and the public in so doing. Tho we are far from feeling any dis-
position to reply to such writers; yet we think we may be fully
-justified in stating as a general remark, that those who have writ-
ten against the Society, or in any way endeavored to calumniate it,
after having apostatized from it, have never yet raised their repu-
tation for honesty and integrity, nor mended their moral charac-
ters by their works.
Notwithstanding all the pretended discoveries of error and de-
łusion, and all the charges of injustice and deception, by those
who have left the Society, not a solitary instance has ever yet ap-
peared, where any one, after having renounced the faith of the
Society, and rejected the testimony maintained by the people, has
ever turned to a more moral course of life. If, as they pretend,
they found the principles of tººk bad, or their lives immoral,
X PREFACE.
they have turned to worse principles, and more immoral lives.
Nor do we believe that there can be found throughout the United
States, a single instance where any such person has pursued a bet-
ter course of life, or obtained a better reputation for religion, hon-
esty, morality or integrity than he had before. But instances
enough may be found of increasing degeneracy and depravity in
those who have apostatized.
There are many among mankind who are willing to acknow-
!edge the moral principles and practice of the Society, in its pres-
Pnt state, to be very good, and readily allow the people much cre-
dit for their honesty and sobriety, their exemplary lives and mo-
rals, their uprightness and punctuality in all their dealings, their
kindness and charity to the poor, their industry, temperance and
good economy in the management of all their concerns, and the
like; but still insist that their principles and practice are greatly
changed from what they were formerly; that they have renounced
many of the wild extravagances in principle and practice, which
were formerly taught by Ann Lee and the first leaders of the So-
riety; and that, of course, the people have greatly reformed, both
in principle and practice. - . .
With regard to a change of principles, we can assure our read-
ors that there was not a single principle of faith ever advanced by
Mother Ann and the first Elders, of which we have any know-
jedge, but is still maintained by the Society, without any variation
whatever. As all the principles then advanced have been fully
and abundantly proved by long experience, and the increasing light
and understanding in the Society, to be principles of truth; so the
practice of the Society has ever been conformable to them. Among
many other ridiculous charges of the like nature, it has often been
asserted and reiterated, “that Ann Lee declared that she should
never die; and that the principle was taught and believed by the
people in her day, that after having arrived to a certain degree of
purity and holiness, they would never die; and that after the death
of Ann Lee, the principle was discarded as unsound and untena-
ble.” Those who are so ready to charge inconsistency upon the
Society, have harped much upon this story, while in fact, the in-
consistency lies altogether in their own ignorance of the truth.
PREFACE. xi
Now let us for a moment, examine this wonderful charge, and
see whether those wise theologists who have made their sneering
comments upon it, cannot with equal propriety, bring the same
charge against Jesus Christ. “If a man keep my saying, he
shall never see death.” And again: “Whosoever liveth and be-
lieveth in me, shall never die.” No reasonable person will pre-
tend that Jesus alluded to the death of the natural body; if he did,
his words have certainly failed. Yet when the Jews heard this
testimony, they replied, “Now we know thou hast a devil.”—
Mother Ann testified that the gospel of Christ was the power of
eternal life, and that those who kept it would never fall under the
power of death;f and we still testify the same. So far from
asserting that her natural body would never die, she invariably
maintained the contrary; and no different doctrine has ever been
maintained in the Society, from its first rise to the present day.—
But as the unbelieving Jews charged Jesus Christ with falsehood,
and with having a devil, because he bore the testimony above quot-
ed; so the unbelievers in this day have charged Ann Lee with
falsehood, and her followers with inconsistency.
As to the charge of changing our practice, we readily acknow-
ledge that the United Society does not follow the example of any
other religious denomination, neither in principle nor practice: for
we have long been convinced that a uniform course of religious
profession, joined to a lifeless stupidity in divine things, cannot be
well-pleasing in the sight of God, especially when blended with an
ardent pursuit of worldly honor and glory. And we have never
seen any profit in practicing the same dull round of religious forms
and ceremonies, from year to year, and from age to age, while the
only active principle of life is swallowed up in the things of time.
Nor do we see any consistency in making religious profession a
mere name, by constantly pursuing a practice in conformity with
that of those who make no religious profession at all.
But what is the amount of this charge of change in our prac-
tice? Shall a farmer who begins in the spring to plow his ground
and prepare it for a future crop, be charged with instability and
change, because he does not keep on plowing through the whole
season, instead of sowing his seed, or cultivating his growing crops.
* John viii. 51 and xi. 25. † See Rev. xx, 6.
xii PREFACE.
according to the requirements of the season P Can he obtain a
crop by continual plowing, without sowing or planting * Does he
not act more consistently in keeping pace with the course of the
season, and varying his work according to the season P By pur-
suing this course, he may reasonably expect to gather a crop in its
season; but if he should continue to plow all the year round, and
never plant nor sow, nor tend his crops while in the progress of
vegetation, he could never expect any harvest, nor would he de-
serve any. -
The first leaders of the Society may be compared to people go-
ing into a new country, and settling in the wilderness, where the
first object is to cut and clear the land, and burn the rubbish, be-
fore the ground can be suitably prepared for cultivation. In this
operation, the axe and the fire are used with no sparing hand; and
the falling of trees and the crackling of burning brush and useless
rubbish occasion much noise and bustle, and great confusion, es-
pecially among the wild beasts and noxious vermin that infest the
land. These are now obliged to ſlee for their lives, into some
other part of the wilderness, or the fire will consume them. But
when the land is sufficiently cleared, and the rubbish consumed,
and the wild vermin have all retreated, and the careful husband-
man has securely fenced his field, he can then go on to prepare
and cultivate his ground in peace; and if he is faithful to manage
his business as he ought, he will continue to improve his premises,
from year to year; so that in a few years, this once dreary wilder-
ness will be seen to “blossom as the rose.” Such has been the
progress of the United Society, and such is the nature of the chan-
ges which it has passed through.
Doubtless many of the sentiments contained in the following
pages, will be treated with contempt and ridicule by those profes-
sors of the christian name who are still bound in the chains of anti-
christian bigotry and superstition. Nor need it be a matter of
surprize to any one if they should meet with opposition from such
characters: for who can expect people of this description to throw
off their chains, and divest themselves of prejudice, without a se-
verer struggle than they are generally willing to make. Such peo-
ple usually feel too much of “the pride of life,” to acknowledge
truths which must necessarily require a sacrifice of that pride.—
| PREFACE, XII:
The Scribes and Pharisees of old had too much of this sort of
pride, and too lofty an idea of that Messiah whom their ancient
prophets described in such glowing figures, to be willing to believe
that Jesus of Nazareth was that exalted personage. His character
and birth, as well as the low character and callings of his disciples,
appeared too mean and contemptible, and their number too small,
and their connexions too well known to admit even a moment’s
belief, in their minds, that he was the promised MEssIAH.
And why should we expect the Scribes and Pharisees of the
present day to act more out of character than those of old did P
They are no more willing to submit to the cross, and have their
pride stained, than their predecessors were. They view a small
Society of illiterate and contemptible Shakers, (as they sometimes
call them) in the same light that their ancestors did the ancient
disciples and primitive christians; and like them, they have the
unbelieving world on their side. And will they forego the friend-
ship of the world, and sacrifice their spiritual pride, and the honors
of their dignified station, with all they hold dear on earth, and
yield their assent to a testimony so much beneath the calculations
of all their learned theology, and all their towering ideas of the
millennium ? It is too much to expect of them.
The small number of the Society, in comparison with those of
other denominations, may be considered by some, as an argument
against the truth of the testimony, that this is the second appearing
of Christ; and it may also produce a belief in the minds of some,
that the Society can never become numerous, especially as a life of
continency is so opposite to the natural propensities of human na-
ture, that few will be found willing to embrace it. These reasons
will doubtless appear plausible and natural to people in a natural
state; but God is able to accomplish his own work, not only by
small means and instruments, but by small beginnings, as he al-
ways has done, in all ages of the world. The little stone spoken
of in Daniel, which was cut out of the mountain without hands,
and which smote the great image, “ became a great mountain and
filled the whole earth.” This significant figure shows in a very
striking light, what the hand of God can effect by small means,
and what the real work of God, tho small in its commencement,
xiv IPREFACE,
will finally amount to. The smallness of the work is no discour-
agement to us, nor any disparagement to its first founders. It is
indeed a work of too much purity to find a rapid increase among
the inhabitants of a sinful world, who are so far lost and sunk in
their carnal corruptions.
We shall make no apologies for what we have written, as to the
matter or manner. It has been our aim to state the plain truth,
without covering or disguise, according to the best of our under-
standing and abilities; and also to comprise the different subjects
in as small a compass as could conveniently be done, and convey
a clear understanding to the reader. To comprise much matter in
a little space, and give a full and comprehensive view of many
important subjects in a small compass, is not a small task. How
far we have effected the object, remains to be seen and judged of
by the candid and judicious reader. Plainness, clearness and sim-
plicity have been objects at which we have aimed in our manner
and style of writing; and we trust the matter will be found intelli-
gible to every class of readers.
With respect to the subjects upon which we have written, our
object has been to give a summary view of the rise, progress and
present state of the Society, together with a plain illustration of its
faith and principles: a few other subjects might have been added
with propriety; but we have aimed at brevity, and we think we
have noticed those of the most importance, and such as may give
satisfaction to candid inquirers after truth. But as the light of
Divine truth is progressive in the Church, and as the preparatory
work of salvation and redemption increases on earth; so the so-
lemn and important truths of the gospel will continue, from time
to time, to be more clearly manifested to mankind. As to the real
substance of the gospel of salvation, it was fully revealed to the
first witnesses of Christ's second appearing; but as the work of
salvation advances, the light becomes more clear, and truth appears
more plain; and while those who receive and obey it find increas-
ing peace and justification; so those who see and reject it, wiłł
find their condemnation to increase with the increasing light of
truth. CALVIN GREEN,
SETH Y, WELLS.
New-Lebanon, May 12, 1823. -
CONTENTS.
•=ºº-ºº-
PART I.
Rise and progress of the United Society, including some account
of the first Witnesses.
CHAP. - PAGE.
I. Introductory Remarks, comprising a short sketch of the state
of Religion, and the operations of the Spirit of God which
led to the rise of the Society, and the commencement of the
present testimony of the Gospel of Christ’s Second Appearing, 1
II. Sketches of the life of Mother Ann Lee : her birth and pa-
rentage: her connexion with the society of James and Jane
Wardly : her religious exercises and sufferings: her reve-
lation and testimony: persecutions in England; voyage to
America, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
lH. Circumstances connected with the settlement of Mother Ann
and her little society in America; Religious revival at
New-Lebanon : Commencement and progress of the testi-
mony, followed by persecution: Decease of Mother Ann, &c. 14
IV. Some further account of the life, character and ministry of
Mother Ann Lee, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
V. A short account of the life and character of Elder William Lee, 38
VI. Sketches of the life, character and ministry of Elder James
Whittaker, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Supplementary Article, concerning Elder John Hocknell, . 49
PART II.
The established order and religious practice of the United Society.
Chap. PAGE.
I. Formation of the Society into a united Body, possessing a
consecrated Interest, . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
II. The established Order and Government of the Church, . . 58
III. The Government and Education of Children, . . . . . 63
IV. Progress and present state of the United Society, . . . . . 68
V. Remarks on the Worship of God: the origin, practice and
reasonableness of Dancing, as an act of Divine Worship, . 77
PART III.
The Nature of God and his Works of Creation.
Ch.A.P. PAGR,
I. The Attributes of God; their harmony and consistency mani-
fested in God’s dealings towards his creatures: the idea of
christian sinners wholly inconsistent with these Attributes, 92
II. Concerning the Dccrees of God. Eiection and Reprobation, 103
III. The Creatio; and Order of the Natural World a figure of that
which is Spiritual, . . 116
IV. The established order of times and seasons in the natural cre-
- ation, together with the primeval state and probation of
f man, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mº'0
xvi CONTENTS.
PART IV.
The fall, loss and depravity of man, including God’s progressive
work, and his dealings with man in his fallen state.
Chap. PAGE.
I. The cause, nature and effects of man’s loss from God, . . 129
II. Objections against the preceding doctrines stated and an-
swered, 143
III. The subject continued, in which further objections are stated
and answered, and the doctrine of continence and celibacy
confirmed, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
IV. The figurative import of circumcision and other ceremonies
under the law, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
V. A few remarks on the nature and typical design of the Jewish
wars, showing that the law could not decide the future state
of the soul, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
VI. An illustration of the progressive increase of the work of God
from the creation to the present time, . . . . . . 173
VII. A few remarks upon the witnesses of truth, including a brief
calculation of prophetic scriptures alluding to the period of
Antichrist’s reign, and the second coming of Christ, . . 184
PART V.
The second appearing of Christ.
CHAP. PAGE.
I. Various opinions concerning the manner of Christ’s second
appearing, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
II. The second coming of Christ not the appearance of the same
personal Being, but a manifestation of the same Spirit.—
This illustrated by various similitudes. which also point out
the increasing work of his Kingdom, . . . . . . . . . 201
III. The second manifestation of Christ not instantly universal,
but gradual and progressive, like the rising of the sun, . 207
IV. The Manifestation of Christ in the Female, . . . . . . 213
V. Spiritual Regeneration and the New Birth, . . . . . . 224
VI, Concerning Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, . . . . . . 235
PART VI.
The Faith and Principles of the New Creation.
CHAP. PAGE.
I. The twelve Foundations of the law of Christ, exemplified in
the twelve christian virtues, . . . . . . . . . .
II. The seven moral principles of the Church of Christ, as re-
duced to practice in the United Society, . . . . . . 258
III. Concerning Obedience, . . . . . . . . 284
IV. The Confession of 8in, . . . . . . . . . . . . . 290
V. The Resurrection, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
VI. Day of Judgment, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313
VII. A few Remarks concerning the true nature of perfection, . 379
PART I.
Rise AND PRoc Ress of THE UNITED Society, INCLUD-
ING some Account of THE FIRST WITNESSEs.
CHAPTER I.
Introductory Remarks, comprising a short sketch of the state of
Religion, and the operations of the Spirit of God which led to
the rise of the Society, and to the commencement of the present
testimony of the Gospel of Christ’s Second Appearing.
DURING the ministration of Jesus Christ upon earth, his life and
doctrines were in direct opposition to all the inclinations of the
fallen nature of man. He revealed the Will of his heavenly Fa-
ther, and this Will was the very essence of the gospel. After his
ascension, a church was formed and established according to the
genuine operations of his divine Spirit. This was accomplished
by the agency of the Holy Spirit, through the ministry of the apos-
tles, and was a patterm of the true order of the church of Christ,
and “a kind of first-fruits” of the Kingdom of Heaven upon earth.
But that order was of short duration. By a declension of the true
spirit of christianity it gradually fell away, until the spirit of Anti-
christ, through the influence of false teachers, under the christian
name, gained the ascendency, and began his dark and deplorable
reign, which continued for the space of twelve hundred and sixty
years.
During this long and gloomy period, “darkness covered the
earth, and gross darkness the people:” so that there was not found
upon earth a church which stood in the true order and power of
the primitive church of Christ. For althothere were many bright
and powerful witnesses of the truth, during the whole of that period,
who testified against the growing corruptions of the times; yet in
consequence of the tyrannical dominion assumed over the conscien-
ces of men, these witnesses were not suffered to build in the true
order of the church of Christ. This dominion, which originated
in the spirit of Antichrist, was strengthened and supported by the
combination of the civil and ecclesiastical powers which were con-
centrated in their own established churches. Hence these churches
became the churches of Antichrist, and under the name of Christ,
assumed the authority of persecuting the true witnesses of God
wherever they could be found; because the testimony of these wit-
nesses stood in opposition to their antichristian dominion, and
was a testimony of condemnation to their false religion; and thus
the power of the holy people was scattered.
* But when the persecuting power of Antichrist began to be weak-
3.
*
2 INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. [PART I.
ened by that memorable division in his kingdom, occasioned by
what is called The Reformation, then a way was opened for man
to contend for his long lost liberty. From that period many men
of rational and discerning minds began to assert the rights of con-
science, and to contend for civil and religious liberty; and hence-
forth liberty of conscience continued to gain ground until the latter
part of the seventeenth century, when it was so far understood and
acknowledged, that the witnesses of God began to live and stand
up in the life and power of their testimony. -
About this time, many religious revivals broke out in various
parts of Europe, particularly in France and Germany, and con-
tinued, with different degrees of light and power, for many years.
J_iberty of conscience was proclaimed in England about the year
1689, and the subject excited public attention, and gained consid-
erable influence in many other parts of Europe. This was an
event highly favorable to those honest souls who were hungering
and thirsting after righteousness, and who had hitherto groaned
under the despotic and persecuting power of ecclesiastical tyranny,
while they earnestly sought the pure and undefiled religion of the
Prince of Peace.
The remarkable revival which happened about this time, in the
province of Dauphiny and Vivarais, in France, excited great atten-
tion. The subjects of this work were wrought upon in a very ex-
traordinary manner, both in body and mind; nor could the violent
agitations of their bodies, nor the powerful operations of their spirits,
which appeared in the flaming and irresistable energy of their tes-
timony, be imputed to anything short of the mighty power of God,
with which they were evidently inspired. Persons of both sexes
and all ages, were the subjects of these divine inspirations. Men,
women, and even little childen, were wrought upon in a manner
which struck the spectators with wonder and astonishment; and
their powerful admonitions and prophetic warnings “were heard
and received with reverence and awe.”
They testified that the end of all things drew nigh, and admon-
ished the people to repent and amend their lives. They gave
warning of the near aproach of the Kingdom of God, the accept-
able year of the Lord; and in many prophetic messages, decla-
red to the world, that those numerous scripture prophecies concern-
ing the new heavens and the ºnew earth; the kingdom of the
Mesiah ; the marriage of the Lamb ; the first resurrection, and
the new Jerusalem descending from above, were near at hand,
and would shortly be accomplished. º
They also testified, with great power and energy of spirit,
against those false systems of religion, and that antichristian do-
minion, which had borne such extensive sway among mankind,
*
CHAP. I.] INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. 3
and predicted their certain downfall and destruction. They also
declared that when all these false systems of human invention,
and all the deceitful and abominable works of man should be pulled
down and destroyed, there would be but one Lord, one faith, one
heart and one voice among mankind. And they also declared that
these things would be wrought upon man by spiritual arms, pro-
ceeding from the mouths of living witnesses who, by the inspiration
of the spirit, should be sent forth as laborers in the vineyard.
These people, like all other true witnesses of God, were rejected
by the unbelieving world as false prophets, and their testimony
greatly perverted and misrepresented. And probably too, as often
happens in times of great outpourings of the divine Spirit, there
were individuals found among them into whose hearts Satan found
means to infuse a false testimony, with a view to dishonor the true
testimony of faithful witnesses, by associating with it the dictates
of his own lying spirit.*
Unbelievers, who slight every manifestation of true light, will
often take occasion by the false predictions of such individuals, to
reject and misrepresent the whole as unworthy of credit. Hence
it was said, they predicted the immediate fulfilment of their proph-
ecy, and stated the precise time of its accomplishment, which was
evidently not given them to understand. But the candid believer
will readily discern between truth and falsehood, and pay that re-
spect to the true manifestations of the Spirit of God which their
importance deserves. -
But even admitting that those who were in the genuine spirit of
that work, did state the time for the accomplishment of these pre-
dictions at three years, as has been frequently asserted, what con-
clusion can be drawn from thence to falsify these predictions P It
is well known that St. John stated the time for the reign of anti-
christ at forty and two months, f which, according to the usual cal-
culation of expositors, is now generally supposed to mean 1260
years, taking each prophetic day for a year, as is usual in ex-
plaining the language of prophecy.
Calculating then by this rule, their three years, or thirty-six
months, allowing but thirty days to the month, amount to 1080
prophetic days; but allowing 365 days to the year, they make 1095
days, or so many natural years. And if these prophets did, in
truth, state the time for the full accomplishment of all their predic-
tions at three years, can any one deny that this is the true calcula-
tion? Or dare any one affirm that all these things will not be
accomplished in 1080 or 1095 years from the date of their prophe-
cy? It is the divine spirit of their testimony, and the real accom-
* So it was of old “When the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord,
$atan came also among them ’” Job ii. 1,
f See, Rev. xi. 2, and xiii. 5,
4 INTF ODUCTORY REMARKS. [PART }.
plishment of their predictions at which we look; not at the false
coloring and evident misrepresentations which have been put upon
them by the unbelievers of their times. That the work has already
commenced, we ourselves are witnesses; but how long before it
will be fully accomplished, must rest with that Almighty Being
who has already begun the work, and will complete it in his own
due time.
Notwithstanding these witnesses of God met with much opposi-
tion from the unbelieving world, and were continually persecuted
by the wicked; yet they greatly increased in numbers, and boldly
continued their testimony for many years; so that their prophetic
warnings extended over the greatest part of Europe.
About the year 1706, a few of them went over to England,
where they renewed their testimony; and through the ministration
of the same spirit to others, many were united to them; so that in
a short time they became very numerous, and their testimony be-
came extensive and powerful. Being commissioned by the Divine
Spirit, and sent only as witnesses to warn a sinful world of ap-
proaching events, they formed no regular societies, and established
no churches; but faithfully executed their office and delivered the
messages which were given them, and thus finished their work and
left the event to God. And tho the greater part, after having fin-
ished their testimony, soon died away; yet many of them main-
tained their confidence through life, and a portion of them, who
still retained the power of their testimony, in a greater or less de-
gree, and having full faith in its accomplishment, stood as living
witnesses of God, and, like faithful watchmen of the night, waited
the approaching dawn.
About the year 1747, a small number who were endowed with
the spirit of these witnesses, were led by the influence of the Divine
Spirit to unite themselves into a small society, in the neighborhood
of Manchester, under the ministry of James and Jane Wardley.
These were both sincerely devoted to the cause of God, and were
blest with great manifestations of divine light. James was greatly
gifted in public speaking; and was remarkably clear, solid and
powerful in his testimony against sin. Both he and his wife pos-
sessed great meekness and humility, were very plain and decent
in their dress and deportment, and unassuming in their manners.
This infant society practiced no forms, and adopted no creeds
as rules of faith or worship; but gave themselves up to be led and
guided entirely by the operations of the Spirit of God. Their
meetings were powerful and animated, attended with remarkable
signs and operations, and with the spirit of prophecy and divine
revelation. The manifestations of divine light in visions and rev-
elations, raised in them the warning voice of God against all sin
and every evil work. They boldly testified, that the second ap-
€HAP. II.] skETCHES OF THE LIFE, &c. 5.
pearing of Christ was at hand; and that the church was rising
in her full and transcendent glory, which would effect the final
downfall of Antichrist. They affirmed that the work of the great
day of God was then commencing, and would increase until every
promise of God should be fulfilled.
Sometimes, after sitting awhile in silent meditation, they were
seized with a mighty trembling, under which they would often ex-
press the indignation of God against all sin. At other times they
were exercised with singing, shouting and leaping for joy at the
near prospect of salvation. They were often exercised with great
agitations of body and limbs, running and walking the floor, with
a variety of signs and operations, and swiftly passing and repassing
each other, like clouds agitated with a mighty wind. No human
power could imitate the wonderful operations with which they
were affected while under the influence of these spiritual signs.
From these exercises, so strange in the eyes of mankind, they re-
ceived the appellation of Shakers, which has been the most com-
mon name of distinction ever since.
These various and extraordinary operations, together with the
singularity of their lives, and their powerful testimony against the
wickedness of the world around them, naturally exposed them to
much persecution. Their houses were often beset by mobs, their
windows broken, and their persons shamefully abused. But they
bore these things patiently, and fearlessly continued their assemblies
and their testimony. Their meetings, which first began at Bolton,
near Manchester, were afterwards held alternately at Bolton and
Manchester; and occasionally at Cheshire, Mayortown, and other
places in the vicinity of Manchester.
They continued to increase in light and power, with occasional
additions to their number, till about the year 1770, when by a
special manifestation of Divine light, the present testimony of sal-
vation and eternal life was fully revealed to Ann Lee, and by her
to the society. As this extraordinary woman, concerning whom
so much has been reported and published abroad in the world, was
the distinguished personage to whom Christ revealed himself in
his true character, in this day of his second appearing, it will be
necessary, in proceeding with this work, to give some account of
her life, character and ministry.
= }+ º –
. CHAP'I'ER II.
Sketches of the life of Mother Ann Lee; her birth and parent-
age : her conneasion with the society of James and Jane Ward-
ley: her religious exercises and sufferings: her revelation and
testimony: persecutions in England: voyage to America.
ANN LEE was the daughter of John Lee, of Manchester, in
B 2
6 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE [PART R.'
England. She was born in the year 1736.” Her father was by
occupation a blacksmith, and tho poor, he was respectable in char-
acter, moral in principle, honest and punctual in his dealings, and
industrious in business. Her mother was esteemed as a religious
and very pious woman. They had eight children, five sons and
three daughters. Their children, as was then common with poor
people in manufacturing towns, were brought up to work instead
of being sent to school. By this means Ann acquired a habit of
industry, but could neither read nor write. During her childhood
and youth, she was employed in a cotton factory, and was after-
wards a cutter of hatter’s fur. She was also, for some time, em-
ployed as a cook in the Manchester infirmary, and was peculiarly
distinguished for her faithfulness, neatness, prudence and economy.
In her childhood she discovered a very bright and active genius,
was remarkably sagacious, but serious and thoughtful, and never
addicted to play like other children. In early childhood she was
the subject of religious impressions, and was peculiarly favored
with heavenly visions. As she advanced in years she was strong-
ly impressed with a sense of the great depravity of human nature,
and of the odiousness of sin, and especially of the impure and in-
decent nature of sexual coition. She often expressed her feelings
to her mother concerning these things, and earnestly desired that
she might be kept from the snares of sin, and from those abomina-
tions which her soul abhorred.
But not having attained that knowledge of God which she early
desired, and finding no one to strengthen and assist her in the pur-
suit of that true holiness which she sought after, nor even to en-
courage her to withstand the powerful examples of a lost world,
(hēr mother having deceased while she was yet young,) she grew
up in the same fallen nature with the rest of mankind, and through
the importunities of her relations, was married to Abraham Stam-
ley, a blacksmith by trade. By him she had four children who
all died in infancy; one only, which was a daughter, attained to
the age of about six years. They lived together at her father's
house, in peace and harmony, and procured a comfortable living.
But the convictions of her youth often returned upon her with
great force, which at length brought her under excessive tribulation
of soul. In this situation she sought earnestly for deliverance from
the bondage of sin, and gave herself no rest, day nor night, but
often spent whole nights in laboring and crying to God for delive-
rance from sin.
While under these exercises of mind, she became acquainted
with James and Jane Wardley, and the society under their care-
* It is said she was born the last day ºf February.
CHAP. II.] OF MOTHER ANN LEE. 7
As these people were favored with a greater degree of divine light,
and a more clear and pointed testimony against the mature of sin
than had hitherto been made manifest, Ann readily embraced their
testimony, and united herself to the society in the month of Sep-
tember 1758, being them in the 23d year of her age. The light
of these people led them to an open confession of every sin which
they had committed, and to a full and final cross against every
thing which they knew to be evil: hence they were endowed with
great power over sin; and hence Ann found that protection which
she had so long desired, and which, for the time being, was an-
swerable to her faith. By her faithful obedience to the counsel
and instruction of her leaders, she was baptized into the same
spirit, and, by degrees, attained to the full knowledge and experi-
ence in spiritual things which they had ſound.
As she occasionally related to the American believers some of
her experience and sufferings in England, it may not be improper
to give the following short sketch concerning the early part of her
faith, in her own words.
“Soon after I set out to travail in the way of God, I labored
anights in the works of God. Sometimes I labored all night,
continually crying to God for my own redemption ; sometimes
I went to bed and slept ; but in the morning I could not feel
that sense of the work of God which I did before I slept. This
brought me into great tribulation. Then I cried to God, and
promised him, that if he would give me the same sense that I had
before I slept, I would labor all night. This I did many nights;
and in the day time I put my hands to work and my heart to
God; and when I felt weary and need of rest, I laboured for the
power of God, and the refreshing operations of the power of
God would release me, so that I would feel able to go to my work
again.
“Many times when I was about my work, I felt my soul over-
whelmed with sorrow; and I used to work as long as I could
keep it concealed, and then run to get out of sight, lest some one
should pity me with that pity which God did not. In my tra-
vail and tribulation, my sufferings were so great, that my flesh
consumed upon my bones, and bloody sweat pressed through
the pores of my skin, and I became as helpless as an infant.
And when I was brought through, and born into the spiritual
“kingdom, I was like an infant just born into the world. They
“see colors and objects; but they know not what they see; and
“so it was with me when I was born into the spiritual world.
“But before I was twenty-four hours old, I saw, and I knew what
* I saw.”
John Hocknell, who was well acquainted with her in the time
As
e
%
8 SIKETCHES OF THE LIFE [PART I,
of her experience and sufferings in England, used frequently to
speak of them, with many peculiar circumstances that came under
his knowledge. According to his account, as well as that of her
own, and others who came from England with her, it appears that
in watchings, fastings, tears and incessant cries to God, she labor-
ed day and night, for deliverance from the very nature of sin; and
that, under the most severe tribulation of mind, and the most violent
temptations and buffetings of the enemy, the agony of her soul was
often so extreme as to occasion a perspiration of blood. Some-
times, for whole nights together, her cries, screeches and groans
were such as to fill every soul around with fear and trembling.
By these painful sufferings and deep mortifications her flesh
sometimes wasted away, like that of a person in a consumption,
till she became so weak and emaciated that her friends were oblig-
ed to support and nourish her like a helpless infant; altho she
possessed by nature a sound and strong constitution, and an invin-
cible fortitude of mind. Tho Ann was wrought upon in this man-
ner, more or less, for the space of nine years; yet she often had
intervals of releasment, in which her bodily strength and vigor
was sometimes miraculously renewed, and her soul was at times
filled with heavenly visions and divine revelations. By these means.
the way of God, and the nature of his work, gradually opened
upon her mind with increasing light and understanding. The di-
vine manifestations which she received, from time to time, were
communicated to the society, and tended greatly to enlighten the
understandings, and encourage the faith of the members, and to
increase and confirm their testimony.
IHer mind, ever intent on the great work of salvation, was deep-
ly affected concerning the lost state of mankind, which she clearly
saw in all their works. But the real foundation of that loss was
still concealed from her view; nor could she see any prospect of
recovery under existing circumstances: for she had long been con-
vinced that there was nothing in all their religious professions nor
practises that could save them from sin here, or furnish any rea-
sonable hope of salvation hereafter. Hence she spent much time
in earnest and incessant cries to God, to shew her the real founda-
tion of man's loss, what it was, and wherein it consisted ; how the
way of salvation could be effectually opened to a lost world in its
present state; and how the great work of redemption was to be
accomplished.
While in deep exercise of mind concerning these things, she
was brought into a state of excessive tribulation of soul, in which
she felt her way hedged up, seemingly, on every side, and was
constrained to cry mightily to God, to open some way of deliver-
ance. In the midst of her sufferings and earnest cries to God, her
CHAP. II.] OF MOTHER ANN LEE, 9
soul was filled with divine light, and the mysteries of the spiritual
world were brought clearly to her understanding. She saw the
Lord Jesus Christ in his glory, who revealed to her the great ob-
ject of her prayers, and fully satisfied all the desires of her soul.
The most astonishing visions and divine manifestations were pre-
sented to her view in so clear and striking a manner, that the whole
spiritual world seemed displayed before her. In these extraordi-
nary manifestations, she had a full and clear view of the mystery
of iniquity, of the root and foundation of human depravity, and of
the very act of transgression, committed by the first man and wo-
man, in the garden of Eden. Here she saw whence and wherein
all mankind were lost from God, and clearly realized the only
possible way of recovery. This revelation she received in the
summer of 1770, in prison, where she was confined on account of
her religious principles, under a pretence of her having profaned
the sabbath.
Tho Ann had before received many extraordinary manifestations
of God, tho she had received great light concerning the depravity of
human nature, and the effects of man’s loss from God, and tho she
had taken up her cross against the carnal gratifications of the flesh,
and had testified her faith to the society on this subject, many of
whom, in consequence of her testimony, had walked in the same
faith; yet, not having then received a clear revelation of the root of
human depravity, and the cause of man’s fall, she had continued to
yield obedience to James and Jane Wardley, as her superiors, and
was eminently useful to them in leading, teaching, strengthening
and protecting the society.
But when she was released from her imprisonment, and came to
reveal to the society these last extraordinary manifestations, so
great was the display of divine light with which her soul was filled,
and so mighty the power of God which accompanied her testimo-
ny, and so keen the searching power of her spirit in discovering
and bringing to light the hidden works of darkness, that every soul
present was struck with astonishment and filled with fear and
trembling. They saw at once that the candle of the Lord was in
her hand, and that she was able by the light thereof, to search
every heart and try every soul among them. From this time she
was received and acknowledged as the first visible leader of the
church of God upon earth.
The preceding work in this society, under the ministration of
James and Jane Wardley, was evidently preparatory to the usher-
ing in of the second coming of Christ; and it may with propriety
be compared to the work of John the Baptist, or the spirit of Elias,
the forerunner of the Lord Jesus. When therefore Ann was bap-
tized into the fulness of the spirit and work of that society, she was
10 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE [PART I.
them prepared for the baptism of the Holy Ghost, and was made a
fit vessel to receive the true Spirit of Christ, and to revive and
bring to light his perfect law of righteousness for the direction and
salvation of all souls who were willing to obey her testimony; and
here commenced the real manifestation of Christ's second appear-
a ſl Ce.
From this time the light and power of God revealed in Ann,
and through her administered to those who received her testimony,
had such sensible effect in giving them power over all sin, and
filling them with visions, revelations and other gifts of God, that
she was readily acknowledged as their spiritual Mother in Christ.
Hence she received the title of Mother;” and hence those of the
society who received and obeyed her testimony, found a great in-
crease in the power and gifts of God; while on the other hand,
those who rejected it, lost all their former light and power, and fell
back into a state of darkness, and into the common course of the
world.
By the immediate revelation of Christ she henceforth bore an
open testimony against the lustful gratifications of the flesh, as the
source and foundation of human corruption ; and testified, in the
most plain and pointed manner, that no soul could follow Christ
in the regeneration, while living in the works of natural generation,
or in any of the gratifications of lust. Her testimony was often
delivered with such mighty power of God, accompanied with such
a heart searching and soul-quickening spirit, that it seemed to pen-
etrate every secret of the heart. By this means the most hidden
abominations were often brought to light ; and those secret acts of
wickedness, which had been deceitfully covered under a fair outside
profession of sanctity, were many times brought to view in such a
manner as to make every guilty soul fear and tremble in her pre-
Sence.
Here it may be proper to notice that, notwithstanding all Moth-
er Ann's inward sufferings and tribulation, her outward afflictions
and persecutions were often very severe and cruel. The powerful
testimony which she maintained against all sin, together with the
wonderful operations of the Spirit of God which prevailed in the
meetings of her little society, through her ministration, excited
public attention, and stirred up the malignant feelings of many,
both professors and profane, of almost every class and description,
to such a degree of enmity that, by formal opposition and tumultu-
ous mobs, open persecution and secret malice, her very life seemed
many times in great jeopardy. She was often shamefully and
cruelly abused, and a number of times imprisoned. To states.
* It has been asserted by soma writers that she styled herself the Elect Lady : but this
is a groundless charge : that title was given by her enemies in derision.
CHAP. II.] OF MOTHER ANN LEE. I 1
circumstantially, the many instances of her sufferings and impris-
onment, would swell this volume beyond the limits prescribed.
We shall only notice the following.
Her enemies, after seeking in vain for some plausible pretext to
take her life, finally brought an accusation of blasphemy against
her. They told her she must have her tongue bored through with
a hot iron; and brought her before four ministers of the estab-
lished church, with a view to obtain judgment against her. But
these men, being desirous to hear her own testimony, gave her
liberty to speak for herself. Accordingly she spoke, and manifes-
ted such evident power of God, that they thought proper to dismiss
her; and admonished her accusers to let her alone, and not abuse
her. Enraged and disappointed at not being able to enlist these
ministers against her, her persecutors were determined to take the
power of judgment into their own hands, and become at once her
judges and executioners, and agreed to stone her to death as a blas-
phemer.
Accordingly they led her down into a valley, without the town,
where she was followed by four of her brethren, namely, William
Lee, James Whittaker, Daniel Whittaker and James Shepherd.*
Her persecutors having provided themselves with a sufficient quan-
tity of stones, suitable for their purpose, they placed themselves on
the side of the hill, at a convenient distance, and began to throw
their stones; but not being able, after repeated trials, to hit her or
any of her companions, (except Daniel Whittaker, who received a
slight wound on one of his temples, f) they fell into contention
among themselves, and finally abandoned their design. Mother
Ann, in relating these circumstances to some of the believers, said,
“While they were throwing their stones, I felt myself surrounded
“with the presence of God, and my soul was filled with love. I
“knew they could not kill me, because my work was not done;
“therefore I felt joyful and comfortable, while my enemies felt
“ distress and confusion.” -
At another time an attempt was made upon her life; but it does
not appear that this was done by any legal process, but rather, as
is supposed, by the connivance of some of the officers of the stone
prison with the designs of her enemies. She was taken and con-
fined in a small cell of the prison, with an intention of starving her
to death. Here she was kept fourteen days without any kind of
sustenance, excepting what was conveyed to her privately, through
the keyhole of the door, after the first two days, once in twenty-four
* This was not the James Shepherd who afterwards came to America with her; but
anotber man of 1he same name, who was considered a faithful believer.
f This man afterwards fell away,
12 SKETCHES OF THE LIFE [PART I.
hours. This was done by one of the believers,” who found access
to the door of her prison, and inserted the stem of a pipe through
the keyhole, into the bowl of which he poured a small quantity of
milk, mixed with a little wine, which was her only temporal sup-
port during the whole time of her imprisonment. At the end of
fourteen days, the door was unlocked with the expectation of find-
ing her dead; but to the great surprise of her enemies, she was not
only alive, but as well as before. Some who were present at the
time, and saw her walk off in perfect health, remarked that it must
be owing to a supernatural power which attended her, and that
they did not believe it was right to confine or oppress her.
The last imprisonment which she suffered, while in England,
was done under pretence of her having profaned the sabbath.
This appears to have been a preconcerted plan of her enemies, to
prevent her and her little family from worshipping God on the
sabbath, according to their custom. A number of spies had been
previously placed in the streets, under a pretence of preventing
people from profaning the sabbath. The believers assembled that
morning at the house of John Lee, and began their worship, as
usual, by singing and dancing. This was discovered by the spies,
and a mob was soon raised, headed by the principal warden, who
surrounded the house, burst open the doors, and ascended the stairs
into the third loft, where the believers were assembled. They
were all seized without any ceremony, and immediately dragged
down stairs; Mother Ann herself was dragged down by her feet,
and very much abused. They were all, excepting one man and
two children,f immediately hurried off to the stone prison, and put
into close confinement. The next morning they were all released
excepting Mother Ann and John Lee, her father, who were remov-
ed to the house of correction, where they were kept confined sev-
eral weeks, and then discharged. -
These are but a part of the outward afflictions which Mother
Ann endured from her enemies in England. Besides many cir-
cumstances of less note, there were several other instances of abuse
which must inevitably have deprived her of life, had she not been
protected by that Almighty Being in whom she always trusted;
and it is worthy of remark, that nothing short of Divine Power
could have supported her through all these trying scenes, and ena-
bled her to maintain her testimony in the midst of a crooked and
perverse generation. But in consequence of the sudden and un-
timely death of some of her most bitter persecutors, and the con-
viction of others, these cruel abuses finally ceased. Her enemics
saw that she was evidently protected and supported, and her life
* James Whittaker, who was then a youth. - g
j One of thºse children was Mary Hocknell, now living at Waterwhet.
cHAP. II.] OF MOTHER ANN LEE. 13,
preserved, by some interposing power, notwithstanding all their
attempts to destroy it; and hence, for more than two years previ-
ous to her leaving England, she and her little band enjoyed their
faith in peace. And tho there was no important addition to their
number, yet the faith and substance of the gospel continued to in-
crease in the hearts of the faithful. But their public testimony
ceased in England about a year before they embarked for America.
Mother Ann, whose mind was ever intent on the work of God,
and who always stood ready to obey any call of God to her, was
at length, by a special revelation, directed to repair to America;
and at the same time, she received a divine promise, that the work
of God would greatly increase, and the millenial church would be
established in that country. This revelation was communicated
to the society, and was soon confirmed by signs, visions and ex-
traordinary manifestations, to many individual members; and per-
mission was given for all those of the society to accompany her,
who were able, and who felt any special impressions on their own
minds so to do. Accordingly those who became the companions
of Mother Ann, in her voyage to America, and who were all, at
that time, professedly members of the society, were Abm. Stanley,
her husband, Wm. Lee, her brother, James Whittaker, John
Hocknell, Richard Hocknell, son of John Hocknell, James Shep-
herd, Mary Partington, and Nancy Lee, a niece of Mother Ann.
These eight were all that accompanied Mother Ann in her voyage
to America. -
Having settled their affairs, and made arrangements for the voy-
age, they embarked at Liverpool, on board the ship Mariah, Cap-
tain Smith, of New-York, and sailed on the 19th of May, 1774.
Before they embarked, Mother Ann told the captain that he should
not have whereof to accuse them, except it were concerning the
law of their God. While on their passage, they went forth, in
obedience to their inward feelings, to praise God in songs and in
dances. This offended the captain to such a degree, that he threat-
ened to throw them overboard, if they attempted the like exercise
again. But as Mother Ann had put her trust in God, whom she
feared, she was not willing to be restrained in her duty by the fear
of mortals; she therefore chose to obey God rather than man, and
accordingly went forth again, in obedience to the divine influences
which she felt.
At this the captain became greatly enraged, and attempted to put
his threats in execution. But that God in whom they trusted, and
who had sent them to do his will, had power to protect them.
This he did in a marvellous manner. It was in the evening, in
time of a storm; and the ship suddenly sprung a leak, occasioned
by the starting of a plank between wind and water. The water
now flowed in so rapidly that, notwithstanding all their exertions
C
14 COMMENCEMENT OF THE [PART 1.
at the pumps, it gained upon them so fast, that the whole ship's
crew were greatly alarmed. The captain turned pale as a corpse,
and said they must all perish before morning; for he saw no possi-
ble means to save the ship from sinking. -
But Mother Ann maintained her confidence in God, and said,
* Captain, be of good cheer; there shall not a hair of our heads
“ perish; we shall all arrive safe to America. I just now saw
“two bright angels of God standing by the mast, through whom I
“received this promise.” She then encouraged the seamen, and
she and her companions zealously assisted at the pumps. Shortly
after this, a large wave struck the ship with great violence, and the
loose plank was instantly closed to its place.
Whether this remarkable incident was effected by the violent
force of the wave against the plank, or by some other unaccounta-
ble means, it was then viewed by all on board, as a miraculous
interposition of Divine Providence in their favor. They were
soon in a great measure released from the pumps; and the captain,
after this, gave them frce and full liberty to worship God according
to the dictates of their own consciences, and promised that he
would never molest them again. He was faithful to his promise,
and treated them with kindness and respect during the remainder
of the voyage, and was afterwards free to declare, that had it
not been for these people, he should have been sunk in the sea,
and never reached America.
Thus, after enduring the storms and dangers of the sea, in an
old leaky ship, which had been condemned as unfit for the voyage,
and which came very near foundering at sea, they all arrived safe
in New-York on the 6th of August following.
-º-º-º-º:
CHAPTER III.
Circumstances connected with the settlement of Mother Ann and
her little society in America : Religious revival at New-Leba-
mon: Commencement and progress of the testimony, followed
by persecution: Decease of Mother Ann, &c.
AFTER Mother Ann and her little family arrived in this country,
they passed through many scenes of difficulty, of a temporal nature.
Being strangers in the land, and without any means of subsistence,
excepting the daily labor of their own hands, they were obliged to
seek employment where they could find it without hazarding the
free enjoyment of their faith: for Mother Ann chose rather to
rely upon the mercy of God for support and protection, than to
court the friendship of the world, or to solicit their favor for the
sake of any temporal advantages which she might obtain at the ex-
pence of her religious freedom, which was dearer to her than her life,
& -
CHAP. III.] UNITED Society IN AMERICA. i5
They were led however, to make some arrangements, in the
first place, for their future residence, where they could be united
in the mutual enjoyment of their faith, and wait the call of God to
more extensive usefulness. Accordingly William Lee and John
Hocknell went up the river and contracted for a lot of land near
Niskeyuna, in the county of Albany, and returned again to New-
York. John Hocknell soon after sailed for England, to bring out
his family, and make further arrangements for the settlement of
the society in this country.
Mother Ann accompanied her brother William and some of the
rest of the society to Albany, where they found employment in
their several occupations. She then returned to New-York, where
she continued during John Hocknell’s absence to England. She
resided in the house of a respectable family, in Queen-street,” by the
name of Smith, by whom Abraham, her husband, was employed
as a journeyman in the blacksmith’s business. She employed
herself in washing and ironing for her support; and by her meek-
ness, humility and amiable deportment, she gained the esteem and
confidence of the family, and particularly of Smith’s wife, who
treated her with great kindness. By this woman she was after-
wards solicited to take charge of her family affairs, with full liber-
ty to manage therein according to her own discretion. But Mother
Ann could not listen to any proposition which was incompatible
with the gift and calling of God to her; she chose rather to endure
poverty and sufferings, than to turn aside from her duty to God
for the sake of any temporal advantages whatever.
During John Hocknell’s absence to England, Mother Ann went
several times up the river and visited those of the society who re-
sided in the vicinity of Albany, and was occasionally visited by
some of them ; but still continued her residence in New-York. In
the latter part of the summer or beginning of autumn, 1775, Abra-
ham Stanley was visited with a severe sickness. To nurse and
take care of him in this sickness, required Mother Ann’s whole
time and attention. This duty she performed with the utmost
care and kindness, tho often at the expense of great sufferings on
her own part. Their earnings now ceased, and they were reduced
to extreme poverty.
Abraham at length recovered his health, so as to be able to walk
the streets; and tho he never had been considered as a faithful and
substantial believer; yet he had hitherto supported his credit and
reputation, and maintained an outward conformity to his faith.
But on regaining his health, and before he was fully able to return
to his occupation, he began to associate with the wicked at public
houses, and soon lost all sense and feeling of religion, and began
to oppose Mother Ann's testimony in a very ungodly manner, and
* Now called Pearl-street.
16 ſº COAIMIENCEMENT OF THE [PART f,
urged her to renounce it, and live in sexual cohabitation, like the
rest of the world. She replied, that she was willing to do any thing
for him which justice, reason or humanity required; but she should
never consent to violate her duty to God; and endeavored to pre-
vail on him to return to his duty and be faithful.
But as Abraham was determined to pursue the course of the
world, he continued his vicious practise, instead of returning
to his occupation, and left Ann to provide for herself. At length
he brought a lewd woman into the house to her, and declared that,
unless she would consent to live in sexual cohabitation with him,
he would take that woman for his wife. Ann replied with great
firmness and resolution, that she would not do it if he should take
her life as the consequence of her refusal. She also informed him,
in plain terms, that she considered his cruel and abusive conduct
as a very unjust requital for the uniform kindness and attention
which she had paid to him, both in sickness and in health; and
said she was still willing to take the most tender care of him, if he
would return to his duty, and conduct himself as he ought to do,
and urged him, in the most feeling manner, to return to the obedi-
ence of his faith; but all to no effect. He soon went off with the
woman, to a distant part of the city, and it was reported that he
was shortly after married to her. Thus ended the connection be-
tween Mother Ann and Abraham Stanley.
On the 25th of December, 1775, John Hocknell, with his fam-
ily, arrived at Philadelphia, accompanied by John Partington and
his family. From Philadelphia they proceeded to New-York,
where they found Mother Ann. They continued in New-York
till some time in February following, and then went on to Albany
by land. After the opening of the river, in the spring, they went
down to bring up their effects, and Mother Ann returned to Albany
with them, and joined the rest of the society. Having taken up a
lot of new land, their next object was to prepare for a settlement,
in the wilderness, by clearing their land, erecting suitable buildings,
and making other necessary provisions. This they accomplished
in the course of the summer.
Thus, after passing through many trying scenes, Mother Ann
and those who stood faithful with her, were collected together, and
in the month of September, 1776, took up their residence in the
woods of Watervliet, near Niskeyuna, about seven miles north-west
of Albany. The place being then in a wilderness state, they
began, with indefatigable zeal and industry, and through additional
suſterings, to prepare the way for a permanent settlement, where
they could enjoy their faith in peace, amid the tumults of the war,
in which the country was then involved. Here they waited with
patience God's appointed time, for the opening of the testimony of
that everlasting gospel, for which they had already suffered so much,
chap. III.] UNITED sociFTY IN AMERICA. a 17
and which, above all other things, was the nearest to their hearts.
Here they occupied themselves in improving their new settlement,
and providing for their comfortable subsistence; and here they
held their solemn meetings, and offered up their devotions to God,
full three years and a half, until the way was prepared for the
commencement of their testimony to the world, in the spring of
the year 1780.
In the year 1779, Mother Ann often encouraged her companions,
by telling them that the time was just at hand when many would
come and embrace the gospel, and directed them to make provisions
for it, which they did according to their abilities. This same year, a
remarkable revival of religion commenced in New-Lebanon and
the adjacent towns, attended with many extraordinary circumstan-
ces of conviction, which greatly awakened the zeal of preachers
and people. Many were powerfully wrought upon, both in body
and spirit, and deeply convicted of their fallen state. Many also,
who had been professors of religion, began to see the false founda-
tion on which they had hitherto built their hopes of salvation.
Many were favored with gifts of visions and prophecies, by which
they saw and testified that the day of redemption was at hand, that
the second coming of Christ was nigh, even at the door; and
their meetings resounded with loud cries to God for his kingdom
to COme.
Their meetings were also attended with great power of God,
and a strong testimony against all sin; and the various exercises
and gifts of the spirit among the people, manifested the most con-
vincing evidences of a real work of God. Some, under a deep
conviction of their sins, were crying for mercy; others felt un-
speakably happy in the joyful visions and revelations of the glory
of the latter day, and of the commencement of the kingdom of
Christ on earth, which was to put an end to wars and fightings,
and all manner of violence, restore peace on earth, make an end
of sin, bring in everlasting righteousness, and gather the saints into
one harmonious communion.
The work was powerful and swift, but of short duration. In a
ſew months their visions and prophecies ceased, the extraordinary
power of their testimony seemed to be at an end, and mone of those
things of which they had testified, as yet appeared. In this situa-
tion they were filled with deep distress and anxiety of mind; yet
still retained their confidence in the near approach of Christ's
kingdom, and continued their assemblies with earnest prayers, and
exhortations, encouraging one another to maintain their faith and
hope, to wait with patience, to pray and not faint.
This was the state of the people in the spring of 1780, when
some of them providentially visited Mother Ann and her little fam.
ily, and were soon cºmeº that they were in the very work for
2
18 . COMMENCEMENT OF THE [PART I,
which they themselves had been so earnestly praying, and for
which they had been looking and waiting with such ardent expec-
tations. Attracted by the report of these, others were induced to
visit them ; and the ſame of these strange people, who lived in this
obscure corner in the wilderness, soon extended far and wide.
Many resorted to see them, from New-Lebanon and the country
round, and when they heard the new and living testimony, and
saw the various and extraordinary operations of Divine Power
among them, they were fully confirmed in the belief, that Christ
had, in very deed, appeared again on earth. Many from various
parts of the country, and of almost every denominaton, embraced
the faith of the society.
Many of the new converts, as might be expected, were filled
with great power and zeal; but for the want of experience and un-
derstanding, they were not able, at all times, to exercise their zeal
according to the dictates of wisdom. Many times they exhibited
a degree of wildness and enthusiasm in their conduct, which, to the
beholders, appeared like the greatest inconsistency and delusion,
and especially to such as trusted in the forms of religion, while
they were ignorant of its internal power. To the natural man,
such views of a new and singular manifestation of religion, were
very natural; especially as its light and testimony struck at the
very root and foundation of the fallen nature of man
These things, however, were viewed in a very different light by
those who were spiritually minded. But if it sometimes happened
that irregularities took place, which were inconsistent with the
faith of the testimony, they were discountenanced by the leading
characters of the society. The work was all new to those
who embraced it, and the leaders being few in number, and the
work extensive, irregularities could not always be foreseen nor
prevented. And where the destruction of the old heavens, with
all their false systems, and of the old earth with all its corruption
and wickedness, was beginning to take place in the soul, in order
to establish the new in the place thereof, it must necessarily produce
a commotion in the human system, like the clashing of two oppo-
site elements. These effects will always be viewed in their true
light, by those who are divinely enlightened, and who are able to
discern the true source from whence they proceed.
Such a remarkable event, however, could not take place without
exciting great agitation in the public mind. Hence many conjec-
tures were in circulation concerning these strange people, and es-
pecially concerning their female leader. By some she was strongly
suspected of witchcraft, and the old accusation was in substance
revived; “She casteth out devils by Beelzebub.” But as it was a
time of wars and fightings, (the country being then engaged in its
revolutionary struggle,) and those who received the testimony, were
chap. III.] UNITED Society IN AMERICA. 19
averse to war, advantage was taken of this circumstance to repre-
sent them as enemies to the country. Accordingly they were
accused of maintaining a secret correspondence with the enemy,
and the charge of treason was publicly alledged against them. In
consequence of these accusations, which had no foundation, but in
the enmity of a persecuting spirit, Mother Ann, and a number of
the leading characters were, in the month of July following, im-
prisoned in Albany.”
Tho the charge of treason was the ostensible cause of this im-
prisonment; yet it appeared evident that the real object of their
accusers was, to break up the society, and thereby suppress the
growing testimony. But so far from effecting this object, the tes-
timony had afterwards a more rapid and extensive circulation than
before. For when it was once understood that an innocent people
were actually thrown into prison, on account of their religion, the
circumstance naturally excited great sympathy among the more
considerate part of the community, and great inquiries were made
concerning the religious tenets of a people who were judged deserv-
ing of such harsh treatment.
Hence they were visited by multitudes of people from various
quarters, and from many miles distant; and every honest and
candid enquirer was soon convinced, not only of the innocence of
the people, but of the truth of their testimony. There were also
many sensible men who expressed their disapprobation of these
intolerant proceedings against an innocent people, for no other
cause, in reality, than their religious faith ānd testimony, and es-
pecially at a time when the nation itself was contending for its
civil and religious rights. And all who were seriously awakened
to a feeling sense of their loss from God, and of their need of sal-
vation, and who were willing to endure the cross of Christ, regard-
less of popular clamor and the enmity of persecutors, readily em-
braced the testimony.
Their enemies were highly offended when they saw their main
object defeated by this success of the testimony. And as Mother
Ann was the founder and principal leader of this new sect, which
was “every where spoken against,” they naturally concluded that,
by separating her from her followers, they would soon be dispersed,
and the society come to an end. Accordingly, about the middle
of August, they sent her down the river, with a view to banish her
to the British army, which was then in New-York. But not being
able to accomplish their object, she was landed at Poughkeepsie,
and imprisoned in the jail of that town. But notwithstanding all
* Nothing could be more unjust and unfounded than this charge Mother Ann, at the
commence inent of the war, and frequently afterwards, testified by the spirit of prophecy,
that it would terminate in the separation of the colonies from the British gover nment; that
liberty of conscience would be established in this country; and that the way would be t us
repared for the building up of Christ's Kingdom in this favored land. She could not there-
re act against her own testimony.
20 COMMENCEMENT OF THE [PART. H.
these endeavors to destroy the society and stop the progress of the
testimony, it still continued to increase by a constant accession of
numbers from various quarters. -
About the 20th of December following, those who had been
confined in Albany, were released without any trial; having been
confined five months, without any shadow of evidence to justify
their imprisonment. Being now released, they visited Mother
Ann at Poughkeepsie, and through their intercession with Gov.
Geo. Clinton, who had not before been made acquainted with these
circumstances, she was released, about the last of December. Thus
ended the only imprisonment that Mother Ann suffered in
America; an imprisonment which was designed to suppress her
influence, and check the progress of the society; but through the
overruling hand of Divine Providence, it was the occasion of a far
more extensive circulation of her testimony, and a greater increase
of the society, than any event that had ever before taken place.
After Mother Ann and her companions were released from
prison, they returned to Watervliet, where they spent the remain-
der of the winter and spring, and were constantly visited by those
who had embraced the testimony, and also by many others from
the surrounding country. And tho many came from motives of
curiosity; yet no honest soul, who candidly examined the testimo-
ny, and viewed, without prejudice, the wonderful operations of the
power of God which prevailed in their meetings, could go away
without a full conviction that the work of God was among them.
But they were often afflicted with mockers and scoffers, whose
main object was to seek for evil, and seize upon every occa-
sion to scandalize the work, and vilify the subjects of it. Such
were ever ready to judge with an evil eye, and from the decisions
of an evil heart, to fix the stamp of evil upon whatever they saw
among the people. Hence arose those numerous evil reports
which have been so industriously circulated, by reprobate charac-
ters, to the present day.
On the 31st of May, 1781, Mother Ann set out on a journey to
Harvard, in the state of Massachusetts. In this journey she was
accompanied by William Lee, James Whittaker, Samuel Fitch,
Mary Partington and Margaret Leeland. In the course of her
journey, she visited many who had before embraced her testimony,
encouraging and confirming them in their faith by those extraordi-
mary manifestations of the power of God which always attended
her ministry; and tho the spirit of opposition manifested itself,
more or less, wherever she went; yet numbers were added to the
faith. She arrived in Harvard the latter part of June, where she
was shortly visited by great numbers of the inhabitants, and by
many others from various parts of the country. . Many embraced
her testimony, and, as is natural on such occasions, the spirit ºf
CHAP. III.] UNITED sociFTY IN AMERICA. 21
.*
Antichrist was greatly alarmed at the danger to which he saw his
kingdom exposed, through the prevailing influence of the testimony
of truth.
Persecution, the usual engine of religious intolerance, was im-
mediately set in motion; and no means were left untried to arrest
the progress of the testimony. Every evil report and every wick-
ed device, that falshood and malice could dictate, were called forth
to calumniate and debase the character of Mother Ann and her
companions, and render them odious in the eyes of the people,
with a view to excite them to acts of persecution. The charges
of being enemies and traitors to the country; of having fire arms
and munitions of war concealed among them ; of living in drunk-
enness and debauchery, and practising witchcraft and other base
erimes, were continually alledged against them.
In consequence of these accusations, they suffered much personal
abuse, and on several occasions, they were so shamefully and cru-
elly abused, particularly at Harvard and Petersham, that, to all
human appearance, it seemed as tho nothing short of Divine Power
could have preserved their lives. The peopke alsº, who embraced
the testimony, often suffered a large share in these abuses; being
scourged with whips, beaten with clubs, stoned, kicked and drag-
ged about by their legs and arms, and sometimes by the hair of
their heads, and driven from place to place, in the most cruel and
abusive manner; so that many of them but narrowly escaped with
their lives; and numbers carried through life, the scars and marks
of abuse which they then received from their cruel and inhuman
persecutors. Through all these trying scenes they were evidently
protected and supported by the power and providence of God; so
that notwithstanding many attempts were made upon the lives of
the believers, yet no life was suffered to be taken.
But judgments appeared evidently to follow all the most active
and violent of these persecutors. Some who, were before rich and
prosperous in their temporal circumstances, soon after these perse-
cutions, met with some extraordinary reverses of fortune, lost all
their property and came to beggary, and were finally reduced to
the necessity of going to the very people whom they had before
persecuted, to beg alms. Some came to sudden and untimely
deaths; others became insolvent and left the country to avoid their
creditors. Some who had before sustained a respectable charac-
ter in society, soon after lost all their reputation, in consequence of
drunkenness and other base practices; others ended their days by
suicide. In short, these misfortunes were so general upon those
who had acted a conspicuous part in these perescutions, that they
occasioned the following general remark among the inhabitants;
“These Shaker drivers are all coming to nothing.”
These persecutions, however, like the imprisonment at Albany,
22 COMMIENCEMENT OF THE [PART I.
served only to accelerate the means of extending the testimony,
which greatly increased the number of believers. It may be
proper to remark here, that notwithstanding all the persecutions
and imprisonments that Mother Ann, and the Elders with her,
suffered from time to time, both in England and America, and all
the accusations ever raised against them by the tongue of slander;
yet no charge against their moral characters was ever substantia-
ted. The Cain-like enmity of their persecutors was evidently
directed against their religious faith, and the purity of their lives,
which was a living testimony to condemn those abominations in
which their persecutors lived. “If they have called the master
“of the house Beelzebub, how much more them of his household?”
During the residence of Mother Ann and the Elders, in Harvard,
they visited many places in that quarter, and passed through many
severe trials and sufferings for the testimony of the gospel; but
were blessed, in their labors, with many powerful gifts of God, and
succeeded in planting the word of God in the hearts of many. In
the course of their labors with the believers, they ministered much
divine instruction, enlightened the understandings of many who
embraced the testimony, and taught them how to bear their crosses,
how to overcome their evil propensities, and gain a final victory
over the nature of evil in their own souls. In short, they were
taught how to travel in the way of God, how to increase and grow
in love and union, peace and harmony, and how to gain that abid-
ing treasure which was necessary to support them through all the
trying scenes of this life, and fit them for the everlasting kingdom
of Christ hereafter.
About the beginning of July, 1783, they left Harvard to return
to the westward. On their journey they visited Petersham,
Cheshire, Richmond, Hancock and Stockbridge, in Massachusetts,
and New-Lebanon and Stephentown, in the state of New-York.
In all these places they were followed by great multitudes of people,
had many powerful meetings, and suffered much persecution, par-
ticularly in New-Lebanon, where they were most shamefully and
cruelly abused. On the 4th of September, they left New-Lebanon
and returned to Watervliet, having been absent two years and
three months. Here they were again visited by great numbers
from all parts of the country where the testimony had been receiv-
ed; and here they continued their powerful meetings, where many
souls were awakened by the sound of the gospel, and felt the puri-
fying fire of Zion; and all who were faithful and honest-hearted,
were instructed, strengthened and encouraged, according to their
needs and circumstances, in all things, both spiritual and temporal.
On the 21st of July, 1784, the society was called to sustain a
serious and affecting trial in the decease of Elder William Lee,
who had been a powerful support to Mother Ann, in the great
CHAP. III.] UNITED SocIETY IN AMERICA. 23
weight of care which such a body of believers brought upon her.
This event was the means of preparing the minds of the believers
for a still heavier trial, which they sensibly felt that they must soon
experience, in the loss of the visible presence and protection of their
dearly beloved Mother, the thought of which seemed almost insup-
portable to many. Being herself sensible that her time was short,
she often reminded the people of it, and often exhorted them to
faithfulness and perseverance in the way of God. Having finish-
ed her work on earth, she was called to bid adieu to all terrestrial
things, and was released from her labors, her sorrows and her suf-
ferings, and calmly resignsd her soul to God, on the morning of the
8th of September following.
This solemn event was severely felt and deeply deplored by all
her faithful children; but their present loss was greatly compensa-
ted by the faithful labors of Elder James Whittaker, who succeed-
ed her in the ministry, and who was henceforth called Father
James.
The society being now deprived of the visible presence and
protection of Mother Ann, Father James saw and felt, with many
others, the necessity of laboring for an increase of the substance of
the gospel among the people, in order to maintain the testimony
and protect them from the snares of wickedness which surrounded
them, and the flood of opposition which now seemed ready to burst
in upon them from every quarter. Mother Ann's decease being
publicly known, it was generally and confidently believed by the
world around them, that the society would be dissolved, and the
people return to their former course of life; so that (as they often
expressed themselves) “the delusion would soon be at an end.”
According to this belief, every means which Satan could devise,
was made use of, to seduce the believers from their duty, and turn
their minds from the faith.
But the foundation being laid by Jesus Christ, and established
by the will of God, upon the rock of ages, it could not be over-
thrown by the agency of man nor the malice of devils. And tho
numbers, from time to time, fell off, and lost their union and rela-
tion to the work of God; yet this did not destroy the testimony,
nor weaken the confidence of the faithful. For it has ever proved
true, as testified by Mother Amn, and the first witnesses of the
gospel with her, that no truly faithful soul has ever been left with-
out the protection of God; because the faithfulness and obedience
of such will always ensure God’s protection. And it has proved
equally true, according to the same testimony, that the unfaithful
are like withered branches; tho they may hang on for a season,
and be sustained by the tree; yet when storms arise and the winds
blow, and there is a shaking among the green trees, then the dry
limbs and branches must fall off; for:hey can hold on no longer.
24 COMMENGEMENT OF THE [PART I.
º
The society having, through great labor and much tribulation,
purged out many remaining corruptions, and gained an increasing
power and victory over the fallen nature of the flesh, and having
attained to a greater degree of spiritual light and sensation, were
able to discern and mark, more clearly, the distinction “between
the precious and the vile,” and to draw more closely, the line of
separation which was necessary to protect the people from the
snares of sin. And all those who had been faithful and honest
hearted, being now firmly established in the increasing work of
God, were led in their travel to see and feel the necessity of being
gathered into a more united body, for the benefit of greater protec-
tion, and a further increase of their spiritual travel. In the autumn
of 1785, was raised the first house for public worship ever built by
the Society. From this time the affairs of the Society began to
assume a more regular form and order.
During the ministration of Father James, he visited almost
every place where the testimony of the gospel had been received,
teaching, encouraging and strengthening the believers in their most
holy faith. In this time they found a great increase in their faith
and understanding, and in their power and victory over the nature
of evil, and were gradually prepared for that gospel order and
union, in things spiritual and temporal, which was afterwards es-
tablished among them. Father James having laid the foundation
for the establishment of order, and finished the work which was
given him to do, departed this life at Enfield, in Connecticut, July
20th, 1787.
Father James was succeeded in the ministry by Joseph Meach-
am, who was a native of Enfield in Connecticut, born February
11th, 1740. He was a man of deep penetration and strong men-
tal powers; he had formerly been a Baptist preacher, and was a
leading character in the forementioned revival at New-Lebanon.
Lucy Wright, a woman greatly distinguished for her faithfulness,
wisdom and discretion, was also chosen and appointed as the first
leading character in the female line. She was a native of Pittsfield,
in Massachusetts, born February 5th, 1760. These two had been
eminently useful during Father James’s ministry, and had ably
u pported him in protecting, strengthening and encouraging the
people, and preparing them for the increasing work which was to
follow.
In the progressive manifestations of spiritual light which brought
that increase to view, these two were established by the gift of
God, as spiritual parents in church relation, and first ministers of
gospel order. Under their ministration the people began to gather
into a united body, and were gradually formed into church relation
at New-Lebanon, and united their interest in one common stock,
so as to become one in all things, both spiritual and temporal,
“having all things common.” }
cHAP. iv.] chARAcTER AND MINISTRY, &c. 25
After the example of the church in this place, societies were
formed in many other places where the gospel had been planted,
and successively established upon the same foundation, and prin-
ciples of order and government, as branches of the Mother-church
at New-Lebanon. t -
--ºº ºn
CHAPTER IV. &
Some further account of the life, character and ministry of
R1Other Ann Lee.*
Mother ANN LEE, in her personal appearance, was a woman
rather below the common stature of woman ; thick set, but straight
and otherwise well proportioned and regular in form and features.
Her complexion was light and fair, and her eyes were blue, but
keen and penetrating; her countenance was mild and expressive,
but grave and solemn. Her natural constitution was sound, strong
and healthy. Her manners were plain, simple and easy; yet she
possessed a certain dignity of appearance that inspired confidence
and commanded respect. By many of the world, who saw her
without prejudice, she was called beautiful; and to her faithful
children, she appeared to possess a degree of dignified beauty and
heavenly love, which they had never before discovered among
mortals.
She possessed remarkable powers and faculties of mind in
mature, which were greatly enlarged and strengthened by the gift
of God. At times, when under the power and operation of the
Holy Ghost, her countenance shone with the glory of God, and
her form and actions appeared divinely beautiful and very angelic.
The power and influence of her spirit, at such times, was great
beyond description ; and no one was able to gainsay or resist the
authority by which she spoke.
Tho her words were few, yet they always seemed adapted to
the occasion, and it did not appear that she ever spoke in vain.
Her whole soul appeared to be always engaged in the work of God,
and the Spirit of God seemed to breathe through all her words and
actions. She inspired into the hearts of her faithful children the
greatest fear of God, and excited their highest admiration, love and
respect. But in reproving sin and simmers, the power of her spirit
seemed irresistible, and often struck terror into the souls of every
one present. Her admonitions were sharp, powerful and penetrat-
ing; yet while she struck at that which was evil, she seemed al-
ways anxious to separate and preserve the good.
* Tho the mere description of Mother Ann's person and manners cannot perpetuate the
memory of her heavenly virtues; yet as some very distorted representations of both have
been published to the world by those who never saw hºr face, and who were indebted to
ther most malicious enemies for their disingenuous descriptions, we cannot tº erefore be rà
cused in passing them over in silence.
*N.
26 CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART 1.
Her soul was frequently inspired with such divine efficacy, that,
with a single word or touch of her hand, she would often raise in-
dividuals, and many times, with a few words, a whole assembly,
from a state of deep distress and tribulation of soul, to a state of
great heavenly joy and comfort. Again, she has often ministered,
in a few words, to a large assembly, such a measure of the power
of conviction andgepentance, that in a few minutes the floor has
been wet with tears.
She possessed a degree of discernment and penetration which
nothing short of Divine Wisdom could inspire. In her labors
with young believers, she seemed to penetrate the inmost recesses
of their souls, and would often lay open the state of their minds
more clearly than they were able to do of themselves. It often
seemed that not a soul near her could hide the most secret feelings
from her; and in whatever she asserted for truth, tho at the time
ever so doubtful to others, she was never known to be in the least
mistaken.
Her mind rose superior to the ordinary passions of human na-
ture, and her great labor seemed to be, to subdue those passions
in her followers, and to inspire their souls with divine and heaven-
ly affections. During the whole period of her ministry, she was
mever known to be in the least degree ruffled, or out of temper with
any one; but even in the severest reproof, she appeared to feel
unbounded charity for those she reproved, and anxious only to put
away the evil and cherish the good.
Tho Mother Ann, in the course of her ministry, passed through
many scenes of sorrow and tribulation of soul; yet she was often
filled with heavenly joy and comfort. When she rejoiced under
the inſluence of Divine Power, her joy seemed far above all earth-
ly joys; the heavenly melody of her voice, in the gift of divine
songs, was beyond description; and to those around her, it seemed
as if her whole soul was in harmony with the angelic host, rejoic-
ing in the mansions of glory. When she wept, it appeared as tho
every feeling person was constrained to weep with her. She was
often in tears and supplication before God; and such was the di-
vine sympathy of her weeping soul, as often to melt the feelings of
a whole assembly into tears with her; and it seemed at such times,
as tho the very sound of her voice was enough to cause the most
adamantean heart to break and yield before God. In times of
tribulation she was often heard to say, “There is no sorrow like
iny sorrow.” It appeared that every feeling and faculty of her
soul and body was wholly devoted to the will of God in all things.
She often said, “Once I served God through fear; but now I serve
“ him through love.” • * * -
So great was her sense of the lost state of mankind, and so ar-
dent her desire for their deliverance from the bondage of sin, and
eHAP. Ivl OF MOTHER ANN LEE. 27
from the awful state of misery which she clearly foresaw awaited
sinners, that she was often in the deepest agony of soul, and the
most fervent cries to God for their salvation. In expressing her
compassionate feelings to the believers, on this subject, she often
wept like a child under the most excessive sorrow.
Mother Ann, in her ordinary manners and deportment, was
meek, simple and harmless, very just, upright and conscientious
in all her conduct, and very careful to wrong no one in any man-
ner whatever, and she was always ready to acknowledge an act
of kindness from any person, even from her most inveterate ene-
mies. She often manifested, with great humility and thankfulness,
her continual dependence on the gift of God, and humbly acknowl-
edged his goodness and mercy to her under all her trials and suf-
ferings, and frequently expressed her thankfulness for the blessings
she received. She was far from assuming to herself any power or
authority whatever; but that which was given her of God, she
felt herself bound to exercise in strict obedience to his Divine Will.
When any of the believers kneeled before her, she would often
say, “Dont kneel to me, but kneel to God; I am but your fellow
servant.” She often kneeled herself, when any one kneeled be-
fore her.
In her daily deportment she manifested the most distinguish-
ing marks of humiliation. She frequently waited on those who
came to see her, with the same attention and assiduity as tho
she had been a mere servant in the family. When people came
who were fatigued with their journey, who were feeble, wet or
cold, she often used to wait upon them with the greatest kindness,
and with her own hands, make all necessary provision for their
comfort. Sometimes, while waiting upon them, she would say,
“I am among you as one that serveth.” When great numbers of
people were collected and assembled at the table, she often waited
upon them with all the attention of a dutiful and faithful servant.
She never repined at poverty, nor desired delicious fare for her-
self; but always accommodated herself to her circumstances,
however poor or scanty her provisions ; and would readily econo-
mize in such a manner as to render the poorest fare comfortable,
and make a little suffice. When occasion required, she would
cheerfully make her meal on the fragments left by others, and say,
“This is good enough for me; for it is the blessing of God, and
must not be lost.” She many times took such occasions, both at
home and abroad, to teach the people prudence and economy,
and was often heard to speak to them after this manner : “You
“must be prudent and saving of every good thing that God bless-
“es you with ; so that you may have wherewith to give to them
“ that stand in need. You cannot make a spear of grass nor a
* kernel of grain grow, if you knew you must die for the want of
28 CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART Is
“it. It is by the blessing of God that these things come: there.
“fore you ought not to waste the least thing.”
Mother Ann was very remarkable, not only for her humility,
charity and zeal to do good; but also for her temperance, sobriety,
industry, prudence and good economy. Being herself wholly de-
voted to the cause of God, she was ever faithful in her endeavors,
both by precept and example, to plant the same good qualifications
in her followers; so that in all things, she was a pattern of godli-
ness, and showed herself to be a Mother indeed, in every good
word and work.
In her labors and instructions for the increase of the gospel
among the believers, she spared no time nor pains; but seemed
willing at all times to spend her strength and her life for the ad-
vancement of the work of God. She often used to say to the be-
lievers who visited her, and were about to return home, “The
“gospel is the greatest treasure that souls can possess; go home
“ and be faithful; put your hands to work, and give your hearts
“ to God. Beware of covetousness, which is as the sin of witch-
“craft; if you have any thing to spare, give it to the poor.” Her
love and charity seemed boundless, always ready to succor the
afflicted, and minister to the wants of the needy. She often said
to those in comfortable circumstances, “How many poor crea-
“tures there are in the world who suffer with hunger and cold,
“ and here you have enough How thankful you ought to be to
“God for his tender mercies towards you!”
Mother Ann often called the attention of the believers to faith-
fulness in the care and management of their temporal concerns.
She frequently enjoined it upon them as a necessary duty, to be
industrious in business; to be neat and cleanly, and observe good
economy; to be prudent and saving, and let nothing be lost througli
carelessness or neglect; to use the things of this world as not
abusing them ; to avoid equally covetousness and prodigality; to
be kind and charitable to the poor, and to keep clear of debt.
These things were strictly enjoined upon the believers, from time
to time, as matters of importance to secure a spiritual blessing.
For it was often testified by Mother Ann, and proved by the ex-
perience of many, that those who were unfaithful in temporal
things, could not find the blessing and protection of God in their
spiritual travel : hence a faithful and wise improvement of their
time and talents, in the things of time, was essentially necessary in
order to inherit the true riches.
In the spring of 1783, while Mother Ann was at Ashfield, in
Massachusetts, where many believers had collected from a distance;
and having had considerable opportunity to be taught and instruc-
ted in the way of God, they were about to return home. In tak-
ing leave of them, Mother Ann spoke to the brethren as follows:
{
|
{
i
CHAP. Iv) OF MOTHIER ANN LEE. 29
“It is now spring of the year, and you have all had the privilege
“ of being taught the way of God; and now you may all go home
“ and be faithful with your hands. Every faithful man will go
“forth and put up his fences in season, and will plough his ground
“ in season, and put his crops into the ground in season; and such
“a man may with confidence look for a blessing. But the sloth-
“ful and indolent will say, to-morrow will do as well, and to-mor-
“ row will do as well. Such a man never finds a blessing; if he
“ has any thing it is afterwards, and there seems to be no blessing
“ in it. Just so he is in spiritual things; he will be slothful in
“ the work of God, and he will reap his reward. He that is un-
“faithful in the unrighteous mammon, how can he be trusted with
“ the true riches P”*
In addressing a certain sister who was the mother of a family,
and had considerable charge upon her, Mother Ann spoke thus;
“Be faithful to keep the gospel; be meat and industrious; keep
“your family’s clothes clean and decent; see that your house is
“ kept clean; and your victuals prepared in good order; that
“when the brethren come home from their hard work, they can
“bless you, and eat their food with thankfulness, without mur-
“muring, and be able to worship God in the beauty of holiness.
“Watch and be careful; don’t speak harsh, nor cast reflections
“upon them; but let your words be ſew and seasoned with grace.”
The mother of a large and respectable family, who had all
embraced the testimony, asked Mother Ann's counsel concerning
some superfluities which her family had in possession ; such as
gold necklaces, jewels, rings, silver buckles, and other ornaments
of the kind, and desired to know what she should do with them.
Mother Ann replied, “You may let the moles and bats have
“ them,” that is, the children of this world : for they set their
“hearts upon such things; but the people of God do not want
“ them.” She then added, “You ought to dress yourself in mod-
“est apparel, such as becomes the people of God, and teach your
“family to do likewise. You ought to be industrious and prudent,
“ and not live a sumptuous and gluttonous life; but labor for a
“meek and quiet spirit, and see that your family is kept decent
“ and regular in all their goings forth, that others may see your
“example of faith and good works, and acknowledge the work
“ of God in your family.”
Again : in addressing the same sister, together with a number
of others who were in good temporal circumstances, she said,
“You must remember the poor and needy, the widow and the
“fatherless; and deal out your bread to the hungry and your
“ clothes to the naked. Your natures will say, They may work
“ and get these things for themselves; but Christ said, Give to
* See Luke xvi. 11. * Isaiah ii. 20.
D 2
36) CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART f.
“ him that asketh. You must put away your covetousness, your
“lust and your filthiness, and be prepared for the increase of the
“gospel: for the time will come when this gospel will be preached
“to all nations, and many will flock to Tion to hear the word of
“ the Lord.”
In answer to a certain sister who spoke to her concerning a
poor woman that had applied to her for help, she said, “Remem-
“ber the cries of those who are in need and trouble ; that when
“you are in trouble, God may hear your cries.”
As Mother Ann was ever attentive to the protection and wel-
fare of all her children, whatever their age, condition or circum-
stances, she often manifested her care and concern for the youth
and children, and frequently counselled and instructed believing
parents concerning their children, and enjoined it upon them to
bring them up in the fear of God and teach them their duty. She
often spoke to the youth and children herself, and counselled them
to be faithful and obedient to their parents; to be good children,
and never sin against God by giving way to any wickedness.
In the spring of 1781, while a large collection of believers were
assembled at Watervliet, Mother Ann, in addressing them, endea-
vored to show them the necessity of becoming like little children,
in order to gain an inheritance in the kingdom of God, and in her
discourse, spoke particularly concerning little children. “Little
“ children,” said she, “are nearer to the Kingdom of Heaven than
“ those of riper age. Christ took little children in his arms and
“blessed them, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me,
“ and forbid them not : for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven.
‘Little children are simple and innocent ; they should be brought
“ up so, and they ought never to be brought out of it. If they
“were brought up in simplicity, they would receive good as easy
“as they would evil. God at first created the soul pure and in-
“nocent; and when souls are redeemed from their loss, they will
“ be restored to God, and will again be pure and innocent.”
When she was at Samuel Fitch's, in Richmond, (Massachusetts)
where she was visited by many of the believers, she spoke to a
number of the sisters who were parents, concerning children, and
endeavored to impress upon their minds their responsibility for
their children, whom they had been instrumental in bringing into
the world. She said, “It needs great wisdom to bring up children;
“ and if they are rightly taught, they will grow up in the way of
“God. You ought not to cross your children unnecessarily : for
“it makes them illnatured ; and little children do not know how
“to govern their natures. You ought not to blame them for every
“little fault or childish notion; but when they are disobedient, then
“let them feel your severity, and let your word be a law to them.
“Put you ought never to speak to your children in a passion; for
“if you do, you will put devils into them.”
º
CHAP. IV.] OF MOTHER ANN LEE. 31
Being at Elijah Wilds's, in Shirley, Mother Ann felt a particular
impression to examine the children and search out evil among
them, and soon found that thay had idols and foolish toys in their
possession. She admonished their parents for indulging their
children in these things, and testified that such things would shut
out the gift of God from their souls, and that if children were care-
fully kept from such foolish playthings, and suitably instructed
by their parents, they would abound in the gifts of God, and grow
up in the gospel. “When I was a child.” said she, “my mind
“ was taken up with the things of God, so that I saw heavenly
“ visions, instead of trifling toys.”
Shortly before Mother Ann's imprisonment in Albany, a num-
ber of young people came to see her, who had lately embraced the
testimony with their parents. Having tarried several days, and
seen and felt the great power of God, and received much good in-
struction, and being about to take their leave, she spoke to them
as follows:
“When you return home, you must be diligent with your hands;
“for godliness does not lead to idleness. The devil tempts others;
“but an idle person tempts the devil. When you are at work,
“doing your duty in the giſt of God, the devil can have no power
“over you; because then there is no room for temptations. You
“must be obedient to your parents. Children should obey their
“ parents: for this is right; and the younger should submit to the
“elder. You must come up to the requirement of the law. Christ
“did not come to destroy the law, but to fulfil it; and you must
“do the same. Arm yourselves with meekness and patience. If
“you improve in one talent, God will give you more. Go home
“ and be obedient; this is the way I have found salvation, and you
“must find it in the same way; by being obedient.”
A certain youth came one day to Mother Ann, with some peach
and plumb stones in his hand, and asked her if he might plant them.
“Yea,” replied she, “do all your work as tho you had a thousand
“years to live, and as you would if you knew you must die to-
“ morrow.”
A young man who had but lately set out to take up his cross,
having been overcome with a spirit of jealousy and false judging,
and being convicted of his wrong, came and confessed it before
Mother Ann. After kindly admonishing him to beware of such a
spirit in future, she said, “Creatures see and judge according to
“the state they are in, and according to the influence they are
“under. When their senses are darkened by the flesh, and their
“minds are under the influence of an evil spirit, they see and judge
“according to the dictates of that evil spirit; but when that fleshly
“sense is purged away, and they are under the influence of the
“spirit of Christ, then they can see and judge according to truth.”
32 CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART f.
While she was at Ashfield, there came a man to see her who
was in trouble of mind; and feeling a deep sense of his own evil
mature, he said to her, “Mother, I am full of evil.” She turned
her eyes upon him, and after a momentary pause, replied, “Nay,
“you are not full of evil: for if you were full of evil, there could
“be no room in you to receive any good. You have indeed a
“great deal of evil in you; but this conviction that you feel is
“good.”
Being visited one day by some men of note, whose curiosity had
led them to see and converse with her, and after answering their
questions, and relating some of her religious experience and suffer-
ings, she concluded her discourse to them in these words; “I was
“once as you are; I had feet, but they walked in forbidden paths;
“I had hands, but they handled unclean things; I had eyes, but
“ they saw nothing of God aright. But now my eyes see, my ears
“hear, and my hands handle the word of life.”
In reproving and condemning sin, and all manner of evil, in
feelings, words and actions, the power of Mother Ann’s testimony
was beyond description. As nothing appeared to bring such ex-
cessive sufferings and tribulation of soul upon her as sin among
believers; so the evident manifestation of the power of God, through
her, in reproving it, was often so extraordinary as to cause the
most stubborn and stout-hearted to shake and tremble in her pre-
sence, like a leaf shaken with the wind.
In the autumn of 1783, when many believers were assembled at
Watervliet, some individuals among them, having been overcome
with hard feelings, which brought distress of soul upon Mother Ann,
she came into the room urūder a solemn weight of the power of
God, and after looking round upon the assembly, she spoke with
great power as follows: “Hear ye my words, you that have hard
“feelings one against another, and yet think to keep the way of
“God | You are awfully mistaken You cannot prosper | Tho
“ you may hang on for a while, yet you will certainly fall off,
“like withered branches; and when you drop into hell, these hard
“feelings will be like devouring worms to torment you! Remem-
“ber my words ! You can never enter the Kingdom of God with
“hardness against any one: for God is love; and if you love God,
“you will love one another.”
At another time there came two women who were at strife with
each other; each one venting, in bitter words, her hard feelings
against the other, and each one justifying herself and condemning
the other. On hearing this, Mother Ann reproved them and said,
“You are wicked women You are both in the wrong. Humble
“yourselves before God, and put away your wrongs, or you can
“ never be saved; and instead of your hard feelings, make con-
“fession to each other: for God will not accept you in any other
CHAP. iv.] OF MOTHER ANN LEE. 33
“ way; he will not love you, except you love one another.” These
words were spoken with such great power of God, that the women
were struck with amazement, and falling upon their knees, both
confessed themselves in the wrong; and taking each other by the
hand, they embraced one another with such affectionate expressions
of love and friendship, that even the bye-standers seemed much
affected at the scene.
Mother Ann having, on a particular occasion, reproved a cer-
tain sister, said to her, “You may always remember that the
“reproof of a friend is better than the kiss of an enemy.” To
another sister whom she had reproved, she said, “When I reprove
“you, it is to bring your soul nearer to my soul, and nearer to
“ God.” -
The doctrine of confessing every secret sin, one by one, before
the witnesses of God, was uniformly and plainly taught by Mother
Ann, from the beginning of her ministry. Her labors in this par-
ticular, were often attended with such mighty power of God, and
such sharp and piercing testimony, that few who heard it were
able to resist its convicting power. Many were so powerfully
wrought upon, that they could not refrain from crying out and con-
ſessing their sins on the spot. Others whose feelings were more
bound by the fear of the cross, could find no rest, day nor night,
from the tormenting weight of their sins, till they had honestly
confessed them before some witness of God, appointed for that pur-
pose. And every one who was honest and faithful in that impor-
tant work, soon experienced the forgiving power of God, and felt
an inward evidence of union and relation to the Kingdom of
Heaven.
After Mother Ann arrived in Harvard, in the summer of 1781,
she was visited by many people who had heard of her from com-
moſſ, report; and after hearing Christ preached in his true and
sinless character, and the loss of man laid open, and its real nature
exposed to view, and the only possible way for souls to find re-
demption from that loss, they were convinced that Christ had
come, in very deed, without sin unto salvation. She then address-
ed them as follows:
“The first step of obedience that any of you can take, is to
“confess your sins to God before his witnesses. Herein Christ is
“to be found as a Savior and forgiver of sins, and no where else:
“for herein is contained the promise of God; but in no other way,
“It is the heart which God looks at: the heart with its hidden
“abominations covered and concealed from the witnesses of Christ,
“ becomes like a cage of unclean birds, and never can be cleansed
“short of a full and free confession. They that honestly confess
“all their sins, with a full determination to forsake them forever,
“will find strength of God to forsake them; and in taking up their
34 CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART I.
“crosses against every known sin, and following Christ in the re-
“generation, in that life of obedience, they will be clothed with the
“righteousness of Christ, and become the sons and daughters of
“God, being heirs of God, and joint heirs with Jesus Christ.”
To those who came to confess their sins to her, she said, “If
“you confess your sins, you must confess them to God: we are
“but his witnesses.” To such as asked her forgiveness, she used
to say, “I can freely forgive you, and I pray God to forgive you.
“It is God that ſorgives sins; I am but your fellow servant.”
Mother Ann was greatly blessed with heavenly visions, prophe-
cies and divine revelations; and thus, by the operation of the
Spirit of Christ, in her, she was able to reveal the mind and will
of God to the people, and to administer a greater measure of di-
vine light and purifying power than had been given to any people
since the fall of man; but she uniformly acknowledged the power
and work to be of Christ.f To relate the numerous instances of
those extraordinary manifestations of God which, from time to time,
she revealed to her people, and of the truth of which she gave the
most incontestable evidence, would far exceed the proposed limits
of this work. But in justice to the cause of truth, we think it pro-
per to state a few instances of her prophetic testimony, which may
not be unacceptable to the candid reader, especially as some of
them have since been fully realized.
In addressing an assembly of believers at Watervliet, shortly
after her return from Poughkeepsie, she spoke as follows: “You
“are called in relation to all the rest of mankind; and through your
“faith and obedience, they must receive the gospel. Pain and suf-
“ferings will never cease in the church until all souls have heard the
“gospel of salvation: for this gospel will be freely offered to all souls,
“ and will be a savor of life unto life, or of death unto death. The
“increase of the gospel, at the first, will be small ; but the time will
“come when souls will embrace it by hundreds and by thousands:
“for this testimony will overcome all nations ; it will increase till
“the covering is taken off; then mankind will see the rottenness
“ of Antichrist's foundation ; then those souls that are bound in
“ their sins, will call to the rocks and to the mountains to cover
“them. But the saints will never be overcome again by the beast-
“ly power of Antichrist. The work of God, in this day, is an
“inward, spiritual work; it is not so great, in outward appearance,
“ as it was in past dispensations; and therefore souls must be very
“cautious how they treat this gospel: for such as finally reject
“this testimony, will not have another day.”
* See t. John i 9
t The foundation of the gospel was laid in Jesus Christ, who was the chief corner stone,
and the work of salvatiºn can inever be more perfect in any person than it was in him : for
in all things he bºth the preeminence Rut the fulness of his work was nºt then made
manifest to the body; the refore, in this last dispensation, the purifying work of the gospel
is more effectual in the body at large, than it was in the day of Christ's first appearing.
: See Isa, xxv 7.
CHAP. lv.] OF MOTHER ANN I.E.E. 35
At another time she spoke to a number of believers as follows:
“Some of you think that you will yet subdue and overcome the
“ nations of the earth; but you are mistaken : they have that work
“ to do themselves. They will fight and devour and dash each other
“to pieces, until they become so humbled as to be willing to re-
“ ceive the gospel.” Again she spoke with great power and en-
ergy of spirit, and said, “They will build up ; but God will pull
“ down they will build up; but God will pull down, until they
“can build no more but you will have nothing to do with it.”
Being one day in deep tribulation of soul, she wept with fervent
cries to God, in consideration of the scattered state of believers.
“But,” said she, “the time will come when the church will be
“gathered into order; but not till after my decease.” She also said,
“After my departure there will come grievous wolves, who will
“ destroy many of the flock.” Again she said, “The wisdom
“ and knowledge and light of God will increase in the church until
“Zion shall travel to her full glory.” Afterwards she said, “It
“will not be my lot, nor the lot of any that came with me from
“England, to gather and build up the church; but it will be the
“lot of Joseph Meacham and others.” Again she said, “Joseph
“Meacham is my first-born son in America; he will gather the
“ church into order; but I shall not live to see it.”
One day, as she was walking the floor under great power of
God, and singing a very melodious song by divine inspiration, her
mind apparently abstracted from all the objects which surrounded
her, she suddenly stopped, and turning to the people in the room,
she said, “I feel a special gift of God; I feel the power of God
“running all over me.” And extending her hand towards the
southwest, she added, “The next opening of the gospel will be in
“the southwest; it will be at a great distance, and there will be
“a great work of God.” And turning to Eliphalet Slosson, she
said, “You may live to see it; but I shall not.” This prophecy
she repeated at different times, and in different places, of which
numbers now living can bear witness. These predictions have
been amply fulfilled. -
As Mother Ann was one day viewing an apple tree in full
blossom, she said, “How beautiful this tree looks now ! But some
“ of the apples will soon fall off; some will hold on longer; some
“will hold on till they are full half grown, and them fall off; and
“some will get ripe. So it is with souls that set out in the way of
“God. Many will set out very fair, and soon fall away; some
“will go further, and then fall off; some will go still further, and
“then fall; and some will go through.” ..
Near the close of Mother Ann's labors in this world, a number
* This naturai similitude shows not what necessarily must take place where the seed of
the gospel is sowe, but what actually does take place, and is sicilár to Christ's parable ot
!he sow; r. .
36 CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART I.
of young people from New-Lebanon, came to Watervliet to see
her. Having had considerable opportunity of instruction in the
things of God, before they took their leave of her, to return home,
she addressed them as follows:
“l have taught you the way of God; you must keep it. I am
“but one; I do my work; you must do yours. I wish you knew
“your day and your privilege; you have a privilege which many
“souls have desired and could not obtain. You are young, and
“you have a privilege to take up your crosses in the prime of your
“activity. If you take up your crosses against the lust of the
“flesh, while you have power to please yourselves, you offer to
“God the first fruits of your lives; and there is a glorious crown
“for all who take up their crosses against the flesh in this world:
“such souls will receive that honor and crown of glory which no
“other souls can ever obtain. All souls will have a privilege of
“this gospel, either in this world or in the world of spirits; but
“ those that have the offer of the gospel in this world, if they final-
“ly reject it, they will never have another day.” You have your
“ day now; you can travel out of your loss by obedience, by tak-
“ing up the same cross that Christ elid; but souls in the world of
“spirits have to travel through sufferings, passing from prison to
“prison, until they find the mercy of God. But those who volum-
“tarily take up their crosses in this world, and faithfully endure
“to the end, will be more bright and glorious than any others;
“ they will be kings and priests unto God.”
After the decease of Elder William Lee, who had been an able
support to Mother Ann, in the great weight of care and burden
which such a body of believers brought upon her, she began visi-
bly to decline in bodily strength; and knowing that her work on
earth was nearly at a close, she endeavored to prepare the minds
of the believers for the event. She repeatedly told them that she
was about to leave them, and often warned them to be faithful.
She said, “Brother William is gone, and it will soon be said of me,
“ that I am gone too.” She was continually visited by believers
from a distance, and while her strength remained, she continued to
counsel and encourage them to faithfulness in the way of God,
telling them that her time was short, and they must keep the way
of God for themselves.
About three days before her decease, Job Bishopf came to Wa-
tervliet, and feeling a great desire to see her once more in the body,
she sent for him into her room. She was sitting in her chair; her
bodily strength was far exhausted; but her mind was sound, and
* Menning that they will never have another dispensation of the gospel after death; be.
cause this being tº e last dispensation of God’s grace to man, those who ſually reject tº its
offers, C , in have no more
f. A ſºjthful young believer, nº laborer among the people, who is now the first elder bad
father of the church in New Hampshire. -
EHAP. Iv.] ÖF MOTHER ANN LEE. 37
her spirit firm and solid; but calm and serene. She spoke to him
and said, “I shall soon be taken out of this body ; but the gospel
“will never be taken away from you, if you are faithful. Be not
“ discouraged, nor cast down: for God will not leave his people
“without a leader. Elder James and Elder Joseph will be left,
“ and there will be a great increase of the gifts of God to all who
“ are faithful and obedient. Now you are a young man, and have
“received many blessed gifts of God; go, be faithful and zealous;
“ and when you travel to your lot in the church, all these beautiful
“giſts will be yours.” Job wept, and expressed his sorrowful
feelings in parting with her, never expecting to see her any more
in this world. “Be of good comfort,” said she; “cleave to Elder
“Joseph ; he will be your father, and will take care of you.”
Thus she continued, as long as her strength remained, to exhort
and comfort all who came to see her. She discovered no anxiety
for herself; her principle concern seemed to be to encourage her
children to persevere in the way of God, to comfort them in their
sorrow, and reconcile them to her departure. And altho her bodi-
ly sufferings were great; yet she appeared calm, peaceable and
comfortable in spirit, and licr usual patience and ſortitude appear-
ed conspicuous to the end. She continually grew weaker in body
until the 8th of September, between twelve and one o'clock in the
morning, when she breathed her last, without a struggle or a groan.
Before her departure, she repeatedly told those about her that she
was going home. Just before she expired, she said, “I see broth-
“er William coming in a glorious chariot to take me home.” Elder
John Hocknell, who was greatly gifted in visions, testified that
when the breath left her body, he saw in vision a golden chariot,
drawn by four white horses, which received and waſted her soul
out of his sight.*
* The visions, prophecies and revelations mentioned in this work,
will perhaps be rejected by an unbelieving world, as the effects of en.
thusiasm, superstition and fanaticism. But tho there may be many,
even among the professors of christianity, who, generally speaking, have
Ilo faith in such manifestations beyond the comprehension of their na-
tural senses and daily experience; yet this cannot alter the truth, nor
disammul facts. ... Therefore, let the sneering unbeliever reflect that the
same charge will equally apply to the prophets and saints of all pre-
ceding dispensations, who abounded in those gifts. Elijah went up in
a fiery chariot, and a cloud received Jesus out of sight. The prophets
saw many wonderful visions, and received many revelations, and by di-
vine inspiration, delivered many remarkable prophecies of future events;
and who has ever assured man that those who walk in the Spirit of
Christ, and enjoy communion with the heavenly world, shall not be
able to see heavenly visions, and discern spiritual things, and be blessed
with spiritual understanding, in this day, as well as under former dis-
pensations ! It is the darkness of a fallen nature which obscures the
light of the soul, and the veil of the flesh which shuts celestial scenes
from the view of man; but the Spirit of God is, “the same yesterday,
tn-day and forever.” F. e
38 LIFE AND CHARACTER [PART I.
Thus departed from this mortal stage, that extraordinary female
who was chosen of God to commence, in this latter day, the regen-
eration of a lost world; in whom Christ, in very deed, appeared
the second time without sin unto salvation; whose life of righteous-
mess excited against her the enmity of the wicked, and against
whose character the envenomed tongue of slander has never ceased
to pour forth its calumnies even to this day. In her the sufferings
of Christ appeared conspicuous; in her the righteousness of Christ
was clearly manifested to all her faithful followers. In her Christ
was revealed the Lord from Heaven, a quickening Spirit; in her
was renewed his example of perfect obedience to the will of his
heavenly Father; in her was revived the way of life and salvation
by the cross, and she plainly taught the impossibility of obtaining
it in any other way. In her was first wrought the complete re-
temption of the female; and through her ministration a way was
opened for the restoration of the female character to its proper lot
and dignity, from which it had been degraded by the transgression
of the first woman.
* : * ~ *-n
CHAPTER W.
A short account of the life and character of Elder H'illiam Lee.
WILLIAM LEF, was the fourth son of John Lee, and the brother
of Mother Ann Lee. He was born in the town of Manchester, in
England, in 1740, and was brought up in the occupation of a
blacksmith by his father. He was married, and had one son; and
was afterwards an officer of horse in the king's royal guard, belong-
ing to a volunteer regiment called the Oxford Blues.
In his person he was of a commanding figure, rather above
middling height, thick set, large limbs and strong body. His hair
was of a light chesnut brown, his eyes blue, his countenance open
and very bold, calculated to inspire confidence and respect. He
possessed a strong and robust constitution; his voice was strong,
clear and sonorous ; in short he was very remarkable for his
strength, both of body and mind. In his faith he was firm, zeal-
ous and powerful. He feared not the face of man; but was faith-
ful, laborious and persevering in the cause of God. In times of
mobs and persecutions he was always undaunted, and often testi-
fied against the wickedness of his persecutors with a boldness and
conſidence which clearly evinced that he was a stranger to the
fear of man.
Concerning his first embracing the testimony of the gospel, he
gave the following account of himself. That he was a proud,
haughty young man, fond of dress and gaiety, and ambitious of
honor and fame: that in the midst of his pursuit of worldly glory
CHAP. v.] ÖF ELIDER WILLIAMI LEE, 39
he ſell under deep conviction of sin. In this state of mind he went
to see his sister Amm, who was then a member of the society under
the ministry of James and Jane Wardley. When he arrived at
his sister's, being very gaily dressed, she reproved him for his
pride, showed him his dangerous situation, and greatly increased
his convictions. He immediately threw off his ruffles and his
silks, and put his hands to work and his heart to God, and faith-
fully labored to find the forgiveness of his sins and acceptance with
God. -
Concerning some of his religious exercises, in the first of his
faith, he gave the following account. “Beſore I confessed my
“sins, I felt great tribulation; and after I had confessed them, I
“ cried to God, day and night, till I heard an audible voice from
“Heaven, saying, William thy sins are forgiven.” He further
said, “Mother's testimony was so awakening to my soul, that
“when I was at work over my anvil, I sometimes felt so weary
“ that I would have given any thing if I could have set down and
“rested myself upon my anvil one minute; but I durst not; for I
“felt my soul, as it were, upon the point of a needle, and there-
“fore kept my hands to work, and my soul in continual labor to
“God. And often when I went to my meals, I felt so unworthy
“to put any of the creation of God into my mouth, that I could
* not eat, but wept and went back to my work again.”
He further stated, that he frequented the society of James and
Jane Wardley; and when he was in tribulation, he sometimes
opened his trials and feelings to them, and was encouraged by them;
but instead of crying to God for victory over the evil which caused
his tribulation, he suffered himself to rest upon their encourage-
ment, which gave him some releasement of mind. But when he
returned to his sister again, she would often spoil his comfort by
shewing him his real situation, which would again plunge him into
deeper tribulation than he had felt before. This made him cry ear-
nestly to God, till he gained releasement for himself, according to
her counsel.
When Mother Ann received the revelation of God against the
flesh, William united with her, and zealously stood forth in her
defence against her persecutors. This raised the enmity of his
neighbors and acquaintances, who opposed and persecuted him.
He frequently suffered abuse from mobs and persecutors, and some
of the scars which he received from the wicked, in consequence of
his faith and testimony, he carried with him through life. He
once received a stroke upon his head, from a mob, with an
iron fire-hook, which fractured his scull; he fell apparently dead,
and bled profusely. But the wicked, with all their abuses, were
never able to overcome his faith, nor suppress his testimony.
He passed through many scenes of suffering, both of body and
1() [.. IFE AND CHARACTER [PA RT.<!,
soul, and seemed destined, through the whole course of his faitli,
to suffer for the gospel’s sake. Tho in his creation he was a man
of remarkable strength of body, as well as of fortitude of mind;
yet such was often the degree of his sufferings, that he has been,
in a short time, reduced to the weakness of a child, through excess
of sufferings. But he was often suddenly released by the power
of God, and often had his soul instantly filled with heavenly songs
of joy and comfort. It is asserted by those who were intimately
acquainted with him during the whole period of his ministry in
America, that he was truly, “a man of sorrows and acquainted
with grief;” that he was indeed an apostle in sufferings; and that,
at times, when he was released from sufferings, he was often filled
with such fulness of heavenly joy, that his soul seemed to be in
the mansions of glory.
Elder William’s soul was greatly enriched with the gifts of God,
in visions, revelations, and other divine manifestations ; and he
abounded in mercy, love and charity; but possessed a very pow-
erful spirit, and maintained a swift testimony against all sin. Tho
he seldom spoke much in public; yet he was eminently useful in
teaching, encouraging and strengthening the believers under all
their trials and difficulties. He was remarkable for tenderness
of heart, and would often weep like a child, for the sufferings and
afflictions of God’s people. In tears he often expressed his great
thankfulness for the gospel, and for the gifts and blessings of God,
both in things spiritual and temporal. So feelingly alive was his
soul to the goodnes and mercy of God, even for the smallest bene-
fits, that he has been observed, when going to wash himself, to
weep and say, “I thank Heaven for this water; for it is the bless-
“ing of Heaven.”
Many times when he sat down to his meals, he would express
his thankfulness, with tears in his eyes, for the goodness of God in
providing these temporal blessings for the comfort and support of
life. One day at Ashfield, as he was going to sit down to the
table with a number of young believers, he spoke and said, “I fear
“ that you are not so thankful as you ought to be, for the good
“things that God provides for you ; but you will eat and drink
“ of these precious things, and not consider from whence they
“come. The sin of ingratitude is a great sin; see that you are
“not guilty of it. I often eat my food with thankfulness and tears,
“every mouthful I eat.” They sat down, and Elder William's
tears flowed, with frequent expressions of thankfulness to God,
during the whole time they were eating.”
Tho Elder William possessed great kindness and eharity, and
such flows of heavenly love, that he never failed to gain the love
and affections of every faithful believer; yet in reproving sin,
such was the power of God in him, that his very spirit seemed like
cHAP. V.] OF ELDER WILLIAM LEE, 41.
a two-edged sword against sin, and every one that had any feeling
sense of sin at such times, could not but tremble at the sound of
his voice. Sometimes he used to reprove the believers for walk-
ing about in a careless, thoughtless manner, as tho they did not
feel the fear of God, and would say to them, “You ought to pass
“by each other like angels; but instead of that, you appear to me
“ more like the troubled sea, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
“But I can but be sorry for you; and it feels to me as if there were
“ no sorrow like my sorrow.” .
In delivering a short and very powerful testimony against sin,
to an assembly of believers at Petersham, in which he admonish-
ed the people to a faithful and honest confession of their sins, he
concluded in these words; “Altho we rebuke sin; yet we have
“nothing against the soul; it is only against the devil that soweth
“tares among the wheat. One sin, wilfully covered, will be like
“mountains of lead upon the soul, to sink it from the presence of
<< God.”
Being one day in conversation with Ephraim Welch,” concern-
ing the war which then existed in America, and the great troubles
occasioned thereby, Elder William said, “Wars will never cease
“until God has finished his work with the nations of the earth;
“ and altho it may be buried, like fire, for a season; yet it will
“break out, with sevenfold increase, among the nations of the
“earth.” Again he said; “The same sword which has persecu-
“ted the people of God, will be turned into the world among them-
“selves, and it will never be sheathed until it has done its work.”
Sometimes he used to say, “We are poor; but we are able to
* make many rich; poor afflicted people of God Once I served
“God out of fear; but now I serve him out of pure love.” Some-
times he used to say, “I love my Mother; altho she is my sister;
“yet she has become my Mother, and the Lord God has made me
“to love her.” When great numbers of believers came to Water-
vliet, to see them, he would often meet them at the door, and say,
“Come in, brethren and sisters, come in; we have but little room
“in our house ; but we have a great deal of room in our hearts.”
Tho Elder William was motgifted in public speaking; yet he had
a very feeling soul; and his speeches, whether in public or private,
were often very pathetic, and always sententious and power-
ful, capable of awakening the attention and feelings of the most
stupid and careless. He labored but little in public word and doc-
trime; but his gift and strength were almost continually exorcised
in sufferings. His work of suffering continued to the end of his
days; nor did he appear to die by any natural infirmity; but seem-
ed to give up his life in sufferings.
During the last days of his life, tho his end was evidently near,
* A believer who lately deceased at Hºncºck, -
42. LIFE, CHARACTER AND MINISTRY ſpART 1.
and his bodily sufferings extreme; yet his soul seemed to be filled
with the love and power of God. His spirit was comfortable and
joyful, and his zeal and fortitude unabated, even to the last. When
any of the brethren and sisters came in to see him, instead of com-
plaining of his sufferings, he would often express his joy and com-
fort, his love to the work of God, and his desires for their faithful-
ness and prosperity in the gospel. He was an eminent example
of patience and meekness under sufferings, and always manifested
his willingness to suffer for the increase of the gospel.
Elder William delighted greatly in singing divine songs, for
which he had a remarkable gift; his voice was strong, and his
music melodious and powerful; and when under the immediate
operation of the power of God, it seemed like the music of some
superior being. A little before he expired, being unable to sing, he
rose from his bed, and asked one of the brethren,” who was great-
ly gifted in spiritual songs, to sing for him, and who according to
his request, sung for him a few minutes; but he was so far gone,
that he was soon obliged to lie down again, and shortly after
breathed his last, about six o'clock in the afternoon, July 21st,
1784, aged 44 years.
CHAPTER VI.
Sketches of the life, character and ministry of Elder James
Whittaker.
JAMES WHITTAKER was the son of Jonathan Whittaker, of
Oldham, near Manchester, in England. His mother's maiden
name was Ann Lee, probably a distant relation of Mother Ann.
She was a member of the society under James and Jane Wardley,
and was a faithful believer. His father stood in opposition for
awhile; but was afterwards convicted and embraced the gospel,
and had an anxious feeling to come to America with his son ; but
was not able: he died in the faith.
James was born February 28th, 1751, and received the testi-
mony of the gospel in his childhood; he used to accompany his
mother to the meetings of James and Jane Wardley, and was re-
markably faithſui and obedient to the instructions of his teachers.
In his youth he was placed under the care of ſlother Ann, and by
her was carefully instructed in the way of God. Having by his
faithfulness gained a great portion of the life and power of the gos-
pel, he became eminently useful to her in the ministry.
' Concerning his early experience in the way of God, he gave the
following particulars. “I was brought up in the way of God by
“my Mother, and knew no unclean thing. But when my soul
* Aaron Wood, who is now living at Watervliet,
cHAP. vi.] of ELDER JAMES whitTAKER, 43
“ was waked up, I found myself a child of wrath. I then cried
“mightily to God: I do not think I spoke more than five words
“in a day; and I verily thought that the earth trembled under me
“ for the space of a whole year. At this time I saw, by vision,
“my own soul in America with Mother's soul; and I heard all
“ the conversation that passed between us and the men that put
“us into prison in Albany; and yet during the whole time of our
“imprisonment, I never once thought of my vision; but as soon
“ as we were set at liberty, it all came fresh to my mind.”
Among other extraordinary manifestations of God to him, in
early life, we give the two following instances in his own words.
“One day, as I was walking with Mother, I felt the heavens open,
“ and such flows of the heavenly manifestations and givings of
“God fell upon me, in so marvellous a manner, that my soul was
“filled with inexpressible glory; and I felt such an overflowing
“ of love to Mother, that I cried out, As the Lord liveth, and as
“my soul liveth, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” He
added further, “that Mother then and there prophesied that he
would succeed her in the ministry.”
“When we were in England,” said he, “ some of us had to go
“twenty miles to meeting, and we travelled amights on account of
“ persecution. One Saturday night, while on our journey, we sat
“ down by the side of the road to eat some victuals. While I was
“sitting there I saw a vision of America; and I saw a large tree,
“ and every leaf thereof shone with such brightness as made it
“appear like a burning torch, representing the church of Christ,
“which will yet be established in this land. After my company
“ had refreshed themselves, they travelled on, and led me a con-
“ siderable distance before my vision ceased.”
Elder James was evidently ordained of God to be Mother Ann’s
successor in the ministry. After attending her funeral, and speak-
ing to the assembly under a great weight of grief and sorrow, he
returned home, and the believers being assembled, he spoke and
said, “My two friends and Elders are gone ! I pray God to help
me!” He then called upon all the brethren and sisters to help him
keep the way of God, and urged the necessity of their being more
faithful in the work of the gospel than they had ever been, as those
who had the greatest gift for their protection were gone. The tears
flowed abundantly. Iłe spoke of the great weight that fell upon him
with regard to the protection of the society, and his great concern
and labor that the gospel might be kept and honored. So solemn
and impressive were his words at this time, and so evident the
power of God that appeared in him, that it produced a great im-
pression upon the mind of every feeling believer. It was clearly
seen and felt that Mother's mantle had fallen upon him, and that
God had chosen him to lead and protect his people. .
44 LIFE, cHARACTER AND MINIstry [PART 1.
Elder James, in his person, was rather above the common sta-
ture, well proportioned in form, of more than ordinary strength for
his size, and a man of great activity. His complexion was fair, his
eyes black, and his hair of a dark brown color, and very straight.
He possessed an open and placid countenance, mixed with a pleas-
ing gravity, that at once evinced the goodness of his heart and the
amiable mildness of his disposition. His voice was clear and solid,
but mild and pleasant. In short, his visage, deportment and con-
versation were all marked with an inexpressible something which
could not but impress the feelings of a stranger with confidence
and respect. It was not an uncommun expression among stran-
gers, on hearing him, to say, “I love to hear that James Whittaker
“speak.”
In his temper and disposition he was mild, gentle and forbear-
ing: yet firm, undaunted, and inflexible in his duty. So amiable
was his deportment, and so winning his manners, that he often
disarmed the most violent opposers of their rage. He was much
beloved by those who knew him, both believers and unbelievers;
and nome were his enemies, except those whose opposition to the
way of God which he taught, rendered every subject of it an object
of hatred. He possessed great meeknesss, humility and simplicity
of soul, was remarkably tender hearted, kind and charitable, and
abounded in heavenly love. The sympathetic powers of his soul
were such, that when he wept it seemed as tho no feeling heart
could refrain from tears; and when he rejoiced, every soul that
possessed the life of the gospel, could not but feel the power of his
joy, and rejoice with him.
In reproving sin, he was sharp and powerful; yet wise and care-
ful not to hurt the soul. In laboring with lost souls, in admonish-
ing the careless, instructing the ignorant, strengthening the weak,
relieving the buffetted, and binding up the broken hearted, his gift
of wisdom and understanding was remarkable. IHe knew how to
come to lost souls in every situation, and to administer help in due
SeaSOI).
He passed through many scenes of sorrow and affliction for the
gospel of salvation, and planted and nourished it in many souls.
Being young while in England, he did not suffer so much persecu-
tion there as Mother Ann and Father William, and others; yet
he had his full share of sufferings to pass through; so that it might
be truly said that, the sufferings of Christ abounded in him. In
America he suffered much every way : yet he always bore his
sufferings with fortitude, and even with cheerfulness; so that when
most cruelly abused by persecutors, he would often kneel down
and pray for then with great fervency; sometimes saying in the
words of Christ, “Father, forgive them: for they know not what
they do.”
GHAP. vi.] of ELDER JAMES whitTAKER. 45
As he was brought up in the gospel from his childhood, he
possessed a remarkable degree of pyrity of spirit. Indeed it seem-
ed as tho every feeling of his soul breathed purity, righteousness
and love : hence he was at all times able to bear a strong testimo-
ny against all impurity, unrighteousness, and every kind of evil.
He often said, “The gospel is without fault; it is as strait as
“straitness; it is pure as the heavens; and if you obey it not, you
“will lose your souls.”
With tears rolling from his eyes, he often expressed his love to
God, and his thankfulness for the gospel in the following language;
“O how precious is the way of God to my thirsty son!! I feel the
“love of God continually flowing into my soul, like rivers of living
“ water It is sweeter to my taste than the honey in the honeycomb.
“I know that God owns me for his son; and yet I will pray to him.
“I know how to pray, and I know how to be thankful for the
“gospel; even my breath is continual prayer to God.”
Sometimes he used to say, “I could willingly lay down my’
“life for my brethren, if I were called to it: for I feel that degree
“of love for them, that they feel near and dear to me, like my own
“soul.” Again he would say, “My only treasure on earth is in
“ them that believe; I have no relation but in the people of God.
“They who are faithful to serve God are my relations; they are
“my interest and my treasure, and all I have is theirs.”
As there were some who received great faith in Mother Ann,
and were zealous during her ministration; yet as their faith cen-
tered in her person, and not in the revelation and power of God
which dwelt in her, and which was transmitted through her to her
successors; consequently such ones were exposed to suffer loss;
and some indeed did suffer great loss, aſter she was taken from
them. Father James felt a deep sense of their danger in this re-
spect, and of the unspeakable worth of souls; and being thus im-
pressed with the great importance of a deep and genuine work of
salvation in every soul, he did not cease to warn the people, with
tears in his eyes, to be faithful and persevering, and not lose that
which they had already gained, by neglecting to labor for an in-
crease of the gospel in their own souls.
In solemn warnings to the people, and for their encouragement,
he used to say, “Wherever you are, whatever may betide you,
“how dark soever things may appear, how unjustly soever you
“may suffer, keep your faith; for the time will come when all
“wrongs will be righted.” And again; “I am not ashamed
“to build up your faith; for your faith is most holy; but I know
“you have infirmities, and I pray that the forbearance of God
* may be lengthened out to you, till you learn to do right: for
you must have an exceeding righteousness; your righteousness
“must exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees.
|
f
&
|
46 LIFE, CHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART 1.
“Therefore treasure up in your hearts that holy treasure, which
“will keep you in time of trouble. Keep your faith: for the end
“ of your faith will be the salvation of your souls; and when I am
“gone, and you see the branches flourish, then know ye that the
“root is holy. I have ventured my life and soul among you, and
“you have received the gospel, and you are welcome to it.”
Father James was a man of great humility, and often abased
himself publicly before God, in deep humiliation of soul. Speak-
ing one sabbath day at Harvard, in public, before a large concourse
of people, and after addressing himself to the assembly with great
solemnity, and evidently under a great weight of the power of God,
which brought a very solemn and affecting sensation upon all the
assembly, he kneeled down; and the believers immediately fell
upon their knees, and also many of the world who were deeply
affected with his discourse. While on his knees in deep humilia-
tion, he uttered these words; “I am but a poor worm of the dust,
“ and a very little one too ! I feel many times as tho I could crum-
“ble into the dust before God.” He often abased himself in this
Ill&t 1116.1". -
At another time, in a public assembly at Enfield, before he
began to speak, he kneeled down under great humility of soul, and
said, “God has committed the gospel to my trust.”—He paused—
the tears flowed plentifully down his cheeeks—He proceeded—
“I pray that God would lay nothing to my charge l—Christ is
“revealed; I feel his power in sorrow and in love—God has
“blessed me with a broken heart and godly sorrow for sin.” After
this he delivered a very affecting discourse, in which he preached
the gospel of self-denial and the cross, and urged the absolute ne-
cessity of confessing and forsaking all sin, and closed his discourse
in these words; “As you treat this gospel; so God will treat you.
“If you slight it, God will slight you; if you regard it, God
“will regard you; for as the testimony of Noah condemned the
“old world; so shall this testimony condemn the present genera-
“ tion.”
Father James often solemenly warned the believers not to suffer
their souls to be overshadowed and darkened with those things
which had a tendency to shut the gift of God from the soul. “I
“warn you brethren,” said he, “not to be overcome with the cares
“of this world, lest your souls lose the power of God, and you
“ become lean and barren.” Again he said, “The way to labor
“for the gospel is, to keep your minds exercised in laboring upon
“the things that belong to your peace, and not on the things of the
“world: for if yon give your minds to labor upon the things of
“ the world, they will become corrupted.” And again: “You
“ought to be watchful over your words, at all times, and be care:
“ful to know that you speak the truth; not tell things that you do.
cHAP. VI.] of ELDER JAMES whitTAKER. 47
“not know to be true, in such a manner as to deceive others: you
“ought to represent things as they are; and not deceive one ano-
“ ther; it is lying; it is wicked.”
He used often to say, “Be what you seem to be, and seem to
“be what you really are; don’t carry two faces.” And again;
“You that dare use deceit, remember what I say; God will yet
“ meet you in a strait place.” In reproving the believers for their
wrongs, he often used to say, “If you don’t love to hear of these
“things, then leave them off; put away the cause, and the effect
“will cease.” Again; “Ye who have believed in God, be care-
“ful to maintain good works.” And again; “I will know no
“man by his speech; but by the fruit he brings forth.”
In the time of Shays's insurrection in Massachusetts, some of
the believers in that state, in expressing their sentiments, maniſes-
ted some party feelings concerning that event. Father James
immediately rebuked that spirit, and said, “They that give way
“to a party spirit, and are influenced by the divisions and conten-
“tions of the world, so as to feel for one political party more than
“for another, have no part with me. The spirit of party is the
“spirit of the world, and whoever indulges it, and unites with one
“evil spirit against another, is off from christian ground.”
In addressing a public assembly of believers at Ashfield, he said,
You ought to fear God in all you do. When you are about
“your work, you ought to fear God; and even in the gifts of God,
“ and under the operations of the power of God, you ought to keep
“the fear of God; lest by feeling releasement in those gifts, you
“run into lightness.” Again; “Heaven is a place of joy and
“tranquility to those that find it; but I am jealous, and with a
“godly jealousy too, that there are some here now, that never
“will find it.” And again; “There are many and many pious
“souls in this world, who live up to the best light they know, that
“have never heard the sound of this gospel; but except your
“righteousness shall exceed theirs, you shall in no wise enter into
“the Kingdom of Heaven.” Again he said, “Those that are called
“ by the gospel when they are children, and are faithful and obe-
“dient, and keep out of sin, will be the flower of Heaven, and the
“glory of Paradise.” -
About the middle of January, 1787, Father James, having assem-
bled the believers in New-Lebanon together, in the meeting-house,
came in under great heaviness of spirit, and with tears flowing
from his eyes, he said, “I am going to leave you; I feel that my
“work is done here, and I do not know that I shall ever see you
“ again in this world ; but I leave those with you who are able to
“teach you the way of God. I desire that you would treasure up
“the gospel and make it your only interest. You are all the in-
* There were sºme thea present wilo afterwards tell away.
&é
48 LIFE, cHARACTER AND MINISTRY [PART I.
“terest I have in this world ; I have no other interest.” He then
kneeled down and wept exceedingly, and all the assembly with
him. After rising from his knees, he warned the people in a very
feeling and aſſecting address, to be faithful, and keep the way of
God when he was gone, and said, “We have given you the gos-
“pel; see to it that you make a good use of it. Do abide faith-
“ful; those of you that abide faithful, will be like a bud in the
“bloom; but those who do not abide, will be like a falling leaf;
“ and you will remember these words when you cannot see me.”
He then addressed the elders and laborers among the people,
and gave them a very solemn charge to be faithful and watch over
the people for their protection, and said, “Deal with the brethren
“ and sisters as I have dealt with you.” He also warned them in
a very special manner concerning the youth and children, and said,
“You must take care of the rising generation: for if they are
“ protected, the time will come when they will be the flower of
“ the pople of God.” The next morning he set off ſor Enfield, in
Connecticut, from whence he never returned. After tarrying a
short time at Enfield, he visited the believers in Harvard, Shirley,
Woburn, and other places at the eastward where they then resided,
and returned to Enfield sometime in March, where he remained,
and was continually visited by the believers, till his decease.
Father James’s ministry was short, but very active and labori-
ous. He visited all the different places in the land where the gos-
pel had been planted, and some of them several times. His labors
were continually employed in strengthening the weak, comforting
the aſſlicted, and purging out sin. It was the peculiar gift of his
ministry to wean the affections of the believers from their natural
and earthly ties, and prepare them for a spiritual relation in church
order, which he ſoretold was at hand, and often spoke of it. His
instructions to Elder Joseph Meacham and those with him, relative
to gathering, building and establishing the church in gospel order,
might, with great propriety, be likened to the instructions of David
to Solomon, concerning the building of the temple, which was an
eminent type of this very work.
Many were the instructions, exhortations and solemn warnings
which he delivered in the last days of his ministry. When he
came near the close of his life, he said, “I have given you my life;
“all I have, I have given unto you. If I ever had any thing, you
“possess it—it is yours; and now see that you make a good use of
“it.” About two weeks before his decease, he said, “My body
“ is under great sufferings; but I feel my soul at peace with God
“ and man. I have given you the gospel; now see to it, what
“kind of use you make of it. If you keep the gospel, the gospel
“will keep you. I have given my life for the people; and aſter
* I am gone, there will be a great increase.”
CHAP, \ OF ELIDER JAMES WHITTARER. 49
A little before his decease, there came a number of the brethren
and sisters from New-Lebanon to see him, and being about to re-
turn home, they went into his room to take their leave of him.
On entering the room where he lay, they all kneeled down in sor-
row and tears, and in prayer to God, feeling sensible that this
would be the last time they should ever see his face in this world.
He addressed them and said, “I feel thankful to see you all, and
“ that you have come to see me in my sickness, once more, before
“I leave the world. I feel weak in body, but comfortable in my
“spirit; and whether I live or die, the gospel will increase. I
“ have had a great desire to come and see you all; but I have not
“ been able; but my heart has been with you ; and now your
“hearts must be with me, to labor for the power of God—for one
“union. I desire you would give my love to the people where you
“go, and tell them that I am alive, and that I never expect to die;
“for the sting of death is taken from me, and all fear and terror:
“yet I expect soon to put off this earthly tabernacle. Farewell.”
When he was on his dying bed, numbers of the brethrem and
sisters went to see him. On enquiring how he felt, he said, “My
“sufferings are exceeding great; but that peace and consolation
“which I feel in my soul, overbalances them all. That peace
“ and comfort which I feel in the gospel, I would not exchange
“for a thousand such worlds as this.” He then exhorted all to
hold on and hold out to the end, and said, “If you hold out to the
“end, you will feel that peace which I now feel.” *;
Thus he continued to exhort, encourage and strengthen all
around him till he expired, July 20th, 1787, in the 37th, year of
his age. His funeral was attended on the following day, and the
scene was very affecting to all the believers, who viewed him as
their Elder and Father, and the last of those faithful ministers of
Christ who had brought the gospel of salvation to this land, and
who had been called to stand in the ministry.
=nº ºn-e
SUPPLEMENTARY ARTICLE,
Concerning Elder John HockNELL.
John Hocknell, whose name is repeatedly mentioned in the
preceding pages, is very justly ranked among the first founders of
the United Society, and was one of the principal supporters of the
gospel in its first commencement in this country; and it is there-
fore but just and reasonable that he should be particularly noticed
in this work; but for want of room the motice will be short. .
He was a native of Cheshire, in England, and was a man of re-
spectable character, and possessed considerable property. He had
formerly belonged to the Mapin society, and afterwards became
50 suppleMENTARY ARTICLE. y [PART i.
a zealous member of the society under James and Jane Wardley,
and readily embraced the increasing light through Mother Ann,
and was a faithful believer. He was a man of very meek deport-
ment, and was greatly gifted in visions and prophecies, and was
well known among the believers of his day to possess the gift of
healing. He was a great help to Mother Ann and her Hittle family,
in a temporal view, and was very zealous in the support of the
gospel. It was through his instrumentality that they were enabled
to cross the ocean, and establish themselves in this land. Indeed
the temporal assistance which his zeal and liberality afforded the
society, in its infant state, was its principal dependence. He was
a very honest, conscientious and upright man, and continued faith-
ful and zealous during life, and lived to see the church established
in gospel order, and with great joy, saw its growing prosperity, in
things temporal and spiritual. He departed this life February
27th, 1799, aged 76 years.
1PART II.
THE ESTABLISHED or DER AND RELIGIOUS PRACTICE of
THE UNITED Society.
=ºº-
CHAPTER I.
Formation of the Society into a united Body, possessing a conse-
crated Interest.
As the manner of God’s work, both in the natural and spiritual
creation, has always been progressive, increasing from one degree
of order to another until it arrives to perfection; so the order
which has been established in the church of Christ on earth, was
necessarily progressive, being effected by the progressive opera-
tions of his Divine Spirit in the hearts of the faithful. While the
believers, as a people, remained in their respective natural families,
scattered about in different places, possessing respectively the
temporal interest inherited by natural heirship, or acquired by
their own labors in their respective callings, there could not be
much order among them, excepting the common order of nature.
But all who had homestly confessed and forsaken their sins, and
faithfully continued to take up their crosses, according to the mani-
festation of the gift of God which they had received, who had
paid all their just debts, and freed themselves from all outward
embarrassments, and by their faithfulness and obedience, had gain-
ed a sufficient degree of mortification to the fallen nature of the
flesh, were thereby prepared for a further increase of gospel order.
To gain this increase, it was necessary that they should be brought
into a nearer connection together, and thereby be enabled to serve
God in a more united capacity, as members of the body of Christ
in a church relation.
To constitute a true church of Christ, there must necessarily be
a union of faith, of motives and of interest, in all the members who
compose it. There must be “one body and one bread:” and
nothing short of this union in all things, both spiritual and tempo-
ral, can constitute a true church, which is the body of Christ. And
wherever that united body exists, it will bring into operation every
individual talent for the general good of the whole body. And
herein is the prayer of Jesus answered; “That they may be one,
“even as we are one.” In this united capacity, the strength of
the whole body becomes the strength of each member; and being
united in the one Spirit of Christ, they have a greater privilege to
serve God than they possibly could have in a separate capacity,
and are better able to be mutual helps to each other; and they
also find a greater degree of protection from the snares of a selfish
and worldly nature.
* 1 Cor. x. 17, t John xvii. 22.
52 FORMATION OF THE SOCIETY [PART Ifs
The way having been gradually prepared for the attainment of
this important object, particularly by the ministration of Father
James, it now began to take place under the ministration of Father
Joseph and Mother Lucy. The first step was to gather the be-
lievers into a body, where they could enjoy all things in common,
both of a spiritual and temporal kind, and in which their temporal
interest could be united together, and be consecrated to religious
purposes. This proceeding, being dictated by Divine Wisdom,
was a matter of free choice to every individual: for no one was
compelled to give up his interest contrary to his own faith and
inward feelings. But all who had faithfully kept pace with the
work of God, in its inerease thus far, and had been able to settle
their temporal concerns, were prepared for it, and esteemed it a
special privilege to be admitted into that united body, and be num-
bered with the most faithful. But the permanent establishment of
order was necessarily a progressive work, and could not be sud-
denly accomplished.
The gathering of the society began at New-Lebanon, in the
month of September, 1787, and continued to progress as fast as
circumstances and the nature of the work would admit. Elders
and deacons were appointed to lead and direct in matters of spiri-
tual and temporal concern; suitable buildings were erected for
the accommodation of the members; and order and regularity
were, by degrees, established in the society: so that by the year
1792, the Church was considered as established in the principles
of her present order and spirit of government. Those who were
thus gathered into a united body, were denominated The Church;
being a collective body of christians separated from the world, and
enjoying, in their united capacity, one common interest. In this
situation, they were enabled to gain a greater degree of victory
over the nature of selfishness, and thus to subdue, more effectually,
the evil propensities of a carnal nature. By this means they found
a greater degree of mortification and death to the nature of sin,
and experienced a gradual growth in love and union, peace and
harmony, and all those heavenly graces which adorn the man of
God, and render him perfect in every good word and work.
But there were many whose circumstances did not, at that time,
admit of so complete a separation from the world, being still under
more or less embarrassments, or entanglements with those without.
These were progressively gathered into families, in a separate ca-
pacity, having a subordinate privilege; but at the same time, they
were at full liberty to follow the example of the church, to walk in a
their steps, and to maintain the like united interest, in that capaci-
ty, as fast as their situation and circumstances would admit. Many
of these, having unbelieving children and heirs, or being otherwise
entangled in their temporal circumstances, could not, consistent
cHAP. I.] INTO A UNITED BODY. 53
with the principles of justice to those without, immediately devote
and consecrate their interest in the manner the church had done.
But in order that they might enjoy the benefits of a united in-
heritance, as far as their circumstances would admit, and be able
to prove their faith in that capacity, they were allowed to unite
and gather in their interest by agreement, and after taking an in-
ventory of whatever they brought in, they devoted the use of it for
the mutual benefit of the family thus gathered; but agreed to make
no demands upon the family for the use of the property so devoted,
or for any services which they might perform in that united capa-
city. But if they chose afterwards to withdraw from the family,
or from the society, they were at liberty to withdraw the property
which they had brought in: it being expressly understood that no
property was to be brought in, except by the mutual agreement of
the parties concerned.
This mode of proceeding is still practiced in the Society, and is
considered to be just and equitable; because it secures to legal
heirs their just portion of the inheritance, whether they belong to
the society or not. Nor can it be considered as any injustice to
the proprietors, who have voluntarily devoted the use of it, togeth-
er with their services, with a full understanding of the conditions
thereof. Besides, it has been found by experience, that families
gathered in that capacity, are seldom able to do more than main-
tain themselves, and discharge those necessary calls of duty and
benevolence which occasionally fall in their way; because such
families are generally encumbered with children, and often with
those who are aged and infirm, besides more or less poor persons
who bring in nothing with them; and all who are held in union,
must have their equal share of support, whether they are able to
earn it or not.
But families formed under these circumstances, have an equal
right with the church, whenever their situation and circumstances
will admit of it, voluntarily to consecrate their interest, and enter
into the same covenant relation, in their family capacity, as the
members of the church enjoy. It is however necessary that fam-
ilies, as well as individuals, on their first coming out from the
world, and gathering near the society, should prove themselves in
that situation, for a suitable length of time, in order to confirm
their faith by experimental obedience, before they can be admitted
as members of the society in a united capacity.
But in that separate situation, tho they have the entire control
of their own temporal concerns, they may, at any time, apply for
counsel and instruction, either spiritual or temporal, whenever
they feel the need of it. They have also the privilege of attending
and uniting in the public meetings of the society, and of visiting
their elders for the benefit of spiritual instruction, and of being
54 FORMATION OF THE SOCIETY [PART II,
visited by them, so long as they continue faithfully to take up
their crosses, and walk worthy of their profession. For altho
every honest and faithful believer considers it a very desirable
privilege to become one with the united body, in all things, and to
devote and consecrate himself, soul and body, time and talents,
with all his earthly inheritance, to the service of God forever; yet,
to arrive at that order, and obtain so desirable a privilege, is as
necessarily a progressive work, at this day, as it was in the first
commencement of the work in America, and requires a preparato-
ry work now, as really as it did then.
In this situation, they are required to prove their faith by their
works. This they will generally do in the course of a few years,
and sometimes in a few months; and will either gain an increase
of faith and strength, and spiritual understanding, so as to be pre-
pared for a further privilege; or they will fall back, in conse-
quence of their unfaithfulness, and return again from whence they
came. But while they remain in that situation, they are required
to manage their own temporal concerns, according to the best of
their understanding and abilities, to pay all their just debts, and
settle all their concerns abroad, according to the principles of jus-
tice and equity; to provide for themselves and their families, to
bring up their children in the fear of God, and instil into their
minds the principles of virtue, and to be just, upright and consci-
entious in all their dealings. By these means, they will gradually
prepare themselves for a further privilege in a united capacity.
Such families, provided their circumstances admit of it, are often
enlarged by the addition of individual members, who have recently
cmbraced the faith of the Society, and who are admitted to the
privilege of proving their faith along with the family. All that is
required of such individuals is, to live conscientiously according to
the principles of continence, purity and holiness which they have
professedly received, agreeable to the precepts and example of
Jesus Christ; and in conforming to these principles, their local
situation does not prevent their union with the society.
But as the work of God is an increasing work, neither families
nor individuals, if they continue faithful, can feel satisfied to re-
main in any situation short of the more perfect order of the gospel.
Because, if they gain an increase of faith and understanding, they
will soon feel the want of a nearer relation to the society, and a
greater separation from the world. But if they do not gain this,
they will, of course, fall back to the world: for all who are faith-
ful and homest-hearted, will find an increasing gain; but those
who are unfaithful, instead of an increase of faith and understand-
ing, or any spiritual light, they will necessarily fall into a state of
spiritual darkness; and then will be verified in them, the words
cHAP. I.] INTO A UNI'I'ED BODY. 55
of Christ, “If the light which is in you become darkness, how
“great is that darkness P’”
As the law of Christ can never bind the conscience of any soul;
so, where there is a difference of faith between married persons,
the husband or the wife, whose faith it is so to do, has a just and
lawful right to preserve his or her own body in sanctification, and
devote it to God, in a life of continence and purity; and this is an
inherent right which no law of God nor man can disannul or take
away; therefore, no person whatever, can have any right to for-
bid or hinder such a devotion in either party. Conscience is the
throne of God in the soul, and the soul's justification before God,
must depend on the purity of its conscience; hence a right to vio-
late the conscience cannot possibly exist in either party. “We
“are not debtors to the flesh, to live after the flesh,”f in any of its
gratifications.
If a brother have an unbelieving wife, or a sister an unbelieving
husband, and the parties can agree to live together in peace, they
are not required to separate on account of their faith; but the be-
lieving husband is bound to take care of his unbelieving wife, to
provide for her, and treat her with christian kindness and charity,
to set her an example of godliness, and give her no just cause of
offence. So also the believing wife is bound to live with her un-
believing husband, to treat him with all kindness, to show forth an
example of humility, meekness, modesty and faithfulness in all
things, to lay no stumbling blocks in his way, nor give him any
just cause of offence. But if they cannot live together in peace,
they may separate by mutual agreement, and divide their inheri-
tance according to the principles of justice and equity. The
Society does not admit of a separation on any other conditions;
unless the conduct of the unbelieving party be such that the be-
liever, after having faithfully fulfilled all moral obligations, can be
fully justified, both by the laws of God and man, in a final separa-
tion. The practice of the Society, in this respect, coincides with
the directions of the apostle to the Corinthians.#
As all people, whether married or unmarried, who have proper-
ty at their own disposal, are left to their own choice respecting the
disposition of themselves and their property; it must therefore
depend on their own choice, after having embraced the gospel,
whether they will devote either themselves or their property to
* The darkness of such souls is oſten truly astonishing We have known repeated instan-
ces ºf persons who, aying been once enlightened by the Spirit of Truth, and having reject-
ed their light, and indulged themselves in actual sin, eoutrary to the dictates of their own
cousciences, have gradually sunk into such a state of spiritual darkness, as not only to testify
against the pure principles of their former light, but also to run by degrees, into total infidel-
ity. Some have become insensible and regardless of every thing pertaining to religion ;
others, after contending with different denouninations, have run, ſirst into Deism, and then
into professed Atheism: and truly, if Atheism can exist in a rational soul, then those who
have rejected the greatest light, have been suffered to fall into a state of darkness approack.
ing the nearest to it. -
* Horn. viii. I2. ; See 1 Cor, vii. 12 to 16, &
56 FORMATION OF THE SOCIETY [PART II,
the service of God. But after they have had sufficient time to
prove their faith, and gain a full understanding of the principles of
the Society, so as to be able to make a deliberate and conscientious
choice for themselves, and having settled all their temporal con-
cerns, so as to be free from all outward embarrassments, they may
then freely dedicate and devote themselves and their services,
together with all their temporal interest, to the service of God, to
be forever consecrated to pious and charitable uses, according to
the covenant of the Church.
Having deliberately done this, there can be no room for any
recantation; because whatever is thus devoted cannot be with-
drawn without the sacrilegious violation of a consecrated right.
And whoever deliberately violates his faith, and withdraws or
separates himself from the Church, after such a solemn dedication,
can be viewed, by the faithful, in no other light than as a reprobate.
And tho the deacons may grant a moderate donation to such a one,
as an object of charity; yet his own voluntary act, in putting his
hand to a religious covenant, and consecrating himself, his services
and property to God, and afterwards turning his back, and actually
violating his sacred promises, must forever debar him from any
lawful claim to any of the property or services so consecrated.
This will appear evident by the following extracts from the writ-
ten CO.Venant.
“Article IV. We solemnly and conscientiously dedicate, de-
“ vote and give up ourselves and services, together with all our
“temporal interest, to God and his people; to be under the care
“ and direction of such elders, deacons or trustees, as have been,
“ or may hereafter be established in the church, according to the
“first Article of this covenant.”
“Article VI. We further covenant and agree, that it is, and
“shall be the special duty of the deacons or trustees, appointed as
“ aforesaid, to have the immediate charge and oversight of all and
“singular, the property, estate and interest, dedicated, devoted and
“given up as aforesaid : and it shall also be the duty of the said
“deacons or trustees, to appropriate, use and improve the said
“united interest for the benefit of the Church, for the 1elief of the
“poor, and for such other charitable and religious purposes as the
“gospel may require, and the said deacons or trustees, in their
“wisdom shall see fit: Provided nevertheless, that all the trans-
“actions of the said deacons or trustees, in their use, management
“ and disposal of the aforesaid united interest, shall be for the ben-
“efit and privilege, and in behalf of the Church, (to which the
“ said deacons or trustees are, and shall be held responsible,) and
“not for any personal or private interest, object or purpose what-
“ ever.”
“Article VIII. As the sole object, purpose and design of our
CHAP. I.] INTO A UNITED BODY. 57
“uniting in covenant relation, as a church or body of people, in
“gospel union, was from the beginning, and still is, faithfully and
“honestly to receive, improve and diffuse the manifold gifts of
“God, both of a spiritual and temporal nature, for the mutual pro-
“tection, support, comfort and happiness of each other, as breth-
“ren and sisters in the gospel, and for such other pious and chari-
“ table purposes as the gospel may require: Therefore, we do, by
“virtue of this Covenant, solemnly and conscientiously, jointly
“ and individually, for ourselves, our heirs and assigns, promise and
“declare, in the presence of God and each other, and to all men, that
“we will never hereafter, neither directly or indirectly,make nor
“require any account of any interest, property, labor or service,
“which has been, or which may be devoted by us, or any of us, to
“the purposes aforesaid ; nor bring any charge of debt or damage,
“nor hold any demand whatever, against the Church, nor against
“any member or members thereof, on account of any property or
“service given, rendered, devoted or consecrated to the aforesaid
“sacred and charitable purposes.”
The preceding extracts are made from the written covenant of
the Church; but every separate Society, being a branch of the
Church, has the care and management of its own temporal con-
cerns, and this also is essentially the case with separate families in
the Society, whose circumstances will not admit of being immedi-
ately connected with the united interest of the Church : hence
each society has its separate written covenant, for the protection of
the temporal property belonging to it; but where a family is es-
tablished upon the principles of a united interest, its covenant is
essentially the same as that of the Church.
It is an established principle of faith in the Church, that all who
are received as members thereof, do freely and voluntarily, of their
own deliberate choice, dedicate, devote and consecrate themselves,
with all they possess, to the service of God forever.” Hence the
property and services of each individual, after being consecrated
and improved in the manner specified, must ever be considered as
consecrated property, and no longer subject to the legal claims of
the former owner.
According to the law of Moses, which was typical of the law of
Christ, “No devoted thing that a man shall devote unto the Lord,
“of all that he hath, both of man and beast, and of the field of his
“ possession, shall be sold or redeemed : every devoted thing is
“most holy unto the Lord.”f So also, according to the law of
Christ, whatever is dedicated to God, according to the Covenant
of the Church, can never be returned or withdrawn, but must for-
ever remain devoted to the objects of the gospel.
* To attempt such a consecration in deceit, would be to act the part of Ananias and
Sapphira, whºse fate was a striking evidence of the Divine displeasure against such base
hypocrisy See Acts, ch. v.
* Lev. xxvii. 28.
58 THE ESTABLISHED ORDER AND [PART II.
But as the law of Christ requires that whatever is consecrated to
God, should not only be done by a voluntany act; but also that
those who undertake it, should be of mature age and understand-
ing, capable of acting deliberately and considerately; therefore,
children under age cannot be received into the Church as mem-
bers; but they may be taken under the care and guardianship of
the Society, by the request or free consent of their parents or guar-
dians, together with their own consent. But when they become of
lawful age, they must then make their own choice, both with re-
gard to themselves and property, if they are heirs to any property.
And it is an established principle in the Society, that children, who
are faithful and obedient to their parents until they become of age,
are justly entitled to their equal portion of the estate of their pa-
rents, whether they continue with the Society or not.
-easº Gºre-
- CHAPTER II.
The established Order and Government of the Church.
THE government of the Church of Christ is spiritual, and it
must always remain so; because it must always be under the pow-
er and influence of the Spirit of Christ: otherwise it cannot be the
Church of Christ. Any power or authority exercised over the
true Church of Christ, which does not proceed from his Spirit, or
is not conformable thereto, cannot stand.
A false church may be supported and governed by a false spi-
rit, but it is not so with the true: the cause of truth must be sup-
ported and governed by the Spirit of truth. A church founded
on human wisdom, supported by human creeds, and governed by
human authority, is but a dead body, being destitute of the real
life and power of the gospel; of course it cannot withstand the
powers of darkness and the corruptions of sin, and therefore be-
comes, at once, a church of Antichrist, and holds its power and au-
thority in direct opposition to the Spirit of Christ.
The visible head of the Church of Christ on earth, is vested in
a Ministry, consisting of male and female, not less than three, and
generally four in number, two of each sex. The first in the min-
istry stands as the leading Elder of the Society. Those who com-
pose the ministry, are selected from the Church, and appointed by
the last preceding head or leading character: and their authority
is confirmed and established by the spontaneous union of the whole
body. This is the true order of election and succession in the
Church of Christ, and there never can be any other so long as the
Spirit of Christ governs his Church. -
This was clearly typified under the Jewish dispensation,
which was figurative of the Church of Christ. God appointed
chap. II.] Government of THE CHURCH. 59
Moses, and Moses appointed Joshua; and so also, God selected
David from among the sons of Jesse, and David selected Solomon.
And while the Israelites kept the law, this manner of succession
was observed and blessed; but when they rebelled, and turned
from the law of the Lord, to follow the examples of other nations,
the appointment of their leaders was often factious and arbitrary.
Under the gospel dispensation, Christ chose his own apos-
tles. “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you,” said he.
And this was also the order of succession in the primitive church.
The apostles appointed their immediate successors; and while
this order was faithfully observed, the church was preserved in its
union; but when the primitive christians began to be influenced
by the spirit of Antichrist, and the contentious principles of the
world, and elected their bishops by strife and debate, the unity of
the church was destroyed, and contentions, divisions and animosi-
ties followed. By these means the church lost the power of God,
and fell under the dominion of Antichrist, and gradually degene-
rated into an ecclesiastical despotism, and became one with the
world.
Those of the United Society who are selected and called to the
important work of the ministry, to lead and direct the Church of
Christ, must be blameless characters, faithful, honest and upright,
clothed with the spirit of meekness and humility, gifted with wis-
dom and understanding, and of great experience in the things of
God. As faithful ambassadors of Christ, they are invested with
wisdom and authority, by the revelation of God, to guide, teach
and direct his church on earth, in its spiritual travel, and to coun-
seſ and advise in other matters of importance, whether spiritual or
temporal.
To the Ministry, therefore, appertains the power to appoint mi-
misters, elders and deacons, and to assign offices of care and trust to
such brethren and sisters as they shall judge to be best qualified for
the several offices to which they may be assigned. Such appoint-
ments, being communicated to the members concerned, and hav-
ing received the mutual approbation of the church, or the family
concerned, are thereby confirmed and established until altered
or repealed by the same authority. All selfish and aspiring feel-
ings and pursuits are excluded; and, as far as it is practicable, ev-
ery member is placed within his proper sphere for usefulness. By
this means every gift and talent is brought into its proper place,
and put into exercise where it can be the most useful.
This is not effected by any worldly wisdom; but by the eternal
law of righteousnes in God: for no man nor woman, as such, can lead
and go: rºi the church of Christ. The church being the body of
Christ, is ºri . . . .” by his Spirit, which is the life of that body;
consequently the operations of his life upon the members of his
ô0 THE ESTABLISHED ORDER AND [PART If.
body, must necessarily govern the body, and bring everything into
its proper place and order; so that the whole body, with all its
members, can operate harmoniously with the Spirit, in bringing
forth the fruits of the gospel, in their regular order. As the sap,
which is the life of the tree or vine, operates in the body and all its
branches, to bring forth the leaves, blossoms and ſruit, according
to the times and seasons established by the laws of nature; so op-
erates the Spirit of Christ in his body, the Church. This accords
with his parable of the vine.”
Altho the Society at New-Lebanon is the center of union to all
the other societies; yet the more immediate duties of the Ministry, in
this place, extend only to the two societies of New-Lebanon and
Watervliet. Other societies are under the direction of a Ministry
appointed to preside over them; and in most instances, two or
more societies constitute a bishoprick, being united under the su-
perintendence of the same Ministry.
In every society, ministers are appointed to bear testimony of
the faith and principles of the society to those without, and give
informaiton to candid enquirers; also to receive and instruct those
who visit the society for that purpose, and to admit those who re-
ceive the same faith, and desire to unite themselves to the society.
They are also occasionally sent abroad to preach the gospel to the
world of mankind, as duty may call, and the way be prepared for
it. The number of these ministers, both male and female, is more
or less, as occasion requires.
In every society, elders are appointed and etablished in each
large family, consisting, generally, of two persons of each sex.
These are considered as the head of the family. They are re-
quired to be persons of blameless character, well approved for
faithfulness, integrity and stability of soul, and gifted in wisdom
and spiritual administration. As faithful watchmen upon the
walls of Zion, it becomes their duty to watch over their respective
families, to teach, exhort and lead in spiritual concerns.
The management of temporal concerns, in such families, is in-
trusted to the deacons and deaconesses, as trustees of the temporal
property of the society or family to which they belong. To these
pertain the duties of providing for the support and convenience of
their respective families, of regulating the various branches of bu-
siness in which the members are employed, and of transacting bu-
siness with those without. All the members are equally holden,
according to their several abilities, to maintain one united inter-
est; and therefore all labor with their hands, in some useful occu-
pation, for the mutual comfort and benefit of themselves and each
other, and for the general good of the society or family to which
they belong. Ministers, elders and deacons, all without excep-
.* Sce John, ch. xv,
CHAP. II.] Government of THE CHURCH. 61
tion, are industriously employed in some manual occupation, ex-
cept in the time taken up in the necessary duties of their respective
callings.
Thus all are faithful, cheerful and happy in the conscientious
performance of their respective duties; and such is the spirit of
industry that pervades the whole Society, that an idle, lazy person
will not long abide in it. And this is effected by no other coercive
power than the force of conscience, and the spirit which prevails
throughout the Society: for mone are required to labor beyond
their strength and abilities, and each one must act conscientiously
in this, as in all other duties. If reproof or admonition is at any
time found necessary, it must be applied through the medium of
the conscience: for the law of Christ admits of no external com-
pulsion.
No selfish or party feelings can have any sway in the Church of
Christ: for the whole power of government being founded in the
law of Christ, and supported by the union of the members, any
power, authority or influence, which has any tendency to produce
disunion, contrary to that law, is necessarily excluded from any
participation in the government. In short, the whole government
of the Church is effected, and all its important concerns are regula-
ted and maintained, by the spontaneous union and subjection of
all the faithful to the law of Christ, established in the Church.
And thus is fulfilled the prediction of the prophet: “They shall
“see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion.”
In our extracts from the covenant of the Church, in the preced-
ing chapter, it will be seen that the temporal interest of the Church
is intrusted to the deacons, for the purposes therein specified.
Hence it may be seen, that neither deacons nor elders have any
more claim upon the property of the Church than the rest of the
members, otherwise than by the trust reposed in them, for the ben-
efit of all concerned. Those intrusted with the greatest care, are
the greatest servants; and those whose care and concern it is to
labor for the welfare of the whole, are verily the servants of all,
and are the more highly esteemed in their calling, “for their
“ works’ sake.”f
Such are the principles of faith, order, regularity and gospel union,
planted in the hearts of the members; and such their sense and un-
derstanding of the law of Christ, that me faithful soul can ever seek,
or even wish to seek for the preeminence, or have any desire to
usurp authority over another. Those in places of trust feel them-
selves under the greatest obligations to be faithful, knowing their
accountableness, as servants of Christ, and stewards in the house
of God, to be just, upright and faithful in the discharge of the duties
incumbent upon them. But should any one, in any office of care
* Isa. ii. 8. t. See Mark x. 44, 1. Thess. v. 13, and II cly. xiii. 17.
T |
62 THE ESTABLISHED or DER, &c. [PART II
and trust, yield to the influences of evil, and cease from his faith.
fulness, he would unavoidably lose that union of the spirit which
so strongly binds the faithful together in the bonds of love and
harmony; of course, he would forfeit the esteem and confidence
of the members, and could no longer retain his office in the Church.
The very spirit of the gospel, which governs the Church, and
influences all its members, has a direct tendency to excite every
faithful soul to feel an interest in building up Christ's Kingdom on
earth, in things spiritual and temporal; consequently all the faith.
ful are united, “as the heart of one man,” to improve their time
and talents in acts of virtue and goodness. This work is effected
by a life of daily self-denial and the cross; by subduing every evil
propensity; by fulfilling the law of love to God and good-will to
man; by cultivating the principles of peace and harmony; by
practising industry and prudence, kindness and charity ; by seek-
ing the comfort and happiness of each other, and endeavoring to
promote the prosperity of the Church.
These are duties which all are conscientiously bound to perform;
and herein is a practical illustration of that genuine love which
distinguishes the true followers of Christ from all others. “By
“ this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, ifye have love
“one to another.” “Yeshall know them by their fruits.”f Here
the rich and the poor all fare alike, according to their needs and
circumstances, without any respect to the property which they
have separately brought in. And here is verily fulfilled, in sub-
stance, what was prefigured by the manna gathered in the wilder-
ness: “He that gathered much had nothing over, and he that
“gathered little had no lack.”f .
It is certain that nothing short of Divine Wisdom could ever
have devised a system of equalization, so just and equitable, and
yet so contrary to the partial, aspiring and selfish nature of man.
And surely, no selfish motives could ever lead any people to em-
brace a system of religion which strikes at the very foundation of
selfishness, and inspires its subjects with the principles of impar-
tial love and disinterested benevolence. But all honest-hearted
believers, being the subjects of that one religion, are governed by
one spirit, which tends directly to a oneness in all things. And
this oneness gains the ascendency over disorder and confusion,
and necessarily produces order and regularity, in things spiritual
and temporal; while those things which lead to disorder and con-
fusion, are gradually purged away.
Such is the force of conscience, and the sense of rectitude in
every faithful member, that should any inadvertently violate the
rules of good order, or in any manner transgress the law of Christ,
and be overcome with evil, they would immediately lose their
* John xiii. 35. * Matt. vii. 15. : Exod, xvi. I5.
cHAP. III.] THE Gover NMENT, &c. 63
justification, and could feel no peace of mind until they had con-
fessed the wrong and found forgiveness: this every faithful soul
would readily do. But if any are found unfaithful, and regardless
of good order, they soon lose their union, and it becomes the
duty of the elders to examine, admonish and reprove them, and
endeavor to reclaim them in the spirit of kindness and charity.
But if such ones will not be reclaimed, they will fall of course;
because no one who lives in any known violation of faith, or wil-
fully persists in any wrong, is able to keep the union of the spirit,
which is the very life and support of the Church and all its members.
All those of the Society who have received an understanding
faith in the work of God, are conscious that the most faithful, hon-
est and upright souls do not only gain the greatest share of love,
confidence and respect from their brethren and sisters; but do
actually experience the greatest measure of the Divine favor and
blessing. Hence all the honest-hearted are stimulated to faithful-
ness, feeling and knowing it to be the only means of securing the
favor and blessing of God, and the love and confidence of their
brethren and sisters; conscious also, that if they fail in these
things, they must eventually lose their union and relation to the
Society, and fall off, like withered branches, as has been the case
with many, whose fate is a solemn warning to all who prize their
privilege in the gospel. ' -
* > *º-
CHAPTER III.
The Government and Education of Children.
The suitable government and education of children is a very
important concern, and one among the practical duties of the Soci-
ety, which claims particular attention. The time of childhood
and youth, is the choicest period of life to instil into the mind the
principles of virtue, to store it with useful instruction, to form
practical habits of goodness, and to regulate and bring into opera-
tion every useful talent. It is also the most critical period of life,
and requires the greatest care and attention to form, regulate and
govern the various dispositions of the mind, and subdue the natural
propensities to evil, before they become habitual and unconquer-
able, as they most generally will, if neglected in childhood.
By strict attention at this early period, the mind, in ordinary
cases, is easily formed for a life of virtue and usefulness; but by
neglect, the child is often ruined. Where children are suitably
governed by their parents and guardians, when young, they readi-
ly acquire habits of self-government; and thus a most important
point is gained : for a man or woman without the power of self-
government, is like a ship without a rudder, which becomes at
64 THE GOVERNMENT AND [PART IR,
once the sport of winds and waves. Hence a suitable government
in childhood, is a matter of the first concern.
Moral and religious instructions come next in order. When a
man is able to govern himself, and subdue his evil propensities,
or at least to keep them in subjection, he is then, and not till then,
in a fair way to be benefitted by moral and religious instructions.
So when a child is governed, it may be instructed to some profit;
but not before.
A suitable school education, iſ not next in importance, is un-
doubtedly the next in point of time and age. Indeed children may
be governed, and receive their moral, religious and literary instruc-
tions, and be conducted along by degrees, in all these points, to
good advantage, provided each is wisely administered in its proper
time, place and order.
But to give children literary instructions, without governing,
and teaching them to govern the natural propensities and disposi-
tions of their minds, and without instructing them in the principles
of moral virtue, would be a ready way to lead them to ruin. Be-
cause, in such a case, their literary knowledge would only tend to
sharpen their talents, and assist them in the pursuit of evil inven-
tions. A few such characters (and there are generally more or
less such ones to be found in all public seminaries) would be liable
to ruin the morals of thousands.
Were all children suitably governed and instructed in early life,
one single age would undoubtedly produce a vast reformation in
the morals of the community at large; and criminal courts, state
prisons and the gallows would, probably, in the course of a single
century, become nearly or quite useless.
The government of children, being of essential importance, was
strictly enjoined upon the believers, and especially upon parents,
by Mother Ann, and received the earliest attention of the Society.
Moral, religious and literary instructions were also particularly
recommended by her, and carefully and punctually attended to,
where children were gathered into families, within the reach of
such instructions. But in the early stages of the Society, believers
who had children, were very much scattered; so that much of the
moral and religious instructions administered to the children, were
often lost upon them, in consequence of the prejudices continually
mfused into their young minds, against every thing that had any
connection with what was contemptuously called Shakerism.
The inveterate enmity and opposition which, in those days,
prevailed so extensively against the Society, was a serious obstacle
in the way of schooling children. The Society was not, at that
time, sufficiently organized to establish regular schools of their own;
and it was found altogether unsafe to send their children to the
neighboring schools, where they had nothing to expect but abuse,
CHAP. III.] EDUCATION OF CHILDREN. 65
or a corruption of morals. It was therefore extremely difficult,
for a number of years, to pay much attention to literary instruc-
tion, even had the object been ever so desirable; besides, the gen-
eral attention of the believers was engrossed with matters, which
then appeared of much greater concern.
But the children were not altogether neglected in this respect.
Day and evening schools were opened and kept up, where it was
practicable. By means of these and other private instructions,
given from time to time, as circumstances permitted, the children
brought up in the church, both male and female, are all able to
read and write; and those who possessed the best capacities and
the brightest natural talents, have generally received a proportion-
ate degree of literary instruction. This is indeed more than could
have been expected, considering the difficulties which attended the
organization of the Society, and which, for many years, pressed
so heavily upon the people.*
But these difficulties were at length so far surmounted, that
schools were regularly organized and maintained in the Society;
so that the children now gathered in, are regularly instructed in
the various branches of common school education; and where
traits of genius appear, they have opportunities of instruction ac-
cordingly; and thus all receive instruction proportioned to their
genius, talents and capacities for usefulness. This we consider as
sufficient; because it will avail nothing for children to spend their
time in acquiring a knowledge of the higher branches of literature,
and especially of what is called classical learning, unless they can
apply their knowledge and learning to some beneficial purpose.
Learning without usefulness is, at best, but mere lumber of the
brain, and often excludes those things which might have been far
more useful in its place.
We are not insensible that among the most numerous and pop-
ular professors of christianity, and especially those of the théolo-
gical school, a liberal education is deemed indispensable in those
whom they are willing to receive as ambassadors of Christ. Many
youth are annually sent to college for this purpose; and after
having spent four years time, and obtained a sufficient classical
education, they are admitted to the study of divinity. They must
now spend, perhaps, three years more in some theological semina-
ry, in order to finish their education, and qualify them for the
* The people, at the time of their coming together, were mostly poor; a large propor-
tion of them were utterly destitute of any temporal property, and had therefore nothin, lo
recommend thern but their faith. To establish order and regularity among a large body of
people, so circuinstanced, to provide for their support, protection and convenience, aná to
build them up in the principles of union, peace and harmony, both in things spiritual and
temporal, was an arduous undertaking, which required much time and labor, and was at-
tended with many trying difficulties; and these diſficulties were greatly increased by the
pºwerful opposition of an unbelieving world, which, like a mighty flood, often threatengū
the destruction of the Society.
G 2
66 THE GOVERNMENT AND [PART II,
gospel ministry. Thus qualified, they are commissioned and sent
forth as ambassadors of Christ /
Those who commission these young students, are doubtless
very careful to see that they are, according to their rules, fully
qualified, by their classical and theological studies, for such a work.
But what evidence have they that God has chosen them to this
work P or that their studies have qualified them, in his view, for
ambassadors of Christ P Are they as careful to obtain evidence of
these facts, as of their literary attainments P And dare they com-
mission these pupils without evidence equally positive and satis-
factory These theological divines will doubtless acknowledge
that it is the prerogative of Christ to chuse his own ministers,
and to commission whom he sees fit; and yet they presume to act
as divine agents in this business; but by what authority ? and
where is their divine commission ? They will admit also, that
Jesus Christ called Peter and others from their nets, and conferred
on them the apostleship, without a liberal education. He also
called Paul, and sent Annanias to commission him for a like pur-
pose; and altho it is admitted that he had received an education;
yet who ever supposed that he was educated with a view to the
apostleship 2
What man would presume to educate his son for a foreign min-
ister, and then commission and send him to a foreign country, in
the name of his government P And what government would ac-
cept such a minister, unauthorized by the government which he
professes to represent? Civil governments do not receive nor ac-
knowledge ministers of this description; and yet what better is
the common practice of educating and commissioning those who
are styled ambassadors of Christ 2 And where is the divine
authority to sanction the practice? Is it not an impious and hea-
ven-daring usurpation of a Divine prerogative P for if the indivi-
dual subjects of a government cannot educate and commission
foreign ministers, nor even ministers for the home department, for
their own government, which is composed of men of like passions
with themselves, how can they, without a divine commission, pre-
sumo to do it for HIM who “seeth not as man seeth.”
Without boasting of any extraordinary literary attainments,
believers have hitherto been able to learn their duty, and to do it;
to receive moral and religious instructions, and live according to
them; to understand the plain and simple truths of the gospel,
and walk in them; firmly believing that those who know their
Master's will and do it, render a far more acceptable service to
God, and will obtain a more glorious reward than those who, with
the greatest literary attainments, have never learned to do the will
of God.
In their schools, the Society at New-Lebanon and some other
chap. Hi.] EDUCATION OF CHILDREN. 67
places, have adopted the Lancasterian mode of instruction, as pre-
ferable to any other; but with some variations, more congenial
with their manner of government and tuition : And the remarka-
ble proficiency of the scholars is a proof of the excellency of their
institution.*
After a suitable common school education, the youth are instruct-
ed in some manual occupation, which, as far as practicable, is
adapted to their genius and capacities; so that all may have the
benefit of some useful calling, by which they can procure a main-
tenance, provided they are capable of it. The children gathered
into the Society, are mostly those brought in by their believing
parents; tho the Society has, occasionally, taken in the children
of others, by the earnest solicitations of their parents and guardi-
ans; but this is not a common practice.
All are carefully taught to regard the principles of honesty,
punctuality and uprightness, in all their conduct; to keep a con-
science void of offence towards God and all men; to be meat,
cleanly and industrious; to observe the rules of prudence, tempe-
rance and good economy in all their works; to subdue all feelings
of selfishness and partiality; to let the law of kindness, love and
charity govern all their feelings towards each other; to shun all
contention and strife, and be careful never to give nor take offence;
to conduct themselves with civility, decency and good order before
all people; to promote the happiness of each other as the only
sure way to enjoy happiness themselves; and to bless one another
as the best means of securing the blessing of God.
In short, both aged and young, male and female, are required
to live and conduct themselves towards each other as becomes
faithful brethren and sisters in the gospel. And it is found by ac-
tual experience, that those who are the most solicitous to promote
the peace and happiness of their brethren and sisters, do themselves
enjoy the greatest measure of peace and happiness. Hence male
and female, as faithful brethren and sisters in Christ, renouncing
all amorous conduct and conversation, can live together, from
year to year, in gospel purity, peace and union, enjoy each other’s
society in social harmony, freely share in each others kindness,
and faithfully labor to promote each other's happiness.
* We feel no disposition to combat the false reports of our enemies; they are welcome
to all the benefit they can reap from such reports: Lut to quiet the anxiety of those who
have been induced thereby to believe that we bring up our children in heathenism, by de
nying them the use of the Bible, we would merely state that, besides other useful books on
various subjects, the Society has always been well supplied with Bibles and Testaments, of
Various sizes, suitable for all ages; and we believe there cannot be found a single dwel-
ling room in the Society, that has not one or more Bibles in it; and the children have, at au
times, free access to them, as soon as they are able to read.
t
68. PROGRESS AND PRESENT STATE [PART II.
- CHAPTER IV.
Progress and present state of the United Society.
IN the beginning of the year 1780, the Society consisted, in all,
of but about 10 or 12 persons, all of whom came from England.
Early in the spring of that year, the people in this country, having
heard their testimony, began to gather to them; and from this time,
there was a gradual and extensive increase in numbers, until the
year 1787, when those who had received faith, and had been faith-
ful from the beginning, and who were the most fully prepared,
began to collect at New-Lebanon. Here the church was estab-
lished, as a common center of union, for all who belonged to the
Society, in various parts of the country. This still remains as the
Mother-Church, being the first that was established in gospel or-
der; and all the Societies in the various parts of the country,
which are established upon the same gospel foundation, and gov-
erned by the same spirit and principles, are branches of the one
Church of Christ.
During a period of five years, from 1787 to 1792, regular So-
cieties were formed and established upon the same principles of
order and church government, in the various parts of the eastern
states, where the testimony of the gospel had been received. The
local situation of each Society, and the present estimate of their
numbers, may be stated as follows.
The first and largest Society is at New-Lebanon, situated about
24 miles south of Lebanon Springs, in the county of Columbia
and state of New-York, about 25 miles southeast from Albany,
and contains, at present, between 5 and 600 persons, including
old and young, male and female. -
There is also one at Watervliet, about 7 miles northwest from
the city of Albany, in the same state. This was established soon
after the church at New-Lebanon, and now contains upwards of
200 members.
One at Hancock, in the county of Berkshire and state of Massa-
chusetts. This is situated about 3 miles southeast from New-Le-
banon, and 5 miles west from Pittsfield, and contains about 300
members.
One at Tyringham, about 16 miles south from Hancock, in the
same county, which contains about 100 members.
One at Enfield, county of Hartford, in the state of Connecticut, .
about 5 miles east from Connecticut River, and about 18 miles
northeasterly from Hartford, which contains about 200 members,
One at Harvard, in the county of Worcester and state of Massa-
chusetts, about 30 miles northwesterly from Boston, which con-
tains about 200 mennbers. -
One at Shirley, county of Middlesex, in the same state, about 7
miles west from Harvard, which contains about 150 members.
CHAP. Iv.] OF THE UNITED SOCIETY. 69
One at Canterbury, county of Rockingham, in the state of New-
Hampshire, about 12 miles north by east from Concord, which
contains upwards of 200 members.
One at Enfield, county of Grafton, about 12 miles southeast
from Dartmouth college, in the same state, which contains upwards
of 200 members.
One at Alfred, county of York, about 30 miles southwesterly
from Portland, in the state of Maine, which contains about 200
members.
One at New-Gloucester, county of Cumberland, about 25 miles
northwest from Portland, same state, which contains about 150
members.
These were all the Societies formed prior to the year 1805.
About the year 1785, the testimony was withdrawn from the world;
so that for a number of years, there was no public manifestation of
the faith of the Society to those without. The great and impor-
tant work which was then progressing in the Church, rendered
this cessation of the testimony essentially necessary: for while the
believers were gathering themselves into Societies, and establishing
gospel order, they found enough to do, without testifying their
faith to others. As this was an important change, and absolutely
necessary for the protection and permanent establishment of the
Society, it required all the energies of soul and body to accom-
plish it.
It was necessary for the believers, after having received the
faith of the gospel, to prove the efficacy of their faith, to try their
obedience, to establish their principles by the test of actual experi-
ence, and to build themselves on that foundation which could never
be shaken. And even after the order of the Church was gained,
and its general principles established by the revelation of God, it
required some years of persevering faithfulness in every good work,
on the part of the people, to strengthen and invigorate the whole
system. This was essentially necessary in order to render it a
permanent, spiritual institution, calculated to be a pattern and an
example of a true gospel church, a purified body, in which the true
Spirit of Christ could abide, and from which could proceed that
spiritual life and Divine light, which must extend the power of
salvation to all who are willing to receive it. -
During this important period, very few were added to their
number. But near the close of the 18th century, the order of the
Church being established, and the foundation of Zion laid, for the
ingathé ing of souls, the way was prepared for the sound of the
pelºrumpet to be renewed. Accordingly the testimony be-
gan to be held forth to those whose minds were awakened to en-
quiry. Many, by reflecting upon the signs of the times, and com-
paring them with the prophecies of scripture, concerning the ser

70 PROGRESS AND PRESENT STATE [PART II,
cond coming of Christ, were led to believe that the period to which
these prophecies alluded, had actually arrived, and were earnestly
looking for some visible display of that great event. |
Some of these, by visiting the Society, and observing the lives
and manners of the people; and examining and comparing their
outward fruits with the testimony of Jesus Christ and his apostles,
and with the lives of the primitive christians; and perceiving that
the general conduct of the Society was invariably governed by vir-
tuous principles, they were thereby excited to a more particular
enquiry. The result was a full conviction in the minds of many;
so that from that time to this, there has been a gradual increase of
numbers, more or less, in every society of believers throughout.
the land.
But the greatest and most remarkable increase has been in the
western states. About the beginning of the 19th century, a most
extraordinary revival of religion, commonly called The Kentucky
Revival, commenced in the western states.* This work was swift
and powerful, and exhibited such evident proofs of supernatural
power, that it excited the attention of all classes of people, and,
for a season, bore down all opposition. The extraordinary and
very astonishing outward operations which attended that work, are
well known, and have been made the subject of serious investigation
and reflection, in various parts of the United States. The sub-
jects of this wonderful work, besides the marvellous operations of
the power of God upon their bodies, were greatly exercised in re-
markable dreams, visions, revelations and the spirit of prophecy.
In these gifts of the spirit, they saw and testified that the great day
of God was at hand; that Christ was about to set up his Kingdom
on earth, and that this very work would terminate in the full ma-
nifestation of the latter day of glory.f g
This remarkable work extended through several of the western
states, and continued, with increasing light and power, about four
years. During the latter part of the year 1804, many of the sub-
jects of this mighty work were powerfully impressed with a belief,
that another summer would not pass away without realizing a full
display of that great salvation from sin, for which they had been
so long and so earnestly praying, and which they had not yet at-
tained, by all the light and power of the revival.
The believers in the eastern states received repeated intelli-
gence of this work from the public papers, and well remegbering
the prophecy of Mother Ann, concerning the opening of the gos-
pel in the western country, they began to look for its *f; º
d :
* See a particular account of this extraordinary work in a small volume ent
Kentucky Revival,” by Richard M-Nemar, first published in 1907.
f The the real work of the Kingdom had already commenced in the eastern states x
it was unknown tº the people of the western country; and therefore, as to ti rm, it w
still future, and of course it was represented tº them, by the spirit of propura, in lu ( J
ture tense, as a work to come, and whish they have since realized
CHAP. Iv.] OF THE UNITED SOCIETY. 71
ment. This prophecy had often been spoken of, while that coun-
try was the theater of Indian wars; and it appeared that its fulfil-
ment was now near at hand. Accordingly, near the close of the
last mentioned year, the Church at N. Lebanon was impressed with
a feeling to send out messengers to visit the subjects of the revival,
in that country, with a view to search out the state of their minds,
and open the testimony of salvation to them, provided they were
in a situation to receive it. John Meacham, benjamin S. Youngs
and Issachar Bates were selected for this important mission.
Without any previous acquaintance in the western country, or
any correspondence with the inhabitants, these messengers set out
on the first day of January 1805, on a pedestrial journey of more
than a thousand miles. In the course of this journey they passed
through some trying scenes, in which they were evidently protect-
ed and supported by the overruling hand of Divine Providence.
They arrived in Kentucky about the first of March, visited a num-
ber of places where the spirit of the revival had prevailed, saw and
conversed with many who had been the subjects of it, and felt some
freedom to declare their mission. They then passed over into the
state of Ohio, and after visiting and conversing with some of the
subjects of the revival in Springfield in this state, they proceeded
on to Turtle-Creek, near Lebanon, in the county of Warren, where
they arrived on the 22d of March.
They were providentially led to the house of Malcham Wor-
ley, a man of respectable character, handsome fortune, and liberal
education, and who had been a leading character in the revival.
Here they felt freedom to declare their mission and open their tes-
timony in full, which Malcham received with great joy, and de-
clared to them that it was the very work which he had been taught
to look for, by the spirit of prophecy. This man had before fre-
quently festified, by the spirit, that the work of the latter day,
which would usher in the Kingdom of Christ, in that country,
would commence in this place, and spread between the two Mlia-
mics. This place was situated between these two rivers, near
Turtle-Creek; and there the work did, in reality commence, and
he and his family were the first who embraced it.
From thence it spread, and was cordially received by many of
the subjects of the revival, in that neighborhood, and in a short
time, had an extensive circulation through that part of the state,
and soon afterwards extended into Kentucky and Indiana, and
was joyfully received by many, and violently opposed by many
thers. Indeed the violence of opposition, in various places where
e testimony was received, was often so great, that nothing short
of Divine Power could have protected the lives of these messen-
gers, and rendered their testimony effectual.
The great º" which was raised against the testimony, in
72 PROGRESS AND PRESENT STATE [PART II,
that country, was first instigated by the principal leaders of a class
of people who had styled themselves Christians, in contradistinc-
tion to all others who professed that name, under different deno-
minations. Some of these had been distinguished leaders in the
late revival; but instead of advancing forward into that increasing
work, to which the spirit of the revival had so powerfully directed
them, they had set themselves to building up tabernacles on that
illuminated ground, which had been so eminently distinguished by
the lightoftherevival. Having devised a plan, embracing a universal
system of religion, which was to blend all denominations into one,
and in which they doubtless expected to hold a preeminent rank,
they had assumed the christian name, as an appropriate title to
their profession.
But when they perceived by the spirit of the present testi-
mony, that instead of ruling in earthly tabernacles, on a mount
of eminence, and wielding the banners of a universal religion,
they must descend into the valley of humiliation, and humble
themselves on a level with the people over whom they had be-
fore presided, confess their sins in the presence of those whom they
had considered as greatly their inferiors, and take up a final
cross against “the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride
of life,” and thus renounce forever these most darling pleasures of
nature, they flinched from the dreadful undertaking, and chose ra-
ther to forego the answer of their former prayers for Christ's King-
dom to come, than to enjoy its blessings at such a killing sacrifice.
Hence, after rejecting so great light, they became the foremost
in opposition, and exerted all their influence to prejudice the minds
of their hearers, and excite them to acts of violence. In this they
were but too successful, especially with those who were determin-
ed to have the pleasures of a carnal nature at the risk of their eter-
nal salvation; and hence arose those scenes of opposition and per-
secution which followed. These scenes began by opposing, mo-
lesting and disturbing the believers, in their testimony and wor-
ship, by various kinds of mockery, railing and cursing, by threat-
ening, pushing, collaring, and other acts of personal abuse and in-
sult.
From these things they proceeded to more extensive acts of vio-
lence and injury, both of a public and private nature; such as be-
setting their houses in the night, breaking their windows, assault-
ing their persons with clubs and stones, beating and abusing their
bodies, throwing down their fences in the night, and turning in
cattle to destroy their grain, cutting and mangling their fruit trees,
cropping and disfiguring their houses, and what seemed still moić
malicious, burning their place of worship, and also their barns and
stables, which contained their stores of hay and grain. tº-
These violent and lawless abuses being found insufficient to ex-
cHAP. Iv.] OF THE UNITED SOCIETY. 73
terminate the society, or to suppress their testimony, more delibe-
rate and more extensive measures were adopted. Legal prose-
cutions were instituted upon the most frivolous pretences; peti-
tions were drawn up, subscribed and laid before the legislature;
and finally, to insure success to their measures, subcription papers,
accompanied by malicious reports, and enforced by inflammatory
speeches, were industriously circulated through the country, with a
view to raise forces sufficient to expel the believers from the coun-
try, and thereby effectually to suppress the hated religion and its
galling testimony. The minds of the inhabitants being thus insti-
gated and prepared, it required no legal authority to raise forces
sufficient, in their opinion, to accomplish their object.
Accordingly, on the 27th of August, 1810, a body of five hun-
dred armed men, led on by officers in military array, appeared be-,
fore the principal dwelling of the Society in Union Village. This
formidable force was preceded and followed by a large concourse
of spectators, of all descriptions of people, estimated at nearly
2000 in number,” whose object was to witness the mighty conflict,
expected to take place, between a body of 500 armed men, and a .
few harmless and defenceless Shakers. Among this great concourse
were many who were friendly to the Society, and whose only wish
was to prevent mischief and preserve peace; but the far greatest
majority were either entire strangers or decided enemies, who
came to support the military in case of necessity. Many of these
were armed in mob array, some, with guns and swords, some with
bayonets' fixed on poles or sticks of various lengths, and others
with staves, hatchets, knives and clubs. These formed a motly
multitude of every description, from ragged boys to hoary headed
men, exhibiting altogether a hideous and grotesque appearance.
But notwithstanding all these threatening and warlike appear-
ances, no confusion appeared among the believers through the
day; but they remained calm, peaceable and undismayed, and
attended to their usual occupations with as much regularity as the
confused circumstances of the day would permit.
This motly multitude having collected, and the troops having
taken their station near the meeting-house, a deputation of 12 men
came forward, headed by a presbyterian preacher;f and after
making a number of unreasonable and inconsistent demands, (de-
mands with which the leaders of the Society had neither power
mor authority to comply,) they proceeded to state, as the principal
requisition of this extraordinary concourse of armed men, that the
Society should relinquish their principles and practice, their public
testimony, mode of worship and manner of living, or quit the coun-
* Some supposed the number to exceed 2000, exclusive of the military force.
t Matthew G. Wallace, who acted as chief speaker, and appeared to be the organ of
this mighty army.
74 PROGRESS AND PRESENT STATE [PART II.
try. These extraordinary demands were accompanied with threats
of violence in case of refusal. |
The answer of the Society was calm and mild, but plain and
positive: That they esteemed their faith in the gospel dearer than
their lives, and were therefore determined to maintain it, whatever
they might suffer as the consequence; and as to quitting the coun-
try, they were upon their own possessions, which they had pur-
chased with their own money, and for which they were indebted
to no man; that they held no man's property, and therefore had
a just right to the peaceable enjoyment of their own possessions,
in a free country, and were entitled to those liberties granted by
the laws of their country, including the liberty of conscience.
It cannot reasonably be supposed that such an extraordinary
assemblage of men, in hostile array, could have been mustered on
such an occasion, had they all been personally acquainted with the
believers. But many of them, having probably never seen a Sha-
ker, had been influenced by false reports, inflammatory speeches
and publications of evil minded men; some of the most malicious
and influential of whom were professed preachers of the gospel;
and the more ignorant part being called out by their officers, to
crush a growing society of people, whom they verily supposed
were more inhuman than the savages of the wilderness, and whose
religion they had been taught to believe was far more dangerous
than popery or mahometanism, they readily complied with the
call. And unfortunately for the honor of civilized society, there
are generally many found in it, who are always ready to assist in
any riotous proceedings, whenever occasion offers.
But many who came armed, were astonishingly disappointed
when they found that they had no occasion for arms, as they found
no enemy to combat. The calm, peaceable and harmless deport-
ment of the believers, together with the expostulations of a few
respectable individuals who were friendly to the Society; and the
freedom shown, and liberty given to examine the youth and chil-
dren, reported to be held in bondage; the orderly and flourishing
appearance of their school; the marks of contentment visible in
the countenances of the children, and the decent and orderly ap-
pearance of every thing around them, all conspired to change the
sentiments and feelings of these vindictive warriors to such a de-
gree, that they all withdrew without committing any abuse, or oc-
casioning any contention, except among themselves.”
The enemies of truth being thus defeated in this bold and for-
midable enterprize, renewed their exertions to inflame the public
mind, and effect the destruction of the Society. But in consequence
, of an increasing acquaintance of the inhabitants with the people of
* We have given only the outlines of these transactions; our limits will not permit us to
be inorc particular.
cHAP. iv.] OF THE UNITED SOCIETY. 75
this Society, by which their lives and manners became more gene-
rally known, together with some signal instances of the interposi-
tion of Divine Providence in their favor, the malicious efforts of
their enemies became, by degrees, less successful. For there are
but few, in the present day, who are willing to persecute an honest
people for their religion, when once their real sentiments are well
known; and, unhappily, those few are generally found among
the most bigoted professors of some false religion: for true religion
never produced any persecutors. But, unfortunately, there are
many inconsiderate mortals to be ſound in every civilized country,
who, having no principle of their own, readily become the dupes
of designing bigots, and by them are often urged to acts of violence
which would put even savages to shame.
These persecutions in the western states, produced inquiry and
personal examination, which generally led to a knowledge of the
truth: consequently the testimony of truth prevailed, and believers
were multiplied. People of all classes, and various denominations,
the high and the low, the rich and the poor flocked together, and
seemed equally anxious to hear the testimony and become partak-
ers of the way of life and salvation. In various places the preach-
ers and their people, with equal zeal, embraced the testimony and
took up their crosses; and among the great numbers who set out to
walk in the narrow way, were many respectable characters of dif-
ferent denominations.
The testimony has mostly prevailed in the states of Ohio, Ken-
tucky and Indiana, where Societies have been established. There
are at present, five Societies in these three states. But many from
other states have embraced the testimony, moved in, and become
members of these Societies. There are two Societies in the state
of Ohio; one at Union Village, in the county of Warren, about
four miles west from the village of Lebanon, and 30 north by east
from Cincinnati. This is the oldest and largest Society in the
western states, and contains nearly 600 members. The other is
at Watervliet, on Beaver Creek, in the county of Montgomery,
about 22 miles north from Union Village, and 6 southeast from
Dayton, which contains about 100 members.
There are also two in Kentucky; one at Pleasant Hill, in Mer-
cer county, about 7 miles easterly from Harodsburg, and 21 south-
westerly from Lexington, which contains between 4 and 500 mem-
bers. The other is at South Union, Jasper Springs, in Logan
county, about 15 miles northeasterly from Russellville, and con-
tains between 3 and 400 members. The fifth and last is at West
Union, Knox county, in the state of Indiana. It is situated on
Busseron Creek, near its confluence with the Wabash, about 16
miles above Vincennes, and contains upwards of 200 me e
There are also numbers in various parts of the United States, who’
76 PRogREss AND PRESENT STATE, &c. [PART it.
have embraced the faith of the Society, but whose circumstances
have not, as yet, admitted of their being gathered into a regular
body.
the eastern and western states, exceeds 4000. Two thirds, at
least, of this number have been added since the commencement of
the present century; and the number is gradually increasing.”
Most of the Societies contain a number of large families; and each
family is accommodated with one or more large and convenient
dwelling-houses, and with shops and out-houses, for the conveni-
ence of carrying on the various branches of business pursued by
the family. There is also, in each Society, a house for public
worship, and an office or offices for the transaction of public busi-
IleSS,
The principal employments of the people are agriculture, horti-
culture, and the various branches of domestic manufacture; of
course the principal articles of consumption among them, are
mostly of their own produce and manufacture; and their various
mechanical branches furnish a variety of articles for market.
Temperance and chastity, plainness and simplicity, neatness,
industry and good economy, are among those virtuous principles
which actuate the people of the United Society, in all their tempo-
ral concerns, and which tend greatly to promote the health and
prosperity of the Society, and insure the blessings of Divine Provi-
dence upon all their labors. And it is found by many years ex-
perience, that this manner of life is more conducive to the general
health of the body, than any other with which we are acquainted;
and this experience has also proved, that fewer deaths have occur-
red in the Society, since its establishment, in proportion to the
* We are far from feeling a disposition to proclaim our numbers to
the world; but the inquiries which are continually made by strangers,
to ascertain our numbers, and the local situation of the different Socie-
ties in our communion, have induced us to give a statement of these
particulars. We are, as yet, but a small people, and few in number,
compared with the vast multitudes enrolled in the catalogues of other
denominations; but when we consider the testimony of Jesus Christ,
that, “Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto
“life, and few there be that find it,” we cannot but feel a sense of
thankfulness for that mercy of God, which has called us to be number-
ed with the chosen few ; and to us it is a matter of more importance
to increase in the principles of peace and righteousness, than to in-
crease in numbers. Yet we feel a firm reliance upon the promises of
God, by the mouth of his prophets : “I will multiply them and they
“shall not be few ; I will also glorify them, and they shall not be
“ small.—A little one shall become a thousand, and a small one a stron
“nation: I the Lord will hasten it in his time.” See Isa. lx. 22, an
ſé. xxx. 19.
The number of believers contained in all the Societies, both in
cHAP. v.] THE WORSHIP OF GOD. 77
number of people, than is usual among those who live after the
common course of the world.”
&
* ºf ºn-s
CHAPTER W.
Remarks on the Worship of God: the origin, practice and rea-
sonableness of Dancing, as an act of Divine Worship.
The subject of religious worship has excited the attention of all
nations, of all religions, throughout all ages of the world. Per-
haps there is no subject on which there has existed a greater di-
versity of sentiment. Even among those who profess the christian
religion, the great variety of opinions would seem to indicate to
an impartial observer, that almost every different denomination
believed in a different God, and expected to be saved by a different
Savior, and to enjoy a different Heaven.
This great diversity of opinion, on a subject of such infinite im-
portance to all, is certainly a most conclusive evidence of the great
deficiency of the Spirit of God among christian professors, and of
their ignorance of his true character and most acceptable worship.
In former days, this diversity of sentiment was the occasion of
great contentions and persecutions; but since the principles of
civil and religious liberty have had a prevailing influence, and the
spirit of persecution has lost its tyrannical power, modern chris-
tians profess great charity and forbearanee towards each other;
but still the same difference of religious sentiment prevails, and
there are still many ways of performing religious worship.
When Jesus Christ was on earth, he prayed for his followers,
that they might be one with him, as he was one with the Father.
“As thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be
“one in us.” And again: “that they may be one, even as we
“ are one.”f And the apostle Paul to the Ephesians, testifies
that there is, “One Lord, one faith, one. baptism, one God and
“Father of all.”f If then there is but one God, one Lord, one
faith and one baptism; and if Christ is one with the Father, and
his people are one with him; how is it that those who profess to
be his people, at the present day, are so divided into sects and
parties? Surely Christ's true followers cannot be divided; they
are one with him, as he is one with the Father.
Again: Jesus Christ testified, saying, “I am the way, and the
* The ancients reckoned a generation to last 30 years, and the moderns have generally
agreed that the life of man has not increased Froin the commencement of the United So-
ciety, in the year 1780, up to 1800, the average ages of those who deceased at New Leba-
non, and Watervliet, exceeded 50 years. Sinee that period to the present time, the aver-
age ages of all that have deceased in these two societies, amount to about 60 years Tho
there was, in the beginning, at least, an ordinary proportion of young children, and tho
many children have since becn gathered into the Society; yet only 5 have deceased un-
der i0 years, and but 27 under 21 years of age q ºs ...A
t John xvii. 21, 22. H' Eph, iv. 5 6.
2
78 THE WORSHIP OF GOD, [PART 11.
“truth, and the life.” He did not say, “I am one of the ways;”
but, “I am the way.” Again he said; “God is Spirit; and they
“ that worship him, must worship in spirit and in truth.”f How
then is it possible that the One Spirit of God, which is in Christ,
who teaches us to worship in spirit and in truth, should at the
same time, teach christians so many different opinions, and direct
and establish so many different ways of worship, as the result of
these different opinions? Surely no true christian, who knows any
thing of the Spirit of God, can ever suppose this to be the case;
and if not, then we would ask, who has taught these opinions, and
directed and established all these ways of worship 2
The Spirit of God and of Christ, which is one, necessarily leads
to a oneness, both in doctrine and in worship; but the various
doctrines and modes of worship among the various sects of pro-
ſessing christians, instead of uniting souls in the Spirit of Christ,
produce a contrary effect. They tend much more to scatter and
divide; and hence the increasing divisions and separations that are
continually taking place, from time to time, among those who call
themselves christians.
“In vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrine the com-
mandments of men.”f And so long as their systems of religious
doctrine and worship are of human invention, so long will they
worship in vain. The only worship which is, or ever can be ac-
ceptable to God, is that which is performed in obedience to his
will. Therefore, the first object of every rational soul ought to be,
to know the will of God, and to do it. “If any man will do his
* will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God.”]
In the early ages of mankind, after the fall, it does not appear
that there was any established order of worship given; but, those
whose hearts were turned to honor the living and true God, wor-
shipped him by their obedience in those things which he command-
ed them. Thus Enoch, Noah, and the rest of the early patriarchs,
served God; and thus ‘Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and the
prophets, in after ages, served God. And tho they ſrequently
offered sacrifices and burnt-offerings; yet it was done in obedience
to the will of God; otherwise their offerings could not have been
accepted.
After the children of Israel were brought out of the land of
Egypt, they, as a body of people, a chosen generation, served God
by their obedience to those ordinances which God gave to Moses
for their protection. This was the established worship of the
children of Israel; and this continued with all who were obedient
to the will of God, till the coming of Jesus Christ. A short time
previous to the ministration of Jesus Christ, John the Baptist was
sent to preach repentance and baptize with water; and all who
*John Kıv 6 e t John iv. 24. : Mºut. xv. 9. |Joln vii. 17.
cHAP. v.] THE WORSHIP OF GOD, 79
received his testimony, and were obedient to it, honored God by
confessing their sins and receiving the baptism of water, which
was a figure of the baptism of the Holy Ghost, which was to fol-
low, as the true baptism of Christ.
But during the dispensation of Moses, through all the law and
the prophets, it is worthy of particular remark, that God would
not accept the offerings of those who were disobedient, but severely
reproved them by the mouth of the prophets. “Ah, sinful na-
“tion, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evil doers, children
“ that are corruptors' Bring no more vain oblations; to what pur-
“pose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord:
“when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from
“you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear.”
These, and many other severe reproofs, clearly show that God
would not acceept an offering from those who were disobedient
and sinful, even tho the offering, in other respects, were conform-
able to his Divine Institution. And so it is in the present day;
God never will accept any kind of offering, nor any manner of
worship, from those who live in disobedience to his will, and
knowingly commit sim.
When Jesus Christ came, he served God by doing his will in
all things; he faithfully finished the work which the Father gave
him to do. The apostles also, and the primitive christians, who
were faithful to obey the law of Christ, worshipped God as they
were moved and directed by his Spirit; and by their perfect obe-
dience they found justification before God.
But as the Kingdom of Christ was not permanently established
on earth, at that time, tho the work of his Kingdom was begun,
and the foundation of his Church was laid, yet the time had not
arrived, nor was the way prepared for a permanent establishment;
therefore no particular order of religious worship could be fully
established in that day; and indeed, if any such had been given,
it would undoubtedly have shared the fate of those institutions
which were given, that is, it would have been shamefully corrupt-
cd or utterly destroyed by the wicked works of Antichrist, which
soon followed. But while the primitive christians stood faithful
in their calling, they assembled themselves together, and worship-
ped God in prayer, vocal or silent; in praise and thanksgiving;
in exhortations to faithfulness, and in feasts of charity, by which
they expressed their love and union to each other; in prophesying
and speaking with new tongues, and in such other acts of worship
as they were led into by the operations of the Holy Spirit.
This various kind of worship, excepting perhaps some of the
apostolic gifts, continued, mostly, with all the true witnesses, who
followed the dictates of the Spirit of Truth, through all the long
* Isa, i. 4, 11, 1.3, 15.
80 THE WORSHIP OF GOD. [PART. II.
and gloomy reign of Antichristian darkness, until near the time of
Christ's second appearing.
At this time, there were many who felt themselves involved in a
night of spiritual darkness, in which they saw that the great body
of christian professors, instead of being led by the influence of the
Holy Spirit, had become the blind and bigoted dupes of human
creeds and human ceremonies, and were led and governed by
worldly wisdom and ecclesiastical policy, under the power of An-
tichrist. Under a sorrowful impression of this truth, they chose to
distrust their own natural wisdom and judgment, in regard to
spiritual things, as being liable to lead them into the same dead
formalities, and to rely on the influence of the Holy Spirit to guide
and direct them in the worship of God. Hence they performed
no acts of worship, except such as they were involuntarily moved
to perform by the influence of the Spirit of Life from God.
A number of these faithful souls, having united themselves to-
gether, and being thus separated from the lifeless formulas and
fruitless ceremonies of human invention, and feeling wholly de-
pendent on the gift of God, devoted themselves to his will, deter-
mined to follow no guide short of a clear manifostation of Divine
light. Hence the light of Divine truth, and the operations of Di-
vine power, increased among them, until they were involuntarily
led, by the mighty power of God, to go forth and worship in the
dance. The apostolic gifts were also renewed in their full power;
so that “they spake with new tongues and prophesied.” In these
operations, they were filled with melodious and heavenly songs,
especially while under the operation of dancing. These involun-
tary operations of singing and dancing were repeated, from time
to time, in their assemblies, tho often intermixed with other spiri-
tual gifts, till, by Divine Revelation, they became an established
exercise in the worship of God.
Thus the exercise of dancing in the worship of God, was brought
to light, not as an exercise of human invention, instituted by hu-
man authºrity; but as a manifestation of the will of God, through
the special operations of his Divine Power.
.This exercise was expressly pointed out by the law and the
prophets, as the peculiar manner of worship to be established
among God's people in the latter day. As the great and last dis-
play of God's grace to fallen man, and the peculiar mode of reli-
gious worship attending it, were to be introduced through the
female; so it is worthy of remark, that under the law and the
prophets, both the example and the promise were, in a peculiar
manner, preſigured in the female. .
When the children of Israel were delivered from their Egyptian
bondage, (which was a striking figure of the redemption of God's
people from the dominion of sin,) Moses and the children of Israel
CHAP. v.] THE worship of Gop. - 8]
sung unto the Lord a song of thanksgiving for their deliverance.
“And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel
“ in her hand; and all the women went out after her, with timbrels
“ and with dances.” Also, when Jephthah returned from his
victory over the children of Ammon, “his daughter came out to
“ meet him with timbrels and with dances.”f So also, after the
victory of David and the Israelites over Goliah and the Philistine
armies, “The women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing
“ and dancing.”f And again; at the yearly feast of the Lord in
Shiloh, the daughters of Shiloh came out “to dance in dances.”
And when the ark of God was removed and established in the city
of David, the occasion was celebrated by the same exercise; David
and all Israel danced before the Lord.
It appears evident that dancing was practised among the chil-
dren of Israel, on all joyful occasions, and especially on obtaining
a victory over their enemies; which was a figurative manifestation
of the manner in which the true followers of Christ were to be cal-
led to worship God, and manifest their joy in the latter day, for
their victory over the powers of darkness. And as this kind of
worship was acceptable to God in that day, and was the highest
expression of joy and thankfulness that could be used on such ex-
traordinary occasions; so it was not only a most striking figure of
the joy and triumph of the saints in the latter day, but an evident
example of the most expressive kind of worship in which they can
unitedly exercise the faculties of soul and body, in the service of
God.
In consequence of the captivity of the Israelites in Babylon,
they were deprived of this sacred exercise, and, like the vessels of
the sanctuary, it was profaned by the wicked, in the service of the
Devil. Hence the lamentation of the prophet Jeremiah; “The
“joy of our heart is ceased; our dance is turned into mourning.”
And tho this kind of worship was abused in the idolatrous revels
of the wicked; yet a promise was given that it should be restored
in the latter day. And it is worthy of remark, that this promise is
particularly connected with the promises which allude to the resto-
ration of the church, and the latter day of glory.
Thus saith the Lord, by the prophet Jeremiah; “Behold, I will
“bring them from the north country, and gather them from the
“coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the
“woman with child and her that travaileth with child together: a
“great company shall return thither.” Here is a particular allu-
sion to the operations of the gospel of Christ, in his second appear-
ing, which was to be made manifest in calling lost souls from the
various quarters where they were scattered, and gathering them to
*Exod, ºv. 20. f Judg. xi. 34 ; : Sata. xviii. 6. | Lam, y, lù.
* See Jer, chap xxxi. .
32 THE WORSHIP OF GOD. [PART II.
a place of peace and safety, where they were to enjoy the benefits
of the gospel, in a united body.
And again: “They shall come with weeping, and with suppli-
“cations will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers
“of waters in a strait way, wherein they shall not stumble.” This
implies that, forsaking the former course of their lives, they were to
come as humble penitents, imploring the mercy of God, and seek-
ing salvation from sin. By the rivers of waters, is to be under-
stood, the refreshing streams of eternal life, which will cleanse,
purify and refresh the soul that receives the benefit of them. By
walking in a striat way, wherein they shall not stumble, implies
that the way will be so perfectly plain, clear and certain, that no
one can doubt the safety of it, nor stumble into any darkness or un-
certainty while he keeps in it; and being a way of perfect righte-
ousness, it cannot possibly admit any thing that is sinful or wrong.
“Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and
“shall ſlow together to the goodness of the Lord :—Then shall the
“virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together :
“for I will turn their mourning into joy, and will comfort them,
“ and make them rejoice from their sorrow. And I will satiate
“the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satis-
“fied with my goodness, saith the Lord.”
What can be more plain and clear to the point than these de-
clarations of the prophet? What words could describe with more
certainty, not only the fulness of joy, comfort and satisfaction of
those who should come into this plain and perfect way, but also
the divine exercises, and very manner of worship in which they
would be engaged P. The term virgin, signifies purity; and this
prediction of the prophet was evidently intended to imply, that
those who should be called to this glorious work, and enjoy these
blessed privileges, must be a pure people. Hence, “both young
men and old,” being characterized by the title virgin, must pos-
sess purity of heart, and live a virgin life.”
We are aware that a strong prejudice prevails against the exer-
cise of dancing, as an act of divine worship, in consequence of its
having been, for many ages, perverted to the service of the wicked.
Hence it is considered by many as, at best, but a vain recreation,
much more calculated to gratiſy the levity of giddy, thoughtless
mortals, and to divert the mind from sober reflections, than to en-
liven the devotional feelings of the heart, and promote the solid
enjoyments of the christian. Therefore they judge it altogether
unreasonable and inconsistent to suppose it can be acceptable to
* It is the prevailing opinion that this prophecy allusted to the return of thr Jews from
Babylon; but admitting that the prophe; y had a literal allusion to that event ; y r* beits
return wr, but a figure of the restoration of the tra. hur, h; and as the character of the
Jews was by no means answerable to the title of the virgin; the reſorr the true spirit ºf that
prophºry could not be fulfilled in them : its real accomplishuent unust be in the virgin
church of Christ.
CHAP. v.] THE WORSHIP OF GOD, 83
God, as an act of divine worship. But we would seriously ask
whether the same objections will not operate, still more forcibly,
against singing, as an act of divine worship 2
It is a well known fact, that every created talent, pertaining to
fallen man, which was designed for the service of God, has been
perverted and abused to vain, foolish and wicked purposes; and
perhaps none more generally so than that of singing. Music, un-
connected with dancing, is doubtless much more generally used,
as an amusement of the wicked : besides, as it is the very life of
dancing, it must, at least, be equally reprehensible in that view
alone. But this is not all. The talents of poetry and music, ex-
clusive of their connection with dancing, are still far more abused
by being devoted to base purposes. --
Is there a single base passion or evil propensity, in human na-
ture, which has not been more or less excited, indulged and grati-
fied by means of poetical and musical compositions? How often have
the angry passions been roused by war songs, and urged mankind
to mutual butchery, blood and slaughter? How often have the las-
civious passions been excited and indulged by obscene songs —
How often is morality set at nought, and piety and religion abused,
yea, and the name of God and all sacred things blasphemed by
the wicked, in their profane songs How often has vice been ex-
alted, and virtue depressed—yea, how often has the virtuous mind
been robbed of its innocence, and villany emboldened in crimes,
by songs calculated and used for those very purposes' Do not
the revels of drunkards and profane swearers often owe their ex-
cesses to their bacchamalian songs, as well as to their bottles P
In short, have not thefts, robberies and murders, and indeed
every species of villany, been much more excited and encouraged
by music than by dancing? And yet music has been encouraged
and practiced, as a part of divine worship, by nearly all denomi-
nations, while dancing has been condemned and excluded. But
upon what principle? Why truly upon this; that dancing cannot
be an acceptable mode of worship, because it is practiced in the
carnal recreations of the wicked Thus man assumes the right
of deciding in what manner God shall be worshipped! But will
God acknowledge such a decision as this 2 And must the follow-
ers of Christ, in compliance with this decision, bury a portion of
their talents in the earth, which were given for the service of God,
because the wicked have profanely abused such like talents, in the
service of the Devil? Does such a decision appear honorable to
the wisdom of man, even upon the supposition that he has a right
to decide in what manner God shall be worshipped 2 Is it not
rather a glaring evidence of the total insufficiency of human saga-
city to regulate those things which belong to Divine Wisdom:
God has created man an active, intelligent being, possessing im-
81 THE WORSHIP OF GOD. [PART II.
portant powers and faculties, capable of serving himself according
to his needs and circumstances; and he is required to devote these
powers and faculties to the service of God. To devote only a
part to the service of God, is to render an imperfect service, which
God never will accept. Man is required to love God with all his
heart, soul, mind and strength.* Every faculty must therefore
be devoted to the love of God; but it is in vain to talk of loving
God with all the faculties, without serving him with all the facul-
ties: for no man who truly loves God with all his faculties, can
refrain from devoting all to his service; and he who is unwilling to
devote all to the service of God, can never devote all to his love.
God has created nothing in vain. The faculty of dancing, as
well as that of singing, was undoubtedly created for the honor and
glory of the Creator; and therefore it must be devoted to his ser-
vice, in order to answer that purpose. God has created the tongue
of man, and endowed it with the faculty of speech, by which he
is enabled to manifest the desires and feelings of his mind. He has
also created the hands and the feet, and enabled them to perform
their functions, in the service of the body. And shall these im-
portant faculties, or indeed any of the powers and faculties of man,
be active in his own service, or in the service of sin, and yet be
idle in the service of God? Or shall the tongue alone be employ-
ed in the service of God, while all the other faculties of the body
are idle, or otherwise employed? employed too, perhaps, in some
evil, or at best, some useless purpose.
The parable of the unfaithful servant, who buried his talent in
the earth, is well calculated to show that God requires of man the
faithful improvement of his talents; and it must hence appear
evident, that he who will not improve his talents, cannot be accept-
ed of God, nor find an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Man is made up of certain active powers and faculties which were
created of God, and which must be employed in some active ser-
vice, or remain idle. When these faculties are exercised in divine
worship, God is honored and glorified by them; but when they
are exercised in the service of sin and Satan, then God is dishon-
ored thereby. If therefore the soul who suffers these talents to
remain idle and unimproved, is to be excluded from the Kingdom
of Heaven, what must be the portion of him who employs those
talents in the service of the Devil, which were given him for the
service of God P
God requires the faithful improvement of every created talent.
“O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice
“ of triumph.—Sing unto the Lord a new song; sing his praise in
“ the congregation of the saints. Let the children of Zion be
“joyful in their King; let them praise his name in the dance.”?
* See Mark, xii, 30. f Psa x}vii. 1. and crlix. 1, 2, 3.
cHAP. V.] THE WORSHIP OF GOD, 85
These expressions of the inspired Psalmist are worthy of serious
consideration. Do they not evidently imply that the Divine Spirit
which dictated them, requires the devotion of all our faculties in
the service of God? How then can any people, professing religion,
expect to find acceptance with God by the service of the tongue
only P
Since we are blessed with hands and feet, those active and use-
ful members of the body on which we mostly depend, in our own
service, shall we not acknowledge our obligations to God who gave
them, by exercising them in our devotions to him P Or shall we
act the part of dishonest debtors, who deal in good words and fair
speeches, instead of repaying what they justly owe F Words are but
sounds uttered by the tongue; and if uttered in truth and sincerity,
they may express the ideas and feelings of the heart; but the heart,
without the assistance of the tongue, is capable of expressing to
God all that we can express by the tongue. -
God indeed looks at the heart; and altho some may plead the
merit of devoting their hearts to God, and urge that he can be suffi-
ciently worshipped by such a devotion, without the exercise of
dancing, or any other exertion of the bodily faculties, not even
excepting the tongue; yet the heart must be but feebly engaged
in the worship of God, when all the active powers of the body are
idle. There is too powerful a connection between the body and
mind, and too strong an influence of the mind upon the body, to
admit of much activity of mind in the service of God, without the
co-operating exercises of the body. But where the heart is sincere-
ly and fervently engaged in the service of God, it has a tendency
to produce an active influence on the body.
“From the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.” So
also from the heart proceeds that fervency of spirit by which we
worship God in the dance, and by which we show forth the ac-
knowledgments of the soul to Him who gave us life and activity.
The devotion of the heart, which includes all the feelings and in-
tentions of the mind, is indeed, absolutely necessary at all times,
and under all external exercises. For a thousand adorations of
prayer and praise, pronounced by the tongue, would be but empty
sounds, without the devotional feelings of the heart, which must
finally test the sincerity of the worshipper, in the sight of God.
So also, with regard to the exercise of dancing, or any exercise of
the bodily powers, they must proceed from the heart, or they can
never find acceptance before God. -
As union is the distinguishing characteristic of the true followers
of Christ; so it is an essential part of the worship of God. Where
a body of christians are united in spirit, they cannot but feel a pe.
culiar blessing when united in their religious devotions. To ren-
der this the more perfect, a uniformity of exercise is necessary.
I
86 THE WORSHIP OF GOD, [PART II.
Indeed the true union of the spirit has a direct tendency to produce
a harmonious order, in the exercises of divine worship. As Christ's
followers are one with him, as he is one with the Father; so,
where all are united in one spirit, to worship God according to his
own appointment, they will be engaged in a uniform exercise.
Such is the harmony of the heavenly world, and such must be the
harmony of the christian church.
It will doubtless be granted, that no one can wership God for
another; that each one must exercise his own faculties in the ser-
vice of God, and not depend on the exercise of another's faculties.
And hence the necessity of a harmonious unity in divine worship,
that each individual may participate in the united devotions of the
whole body, and mutually contribute to the strength, and share in
the harmony of all. Union is the strength of God's people, and
the glory of divine.worship. Thus united in spirit, and inspired
with divine love, a whole assembly can move in harmonious older,
and devote the active powers of soul and body to the Giver of all
good, while they chant their songs of adoration to their Redeemer,
and “praise his name in the dance.” What, among all the varie-
ty of religious devotions, by which mankind attenipt to worship
the Eternal God, is more calculated to inspire the soul with heaven-
ly sensations, and give us an idea of the worship of angels! How
far from this harmonious worship, are the dull attempts of a con-
gregation, wherein but a small portion of the people are engaged,
while the far greater part are entirely silent, inactive and uncon-
cerned
Who can behold an assembly of people thus united, and thus
exercised in the worship of God, and not perceive that they are
governed by one spirit P And is not this the one virgin body of
Christ to whom the promise alluded? “Then shall the virgin
“ rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together.”
Here both young and old, under the character of the virgin, are
comforted from their sorrow and “rejoice in the dance.” Here is
the cleansed sanctuary; and here every vessel, or in other words,
every talent which God ever gave his people, tho defiled by the
wicked, for many ages, is now purified and restored, in this living
temple, the church of the latter day.
How clearly this was preſigured by the cleansing of the proſan-
ed vessels of the Jewish temple, and restoring them to the second
temple! Here the second temple is manifested. In this temple is
revealed the ark alluded to in John's vision,t and we have ſound
access to it. The dancing of David and all Israel before the ark,
in that day, was typical of the true worship of God, under the
gospel dispensation. Then how much greater cause have the
true followers of Christ, in the present day, to devote all their ac-
* Jer, xxxi. 1.J. Rev al. 19.
cHAP. v.] THE WORSHIP OF GOD. 87
tive powers to the worship of God, before this spiritual ark which
is the real substance.
As the predictions of the prophets, concerning these things,
could only be in part fulfilled, in Christ's first appearing, therefore
he renewed these predictions, and the promises contained in them.
His parable of the prodigal son, alluded expressly to this subject.
In this is represented, in a striking light, the state of fallen man.
Having “wasted his substance in riotous living,” having strayed
from God, and abused that light and wasted those talents which his
heavenly Father had given him, in doing his own will and seeking
his own pleasures, he at length comes to his senses, feels his pov-
erty and laments his folly. Having returned from feeding the
swine, quitted the filthy companions of his wickedness, and the
miserable gratifications of his carnal nature, he confesses his sins
and begs his Father's forgiveness: And being stripped of his old
garments of sin and uncleanness, and clad with a robe of righteous-
ness and purity, there is “music and dancing.”
But observe the conduct of the elder son : this music and dam-
cing is highly offensive to him ; and in his anger, he refuses to
enter in and partake of the general joy of his father’s house, exalts
his own righteousness and goodness, condemns his prodigal broth-
er, and accuses his father of injustice.
This character clearly points out the formal professor of religion,
who readily acknowledges the manifestation of God in a former
day, and strictly adheres to the forms and ordinances of a past dis-
pensation, in which he places all his trust, without regarding any
present manifestation of divine light, except with feelings of jeal-
ousy and opposition. And tho he may have been faithful for a
season; yet, being regardless of any increase of righteousness in
his own soul, he loses the Spirit of God, and settles down upon a
form of godliness without the power. Such are ever more ready
to reject any increasing display of God’s work, than those who
make no profession of religion. -
Jesus Christ testified against the conduct of the high professors
of religion in his day, who pretended great zeal in keeping the law
given in a former dispensation; but at the same time, rejected his
testimony: “Verily I say unto you, that the publicans and harlots
“go into the Kingdom of God before you.” But had they been
willing to receive his testimony, and enter into the increasing light
of his ISingdom, they would not have been excluded: he even
“entreated them to come in ;' but they refused; as appears evi-
dent from his lamentation over Jerusalem : “How oſten would I
, “have gathered you, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under
“her wings, and ye would not '''. And wherefore did the Jews
reject Christ, while, at the same time, they professed such zeal for
* Matt. xxi. 31. f Matt. xxiii. 37.
88 THE WORSHIP OF GOD. [PART II.
the law of God? The apostle Paul says, “They being ignorant of
“God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own
“righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteous-
“ness of God.” How clearly this is exemplifred in the elder sof,
who condemned his father’s righteousness, and extolled his own
As the elder son was angry at his father's proceedings, and would
not come in, it appears evident that, whatever obedience he might
formerly have yielded, he still possessed the carnal mind, which is
“enmity against God.” Therefore, in applying this character to
the formal professor, we may with propriety and justice remark,
that whatever degree of confidence he may place in his former
righteousness, he never can find his union with the Father, unless
he is willing to unite with the increasing light of truth, wherever
it is made manifest: and tho the Father should oſter him all his
possessions, he could never enjoy them so long as he continued in
disunion with the Giver.
The parable of the Pharisee and the publican, who went up into
the temple to pray, is designed to represent the same characters.f
As the Pharisee, like the elder son, justified himself in the observ-
ance of formal ceremonies; so the publican, like the prodigal,
condemned himself, and begged for mercy: therefore, tº. the
more honest, he was “justifie: rather than the other;” yet neither
of them could be justified, as to their original characters.i.
From such self-justified Pharisees and professors of religion,
arises the greatest opposition against any new manifestation of the
light of God. The reason is obvious; they fix their sense upon
the work of God in some past dispensation, instead of pressing
forward to find the light of God before them. Thus the Scribes
and Pharisees of that day, had their sense so firmly fixed to the
law of Moses, as the foundation of their hope, and the ground of
their justification, that they could not hearken to the voice of Jesus
* Ronn. x. 3. f See Luke xviii. 10.
# Modern Pharisees have grown more artful in their hypocrisy than
those of ancient times. Finding that the honest confession of the pub-
lican was more acceptable to God than the boasting of the Pharisec,
they have learned to counterfeit his character by borrowing his language
te cover their hypocrisy. Their language now is, “God be merciful to
me a sinner. I am a poor sinner—I can do nothing of myself—l rely
wholly on the mercy of God—The atoning blood of Christ is all my de-
pendence for salvation,” &c. And yet at the same time, they will super-
stitiously maintain their old forms, and strictly adhere to their human
invented creeds and ceremonies, under a profession of christianity, while
they continue to follow the course of the world, and walk in the ways of
sin; as tho the hypocritical confession of being sinners, were sufficient
to propitiate the favor of God, and recommend them to his mercy, with-e
out actually forsaking their sins. Thus they are, by profession, christian
sinners. But such hypocrites ought to remember that, “He that com-
smitteth sin, is of the Devil.” Sec 1 John iii. 8.
chap. v.] THE WORSHIP OF GOD. 89
Christ, “who is the end of the law for righteousness to every one
“ that believeth;” especially as they found that his righteousness
required a greater cross against the fallen nature of man, than was
required by the law. And even to this day, the Jews, as a people,
have never acknowledged Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah.
The same kind of conduct is observable, in a greater or less
degree, among the formal professors of the various denominations,
at the present day. After having lost the spirit and power of their
religion, by the indulgence of their corrupt propensities, they settle
down into a lifeless form, upon some fixed, external principles,
established by their first founders, without ever looking forward
for any further increase, unless it be that increasing indulgence to
the flesh which tends to diminish the cross, and assimilate their
religion with the principles and spirit of the world. And so strong-
ly opposed are such professors to every thing that has any appear-
ance of that light and power of God which requires a greater cross
against the pride and lust of man, that we generally find the great-
est opposition against dancing, as an act of divine worship, to
proceed from professors of this description. Yet such characters
will generally manifest great zeal for that ceremonious and formal
worship which is performed by the tongue only.”
Thus while they are offended at the increasing work of God,
they still maintain the character of the elder son, who was unre.
conciled to the merciful displays of his father’s kindness and chari-
ty. And yet the same call of the everlasting gospel is extended
to them, as freely as to their more prodigal brethren, who, if they
are not less sinners, are less blinded by traditional forms of godli-
ness, and therefore have no cloke for their sins. Therefore all
are invited upon equal terms: “Come in and share the fatted calf,
“the feast of the Lamb; be stripped of your old garments of sin,
“ and be clad with the robes of righteousness: Come in and rejoice
“with your repenting, prodigal brother, and worship God in the
“ dance.”
* See Matt. Yv. 8,
£, 2
PART III.
THE NATURE of GoD AND His WoRKS of CREATION,
e-º ºrº-tº-
CHAPTER 1.
The Attributes of God; their harmony and consistency manifes-
ted in God’s dealings towards his creatures: the idea of chris-
tian sinners wholly inconsistent with these Attributes.
Much learned labor has been spent in vain attempts to search
out the nature and character of God, and to pry into the attributes
of the Almighty; as tho poor sinful man, in his fallen and deprav-
ed state, were able, by his own wisdom and understanding, to trace
out those qualities which constitute the ALMIGHTY God “Canst
“ thou by searching find out God P Canst thou find out the Al-
“mighty to perfection ?” -
The infinite and invisible God can be known only through the
medium of Divine Revelation. As far as God in his wisdom sees
fit to reveal his true character to man, so far it may be known,
but no further. And it is certainly most reasonable and consistent,
as well as most just and equitable, that a Being who is infinitely
just and righteous, should make the greatest displays of himself to
those who, by faith and obedience, approach the nearest to him.
Therefore it is not to the learned Theologist, immured in the deep
recesses of philosophical speculation, that God deigns to reveal
himself in his true character; but to those who deny themselves of
all ungodliness and every worldly lust, who walk in the paths of
righteåusness and peace, who are not merely knowers of his word,
but doers of his work. Such, and such only, have a just right to
look to God for a true knowledge of his Divine character; and
such can, with humble confidence, rely on a faithful display of
his goodness, without involving themselves in the dark mazes of
scepticism, by a pertinacious confidence in their own wisdom and
discernment. -
To have just conceptions of the real character of that Divine
PRINCIPLE or BEING whom we call God, it is necessary to under-
stand the nature of his attributes, which stand in perfect correspon-
dence with each other, and which are fully displayed in his Word
and Works, and clearly manifest his Divine perfections. “For
“ the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are
“clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made.”f
It is certainly amost reasonable and consistent with infinite Wis-
dom, that the image and likeness of God should be most plainly
manifested in man, who was made the most noble part of the na-
tural creation. Accordingly we read, “And God said, Let us
* Job xi, 7. f Rom, i. 20.
92 THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD. [PART III.
“make man in our image, after our likeness.—So God created
“man in his own image; in the image of God created he him;
“ male and female created he them.” Hence it must appear evi-
dent that there exists in the DEITY, the likeness of male and female,
forming the unity of that creative and good principle from which
proceeds the work of Father and Mother, manifested in Power to
create, and Wisdom to bring forth into proper order, all the works
of God. If it were not so, then man, who was created male and
female, as father and mother, could not, with any propriety, be
said to show forth the image and likeness of God. But the mani-
festation of Father and Mother in the Deity, being spiritual, does
not imply two Persons, but two Incomprehensibles, of one sub-
stance, from whom proceed all Divine power and life.*
The Almighty is manifested as proceeding from everlasting, as
the first Source of all power, and the fountain of all good, the
Creator of all good beings, and is the ETERNAL FATHER ; and
the Holy Spirit of Wisdom, who was the Co-worker with him,
from everlasting, is the ETERNAL Mother, the bearing Spirit of
all the works of God. This is according to the testimony of her
own inspiration.
“Doth not Wisdom cry P-She crieth at the gates, at the entry
“of the city:-‘Unto you, O men, I call; and my voice is to the
“sons of men. Hear; for I will speak excellent things; and the
“opening of my lips shall be right things. I love them that love
“me; and those that seek me early shall find me.—l lead in the
“way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment.—
“The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his
“works of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning,
“ or ever the earth was.--When he prepared the heavens, I was
“there: when he set a compass upon the face of the deep : when
“he established the clouds above; when he strengthened the foun-
“tains of the deep : when he gave the sea his decree, that the
“waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed
“ the foundations of the earth: then was I by him, as one brought
“ up with him; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always be-
“fore him.” And again: “Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
* and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay
“hold upon her; and happy is every one that retaineth her.”f
The attributes of God are manifested by the light of Divine rev-
clation, and confirmed by the testimony of eternal truth, through
Christ, in this day of his second appearing, and may be stated in
the following order.
* This shows something c5sentially different from “three listinct persons in one God,'
all in the masculine gender, as estabhished by a council of catholic bishops in the fourth
century, and which has been the prevailing creed among their blind and bigoted followers
to this day. - - - --
#, See Prov, thap. viii. and chap iii. 17, 18, 19.
CHAP. I.] THE AT TRIBUTES OF GOD, 93
1. Power. It is necessary, first of all, that God should possess
power sufficient for self-existence and independence, and for the
accomplishment of all his works. His power is infinite, and there-
fore fully competent to perform any thing consistent with his ma-
ture. “He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established
“ the world by his wisdom.”
2. Wisdom. In all the operations of God, Wisdom stands
connected with Power: for without the corresponding operation
of Wisdom to direct and bring forth into proper order, nothing
could ever be brought to perfection. “The Lord by wisdom hath
“ founded the earth; by understanding he hath established the
“heavens.”f Wisdom appears evident in the beauty, order, har-
mony and perfection of all God’s works. “O Lord, how mami-
“fold are thy works in wisdom hast thou made them all.”f
3. GoodNEss. The goodness of God is abundantly manifest
in its operations towards mankind, “The earth is full of the
“goodness of the Lord.”|| All the operations and works of God
are good, being planned in perfect wisdom, and every way adapt-
ed to the respective purposes for which they were intended.
4. LIGHT. “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.”ſ;
Without light, God could never be known to exist; and it is by the
operations of light that his works are seen, and his goodness made
manifest to his creatures.
5. Holin Ess. The holiness of God is abundantly declared in
the scriptures. “O Lord, who is like thee, glorious in holiness?”**
Holiness is, in the highest degree, expressive of the perfect purity
of the Divine Nature. Nothing unholy or impure belongs to God;
and therefore nothing of that nature can ever proceed from God,
or be owned and accepted by him.
6. LovE. God’s love is abundantly manifested towards his
creatures in the kind dispensations of his Providence, through
which they receive all their temporal blessings; and also in the
merciful displays of his goodness and tender compassion, whence
flow all their spiritual privileges. “God is love; and he that
“ dwelleth in love, dwelleth in God, and God in him.”ft
7. RIGHTEousNEss. “The Lord is righteous in all his ways,
“ and holy in all his works. Righteousness and judgment are the
“habitation of his throne.—The heavens declare his righteous-
“ness.”ff Righteousness is ascribed to God, throughout the scrip-
tures, as a distinguishing attribute, and is peculiarly expressive of
the perfect uprightness of his Divine character.
These seven are the only inherent attributes which constitute
the very nature and essence of God, as revealed to man, and from
which all others proceed.
* Jer. x, 12. f Prov. iii, 19. f Psa, civ, 24. | Psa. xxxiii, f.
Tſ John i, 5. ** Exod. xv, 11, ti 1 John iv. I5. if Psa. xcvii, 2, 6, and crly. (7.
94 THE AT TRIBUTES OF GOD. [PART III.
All other attributes or principles, with everything pertaining to
Godliness, may be considered as comprehended in, and proceeding
from these seven. Justice, tho an essential attribute of God, is so
intimately connected with his Righteousness, that they, in effect,
form but one. Righteousness, is that which is inherently right
and equitable in God. Justice is a display of that which is right
and equitable towards his creatures. Mercy is also an essential
attribute; but it proceeds from goodness and love : for wherever
God, from his infinite goodness and love, administers his gifts in
tender compassion to the needs of his creatures, there is a display
of mercy. Understanding and knowledge are the operations of
Wisdom and Light, without which there could be no understand-
ing nor knowledge.
As to the terms omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence, so
much used among theologists, and which they consider as terms
expressive of Divine Attributes, it may be proper to remark that,
omnipotence is only another name for Aſmighty Power; and that
omniscience implies a knowledge of all things, and of course, pro-
ceeds from Wisdom and Light. Omniprisence cannot properly
be called an attribute. Undoubtedly, “the eyes of the Lord are
“in every place, beholding the evil and the good;” but God’s cs-
sential presence cannot be in any evil work. Some talk of God’s
infinity, eternity and unchangeableness, as essential attributes;
but this seems to be a distinction in terms, more calculated to be-
wilder the mind than to enlighten the understanding. By a little
reflection we may easily perceive that, if “God is infinite, eternal
“ and unchangeable in his Being,” which all must admit, then all
his attributes must, of necessity, be infinite, all must be eternal,
and all unchangeable ; and hence arises his independence of all
other beings, and his sovereignty over all.
Truth is the declarative attribute of God, which proceeds from
all his other attributes, and by which they are all declared and
made manifest, and without which man could know nothing of God.
“Thy word is truth.” In Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is
the Truth, was manifested the real character of God: “For in him
“ dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead (or Deity) bodily.”f
That is, in him was manifested the very nature of those attributes,
and in this sense, God dwelt in him. We read that, “Our God is
“a consuming fire.”f This includes every attribute of God; and
these, being all manifested by the truth, operate like fire, and will
finally consume and destroy whatever is contrary to the nature of
God. It is also declared in the scriptures, that “God is a Spirit;”
or rather, according to the original, God is Spirit. All his attri-
butes are spiritual: He is that inſinite and eternal Fountain whence
proceeds all spiritual blessings to all his creatures. IIence he is
* John xvii, I7. # Col. ii, 9, * lieb. xii, º,
cHAP. I.] THE AT TRIBUTES OF GOD. 95
the only proper object of spiritual worship. “God is Spirit, and
they that worship him, must worship in spirit and in truth.”
It is worthy of notice that the seven attributes, already mention-
ed as inherent in the nature of God, have been particularly figured
out, in many remarkable instances, both in God’s works of creation
and providence. All God’s works are a manifestation of these
attributes; all scripture and divine revelation bear testimony to
them. They are “the seven Spirits of God,” which were repre-
sented by John, as “seven lamps of fire burning before the throne.”f
It is by the operation of these only, that any thing of God can be
seen; and without these, nothing could ever be discovered or
known of him: for no other light ever comes from God, but through
the operation of these seven attributes. Hence the foundation of
the number seven, so often used in scripture, in representing the
works of God and sacred things.
“And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of the throne stood a Lamb
“as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which
“are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.”. It is
well known that the Lamb is a title which, in the language of scrip-
ture, is often applied to Jesus Christ. A horn, in the figurative
style of the prophets, signifies power or strength. These seven
horns of the Lamb represent the power or strength of those seven
Spirits or attributes of God, by which all his works are performed.
The seven eyes represent their spiritual light and discernment.
This vision of John clearly shows that in Christ, is manifested the
brightness of his Father’s glory; and that in and through him, are
displayed all those attributes, by which he is able to reveal the
true nature and character of God, and to declare his name and
perform his work through the world; and in this manner, and for
this purpose, are “the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the
“ earth.”
By this we may see, not only that all the manifestations of God
to man are revealed in and through Christ; but also that all the
gifts and blessings which come from God, and are sent forth to
man, are evidently the operations of the spirit and substance of
these attributes: and certain it is, that nothing which is inconsis-
tent with these attributes can ever flow from God.
John saw, in vision, the Son of God walking in the midst of
“seven golden candlesticks,” and holding in his right hand “seven
“stars. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches;
“ and the seven golden candlesticks are the seven churches.”
This vision has a direct reference to the same foundation upon
which these seven churches were built, and upon which the true
church of Christ must ever be built. Stars are emblematical of
the heavenly light and glory of the angelic order, which is founded
* John iv, 24. f Rev. iv, 5. : Rev. v., 6. # See Rev. i, 12, to the end, & ii, I.
96 THE AT TRIBUTES OF GOD. [PART III,
and established, under the government of Christ, on these seven
principles. The Son of God, being in possession of the seven
Spirits or attributes of God, and having power and dominion over
the seven churches of Asia, which were nourished and supported
by these attributes, may, by a figurative representation, be said to
hold the seven stars in his right hand, and to walk in the midst of
the seven golden candlesticks.
The seven seals, which were opened by the Lamb, have their
foundation in these seven attributes, or Spirits of God: for the true
nature and operation of these attributes were never known until
revealed by the Lamb. The seven angels with the seven trumpets;
and also the seven angels with the seven vials of the wrath of God,
all show the same order which appears in all God’s works.”
The work of God, from the beginning, all came forth in this
order. The heavens and the earth were created in six days, and
were ended and blessed and sanctified on the seventh ; because
on that day God rested from all his work. And thus were the
seven days of the week established by the Creator, conformable
to the seven attributes of the Deity. The sacred institution of the
sabbath, by which the seventh day was set apart and sanctified by
Divine authority, as a day of blessing and rest, was not only a
standing memorial to the chosen tribes of Israel, of God’s having
rested from his work on that day; but it was also figurative of
the final blessing and rest of the saints, which will be effected by
the final display of God’s attribute of Righteousness and Justice,
when “the righteous shall shine forth as the sun, in the Kingdom
“ of their Father.”f !
Finally : Mlan, both in his natural and moral constitution, was
created in the same order. His five natural senses, together with
the two faculties of speech and understanding, make seven, and
constitute him a natural man. These seven natural faculties are
more or less perceptible througliout the animal creation. In the
two last, however, man evidently stands preeminent; yet these
faculties are all natural and corporeal, depending on the life of the
animal body, and the constitutional soundness of the parts they
occupy. But man, in his moral constitution, is also endowed
with seven rational powers or faculties, corresponding with the
* See Rev, chap, v, 8, & I6. f MI: tº, xiii, 43.
# That these seven faculties are natural and corporeal, is evident from
the circumstance that each one is separately liable to be more or less
effected, and even destroyed, by a disorganization of that part of the
human body in which that pºrticular faculty is seated. A mºn "...?
Iose his hearing by the disorganization, or disorder of the cirs ; h
Inay also lose his sight by a disol der of the eyes ; and so also of the
faculties of feeling, tasting smelling and speech ; and even his un-
derstanding depends on a proper organization of the brain. Hence, by
a disorder of the brium, many lose their understanding, and become
insane, delirious or crazy.
CHAP. I.] THE ATTRIBUTEs of God. 97
seven attributes in Deity. These being implanted in him, accord-
ing to the spiritual order of his creation, properly constitute his
rational soul, and bear witness of the true nature of the Creator.
In this sense, man was created in the image and likeness of God,
and was constituted God’s representative in the natural creation.
This is agreeable to the testimony of Solomon: “Wisdom hath
“builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars.” This
evidently alludes to the seven rational powers of man, who was
eminently designed to be the house or habitation of Wisdom.
Thus man, in his sphere of action, became as God, capable of
exercising to good purposes, and to the extent of his limited capa-
city, all the attributes of God, with which he was endowed by his
Creator; and also capable, by the perversion of his natural facul-
ties to base purposes, of darkening and debasing his moral attri-
butes, and thus rendering his rational soul subservient to his ani-
mal propensities. Herein he was made independent, as to his
choice of good and evil, being left as free to act within the narrow
limits of his sphere, as God his Creator. Hence arose his ac-
countability. For, being the offspring of God, from whom he re-
ceived his matural and moral faculties, and by whom he was pla-
ced as God’s representative on earth, it was absolutely necessary
that he should improve those powers and faculties to the honor
and glory of his Creator, and in obedience to his will, as the only
means of gaining honor to himself, and of answering the end of
his creation.
God having constituted man a reasonable, intelligent being,
capable of knowing and doing his will, addresses him as such.
“Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord :-If ye
“be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.”f
Man is not required to believe nor practice that which is contrary
to the plain and obvious dictates of right reason. Right reason
has its foundation in the acknowledged attributes of God; other-
wise it is not right reason: for no one can with propriety call that
right which is known to be contrary to righteousness.
In all the works of God there is a perfect consistency, and all
his manifestations to man are perfectly reasonable. The opera-
tions of all his attributes are displayed in the most perſect harmo-
my and correspondence with each other. “It is impossible for
“God to lie :” for he is “a God of truth, and without iniquity,
“just and right is he.”f It is therefore impossible that he should
devise any plan, fix any decree, or perform any work which would
$operate against any one of his attributes. His attribute of Power
can never operate against that of Wisdom. Iłis Justice, which
necessarily proceeds from Righteousness, can never be sacrificed
to mercy, nor can mercy be sacrificed to justice. Nor can his
* Prov. iv. 1, * Isa. i. 18 11. # Heb. vi. 18, & Deet. xxxii. 4.
98. THE ATTRIBUTEs of God. [PART III.
Power, with all his sovereignty and independence, or any thing
pertaining to his character, ever operate against Truth, Goodness,
Light, Holiness or Love. -
The want of just conceptions concerning the character of God,
as manifested in his attributes, has been the cause of the many
different opinions which prevail among mankind, respecting divine
things. Hence it is that people in the pursuit of religion, are so
often led to adopt false principles, and establish themselves upon
a wrong foundation. And false principles, when once adopted as
divine truths, have a delusive tendency; and however inconsistent
with the plain dictates of right reason, they are very apt to obtain
a strong hold in the mind, and, like an inveterate disease, are very
difficult to eradicate, especially when supported by the authority
of great names, and confirmed by length of time.
We have a striking example of the truth of this remark in that
unqualified doctrine, maintained by many, who affirm that God, as
an independent, Almighty Sovereign, has a just right to do what
he pleases, and can, consistent with that right, sentence to eternal
misery, many millions of souls who never were favored with the
light of the gospel. This soul-sickening doctrine, which had its
origin in the regions of antichristian darkness, has caused thousands,
and perhaps millions, to blaspheme the very name of God, as a
Being of infinite injustice and cruelty. The Almighty has truly a
right to do what he will ; but it is impossible that he should ever will
any thing which is inconsistent with his attribute of Righteousness,
or with any attribute of his nature : for this would at once destroy
the harmony of his attributes, and render him an inconsistent and
changeable Being.
All doctrines which represent God as making any difference in
the future state of his rational creatures, respecting their salvation
or damnation, without a special regard to their works, and all the
reasons advanced in support of such doctrines, are ſalacious and
unfounded, and ought to be rejected as inconsistent with the attri-
bute of righteousness and justice. Such doctrines, being fraught
with the greatest possible evil to the creature, are equally inconsis-
tent with goodness. They also operate against the attribute of
ſight: for no doctrine ever produced a more darkening and dis-
couraging effect upon the mind of man. To suppose the fate of
man irrevocably fixed, must necessarily discourage all attempts to
alter it by any good which it is in his power to do. Such a doc-
trine must not only greatly obscure the benevolent and glorious
character of the Deity, in the eyes of his rational creatures; but ren
der him more like a tyrannical devil who delights in the misery o
his creatures, than like a good, merciful and gracious God, “who
“ hath no pleasure in the death of the wicked.”
* Ezek. xxxiii. 11.
cHAP. I.] THE ATTRIBUTEs of God. 99
All doctrines which maintain that gloomy opinion, that a man,
when called by the gospel, may be in doubt as to the knowledge:
of such a call, and cannot positively see and know his duty, nor
discern the certainty of the way of life and salvation, or that he
can be a follower of Christ and not know it, are inconsistent with
the attributes of light and knowledge. “For God who command-
“ed the light to shine out of darkness, hath shimed into our hearts.”
Jesus saith, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me
“shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”f
Hence the very message of the gospel to souls was designed, “To
“open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, and from
“ the power of Satan unto God.”: “If any man will do his will,
“he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God.” Here is
neither doubt nor supposition expressed, but a positive declaration
of Jesus Christ, who hath declared himself “the way, the truth
“ and the life.”ff
Hence it is evident that the plain and obvious reason why so
many professing christians of the present day, do not positively
know the way, the truth and the life, is, thany do not do the will of
God: for those who do his wiłł, are in the way; and to do his
will is indeed the only way. Therefore, thoco who express such
doubts, are evidently witnesses against themselves, that they are
not in the way. *: -
The doctrine of christian sinners, or the idea of christians’ liv-
ing in sin, so strenuously advocated by many, is utterly inconsis-
tent with every attribute of God. All doctrines which imply that
real christians cannot live without sin, are inconsistent with the
attributes of power and goodness, and indeed with every Divine
attribute. “Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not; whosoever
“sinneth, hath not seen him, nor known him. He that committeth
“sin is of the devil.” The opinion which prevails so extensive-
ly among mankind, that no man, not even a real christian, is able
to live without committing sin, is one of the most destructive errors
that ever proceeded from the powers of darkness. It strikes di-
‘rectly against a life of holiness, and is calculated to discourage all
attempts in the pursuit of virtue: for what inducement can any
man have to pursue that which he believes it impossible to obtain?
He who imbibes the ſtinciple, that it is impossible to obtain power
over sin, will soon find that every spring of his carnal nature is
ready to cherish the deception, and check the reproaches of con-
SC161) C6. -
If them, this principle is so agreeable to the “carnal mind,”
which the apostle declares to be “enmity against God;’” surely
it cannot proceed from God. The very work which Christ came
* 3 Cor. iv. 6. t John viii. 12. # Acts xxvi. 18. | John vii. 17.
:: John xiv 5 * 1 John iii. 6 & 8. ** Rom. viii, 7.
100 THE AT TRIBUTES OF GOE), [PART HI,
into the world to do, was to take away sin—“to save his people
“from their sins.” Was then the object of his mission unattain-
able? Was he sent into the world to undertake a work which he
was unable to accomplish P By no means. His own testimony
proves that his power was sufficient for the work. “All power
“ is given unto me in Heaven and in earth.”f If then, all power
is given him, and if the very object of his mission was “to save
“his people from their sins,” why are not these christian sinners
saved from sin P for if they are christians indeed, they must be
Christ's people. Besides; he has promised explicitly; “All things
“whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.”f
Again; “If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shałl
“ ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.”
Thus it appears that Christ’s power is sufficient; and surely no
one will pretend that he is unfaithful in his promises: What then P
Is he deficient in goodness and love? By no means. All profess-
ing christians will readily acknowledge his goodness and love. Is
he unable to discern the devices and stratagems of Satan, so as to
counteract them and protect his people P Certainly not: for this
would exclude the attributes of wisdom and light: and the apostle
Paul declared Christ to be “the power of God, and the wisdom of
“God:”] and Christ himself, as before observed, testified, saying,
“I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk
“in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” Here we find
mothing deficient on the part of Christ; yet these sinning christians
still continue to walk in darkness and live in sin, and plead the
impossibility of doing otherwise; and yet they name the mame of
Christ, and claim the character of christians ! But what title have
they to this character P If the testimony of Christ be true, they
cannot possibly be his followers, while they live in sin and walk in
darkness.
The attribute of Divine Love is readily acknowledged by all
the professors of christianity; and many, even among these sin-
ning christians, profess to share bountifully in the love of God.
But if they really possess the true love of God, which is indeed the
most certain evidence that they are beloved of God, why does not
this love keep them from sinning? “If ye love me, keep my com-
“mandments,” said Jesus; and surely ther&can be no sin in keep-
ing his commandments. “No good thing will God withhold from
“ them that walk uprightly.” Do these christians walk upright-
ly P or does God withhold his goodness P Surely they cannot im-
peach the goodness of God. If they really possess his love, the
must also possess his goodness: for these are so intimately connectº
ed together, that they cannot be separated. Why then are they iſºt
* Matt. i. 21. f Matt. xxyiii 13, # Matt. xxi. 22. | John xv. 7.
* 1 Cor. i., §4, ** Psa, lxxxiv. 11,
CHAP. I.] THE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD, 101
delivered from sin P Can sin abide with God’s love and goodness?
Can righteousness have fellowship with unrighteousness? Can
light have communion with darkness?" As well might Satan dwell
in a tabernacle of holiness.
The Spirit of God is holy; but sin is unholy. Hence the holi-
mess of God is opposed to sin; therefore, wherever the Spirit of
holiness operates, it must effectually exclude sin; unless where sin
is more powerſul than holiness; and there it must equally exclude
holiness: for they can never abide together in any soul. Hence
we must conclude that sin has dominion over these sinning chris-
tians, being more powerful in them than the Spirit of holiness:
for that which is most powerful must have the dominion. But
holiness must then be excluded: for they cannot dwell together.
And if the sins of these christians exclude God's holiness, they
must exclude his goodness and love, yea, and his righteousness
also, together with every attribute pertaining to the nature of God.
If this be done, what then becomes of their christianity ?
The apostle Paul, in writing to the church of Corinth, expresses
himself in these words; “Know ye not that ye are the temple of
“God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” and then adds,
“If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy: for
“the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.” Thus it ap-
pears that some of these Corinthian christians to whom Paul ad-
dressed himself, had, at least, a measure of the Spirit of God dwel-
ling in them; and it was evidently the apostle's desire to keep
them in the Spirit of God. Hence his warning, “If any man dé-
“ file the temple of God, him will God destroy.” Did these chris-
tians then live in sin P Certainly not while the Spirit of God dwelt
in them. Why then cannot christians of the present day live
without sin P Was God more partial to the primitive christians
than he now is to modern christians? This would exclude his attri-
bute of righteousness.
“What shall we say then P Is there unrighteousness with God?”
Does he deal unjustly with his people? Does he hold out promises
of reward to the faithful and upright, who are willing to bear the
cross of Christ, and deny themselves of all ungodliness and every
worldly lust; and, at the same time, withhold from them his power
and goodness, with all the means of gaining power and victory
Qºr sin; and yet threaten destruction to the soul that defileth
Himself with sin? To suppose that God can deal thus with his
tº: is, in effect, to deny, not only his attribute of righteousness,
ut also his power and wisdom, his goodness and love, his mercy
and truth, and in short, it is to deny every thing that pertains to
the holy Spirit of God.
Thus it appears that the impious and soul-destroying doctrine
* See 2 Cor. vi. 14. i 1 Cor. iii. 10, 17.
K 2
#02 THE AT TRIBUTES OF GOD. [PART IIf,
of christian-sinners, or the impossibility of living without sin, ex-
cludes every attribute of Deity, and renders Christ’s mission into
the world a mere nullity, and throws the responsibility of the crea-
ture's sin directly back upon the Creator. But let no man deceive
himself: God is not mocked. The sinner can never escape re-
sponsibility in this way. The righteousness of God will yet be
displayed before all people; and the living power of eternal truth
will manifest every attribute of God to be what it really is, to the
shame and confusion of sinners, and to the destruction of all their
works.
Therefore, let all those christians who plead the impossibility
of living without sin, faithfully examine the subject, and they will
find that the deficiency is not in God, who is All-sufficient; that it
is not in Christ in whom dwells the fulness of the Divine attributes;
but in their own faithless hearts. They do not believe it possible
to live without sin; because they have never received that power.
And why have they never received it? Because they do not “ask
“in prayer, believing that they shall receive;” because they do
not faithfully and honestly take up a full and final cross against
sin; because they do not believe in the promises of Christ; be-
cause they do not abide in Christ; and because his word does
not abide in them. These are the true causes why they cannot
Jive without sin.
“Without faith it is impossible to please God.” Then what
sort of christians must these be who are so destitute of faith P Sure-
ly they cannot be tº faithful followers of Christ: for they do not
believe it possible for any one to live without sin; therefore they
content themselves with living in it; and this they find to be most
agreeable to their carnal inclinations. Thus they cherish their
own delusions, Tho such christians will often ascribe holiness
to the Lord with their tongues, and declare his goodness in the
highest strains of eloquence; yet in their practice they will deny
both. Even in their prayers, they will extol to the heavens the
glory of his righteousness and justice, his mercy and truth ; while
in their doctrines, they implicitly deny in him, the very existence
of these attributes.
“Nevertheless, the foundation of God standeth sure, having this
“seal. The Lord knoweth them that are his. And let every one
“that nameth the name of Christ, depart from iniquity.”f Such,
and such only, are known of God in the great work of salvation;
and such only are sealed with the Lamb, and stand on Mount Zion. :
* Heb. xi. 6. - * 2 Tim. ii. 19.
CHAP. II.] THE DECREES OF GoD, &c. 103
CHAPTER II.
Concerning the Decrees of God, Election and Reprobation.
THE Decrees of God have, for many ages, employed the pens
and tongues of many professed divines, and great controversies
have been excited and maintained on this subject; but the differ-
ences of opinion still remain without producing much light to man-
kind, except that of discovering the darkness and ignorance of
the disputants. - -
Many arguments have been drawn from certain passages of
scripture to prove that God, by an unalterable decree, and with-
out any respect to faith or good works, has elected a certain por-
tion of the human race to eternal salvation, and reprobated the
remainder to eternal damnation. Hence we hear much about the
doctrine of election and reprobation, from those preachers and
writers who build their tenets on these favorite passages. But it
is to be lamented that there are so many, in this enlightened age,
“who minister questions rather than godly edifying which is in
“faith; desiring to be teachers; yet understanding neither what
“ they say, nor whereof they affirm;”* who presume to maintain
doctrines so contrary to the liberal and righteous principles ºf
the gospel, and so inconsistent with the true character of God.
As it is by Divine revelation, that the true character of God is
made known to man; so a true knowledge of his decrees, as far
as they relate to what he requires of man, are known only by reve-
lation. But those decrees by which, in the beginning, God estab-
lished the laws of creation, and by which the works of creation
and providence are governed, tho they are beyond the reach of
man, yet their existence is readily ascertained and confirmed by
their visible effects. And by these effects, the rational mind may
easily be led to believe, what none can deny, that God works by
an unalterable plan of wisdom, which necessarily produces an un-
changeable order and regularity in all his visible works. And
hence we must rationally conclude that all his invisible works are
under the same established laws; and that they all must and do
operate with the greatest order and harmony, and in the end, will
most certainly accomplish all his divine purposes in perfect wis-
dom and righteousness.
The decrees of God, so far as they are made manifest, either by
Divine revelation, or by their visible effects in the natural world,
are of two kinds. The first are those which respect God’s own
established and determinate laws and purposes, whether they re-
late to man, or to any other part of the creation. The second are
those which God has given to man, for his protection, and which
are calculated and designed to prove his faithfulness and obedience,
* 1 Tinn. i. 4 & 7,
104 THE DECREES OF GOD, [PART III.
First. Those decrees which respect God’s own established laws
and purposes, comprehend not only the works of creation and
providence, but the final event of whatever he has designed. In
the works of creation, it is obvious that God has established laws
which are unalterable, except by the same Almighty Power which
first established them. Among these we may reckon the establish-
ed order, courses and relative situation of the sun, moon and stars,
together with the whole planetary system; the order and courses
of the seasons, and the laws of nature by which they are govern-
ed; heat and cold, light and darkness, the powers of procreation
and vegetation, the laws of gravitation, attraction and repulsion,
with every thing which depends on the established laws of nature:
these are known by their visible effects.
Also God's determinate purposes, relative to the operation of
his divine attributes with respect to man. Among these may be
mentioned the decree of his power, in creating man a moral agent,
perfectly capable of exercising his moral faculties in choosing and
acting according to the dictates of his own mind, in doing good or
evil. Also the decree of his wisdom, in placing man in a state of
probation, and giving him a fair trial, that he might prove himself
in the choice of good or evil, without any influence, on either side,
more than what he was fully able to resist or follow, according to
his own free choice. And also the decree of his goodness, by
which he determined, after the fall, to extend mercy to man, and
send a Redeemer to redeem him from his fallen state, and raise
him to a heavenly Paradise, of which the earthly paradise, from
which he fell, was but a figure.
Man being still endowed with the faculty of free agency, not-
withstanding his fall, by which he was brought into darkness and
bondage, God, who is the source of light, decreed to afford him
a sufficient degree of light to see and appreciate, in some measure,
the benefits to be obtained by accepting the offers of salvation,
through the mediation of the Redeemer; that he might be at no
loss respecting his duty and privilege, in choosing for himself, nor
respecting the course of life to be pursued, in order to obtain sal-
vation through this medium. In his holiness he decreed that man,
by a life of holiness, which he might obtain by obedience, should
find an entrance into the mansions of holiness; and he decreed
at the same time, that “without holiness no man should see the
Lord.” In his love he also decreed, that the blessings of his love
should attend the faithful and obedient. And in his righteousness
and justice, he decreed a crown of righteousness, as the just re-”
ward of all who should walk in the way of righteousness and peace;
and this decree necessarily excludes the disobedient from any in-
heritance in the Kingdom of Christ. *
These are the unalterable decrees of God, and all who are will
CHAP. II.] ELECTION AND REPROBATION. 105
ling to accept the benefits of these decrees, are freely entitled to
them, in the line of obedience; but God has decreed that they
shall not be obtained in any other way. By a careful examination
of these decrees, we can see nothing in them but what is perfectly
just and reasonable, and perfectly consistent with infinite wisdom
and goodness; and they certainly display, in very striking colors,
the great perfection and glory of the Divine Attributes. The fixed
and unalterable mature of these decrees, by no means renders them
unreasonable or unjust ; but the contrary. Even those which
more immediately respect man, show forth the unchangeable
goodness of God, by their permanence, and are rendered infinitely
valuable, by being unalterable.
When we consider that God is infinitely wise and powerful, that
“he is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works,” and
that he is perfectly free and independent, it must appear perfectly
consistent, just and reasonable, that he should create man a moral
agent, perfectly free to choose and act for himself, independent of
any supernatural impulse. Herein appears man’s divine origin.
And where is the man who is willing to have his moral freedom
and independence taken from him, and to be compelled to think
and act according to the dictates of some otlie, being, without any
choice or will of his own, and at the same time, to be made ac-
countable for his thoughts, words and actions.
But this cannot be : for God has endowed man with moral
agency, and it cannot be taken from him; it is fixed by an unal-
terable decree; and tho intolerant Popes and ecclesiastical perse-
cutors have often attempted it, even by the power of fire and sword,
and every implement of torture; yet they never could control the
moral powers of man, nor deprive him of his free agency. They
have sometimes, indeed, compelled people to speak and act the
hypocrite, in order to escape punishment or gain favor; but they
mever could destroy his moral agency, nor extinguish the light of
his conscience. They may indeed bind, imprison or kill the body;
but they cannot fetter the thoughts, nor destroy the soul. As
well might they attempt to arrest the sun in its progress through
the sky, or change the course of the stars.
Second. Those decrees which God has given to man for his
protection, and which are calculated and designed to prove his
faithfulness and obedience. Such was his decree to Adam : “In
“the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Such was
his decree to the Jews, by the mouth of the prophet Isaiah: “If
“ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land.”
And such was the testimony of Jesus Christ: “If any man will
“ do his will, he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of God.”
This may also apply to any command, or any established law ef
* Isa, i, 19, f John vii. 17.
106 THE DECREES OF GOD, [PART III.
God, for the government of his people, which requires their obedi-
ence; and in case of disobedience, exposes them to suffer the pen-
alty decreed by that law.
The decrees of God which require the obedience of man, con-
sist in the declaration of his mind and will, concerning their duty,
and are manifested by divine revelation, either mediately or imme-
diately. His decree to Adam respecting the forbidden fruit, was
direct and positive. His decrees to the people of Israel, through
Moses, Joshua and the judges and prophets, were positive, and
the promises conditional ; yet punishments or sufferings of some
kind followed disobedience. Adam and Eve violated the decree
of God to them, and therefore they fell from their union with God:
for the decree could not be altered. A decree may be permanent
and unalterable, or it may be temporary and alterable. Decrees
which are temporary and alterable, are given according to the ex-
isting circumstances of those to whom they are given; but the
annulling of them argues no changeableness in the Giver, it only
shows a change of the circumstances which occasioned the decree.
God’s laws are his decrees, and they may be permanent and un-
conditional, or temporal and conditional. A sovereign may enact
laws for the govoºr, no ont of hic People; ~x-kai clu ania y by U. repeakable;
yet while they exist, they are positive, and must be obeyed. So it
is with many decrees given for the government of God’s people.
The doctrine so strongly maintained, and so extensively believ-
ed, that God decreed the fall of man, is most unreasonable and in-
consistent. If God decreed that man should sin, then man could
not be at all culpable. If he fulfilled God’s decree in eating the
forbidden fruit, then he must have dome the will of God, and there-
fore did not commit sin in so doing : for it cannot be sin to do the
will of God, and God cannot decree any thing contrary to his will;
therefore he cannot decree that man shall commit sin. Such a
decree would indeed be contrary to every attribute of his nature.
The command of God to Adam, was his law; in keeping that law,
he could not sin: “ for sin is a transgression of the law.” The
command was given to prove Adam's obedience, and protect him
from evil. In transgressing the command, he violated the law of
God, and that occasioned his fall.
If sin is a transgression of the laws of God, as the scriptures
declare, and God’s decrees are his laws, as all must acknowledge;
then it follows, that God i.ever decreed that man should sin: for,
to say that he decreed that man should sin, is to say that sin is not
a transgression of his laws, but a compliance with them, and there-
fore, sin is not sin; which is a contadiction. Again: If God did
decree that man should commit sin, then sin must have been agree-
able to the will of God: for God cannot, without an absolute in-
consistency, decree any thing which is contrary to his will. Hence
CHAP. II.] ELECTION AND REPROB ATION. 107
the sin cannot be imputed to man; it must be imputed to the will
of God; consequently no condemnation can fall on man, seeing he
did the will of God. This involves the same absurdity, namely,
sin is not sin ( Such are the inconsistencies which necessarily
flow from this soul-darkening, this heaven-blaspheming doctrine,
which had its origin in the regions of antichristian darkness.
Again: God could not interpose his power to prevent the fall
of man, or to prevent him from sinning, whether he would or not;
because this would, at once, have deprived man of the trial of his
obedience, and of all accountableness, by fixing an insurmountable
barrier to prevent in him the power of transgression. In this case
man could never have been the subject of praise nor blame; he
never could have known the power nor the extent of his own free
agency; he never could have enjoyed the glorious reward of faith-
fulness, nor have felt the dishonor and shame of unfaithfulness;
having no law which he could, of his own choice, obey or disobey,
his conduct, in all things, must, of course, have been impelled by
Almighty power, like the stars in their courses. This would have
deprived man of the power of self-action, and rendered him a mere
machine.
Man was created a moral agent, at the beginning: that is, he
was endowed with free-agency, capable of acting according to his
own voluntary choice, without any compulsion, either of good or
evil: and his having good and evil set before him, was that which
constituted his state of trial. God assumed no compelling power
over him; and the devil could have none, without the man’s pre-
vious consent. He was therefore, in this respect, left entirely
without control.
But it may be asked, whence came the choice of evil? This
may be answered in short: It was insinuated by the tempter.
The temptation was first addressed to the mind: “Ye shall be as
Gods;” and thence applied to the animal propensities, which were
inferior to the rational powers. The faculties of the soul, being
superior to those of the body, ought to have had the government.
But when the man’s animal sensations were addressed, and excited
by the temptation, tho he possessed a governing power in the fa-
culties of his soul; yet he gave up that power, and gave loose to
his animal desires, and under their excitement, yielded to the
temptation. This occasioned his fall; and hence the loss which
ensued. He proved himself unfaithful to his trust, and the curse
followed as the inevitable consequence.
Some will argue, that because God is omniscient and knows all
things, even before they come to pass, he must of course foreordain
that they shall come to pass. But this consequence does not fol-
low ; it is taking for granted, that which cannot be proved; name-
ly; that God cannot foreknow that such an event will come to
\08 THE DECREES OF GOD, [PART III.
pass, without first foreordaining that it shall come to pass: thus
making his foreknowledge to depend on a previous decree.
But if God possesses almighty power ; if in him “are hid all
the treasures of wisdom and knowledge;” then he must certainly
be able to endow man with perfect freedom, and render him per-
fectly independent, as to his power of choosing or refusing, with-
out any constraint of the foreknowledge or decrees of God. And
certain it is, that there is nothing in the foreknowledge of God
which can operate, either directly or indirectly, against the free
and final choice of any soul, in respect to the work of salvation:
for this would be predestination in very deed. To say that God
cannot foreknow without foreordaining “whatsoever comes to
pass,” is to limit his attributes of power and wisdom, and subject
them to his decrees, making his decrees, which are evidently the
effect of his power and wisdom, superior to both ; this is, in reality,
making the eſſect superior to the cause, and placing the common
absurd doctrine of predestination above the Divine attributes.
The advocates of unconditional decrees readily admit, that God
is able to give his creatures intelligence and volition, and to endow
them with the power of thought and action; because this appears
too evident to be denied. But still they contend that the operation
of these faculties, is immediately dependent on a supernatural im-
pulse; because they cannot conceive how God can confer on man
an independence of this kind; or in other words, how he can give
man the power to chuse and refuse, according to his own will, in-
dependent of his Maker’s influence. Herein they discover their
contracted ideas of Divine Power and Wisdom. But man’s rea-
son and observation, where they are not blinded by the dark mists
of antichristian doctrines, might teach him that, according to what
is made manifest in the works of the visible creation, “the Power
“ of God and the Wisdom of God” must extend infinitely beyond
all human conception. This truth may be illustrated by a com-
parison.
It is well known that a clock, being constructed on certain me-
chanical principles, is able to keep time without the maker's assis-
iance; and tho the maker cannot confer the power of intelligence
and volition on his clock, so as to enable it to go right or wrong, of
its own choice; yet it is capable of keeping time, according to the
principles of its construction, independent of the maker, even were
he a thousand miles distant. And since it is admitted, that God
can and does confer the power of intelligence and volition on man,
why should it appear unreasonable to suppose that he, as an Al-
mighty Creator, can render that intelligence and volition perfectly
free and independent of his own influence, or the influence of any
other being, as easily as a clock can be made to keep time inde-
pendent of its maker? -
CHAP. II.] ELECTION AND REPROBATION. 109
God is not only able to endow man with perfect freedom and
independence, in this respect, but he has in truth done it; and
herein consists man's free agency, and his accountability. For if
the mind of man were not free, if its action depended on some
foreign influence, whether that influence came from God, or some
other being, the man could not be a free agent, and therefore not
accountable for his conduct. But man being a free agent, and
having received the law of his Creator, by which he is taught how
to govern his conduct aright, that law is the decree of God to him;
in obeying that decree, he finds justification before God; in viola-
ting it, he becomes a transgressor.
Altho man is indebted to his Creator for the power of intelli-
gence and volition, as well as for all his power and faculties of every
kind; and altho he is continually dependent on the providence
of God, for all the benefits and privileges he enjoys; yet without
the power to exercise and improve all these gifts, to good or evil
purposes, according to a free choice of his own, independent of
any external or foreign influence, he could not be accountable for
his conduct. But being honored of God, with this most important
and highly exalted trust, he is therefore highly responsible to his
Maker for a faithful discharge of his duty; and herein appears his
great accountability.
The doctrine of particular election and reprobation, so called,
which maintains that God, by his omnipotent decrees, “has, from
all etermity, elected some to everlasting life,” and doomed others
to eternal damnation, without any regard to faith or good works, is
supposed to be confirmed by certain passages of scripture, which
its advocates, contrary to all truth and right reason, have seen fit
to interpret in that sense. But it appears evident from all that
we have seen written and published on this subject, by its most
strenuous advocates, that they are entirely ignorant of the true
sense and import of those passages. Certain it is, that nothing re-
corded in the scriptures, on the subject of election or predestina-
tion, has any reference to the final lot of any souls, without a spe-
cial regard to their faith and works. There is not a single passage
of scripture advanced in support of this doctrine, but what will
easily admit of a reasonable explanation, consistent with the free
agency of man; while on the other hand, there are many passages
which are direct and positive in the support of free agency, and
which cannot consistently admit of any other explanation; but
for brevity’s sake we shall only notice the few following:
1. “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that
“I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; there-
“fore chuse life, that both thou and thy seed may live.” Here
is a positive declaration of God, through Moses, to the children of
* Deut. xxx. 19
L
I 10 THE DECREES OF GOD, [PART III.
Israel, that he had set before them the free and uncontrolled choice
of good and evil; and that their reward of life or death depended,
not on any predestinated decree, but on their good or evil works,
freely done: for God is a God of righteousness and truth. But to
say that God had before determined to ſix their choice by any
secret decree,” is to make this declaration a most glaring imposi-
tion upon their faith and understanding, which is wholly inconsis-
tent with the righteousness and goodness of God.
2. “What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the
“land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and
“ the children's teeth are set on edge? As I live, saith the Lord
“God, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in
“Israel.”f This proverb is founded on the same principle with
that which maintains, that because Adam partook of the forbidden
fruit, it is just and right for God, by an arbitrary decree, to damn
all his children, without any regard to their works, or rather for
works which they were impelled to do by irresistable necessity;
and that if any are saved, it must be through a partial election, by
the same arbitrary decrees. But if this be really the case, we cer-
tainly have still occasion to use this proverb, notwithstanding the
positive declaration of Jehovah to the contrary. Thus we may
see that this preposterous doctrine has a direct tendency to im-
peach the character of the God of jnstice and truth.
3. “The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and
“ the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.—Yet ye say,
“The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Is-
“rael ! Is not my way equal P are not your ways unequal ºf What
can render the way of God more unequal than the doctrine of un-
conditional decrees P. On the other hand, what can be more equal,
just and reasonable, than to reward all souls according to their
works, whether good or evil?
4. “As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the
“ death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and
“live.”|| What can be more plain and positive? It is impossible
that God should foreordain any thing contrary to his own will and
pleasure. If therefore, God has foreordained that man should
commit sin, for which he must die, then, of course he certainly
must have pleasure in the death of the wicked. Iłere again, we
may see that the forementioned doctrine not only charges God
with the height of injustice, but with the grossest deception and
falsehood towards his rational creatures.
But it may be objected by some, that, as these declarations were
made under the law, they only concerned this life, and not the
+ It is the height of folly to talk and write as in any ecclesiastics do, of God's secret decreer;
for who was ever able to discover his secret decrees : If indeed they are discovered, then
they are no longer secret. - - - -
f Ezek. xviii. 2, 3. : Ezek. xviii. 20 & 25. |Ezek. xxxiii. 1 I.
CHAP. II.] ELECTION AND REPROBATION. | | 1 ,
ſinal state of the soul; and that unconditional election was in
Christ, which respected the eternal state of all souls. But we
would ask, Are God’s ways more just and equal to men in their
temporal, than in their eternal state P is he more favorable to the
bodies, than to the souls of men P Even this supposition can by no
means remove the inconsistency of the doctrine, nor lessen the
absurdity of the argument advanced in its support. But the de-
clarations and promises under the gospel are equally plain and
positive.
5. “Come unto me, all ye that labor, and are heavy laden, and
“I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me;
“for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest to your
“souls.” Here is a positive call, and a positive promise, to all
who will obey it. Where then is the decree that can hinder the
fulfilment of this promise, aside from the unwillingness of mankind
to comply with the call P Has God decreed that they shall not be
willing to comply P. Then the call must be a mere mockery—a
vain pretence, to deceive souls into a belief that the gospel was
intended for all, when in fact, only a part were to be saved by it;
while the rest, after being mocked with a pretence that the grace
of God was free for all, and that the call of Christ extended to all,
without exception, were to be eternally damned Such are the
natural and necessary consequences of that blasphemous doctrine
of unconditional decrees, which have been forged in the tyrannical
school of Antichrist, and palmed upon the God of righteousness
and truth.
6. “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons;
“but in every nation, he that feareth him, and worketh righteous-
“ness, is accepted with him.”f This testimony of the apostle Peter
is directly to the point, and shows plainly who will be elected,
and what the conditions are. He that feareth God, and worketh
righteousness. But if God has, in fact, decreed the final lot of all
souls, “from all eternity,” and has unconditionally elected some
to salvation, and others to damnation, which necessarily fixes an
eternal difference between them, he must, in this case, be the
greatest respecter of persons, and must display the greatest possi-
ble partiality and injustice towards his rational creatures.
7. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some
“men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not wil-
“ling that any should perish, but that all should come to repen-
“tance.”f Here again, we have another plain testimony of the
same apostle. If therefore, God is “not willing that any should
perish,” and yet has foreordained, by an unconditional decree,
that any part should perish, that any part should not come to re-
pentance, then he must have passed this decree against his own
* Matt, xi. 28, 29. # Acts x 34, 35. # 2 Peter iii. 9.
T IX THE DECREES OF GOD, [PART Iri.
will ! Such is the ridiculous light in which this horrid doctrine
places the God of wisdom and goodness.
8. “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our
“Savior, who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto
“the knowledge of the truth.” If then God “will have all men
to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth,” he cannot pos-
sibly will to the contrary; therefore he could not foreordain that
any should not be saved, nor come to the knowledge of the truth.
Thus it appears that the law and the prophets, and also the tes-
timony of Jesus Christ and his apostles, all tend to disprove the
doctrine of unconditional election and reprobation, and to confirm,
in the most positive manner, the free agency of man. Hence it is
clearly evident that the obedience or disobedience of all souls de-
pends on their own free choice, and that their reward will be ac-
cording to their works. As to those passages which are supposed
to imply the doctrine of predestination, according to the sense in
which it is held, and which its advocates generally advance as evi-
dences in its favor, they are easily explained upon rational princi-
ples, without involving that absurd doctrine. Election does not
necessarily imply predestination; nor does foreordination, as used
in the scriptures, by any means involve the final destination of any
soul, without a fair and impartial trial, according to the just and
equitable principles of the gospel.
Election, according to the common import of the term, means
choice; and where it is used in the scriptures, it implies a parti-
cular selection of certain persons or people, for certain purposes.
This subject may be illustrated by a comparison. It is well known
that in an elective government, the officers are elected or chosen
to fill certain places or stations, and to perform certain duties. But
this election does not necessarily imply that they were predestina-
ted to those offices; nor does it exclude other citizens from the
privilege of participating in the affairs of the government, or of
enjoying its benefits. There must be public offices in every well
regulated government, and suitable characters must be elected and
appointed to fill those offices. But all cannot be presidents nor
secretaries of state; all cannot be senators nor representatives in
congress; yet all may enjoy the blessings and privileges of a good
government, provided they conduct themselves worthy of it.
The constitution of the United States has forcordained or pre-
destimated, that the persons elected and qualified, according to such
and such provisions, shall hold such and such offices; consequent-
ly their election is established and confirmed by certain articles or
decrees of the constitution which, perhaps, were enacted, and
made a part of the supreme law of the land, before some of the
persons so elected were born. Yet the constitution did not fore-
Yº. 1 Tim, ii. 3 -1,
CHAP. II.] ELECTION AND REPROBATION. | 13
ordain nor elect these persons, it only designated the characters
and qualifications necessary for such offices ; but left the actual
election of the officers to the future determination of the electors,
who were to be governed in their proceedings, according to the
provisions of the constitution on the subject. But the choice of
the worthy candidates, so far from being detrimental to the rest of
the citizens, is of essential benefit to them, being chosen for their
service. And it must be obvious also, that this choice can be of
no use to the persons chosen, unless they accept of it, and fulfil
the duties of the office; so it is with the election of all souls in the
work of God.
Hence we may see the comparison between things temporal and
spiritual. By the constitution of Heaven, which was decreed and
established by the Almighty, it was predestimated that such and
such characters, possessing such and such essential qualifications,
should be leaders, teachers and prophets to the people, to guide
and direct them in their duty. Accordingly when the time ar-
rived, in which the occasion required the selection to be made,
Noah was chosen to build the ark, and save himself and his family
from the flood; because he “was a just man,” and one who was
obedient to the will of God, and thereby found favor, with God.
Abraham was chosen and ordained to be the typical father of the
faithful; because of his faithfulness and obedience to the call of
God. For the same cause, Moses, Joshua, Samuel and the proph-
ets, were chosen as faithful servants of God, to do the work which
God had ordained to be done.
But these individuals were not chosen to the exclusion of others
from the work of God; but for the benefit of all over whom they
were appointed the leaders and guides, that all might be sharers
with them, in the blessings promised to the faithful and obedient.
Thus the election of Moses as a leader of the Israelites, was de-
signed for their deliverance from their Egyptian bondage, and for
their protection and salvation in their journey through the wilder-
mess. But this election did not decide the final state of a single
individual of that nation, or of any other; it was intended to serve
as a figure to typify Jesus Christ, who was to be the Savior of his
people. And as all who were faithful and obedient to the law of
Moses, were blessed and protected, and delivered from the power
of their enemies, while the disobedient and rebellious were destroy-
ed; so all who will be faithful and obedient to the law of Christ,
will be blessed and protected, and delivered from the power of sin
and Satan, and find an inheritance in the heavenly Canaan, as
God’s elect; while the disobedient and rebellious will lose their
day and their privilege, and be excluded from the Kingdom of
Heaven.
Tho the posterity of Anº were highly privileged with tem-
2
I HA - THE DECREES OF GOD, [PART III.
poral blessings, according to the promise of God to their faithful
father Abraham; tho they were called God’s chosen people and
his elect; yet that election could never secure their final salvation,
without their own faithfulness and obedience. It is evident that
it did not decide the final character and state of the Jews: for they
proved a rebellious people, and therefore, notwithstanding their
election, they were afterwards cut off by the judgments of God,
and scattered over the face of the earth, and exist, even to this
day, as a monument of God’s displeasure against the sin of diso-
bedience and rebellion.
“Many are called, but few chosen,” said Jesus. And this was
evidently the case with respect to the Jews: for altho the whole na-
tion was called, and was figuratively a chosen nation; yet compara-
tively, very few of them proved so faithful as to be found at last
among the real chosen of God. “For they are not all Israel,
which are of Israel.” Election is therefore not the seal of salva-
tion. It did not save Judas, altho he was elected, and appointed
as one of Christ’s twelve apostles; yet he proved himself a trai-
tor, and was therefore disinherited and cut off; and another was
chosen to fill his place.
The case of Jacob and Esau is often advanced, as an argument
in proof of the doctrine of predestination, which is supposed to be
fully confirmed by the following passages of scripture. “Was
“not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord; yet l loved Jacob,
“ and I hated Esau.” And again: “For the children being not
“yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose
“ of God, according to election might stand, not of works, but of
“ him that calleth.”f -
But what does this prove P What was “the purpose of God ac-
cording to election,” concerning them As before observed, elec-
tion implies choice. The purpose of God therefore, in the choice
of these two individuals, was to typify in them, the flesh and the
spirit; and to show where the love and blessing of God would
finally rest, and where his hatred and displeasure would fall. It
is written, “The elder shall serve the younger.”f But tho we
have no account that ever Esau served Jacob, personally ; yet this
prediction was evidently fulfilled in the two nations which sprung
from them, which rendered the figure still more complete. God
therefore selected these two children, (even before they were born,
and of course before they had done either good or evil, by which
they might be judged as to their own merits,) for the very purpose
of displaying in them, and in their posterity, a figurative represen-
tation of the wide difference between the flesh and the Spirit; be-
tween the old creation and the new.
But in this election, there is nothing which could decide their
* AFal. i. 2 & 3. * Reim. ix, 11. : Gen. xxy, 23.
chap. II.] ELECTION AND REPROBATION. i I ºf
future state, as to their salvation or damnation. The final lot and
portion of these two nations, and every individual of them, was
yet to be proved and decided, in a future day of greater light and
spiritual power, and by a more unerring rule of judgment, than
could be given in that day. Therefore the election or choice of
these two brothers, was never intended to decide their eternal state;
but only to represent, in a figure, God’s hatred of sin and the ſal-
len nature of the flesh, in the children of wickedness, who will sell
their heavenly birthright for a little carnal pleasure; while he mani-
fests his distinguishing love and blessing to those who will wisely
distinguish themselves, by their faith and obedience to the calls of
the gospel.
The instance of Pharaoh is produced as another argument in
favor of the doctrine of predestination. “For the scripture saith
“unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee
“up, that I might show my power in thee, and that my name might
“be declared throughout all the earth.” But this choice of Pha-
raoh was also designed, as a figure, to represent the arch oppressor
of God’s people, in the spirit of wickedness. And the subsequent
destruction of him and his host, in the red sea, typified the flood of
destruction which will finally overwhelm the enemies of God’s
people, and put an end to all manner of oppression. But neither
the hardening of Pharaoh's heart, nor the destruction of the Egyp-
tian host, can be any evidence of the final state of either. It will
doubtless be more tolerable for them, in the day of judgment, than
for the rebellious Jews; and beyond comparison more so, than for
those who reject the light of the gospel in the present day. Obe-
dience or disobedience to the everlasting gospel, the light of which
must finally be extended to all, whether living or dead, will at
length prove the salvation or damnation of every soul.
The scriptures have been greatly wrested to prove doctrines
which have originated in antichristian darkness; but after all, there
is nothing to be found throughout the sacred volume, that affords
the smallest proof of that gloomy and soul-darkening doctrine of
eternal and unconditional decrees, which so unjustly fixes the final
salvation or damnation of souls, without a special regard to their
works. The election of individuals as ministers, prophets, or .
leaders of the people, by no means implies a certainty of the final
salvation of the persons so elected, f any more than it implies the
damtiation of those who are not elected to these offices; because
all must finally be judged and rewarded according to their works.
Those works, however, which were performed in a state of dark-
ness and ignorance, tho they must have their due reward, can nev-
er decide the final doom of any soul. Those performed under
the light of the gospel, and with a full understanding of its require.
* Roin ix, 17, j Witness Balaam, Saul, Judas and others,
116 THE NATURAL WORLD [PART III.
ments, are the works by which the soul must be tried, and for
which he must receive his final reward. -
The truth of these things is so abundantly testified in the scrip-
tures, and appears so consistent with the righteousness and justice
of God, that there seems to be no possible ground to dispute it; and
yet we find many antichristian preachers and writers continually ex-
claiming against the efficacy of good works, and thus discouraging
all attempts to obtain the mercy and favor of God by the virtuous
acts of faithful obedience. But this discouraging doctrine will final-
ly prove a poor excuse for their own idleness and disobedience.
* Behold I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give every
“man according as his works shall be.”
*-ºº-ºº-
CHAPTER III.
The Creation and Order of the Natural World a figure of that
which is Spiritual.
THE natural world, and the things therein contained, were, from
the beginning, wisely designed as figurative representations of spiri-
tual things to come. As this earth was created for a temporary
use, and was never intended to be the abiding place of man, but
only a place of preparation for a more substantial, durable and
glorious state, in the spiritual world; it was therefore highly proper
and necessary that, in its creation and order, it should bear a suita-
ble comparison with that spiritual creation of which it was a figure.
But as the difference between things natural and spiritual is very
great; so this comparison is but as a shadow compared with the
substance.
Jesus Christ, both in his public ministry, and in his discourses
with his disciples, often made use of natural similitudes to repre-
sent spiritual things. By this he evidently manifested that the na-
tural creation, and the things pertaining to it, were well adapted to
represent spiritual and eternal things, which indeed could not be
represented otherwise than by the things of time. This truth is
more fully revealed, in these last days, to those who are now made
partakers of the real substance of those things, which were formerly
represented by types and shadows. “That was not first which is
“spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is
“spiritual.”f
In the first of Genesis, we have the following account of the
commencement and progress of the natural creation and its estab-
Hished order, together with the first creation of man.
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And
“the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon
* Rev. xxii. 12. f 1 Cor. xv. 46.
eHAP. III.] A FIGURE OF THE SPIRITUAL. 117
“the face of the deep: and the Spirit of Godmoved upon the face
“of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there
“was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God
“divided the light from the darkness.” Or rather, according to
the original, “God divided,” or made a separation between the
light and the darkness.” The sacred historian then proceeds to
show the formation and order of the natural heavens and earth,
the sea and the dry land, and the natural productions and estab-
lished order of each. “And God said, Let the earth bring forth
“grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit-tree yielding fruit
“after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth; and it
** was so.” .
Thus the fixed and unalterable laws of nature were established
in the fruits; each kind must bring forth fruit according to its na-
ture. It was therefore contrary to the mature of the oak to bring
forth oranges, or for the fig-tree to yield peaches. The seed of
the melon could not produce cucumbers, nor the flaxseed bring
forth barley. The laws of nature could not be violated, in this
respect, in any part of the vegetable creation.
“And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven,
“to divide the day from the night: and let them be for signs, and
“ for seasons, and for days and years: and let them be for lights,
“in the firmament of heaven, to give light upon the earth: and it
“ was so.” Here we see that when these sources of natural light
were created, and established “in the firmament of heaven to give
“light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night,
“ and to divide the light from the darkness,” God at the same
time, ordained that they should be “for signs and for seasons,” as
well as “for days and years.” Thus it appears that Divine Wis-
dom has ordained that the things of the natural creation, under the
government and influence of these lights, should be regulated by
times and seasons; and these are for signs to those who walk in
the light. But this subject will be more particularly noticed in
the sequel. The account thus proceeds.
“And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the
“moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the
“earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God created great
“whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters ,
“brought forth abundantly after their kind, and every fowl after
“his kind. And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful and multi-
“ply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the
“earth. And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living crea-
“ture after his kind, cattle and creeping thing, and beast of the
“earth after his kind: and it was so.” Thus all these things were
created and established in their order, and endowed, by the laws of
creation, with the power of generating their own species, in their
* See marginal Bible.
I 18 THE NATURAL world [PART III.
order, and according to the times and seasons appointed by the
Creator. -
“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our like-
“ness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and
“over the fowl of the air, and over the earth, and over every creep-
“ing thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man
“in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male
“ and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God
“ said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth,
“ and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and
“over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth
“upon the earth. And God saw every thing that he had made,
“ and behold it was very good.” .
Thus man was appointed the sole lord of the creation; his pow-
er and dominion was over all. But as he was constituted God’s
representative on earth, who best knew his situation, and the dan-
ger to which he was exposed, it was necessary that he should yield
perfect obedience to the commands of his Creator, as the only
possible means by which he could retain that power and dominion
which the Creator had given him.
From the foregoing statement the following observations may
be drawn. - -
1. It appears that the natural creation was gradually formed and
brought into order: that this order, which extended through the
whole creation, was supported and governed by certain laws and
regulations, which constituted the beauty and harmony of the cre-
ation, and which could not be broken without creating confusion;
and that every thing in its proper order and place was pronounced
good, and placed under the dominion of man.
2. In the creation a separation was made between light and dark-
mess, day and night, and many other things of different and oppo-
site qualities which, when contrasted, clearly represented good and
evil, and were calculated to present to the mind of man the quali-
ties of things beautiful and ugly, lovely and hateful, harmless and
hurtful, and were doubtless necessary to impress upon his under-
standing a sense of good and evil, happiness and misery.
3. These things, so different and opposite in their nature, were
entirely separate and distinct from each other; and as each in its
place was designed, as a sign or figure, to represent that which was
good or evil among spiritual things, it was therefore necessary for
man, in all his transactions, to keep that distinction in view, and to
govern himself accordingly.
To the spiritually minded the comparison between natural and
spiritual things is plain and obvious. The light of the sun, being
the source or fountain of light in the natural creation, is a most
striking figure of the Fountain of spiritual light, the bright Source
of everlasting life, the glorious Light of Heaven, of which all souls
chap. III.] A FIGURE OF THE SPIRITUAL. 1 10
who shall be found faithful to improve the light which God has
given them, will be made partakers. The darkness of the night
evidently prefigures the shades of spiritual darkness, and the gloomy
mansions of hell, where all souls who chuse darkness rather than
light, must sink at last. The beautiful and harmonious songsters
of the grove are so many emblems of happy spirits, whose blessed
influences communicate happiness to all around them. The vora-
cious raven, the midnight screech-owl, and the like, are emblemat-
ical of those destructive and tormenting spirits which haunt the
infernal regions, and torment the wicked.
Similar comparisons may be made relative to good and evil
beasts, beautiful and ugly animals, and useful and destructive crea-
tures of every kind. The fruits of the earth, the plants and herbs
of the field, and every thing that grows upon the earth, as well as
all living creatures which inhabit the watery world, or fly in the
airy regions, are either useful or destructive, pure or impure, and
are figurative either of spiritual good or evil, purity or impurity:
for God has created nothing in vain. Therefore, tho all these
things are temporal, as to their existence, and must soon perish,
like all other works of time; yet in their creation, infinite Wisdom
evidently had real and essential objects in view, as spiritual sub-
stances, to be typified or pointed out by these created objects.
It may be asserted as an objection to the foregoing doctrine,
that these things were created for the use and subsistence of man.
Admitting this to be true, it does not prove that they were not, at
the same time, intended as figurative representations of spiritual
things. But there are evidently many kinds of living creatures,
as well as many other things in the natural creation, for which
mankind have never yet found any use, and perhaps never will in
this world; and certainly they were not created in vain. What
then could have been the object of their creation, if it was not to re-
present something of a spiritual nature to be revealed hereafter P
The fact that sheep and lambs, as well as a variety of other
creatures, were given to be slain, both for food and for sacrifice,
did not prevent their being used as figures to typify the sacrifice
to be made for sin, and to represent the meek and innocent char-
acter of the Savior, who was “brought as a lamb to the slaughter.”
Nor were they, on that account, less typical of the meek and inno-
cent character of his people, whom he calls his sheep and his
lambs.j . So also the best fruits of the earth, which were evidently
created for the immediate use of man, and expressly given for his
subsistence, are no less figurative on that account; but even the
very circumstance of their being given for food, was intended to
* How aptly does the circumstance that man is dependent upon the sheep and lambs of
the flock for the clothing of his natural body, show our dependence upon the Lamb of God
for," the garments of safvation,” of which our natural garments are a figure :
i See John Xxi. 15, & 16. also chap. x. 11 to 16.
yº.
120 THE order of TIMES AND SEAsons, [PART III.
show that they are figurative of that spiritual fruit with which the
righteous will be fed in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus Christ
had reference to this, when he said to his disciples, “I will not
“ drink henceforth of the fruit of the vine, until that day when I
“drink it new with you in my Father's Kingdom.”
It is well known that those who are born into this world, must
be nourished with temporal food, or they would soon perish. And
it is as certain that the new born soul, who has been hegotten in
the regeneration, and brought forth in the new creation, by the
renovating power of Christ, as really requires spiritual food, as
the natural man requires that which is natural. Even the pure
waters of the fountain, so refreshing to a thirsty man, are figurative
of those spiritual waters which flow from the ſountain of everlasting
life, and without which souls in the spiritual world must suffer,
and be constrained to cry out, like the rich man in the parable,
for a drop of the water of life to cool their tongues.
These figures extend to every thing which pertains to the natu-
ral creation: nor do they stop here. All the useful and important
works of man, which are produced by the exercise of his natural
faculties, are also figurative of the good works to be wrought by
his spiritual faculties hereafter. And he who is faithful in perform-
ing his duty here, whether in things which are in themselves great
or small, will be honored with a glorious employment in the hea-
venly world, compared with which his greatest works in this world
are but a shadow. “If therefore, ye have not been faithful in the
“unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true rich-
“es P” And as the difference between the faithful and the unfaith-
ful, in this world, is manifested by their works; so in the world of
spirits, the difference will appear as much greater, as heavenly and
divine things are greater than those which are earthly. The faithful
will be honored and the unfaithful degraded; the former will have
his talents doubled to him, and the latter will have his taken from
him. The parable of Jesus Christ concerning the talents, is a
striking illustration of this subject.f
-º-º-º-º-e
CHAPTER IV.
The established order of times and seasons in the natural crea-
tion, together with the primeval state and probation of man.
When God created the world, he established in it certain laws
by which it was to be governed. Among these were included the
order of times and seasons. These laws being established by the
Almighty, could not be altered by any inferior power. The es-
tablished order of the sun, moon and stars, which rise in the east
* Matt. xxvi ä9. f Lake xvi. 11. : See Matt, xxv. 15.
ehap. iv.] AND THE PRIMEwAL STATE of MAN. 121
*.
and set in the west, could not be broken, nor their courses chang-
ed, so as to rise and set in an opposite direction, and at different
periods of time. Nor could the established order of the seasons
be changed, so as to produce effects contrary to the designs of
infinite Wisdom. Day and night, heat and cold, summer and
winter, seed time and harvest must have their appointed courses;
nor was it in the power of any human being to change them. It
would have been utterly inconsistent with Divine Wisdom to sub-
ject, to the control of man, the established laws of nature by which
the creation was governed; therefore these laws were necessarily
independent of all human power.
When God brought forth the vegetable creation he established
in it the laws of vegetation, which required that every thing per-
taining thereto should bring forth fruit, each according to its kind,
and be regulated by times and seasons. Hence every different
kind had its allotted period to grow to maturity, to bud and blos-
som, and to bring forth fruit. Thus established and regulated, the
order and harmony of the vegetable creation was rendered beauti-
ful and glorious ; no violation of nature, nothing disorderly to cor-
rupt and mar its beauty nor destroy its harmony. Similar laws
were also established in the animal creation. They too, in their
various orders, had their appointed times to grow to maturity, and
their seasons to generate and bring forth their offspring according
to their kind.
Man also had laws given him according to his lot and order
in the Greation. As he was made superior to all the rest of God’s
creatures in the natural world, being endowed with superior facul-
ties and a rational soul, it was necessary that he should be govern-
ed by superior laws. The vegetable creation was regulated by the
periodical seasons of the year, and these were sufficient for.it.
The animal creation, in addition to the rotation of the seasons,
was endowed with the law of natural instinct, which was necessary
to guide and regulate the various kinds of animals in procuring’
sustenance, and in the propagation of their species, according to
their different classes and orders, in their times and seasons.
But man, being superior to all other creatures, had not only the
rotation of the seasons, and the law of nature, in common with
the animal creation; but he had also a superior law, by which he
was made capable of overruling and governing all the dispositions
and propensities of his animal nature. The rational powers of his
soul were superior to his animal faculties, and constituted him a
rational being, and brought him into a near relation to his Crea-
tor; he was therefore capable of receiving the law of his Cre-
ator to govern and direct his rational soul, in all its movements.
Hence he was enabled, not only to keep the law of nature, and
•º-
122 THE order of TIMES AND SEAsoNs, [PART III.
govern his own inferior propensities, but also to have the govern-
ment and dominion over all the inferior creation.
The work designed for man, in his primeval state, was not only
to increase and multiply, and replenish the earth with his own off.
spring, but also to subdue it,” and improve the condition of it, and
with it his own condition. But he was to be regulated in all these
things, not by the propensities of his animal passions, but accord-
ing to the order which God had appointed for him, and which was
to be made manifest in his living soul, by the Spirit of God. By
so doing, he would have been enabled, under the special guidance
and protection of his Creator, to rise by degrees to a higher state
of perfection, and might have been, even in this world, the honor-
able progenitor of a numerous offspring who, by their obedience,
might have blessed and beautified the carth, honored themselves
and their primeval parents, and glorified their Creator. This was
the primeval state and standing of man.
But as the man was to be the ruler and governor of all the infe-
rior creation, it was necessary that his faithfulness should be prov-
ed. Being created a free agent, and endowed with power to act
according to his own will and pleasure, as far as his capacity
extended, independent of any other being, it was therefore iiecessa-
ry that he should have a law to direct him aright—an order which
he must keep, for his own safety and protection. For altho he had
power to act freely; yet his situation and inexperience were such
as to need protection. There was a work before him; and it was
a matter of importance that he should be fully endowed with power
and wisdom to perform it. This he was to gain by obedience to
the counsel and instructions of his Creator. As a young and inex-
perienced child is required to walk in obedience to the counsel and
instruction of his wise and experienced parent, as the only safe
means of gaining wisdom and experience for himself; so he must
prove his faithfulness by his obedience, before he can be justly en-
titled to the heirship of any portion of his father's inheritance.
IIence we may see the importance of man's obedience to his
Creator, and the necessity of proving his own faithfulness, by his
obedience, before he could fairly be entitled to the full government
and dominion over the new formed world. It was for this pur-
pose that God gave him a positive command. By strictly keeping
this command, he was fully able to preserve his honor and dignity,
and retain his lot and place as the first in the government and do-
minion of all this lower creation. This command was not entrust-
ed to his animal sensations; but being from God, it was committed
to the more exalted faculties of his rational soul, and was, emphat-
* The modern advocates for the great command, so called, seem to forget this part of it.
f This was the tree of life in the natural world, of the fruit of which he might ircely ret
2nd live to God, in bis uatural state.
GHAP. Iv.] AND THE PRIMEvaL STATE of MAN. 123
ically, the law of God to man, for the trial and proof of his faith-
fulness and obedience. -
It may be asked, What was this command P. We read that he
was forbidden to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
or to touch it. This injunction was a prohibitory and positive
command to the man, whatever might have been the figure by
which it was manifested to him. To abstain therefore from this
fruit, was only to govern his animal propensities, and keep them
in subjection to the law of God in his rational soul. This was an
easy task while he kept the power of self-denial in his own soul;
but when he had once yielded to the tempter, and had given up
his self-denying power, he could not recall it, it was gone forever
from him. Thenceforth, without the protecting care and overruling
power of his Creator, he was liable to be completely ruined and
destroyed by the power of the enemy, to whose temptations he had
fallen a victim. What a lesson of warning to mankind in the
present day, and especially to young people, to beware of all in-
sinuating aliurements to sensual pleasure, and to shun every temp-
tation to evil
But what was this tree of the knowledge of good and evil? and
whence arose the temptation to eat of it? Some suppose the for-
bidden object to be the fruit of some natural fruit-tree. But we
would ask, How is it possible that a tree or its fruit should con-
tain the knowledge of good and evil, or be able to communicate
that knowledge to man P. Yet it was evidently sométhing by which
the man’s obedience was to be tried. But if the mere proof of
obedience had been the only object, tho a very necessary one, we
might naturally suppose that any other command or prohibition
might have answered the same purpose. Proof of obedience was
undoubtedly a most essential point. But no candid person will
deny that the wisdom of God would select the most important ob-
ject for the trial of man’s obedience; an object not only important
in itself, but one which really required that injunction for the man's
own benefit, and the benefit of his posterity.
And what could be more suitable, and better calculated to try
the man and prove his obedience, than to lay upon him an order
calculated to govern his animal propensities, and suppress any dis-
orderly influence upon his mind Hence the forbidden object
might, with the greatest propriety, be compared to a fruit-tree of de-
licious fruit, as a suitable figure to represent to mankind, in after
ages, the influence of the temptation upon the animal propensities
of the youthful and inexperienced couple. Their propensity to
satisfy hunger and slake their thirst, was necessary to support
life, and therefore could not consistently be denied; nor could
such a denial be attended with any possible benefit, in their situa-
tion.
124 the order or TIMEs AND SEAsons, [PART III.
But as the power of generation was given to man solely for the
purpose of procreation, and not for the gratification of his animal
mature, the dignity of his creation required that he should maintain
a greater degree of order and purity, in the work of generation,
than was required of the inferior part of the creation, which was
governed by the law of mature. This was the more essential, as
the offspring of man were to possess rational and immortal souls,
destined to an eternal existence. It was therefore a matter of the
first importance, that the primeval parents of mankind should strict-
ly obey the injunctions of their Creator, that their offspring should
not be corrupted by any violation of the order of nature, on the
part of their parents, in respect to the times and seasons of genera-
tion; but that they should be generated under the sanction of Di-
vine Authority, according to the times and seasons of God’s ap-
ointment, as well as in strict conformity to the law of nature.
his therefore, was the command of God to man, and was given,
not only to prove his obedience, but for his protection against that
subtle enemy whose object was to destroy the creation, by infusing
his poisonous influence at a point which was calculated to corrupt
the whole human race, and produce the most extensive mischief.
But why was it called, “The tree of the knowledge of good and
evil P” Because these were the most appropriate terms by which the
figure could be expressed: for in obedience, the greatest good was to
be made known and ensue; and in disobedience, the greatest evil
was actually made known, and did ensue, both to himself and all his
posterity: hence no other terms could be so suitable to express the
real nature and design of this figure.
The times and seasons of generation were evidently designed
by the Creator, as the established order of propagation, in the ani-
mal creation. This order is very visible in the inferior creation,
and doubtless would have been no less manifest in man, had he
been faithful to his trust. His rational soul, while standing in its
primitive purity and uprightness, could never be degraded to the
servitude of his animal passions; it must have stood preeminent in
dignity, and held the government of every inferior propensity. The
power was entrusted to the living and rational soul of man; and
the command of God was sufficient to maintain that power; as long
as the soul maintained its obedience. This was the point of trial;
on this depended the man's fate; on this depended the state and
character of his offspring : for like begets like; and if parents are
alienated from God, they will of course produce an alienated off-
spring. r
The man therefore, in his primeval state, stood in a noble capa-
city, not only to prove his faithfulness by his obedience, but to
preserve inviolate the order of the creation, for the support and
maintenance of his important and dignified station, both for his
cuAP. Iv.] AND THE PRIMEVAL STATE OF MAN. 125
own happiness and the happiness of his posterity, and for the hon-
or and glory of his Creator. His task was easy; it required no
sacrifice, but merely the subjection of his animal propensities to
his rational powers. But still he was in a state of trial, a state of
probation; and his obedience was the very point to be tried. So
long as he kept this, all was safe; but if he failed in this, all was
lost. This state of trial was necessary; for without it there could
be no proof, either of obedience or disobedience. The soul in
yielding obedience to God his superior, was safely protected; but
in yielding to an inferior propensity, he must of necessity fall under
the power of that influence to which he yielded obedience. “Know
“ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his
“servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or
“ of obedience unto righteousness.”
But whence originated the evil influence which led to disobedi-
ence P It could not be in any of the works of God; for they were
all pronounced “very good,” and it is impossible that very evil
should proceed from very good. It could not spring from God;
for no evil influence could originate from the source of all good-
ness. “God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” Hence
darkness could never proceed from light. The evil therefore, must
have originated in darkness; it could have had no other source.
By recurring back to the order of the creation, in the preceding
chapter, it will be seen that tho God’s works were “all very good,”
tho light was created in the midst of darkness, and order establish-
ed in the midst of confusion; yet the darkness was not annihilated,
nor was the source of confusion destroyed. In scripture, the pow-
er of evil is called the power of darkness.f Hence that invisible
power of evil, which is eternally opposed to all good, and which
is called The Devil, has its existence in that spiritual darkness of
which the natural darkness is a figure. From this power flows
all spiritual and moral evil; it is the source of all those principles
and influences which, in their operations, oppose the nature of god-
liness and injure the works of God. It is therefore the height of
folly and wickedness, in any one, to charge any of those evil pro-
pensities which lead to the dark works of sin, upon the God of light
and holiness: for they never originated from him. -
The darkness which was left in the natural creation, and which
was divided from the light, was designed to show that good hath
no fellowship with evil, nor the spirit of light with the spirit of
darkness. It also shows that there was still a place left for the
entrance and temptation of an evil influence. That evil influence
indeed entered, in the hour of darkness, and found access to the
woman, in the form of a serpent, a sly, cunning serpent, a crooked
Serpent, an inferior, grovelling reptile, one of those figures of evil
* Rom. vi. I6. t See Luke xxii. 53. Eph. vi. 12, & Col. i. 13.
M. 2 .
126 THE order of TIMES AND SEASONs, [PART III.
which was intended as a warning to man, and which ought to have
put the woman on her guard. Instead of listening to the deceitful
insinuations of a reptile so much her inferior, she ought to have
been guided by the wholesome counsel of her superior, and kept
the law of her Creator, which it is evident she well recollected,
even in the midst of her fatal interview with the serpent.
But the woman was overcome. She yielded to that evil influ-
ence which, through the subtilty of the serpent, wrought upon her
animal propensities, and infused into her mind the filthy passion of
ſust. The woman being thus enticed and overcome, enticed her
husband, and through the same evil influence, overcame him. Thus
the noble order of the creation was reversed. Man having yielded
to the temptation, and received and indulged an evil propensity,
his power was gone. And having been once overcome, by yield-
ing to the insinuations of an authority inferior to his own, he had
henceforth no control over the inferior creation, any further than
by the permission of his Creator: for he had forfeited his right by
his disobedience. Thus man became a servant to the power of
evil by yielding obedience to it, by which means his nature, and,
through that medium, the whole natural world became corrupted
with evil. - -
Hence it is easy to see that this earth was, in every respect, cal-
culated for a state of probation. Had there been no darkness
upon it, had there been nothing in it to which evil could find ac-
cess, then truly it would have been no place of trial; and if no place
of trial, then no state of probation to man. As darkness is the
habitation of evil; so the spirit of evil can always find access
wherever he finds darkness. But darkness had its appointed place
and order; and had man been faithful in his duty, evil might have
been confined within its own limits. It was evidently man’s duty
from the beginning, to retire to his place of protection, and rest in
the time of darkness, and wait the returning light; and not to ex-
pose himself in the dark till he had obtained light sufficient to with-
stand the power of darkness.” X-
Man, by his disobedience, exposed himself to the power of dark-
ness, and opened the way for the entrance of the enemy where,
otherwise, he never could have entered. This occasioned his fall,
the loss of his power and authority, and completed his ruin, as far
as respected his relation and connection with the spiritual world.
From this loss and ruin, it was impossible that there should be
any restoration without a new order of things, and a new man who
would prove faithful to his trust. What a lesson of warning to the chil-
dren of God to be faithful unfaithfulness leads to inevitable ruin.
* A wise man will not attempt even to pursue his honest calling in the dark ; jf he has no
lamp to light him, he will retire to rest till the morning light , but thieves and robbers,
whoremongers and adulterers, “chuse darkness rather than light, because their deeds are
evil.” This may serve as a figure of the wickedness coumitted in spiritual darkuess, and
he danger of being exposed to it,
CHAP Iv.] AND THE PRIMEVAL STATE of MAN. 127
This world being created and designed for a state of probation,
it must necessarily continue to be such to Adam’s posterity, as well
as to himself. To suppose that Adam’s faithfulness would have
released his posterity from a state of trial, is a mistaken supposi-
tion; because a season of probation was no less necessary for them
than for him : for evil still existed; and it was therefore as neces-
sary for his posterity to gain power over it, as for himself. His
faithfulness could not have released them from the trial of their own
obedience, nor have secured them from the wiles of the Adversary.
Each individual must therefore necessarily pass through a state of
trial; and had Adam stood faithful, his posterity, even to the latest
generation, while the order of nature remained, must have stood
by their own obedience, or fallen by their own disobedience, to the
authority of their righteous parents, who, by standing in the order
of God, and keeping the Divine law, would have been God’s rep-
resentatives to their offspring.
Adam and Eve having, through disobedience, yielded to the in-
fluence of evil, were overcome by it; and the spirit of evil having
once found an entrance, could enter again and again. They must
therefore, ever after, be under the power of that evil influence, unless
protected by some superior power. And as like causes produce
like effects; so they begat children in their own likeness, an off-
spring like themselves, and under the power of the same evil influ-
ence in the work of generation. Their union and relation to their
Creator was now lost. They were now forever debarred from the
tree of life, which was before accessible to them, and by which
they partook of the life of God, and shared communion with him,
in their natural state. Having now nothing to support them in
their former exalted station, they of course, fell from their relation
to God, into that nature which they had indulged and gratified;
the nature of lust. The rational soul having yielded its power, their
animal propensities, being corrupted by the nature of the serpent,
had now the preeminence over them.
Here we may clearly see the cause why it is, even to this day,
that the rational soul of man is so much under the influence of his
animal passions. And yet, even of this, the greater part of man-
kind seem to be utterly insensible, and will often imagine that they
are guided in their speculations and pursuits, by the dictates of truth
and right reason, while in fact, they are either led by their animal
passions, or deceived by some of the propensities of a fallen nature.
This is often seen, not only in the ordinary transactions of life, but
also in the pursuits of religion, in the establishment of many reli-
gious institutions, in the speculations and writings of men on sub-
jects of divinity, and may be observed in a thousand instances, even
among those who are esteemed great and good men : But the tree
is known by its fruit.

l PART IV.
THE FAL1, Loss AND DEPRAvity of MAN, INCLUDING
God's PROGRESSIVE work, AND HIS DEALINGs
witH MAN IN HIS FALLEN STATE.
e-assº ºn-
CHAPTER I.
The cause, nature and effects of Man’s loss from God.
It is universally acknowledged by the professors of christianity,
that in consequence of Adam's transgression, mankind are lost
from God. This is so fully taught in the scriptures, and the evi-
dence of it so visible throughout the world, that it cannot be dispu-
ted. But what was the real cause of that loss, and wherein its na-
ture and effects are most clearly manifested, is but little considered,
and still less understood. It is generally viewed, however, as a
punishment inflicted on mankind, for an act of disobedience com-
mitted by their first parents. In this view, God is represented
as an arbitrary despot, with his eternal and absolute decrees, im-
puting guilt to the whole human race, as the effect of Adam’s trans-
gression. But this doctrine, to say the least of it, is a blind impeach-
ment of God’s righteousness.
The idea that mankind are born into the world with Adam’s
guilt upon them, is wholly inconsistent with Divine Righteousness,
and contrary to all the light of reason and revelation that ever God
bestowed on man, and has no foundation in truth. Even the com-
mon sense of mankind must teach them, that it is impossible for a
son to be guilty of an act of sin which was committed by his father,
before he was born ; and it would be considered as the height of
injustice to punish the son for his father's sin. “The son shall
“not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear
“the iniquity of the son : the righteousness of the righteous shall
“be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon
“ him.” Yet this son might afterwards become guilty of the
same sin by his own act; and in that case he would justly deserve
punishment.
To say that the child of fallen parents is born in a fallen state,
or under the influence of a fallen nature, is to declare the truth;
but this by no means implies guilt in the child. No one will pre-
tend that a child who is the offspring of adultery, is, on that account,
chargeable with the guilt of his parents; nor would it be consis-
tent with justice for him to suffer for the crime of his parents. But
as a corrupt fountain cannot send forth pure waters, and as like
causes necessarily produce like effects; so the fruit of every tree
partakes of the nature of the tree which produced it, And tho
the wicked act of the parents cannot be charged upon the child;
* ºzek, xviii. 20
130 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs [PART IV.
yet the child is liable, unless restrained by a superior principle,
to follow the same wicked example, and bring guilt upon himself
by a similar act.
This is just the situation of Adam's posterity, Those who yield
to the same propensity, and follow his example, naturally run into
the same act of sin, and as really partake of the forbidden fruit as
Adam did; and by that means they bring the same guilt upon
themselves, and are thenceforth as effectually excluded from the
tree of life as Adam and Eve were. But those who are willing to
yield obedience to a superior principle, and to deny themselves
and take up their crosses against the propensities of that nature
which they have received from their parents, are justly entitled to
eat of the tree of life and live forever.
Disobedience to the positive command of God, was evidently
the cause of man's fall; and his ſail was the inevitable consequence
of the act which he committed, of which he was forewarned at the
time he was forbidden to commit it. As if a father who had a son
residing in the neighborhood of an enemy, should warn his son of
the danger of listening to the insinuations of that enemy, and com-
mand him not to do it at his peril. The son disobeys, and the
consequences of which he was forewarned, follow of course. Here
the blame and loss falls upon the son, while the father stands justi-
fied, having done his duty in warning his son of the danger. It is
impossible that there should be injustice with God. A holy and
righteous Being cannot tempt any of his creatures to their own de-
struction : it is inconsistent with his mature. “Let no man say
“when he is tempted, I am tempted of God; for God cannot be
“tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: but every man
“is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.”
The very command of God to the man was an evidence of his
danger, and showed that there was an opposite influence, against
which it was necessary to be guarded. The temptation to disobe-
dience proceeded from the prince of darkness, the great enemy of
souls, who found an entrance into God’s creation through the ser-
pent, the very emblem of subtilty and deception. Through the
insinuations of his deceitful spirit, he infused into the animal sen-
sations of the woman the lust of concupiscence, which she commu-
nicated to the man, and by which they were both overshadowed
with darkness, and unseasonably led into the act of sexual coition;
and thus they partook of the forbidden fruit.f Hence the curse
which followed was denounced, and actually laid upon that nature
* James i 13, 14.
# The soul having been endowed by the Creator, with sufficient power to protect the
body, the animal propensities could never be overcome and made subservient to evil, until
the soul had yielded to the influence of the evil spirit upon the animal propeusities, and giy
en up its own power to the doininion of the tempter. Having once done this, the soul could
never regain its power until it had found its union to a superior Spirit, which was able to
overcome the tethpter and bruise the serpent's head,
eHAP. I.] of MAN's Loss FROM God. 131
which they had thus received from the serpent, and mutually in-
dulged in themselves. And the same nature and the same curse,
have both been continued down, in the line of natural generation,
to this day. And this curse can never be taken off without a full
and final cross against the indulgence of that same fleshly lust,
and the final destruction of that nature which leads to it.
Many objections have been urged against this doctrine, as well
as against the doctrine of celibacy and continence in general, which
are well known to be among the principle articles of our faith.
To enter fully into the discussion of this subject, and answer in a
satisfactory manner, all the objections that may be raised against
this doctrine, will require great plainness of speech.” But as
this appears to be the most darling principle of the world, and as
the greatest opposition against our faith is levelled at this particular
principle; therefore, in conformity to the strict demands of light
and truth, revealed in this day, it appears necessary that the cov-
ering which has so long been spread over all nations, should be
taken away, and the vail removed from the face of all people.f
This vail was prefigured by the wail of the temple, which sepa-
rated the entrance into the most holy place. “The vail of the tem-
ple was rent in twain” at the crucifixion of Jesus, which signified
the rending of the vail of the flesh by his sufferings for sin. After
that, those who faithfully followed his footsteps through mortifica-
tion, and lived a spiritual life, were able to look within the vail,
and to discover, in some measure, what it was which separated
those who lived in the works of generation from having access to
the most holy place. Yet the vail remained untaken away.
“Neverthless,” says the apostle, “when it shall turn to the Lord,
“the wail shall be taken away,” And this never could be done
till the second appearing of Christ, when it was taken away by
that chosen female in whom the second appearing of Christ first
commenced. As the vall of darkness which hid the face of God
from man, was first caused by the transgression of the first woman;
so it could not be removed until it was removed by that distinguish-
ed woman, in whom was revealed the Bride of the Lamb, the ſirst
Mother of the children of the Kingdom, in the new creation. t
That Adam and Eve were unseasonably led into the act of sex-
ual coition by the lust of concupiscence, through the insinuations
of the serpent, and (whatever may have been done in a figure) that
this lust was, in reality, the forbidden fruit of which they partook,
appears evident from the following considerations.
1. The sentence denounced upon the woman. “I will greatly
“multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow shalt thou
* We would not wiłłungly give offence to any; our only design is to show and vindicate
our faith clearly ºn this subject, for the information of all who desire to understand it, and
are willing to be benefitted by it.
i See Isa, Ixy, 7. : See Matt, xxvii. 5), #2 Cor, iii. 16.
132 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs PART Iv.]
“bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband;”
or, (more properly, according to the original,) “thy desire shall be
“subject to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.”
Here it may be asked, Why was the sentence directed against
her conception P Why was she to be punished with sorrow in bring-
ing forth children F And why was her desire (or more properly,
her lusti) to be subject to the will of her hushand? Why this rig-
orous sentence 2 Is not God just and righteous? Most certainly;
and therefore he dispenses punishments according to the nature of
the offence; or rather, he forsakes those who forsake him, and leaves
them to reap the reward of their own doings. Whatever a man
sows, the same he must reap ; and whatever he eats, that he must
digest, however painful it may feel. He who, after being faithfully
warned by his friend, foolishly swallows a poisonous fruit, because
of its fair appearance and peculiar flavor, must feel its effects ; but
he ought by no means to charge his sufferings upon his friend.
From the very nature of the curse denounced upon the woman,
the discerning mind will readily perceive what the nature of the
offence was. This same curse has been more or less felt by the
fallen daughters of Eve to this day.”f This remark will apply,
with peculiar force, to all those who have been decoyed by the
same insinuating allurements to pleasure, who have yielded to the
same desires of an animal nature, who have been ensnared by the
same deceitful influences of concupiscence, and have conceived
and brought forth children in obedience to the inordinate demands
of lust. Thus the woman is not only subjected to the pains and
sorrows of childbirth, but even in her conception, she becomes
subject to the libidinous passions of her husband; and in this
sense, her desire is subject to the will of her husband.S This
slavish subjection is often carried to such a shocking extent, that
* See mar Bib Gen. iii. 16. # See Cruden's Concordence, Article Desire.
# Tho it is obvious that the effects of the primitive curse are seen and
felt by the whole human race, as the offspring of fallen parents and heirs
of that curs. ; and tho all womankind have inherited their portion of the
ourse denounced upon the first woman; yet there has always been an ex-
ception in favor of those virgin daughters who have wisely kept them-
selves from the contamin, ting corruptions of lust. They have been,
thereby, not only exempted from the pains and sorrows of childbirth, and
preserved from those debasing pollutions, and that servile wretchedness,
so common to those who subject themselves to the inordinate passions of
maº ; but they have often been distinguished as peculiar objects of Di-
vine f,vor.
§ '1', is may indeed be a willing subjection on the part of the woman, and
her pºssions may be even more debased than his, but whether her sub-
ject ºn be willing or unwilling, sull this does not alter its servile nature,
as 1espects lic m.a.’s power of enforcing it, so long as he possesses that
power, as her husband, and exercises it at the instigation of his passions,
instead of being governed by the law of nature, or the law of God.
eHAP 1.] of MAN's Loss FROM GoB. 133
many females have suffered an unnatural and premature death, in
consequence of the unseasonable and excessive indulgence of this
passion in the man. Thousands there are, no doubt, who are able
to bear a sorrowful testimony to the truth of this remark.
The libidinous debauchee may sneer at this unseemly picture,
and the squeamish prude may frown at it; but the candid and re-
flecting mind will readily acknowledge and deplore its painful and
melancholy truth. Some, convinced of its truth by sorrowful ex-
perience, will doubtless be ready to exclaim, This is surely a heavy
curse upon the woman; but is the man spared? By no means:
but his curse appears more obvious in another point of view. Tho
the ground was cursed for his sake, at the time of his first trans-
gression; yet it is evident that he has greatly increased the curse
of the land, by his own corruptions, and degraded himself far be-
How the state in which the primitive curse left him ; as will appear
in the sequel.
2. The evident violation of the order of nature, in a total dis-
regard to times and seasons, in the work of generation.
That source from which man derives his earthly existence, fron,
which his very being springs, ought to have been preserved
pure and uncorrupted. The order of his generation was never
designed to be polluted by disorderly passions, nor perverted by
untimely seasons. Yet what is the fact in this respect, when con-
trasted with the inferior part of the creation P As before stated, the
various orders of the animal and vegetable creation are governed
by the established laws of nature, and generate and bring forth
fruit according to the regular order of times and seasons.” But
man is a most marvellous exception in this respect. He who alone
was created and appointed the lord of all this lower world, altho
in many other respects, he displays a mind capable of a far supe-
rior degree of perfection; and altho, in the ordinary transactions
of life, he often observes a good degree of order; yet in the gene.
ration of his species he regards none.
Notwithstanding his dignified station as lord of the earth; not-
withstanding his rational soul, with all its noble faculties; notwith-
standing his light and knowledge, his instruction, experience and
observation; notwithstanding the law of his Creator, which was
given to regulate in him the times and seasons of generation (as
well as all other things pertaining to his work) to a greater degree
of perfection than could be expected in the brutal creation; yet in
this important point, man has shamefully degraded himself below
all the inferior creation. Regardless of the regular order of nature,
he consults it not; blind to the times and seasons of conception,
he sees them not; deaf to the law of Moses, he listens not to it;
an enemy to the pure and perfect law of Christ, he banishes it
* See “Established order of times and seasons,’’ page 120. -
Í34 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs [PART IV.
from his thoughts. He is eagerly bent upon the acts of generation,
but seeks none of its fruits; the desire of offspring is not his mo-
tive; his rule of action is dictated only by his inordinate passions.
he insatiable nature of his lust knows no bounds, submits to no
order, and cares for no times nor seasons; except it be the time
and season of darkness, which is so congenial to his lawless and
shameful works.
Such is the lost state of man, and such the subverted order of
nature in the works of generation. To the truth of these remarks
let the world itself bear witness. And herein we have a striking
proof of that carnal mind in man, which the apostle says, “is not
subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”
3. The shame which is generally found to be inseparable from
the act of seasual coition.
This is not only a powerful evidence that the act itself is under a
curse, but an undeniable proof of its impurity and unholiness. If this
be not so, why did the shame which was the consequence of Adam's
and Eve's transgression, fall upon the parts which they covered P
Does not this plainly point out the very act which they had com-
mitted P Does it not evidently show what the forbidden fruit was
If by the forbidden fruit, we are to understand literally, the fruit of
some natural tree, which Eve plucked with her hands, and which
they both ate with their mouths, why did not the shame fall upon
the hand that plucked, and the mouth that ate it? As before observ-
ed, God always dispenses his judgments according to the nature of
the offence. But in this case, there does not appear to be any pun-
ishment inflicted upon the hand or the mouth; but the parts to which
pertain the power of generation, are now, for the first time, condemn-
ed to feel shame; and their first object was to conceal those parts
from the view of each other; accordingly “they sewed figleaves to-
together and made themselves aprons.” And even to this day, it is
justly accounted a shame, both in the male and female, to expose the
nakedness of those parts; and more especially in the female, who
it seems is doomed to share the greatest portion of the curse in this
respect, as being the first in the transgression.
This guilty passion of shame seems to be peculiarly connected with
that libidinous act which first produced it; so that it naturally shuns
the light, and seeks to cover itself in the shades of darkness, seclud-
ed even from the eyes of the most intimate friends. Is not this fact,
of itself, a most striking evidence that there is something, either in
the act itself, or which is inseparably connected with it, which
never came from God? And yet are there not many, very many,
among modern christians, who, setting aside that which Jesus
Christ declared to be “the first and great command,” have set up
this lascivious act in its place P and do they not, instead of loving
the Lord God with all their hearts and souls, verily love their lusts
GHAP. I.] eF MAN's Loss FROM goP. I 35
with all their hearts and souls, and devote all the mind and strength
to support and maintain it?
Corrupted and abused, and shamefully debased, as the work of
generation is, by the lust of concupiscence, it is still supported
and maintained by the professors of christianity, who profess to
sanction it by a legal ceremony, under the name of a divine insti-
tution. But where is the evidence that the nature of the act is
purified, or the shame taken away, by the means ? For altho the
most reverend and pious divines may exert all their piety, and all
their divinity, to gospelize it in their sermons, legalize it in their
marriage ceremonies, and sanctify it by their fervent prayers; yet
they can neither take away the shame of the act, nor purify the
nature of it; nor can they ever induce the pious devotees of this
holy ordinance to show forth their obedient zeal, by fulfilling this
great command before the eyes of their Reverend teachers, who
have done so much to sanctify the deed to them. t
Nor can even these pious divines themselves, with aſ their zeal
in its favor, be induced to set them a public example of this sort of
worship, however faithful they may be to perform it in private.
So closely is shame attached to that action which claims for its
authority the first great command of God! What! Does an ac-
tion which is authorized by the command of the Almighty, and
sanctioned by a divine ceremony, require to be performed in the
shades of darkness P Can darkness preserve the sanctity of an ac-
tion which would be profaned by the light of the sun P Is it a shame
for christians to obey a divine command in the presence of their
christian brethren and sisters P If so, the command must surely be
a very shameful one. -
Probably these remarks may feel offensive to some of our pro-
fessedly good christian advocates for this great command, and
perhaps they will be ready to cry out, by way of exclamation,
Shameful / shameful / We freely acknowledge that the subject is
a shameful one, and deeply lament the shameful cause which has
excited such remarks. We can truly say, in the language of Paul,
“We have no fellowship with these unfruitful works of darkness,
“but reprove them.” And we also acknowledge with him, that,
“it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of
“ them in secret.” But if it be a shame to speak of such shame-
ful conduct among a people professing the christian religion, sure-
ly it must be a far greater shame to practice it.
It will doubtless be readily acknowledged, that he who lives in
the practice of stealing, acts a far more shameful and dishonorable
part, than he who takes up a full cross against every thievish pro-
pensity, and bears an open and decided testimony against it. Nor
can it be disputed that such a testimony would be much more
§: Eph. W. 11, #2.
i 36 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs [PART IV.
offensive to a thief than to an honest man, especially if it should
expose any of his own thievish conduct. The truly honest and
virtuous, whether male or female, will never be offended at a tes-
timony against any evil conduct of which they themselves are
really innocent. Nor indeed can they feel unwilling to be enligh-
tened respecting the evil mature and tendency of any act, concern-
ing which they have hitherto been ignorantly guilty.
We would now seriously ask, Whence proceeds all this shame?
It must have some foundation; and there can be no cause of shame
in virtuous actions. “God is light, and in him is no darkness at
“all. If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in dark-
“ness, we lie and do not the truth.”* Sexual coition claims for
its sanction, an ordinance of God. But if it be an ordinance of God,
it must have fellowship with God. The action, however, requires
to be performed in the dark; therefore those who practice it, must
necessarily walk in darkness. If then, they say it hath any fel-
lowship with God, “they lie, and do not the truth.” If there is
no darkness in God, then nothing which proceeds from God, can
require to be veiled in darkness. That shame which seeks to con-
ceal its lascivious actions in the shades of darkness, and blushes to
have them brought to the light, is the notorious concomitant of
guilt; why else should it seek the abodes of darkness
This guilt-denoting passion is not connected with the sexual
intercourse of any other part of God’s creation. The beasts of
the field, the fowls of the air and the fishes of the sea, are total
strangers to it. It is ſound no where but in the fallen race of Adam
and Eve; and its very source is in that which many modern chris-
tians esteem as the greatest and most important of all their works
on earth; that of generating their own species, and propagating
immortal beings for the eternal world! The sense of shame con-
nected with this act, is a most powerful evidence of its entire op-
position to gospel light, purity and holiness; and therefore it can
have no part in the work of regeneration. The idea of sanctifying
these works of darkness, and of being regenerated souls, and born
of God, while living in the gratification of them, is a grand decep-
tion of the enemy of souls, calculated to conceal from man the true
nature and origin of his loss. Truly this is “the vail which is
spread over all nations,” and which God has promised to “destroy
in his holy mountain.”
4. The vile use and shameful abuse of this lawless propensity.
This is an evidence of man's loss which one might naturally
suppose could not escape observation. But as a blind man who
is wandering in darkness and wallowing in the mire, cannot dis’
cover the darkness which surrounds him, nor the filth which covers
him; so those who are spiritually blind cannot discover their own
* Jºhn i. 5, 6,
chap. I.] of MAN's Loss FROM GOD. I 37
dark and lost situation, nor the filthiness of that lascivious mature
which overspreads the world around them. If those professed
moralists (not to say christians), who so strenuously advocate the
works of generation, had no other motive in it, but to fulfil the
primitive design of the marriage institution, and generate offspring
in obedience to the will of God, they might, as matural people,
have a plausible, if not a reasonable plea for so doing, provided
they kept themselves within due bounds, and observed the order
of nature, and the regular times and seasons of generation. But
still it would be a natural, and not a spiritual work, and therefore
could have no part in the work of Christ, which is spiritual.
But the lawless passion of lust has no respect to the will of God;
the generation of offspring is not its object; nor does it regard the
order of nature, nor the times and seasons of generation, even in
the marriage state; its only motive is the gratification of its own
lawless propensities. In the pursuit of these gratifications, how
often is the law of nature violated How often is this insatiable
passion indulged when the state of pregnancy, or the courses of
nature forbid the indulgence; or when the advanced age of the
female denies all prospect of issue ! How often is the marriage
covenant violated, and the legitimate offspring intermixed with an
adulterous issue! and what is still more shocking, how often are
abortions procured to prevent issue !
Is not the bare mention of these abominations shocking to the
moral feelings of humanity? and are not such things shamefully
debasing to the fallen race of man ; Then how offensive and odious
in the sight of a holy and righteous God, must be the shameful
and abominable crimes which are here exposed to view Yet these
are but a few of the numerous and shocking violations of the law
of nature, the law of decency, the law of humanity, the law of
purity and the law of God, which are committed, even in that state
which is legalized by the laws of man, and sanctioned by a religious
ceremony.
But this is not all. How often is that insatiable propensity in-
dulged alone and in secret! and how many are the schemes and
inventions to indulge it! and that too, even among those who make
a great profession of christianity | Let the appeal be made to the
eonsciences of those who plead the great command to justify their
criminal indulgences. Is not the secret indulgence of that filthy
passion, in the act of self-pollution, much more frequent with many
modern christians, than secret prayer? Are there not very many,
of both sexes, who can publicly seat themselves at the sacramen.
tal board, and professedly partake of the consecrated memorials
of the body and blood of a dying Savior; and yet in their secret
chambers, indulge their “nºne and shamefully pollute
138 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs [PART Iv.
their bodies with acts which they would blush to commit in the
presence of a child P
Are not these “the unfruitful works of darkness” with which
the apostle commands us to “have no fellowship.” And shall
christians indulge themselves in these things? Can God be honor-
ed thus? Is this fulfilling his commands? Is this living in obedi-
ence to the apostle's precept, which requires us to mortify the flesh
with all its affections and lusts P Is this the secret devotion which
God requires of christians ? and will God accept of such devotions
frcm such christians ? or can they with confidence enter a temple,
professedly dedicated to the worship of a pure and holy God, and
presumtuously attempt to lift their defiled hands and deceitful
hearts to HIM whose Allseeing eye is able to search the heart and
try the reins of every creature P
This lawless passion is not only the most corrupt, but also the
most unbounded propensity of man’s fallen nature, and its actions
are the least subject to restraint. All other evil propensities have
some limitations to their actions. Profane swearing, drunkenness,
gambling, frauds, thefts, robberies and murders, are chiefly confin-
ed to the more licentious and abandoned classes of society, and are
under some restraint of the laws of the land. But the lawless pas-
sion of hust knows no bounds, is confined to no limits, and subject
to no laws. Altho its shame is not hid, nor can it be confined
within the limits of darkness, its most natural and congenial element;
yet its practical advocates are numerous, and many of them highly
honored and respected. All ranks and classes, from the prince to
the beggar, from the sanctimonious professor of religion to the
blaspheming infidel—all are anxious to support, and zealous to
plead for this delusive passion, this deceptive enchantress, this
heathen Venus, this adorable goddess of lust, under the deceitful
mask of “an ordinance of heaven—a great command of God l’’
How fascimating is the power, how extensive the dominion,
how numerous the worshippers of this alluring goddess! Did the
vast multitudes of heathen idolaters who worshipped the Great
Diana of Ephesus, bear any proportion to the countless thou-
sands of those called christians, who honor the lascivious Venus
with the offerings of concupiscence P Look at the numerous de-
votees who surround her amorous shrine; look at the numerous
females shamefully abandoned to her amours; look at the libidi-
mous herd of debauchees haunting their infamous dwellings; look
at our large towns and cities, more especially our seaports; see
these haunts of lawless lust and infamy; see their worshippers of
all classes, the high and the low, the rich and the poor, the bond
and free, flocking and mingling, under the cover of darkness, with
infamous prostitutes, all promiscuously engaged in these obscene
adorations !
chAP, 1.] of MAN's Loss FROM GoD. 139
It has been stated by a noted writer, that in the single city of
London, there were no less than nine hundred bawdy houses, and
fifty thousand women who procured their living at the expense of
their chastity.” Doubtless these receive their support from a far
greater number out of all classes of dignified noblemen, professed
gentlemen, merchants, clerks, tradesmen, mechanics, apprentices,
sailors, officers, soldiers, and laborers of all sorts, who haunt these
dwellings, and expend a considerable portion of their incomes in
supporting these scenes of debauchery, while they indulge their
concupiscence with the inmates. If this is the state of the city of
London, what must be that of Paris, which, if not equally populous,
is said to be more licentious P. Yet these two cities contain but a
small part of this description of people who inhabit the numerous
towns and cities of Europe. Add to these the other three quar-
ters of the globe, and what must be the numeral amount of the
worshippers of Venus, both in and out of the bands of wedlock?
Are all the denominations of professing christians now in the
United States, with all their professed worshippers of the true
God, able to boast of half the number which constitute the multi-
tude of devotees to Venus P. We presume they are not. What
then shall we think of the christianity of America, and indeed of
the whole world P Are not the worshippers of Venus, in every
country, far more numerous than the worshippers of the true God?
And is not a vast portion of those who profess to worship the true
God, far more zealous in the worship of Venus 2 And shall the
worship of the true God be divided with the adorations paid to
the goddess of lust? Never! never !
Did the sins of the antedeluvian world bear any proportion to
those of the present day P And will it not be far more tolerable for
the unbelieving Jews, in the day of judgment, than for those of the
present generation, who profess to be followers of Christ, and yet
secretly indulge themselves in such filthy and shameful abomina-
tions?
Doubtless the more sober and considerate part of mankind will
readily censure these abominations, as lamentable deviations from
the path of virtue, and very dishonorable to the dignity of rational
beings. But let us examine, impartially, the nature of these things.
Human nature, in its present lost state, is blind, partial and self-
ish; and very readily inclines mankind to justify in themselves,
those practices which they condemn in others.
But let those who condemn the promiscuous and lawless just of
the inmates and devotees of public brothels, and at the same time,
indulge the same propensity under the sanction of the civil law,
* Dr. Morse, in a former edition of his Geography. It has also been estimated by a mag-
istrate of London, i. “A Treatise ch the police of the metropolis,” that the number of fe-
males, of all classes, who live either wholly or in part by prostitution, amount to 50,000,
Sër Colquhoun’s Treatise, p. 340.
. 140 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs [PART iv.
and the seal of a religious ceremony, examine with candor, the
nature of that propensity which is the leading principle of action
in both cases. Is there any real difference between the married
and the unmarried, either as to the nature of that propensity, the
sensations excited by it, the effect it produces, or the gratification
experienced in it P Does the marriage ceremony alter the nature
of either " If so, why is not the shame removed from the action?
Why must it still be covered in the shades of darkness? Why do
not its shameful abuses cease ? and why is it not subject to the
order of nature, and to the times and seasons of generation P -
Doubtless the sanction of a legal ceremony gives a licence
which, assisted by the shades of darkness, removes all restraint
from the feelings of those who do not look beyond it, especially
where the mind has been previously polluted by lascivious gratifi-
cations; so that they can now indulge their concupiscence in the
dark, without shame or remorse. But in the estimation of those
who have been enlightened by the law of Christ, and who do not
walk in darkness, this is no evidence of the purity or innocence of
actions which require to be veiled in darkness to conceal their
shame. So where a wrong education gives a bias to acts of violence,
a declaration of war, and the ceremony of enlisting as a soldier,
may remove all restraint to rob and plunder, murder and destroy,
from the feelings of men who do not look beyond the authority
which gives the licence. But those who view all wars as unchris-
tian, unmanly and unjust, consider these enormities in a very diffe-
rent light. The nature of robbery and murder cannot be altered
by a war manifesto; nor can the law of Christ be repealed by it.
Nor is the nature of lust altered, nor the sensations of gratification
purified by the legal ceremony of marriage. Hence the shame of
the action is not removed, nor do its abuses cease.
Another shameful and disgraceful effect of that lascivious nature
is, that children are frequently led into its gratifications by their
older companions, and greatly corrupted by it. We believe tha
parents are not only insensible of the corrupt tendency of thesā
things in their children, but carelessly ignorant of the shameful anif
shocking extent to which they often run in such practices, even at
a very early age. It is not uncommon for children to become the
corrupters of each others’ morals in this way, by the opportunities
afforded them in the season of attending school;f and by their fre-
quent intercourse with their more corrupt companions, they often
become more apt scholars in these shameful practices, than in the
elements of literary instruction, and by this means a foundation is
laid for future scenes of corruption and wickedness.
* We would not be understood to condemn matrimony, in itself considered, among natu"
ral people ; for in its primitive institution, in the order of nature, it was good; but our ob-
ject is to point out the abuses cloked under it, as now practised, not only by the world at
targe, but even by those who call themselves christians. *
i This remark will apply with peguliar force to schools in the country.
CHAP. I.] of MAN's Loss FROM Gop. 14]
*
Nothing can have a more fatal tendency to weaken and destroy
the force of virtue on the infant mind, and strengthen the power of
evil propensities, than the early indulgence of this sordid passion.
In hoys it is the incipient road to a life of debauchery, and pre-
pares them to become, at the age of maturity, the shameless cor-
rupters of female virtue. In girls, it leads them to become the
easy, yielding objects of artful insinuation—the early victims of
seduction; and without the seasonable protection of parents and
friends, exposes them to become confirmed harlots, who, in their
turn, will often prove the shameless corrupters of other heedless
youth. Those who duly consider the natural tendency of these
shameful indulgences in children, will be at no loss to understand
the reason why that lascivious propensity is so much more power-
ful, at the age of maturity, in some people than in others.
The natural and direct tendency of these gratifications is to cor-
rupt the mind, blunt the efforts of genius, debase the nobler feelings
of humanity, deprave all the moral faculties of the soul, and swal-
low up the whole man in the filthy and ignoble passion of lust.*
In short, the indulgence of this passion in children, not only tends
to sink them below the order of the brutal creation, as before observ-
ed, but it often leads to the horrid crime of bestiality itself; a crime
which, however shocking to the feelings of uncorrupted nature, is
not unfrequent among the human race.
5. This alluring passion holds out promises of pleasure which
never can be realized. -
The promises of God are true and faithful; but the allurements
of lust are deceitful and fallacious. Of all the promises and invi-
tations which God has ever held out to man, to allure his mind to
the practice of virtue, whether by the spirit of prophecy or other-
wise, not one was ever known to fail or come short of the testimo-
my given; but on the contrary, the reality of the promise has ever
exceeded expectation, and often surpassed all imagination.
Not so with the promises of sensual pleasure: and here we would
appeal to the experience of all who have ever listened to the allur-
ing temptations of lust, and sought pleasure in its enjoyments.
The youthful imagination, in listening to these temptations, is often
wrought up to the highest pitch of expectation; but in the enjoy-
ment, does it not invariably find itself more or less disappointed P
Ask of those who, from their infancy, have kept themselves pure
and uncontaminated with any of these filthy gratifications, even
till the nuptial ceremony had sanctioned the deed, What were the
sensations which succeeded the loss of their purity The candid
and honest answer will, invariably, be found to be, Disappoint-
* Many ancient heathen philosophers were so sensible of the natural tendency of this
propensity to debase the moral and wental faculties, that they voluntarily took up their
erosses against it, and pronounced those the most happy who had the least carnal connexion
with women.
142 THE CAUSE, NATURE AND EFFECTs, &c. [PART IV.
ment, shame and disgust. Such is the effect of carnal indulgence
on the virtuous minds of those who had before lived in virgin puri-
ty: a powerful and incontestable evidence of its filthy mature and
deceitful influence; and another proof that the lust of concupiscence
is, indeed, the forbidden fruit, and a proof too, which a thousand
human ceremonies, both civil and religious, can never invalidate.
6. It is the natural source and foundation of all other evil pro-
pensities in human nature.
As the inordinate propensity of lust was, from the beginning,
the corrupt source from whence all human depravity originated,
the truth of which is plainly and abundantly taught in the scrip-
tures, and candidly acknowledged by some of the most eminent
theological writers; so it continues to this day to be, obviously,
the prolific source of evil, which engenders and nourishes the vilest
passions of a fallen nature. “From whence come wars and fight-
“ings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts, that
“war in your members ?” And again; “When lust hath con-
“ceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, bring-
“eth forth death.” Here lust is plainly represented as the source
of evil and the cause of death. The more this passion is indulged,
the more it benumbs the virtuous feelings of humanity, and prepares
its subjects for the worst of crimes.
This will readily appear if we examine the lives of those deep-
stained villains, and abandoned ruffians, who infest human society,
and trace the progress of vice from infancy to manhood. We be-
lieve that scarce an instance will be found where any one has run
deeply into criminal practices, who has not first quaffed largely of
libidinous indulgences. It generally happens that deceit, lying,
petty frauds, profane and obscene language, and tippling, follow
first in the train of vices which succeed to lechery. Nourished and
strengthened by repeated prostitutions, and hardened by continued
debaucheries, gambling, drunkenness, private thefts and high-hand-
ed frauds succeed; and lastly, burglary, highway robberies, mur-
ders and felonies of all sorts, swell the list of crimes and crown the
villain. And here let it be remembered, that the foundation of
these complicated villainies, is the inordinate indulgence of the
Sordid propensity of lust.
It is needless to adduce facts in proof of this position; they are
too numerous and too well attested to be refuted. It may not be
improper, however, to introduce here an extract from the repre-
sentation of the Grand Jury, made at the court of General Sessions
in the city of Albany, in June 1821.
“From all the observations which the grand.jury have been able
“to bestow upon this subject, and the best information acquired,
“they are induced to believe, that nearly all the criminals now
* James i. 15. & iv. 1. -
CHAP. II.] GBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 143
“confined in our gaol, were first corrupted by frequenting houses
“ kept up for prostitution.”
Such is thus publicly acknowledged to be the contaminating in-
fluence of this shameful gratification. It requires little more light
to convince the reflecting part of mankind that the lust of concu-
piscence is, in truth, the corrupt source whence flows all iniquity,
even every evil work.
Perhaps it may be urged that these things proceed from the abu-
ses of that propensity, rather than from the propensity itself, which
is supposed to be innocent and useful, when kept within due bounds.
But we would ask, Where shall we find the man or the woman,
who indulges that propensity at all, that does keep it within due
bounds F And where is the man or the woman who never indulges
it, by day nor by night, in any way or manner, but purely to obey
the command of God, and raise up seed to his honor and glory?
If any such can be found, they are, indeed and in truth, an honor
to human nature, and an example to the fallen race of man. But
if no such can be found, then let not that propensity be deemed
innocent or useful, which produces such horrid corruptions among
the human race.
The faculty of generation, being created of God, was at the be-
ginning, as simple and innocent, in itself, as the faculty of eating
and drinking; and had it never been corrupted, it might, as to its
natural order, still have remained so; but it was violated by trans-
gression, and corrupted at the very fountain, and brought into sub-
jection to the inordinate passion of Just; and that passion still
maintains its power and influence. Hence all who yield to that
passion, yield the power and strength of soul and body to gender
and nourish evil propensities. Therefore it is no wonder if they
are afterwards unable to deny themselves and refrain from those
evil propensities which still continue to grow stronger by repeated
indulgences; while every virtuous disposition (if they ever had any)
continues to grow weaker, till at length they find themselves utter-
ly unable to do good, or to refrain from evil.
-- a-sºº lºº. Cº-
CHAPTER II.
Objections against the preceding doctrines stated and answered.
WE shall now proceed to state and answer some of the princi-
pal objections which are often advanced and strenuously urged
as conclusive against the doctrines advanced in the preceding
chapter.
Objection 1. It is argued that the very circumstance of man’s
being created male and female, is, of itself, a sufficient evidence
* See Albany Gazette of June 23d, 1821,
j 44 OBJECTIONS ANSWERE13. [PART IV.
that God designed, from the beginning, that the earth should be
peopled by them; and the certainty that there was no other possi-
ble means provided by which it could be peopled, is an undeniable
proof that sexual coition was the means appointed, and the only
means ever intended of God for the population of the world.
Answer. All this may be granted; but that it is conclusive
against the doctrine which we maintain, remains yet to be proved,
Man was created in a natural state, like all the rest of the animal
creation, (tho much superior in form and faculties,) and being a
matural man, he was required to keep the law of nature which was
given him in common with them. That law required him to pro-
pagate his species according to the order of nature, at certain times
and seasons, which the law itself dictated. And even admitting
that the man had faithfully kept that law, he could never have risen
to a higher state, without a superior law, but must have continued
in that matural state, and subject to that natural law, like all the
rest of the animal creation, to the end of time.
But man being destined, as God’s representative on earth, to
occupy a higher station than any other part of the creation, and
God knowing the subtilty of the old adversary, and the weakness
and inexperience of the new formed man, gave him a special and
positive command, which was calculated not only to prove his
obedience, but to be his strength and protection, in the line of obe-
dience, against the snares and devices of the enemy. This com-
mand was to the man a law superior to the law of nature, and was
calculated to raise him to a state of honor and dignity far above
the animal creation; but it required the man’s perfect obedience,
as the only means by which he could preserve his power, and se.
cure that protection and those benefits which the law was calcu-
lated to afford him. Had he kept this law, he would have been a
rightful heir to etermal life. And as this law brought the man into
a near connexion with his Creator; so the penalty of disobedience
must be proportionably great; it must necessarily separate him
from God in proportion to the nearness which the law had brought
him to God: for the greater a man’s privileges are, the greater
must be his condemnation and loss in misimproving them.
But unfortunately for the man, through the subtle influence of
the serpent, he was led into disobedience, and thus violated both
the law of God and the order of nature. Having been created in
a superior state, and favored with a superior law, he was in a coll-
dition to govern all the inferior creation, had he kept his obedience.
But instead of hearkening to that superior law, the law of his Creator,
or even adhering to the law of nature, he yielded to the insinua-
tions of the serpent, through the woman, which wrought upon his
inferior, animal passions, and induced him not only to violate the
law of his Creator, but also the law of nature. Hence he not only
eHAP. II.] OBJECTIONS ANSWEREB). 145
fell from God, but his fall was below the order of nature, and of
course below the brutal creation: for they had never violated the
order of nature.
This being the state of fallen man, all his works of generation,
while led by the propensities of his nature, are performed in this
fallen state, not governed by the law of God, nor regulated by the
law of nature; but influenced by the deceitful insinuations of the
serpent, the lawless passion of lust. Therefore it is in vain for
man now to plead the original law and design of God, in justifica-
tion of his conduct in the works of sexual coition : for while he
still continues to violate that law by the inordinate and unseasona-
ble indulgence of his lascivious passions, he can have no just claim
to it; but will unavoidably separate himself still further from God,
and increase the measure of his loss by every repetition of the act.
Where is the civil government on earth which, after having con-
fided an honorable and important trust to a distinguished citizen,
would not, on finding him treacherous and unfaithful to his trust,
immediately degrade him from his office, and deprive him of his
delegated authority ? Instances of this kind frequently happen in
civil governments. And shall a just and righteous God be less
careful and scrupulous than civil governments, and in matters too
of infinitely greater concern ? And with what confidence could any
citizen who has been thus degraded, or any of his posterity, hav-
ing still a copy of his original instructions and authority, presume
to plead a right to the privileges and benefits of that authority,
after it had been so basely violated P. Yet such, in a comparative
view, is the nature of the case with respect to the fallen race of
man, at the present day, who plead the authority of God, given to
Adam in the days of his innocence, to justify theniselves in still
abusing that authority to a far greater extent than was ever done
by Adam.
The original law of nature was given of God, and was very good
in its place and order, and might have remained so till repealed
by the Lawgiver, had it not been violated and basely corrupted :
and that it still continues to be violated, in the most shameful man-
ner, has been sufficiently proved. Therefore, those who still plead
the law of nature, or the law of God, to justify sexual coition,
under a pretended necessity of maintaining the work of generation,
ought first to examine their secret motives in it; and if they are
able to lay the propensities of lust entirely aside, and enter upon
that work without the influence of any other motive than solely
that of obeying the will of God, in the propagation of a legitimate
offspring, to be heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven, then they are
able to fulfil the law of nature. But if they are not able to do this,
then let them never plead the original command of God, nor the
law of nature: for if they cannot come up to the law of nature, how
O
146 OBJECTIONS ANSWEREI). [PART RY
can they obey the law of God? It is therefore a vain pretence for
ſallen man to lay any claim, either to the law of nature or the law
of God; for he has violated both, and forfeited his right.
It may be proper to remark here, that it is not the work of gon-
eration, in itself considered, in the order of nature, which is con-
demned; but it is that libidinous and lawless passion which was
infused by the serpent at the beginning, and by which the work of
generation has been, and still continues to be so basely corrupted;
it is that which has filled the earth with abominations, and that is
the object of condemnation. If that cursed nature could be entire-
ly purged out of the natural man, so that his feelings could be wholly
governed by the will of God, he would feel a very different sensa-
tion in this act, and would be in no danger of violating the true
order of nature by it. But that lawless propensity has become so
incorporated into the animal life of man, that he finds himself
utterly unable to separate it. Hence, being completely under the
power and dominion of that fallen nature, all his acts of generation,
instead of being directed by the will of God, are influenced by the
lust of concupiscence.” Thus “sin taking occasion by the com-
mandment,” has deceived him and “wrought in him all manner of
concupiscence,” and by it he was slain; that is, he lost that por-
tion of the Spirit of God which was given to regulate and protect
him in his natural state, and thus he died to God; and this is the
death of the fall.f
Olfection 2. The fruit of generation is a created being, of which
God himself is the Creator; therefore the act of generation would
be entirely fruitless without the help of God, who blesses it by the
formation of a human being, complete in all its parts, and endowed
with an immortal soul; hence it appears that God has not only de-
signed and authorized the act from the beginning, but that he is
himself the author and finisher of it, and has verily sanctioned it by
his own works.
Answer. This is probably considered, by many, as an incon-
trovertible argument in favor of the practice of generation, notwith-
standing its present corruptions. But it is a rule in logic that, an
argument which proves too much, destroys itself, and therefore
proves nothing; which is evidently the case with this. For by
the same rule we may also prove that God sanctions fornication,
adultery, and even the basest kind of incest. And will any one
presume to say that the Almighty sanctions these base crimes, be-
cause the act by which they are committed is productive of its
natural and genuine fruits ºf Who would acknowledge the agency
* The ridiculous objection, that this propensity is necessary to the production of offspring,
is void of any foundation in truth: all the uncurrupted works of the Creator declare the
contra f See Ron, vii. 8, 1 J.
# When Cain was brought forth, Five said, “I have gotten a man from the Lord ''. But
the scriptures declare Cain to be of the wicked one; and yet it appears that mankind in the
present day, are as much deceived as Eve was, with respect to the work of generation, and
really suppose the offspring of their own lusts, are children gotten from the Lord
&
CHAP. II.] 6BJECTIONS ANSWERED, 147
or sanction of a pure and holy God in the act of generation between
a father and his daughter? And yet, unnatural and abhorrent as
such a connexion is, it has often produced its natural offspring, as
perfectly formed as that of the most lawful wedlock. The act is
the same, and the fruit the same, in both cases; and therefore if
the agency of God be necessary in the one case, it must be so in
the other also.
But the truth is, God is not the agent in either case, having from
the beginning, committed the agency of this, together with all other
things which come within the province of human capacity, wholly
to man, whose seed is in himself. Yet, while man remains in a
state of nature, and is wholly ignorant of any superior law, he is
required to govern himself by those just and equitable laws of ma-
ture which were given him for that purpose; and therein he may
be justified until, by Divine goodness, he shall be favored with the
superior laws of divine revelation. These laws, which are design-
ed to lead him from a state of nature, and bring him nearer to God,
must henceforth govern his actions; and by his faithful obedience
he must be brought to God, or he can never find true happiness.
Therefore, every lascivious gratification, and even every act of
sexual coition, which is contrary to any order of nature, or to any
divine manifestation known to the actors, must bring condemma-
tion upon them, nor can they, if guilty, escape God’s righteous
judgment.
It may perhaps still be objected that, as man is not himself a
creator, he cannot give existence to any creature without the
essential aid of the Creator; and therefore his offspring must me-
cessarily owe their existence essentially to God the Creator. To
which we answer;
God created man, at first, from the dust of the earth, and en-
slowed him with certain powers and faculties, suitably adapted to
his nature, lot and situation, and constituted him a free agent.
And as he possessed freedom of will and choice, he was therefore
able to act perfectly free, to the extent of his capacity, without any
control of his Creator; but as his powers and faculties were con-
fined to certain limits, he could exercise them to the extent of those
limits, but no further. His agency extended to the power of life
and death; he was able by the power of procreation, which he
possessed, to give life to beings like himself, and to take it from
them: beyond this he could not go. But having laws given him
to govern his conduct, and regulate the powers he possessed, he
must of necessity be accountable for all his conduct. Thus man
being a free agent, and having power to exercise his faculties in
doing good or evil, in all cases, and under all circumstances, with-
in the limits of his capacity, he does, in fact, prove his faithfulness
or unfaithfulness by his own works, and thereby merits and will
receive his reward according to his works.
148 OBJECTIONS ANSWEREI). [PART IV,
Objection 3. This doctrine condemns and wholly rejects sexual
coition, as corrupt and unclean in the sight of God, and contrary
to the gospel of Christ. But upon the supposition that the whole
world should embrace this doctrine, and actually live according to
it, the human race would be extinguished from the face of the earth,
in the space of little more than one hundred years.
Answer. This objection destroys itself, and proves directly the
revepse of what the objectors intend : It proves that the principle
of continence is not of the world; and “therefore the world hateth
it.” And as it is agreeable to the example of Christ, and is able
to control the passions of nature, it must therefore be a heavenly
- principle, a principle which rises above the sordid propensities
ef an earthly nature.
Mankind, who are sunk and lost in the fallen nature of the flesh,
are very forward in devising means to support that nature, and
always ready to object against any testimony which condemns it,
Pt is not the extinction of the human race which the objectors fear;
the smallest apprehension that their carnal pleasures are in danger,
is far more alarming to them. Their pretended anxiety to prevent
the world from coming to an end, is but a hypocritical mask to
cover their lust. Millions of the human race may be cut off and
destroyed by the horrid wars which are waged among mankind,
merely to gratify the ambition of rulers, and glut the blood-thirsty
passions of man; and these scenes of destruction may be approved
and encouraged by the great body of the highest professors of chris-
tianity; and yet no fearful apprehensions are discovered about ex-
tinguishing the human race in this way.
But when souls are called upon for their own salvation's sake,
to deny themselves and take up their crosses against their carnal
pleasures, the cry of these hypocrites is, The world will come to an
end / As tho it were a duty incumbent on man to preserve the
lawless abominations of lust, which have so long corrupted the
earth, lest the prevailing influence of this doctrine of continence
and purity should destroy the world, by putting an end to all its
iniquities. It appears evident from the language of these object-
ors, that they consider the doctrine of christian celibacy, which is
designed to make an end of sin, and bring in an everlasting law of
righteousness, as more inconsistent, unreasonable and unjust than
the bloody mandates of war, which are attended with consequences
far more distressing and deplorable to humanity.
It appears to be the general opinion of the professors of chris-
tianity, that the world is to be destroyed by fire; and many seem
to imagine that a deluge of fire and brimstone will be poured out
upon the earth, and destroy all its wicked inhabitants at once. But
we would ask, which would appear the most reasonable and con-
sistent with Almighty wisdom and righteousness; to destroy the
eHAP. II.] UISJECTIONS ANSWEREL). 149
filthy abominations of sin by the purifying fire of the gospel of
Christ, which mercifully allows lost souls to take up a full and
final cross against their lustful passions, from which all these
abominations spring, so that all who are willing, may be purified
from their corruptions and become heirs of the Kingdom of Hea-
ven; or by a deluge of natural fire and brimstone, to deprive them
forever of all hopes of future happiness, which, according to the
prevailing opinions of modern christians, must be the natural con-
sequence P
We firmly believe the world will come to an end, and that it will
be destroyed by fire. And we also believe and confidently testi-
fy, that this fire has already commenced; because we have felt its
operation upon our own souls, and have found it to be, in very
deed, a consuming fire to lust and pride, and every other corrup-
tion of man’s fallen nature. This fire, we have no doubt, will
prevail with increasing power, and many will yet feel its purifying
effects; and all who come fairly into it, may depend on having
their lust and pride, their selfishness and avarice, their deceit and
hypocrisy, their envy, malice and hatred, together with all their
evil deeds and evil imaginations, effectually consumed by its pow-
er; and when this burning is completed, they will find themselves
among that happy number “upon whom the ends of the world are
come.” But those who shall be found unwilling to come into
this fire, by the way of the cross, and to consign their lusts and
corruptions to its purifying flames, will at length be compelled to
feel the fire of those very lusts burning in them, with inextinguish-
able fury, and they will not be able to help themselves.
Olyection 4. But this doctrine seems to involve in it some unan-
swerable difficulties: for, admitting the abuses of sexual coition by
the wicked, can that be any reason why christians should reject
it? If every gift of God were to be rejected because it has been
abused by the wicked, we should be deprived of nearly or quite
every blessing we enjoy, and should even be obliged to refrain
from eating and drinking, because these privileges are abused by
drunkards and gluttons. What should occasion such an opposition
between the doctrines of christianity, and the laws of generation,
in themselves considered P Was not God the author of both P Did
not the same God who created man male and female, and com-
manded them to increase and multiply, also send his Son Jesus
Christ to introduce christianity into the world, and to preach the
gospel to the married as well as to the unmarried ? Why then
cannot a man be a christian, and still live in a state of matrimony,
and generate offspring, provided he does not abuse his privilege?
Answer. We should suppose that a proper attention to the re-
marks in the preceding chapter might preclude the necessity of
* 1 Cor. x. 11.
£) 2
150 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED, - [PART IV,
!
these questions; but the inveterate force of opinions so long estab-
lished, and so congenial to the carnal mind, seems not easily over-
come. Let the objectors bear in mind, and candidly consider the
essential difference between the work of the first and second Adam,
the cause of that difference, and the absolute necessity of maintain-
ing a proper distinction between the children of this world, and
the true followers of Christ, and they will find no occasion to ask
questions of this kind.
We would observe in the first place, that a divine blessing, tho
wickedly abused, is still a divine blessing; and the abuse of it by
the wicked, can be no reason why the righteous should be depriv-
ed of the privilege of enjoying it, so long as it is given and con-
tinued by Divine Goodness. But there is an essential difference
between a divine institution given for the government of mankind,
and now in actual force, and one which has been disannulled to
make room for a new and more permanent institution, even admit-
ting that the disannulled institution had not been abused while it
was in force. The disanmulling of the law of Moses, and the es-
tablishment of the gospel institution by Jesus Christ, is no evidence
that both were not of divine origin: and tho the Jews, as a people,
still cleave to the law, and reject the gospel, they cannot be saved
by the law; nor can they be saved by the gospel while they stub-
bornly reject it. Their rejection of the gospel of Jesus Christ,
which was first sent to them, and which had been long foretold by
their prophets, has ever been considered as very dishonorable to
their nation, and a striking evidence of their great darkness, blind-
ness and wickedness.
And shall the people of this generation, and in this enlightened
age, bring a still greater dishonor upon themselves, and manifest a
greater degree of darkness, blindness and wickedness, than the
Jews did? Will they still cleave to an institution which, by its sub-
jection to the violations of lust, has been attended with a curse to
mankind ever since the transgression of Adam and Eve in the gar-
den P And will they still continue these violations under the deceit-
ful pretence of obeying a divine institution, when in fact, lust is
the moving cause, and the greatest object in view is the gratifica-
tion of their carnal pleasures P. Yet when we view the inestimable
sacrifice which mankind make to secure these sordid and momen-
tary pleasures, what a contrast appears! It is nothing less than
the sacrifice of a divine institution of peace and righteousness, puri-
ty and holiness, the most invaluable ever offered for the benefit of
mankind. But we shall proceed to point out, more clearly, the
distinction between the children of this world, and the children of
God.
The Kingdom of Christ and the kingdoms of this world are
essentially different from each other; and this difference ever has
chap. II.] OBJECTIONS ANSWERED, 15||
been and ever will be strictly maintained in Christ; and no less is .
the distinction between the subjects of the different kingdoms. The
children of this world are pursuing the things of this world, and liv-
ing in the fallen nature of the first Adam; but the children of God
are seeking salvation from sin, and redemption from that fallen
nature. Those who follow the example of the first Adam, follow
the example of a fallen progenitor, and like him, beget a fallen
offspring. And tho mankind should continue in this practice for a
hundred thousand years to come, they would still beget a degene-
rate and corrupt raee, and still degenerate more and more; and
in that way they could never be redeemed, but must still sink
deeper and deeper into loss. But those who wish to find redemp-
tion, must find it by following the example of the second Adam,
who came to lead mankind out of the nature and fallen state of the
first Adam, into the nature and life of Christ.
The first Adam was created a natural man; “he was of the
earth, earthy;” his work was to increase and multiply and replen-
ish the earth in the order of natural generation; and had he not
violated that order, and transgressed the law of his Creator, he
might have done it in innocence and justification. He would not
then have been instigated by the power of lust, to gratify the base
and sordid propensities of an animal nature; but influenced by the
agency of the divine law, he would have acted from the pure mo-
tives of duty. In so doing, instead of a degenerate race of murder-
ing Cains, whose ruling passions are lust and rapine, he would
have propagated an uncorrupted seed, whose innate innocence,
nourished by the wise and godly example of their parents, would
have been a powerful protection against the future insinuations of
the adversary; and if a part should afterwards have yielded and
fallen, they could not have corrupted the whole human race.
But Adam having yielded to the insinuations of the serpent, and
violated the law of God, and by his example taught his posterity
to do the same, he has corrupted the whole earth. And shall chris-
tians now continue to follow his base example P This is not the
example of Christ; and therefore those who follow it, cannot,
with any propriety, be called the followers of Christ.
Jesus Christ, the second Adam, the Lord from Heaven, is a
quickening Spirit; he came not only to redeem mankind from that
loss into which the first Adam had plunged them, but to raise them
to a state far superior, even to eternal life, from which they could
not fall; therefore he could not do the work of the first Adam.
His work was to increase and multiply and replenish the Kingdom
of Heaven, not by begetting a corrupt seed, after the example of
the first Adam, but by redeeming lost souls through the work of
spiritual regeneration. His work was therefore, diametrically
opposite to that of the first Adam. And can christians continue
152 OBJECTIONS ANSWEREI). [PART IV.
to do the works of the first Adam P. If so, they must be the follow-
ers of the first Adam ; they cannot be the followers of Christ:
for it is impossible that they should follow both at the same time,
seeing their works are so essentially different from each other.
And this is the difference between them: The only true followers
of Christ, are those who deny themselves of all the carnal propen-
sities of a fallen nature, who do the works of Christ, and walk in
obedience to his example; and these may, with strict propriety,
be called christians.
On the other hand, those who live in the works of generation,
follow the example of the first Adam. By doing his works, they
necessarily become his followers; and therefore are not true chris-
tians: for, “As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy;
and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.”
People may profess what they will; they may be called pres-
byterians, episcopalians, baptists, methodists, or what not; yet so
long as they live in the works of the first Adam, and follow his
example, they do not follow Christ. Those who assume the name
of christians, do thereby implicitly profess to be spiritual people.
But what evidence do they give of being a spiritual people, while
they live according to the propensities of a carnal nature ? We
would request the .candid observer to motice the lives and conduct
of those who, notwithstanding their profession, are led and govern-
ed by the same natural propensities as the non-professor, the Deist
and Atheist, and compare them with those who, agreeable to their
profession, do actually deny themselves of all the natural propen-
sities of a carnal nature, and manifest by their fruits that they are
governed by a superior law, in living a life agreeable to the exam-
ple of Jesus Christ, and then say whether the practice of the for-
mer or latter appears the most consistent with the spirit of chris-
tianity.
Here is the deception which has so long blinded the eyes of the
professors of chritianity; they see not the most essential difference
between the first and second Adam : hence in their works they
are the real followers of the former, while they follow the latter in
profession only. The idea of following both at the same time,
proceeds from the same delusive principle, which supposes that
because we are the natural offspring of the first Adam, we are
therefore bound to follow him in the work of generation; and that
this is no impediment to our becoming the spiritual offspring of the
second Adam, and following him in the regeneration. So readily
is the the carnal mind of man led to believe that which it most de-
sires, however contrary to the dictates of reason and truth. This
is literally blending the flesh with the spirit, which the apostle Paul
declares “are contrary the one to the other.”f
* 1 Cor. xv. 43. j See Gal v. 17.
chAP. II.] OBJECTIONS ANSWERED, 153
As well may we talk of a man’s travelling both east and west at
one and the same time, as of his following Christ in the regene-
ration, while living in the works of generation. The thing is im-
possible; because the work of regeneration is the operation of the
Spirit of Christ upon the soul, which destroys the nature of sin,
and raises the soul out of the fallen nature of the first Adam, into the
spiritual life of Jesus Christ the second Adam. And this can never
be gained by any soul short of crucifying the flesh with all its affec-
tions and lusts. Yet so unwilling are mankind to have the fallen
nature of the flesh crucified in themselves, that they will use every
means in their power to nourish and preserve it, as tho they were
even unwilling to go to Heaven without it; and will therefore con-
trive any way to carry it along with them. But their contrivance
will all be in vain; for that nature must dic before the soul can
ever live to God, or find an entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven.
All professors of christianity will agree that mankind are lost in
Adam; and that there is no redemption but in and through Christ.
“For as in Adam all die; so in Christ shall all be made alive.”
If in Adam all die, then it follows that the works of Adam bring
death; consequently we must quit these works before we can be
made alive in Christ. “Except a man be born again, he cannot
see the Kingdom of God.” So testified Christ; and here let it be
again repeated. It is impossible for souls to find salvation from
sin, under the light of the gospel, revealed in this day, short of
utterly renouncing the work of generation, and crucifying the flesh
with all its affections and lusts. Nor will any soul ever pass
through the new birth and be redeemed to God, until the whole of
that fallen nature, root and branch, is entirely destroyed out of the
soul; and the longer a soul lives in the indulgence of that nature,
the more difficult, painful and distressing will it be for that soul to
crucify it; and this, he will find, must be his own work, or he can
never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. If a man “must be born
again,” he must, in passing through this birth, be raised out of that
nature in which he had his first birth; and become dead to all its
propensities
Objection 5. But if this be so, says the objector, what is become
of the good old patriarchs and prophets? They lived in the works
of natural generation, and, as you say, followed the example of old
Adam, in this respect, and not the example of Jesus Christ; your
doctrine must therefore exclude them from the Kingdom of Hea-
ven: and are they all lost?
Answer. They could not follow the example of Jesus Christ;
because he had not then appeared; and he could not set them an
example before he made his appearance, Those who lived before
the coming of Christ, were under “the law of a carnal command-
ment;” and while they strictly obeyed that law, and lived up to
I 54 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED, [PART IV.
4.
the light of God, given in their day, they found justification before
God, and were blessed of God and protected from evil according
to the measure of their light and obedience; and this was all they
could do in that day. They could not be redeemed from a fallen
nature, in that day; because, as Christ had not then appeared, the
work of redemption could not take place. But Christ having been
promised, as their Redeemer, to appear in the fulness of time, they
lived and died in the faith of that promise; they looked forward to
a future day, the day of full salvation and redemption.
Hence the apostle, in speaking of the faith of Noah, Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob and the rest of the patriarchs and prophets, says,
“And these all having obtained a good report through faith, re-
“ ceived not the promise: God having provided some better thing
“ for us, that they without ws should not be made perfect.”
These having been faithful to walk according to the light which
was revealed in their day, were owned and blessed of God: they
departed in faith and rested in hope, believing that the time would
come when the promised redemption would appear. Their hav-
ing left their earthly tabernacles, and consigned those mortal bo-
dies to the dust long before the day of redemption appeared, could
not exclude them from its benefits when the time was fully come,
For the work of redemption, being a spiritual work, must operate
upon the soul, whether in the body or out of it; and therefore the
separation of the soul from the body, cannot prevent this operation.
The patriarchs and prophets having been faithful unto death,
and having rested in hope, and waited with patience God’s appoint-
ed time, for the gospel of Christ to appear, their faith directed them
into a willing obedience to it. They had now to pass through its
purifying fire, in order to cleanse them from the fallen nature of the
first Adam, before they could gain their redemption and be made
perfect in glory. In this work of purification, they are united
with those of the same faith in the body; so that those who are
present in the body, and those who have departed out of it, become
one in Christ; and being joined together in the same spirit, and
under the operations of the same gospel, they are made perfect in
righteousness together. Thus they become the real followers of
Christ in their disembodied state, not having had that privilege
while in the body; and in this manner, they with us are made
perfect.f -
This doctrine will doubtless appear new and strange to those
who have always been bound, by the tradition of their fathers, to
a different faith. And as they have been taught to believe no doc-
trine but what can be proved from the scriptures, they will natu-
rally ask, Where is the scripture evidence of this? Butlet the dark
veil of the flesh be removed from the eyes of the mind, and no one
* Heb. xi. 39, 46. t See Heb. xii. 22 to 24.
PHAP. III.] OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. I 55
will then ask for scripture evidence to prove a doctrine which
must carry with it, and in it, the most certain conviction. As the
scriptures are but a record of those events which were revealed
and brought to pass in former dispensations, it cannot reasonably
be expected that they should contain doctrines which were not to
be made manifest until the fulness of time came, unless it were by
types and shadows, or the mysterious revelations of prophecy,
which are but imperſectly understood, if understood at all, before
the fulfilment takes place. Yet the spirit of the scriptures, if not
pointedly expressive on these subjects, is in every respect, con-
formable thereto, without a single instance of any thing to the
contrary.*
* > --> Cº-
CHAPTER III.
The subject continued, in which further objections are stated and
answered, & the doctrine of continence and celibacy confirmed.
WF shall proceed to answer a few more objections which arc
frequently advanced against the doctrine of celibacy and conti-
Ilêh Ce,
Olyection 6. The primitive christians did not all live lives of celi-
bacy, but many of them lived in a state of matrimony, as we find in
the New Testament, and the apostle Paul tolerated them in it, as
appears in his first epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 7th, where he
gives directions concerning husbands and wives. Were not these
people christians ?
Answer. If they were christians, the same apostle calls them
carnal, and severely reproves them for their carnality. But as
the time had not then arrived for a full revelation of the man of sin
to be made, and as that revelation was necessarily connected with
the second coming of Christ; therefore these Corinthian chris-
tians, who were with so much difficulty persuaded to renounce
their former licentious practices, were tolerated in living, in some
measure, according to the course of the world. The same tolera-
tion was also extended to other gentile churches; but the church
at Jerusalem seems to have preserved a greater measure of purity
than any other. And tho it is clearly evident that the primitive
christians had received a far greater measure of divine light than
had ever before been revealed on earth; yet while they were still
under the vail of the flesh, they could not have a full sight of that
way of redemption which they still waited for; and therefore they
were justified in walking in obedience to that degree of light which
they had received; and as this was all they could then do, God
required no more of them.
* See Acts ii. 34, 1 Pet. iii, 19. & iv G, Rev. vi. 9, 10, 11. f See 1 Cor, iii. 1 to 4-
156 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED). [PART I*.
But the apostle Paul evidently saw further; he clearly saw
that a day of further light and greater purity must necessarily take
place, at the second appearing of Christ. Peter and John, and
doubtless others, had similar views, and looked forward to a day
of greater purity and holiness. But they also saw that a falling
away would first take place, in which Antichrist would rise and
exercise great power and dominion: “For that day shall not come,
except there come a falling away first.”
The falling away of the primitive church, which was attended
with the introduction of a flood of corruption, in morals and
manners, was the occasion of those dark and deceitful doctrines
which have blinded the eyes of the professors of christianity to the
present day. In every age, the great object of the spirit of Anti-
christ, in all his works, has been to counterfeit the religion of Christ.
And what more effectual method could he devise, than to attach
erroneous meanings to the names of christian doctrines, and blend
them with practices which have not the most distant connection
with the pure gospel of Christ? Hence arose that universal de-
ception which supposes that generation and regeneration are per-
fectly consistent with each other; that christains may practice the
generation of the flesh, and at the same time be subjects of the
regeneration of the spirit; that is, that they may at once live ac-
cording to the flesh and walk according to the spirit, regardless of
the apostle's testimony that, “these are contrary the one to the
other.”f Hence also, the resurrection of the soul from the fallen
nature of the flesh, is understood to mean, a resurrection of the na-
tural body of flesh and bones, from the mouldering ruins of the
... grave.
The names of these, and many other doctrines of the gospel,
are retained, while the real substance is wholly perverted and lost
in antichristian darkness. This is undoubtedly the principal cause
that modern professors of christianity do not discover the real
distinction between the flesh and the spirit, and see the utter im-
possibility of following Christ in the regeneration of the spirit,
while living in the practical generation of the flesh. Hence all
those christians, so called, whether of primitive or modern times,
who, under their christian profession, have lived in the practical
works of generation, can be viewed in no other light than as car-
nal christians; and with all their christianity, they can never gain
complete possession of the Kingdom of Ileaven, until they are
completely purified from the nature of the flesh and all its corrupt
and debasing propensities. And tho in consequence of having
obeyed the light which they had received, they may be free from
condemnation; yet they cannot find their redemption short of
passing through the purifying fire of the gospel.
* 2 Thess. ii. 8. f Gal. v. 17.
chap. III.] OBJECTIONS ANSWERER). I 57
Objection 7. The doctrine of celibacy appears to be condemned
by the scriptures, particularly in Paul’s epistle to Timothy, where
he gives the following testimony in plain terms: “Now the Spirit
“speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart
“from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of
“devils;–forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from
“ meats.”*
Answer. Perhaps no passage found in the sacred writings has
furnished a more popular argument against a life of continence
than this. It is indeed considered by many as sufficient to con-
demn the doctrine of celibacy altogether; and it is often urged as
a testimony of condemnation against every religious society whose
faith leads them to maintain such a life, however far they may be
from “forbidding to marry,” or “commanding to abstain from
meats.” But a little examination will readily show that it furnish-
es not the smallest proof against a life of conscientious celibacy,
either in a society or an individual.
The objectors evidently suppose that the apostle’s expression
is to be understood in a literal sense; otherwise it would be use-
less to advance it as an argument in their favor ; and therefore,
for the sake of a fair examination, we will admit their literal con-
struction.
Forbidding and commanding then, according to this sense, must
necessarily imply power to enforce what is thus forbidden and
commanded; otherwise no effect could be produced thereby; and
of course the prediction of the apostle would have been of little or
no importance. In order therefore to render the passage applica-
ble to any society or denomination of people, that society must
not only positively ſorbid to marry, and command to abstain from
meats, but it must actually enforce its commands and prohibitions
by a power sufficient to effect the object. It must also fill up the
whole character described by the apostle; otherwise the charge
must fail in its application: for there can be no real consistency
in the charge, unless it be applied to a people in whom that char-
acter is fully displayed; and certainly it cannot, with any consis-
tency, be applied to the United Society. With this Society, a life
of continence and celibacy is a matter of conscience, proceeding
from their religious faith, and therefore needs no “forbidding to
marry” in the case; because the cross of self-denial is a voluntary
act; and surely the apostle's prediction cannot apply to any such
people.
Protestant writers have generally charged this, “forbidding to
marry” upon the Church of Rome; and if we are to consider the
apostle's expressions in a literal sense, there appears to be some ſoun-
* Tim. iv. 1 & 3. .
P
| 58 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. [PART Iy.
dation for the charge.” It is stated by bishop Newton that, “Aslong
“ ago as the year 386, Siricius held a council of eighty bishops at
“Rome, and forbade the clergy to cohabit with their wives. This
“ decree was confirmed by Innocent at the beginning of the fifth
“ century; and the celibacy of the clergy was fully decreed by
“Gregory VII. in the eleventh century; and this hath been the
“universal law and practice ever since.”f These facts are con-
firmed by other ecclesiastical writers. We find in Mosheim, that
Pope Gregory, in the year 1074, assembled a council at Rome,
in which it was decreed, “That the sacerdotal orders should ab-
“stain from marriage; and that such of them as had already
“wives, or concubines, should immediately dismiss them, or quit
“ the priestly office.”f -
But these things afford no evidence against the doctrine of chris-
tian celibacy and continence, but rather the contrary. For these
measures being adopted at such an early period of the apostacy,
evidently show that the purity of the primitive church at Jerusa-
lem, in this respect, was well known in the church of Rome; and
that their object was to preserve the appearance of it in that
church. But the lordly rulers of that corrupt church, having lost
the true spirit of the gospel, by which that purity was maintained
in the primitive church, attempted to make a show of sanctity and
deceive the world, by counterfeiting this purity. And being wholly
destitute of the true Spirit of Christ, which leads to purity, and of
that divine love which governed the primitive church, they were
under the necessity of enforcing their doctrines by arbitrary de-
crees. Thus their counterfeit purity and continence became a
matter of compulsion, not of choice; and was therefore contrary
to the very spirit of the gospel, which allows liberty of conscience
to every soul. |
But with all their arbitrary decrees and compulsive power, which
were professedly designed to restrain , the corruptions of the
ecclesiastical orders, and to preserve and maintain purity among
the dignitaries of their church, they never could reach the source
of human corruption, nor restrain the libidinous passions of man,
Their established fasts, including what they call lent, Ör forty
* It is but just to remark here, that the R. Catholics plausibly deny
“ forbidding to marry;” because it is not only allowed among the peo:
ple at large, but is made one of their sacred institutions, and classed
among their seven sacraments, and consequently is held in higher esti-
mation by them, than by the protestants. The protestants on the other
hand, scoff at the popish sacrament of marriage, and call it “a bastard
sacrament,” and say it is not any sacred rite at all; yet they themselves
will call it a Divine institution, and often talk of solemnizing holy mar-
Tz (1 ºre.
f Newton’s Dessertations on the Prophecies, vol 2. p. 99.
: Mosheim's Eccl. Hist, vol. ii. p. 489.
CHAP III.] OBJECTIONS ANSWEREI). I59
days abstinence from animal food, are considered by protestants
as of the same arbitrary character; “commanding to abstain from
meats.” With a view to keep up the appearance of sanctity, after
they had entirely lost the real power of the gospel, it seems they
enjoined upon their subjects these days of abstinence, with other
religious ceremonies, and thus required them to observe ordinances
which, for want of true faith, they otherwise never would have
observed as religious duties. But even admitting that their reli-
gious ordinances were of Divine authority, as they pretended, what
could they gain by compulsive obedience : Forbidding and com-
manding, for the sake of enforcing religious duties, where there is
no faith to induce a willing obedience, will answer no good pur-
pose. God must have a willing people to worship him, or they
never can worship to his acceptance.
But the United Society can have no occasion for any such coer-
cive laws; nor will the faith of the Society admit of any compul-
sive or hypocritical obedience. Nor can any obedience which
does not proceed from faith, be of any use : for without faith it
is impossible to please God Religiou must be a matter of free
and conscientious choice, or it cannot profit any soul. It is the
true Spirit of Christ in the soul which must and does enable any
one to bear the cross of self-denial. Without this, all “forbidding
and commanding” is arbitrary and useless.
Hence the charge of “forbidding to marry,” even when viewed
according to the sense in which the objectors understand the apos-
tle’s testimony, can by no means apply to the United Society, who
consider marriage, as practised by the world of mankind, to be
merely a civil right, sanctioned by the laws of every civilized na-
tion, and with which the Society has never had any inclination to
interfere. Can any reasonable person suppose that the apostle, in
that prediction, alluded to a life of conscientious celibacy, when he
himself lived such a life, and plainly declared that he would that
all men were even as himself? Surely the apostle would not con-
demn himself, and live in opposition to the dictates of his own
prophetic spirit.
If we are to understand the expression, commanding to abstain
from meats, in a literal sense, protestants can charge nothing
upon the papists that will not apply with equal force to themselves.
“To observe days of fasting (say they) we judge both scriptural and
“rational; and a religious fast requires total abstinence from food.”
And what did the papists more ? But the United Society main-
tain no such principle; and therefore the charge, considered in a
literal sense, cannot possibly apply to this Society. And if the
eharge fail in respect to meats, it must of course fail in respect to
marriage: for in the apostle's prediction, they are connected, and
both are made to apply to the same class of people.
160 OBJECTIONS ANSWERED, [PAPT IV.
& -
But we view the apostle's testimony in a very different light
from that in which it is generally understood. We do not sup-
pose that the prediction had any further allusion to that civil in-
stitution which is generally called marriage, than as a significant
figure. “The Spirit speaketh expressly,” saith the apostle. This
prediction was therefore given in the language of the Spirit. And
according to the testimony of the same apostle, “The natural
“man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are
“foolishness unto him ; neither can he know them, because they
“ are spiritually discerned.” How then should the natural man
be able to understand what the Spirit meant by “forbidding to
marry P. Yet the lovers of carnal pleasure profess to know all
about it, and confidently pervert the language of the Spirit into an
argument to condemn the United Society, and favor their own car-
mal gratifications.
The apostle's testimony undoubtedly alluded to spiritual mar-
riage. This appears evident from his own language on other
occasions. “He that is joined to the Lord, is one spirit.”f And
again; “Neither is the man without the woman, nor the woman
“without the man, in the Lord. This is a great mystery,” saith
the apostle; “but I speak concerning Christ and the church. —
“For I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you
“ as a chaste virgin to Christ.” In this consists the true spiritual
marriage, or marriage of the Lamb, by which souls are enabled to
bring forth the fruits of the Spirit. “Wherefore, my brethren, ye
“ also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye
“should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the
“dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.” This is
the marriage which the apostle invariably maintained, and is that
which was forbidden by those apostates of whom he spoke; and
which the lovers of carnal pleasure among all denominations, have
always opposed, as being contrary to their carnal corruptions;
because they are “lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.”
In this sense, the charge of “forbidding to marry,” which the
lovers of carnal pleasure are so ready to charge upon the United
Society, may with strict propriety be retorted upon themselves.
For, not content with the frce and unlimited indulgence of their
darling pleasures, they have ever been loud in their vociferations
against that life of virgin purity which the apostle so strongly re-
commends as the only true spiritual marriage. While on the other
hand, the United Society, tho they have conscientiously borne the
cross of self-denial themselves, have ever been willing that all who
differ from them in opinion, should freely act according to the dic-
tates of their own consciences, without any disposition to molest
cor is 14. f chap. vi. 27. . # chap. xi. 11. | Eph. v. 32.
* - C or xi, 2 ** Rom, v ii 4
chap. III.] OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 161
them in their pleasures, or hinder them from marrying whenever
they please.
Objection 8. Jesus Christ himself did not condemn marriage;
but on the contrary, he not only honored a marriage with his pre-
sence, but gave it an extraordinary and most miraculous sanction,
by turning water into wine for the guests to drink. What
greater evidence could any one ask to prove his divine approba-
tion P
Answer. His enemies adopted the same mode of reasoning to
prove him “a gluttonous man, and a wine bibber, a friend of pub-
Jicans and sinners;” and doubtless they felt as much confidence
in the strength of their argument as our objectors do in theirs.
And why should they not P Did he not honor with his presence
the assemblies of publicans and harlots P Did he not eat and drink
with them, and work miracles for them P And where was the true-
blooded Pharisee that would not have condemned a man for a
wine-bibber, and a promoter of drunkenness, who would go and
turn so much water into wine after men had well drunk 2 And
could any man that would frequent the assemblies of such base
characters, escape the scandal of being a partaker with them, or
the charge of encouraging them in their wickedness?
So reasoned the Scribes and Pharisees, and so will all carnal
men reason when they want to subvert the testimony of truth for
the purpose of promoting their own carnal views. And indeed if
we are to consider the attendance of Jesus at the wedding, and his
miracle of turning water into wine, as any evidence in favor either
of marriage or drunkenness, it must unquestionably have by far
the greatest appearance of favoring the latter: for there is not the
least evidence that he sanctioned the former, either by word or
work; but his enemies found a very plausible reason to charge
‘him with sanctioning the latter. p.
But with all their reasoning and all their evidence, they could
never prove that the Lord Jesus ever sanctioned the evil practices
of these sinners, or authorized them to continue in sin. It is true
he did not condemn this darling practice of the world; nor did he
condemn the adultress, tho she was taken in the very act; but after
convicting her accusers, he bid her “go and sin no more.” He
was not sent into the world to condemn the world; that was not
the object of his mission: “but that the world through him might
be saved.” In making these visits, the Savior of the world had a
nobler object in view, which was to preach the gospel to poor fa!-
len creatures, who were thus lost in sin and wickedness, and to
teach them, by precept and example, a better manner of life. It
was therefore necessary that he should come down to them in their
fallen and lost state, and find them where they were lost, and ren-
* John iii 17.
P 2
162 O B.J ECTIONS ANSWERE I), [PART TV,
der himself accessible to them in that state, in order to reclaim
them, or they never would have been saved by him, but must still
have remained under their loss. *
The miracle of turning water into wine, on that particular occa-
sion, which is the only instance we have on record, and doubtless
the only one which ever took place, was for a ſar more important
purpose than to sanction matrimony or promote intemperance.
“This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and
“manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.”
By this he showed forth the divine authority of his mission, proved
his God-like power, and confirmed the faith of his followers. But
this was not all : It was designed and eminently calculated to be a
figurative representation of his own spiritual marriage at the period
of his second coming, and of that heavenly wine, which he after-
wards spoke to his disciples of drinking with them, in his Father’s
Kingdom.f
Olyection 9. This doctrine of celibacy, if generally admitted,
would overthrow the institution of matrimony; the consequences
of which would be very shocking to society. Abolish this institu-
tion, and all those civil and religious ties which bind families
together, would be severed at once. The legal descent of inheri-
tance, the property of heirs, and the ties of consanguinity would be
no longer known. Those social connections which unite husbands
and wives, parents and children, brothers and sisters, and on which
depends the very foundation of human society, would be entirely
destroyed, and mankind would soon be reduced to a state of an-
archy and confusion.
Answer. This objection, if applied to mankind in a natural
state, would indeed appear formidable; but when applied to the
followers of Christ, it is more specious than solid. As an objec-
tion against the doctrine of christian celibacy maintained by the
United Society, it is without foundation. That practical celibacy
and christian continence, which we consider as the great privilege
of the true followers of Christ, in this day of his second appearing,
is very far from interfering with any useful institution of civil soci-
oty. The children of this world and the followers of Christ are
two distinct orders of people. “The children of this world marry,
and are given in marriage;” and have a natural right to all the
civil institutions of the country to which they belong, so long as
they are subject to its laws and ordinances. “But they who shall
“be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection
“from the dead, neither marry nor are given in marriage.” The
followers of Christ are governed by the law of Christ, which is a
law of justice and holiness; and so long as they do not interfere?
with the civil institutions of men, they cannot be chargeable with
severing the bonds of civil society.
" .." el; R ii. 11. t see Matt. xxvi 29. & Rev. xix. 7, 0. ; Luke xx. $4,85.
chAP. III.] OBJECTIONS ANSWERED. 163
We consider matrimony to be a civil institution, and as such, it
is both useful and necessary for mankind in their natural state; but
it does not belong to the true followers of Christ; and for that
reason they have nothing to do with it. As members of a chris-
tian institution, established by the law of Christ, and wholly un-
connected with the civil, political and religious institutions of the
world, it is inconsistent with our christian faith to interfere with
any of their concerns. But at the same time, we are perfectly
willing that every such institution, which produces any beneficial
influence on its menbers, should be freely supported by those to
whom it belongs, and whose concern it is to support it ; and it is
right and just that all people should act their own faith in this, as
well as in all other matters.
The apostle Paul taught the Corinthians that it was “better to
marry than to burn;” and we have ever acknowledged it better to
marry than to do worse. We readily admit that the institution of
marriage is useful in its place; because it has a tendency to pre-
vent many evils in society which could not otherwise be avoided.
And for mankind, in their present state, it is absolutely necessary;
because without it, the excesses of lawless lust would destroy
every vestige of good order in society, and produce confusion and
ruin among the human race. We will even admit that marriage
is honorable in a state of nature, where the parties enter into it
from honorable and conscientious motives, and are homestly and
sincerely united in their endeavors to make an honorable use of it.
But its frequent, fraudulent and shameful abuses are disgraceful to
the parties, and cast a shameful blot upon the institution itself.
But tho we acknowledge the marriage institution to be both use-
ful and necessary for the world in its present state; yet for the
followers of Christ, who are called to forsake the course of the
world, and to crucify the flesh with all its affections and lusts, it
is neither necessary nor useful, but the contrary; it therefore forms
no part of their duty, and can have no place among them. Their
union is spiritual, and needs no fleshly support; their parentage is
spiritual, and produces no fleshly offspring; their relation as breth-
ren and sisters is spiritual, and can have no dependence on fleshly
relation; their inheritance is spiritual, and cannot be controlled by
human laws and institutions. Their temporal property, which is
necessary for the support of the body while in this life, is regulated
by a sacred compact, being, by mutual agreement, consecrated to
religious uses, for the benefit of the whole body; and as such, it
descends to their spiritual heirs in the same united capacity. So
that all those diſficulties concerning temporal property, so common
among natural heirs, are prevented by the very nature of the in-
stitution, and, unless its rights are infringed upon by lawless usur-
pers from without, the descent of inheritance occasions no uneasi--
ness to the Society. -
164 CIRCUMCISION ANF) [PART IV,
This spiritual relation in the church of Christ, is produced by
“ the law of the Spirit of life.” It is the relation claimed by Je-
sus Christ, and he acknowledged no other. “Whosoever shall do
“the will of my Father which is in Heaven, the same is my broth-
“er and sister and mother.” This relation is governed by the
law of Christ, which is a law of righteousness and peace; and this
law which governs the church of Christ, supersedes the necessity
of human laws and hunyan institutions to regulate its own internal
concerns. And we have found by experience, that this law is a
superior remedy against all those scenes of confusion and disorder,
which are so common in the domestic circle, under a state of ma-
trimony; and that it is more eminently calculated to promote the
true spirit of union and harmony in society, than all the laws and
institutions of matrimony, or any other law or institution ever de-
vised by man. :
*=ºº-ºº-eme
CHAPTER IV.
The figurative import of Circumcision and other ceremonies un-
der the law.
As Circumcision was an important institution given to Abra-
ham, as the typical father of the faithful, and was continued to his
posterity, as a primary and abiding institution, through all the law
and the prophets, until the coming of Jesus Christ, it will be ne-
cessary to make some remarks upon this subject.
It is generally acknowledged that the ceremonies under the law
were typical of gospel ordinances; that they were figures or sha-
dows.of something to be fulfilled in substance under the gospel; and
that these “carnal ordinances,” as the apostle calls them, plainly
pointed to the spiritual work of Christ in his first or second appear-
ance, or both. But among all the types of the law, none could be
more important than that of circumcision, not only because it was
the first, and the foundation of all the rest; but also because it
was the very seal of the covenant of promise given to Abraham,
and typified a most important institution to be given to the faithful
children of God in the latter day, and which was to be a peculiar
mark of distinction between them and the rest of mankind.
A figure, to constitute a real type, must have a proper resem-
blance to the substance which it is designed to prefigure; otherwise
it is not a type. It was therefore necessary that the institution of
circumcision should bear a real analogy to that gospel institution
which it was intended to point out. It is a prevailing opinion
among many who consider water baptism as a gospel institution
that it was iº to supply the place of circumcision under th
* Matt xi ºn
cHAP IV.] OTHER LEGAL CEREMONIES. 165
law; some indeed suppose that circumcision was a type of water
baptism. In this however, there must appear an obvious incon-
sistency: for there is no kind of analogy between baptism and cir-
cumcision; and water baptism itself, was but a type of the baptism
of the Holy Ghost. This appears evident from John’s own testi-
mony: “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance; but he
“that cometh after me, is nightier than I, whose shoes I am not
“worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and
“with fire.” Therefore, to say that circumcision was a type of
baptism, is nothing less than calling it a type of a type, which is
an absurdity.
The circumcision of the male in the flesh of his foreskin, was a
significant mark of mortification in that particular member of the
flesh in which is found the seat of its carnal pleasures. This seal
of the typical covenant made with Abraham, was the most lively
figure ever given to man, of the mortification of the very source of
iniquity, by the spiritual work of Christ, and of the complete de-
struction of that carnal pleasure received from that source, in the
act of sexual coition.
As circumcision was the seal of the covenant of promise to
Abraham and his posterity, under the law; and as none were cor-
sidered as God’s covenant people without this seal, whatever de-
gree of conformity they might observe in other respects; so it was
a very plain manifestation that the seal of the covenant in Christ,
was to consist in the cutting off, and total rejection of fleshly lust,
by a life of self-denial and the cross. This is the very foundation
of the true cross of Christ, and the separating line between “the
children of this world,” who “marry and are given in marriage,”
and “the children of the resurrection,” who “neither marry nor
are given in marriage, but are like unto the angels;” because they
live a spiritual life. And without this seal, this distinguishing
mark of the cross of Christ, no soul can be in the real covenant of
Christ, revealed in this day, whatever profession he may make,
or whatever duties he may perform, in other respects.
This figure is so obvious and striking, that it seems as tho none
could mistake it, excepting those who are blinded by an obstinate
determination to maintain the carnal life of the flesh, at all events.
There is nothing else to which circumcision, as a type, can bear
any consistent analogy. “By the law is the knowledge of sin.”
But as the law was only figurative of spiritual things, and not
the real substance; therefore if its types do not bear a plain resem-
blance to their antitypes, then it is in vain to seek by them to find
the knowledge of sin. Man has been too long imposed upon by
false systems and imaginary theories, which have no foundation in
truth, nor any consistency in themselves. Certainly a figure of so
imuch importance as circumcision evidently was, under the law,
166 CIRCUMCISION AND [PART IV.
ought to be well considered by those who profess to be under the
light of the gospel; lest, unhappily, they lose both the knowledge
and the benefit of the most important principles of the gospel.
Let those who consider water-baptism to be the antitype of cir-
cumcision, (for if it was substituted under the gospel in lieu of cir-
cumcision, it must be the antitype,) consider also, that upon this
principle, the antitype is not so mortifying to the flesh, nor so deep
and lasting as the type. This clearly involves the absurdity of
making the shadow of a substance more substantial than the sub-
stance itself. What figure could have been formed, under the law,
to represent more plainly the cutting off and rejection of the carnal
works of the flesh, under the gospel, than outward circumcision,
or cutting off the foreskin of the flesh P This not only wounded
the flesh in such a manner that the mark remained visible ever
after ; but it took blood, which is the life of the flesh, from that
very member in which is found the seat and center of all the plea-
sures of lust.
The object of the covenant with Abraham, which was establish-
ed and confirmed by this seal, was to show that under the gospel
dispensation, the everlasting seal of the spiritual covenant, which
was to distinguish Christ’s chosen people from all others, must be
that cross which destroys the life of fleshly lust. “For he is not
“a Jew which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision
“ which is outward in the flesh : But he is a Jew which is one in-
“wardly : and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and
“not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”
This then is the true seal which hath praise of God, but not of
men : for nothing is so opposite to the natural inclinations of fal-
len man as this seal, which is, in very deed, the cross against the
lust of the flesh.
It may perhaps be objected that circumcision, when compared
with this cross, is not a perfect figure; because males only were
the subjects of circumcision; and therefore it could not properly
typify that cross, which seems to be enjoined on females as well
as males. True indeed, males only were the subjects of circum-
cision ; but if sexual coition ceases in the male, it must cease in
the female of course.
But there was another legal ceremony respecting women, which
was sufficient to balance the cross of circumcision in the male, and
which was not only a confirmation of the impure nature of the
works of generation, but an evident token that these works were
to be exciuded from the church of Christ, which is the spiritual
sanctuary of God. A woman who brought forth a male childs
was counted unclean, under the law, seven days; and on th
eighth day the child was to be circumcised. And even then, the
* Roſa, ii. 28, 29.
cHAP. Iv.] other LEGAL CEREMONies. 167
woman was not allowed to come into the sanctuary, nor touch any
holy thing, for the space of forty days from the birth of her child.
After the birth of a female child, the time of her uncleanness and
separation from the sanctuary was doubled, extending even to
eighty days. After this she was required to bring a sin-offering
and a burnt-offering to the priest, at the door of the tabernacle,
where they were to be offered, before she could be admitted into
the sanctuary with those who were accounted clean.*
Therefore, as circumcision was a figurative ceremony of purifi-
cation to the male; so likewise these legal injunctions were figu-
rative ceremonies of purification to the female; and both were
designed to typify that state of purity and separation from all the
works of generation, which were to be required of the church of
Christ under the gospel dispensation. But why was the time of
the woman’s separation from the sanctuary doubled after she had
borne a female child? This was to show that the female could
not find her lot and order in the spiritual creation of God, until
the second gospel dispensation, or second appearing of Christ,
when the Spirit of Christ, manifested in a woman, should redeem
the female character, and bring her into her proper lot and order
in the new creation.f
Again: The law enjoined ordinances respecting sexual coition,
which applied to both male and female, and which clearly pointed
out the sinfulness of that nature in the sight of a pure and holy
God. Every act of that kind excluded the parties from the camp,
and from the society of those who were accounted clean; they
could by no means be admitted into the sanctuary, nor come be-
fore the Lord at any time, nor partake of any holy thing, without
being first ceremonially cleansed and purified from those works.
When Moses was ordered to sanctify the people, and prepare
them to appear before the Lord at Mount Sinai, he commanded
them saying, “Be ready against the third day: come not at your
wives.” If this was not an unholy act, why did Moses give this
charge P
As the ceremonies of the law were but types and figures of
things to come, they must have their antitypes, and be fulfilled in
substance under the gospel. If therefore these works of the flesh
were not, in their very nature, unclean, and if they were not finally
* Sº e Lev chap. xii
f The man found his lot and order in the first appearing of Christ,
who appeared in the male, (in the person of Jesus,) which was the first
gospel dispensation, or antitype of the first temple. But the second
gospel dispensation, which was prefigured by the second temple, was
first manifested in the female, and was called the second appearing of
Christ, in which the woman, as well as the man, is restored to her pro-
per lot and order in the new creation.
: See Lev, xv. 18. # Exod, xix. 15.
168 THE TYPICAL DESIGN OF [PART IV.
to be excluded from the spiritual sanctuary of God, then we would
ask why they were declared unclean under the law, and excluded
from the sanctuary of Israel, which was but a type of the true gos-
pel sanctuary P Was the law more pure than the gospel P or was
uncleanness under the law to be counted cleanness under the gos-
pel? Was the type more pure and holy than its antitype P or in
other words, can we rationally suppose that the temporal and
typical sanctuary of Israel was more pure and holy than that
sanctuary of holiness which is established in the church of Christ,
as a spiritual sanctuary P And if those works of the flesh which
were so pointedly marked out under the law, were not sinful, why
did the law require a sin-offering P Will God require a sacrifice for
sin, where there is no sin P Certainly not.
These injunctions and restrictions were evident tokens of the
unclean nature of those acts, and plainly typified the purity which
God would require of souls under the dispensation of the gospel,
In nothing short of this can the types and shadows of the law be
answered with any degree of consistency. In nothing short of
this can the righteousness of the law be manifested in us, “who
walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”
Hence it is evident that circumcision and other legal ceremonies
clearly pointed to a life of self-denial and the cross of Christ, by
which souls receive the washing of the regeneration, and the puri-
fying fire of the gospel, which is the real baptism of the Holy
Ghost; and that nothing short of this can entitle any soul to the
privilege of entering into the camp of the saints, and worshipping
God in the spiritual sanctuary, of which the camp of Israel and
the sanctuary of Jacob were but types and figures,
==º º-
CHAPTER V.
A few remarks on the nature and typical design of the Jewish
wars, showing that the law could not decide the future state of
the soul.
THE advocates of war who make a profession of christianity,
often urge the example of the Jewish wars, directed by Divine au.
thority, as an argument in justification of the lawfulness of war
under the dispensation of the gospel. And tho some of them en-
deavor to enforce this argument upon the principle that the nature
of God is unchangeable, and that the nature of man is essentially
the same in all ages; yet the argument would doubtless appear
very inconsistent, even in their own view, did they but consider
the most essential difference between the law and the gospel, and
the nature, tendency and design of God’s work, as it respects the
final lot of man. The same argument would apply, with equal
force, to all the ceremonies of the law, and indeed to every thing
cHAP. V.] THE JEwish wars, &c. I 69
which God ever commanded or authorized among men, whatever
might be the occasion or circumstances which required it.
When God deals with mankind, he always deals with them ac-
cording to their situation and circumstances, and in a manner best
calculated to answer his own Divine purposes, and at the same time,
to give them a fair opportunity of proving themselves by their works.
The work of God is an increasing work, and has always been
attended with an increasing degree of light to man, from one dis-
pensation to another, ever since the fall. And as the light of God
has increased among mankind; so righteousness has increased in
those who were obedient to that light. In the same proportion
also, has wickedness increased in those who were disobedient.
But the light of God to man, from the fall to the coming of Christ,
was very limited. Even under the law, which was given to regu-
late man in his natural and fallen state, and which was but a sha-
dow of things to come, he could have, at most, but an imperfect
sense of a future state, compared with what was revealed after the
coming of Christ. For this reason, the promises and blessings to
the faithful and obedient, and the threatenings and curses upon the
wicked and disobedient, were mostly of a temporal nature.
By the law was the knowledge of sin; and the work of the law,
as it respected the then existing state of the Israelites, was to search
out and condemn the transgressions committed under it: hence
the severity of its penalties. The law was a law of justice, and,
in most cases, enjoined immediate execution upon the offender. It
required strict and ample justice between man and man, and be-
tween God and man. It required “an eye for an eye, and a tooth
for a tooth.” It inflicted the penalty of death by stoning and burn-
ing for specific transgressions, such as profaning the sabbath, blas-
pheming the name of the Lord, rebellion against parents, adultery,
fornication and the like.
The law also enjoined the total destruction of enemies, with all
their possessions, wives and children. In many cases, it gave no
Quarter in battle; but death and destruction was the decided por-
tion of enemies, without pity or compassion. These severities,
considered in a natural view, at the present day, would appear
shocking to humanity. Yet they were executed by Divine autho-
rity, and when viewed in their true light, they appear not only per.
ſectly consistent with all the displays of Divine Justice, but they
are also full of solemn instruction and warning.
The law was figurative of a future state of things which were to
take place under the gospel; and therefore it is not improperly
called, “a law of types and shadows.” But its most mysterious
injunctions had a more particular reference to the last gospel dis-
pensation, which was to accomplish a final settlement with all
Souls, in which the mystery of God was to be finished, and every
| 70 THE TYPICAL DESIGN of [PART IV.
creature to be rewarded “according to his works.” The rewards
of obedience, and the penalties of disobedience, under the law,
were designed to show that every work must finally “be brought
into judgment, with every secret thing;” and that every one must
receive his reward according to the nature of his works.
As the law required “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth;”
so the future punishment of sinners, for every injury done to their
fellow creatures, must be repaid in exact proportion to the nature
of the offence, without any mitigation whatever. As stubbornness
and rebellion against parents, after all their endeavors to reclaim
the rebel, was punished with death and destruction; so rebellion
against the law of Christ, under the gospel dispensation, after all
the warnings, reproofs and instructions of the gospel, will finally
cut the soul off and consign him to destruction, without the possi-
bility of recovery. As a profanation of the sabbath and blasphe-
my against God, were equally sinful, being rebellion against the
sacred ordinances of the law, and were condemned to the same
punishment; so those who wickedly and wilfully violate the laws
of Christ, under the light of the gospel, must share the same fate,
As adultery, fornication, incest, and all manner of uncleanness of
that nature were punished with death and destruction, by stoning
or burning; so all kinds of impurity and defilement, so contrary
to the perfect purity of the Spirit of Christ, unless purged from the
soul by the purifying fire of the gospel, must prove its final de-
struction.
The destruction of enemies in war, with all that pertained to
them, was designed to show that, in the spiritual warfare of chris-
tians against their carnal corruptions, which are the enemies of the
soul, no quarter can be allowed. Every evil propensity, together
with all the corruptions which have been engendered by the in-
dulgence of these propensities, and every thing which has any
connection with a life of wickedness, must be utterly destroyed and
purged out of the soul, before it can find complete redemption.
This is the work required of every christian soul under the dis-
pensation of the gospel. But as God, by his providence, assisted
the Jews against their enemies, while they were perfectly obedient
to his commands; so Christ, by his Spirit, will assist every honest
and truly faithful soul, in this work.
The destruction and expulsion of the heathen nations out of the
land of Canaan, was just; because it was the just reward of their
wickedness;* and it was a very striking figure, and was eminently
calculated to show that all sin, all manner of wickedness, and eve-
ry thing which had a tendency to gender evil, must be purged out
of the church of Christ, and be driven from the spiritual Canaan;
otherwise the whole church is exposed to be corrupted, and its
* See Lev. xviii. 24, 25 & 27. also KK 23.
CHAP. V.] THE JEwish wars, &c. J71
members ruined and lost. As the children of Israel were warned
of the danger of suffering one of the heathem nations to remain
in the land; so Christ warns his people against tolerating one sin
in his church.
But “the law made nothing perfect;” and therefore “Christ is
“ the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.”f
As the dispensation of the law was a temporal dispensation, it was
beneficial to the Jews in a temporal view. Its blessings to the
obedient, and its curses on the disobedient, were mostly limited
to this life; and tho it took the life of the body, it could not
decide the final state of the soul in the spiritual world. This was
to be the work of the gospel: for Christ came “to redeem them
that were under the law,” as well as them that were not; because
the law could not do it. For the same reason Moses was under
the necessity of enforcing obedience by promises and threatenings
of a temporal nature; while Christ was able to enforce his precepts
by the r tributions of eternity.
Thus the operations of the law, by being confined to this life,
could only extend to those who were under the law; while the
operations of the gospel can and will extend to all souls, through-
out all ages of the world, whether in the body or out: for no soul
can ever obtain redemption but by the gospel. Therefore a future
state of trial was reserved for those who had lived under the law,
as well as for all others, both for those who had been obedient to
the law, and those who had not. This was just and equitable;
not only because it gave to those who had lived in subjection to
the law, a further opportunity of proving their subjection to the
gospel, which requires a greater cross against the evil propensities
of a fallen nature than the law enjoined; but also because it afford-
ed another trial to those who had abused their temporal probation
under the law, by which they might (if they chose) seek their re-
demption by their obedience to the gospel. And to this they might
be the more strongly excited by a remembrance of the punishments
inflicted upon them for transgressions under the law.
“For this cause was the gospel preached to them that are dead,
“that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live
“according to God in the spirit.” “For this cause also, Christ
“once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring
“us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the
* Heb. vii. 19. * Rom, x. 4.
# Those evil propensities which pertain to the fallen nature of man, and which lead him
into sin, can never be destroyed by the death of the body; for they are propensities of |.
mind, not of the body; the refore nothing but the gospel ef Christ, which operates upon the
mind, and which is the power of God unto salvation, can ever purge these corrupt propensi-
ties out of the soul , Hence nothing short of the gospel can ever redeem the soul' from the
reigning power of sin.
| “That they might be judged according to men in the flesh.” This expression of the
*Postle evidentiy shows that they were not men in the flesh. -
172 THE Typical DESIGN, &c. fpART IV.
“Spirit; by which also he went and preached to the spirits in
“prison,” who for their wickedness had been destroyed by the
flood in the days of Noah.” As man first fell into sin in this world,
it was necessary that the gospel of salvation should first be preach-
ed on earth, to men in the flesh, and thence descend into the world
of spirits, to the millions who had never heard it in this world.
And that Jesus Christ, after his crucifixion, did actually descend
into the mansions of the dead, and there preach the gospel to lost
souls, is as true as that God is a just and equitable Being. After
his resurrection, he appeared to his disciples and commanded them,
saying, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every
creature.”f
Hence it is evident that all must hear the gospel by some means
or other. And as “there is no other name under heaven given
among men whereby we must be saved,” but the name of Christ;
so none can be saved who have not in truth heard that name. But
as the greater portion of mankind have died without even hearing
the sound of that name in this world; therefore they could have
no chance of knowing the way of salvation in this life. But so
sure as God is righteous, they will have a fair call of the gospel
of salvation: for the everlasting destruction of such souls from the
presence of God, without their having ever known the means of
escape, would effectually destroy the attribute of righteousness in
God.
Therefore, Christ having come to open the way of life and sal-
vation for all souls, that all might have a free offer of the gospel,
and receive their just reward in a future state, he has himself
preached the glad tidings of salvation, both in this world and in
the world of spirits; and has also commissioned his ministers to do
the same. Hence his faithful and true witnesses, after putting off
this mortal body, will find a work to do in preaching the gospel
to those benighted spirits who never heard its peaceful sound in
this world; and millions of souls who, ignorant of the true spirit
of the gospel, have been compelled to shed each others blood, and
give up their lives on embattled plains, will joyfully embrace these
merciful calls, while those ambitious rulers, who impiously waged
the war under a christian profession, together with their blood-
thirsty chiefs, who marshalled their hosts on the sanguinary field,
and profanely compelled the battle in the name of God, will in
their turn be compelled to reap the reward of their own doings in
the regions of darkness and despair.f
* Sec 1 Pet iii 18, 19, 20, and iv. 6 f Mark Y vi. 15.
# The doctrine of a probationary state beyond the grave, will probably
appear new and strange to those who have always considered death, as
the closing scene of man's probation for eternity. But it is a doctrine
perfectly consistent with all the precepts and instructions of Jesus
chap. vi.] THE INCREASING work of GoD, 173
These solemn truths may perhaps be treated with contempt and
ridicule by the incredulous advocates of war; but they will yet be
seen, felt and acknowledged as serious realities. If the advocates
of war, who profess the christian religion, did but understand and
duly consider these things, they would never more plead for a
barbarous and sanguinary principle because it was once author-
ized by the Almighty, in a barbarous state of society, and among
a benighted race of beings who, at that period, were incapable of
receiving any thing better; and which the Divine Being wisely
improved for an instructive lesson to future ages and generations,
who ought, by this time, to be better able to view it in its true
light.
"Nºwhunding the Jewish wars were authorized by the Al-
mighty; yet when Jesus Christ appeared, he became “the end of
the law for righteousness;” and therefore he disannulled all the
laws of war, together with all those sanguinary and ceremonial
statutes which had been authorized under the dispensation of types
and shadows, and began to establish new laws for the government
of his followers. “Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou
“shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy: But I say unto
“you, Love your enemies.” From that period no follower of
Christ ever had any divine authority to engage in war. And had
all who have since professed the christian name, been faithful to
obey this precept, this earth might have been, long ere this time, a
terrestrial paradise.
* > *-ºsmºs
CHAPTER VI.
An illustration of the progressive increase of the work of God
from the creation to the present time.
THE work of God, from the beginning, was intended and wisely
calculated to be an increasing work. This appears evident from
the account we have in the scriptures of the progressive operations
of the work of creation and providence. In the creation of the
Christ and his apostles, and one which was maintained by the primitive
church while that church stood in its greatest purity. It is also a doc-
trine which has been clearly and explicitly taught by Mother Ann, and
fully confirmed to the society by many visions and divine revelations to
the present day. But after the declension of the primitive church, and
during its cor uptions under the papal hierarchy, this gracious dectrine
of the gospel, so just and equitable, and so full of mercy to the fallen rice
of man, l ke that of the confession of sin, (commonly called auricular
confession,) was sacrilegiously perverted to the purpose of extorting
money from the deluded multitude. And hence these doctrines were
both rejected by the protestant reformers, and rendered obnoxious to
the people upon the supposition thºt they were the inventions of the
church of Rome. Q
2
H74 THE INCREASING work of God. [PART IV.
natural world, as recorded in the first chapter of Genesis, the
work of God came forth, in a regular gradation, from less to great-
er degrees of perfection. After the earth was formed and estab-
lished in its order, the grass of the field, the herbs and trees suc-
ceeded in their order. Then followed the living animals in their
order; }. the fishes of the sea and the ſowls of the air, whose
life and perfection exceeded all that had been displayed in the
vegetable creation. Next followed the beasts of the field, which
occupied a still higher grade in the order of the animal creation,
being more highly important, because they were designed for more
general and essential service. Man, the last of all, came forth as
the most noble part of this lower creation: and in man, including
male and female, was the order of the natural creation completed.
But there was still to be an increasing work in the order of Di-
vine Providence. The fluits of the earth, in their established
order, each according to its kind, must come to perfection in their
proper times and seasons, under the influence of the natural ele-
ments, by a regular and gradual increase from the seed to the full
grown plant or tree, and from the blossom to the fruit in its matu-
rity. The same regular increase is observable in all the animak
creation. The human race also, from the conception to the birth,
and from infancy to manhood, in the order of nature, are brought
to their highest attainment of natural perfection by the progressive
hand of time. The ages of the world also, have their regular and
gradually increasing operations upon mankind, in bringing them
from the lowest state of ignorance and barbarism to the highest
degree of civilization. The productions of man in the works of
art are also gradual and progressive, from less to greater degrees
of perfection.
When this progressive increase in the natural world is seen and
understood, why should it appear strange or unreasonable to be-
lieve that, in the spiritual world, there is also a regular and gradual
increase from the lowest to the highest degree of perfection P If
the natural world and the things therein contained, as we have
already stated, are figurative of spiritual things, it must appear
perfectly consistent; and that it is so in reality, the experience of
every truly spiritual man and woman can bear witness. The
scriptures are also sufficiently plain and explicit on this subject.
David, under the influence of Divine inspiration, says, “The
“righteous shall flourish like a palm tree; he shall grow like a
“ cedar in Łebanon.” So also the prophet Malachi; “But
“unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise
“with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth and grow up as
“ calves of the stall.” # The prophet Isaiah, in his prediction con-
cerning the coming of Christ, says, “Of the increase of his govern-
* Psa . xcit 12. t Mal iv. 2.
cHAP. v1.] THE INCREASING work of GoD. 175
ment and peace there shall be no end.” Here is an express de-
claration of an endless increase.
As the work of God, in the formation of the natural creation,
was a progressive, increasing work; so all the works of his provi-
dence and grace on earth, among his chosen peo; ſle, have been
attended with a progressive increase from one dispensation to
another; and the preceding has ever been preparatory to that
which followed; and all have been designed and calculated to
show forth in a figure the great and last dispensation of God’s
grace, in which his spiritual Kingdom is to supersede all other
kingdoms in power and majesty, and whose increasing glory,
purity, peace and righteousness will endure forever.
From the fall of man to Abraham, the only law revealed to man
for his protection, was the law of nature. This law was plain and
obvious; and all who kept it, found justification before God, ac-
cording to the work of the day in which they lived. To this the
apostle Paul had reference in his epistle to the Romans, where he
says: “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by
“nature the things contained in the law, these having not the law,
“are a law unto themselves; which show the work of the law
“written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness,
“ and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one
“ another.”f Hence in every age, those who had no other law,
were required to keep this. And as there was no other law given
to any people before Abraham, the refore all were bound by it;
and whoever violated it, must necessarily fall under condemnation.
This law of nature dictated that man should not violate the
order of nature; that is, he should not commit any kind of violence
or injustice against any of his fellow men; that he should not mur-
der, nor defraud his fellow creatures, nor injure then in any way
or manner whatever. It also taught that he should not violate the
times and seasons of nature, in any manner: for the law of nature
has its regular order, which the natural man could not violate with
impunity. These things were plain to the understandings of men
in a state of nature who had never received a superior law, nor
been so far corrupted by the influence of the spirit of evil, as to
lose the knowledge of moral good.
Man in a state of nature, and under the influence of this law,
would not plant nor sow the seeds of the earth out of season; nor
would he even generate his own offspring out of season. In short,
he would not perform any duty out of season, nor neglect any in
season. Instead of remaining idle, he would perform the duties of
the day while the day lasted, and take his rest at night; and there-
in he would be able to find justification and peace, and live to God’s
acceptance according to that order. But whenever he began to
* Esa. ix. 7. # Rom, ii. 14, 15,
176 THE INCREASING work of God. [PART IV.
hearken to the influences of evil, a train of disorderly sensations
began to spring up in his mind; and he was then led to violate the
order of nature which had before been his protection; hence fol-
lowed a successive train of evils.
Adam, before his fall, in addition to the law of nature, had the
express command of God as an additional protection. This he
violated; and his first transgression was that which struck at the
very order in which his offspring were to be propagated: so that,
instead of producing an offspring subservient to the order of nature,
he generated one which soon began to show from whence origina-
ted his disorderly and unnatural conduct. By the first fruit of
Adam’s transgression the first murder was committed; and hence-
forth those of his posterity who readily followed his example, be-
gan to corrupt themselves with wickedness: so that long before
the flood, wickedness greatly abounded among them; “and the
earth was filled with violence.” And so few were there who kept
the law of nature and refrained from acts of violence, that at last
none were found worthy of God’s protection, except Noah and his
family.
“Noah was a just man.” Instead of violating the order of
nature, and corrupting his seed by inordinate affections, “he walk-
ed with God,” and begat no children till he was five hundred
years old; and even then, instead of being led by the corrupt in-
clinations of a fallen nature, he went forth by the permission of
God, according to the law of nature: for it is said, “he was per-
fect in his generations.” In obedience to the command of God,
Noah built an ark to save himself and his family from the flood;
and did all that was commanded him to do. Thus “ Noah found
grace in the eyes of the Lord,” by his obedience, and was preserv-
ed from the flood of waters which swept off the rebellious children
of violence.
After the flood a new generation of men began to multiply upon
earth, who, instead of following the righteous example of Noah,
chose rather to follow the influences of the power of evil, and soon
corrupted themselves with lust and pride, which increased among
them till the building of Babel, when God confounded their lan-
guage, and scattered them over the face of the earth.
But God having respect to the work of his own hands, always
preserved a chosen seed to bear testimony against the violations
of the law of nature, to support the belief of one invisible, everliving
and true God, and to maintain the line of distinction between good
and evil, obedience and disobedience, until the coming of the
promised Messiah, who was to commence the work of redemption,
* By this he condemned the world, who were led wholly by the corrupt inclinations of a
fallen nature, “ and took them wives of all which they chose, and went in unto them,” not
according to the law of nature, nor according to the appointment of God, but through the
influence of their own lusts.
eHAP. vi.] THE INCREASING work of God. 177
and effect the salvation of all who were willing to become his true
and faithful followers. But this great salvation could not be effect-
ed at once; it must be brought to pass through the progressive
operations of Divine Providence, which were designed and wisely
calculated to enlighten the minds of mankind, and gradually pre-
pare their understandings for such an event; and ages must pass
away before it could be fully accomplished.
This line of distinction between good and evil, between the sons
of violence, and that chosen seed by whom the testimony of the
true God was to be preserved in the earth, necessarily required a
cross against that fallen nature from which disorder and violence
always proceeded. Hence the first manifestation of God to man,
after the fall, from which proceeded a law enjoining an external and
practical cross upon that nature, was made to Abram. He was
first called to forsake his country and his kindred, and received
the promise of a blessing as the consequence of obedience. This
was a striking figure of the requirement and promises of God under
the gospel dispensation. Here was a cross required of Abram
before he could receive the promised blessing, or even be entitled
to the covenant of promise. This was doubtless a cross against
the feelings of his nature, which would have inclined him to cleave
to his native land and his father's house. But he took up his
cross and obeyed the call of God; and, for so doing, he was bless-
ed, from time to time, with still greater manifestations of the notice
and favor of God.
After this, God made a covenant with Abram; and after chang-
ing his name from Abram to Abraham, and renewing his promises
with many additional circumstances, God required him, as a token
or seal of the covenant of promise, to circumcise the males of his
family. Here was established the first outward sign of a practical
cross against the fallen mature of the flesh; and here let it be re-
membered, that this first permanent cross which God required of
his people, was one which pointed directly to the very nature and
foundation of man’s loss from God.
Abraham being found faithful to obey the commands of God
thus far, and to keep the law of circumcision, God, according to
his promise, blessed him with a son in his old age. And here it is
worthy of remark, that this child of promise was not generated ac-
cording to the will of the flesh, in the days of his youth ; for the
inordinate propensity of carnal gratification could claim no share
in the promise of God; but that it might be made manifest that
the promised seed could not be begotten according to the will of
the flesh, Abraham and Sarah were hoth advanced in years;
“ and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.”
Hence this child was given to be Abraham's heir in the line of
the promise; and from him was to issue, in the line of succession,
I78 THE INCREASING WORK OF GOD. [PART IV,
that promised seed in which all the families of the earth were to
be blessed.
God having noticed Abraham’s faithfulness thus far, determined
to make a final proof of his faith and obedience, and to give him
an opportunity of showing himself worthy of the confidence placed
in him, and of the honorable station to which he was appointed,
as the typical father of the faithful, and the legitimate progenitor of
that peculiar people who were to typify the chosen followers of
Christ, the Lord from Heaven, the Father of the new creation,
and the faithful Redeemer of his people. Accordingly God com-
manded Abraham to take his only son Isaac, whom he loved, and
offer him for a burnt-offering.
Abraham was now undoubtedly brought to the greatest extrem-
ity of trial. Here was evidently a greater cross required of him,
than that which was required of Adam at the beginning. But
Abraham did not stop to query with God, how he would fulfil his
promise if Isaac should be sacrificed; he did not plead his great
affections for his beloved son; he did not dispute the present com-
mand of God, as being contradictory to his former promise; he
did not object to it as an act of murder, and urge the word of God
to Noah; “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood
“be shed.” Nay; instead of urging these objections as insur-
mountable against the fulfilment of the promise of God, (as many
at the present day, urge the necessity of the old command to in-
crease and multiply, in Urder to prevent the world from coming
to an end,) Abraham immediately went forth in obedience to the
command of God, and made all the necessary preparations to ac-
complish the solemn and awſul task. And having proceeded far
enough to prove his faith and obedience, he was released from the
dreadful sacrifice, with the blessing of God, and was ever after
honored as the friend of God.
In these displays of the will of God to Abraham, was laid the
ſoundation of all the most important types and figures under the
law, and of all the succeeding dispensations of God to man. The
law of circumcision was the first visible sign which pointed to the
destruction of the root of sin. And the offering up of Isaac was a
prelude to all those ceremonial sacrifices under the law, which had
a special reference to the great sacrifice of the Son of God, and to
the final sacrifice, in his followers, of all the ties and beloved objects
of nature. The posterity of Abraham, in the line of the promise,
were henceforth greatly distinguished from all other people, by
the peculiar notice and ſavor of God.
After the children of Israel, the promised seed of Abraham,
were released from their Egyptian bondage by Moses, (an eminent
type of the deliverance of God's people from the bondage of sin
by Jesus Christ,) they received the law of God from Mount Sinai,
CHAP. v1.] THE INCREASING WORK OF GOD. I 79
which brought with it an additional cross against the fallen nature
of man, and was a further manifestation of God against those car-
mal and sensual indulgences in which the generality of mankind
lived. Here the work of God was attended with an increasing
testimony against sin, and additional restraints upon the gratifica-
tions of the flesh.
Hence those chosen people were still further separated from the
rest of mankind by their obedience. And such was the strictness
and purity of the divine law, that those who violated it were cut
off from among the children of Israel, by the penalties of the law
and the righteous judgments of God. And tho they were still
under the vail of the flesh, and still allowed to increase and multi-
ply in the order of natural generation ; yet the restrictions of the
law were such that they could not violate the order of nature with
impunity.” Therefore, those who lived under the law found a
much greater cross against the carnal indulgences of nature than
had ever been required before. And henceforth, while the Israel-
ites continued faithful in their obedience to the law, they were more
noticed of God than any other people on earth, and were more
highly distinguished by temporal blessings and divine manifesta-
tions. These blessings and privileges were the fruits of the cross
which they bore, and by which all who were truly faithful, were
justified according to the measure of the work of God in that day,
and rested in hope of the promised redemption in Christ, when he
should appear.
The law and the prophets continued until John, who was the
forerunner of Christ, and came to bear witness of him. John
came with a sharp and powerful testimony against sin, and preach-
ed the baptism of water unto repentance; saying, “Repent ye:
“for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” And again; “I indeed
“baptize you with water unto repentance; but he that cometh
“after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to
“bear: he shall taptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
“whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly purge his floor,
“and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the
“chaff with unquenchable fire.”ſ
All who heard the testimony of John, and were willing to obey
it, began to prepare themselves for the coming of Christ and his
Kingdom, by taking the first step which John’s testimony required:
* This subject is clearly illustrated in The Testimony of Christ's Se-
cond Appearing, in the chapter entitled, “The true end and design of the
law given by Moses,” where it may be seen what restrictions were laid
upon the works of generation under the law ; and what purifications
were required of those who lived in those works, before they could be
accepted of God, and admitted to the sanctuary. See also Levit, chap.
kii, and xy. f Matt. iii. 2, 11, 12.
H 80 THE INCREASING WORK OF GOD. [PART IV,
and that was, to confess their sins, and be baptized with water unto
repentance. “Then went out to him Jerusalem and all Judea,
“ and all the region round about Jordan, and were baptized of him
“ in Jordan, confessing their sins.” The ministration of John
was a necessary prelude to that of Jesus Christ; and his baptism
was a figure of the baptism of the Holy Ghost and of fire. As
the baptizing or washing with water, as practiced in that day, will
cleanse the body from outward pollution; so the fire of the Holy
Spirit will cleanse the soul from sin, and burn up and destroy that
fallen and corrupted nature in man which is the operating cause of
all iniquity. Hence it is evident that John’s baptism was a type
of, and a prelude to that of Jesus Christ: and John himself also
testified, saying, “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
The way being sufficiently prepared by John's ministration,
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was ushered into the world, to be
the head of the new and spiritual creation of God, and the Savior
and Redeemer of his people. He was begotten, not in the order
of natural generation, by the will of man, but by the power of God.
“He was made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but
“after the power of an endless life.”f Born of a virgin, whose
chastity had never been contaminated by any lawless act, he be-
came the end of the law for righteousness to all who believe and
obey him. To such therefore, the law was no longer necessary
to curb the licentious passions of human nature: for those who re-
ceived and obeyed his testimony, found it a far more powerful re-
straint upon the carnal propensities of man's fallen nature, than
the law of Moses ever had been. -
Those therefore who obeyed the gospel, were free from the law;
because the gospel, by fulfilling the real spirit and design of the
law, superseded its outward ceremonies, and rendered them useless.
Not that believers were now left at liberty to indulge themselves
in all those carnal gratifications of the flesh which were forbidden
by the law; but that the purity of the gospel was such as to super-
sede the necessity of the law, by saving ah who obeyed it, from
those filthy pollutions which were kept within certain limits by the
law, but could not be subdued by it. -
The object of Christ's first manifestation was to lay the founda-
tion of salvation by the cross; to take upon himself human nature;
to crucify that nature, and to suffer in the flesh and die to a sinful
nature in the person of Jesus, and rise to God, that he might, by
his sufferings, death and resurrection, be able to open the new and
living way of eternal life to his followers; that he might thereby
become the first-begotten of God, and firstborn from the dead.
Having entered upon his ministry, he commenced a new and
spiritual work, and began to reveal the real nature and substance
* John iii. 30. f Heb. vii. 10. - f Rom. s. 4.
cHAP. VI.] THE INCREASING work of God. | 81
of the law of God, and showed what it required of man; that it
taught mankind to love God with all the heart and soul, and their
neighbors as themselves; that this was the real spirit of the law
and the prophets; and the object of his mission was to fulfil this
law himself, and teach all his followers to do the same.
To accomplish this great object, he introduced the most pure
and simple system of morality, and taught that all disorder and
every kind of violence must be done away; that the true spirit of
the gospel was, Peace on carth and good will to man ; and that
nothing contrary to this pure spirit could find an entrance into
the Kingdom of Heaven. “Except your righteousness shall ex-
“ ceed the righteousness of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in
“no case enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.” He also taught that
mothing short of this spirit of purity and holiness could ever over-
come the nature of sin, or destroy the deplorable effects of the fall
in the soul of man; that this overcoming power could be gained
only by self-denial and the cross; and that there was no other way
to find salvation and redemption. “Whosoever will come after
“me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me.”f
Again; “Whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me,
“cannot be my disciple.”f
Under the ministration of Jesus Christ, we find a far greater
increase of the work of God than had ever taken place on earth
since the fall of man. In this increase was manifested a cross against
the carnal nature of man proportionably great; far greater indeed
than had ever before been required of man; a cross against all the
corruptions of man’s fallen nature. This, of course, created an
opposition against the testimony of Jesus, from the unbelieving
Jews, which betrayed their darkness, blindness and ignorance of
the real nature of the law; and clearly manifested their hypocrisy
in pretending to keep it, by observing some of its outward ceremo-
nies, while in their hearts they were enemies to God. This Oppo-
sition from these unbelieving hypocrites, against the Lord Jesus
Christ, was carried to such an extremity of persecution, that he
finally gave up his natural life to his persecutors, and suffered the
painful and ignominious death of the cross.
The ministration of Jesus Christ opened a new era to the world.
It taught mankind what they had never known before ; that the
real work of God was not to build up the kingdom of this world,
and to render the earth a durable habitation for man; but to pre-
pare them for an eternal and immortal state beyond the grave.
It taught them that the dispensation of the law and the prophets
came short of the power of salvation from sin; that it could never
“make the comers thereunto perfect;” and that the work of those
dispensations was but preparatory to that great and important
* Matt. v. 20. See also chap. xviii. 8. i Mark viii. 34. i Luke xiv. 27.
182 THE INCREASING WORK OF GOD. [PART IW.
work which was to redeem mankind from the fallen nature of the
flesh, and fit them for the Kingdom of Heaven. Hence the words
of Jesus; “Among them that are born of women, there hath not
“risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding, he that
“is least in the Kingdom of Heaven, is greater than he.” This
is an evident proof that John himself was not in the Kingdom of
Heaven, and that none before him had ever entered it. The
Kingdom of Heaven, therefore, which John declared to be at hand,
and for which he was sent to prepare the way, was first revealed
by Jesus Christ, as a state to which all the former dispensations
of God to man, were but as types and shadows, and preparatory
£VGntS.
But the revelation of Jesus Christ in the flesh, was but the com-
mencement of this great and glorious work. IIe was the begin-
ning of the new creation of God. He came to open the way of
salvation from sin; to declare himself “the way, and the truth,
and the life,” and set an example of righteousness to mankind;
and to show what his followers must be, in order to inherit a place
in his Kingdom. And all who believed on him and received his
testimony in that day, became “a kind of firstfruits” of his King-
dom.
Jesus Christ having finished his personal work on earth, and
ascended to his Father; and having, through the agency of the
Holy Spirit, established the primitive church, which was to serve
as a pattern of the true order of his church in the latter day, his
Spirit was, by degrees, withdrawn from the earth, to establish the
heavenly order of his Kingdom in the world of spirits. This was
agreeable to what he had spoken to his disciples before his cruci-
fixion : “In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were
“not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you,
“And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and
“receive you unto myself; that where I am there ye may be also.”f
Hence the work of Christ, after the establishment of the primitive
church, and before he could make his second appearance on earth,
was to prepare and set in order those heavenly mansions for the
reception of those faithful souls who, through the work of the re-
generation, should finally be found prepared to inherit them.
In the mean time Antichrist rose, and began to infuse his spirit
into the members of the christian church, and by artfully disguis-
ing his false doctrines with sacred names, he so far succeeded as
to undermine the primitive church, and establish his kingdom upon
the ruins thereof. In process of time he filled the world with his
dark and benighted systems of religion, and, for sacred truth, es-
tablished many corrupt and pernicious principles which were con:
tinually at variance with christian purity. By these means he filled
* Matt. xi. 1 1. f John xiv. 2, 3,
CHAP. VI.] THE INCREASING work of GoD. I83
the earth with corruption, religious persecution, blood and fire;
and maintained his deplorable reign for the space of twelve hun-
dred and sixty years.
During this long and gloomy reign of Antichrist, the only true
spiritual work of God on earth, by which he revealed his will to man,
was intrusted to chosen witnesses, who bore testim my to the purity
of the primitive church, and condemned the depravity of the times,
and the corruptions of those false churches which had assumed the
name and authority of Christ. This period was indeed a gloomy
might of darkness; but these witnesses, like stars in the night,
often broke through the gloom and gave a glimmering light to
honest souls. These witnesses prophesied of the coming of
Christ's Kingdom, and the great increase of the work of God in
the latter day. And altho amidst the universal gloom which pre-
vailed, all appearances seemed far distant; yet there was still an
increasing work in the world of spirits, by which a foundation was
gradually preparing for a more extraordinary increase of the spir-
itual work of God on earth, than had ever taken place since the
foundation of the world.
But the day of full redemption was yet to come ; the real and
effectual work of which could not be accomplished but through the
travel of the regeneration only; and this spiritual travel could not
fully take place till the way was prepared for it. When the ap-
pointed time arrived, the way was opened, and this long predicted
day was ushered into the world; and that work which was design-
ed to establish the Kingdom of Christ on earth, and effect the
final regeneration of souls, then commenced in very deed. Here
began a new and important manifestation of Divine goodness;
the great and last display of God’s grace to a lost world, which
superseded all former dispensations, to which they were all but
preparatory events, and in which all the types and shadows, and
prophetic signs of the law and the prophets, concerning the day
of redemption, began to be eminently fulfilled.
The important period having arrived, the work of this great
millennial day has now commenced, and is yet in its beginning;
but it is an increasing work. The Kingdom of Christ is now es-
tablished on earth, and his reign is begun; and henceforth he will
rule and reign till all enemies are put under his feet ; and, “ of the
increase of his government and peace there will be no end.”
| 84 A FEW RFMARKS UPON [PART IV.
CHIAPTER WIF,
A few remarks upon the JPitnesses of truth, including a brief
calculation of prophetic scriptures alluding to the period of
Antichrist’s reign, and the second coming of Christ.
THE declension of the primitive church, and the rise of Anti-
christ have been briefly alluded to in several places in this work;
but our limits will not permit us to enter fully into the discussion
of these subjects. We shall, however, make a few remarks con-
germing those witnesses whom God raised up and sent forth, from
time to time, to bear testimony of the truth to mankind; and in
doing this, we shall also examine the prophetic periods, and the
true import of some passages of scripture which allude to the time
of Antichrist’s reign, and the second appearing of Christ.
Those who suppose that God has always had a true church on
carth, ever since the first appearing of Christ, and who expect to
find the order and power of the primitive church solely by the
revelation given in that day, will, in the event, most certainly be
disappointed. It appears evident from the predictions of Jesus
Christ and his apostles, that they foresaw a time coming when the
order and power of the church would be lost from off the face of
the earth; and therefore could not be known nor found by any
people whatever. Jesus testified to his disciples, saying, “The
“ days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of
“the Son of man, and ye shall not see it.—Then if any man shall
“say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.—Take
“heed that ye be not deceived: for many will come in my name,
“saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not
“ therefore after them.”* -
These testimonies of the Lord Jesus evidently alluded to the
time of Antichrist's dominion; and if Christ had any true church
on earth, at tilat time, he must certainly have been in it; because
his church is his body in which he dwells, and of which he is the
head and life. Those therefore, who are the real members of
that body, can say in truth, “ Christ is our life.” Hence they can
say truly, “Lo, here is Christ l’’ and such might be followed with
the greatest propriety. “Be ye followers of me, even as I am of
Christ;” saith the apostle.f But if there ever was a time on earth
when none could say in truth, “Lo, here is Christ;” and conse-
quently none could depend upon such a testimony; then it is cer-
tain that Christ had not, at that time, any true church on earth.
Again : St. Paul saith, “Let no man deceive you by any means:
“for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away."
“first, and that man of sin be revealed.”f This is a clear proof
that the apostle foresaw that the church would fall away, and that.
* "Matt. xxiv. 23,-Luke xvii. 22, and xxi. 8, # 1 Cor. xi. 1. ; 2 T hess. ii. 3.
eHAP. vii.; THE witNESSES of TRUTH. 185
Antichrist would have his reign, before the day of Christ’s second
coming. -
It has been generally admitted that there was a falling away,
and that Antichrist has had his reign; but that Christ had no true
church on earth during that period, will hardly be acknowledged
by any of the churches of Antichrist; because such an acknowl-
edgment would implicitly condemn all these churches as counter-
feits. “But the tree is known by its fruits.” And certain it is,
that if the predictions of Christ, on this subject, have ever been
fulfilled, then there was a time when he had no true church on
earth. This period may easily be ascertained by an impartial
examination of ecclesiastical history, which developes ages of con-
troversy and strife, fraud and violence, tyranny and persecution,
war and bloodshed, licentiousness and debauchery, and every spe-
cies of crime, committed under the authority and by the sanction
of these professedly christian churches, and which sufficiently prove
that Christ was not there. -
Many attempts have been made under the reign of antichristian
darkness, to ascertain the true meaning of those prophetic num-
bers given by Divine inspiration, respecting the rise and duration
of Antichrist’s power, and the prophecy of the “two witnesses.”
But the nature of these events being concealed from the view of
man, those who have attempted to make the calculation, were
unable to discern “those times and seasons which God had put in
his own power:” and hence they have always failed in their
attempts. Even the prophet Daniel himself was unable to com-
prehend the nature and event of those things which were repre-
sented to him in the vision. This appears evident from his own
testimony.
“And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord,
“what shall be the end of these things? And he said, Gothy way
“Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of
“the end. Many shall be purified and made white, and tried;
“but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall
“understand; but the wise shall understand.—But go thou thy
“way till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand in thy lot at
“ the end of the days.” -
Thus it appears that these things were “closed up and sealed
till the time of the end.” It was therefore impossible that the
predictions relating to these events, should be understood, as to
their nature and substance, or the period of their accomplishment,
till the time of God’s appointment; and even then, they could be
known only by the revelation of God. When the seals were
taken off, and the book of Divine Revelation was opened, then
these predictions which were delivered to the prophet Daniel, aud
* Dan. xii. 8, 9, 10 & 16.
*
R 2
I86 A FEW REMARKS UPON [PART IV.
afterwards renewed by Jesus Christ, and again confirmed by the
angel to John, could be clearly seen and understood, but nºt be-
fore. And it is but reasonable to suppose that this revelation
would first be made to those who were in the real work of God,
and whose minds were enlightened by the Divine manifestations
which succeeded these events. These things having now been
revealed by the light of Divine Truth, and the events clearly seen
and understood, they may be pointed out and illustrated, agreeable
to ancient predictions, and confirmed by the events recorded in
history.
Tho the spirit of Antichrist began to manifest itself in the apos-
tle's days, as appears evident from their writings; yet it was many
years before it gained so much ascendency as to exclude the true
and faithful witnesses of God and followers of Christ from the
sanctuary. When this was effectually done, then the disciples of
Antichrist, with great zeal, set about modelling the precepts and
doctrines of Jesus Christ and his apostles to suit their own carnal
views. And as the practical doctrines of the cross of self-denial
were the most obnoxious to the spirit of Antichrist, the first object
was to pervert these doctrines in such a manner as to render the
gross of Christ ineffectual.
This was done by substituting the form of a wooden cross in the
place of practical self-denial, and making the show of religion
supply the place of the reality. Hence when the Emperor Con-
stantine assumed the christian name, he formed such a cross for
his standard, under which he prosecuted his bloody wars, and
fought his way to the throne. Similar devices were formed to
supplant every thing that bore the mark of christian purity and
simplicity, till the views of Antichrist were fully accomplished,
and the sanctuary itself, with every thing belonging to it, was com-
pletely trodden under foot.
As this was a gradual work, it was not fully affected until the
period when Pope Leo the first came into full possession of his
unlimited power, about the year 457. This was the year in
which the emperor Marcianus died, and left Leo in the full pos-
session of his power and supremacy, both civil and ecclesiastical;
so that henceforth he was under the control of no power on earth,
neither civil nor ecclesiastical, but ruled both church and state, as
it is called, with unlimited sway. And from this time, the power
of the Popes of Rome was fully established above the power of all
earthly princes; and by their authority laws were framed, and
creeds drawn up and established, to regulate and govern the re-
ligious faith of the whole christian world, so called, as far as their
dominion extended. The scenes of tyranny and persecution
which followed, to enforce obedience to their bloody religion, fully
mark this gloomy period as the days of desolation, and the intole-
rant reign of Antichrist.
chap. VII.] THE witnesses of TRUTH, 187
Hence it appears that the year 457 was the period in which the
unlimited reign of Antichrist fully commenced. The closing
period of this reign is pointed out in the visions of the prophet
Daniel, and by reckoning from the date of the vision, may easily
be found. The question was asked, “How long shall be the
“vision concerning the daily sacrifice, and the transgression of
“ desolation, to give both the sanctuary and the host to be trodden
“under foot P And he said unto me, Unto two thousand and three
“hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be cleansed.” This
vision is dated 553 years before Christ; and allowing 2300 pro-
phetic days to signify so many years, which is generally admitted,
we have the time from the date of the prophecy to the cleansing of
the sanctuary. Then by taking 553 from 2300 leaves 1747 for
the year of the christian era when the cleansing of the sanctuary
was to commence, and when the testimony of truth and all sacred
things were no longer to be trodden under foot by the unlimited
dominion and persecuting power of Antichrist.
Again: The duration of this reign of Antichrist is given in
another vision, and which also confirms the preceding calculation.
“And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away,
“ and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be
“a thousand two hundred and ninety days.” These are with
propriety called the days of desolation, being the period in which
the true church of Christ, or sanctuary of God, was trodden under
foot. These days, like the former, signify so many years. Then
by adding these 1290 years of desolation to 457, (the year of their
commencement under Pope Leo, as before stated,) we have 1747
for the year in which these days of desolation were to end. This
agrees exactly with the former calculation, and each one confirms
the other.
In the Revelations of John we find the following testimony:
“And there was given me a reed like unto a rod; and the Angel
“stood, saying, Rise and measure the temple of God, and the
“altar, and them that worship therein. But the court which is
* without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is giver,
“ unto the Gentiles; and the holy city shall they tread under foot
“forty and two months.f And I will give power unto my two
“witnesses, and they shall prophecy a thousand two hundred and
“threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.”f This measuring had
reference to the period of time in which that order of primitive
christians existed who worshipped God in the inner court of the
temple, or in other words, who rejected the works of the flesh,
* Dan, viii 13, 14. '
t This revelation could not allude to the Jewish temple, except as a figure: for both the
£ity and its temple were destroyed about 25 years before the revelation was given : it
evidently alluded to the primitive church, which was the spiritual temple of God,
: Bev. xi 1, 2, 3.
I88 A FEW REMARKS UPON [PART ty.
and worshipped God in the spirit, and separated themselves from
the course and friendship of the world.
But the question will naturally arise, Who were these two wit-
nesses? and for what purpose were they sent P As our limits will
not permit us to enter fully into the discussion of this subject, our
remarks must be brief.
During the long reign of antichristian darkness, God always
had his faithful witnesses, through whom he dispensed a sufficient
portion of light to preserve the world from total darkness and ruin.
Many such were raised up, from time to time, to whom God re-
vealed himself by his Spirit, who always bore testimony against
sin, and in whom was the only divine light then manifested on the
earth. They were called the two witnesses, because they were
chosen from the two sexes, male and female, and because their
testimony pointed to the two great dispensations of the gospel, the
first and second appearing of Christ. They were to prophesy
1260 years (in prophetic language called days) “clothed in sack-
cloth.” This denotes the duration of their testimony under a
state of darkness and mourning. And this is an evidence that
Christ could not have been with them during that period: for his
presence would have dispelled all darkness and mourning from
them. “Can the children of the bride-chamber mourn, as long as
the bridegroom is with them P’’ -
The testimony of these witnesses commenced at the treading
down of the holy city, by the Gentiles, under the dominion of An-
tichrist. These gentiles having obtained full possession of the
outer court of the spiritual temple of God, the way into the temple
was shut; of course there could be no entrance into the holy place,
While the primitive church stood in its purity, it constituted the
living temple of God, where souls could find an entrance into the
sanctuary of holiness, and offer their spiritual sacrifices upon the
holy altar. - -
But when this church fell away, and came under the dominion
of Antichrist, then the spirit of the world in the fallen nature of
man, (called by the angel the Gentiles,) under the government of
Antichrist, took full possession of every thing that belonged to the
church, which was called the holy city, and corrupted and trod it
under foot. But the spirit of holiness, and the true spiritual order
of the church were shut from them, and were henceforth inaccessi-
ble to man. Therefore, during the reign of Antichrist, there
could be no true church of Christ on earth: for if such a church
had then existed, that church would have been the true temple of
God, and man could have had access to it. •
When that measure was fulfilled by which the temple and the
altar were measured, according to the direction of the angel, then
was fulfilled the vision of Daniel the prophet: “I beheld, and the
chap. VII.] THE witnesses of TRUTH, 189
“ same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them,
“until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the
“saints of the Most High.” As the saints, or true worshippers
of God, were excluded from the temple and the altar during the
reign of Antichrist; so these two witnesses prophesied, “clothed
in sackcloth.” during that period. And as the temple was shut,
and the true sanctuary trodden under foot; so there was no light
of God on earth except in these witnesses; and wherever they
appeared and bore testimony against the corruptions of a false
church, and the bloody religion of a degenerate world, they were
followed by the cruel arm of persecution, and all the power of this
beastly hierarchy was exerted to exterminate them from off the
face of the earth. These witnesses continued to rise, from time to
time, in the power of their divine testimony, and were as conti-
nually opposed and oppressed by the power of persecution, during
the whole period of Antichrist's reign.
The testimony of these witnesses pointed both to the first and
second appearing of Christ. They bore testimony to the precepts
and example of Jesus Christ, and to the purity of primitive chris-
tianity; and plainly testified against the doctrines of Antichrist,
the religion of the times, and the degeneracy of the world. They
also foretold the second coming of Christ, and what it would effect;
that all false religion, pride and hypocrisy, all tyranny and perse-
cutions, wars and fightings, and all manner of wickedness, and
every kind of corruption must then be done away; that there
should be one ſold, and one shepherd. Altho these witnesses of
God were raised up in different ages and nations, and bore testi-
mony against the particular corruptions of the age and nation in
which they lived; yet the real spirit of their testimony, while they
kept in the truth, was uniformly the same, and pointed more or
less to the first and second appearing of Christ.
The testimony of these witnesses has ever been opposed and
rejected by the established ecclesiastical orders, and the popular
religions of the day, who have generally stigmatized them with
the name of heretics, fanatics and enthusiasts. And by the au-
thority of these self-styled orthodox churches, they have often suf-
fered severely under the iron hand of persecution. Many thou-
sands, yea, millions of them in different ages, have laid down their
lives for their testimony, being sacrificed to the vengeance of those
who claimed authority to dictate religious principles to all others,
and who never failed to bend these principles to their own corrupt
Standard.
These witnesses were the stars of the spiritual heavens; for
they were indeed the only spiritual lights that were seen upon earth
in this gloomy night of Antichristian darkness. These were the
* Dan. vii. 21, 22.
190 A FEW RFMARKS UPON [PART IV.
stars that were cast down by the “little horn, which waxed ex-
“ ceeding great, even to the host of heaven, and cast down some
“ of the host of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon them.”
When they had finished their testimony, “the beast made war
“ against them, and overcame them, and killed them.” Yet
while they stood faithful in the truth, and faithfully delivered their
testimony, they could not be overcome. But they were never
commissioned of God to build up and establish themselves in the
order of a church: for the true order and power of the church
was lost from the earth, and they had not light and power given
them to restore it. This work could not be effected till Christ
made his second appearance, to cleanse the sanctuary, and build
up the second gospel temple.
The true order and power of the Church of Christ on earth, was
first given by divine revelation, and being trodden down and lost
by the power of Antichrist, it could never be restored without a
second revelation as great, at least, as the former. Therefore,
whenever these witnesses undertook to build themselves up into a
church, or to restore the true foundation of the primitive church,
they always failed in their undertaking, and built more or less
upon the principles which Antichrist had already established.
By these means they gradually fell into union with the standing
order of professors, and they and their natural successors were
finally tolerated as christian churches. Hence they soon lost the
spirit and substance of their testimony, and by degrees became one
with the world. Thus the beast (which signifies the fallen nature
of man) overcame them, and killed them : for the arm of persecu-
tion, which could only destroy their bodies, could never suppress
their testimony. But when they united with the world, they lost
their testimony, which was the life of their souls, and then they
were conquered, and then the world could rejoice over them.
Hence the churches which were formed by these people, after
the closing of their testimony, were but dead bodies, standing on
the same foundation with that great christian hierarchy which gov-
erned the world under the sacred name of the church of Christ.
In this manner many of these stars fell to the earth, one after
another, through the whole reign of Antichrist, and thus fºrmed
dead bodies. Hence the origin of many of those false churches
which still exist under the christian name; and hence the dominion
of Antichrist was still supported, tho under various names and
denominations. .
The first effectual blow that weakened the power of Antichrist,
and paved the way for the destruction of his tyrannical govern-
ment, was that memorable division in his kingdom called. The
Reformation. Tho this did not alter the nature of his subjects,
* See Dan. y . 9, 10. t Sec Rev. xi. 7.
cHAP. VII.] THE witnesses oF TRUTH. 19]
nor restore the power of salvation; yet it opened the way for
many other divisions, and began to excite a free investigation of
their religious principles, and to unfetter the mind of man from the
principles of superstition and bigotry. By these means the king-
dom of Antichrist has been gradually growing weaker to this day.
His power of persecuting by legal authority, has been lost for some
time; and the total destruction of his kingdom will finally be effect-
ed by the same means.
Thus, in the course of Divine Providence, the very materials
which have weakened the power of Antichrist, and which will
finally destroy his kingdom, have originated in that very kingdom.
For altho the true witnesses of God have, in all ages, declared in
favor of religious liberty, and against the tyrannical usurpation of
Antichrist over the consciences of men; yet it remained for that
usurpation to be destroyed by those divisions which sprung up
among his own subjects. The powerful influence of those liberal
principles, which prevailed in the minds of many discerning and
liberal men, produced a change in public sentiment, in the very
heart of Antichrist's kingdom, which could not be effected by
foreign opposition.
Many philosophers and men of enlightened understandings
appeared in the seventeenth century, and have continued to in-
crease to the present day, who by the powerful influence of their
writings, and the concurrent circumstances of the times, contribu-
ted to disseminate the principles of civil and religious liberty to a
very great extent. These influential writers contended, with great
zeal, for the rights of man, and the liberty of conscience, against
arbitrary power, and all kinds of tyranny, both civil and ecclesias-
tical; and through their exertions, liberty of conscience greatly
prevailed, even in those countries which had been the most noted
for religious intolerance. But these efforts in favor of religious
toleration, were always opposed by the great body of ecclesiastics,
in all countries; and such have generally been the last to yield to
the just and equitable principles of religious liberty.
Notwithstanding the great opposition which had long prevailed
in the church of Antichrist, against the general principles of liberty,
and especially against religious liberty; yet much light prevailed
on these subjects during the 17th century, and liberal sentiments
gained so much ground towards the close of that century, that the
catholic hierarchy lost much of its power and influence. In the
year 1689, liberty of conscience was proclaimed in England, by
WILLIAM, Prince of Orange, who succeeded, in a great measure,
in establishing it. This event, and the subject of religious tolera-
tion, excited great attention in Europe, and prepared the way for
the further increase of these principles. The civil powers of the
earth soon began to assume their natural rights, of which they had
192 A FEW REMARKS UPON [PART IV.
long been deprived by ecclesiastical supremacy; and, in their turn,
they soon began to deprive this great christian hierarchy of the
power of persecution, and to establish the rights of conscience.
Here it may with prºpriety be said, that the earth began to open
and to swallow up “the flood which the dragon cast out of his
mouth.” And in this manner the earth has continued to swallow
up the flood of the dragon to this day.
The two witnesses were to prophecy 1260 days, “clothed in
sackcloth.” This period commenced in the year 457, when An-
tichrist attained his unlimited power, as before stated. By adding
1260 to 457, we have 1717 for the close of that period in which
the witnesses were to remain under sackcloth, or in a state of dark-
ness and mourning. About this period, through the operations of
Divine Providence, the power of persecution had so far declined,
and the rising witnesses had gained so much light and understand-
ing of the true nature of christianity, and had received such bright
views of the second coming of Christ, and of the nearness of their
redemption, that they began to lift up their heads and rejoice, and
could no longer be considered as under sackcloth.
About this time, the emperor of Russia, called Peter the Great,
established a plenary liberty of conscience throughout that exten-
sive empire. And tho that nation, to their honor, had been the
most free from religious persecution, perhaps, of any nation in the
civilized world; yet the established church, previous to this period,
had possessed great authority, in ecclesiastical matters, over the
minds of the people. But the full and free exercise of religious
liberty, and the freedom of civil rights granted by that Prince,
opened the way for a great increase of light and understanding
among his numerous subjects. This liberal act from a prince who
was reputed so wise and powerful, had great influence upon the
neighboring nations, in leading them to establish the same liberty,
and was probably as great an incentive towards promoting the
civil and religious rights of man as any act of any government
whatever. The Emperor's final edict, which completed what he
had been twenty years in performing, was dated January 1721.*
From this period the principles of civil and religious rights and
liberty of conscience continued to gain ground, especially in Eng-
land and other parts of Europe; so that about the year 1735,
there remained no power in the civil government to persecute unto
death any people for their religious principles. Nor had the priest-
hood of the established churches any legal authority to hinder these
witnesses from the free exercise of their religious faith, or to pre-
vent the declaration of their testimony to the people.f
Since this time many bright witnesses have continued to rise,
* See history of Peter the Great. - w &
f It is true they often assumed that authority under the pretence ...? 'ssing disorder;
but this was only a mask under which they vented the tilalignant spirit of Antichrist,
eHAP. VII.] THE witness Es of TRUTH, I 9:}
*
and religious revivals have greatly increased. Those who under
the reign of persecution, were branded with the odious name of
heretics, wild fanatics, and enthusiasts, were now distinguished
by the milder appellation of dissenters, puritans, and new-lights.
They were ardent in their expectations of the second coming of
Christ; and often testified, by the spirit of prophecy, that it was
near at hand. These things were evidently preparatory to the
great work of the millennium ; and the concurrence of events seem
to point out this period (1735) for the expiration of the “forty and
two months,” in which the holy city was trodden down by the
Gentiles.
It ought to be particularly noticed that the 42 months, and the
1260 days, point to two different events, both commencing at the
same time. The 42 months allude to the time in which the holy
city was trodden under foot of the Gentiles; the 1260 days allude
to the time in which the witnesses prophesied under sackcloth.
As these two numbers are differently expressed, and were evident-
ly designed to mark the period of two important events, they ought
to be calculated accordingly. In 42 months, or three years and a
half, there are 1278 days. These days, in prophetic language,
signify so many years. As before stated, the period of treading
down the holy city commenced in the year 457. Then by adding
1278 to 457 we have 1735. This appears to be about the closing
period of Antichrist's tyrannical reign.”
Liberty of conscience was a remarkable display of the provi-
dence of God in favor of the witnesses of truth. At this time the
Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood up on
their feet. In obedience to the voice of eternal truth which called
them, they rose up, in the life and power of their testimony, above
the power of antichristian tyranny and all its corrupt principles
and doctrines. But from the time that these witnesses began to
rise, it was a number of years before they could gain real possession
of the holy city. Antichrist and the Gentiles still had possession
there. But having entered upon the primitive ground of the
church, they advanced forward, and began to strip off the false
covering and deceptive colors and glosses with which the pride and
sagacity of the Gentiles, and the deceitful spirit of Antichrist had
obscured the pure doctrines of the cross, and the beautiful simpli-
city of the gospel, and thus restored the daily sacrifice. Then was
completed the 1290 days, already noticed, which were to be ac-
complished before the power of the holy people could cease to be
scattered. This brings us to the year 1747, as before calculated;
and here began the real cleansing of the sanctuary.
But the cleansing of the sanctuary, after being so long trodden
* It may be noted as a remarkable circumstance, that A ºn Lee was born the very nº-yº
year, viz. 1736.
** 2
s
194 A FEW REMARKs, &c. [PART IV.
under foot, and polluted by the abomination of desolation, could
not be accomplished at once; it was a work of time. But when
it was sufficiently cleansed, then a body was prepared in which
the Spirit of Christ could dwell, having had no abiding place on
earth during the long reign of Antichrist. Then Christ the Lord
descended and took up his abode in his spiritual house; and then
was fulfilled the words of the prophet; “And the Lord whom ye
seek, shall suddenly come to his temple.” Here the seventh
trumpet began to sound, and here began the preaching of the ever-
lasting gospel of Christ’s second appearing, which will prove a
decisive work to all souls: for this is the last trumpet, in which
“ the mystery of God will be finished.”
From about the year 1747, there was a gradual increase of light
and understanding in divine things, and of power and victory over
the evil nature of sin, among these faithful witnesses, who were
now formed into a society, and united together to worship God in
the spirit. This increase of divine light and power continued
through various changing scenes, till the establishment of the Mil-
lennial Church, or second gospel temple, in the year 1792, which
then became the habitation of souls in true gospel order. Then
expired the days of waiting spoken of by the prophet Daniel:
“, Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hun-
“dred and five and thirty days.” These 1335 days added to 457
make 1792. In this year the church was considered as establish-
ed in its principles of order and government, in which it has con-
tinued to increase to the present day.
The Millennial Church being established, and having by a num-
ber of years experience, proved its principles and order, and gain-
ed a sufficient degree of strength and stability, the testimony began
to go forth from the true gospel temple about the year 1800. This
brings the work of God down to the full revelation of the great
and last display of his grace to fallen man, and comprehends the
latest period which is described by the prophet Daniel in a con-
nected chain. “Judgment is now given to the saints of the Most
High; and the time is come that the saints begin to possess the
kingdom.”f Henceforth to the end, the work will increase until
the final separation shall be made between good and evil, and
until the full accomplishment of every promise of God ever made
to the saints since the foundation of the world.
* See Mal iii. 1. This could not mean the Jewish temple: for Christ's work being
spiritual, his temple must therefore be spiritual, not natural.
I See Dan, vii. 22.
PART W.
THE SEcoSD APPEARING of CHRIST.
*-*-* Gººs
CHAPTER I.
Various opinions concerning the manner of Christ’s second
appearing.
It is a prevailing belief among the professors of christianity,
that Christ will again appear upon earth, and usher in the latter
day of glory. But the opinions concerning that event are, per-
haps, as various as the tenets of their faith. This circumstance,
tho it may be considered as an argument in favor of the event itself,
is a certain proof that they are yet in ignorance respecting the man-
ner in which it is to take place, and the work which is to be ac-
complished thereby. Of course, when the event comes to be made
manifest by the real work of the day, what can be expected but
that unbelief, opposition and disappointment will follow as the
natural consequences?
It is well known that about the time of Christ's personal appear-
ance in Judea, the Jews were in earnest expectation of the coming
of the Messiah, who had been promised, from early ages, by the
repeated predictions of their ancient patriarchs and prophets. But
concerning the manner of his coming, and the real nature of his
work, they were left in the dark; and therefore, like natural men,
they put natural constructions on all the prophecies which related
to his coming. They expected to see a highly distinguished
earthly Prince, from the lineage of their kings, ascend the throne
of David, and sway the royal sceptre with superior power and dig-
nity. They firmly believed that they should then be delivered
from their bondage to the Romans; that all their temporal enemies
would then be subdued and brought into subjection; and that
their nation would be exalted to the highest pitch of temporal
glory.
But instead of the mighty Prince whom they so confidently ex-
pected, they beheld a man of low degree, of obscure birth and
parentage, whose appearance was, in their esteem, mean and con-
temptible, in whom they could see “no form nor comeliness.”
Instead of conquering armies at his heels, they saw that his follow-
ers were those of the lowest order of the people. Instead of mag-
nificent displays of royal authority, his self-denying precepts and
examples were in direct opposition to all their ideas and expecta-
tions of temporal glory. Instead of proclaiming war and destruc-
tion to their enemies, he preached “peace and good-will to man.”
Instead of revenging their injuries, he forbid them to render evil
for evil. Instead of exalting the glory of their nation, he denoun-
196 VARIOUS 6) PINIONS CONCERN ANG [PART V.
ced the utter destruction of their city and temple. And when they
were told that this man was the promised Messiah, the king of the
Jews, they rejected him with scorn, persecuted him through all
their coasts, accused him of blasphemy against God, and of break-
ing the laws of their country, spoke all manner of evil against him,
endeavored to render his name contemptible through the nation,
and, as a finishing stroke of malicious envy, they put him to the
cruel and ignominious death of the cross, in hopes thereby to put
an end to the growing influence of his testimony which they so
much dreaded.
Yet aſter all their endeavors to destroy the increasing reputation
of the Savior, to overthrow his testimony, to falsify his predictions
and prove him an impostor, they were defeated in their object.
The blessed gospel of peace and salvation which he introduced,
had a far more extensive increase after his crucifixion than before;
his testimony was more fully confirmed, and all his predictions
concerning that rebellious nation came fully to pass. Notwith-
standing all this, they refused to yield to conviction or stay their
enmity. Their wilful and determined opposition to the Savior
and to his testimony tended only to increase their hardness of
heart, their blindness and unbelief. They still went on to cry
down the testimony, and persecute his followers wherever they
could ſind them. -
These facts are generally understood and believed at the pr
sent day; and, in all probability, the conduct of the Jews is as
generally condemned by the professors of christianity. And what
shall be said of these same professors of christianity, with the
knowledge of all these things before them, if, in the manifestation
of Christ’s second appearing, they should be ſound speaking and
acting under the influence of the same spirit which actuated the
persecuting Jews? Would they believe that while they were pray-
ing for Christ's Kingdom to come, they were actually fighting
against it 2 Will they, like the stubborn Jews, obstinately trust in
the religion of their fathers, which they have so shamefully dishon-
ored, and still stop their ears and harden their hearts against the
increasing light of God? Or will they candidly listen to the voice
of reason, and acknowledge the truth
The Jews believed that God would send them a Deliverer, ac-
cording to his promise. But when he came, they rejected him,
because he did not come in the manner which they expected, nor
do the work which they expected. So in the present day, the
professors of christianity are living in the full belief that Christ
will come the second time, according to his promise. And why
are they not as likely to be disappointed in the manner of his com-
ing, and the nature of his work, as the Jews were? Do they profess
to be favored with the word of God? So did the Jews. Do they
cHAp. 1.] THE SEcoSD APPEARING OF CHRIST. I97
profess faith in the promises of God? So did the Jews. Do they
profess to enjoy the blessings of divine light, and to worship the
only living and true God, while the heathen nations walk in dark-
ness and bow down to dumb idols P So did the Jews. Do they
profess to be a people highly distinguished and chosen of God to
support and maintain the only true religion? So did the Jews. Is
their claim to that distinction greater than that of the Jews? By
no means, as will readily appear by a little examination.
The Jews were the seed of Abraham, to whom the promise was
made; and tho they had often rebelled against the God of their
fathers, who had called them by his name, and had greatly cor-
rupted the law of Moses, which was given for their protection;
yet they strenuously maintained the outward ceremonies of the
law; as strenuously, perhaps, as professing christians of the pre-
sent day do the outward forms of their religion; and doubtless
with as good reasons too. For the Jews were not so divided into
sects and parties; and the ceremonies of the law were, to them, a
lawful inheritance: whereas the professors of the present day
have no such specific and pointed authority for their religious cer-
emonies.
For the want of such authority, or rather for the want of a suffi-
cient portion of that divine Spirit which their antichristian fathers
have lost; that Spirit which led the apostles into a knowledge of
divine truth, and taught them how to worship God to his accep-
tance; for the want of that Spirit, the religion of modern professors
of christianity has been dividing and subdividing into “names and
sects and parties,” for many hundreds of years, all professedly
founded on the written words of Christ and his apostles. Yet not
one among them all is able to say, with certainty, what is the true
import of those passages on which they profess to found their con-
tending systems and jarring creeds. Since then, they are so divi-
ded in their opinions concerning the religion of Christ’s first ap-
pearing, which they and their fathers have professed to follow for
nearly two thousand years, how can they be expected to agree
about the manner and work of his second appearing f
Considering all these circumstances, are they not likely to be
more full of unbelief concerning the testimony of his second coming,
than the Jews were concerning that of his first coming? The unbe-
lief of the Jews is proverbial. And it is a truth which is confirmed
by the experience of all ages, that every renewed manifestation of
divine light to a lost world, which has been attended with an increas-
ing degree of the power and testimony of God against the nature of
sin, has never failed to meet with opposition from the great body of
the high standing professors of religion, who have lived in the day
in which the light was given. Is it not then a matter of importance
to all who profess the christian religion, and expect to be saved by
S O.
N_2 = }
}98 VAH-1 OUS OPIN 10 N S CONCERN ING [PvPT V.
it, but who do not believe that Christ has made his second appear-
ance, to beware of rejecting the testimony of those who do believe
it, lest they be found fighting against God.
Tho there are many different opinions among mankind concern-
ing the second coming of Christ; yet that which seems most gen-
erally to prevail is, that he will appear in person, and literally
ſulfil those passages of scripture which speak of his “coming in
the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.” In this how-
ever, there appears to be a material difference of sentiment. Many
believe that his reign on earth of a thousand years, will be in his
personal or bodily presence; while a still greater proportion seem
more inclined to think that he will manifest himself by a universal
outpouring of his Spirit upon the nations of the earth, by which
nearly all the inhabitants of the world will embrace the christian
religion, and enjoy a state of universal happiness and prosperity
under the spiritual dominion of Christ. This latter opinion ap-
pears to have gained considerable ground within a few years.
But it is the prevailing sentiment, if not the general belief, among
those who have embraced this opinion, that tho the thousand years’
reign of Christ on earth is to be by his Spirit; yet at the end of
this period, he will appear in person, for the final judgment and
consummation of all things. Thus, in order to answer their own
ideas of the exact fulfilment of the scripture prophecies concerning
his coming, they have embraced the plan of two appearances yet
future; the first in spirit, the second in person.” Hence the thou-
sand years of blessing and prosperity, in which “the earth shall
be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea,”
is to constitute the millennial state of the world, or latter day of
glory. This appears very plausible; but what comes next?
To render this glorious period the more conformable to human
wisdom, it seems that these modern millenarians have calculated
to build their millennial paradise upon the old heavens and earth,
and to enjoy their old christian religion; not indeed exactly in its
present state, but a little more refined, preserving those fundamen-
ial principles which were first established by the catholic fathers,
and afterwards corrected and improved by the great Reformers;
but lopping off those useless exercsences which form the distinc-
tion between the most approved and popular sects; so as to re-
duce and blend all their numerous systems into one, in which they
ean all agree. This newmodelled, universal system of religion,
* By what authority do they look for two appearances, yet future :
The scriptures afford no such authority. His first appearance, predict-
ed by the Jewish prophets, took place among the Jews, who rejected
and crucified him as an imposter. His second app. ºrance was predic-
ted, both by himself and his apostles, to be made manifest by his Spirit;
and we have no promise of any other. - .
chap. 1.] THE SEcoSD APPEARING of CHRIST. 199
they expect, all will enjoy together, in perfect harmony; and with
it, the pursuit of those earthly objects which they consider the
most conducive to the happiness of man, in his present, natural
state; but entirely disconnected with those unfortunate occurrences
which now so often disturb and disappoint them in their pursuit of
happiness.”
In the formation of such a millennium as this, they seem to for-
get that God has promised to create “new heavens and a new
“earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness;” or that “the day of the
“Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens
“shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt
“with fervent heat, the carth also, and the works that are therein,
“shall be burnt up.”f They forget also that, “The Lord hath
“ purposed to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into con-
“tempt all the honorable of the earth.”f Or rather, they put
far away this evil day, and place these events to the end of that
glorious millennial period, expecting that they will then be fulfilled,
not upon them, but upon the wicked. In short, they seem not to
know what is meant by the “new heavens and new earth;” nor
what is to be understood by the passing away of the first heavens
and earth. For such is the force of natural ideas on the mind of
“the natural man,” who “receiveth not the things of the Spirit of
God,” that he always inclines to put a natural construction on those
prophetic descriptions in the sacred writings, which relate to the
second coming of Christ, and to the day of judgment. Hence the
ideas of personality and locality in contemplating the coming of
Christ; and hence the opinion of his coming in the natural clouds
of the atmosphere, and operating upon the natural elements.
The idea of Christ being personally revealed in the natural
element of flaming fire, “to judge the quick and the dead, to take
vengeance on his adversaries,” and receive the righteous into the
Kingdom of his Father, is but a counterpart to their millennial
plan. And here again, they differ so much in their ideas, and
have formed so many different schemes concerning the first resur-
rection; the resurrection of natural human bodies; the order, of
trial; the form of decision; the awarding of judgment to the wick-
ed; the nature and duration of their punishment; and many other
things of a like kind, that the whole, taken together, is much more
calculated to confuse and bewilder the mind, and lead mankind
into darkness on these subjects, than to enlighten their understand-
* In anticipation of this happy state of religion, and of society, vari-
ous attempts have already been made, in different places, and among
different denominations, to bring about this desirable and long expected
event; but unfortunately, like other Babel-builders, they cannot agree
who shall be placed on hiº.h. or whose religion shall have the preemin-
ence : Of course they soon get confounded and scattered abroad.
t 2 Pet. iii. 10, 13. ; Isa, xxiii. 9;
200 vARIOUS opinions, &c. [PART v.
ings. It also affords a very striking proof, that the authors of the
different schemes, are themselves involved in great darkness con-
cerning these things; and confirms the declaration of the prophet
Isaiah, that “darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness
the people.”
Many of late are inclined to think that the millennium has alrea-
dy begun to dawn upon the earth ; and that those benevolent, hu-
mane and religious institutions which, of late years, have so great-
ly increased in the world, are so many evidences of its commence-
ment. Societies for the abolition of slavery, missionary and bible
societies, and humane and benevolent societies of every description,
together with the extensive and general diffusion of the principles
of civil and religious liberty, are considered, by many people, as
certain preludes to the ushering in of that period, if not real evi-
dences of its having already begun. But it is worthy of observa-
tion that, with all these highly esteemed and greatly boasted insti-
tutions, the general tenets of their religion remain the same as be-
fore; nor has there been any essential change with regard to its
practical duties.
As the latter day of glory has been the theme of patriarchs and
prophets, of poets and philosophers, of almost every age; and as
it has been held up to the view of mankind by the promises of
God, ever since the fall of man, and most pointedly confirmed by
Jesus Christ and his inspired apostles; it is certainly rational, as
well as scriptural, to believe that it will produce by far the greatest
revolution that the world ever yet witnessed.
The first manifestation of Christ to the Jews, which was attend-
ed with a great change in the lives and manners of those who re-
ceived him; which abolished their law religion, and established
the gospel religion, certainly effected a revolution in religion un-
known before. But as his appearance, at that time, was person-
ally in the flesh, and consequently limited to time and place; and
as the work he then commenced was but the prelude, the earnest of
that which is to be made manifest in his second appearing; we must
rationally believe that, in his second appearing, he will introduce,
and bring to pass a work, of which all the former manifestations
of God to the world, were but mere types and shadows; and com-
pared with which, these remarkable revolutions in the civil, moral
and religious world, are but preparatory events, designed to pave
the way for the real work of that glorious revolution which will yet
astonish all mankind.
Whatever may be the opinions of mankind concerning the second
appearing of Christ, which has been represented by the spirit of
prophecy, in many sublime figures and wonderful similitudes, and
often in very mysterious language, certain it is, that those figura-
tive representations can never be rightly understood till the time
eHAP. II.] THE SECOND coxiiNG OF CHRIST, &c. 201
*
of their fulfilment ; and even then, by those only who come into
the very spirit and work of the event itself. This accords with
the testimony of Jesus to his disciples, shortly before his crucifix-
ion. “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the
“angels of Heaven, but my Father only.”
In his last interview with his disciples, they being still ignorant
of the nature of his Kingdom, notwithstanding he had said so
much to them about it, asked him saying; “Lord wilt thou at this
“ time restore again the kingdom to Israel P” He answered, “It
“is not for you to know the times, or the seasons, which the Father
* hath put in his own power.”f And the prophet Daniel, to
whom imany things were revealed concerning the coming of the
Messiah, testifies saying; “And I heard, but I understood not :
“ then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things P’’
And it was answered, “Go thy way, Daniel: for the words are
“ closed up and sealed till the time of the end.” If then, these
things were not understood by those witnesses of God to whom
they were revealed, how can poor shortsighted mortals, at the pre-
sent day, expect to be able to understand them before they enter
into the work itself, to which these prophecies allude :
CHAPTER II.
The second coming of Christ not the appearance of the same
personal Being, but a manifestation of the same Spirit. This
illustrated by various similitudes, which also point out the in-
creasing work of his Kingdom. *.
As God is a Spirit, so his work, pertaining to the restoration of
fallen man, is a spiritual work. And as the first appearing of
Christ, to take upon himself human nature, and declare his mis-
Sion, was in the flesh; so his second appearing, for the redemption
of his people, must be in the Spirit.
"The word CHRIST is derived from the Greek word zetsog,
which signifies Anointed. MEssi A11 is a Hebrew word of the same
import. Jesus being anointed with that Divine Spirit which pro-
ceeded from God, and which contained the elements of eternal
life, was constituted the Christ of God: that is, the anointed of
God. Wherever that Divine Spirit exists, there is Christ; or as
the apostle, in writing to the Colossians, expresses it, “Christ in
you, the hope of glory.” It is certain that the person of Jesus
Christ cannot be in any other person; yet, in speaking to his dis-
ciples, in reference to the time of his second appearing, he said;
“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me,
* Matt, xxix., 36. _f Acts i. 6 & 7. ; Da . xii. 2 & 9. | Col. i. 27.
202 THE SECONI) COMING OF CHRIST [PART y
“ and I in you.” Here is an undeniable testimony of his coming,
not in person, but in Spirit.
Christ, the Anointed of God, was first revealed in Jesus of Na.
zareth. The same Christ was also in the primitive Church. Bul
when the spirit of Antichrist entered, and through the influence of
human wisdom, took the lead and government of the church, then
the Spirit of Christ was withdrawn: hence it was no more the
church of Christ, but of Antichrist. The true church of Christ is
his living body; but when the Spirit of Christ was withdrawn, and
the spirit of Antichrist entered, it became the body of Antichrist:
of course it was no longer the body of Christ.
Jesus Christ, when speaking to his disciples of his second com-
ing, was asked, “Where Lord?” He did not point out any par-
ticular place, but said, “Wheresoever the body is, thither will the
eagles be gathered together.”f By this he plainly intimated that
his presence, and his work would be in his body; that is, “the
“ church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
“And he is the head of the body, the church.” By the gather-
ing of the eagles, he shows, in a striking figure, that the evidence
of his coming, and the nature of his work, will be seen and under-
stood by the spiritual discernment of those who, like watchful,
keen-eyed eagles, in quest of food, will be able to discriminate be-
tween a living and a dead body, and gather to that which affords
spiritual life and nourishment, and let the dead alone. Thus, in
his true and living body will Christ be found, “in the dispensation
of the fulness of times.” There will those truly honest and
faithful souls, “who hunger and thirst after righteousness,” be gath-
ered; and there “they shall be filled;” while the lifeless churches
of Antichrist, like so many dead carcases, which have long been
sinking in their own corruptions, are cautiously avoided.
It may perhaps be objected, that when the Savior ascended,
there stood by the apostles two men in white apparel, and said;
“This same Jesus which is taken up from you into Heaven, shall
“so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into Heaven.”
This however, affords no proof that the natural body of Jesus was
taken up into Heaven; but his Spirit undoubtedly did ascend.
Yet this miraculous ascension was seen by none but those whom
he had chosen to bear witness of it; and their testimony was the
only evidence the world ever had of it; and even that, very few
were willing to believe in that day. Nor did any others in those
days ever know it, excepting those who in faith received the testi-
mony and spirit of those who first declared his ascension. They
knew, in truth, that he had ascended, and that he gave gifts unto
then, by which they were raised above an earthly nature, and sat
* John xiv. 20. Luke xvii. 37. f Eph i. 23. & Co. i. 18
# It is asserted by some naturalists that the real eagle will,net feed upon a putrid cargas'.
tº Eph, i. 10. -
* y
CHAP. II.] Not PERSONAL, BUT spIRITUAL. 203
with him “in heavenly places.” If then, Christ is to come in like
manner, it certainly follows, that he must come equally out of the
sight of natural men, and be equally unknown to the world. Of
course, none but his chosen witnesses can have any knowledge of
his coming; so that the world must again rely on their testimony,
or remain in unbelief.
Again : Christ, by his Spirit, testified to John in the isle of
Patmos, saying; “Behold I come as a thief! Blessed is he that
“watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and
“they see his shame.” It is well known that a thief comes pri-
vately, in the night, while mankind are asleep, and of course, not
on their watch. “For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and
“gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee,
“ and his glory shall be seen upon thee.”f Thus it appears that
the time of Christ’s coming was to be a time of darkness; (of spir-
itual darkness to the world, no doubt;) while he was to arise in
his glory, upon those who were found faithful to watch and keep
their garments—to keep themselves clothed with the garments of
righteousness, unspotted with sin.
It is worthy of particular remark, that about the period of the
first manifestation of Christ’s second appearing, there was a time
of great spiritual darkness, which continued for a number of years.
And tho great and exalted were the professions of christianity,
throughout the countries called christendom ; yet the pure and
genuine spirit of christianity was scarcely known upon earth.
There were, indeed, many who made great professions of religion;
yet their works of darkness greatly dishonored their professions;
so that they were evidently walking in darkness and discovering
their shame, from day to day.
This has become more and more apparent among nominal pro-
fessors, even to this day; and more especially among the higher
classes of professing christians, both ministers and people. And
thus we see pride and ambition, fraud and violence, hypocrisy and
deceit, luxury and lust, drunkenness and debauchery, with almost
every crime that can be named, still carried on under the sancti-
monious cloke of a religious profession; while even the common
people, who make no profession at all, can see through the decep-
tion of their pretended goodness—can see the shame of their
nakedness, through the flimsy cloke of such a profession, which is
enough to make the heart sicken at the name of a religion which
covers such abominations.
Thus Christ having actually come as a thief, in the time of such
extensive spiritual darkness, while mankind, who are living in sin,
and spiritually asleep, have been utterly unconscious of his coming,
and not being, even now, on their watch, cannot discover his ap-
* Rev. xvi. 15. f Isa. lx. 2,
204 THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST [PART y
pearance. People of this description, who make a great profes.
sion of religion, are ever more ready to contend against the true light
of God, at such a time, than those who make no such profession.
So it was in the days of Christ’s first appearance; the Scribes and
Pharisees, the chief priests and elders, and all the great and migh-
ty among the Jews, were his greatest opposers and persecutors,
while “the common people heard him gladly.”
Many comparisons have been made, under prophetic inspiration,
and recorded in the sacred writings, to show the nature of the
coming of Christ, and the state of the world at that period. These
comparisons, tho natural, evidently point out a spiritual work: for
the work of Christ's second appearing, being necessarily spiritual,
must be represented by natural similitudes, if represented at all,
there being no possible way to represent spiritual things to natural
men, only by matural similitudes. These, tho they clearly show
that the wicked will be taken unawares, in their sins; yet they
almost invariably point out a progressive, increasing word. Jesus
Christ, in his parables, likened the Kingdom of Heaven to many
things which, in their nature, were very different from each other;
such as a grain of mustard-seed; the sower and his seed; the good
seed and the tares; the leaven; the net cast into the sea; and
many other things. But as the Kingdom itself is spiritual, and
the work thereof a spiritual work; it could not be literally like
any of those natural things to which it was compared ; much less
like all of them.
The Kingdom of Christ, being a spiritual Kingdom, is altogeth-
er beyond the conception of the natural man, until his mind is en-
lightened by the Spirit of Christ; and therefore the nature of it
could not be understood, even by his disciples, who, at that time,
were but natural men. And yet the things which Jesus brought
up to view, as comparisons, were very apt similitudes, by which
he could, with the greatest propriety, represent many things which
he knew would be made manifest, during his reign upon earth.
So that when the day itself is ushered in, its work begun, and the
nature of it understood by those who are in it; then these simili-
tudes appear very striking and appropriate, and must operate on
every candid mind, as an incontestible evidence in favor of the pre-
sent work, and prove, to a certainty, that Christ himself is in it;
and that his parables and predictions could not, with any consis-
tency, be fulfilled in any other way.
Thus the Kingdom of Heaven is compared to a grain of mus-
tard-seed, which was then considered as the least of all seeds. “But
“when it is sown, it groweth up and becometh greater than all
“herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the
“air may lodge under the shadow of it.”f This clearly shows
* Mark xii. C7. - 5 Mark iv. 3+.
cHAP. II.] Not PERSONAL, BUT SPIRITUAL, 205
the first operations of the work of Christ, in his second coming,
to be, not only very small, but entirely out of the sight of the world:
as much so as a grain of mustard-seed is, when covered in the
earth. It also shews a progressive and increasing work, like the
growth of the seed to a large plant, the greatest among herbs,
branching out like a tree, so as to afford a shelter for the birds of
the air.
Again, it is compared to leaven. “The Kingdom of Heaven is
“like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures
“ of meal, till the whole was leavened.” This is also a figurative
representation of the hidden and progressive operations of the
Spirit of Christ, in his second appearing; which is entirely out of
sight of the world of mankind, both professors and profane; and
yet it is a work which operates with a progressive increase, in eve-
ry faithful soul.
The Kingdom of Heaven is also compared to a man's sowing
good seed in his field, and afterward his enemy came and sowed
tares among the wheat. This clearly shows that wherever the work
cf God begins, and the seed of Christ is sown, there the enemy fol-
lows, with his secret influences, his works of darkness, to corrupt
and contaminate the good by a mixture of evil, intending thereby to
dishonor and abase the genuine fruits of the true gospel of Christ,
by endeavoring to blend therewith his wicked and corrupt fruits.
Evidences of this have appeared, more or less, in every placc
where the gospel has been planted, since the first opening of the
testimony in America; and will undoubtedly continue till the final
separation shall take place between the good and the evil, and
each shall receive its due reward.
The season of harvest is a very apt similitude of the coming of
Christ. “The harvest is the end of the world, and the reapers
are the angels.” It is well known that the work of harvest is a
progressive work; and tho it may require the reapers many days
to accomplish it; yet every stalk of grain, whether good or bad,
when encircled by the sickle of the reaper, is very suddenly cut
down; and tho but an instant before, it was majestically waving
in the field, without any premonition of its sudden fall, it is hence-
; forth forever separated from the foundation on which it stood, and
must now pass through a new scene, and either be gathered to a
place of safety, for the use of the husbandman, or devoted to de-
struction, according as it shall be found to be either good or bad.
And such will be the fate of all souls in the great harvest of the
world. Thus the useful wheat and worthless tares are used, as
plain similitudes, to show the distinction which will be made be-
tween those who do good, and those who do evil; and the result
$ MIaft. xiii. 33 f Matt. xiii 38 to 42, See also Rev. xiv. 13 to the end.
206 THE SEcond coming of CHRIST, &c. [PART V.
of the parable is a certain token of that righteous and impartial
judgment which will reward all souls according to their works.
“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a met that was
“cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind; which, when it
“was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the
“good into vessels, but cast the bad away.” This points out a
great and important work which, in its progress, will make a final
separation between good and evil. “So shall it be at the end of
“ the world: the angels (signifying the messengers of truth) shall
“ come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just.” This
has been continually fulfilling ever since the first gathering of the
people in America; and these are the people, “upon whom the
ends of the world are come.”f
The event of Christ's second coming is also compared to the
time of Noah, and the days before the flood. “For as in the days
“ that were before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marry-
“ing and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into
“ the ark; and knew not till thqflood came and took them all away;
“so shall it be also in the days of the son of man.”f
Noah was called a preacher of righteousness. But it appears
that the inhabitants of the old world were disobedient to his testi-
mony which undoubtedly continued during the whole time the ark
was building, which is said to be a hundred and twenty years.
But notwithstanding their unbelief and disobedience, they were at
last overtaken in their sins, and could not escape. The foremen-
tioned similitude of our Savior, is evidently designed, and well cal-
culated to show the state of unbelief, disobedience and disrespect
to the testimony of truth, in which mankind will be found; and
their careless insensibility and disregard respecting the second
coming of Christ; and that altho they will be earnestly and re-
peatedly warned by the preachers of righteousness, from time to
time, and in all probability, even from generation to generation,
during the time of Christ's reign upon earth; yet they will not
believe the testimony, nor turn from their wickedness; but still
go on, “eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage,”
seeking their own gratifications, and pursuing their own pleasures,
until they are overtaken by judgments which they cannot escape.
Tho the judgments of God upon the wicked are often spoken of
as coming suddenly, which is frequently the case in reality; yet
in the time of Noah's flood, it rained “forty days and forty nights;”
and in all probability, the destruction of lives was not fully accom-
plished till the end of that period; (for there could have been no
use in continuing the flood after its design was accomplished.)
So in the present day, many may remain secure for a long time;
but the deluge of destruction, tho it may endure many ages, and
* Matt, xiii. 47,48, 49. f See 1 Cor. x. 11. * Matt. xxiv. S8, 39, & J.uke xvii. 26.
*w-
cHAP. III.] CHRIST's SEcoSD MANIFESTATION, &c. 207
operate in many ways, will finally accomplish the work for which
it is sent.
-º-º-º º-
CHAPTER III.
The second manifestation of Christ not instantly universal, but
gradual and progressive, like the rising of the sun.
IT has long been maintained that Christ is to come in the clouds
of heaven, and that all shall see him. In a spiritual sense, this is
true, and accords with his own testimony: “They shall see the
“Son of man coming in the clouds of Heaven, with power and
“great glory.” Again, when questioned before the Jewish coun-
cil, he said, “Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the
“right hand of Power, and coming in the clouds of Heaven,”
And again; “Behold he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall,
“see him, and they also which pierced him : and all kindreds of
“the earth shall wail because of him.” These and other similar
passages are often advanced as evidences that Christ is not only to
come openly, in the clouds, but that he will suddenly appear in the
most public manner, so as to be seen at once, by all mankind, the
wicked as well as the righteous, who have lived in all ages, and in
all quarters of the world.
But it ought to be considered in the first place, that these clouds
are not the common clouds of the atmosphere, but the clouds of
Heaven; therefore they must be heavenly clouds—clouds of faith-
ful witnesses of God, who are ready and willing to embrace the
testimony of Christ, whenever and wherever it shall appear; and
to declare it to the world without restraint and without disguise.
“Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their win-
“dows P-Seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud
“of witnesses.”f Thus cloud is used in scripture as a figure to
express a multitude; and in this sense it was often used by ancient
writers, both sacred and profane.
Secondly. As Christ, the anointed of God, is a Spirit, and
can only be seen and known in the spirit; therefore his Kingdom
must be spiritual and divine; not natural and sensual. Hence, as
before stated, his appearance must be in the spirit; and the clouds
in which he appears must be spiritual clouds, pertaining to the
spiritual heavens; and these things must be discerned by spiritu-
al light: for, “The natural man receiveth not the things of the
“Spirit of God; for they are foolishmess to him; neither can he
“know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” Yet the
natural man looks for Christ to come in a bodily appearance,
*See Matt. xxiv, 30, chap. xxvi 64 and Rev. i. 7. i Isa. lx. 8. & Heb xii. 1,
: l Cer. ii. 14.
208 CHRIST's SEcond MANIFESTATION [PART W.
through the clouds of the natural heavens, and expects, with his
natural eyes, to behold in him a supernatural being, magnificently
great and transcendantly glorious; and supposes that his appear-
ance will be so universally visible that every eye in heaven, earth
and hell shall see him at once.
But a little reflection will show the inconsistency of this opinion.
For if Christ should descend in person, from the starry regions to
this earth, and appear in our hemisphere, tho in ever so great
splendor, he could not be seen at the same time, by those who live
on the opposite side of the globe. But in order to be seen by
them, in the same manner, he must descend in their hemisphere.
And to be seen in both hemispheres at once, he must descend in
two opposite directions at the same time. But if Christ is to make
a bodily appearance, as a personal or material being, as many
suppose, it must be impossible for him to descend in this manner.
For it is a selfevident truth, as every person of sense will acknow-
lodge, that no material substance or local being, can descend from
two opposite directions in the heavens, and appear in two oppo-
site hemispheres, and on two opposite sides of the earth, at one
and the same time. Thus the natural man’s plan destroys itself.
But if we consider Christ as the elemental spirit of eternal life, the
difficulty is at once removed; because upon this principle, that Spi-
rit can appear in many places at the same time, however distant or
differently situated.
Thirdly. It appears evident, not only from the testimony of
the scriptures, but from the very nature of God, who is Spirit, that
the work of Christ in the new creation, pertaining to the salvation
and redemption of man, is a spiritual work. This none can deny.
Therefore the things relating to Christ's second coming, and the
finishing of the mystery of God, must be of a spiritual nature.
How then should the natural man be able to conceive of these
things in their true light, seeing he receiveth not the things of the
Spirit of God?
The ideas formed in the mind of man, concerning the coming of
Christ in the natural clouds, and appearing visible to the natural
eye, are merely natural conceptions; natural enough indeed to the
matural man, and therefore, if the forecited testimony of the apos-
tle be true, they must be false conceptions. It is true that, in the
progress of his work, “every eye shall see him;” for he will be
made manifest to all, either to their everlasting joy or sorrow; but
they will see him with the eyes of the soul, not of the body. Those
who accept the invitation, and come when called, and faithfully
obey the testimony of the gospel, will see him to their joy and sal-
vation; but those who reject it, to their condemnation and sorrow.
To the former it will prove “the savor of life unto life;” but to the
Hatter, “the savor of death unto death.”
cHAP. III.] NOT INSTANT [..Y UNIVERSAL. 209
But it may be objected that Jesus Christ himself has said, “As
“ the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the
“west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” This
passage of scripture is generally quoted as an evidence of the in-
stantaneous and universal manifestation of Christ in his second
appearing. But we apprehend that when the passage is duly con-
sidered, and its real import rightly understood, the objection found-
ed upon it will appear groundless. It is well known that our Sa-
vior often made use of natural things, and natural occurrences, as
similitudes to represent and illustrate things of a spiritual nature.
In the above quoted passage, he alluded to the dawning of the day,
and the breaking forth of the morning light in the east, as a clear
and striking similitude of the commencement of that period, so
-often represented in scripture, as the day of gospel light and liberty,
or thousand years of Christ's reign upon earth. This appears
evident from the following considerations.
1. It is not the peculiar nature of lightning “to come out of the
east and shine even unto the west;” its flashes, tho often seen in
every direction, are known, in this country, to come out of the west
much oftener than out of the east; and they never extend so as to
be seen but a few miles distant, in any direction. If therefore
Christ intended, by the similitude of lightning, to represent an in-
stantaneous and universal display of his second appearance, the
similitude is quite imperfect, the comparison falls very short.
2. The Greek word &gazz, tho sometimes properly translated
lightning, signifies any vivid brightness or shining light, as that of
the sun, or of a star, a lamp or candle, as the same word is used
in other places.” It is sometimes used to signify the breaking
forth of light, as the dawning of the day, or the rising of the sun,
which is evidently the meaning in the text quoted above. The
light breaks forth in the east, “and shineth even unto the west,”
still progressing on in its western direction, till it enlightens the
whole earth; and this it will effectually do in the space of twenty-
four hours, so that all nations, even every eye, may see the light
thereof; unless it be those who through blindness or some other
cause, are deprived of that privilege.
We also find the same testimony in Luke, but a little differently
expressed: “As the lightning that lighteneth,” or more properly,
“As the shining light that shineth forth from the one part under
“ heaven, and giveth light unto the other part under heaven; so
“shall also the Son of man be in his day.”f This plainly implies
that, as the light of the natural day (alluding to the sun as before)
proceeds in its course, enlightening the earth from place to place;
* The same original word which in Matthew xxiv. 27, is translated lightning, is ºn Luke
xi. 36, translated bright shining; in Luke xxiv. 4, a an adjective, it is transjæted shining:
and in Acts ix 3, used as a verb, it is translated shi.ied; as the seader gay see.
t Luke xvii. 24.
rºl &
R" 2
2. It) CHRIST's second MANIFESTATION [PART W.
so in the progressive increase of divine light, in the millennial day,
it will continue to shine from one place to another, unto all the
earth or every part under heaven, shall be fully illuminated. Not
that all will receive the light and profit by it; for many will un-
doubtedly hate and shun it to their condemnation; according to
the testimony of our Savior: “And this is the condemnation, that
“light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than
“light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth
“evil, hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds
“should be reproved.”
The same ideas concerning an instantaneously universal dis-
play of the coming of Christ, in the clouds of the sky, which so
generally prevail at the present day, were doubtless entertained by
the translators of the Bible. Hence it is easy to account for the
translation of so many passages in a manner most favorable to their
preconceived notions; and especially where the words in the
original would admit of such a translation.
As to the expressions, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an
eye, at the last trump,” and such like, nothing can be proved from
them to confirm the opinion of an instantaneous and, at the same
time, a universal display of Christ's second coming to judge the
world. Nor are those expressions, even in their most literal sense,
by any means inconsistent with the idea of the event’s having
begun to take place in this country more than forty years ago; but
is perfectly consistent with the belief of its having taken place sud-
denly, with respect to thousands, during that period of time; and
also with the belief that it may take place as suddenly, with respect
to many thousands more, within forty years to come. For altho
the increase of the light of the gospel in the soul, is gradual and
progressive, from its dawn to the perſect day; yet the conviction
of sin, and also the first rays of light, are often sudden and instan-
taneous; an so also are the judgments of God on the wicked, and
many other changes which both the righteous and the wicked will
find to pass through, before God shall have finished his work in
them, and with them.
But it will be necessary to illustrate, more particularly, the pro-
gress of the work of God, in Christ's second coming, by the simili-
tude of the breaking forth of light in the east: for as before observ-
cd, our Savior, in this similitude, evidently alluded to the sun, the
light of the natural day, and not to the lightning. It is well known.
that the day first commences by the dawning of light in the east.
The twilight succeeds; and the morning light gradually increases.
till the rising of the sun. The sun however, does not shine over
the face of the whole earth at one and the same time; but appears.
sising from one degree of longitude to another still ſurther west,
* John iii. 19, 20. The word here translated reproved sign fies discovered or capoºrd.
CHAP. III.] NOT INSTANTI,Y UNIVERSAL. 21 &
until, in the space of twenty-four hours, it is seen rising and en-
lightening the whole habitable globe. So that it necessarily hap-
pens, that while the eastern nations are enjoying the cheering rays
of the morning sun, the western world is wrapped in midnight
darkness.
Agreeable to this comparison, if we consider the great length of
the millennial day, we may readily perceive that, in its progress
through its whole course, there must be a great difference in the
period of its commencement, in different parts of the world. The
labors and employments of the natural day are as various as the
times of their commencement. The act of waking from sleep, of
rising, dressing and perfºrming the duties of the morning, or of
making preparation for the more important work of the day, is
very different from the general labors of the day; yet this morning
labor is really necessary, and preparatory to that which appears
more important. But it must be considered that this preparatory
or morning labor cannot take place all over the earth at once;
and so it is also with regard to the general labors of the day. For
while the labors of the morning are going on in one part of the
earth, the midday labors are progressing in another part, and the
evening labors in another. Thus the morning, midday, afternoon.
and evening labors are all in actual operation at one and the same
time, but in different and distant parts of the earth.
“So also shall the coming of the Son of man be.” The light
of the millennial day is as gradual and various, in its commence-
ment and progress, as the light of the natural day; and, like this,
cannot possibly take place throughout the world at once, any more
than the light of the sun can be seen at once over the face of the
whole earth. It appears to be the prevailing opinion among those
who are looking for the millennium, that the preparation for that
day is to be finished over the whole world first; and that the se-
cond coming of Christ is to take place in a similar manner, and
become at once universal. This idea is wholly inconsistent with
reason, and has no foundation in truth.
Among the many providential events which are evidently pre-
paratory to the introduction of this new era to the world, we may
remark,
1. The extensive and increasing prevalence of the spirit of
religious toleration among mankind. This is absolutely necessary
in order to check and bind the spirit of persecution, which would
otherwise rage beyond control, at the introduction of a new reli-
gion which must and will be contrary to every feeling of the carnal
nature of man.
2. The increasing sense of the importance of peace and good
will among mankind, as absolº tely essential to christianity; and
the many exertions in various places to promote this desirable ob-
212 CHRist's second MANIFESTATION, &c. [PART v
ject by means of peace societies and peace publications. These
are essentially necessary, in order to curb those Cain-like passions
of man, which would otherwise defeat, if possible, every attemp
to propagate a peaceful and sinless gospel among the inhabitants
of a contentious and sinful world.
3. The many exertions which are made through the influence
of benevolent and humane societies, and other liberal means, for
the abolition of slavery, and the amelioration of mankind. This
is an important object: for unless every nation, class and color of
people can enjoy free, just and equitable rights, they cannot be
made the partakers of a free, just and equitable religion, the be-
nevolent and impartial gift of Him who “ hath made of one blood
all mations of men.”
4. The increasing attention to the important concerns of religion,
and the many religious revivals which are continually springing up
in various places, attended with manifestations of peculiar light
and power. These are the most effectual operations of Divine
Providence to excite mankind to see and feel the necessity of find-
ing some way of deliverance from the bondage of sin, and to call
them to that genuine repentance which leads to a life of righteous-
ness and true holiness, “without which no man shall see the Lord.”
Some seem to be aware that these events are preparatory to the
millennium, and view them as evident signs of the coming of
Christ, while they are utterly unconscious that the preparation
and the real work of the day, are both in actual progression, at
the same time, agreeable to the similitude already noticed. The
work of rising from spiritual sleep, of being convinced of the need
of a Savior, and of lifting up the head and looking for redemption
in Christ's second coming,” are all very different from receiving
and walking in him, and being in the real work of his Kingdom;
yet all these are necessary, and pertain to the work of the millen-
nial day. The forementioned providential events are evident pre-
parations, and actual signs of the approach of that day to an exten-
sive increase, which, in a limited degree, has already commenced.
Many, seeing these signs, are looking for the appearance of the
Son of man, not knowing that he is already come, nor where to
look for him. The reflecting rays of the Sun of righteousness
wake souls from the sleep of a fallen, sinful nature, and afford
them light to see their lost and deplorable state, and their absolute
need of a Savior. Hence they sigh and groan for deliverance, and
hence they pray and wrestle in spirit, for that redemption which
is promised in the day of Christ's second appearing. And all
who continue honest and faithful to the preparatory light, looking
and waiting for his coming, are noticed of God, and will be in
* Sec Luke xxi. 23,
CHAP. Iv.] THE MANIFESTATION of, &c. 2I 3
readiness to receive and enter into the perfect work of the day,
whenever it shall be manifested to them.
CHAPTER IV.
The Manifestation of Christ in the Female.
MANY objections have been raised against the doctrine of the
appearance of Christ in the female, the principle ground of which
seems to be, that it is not warranted by scripture, nor consistent
with reason. To obviate these objections and confirm the doc-
trine, both by scripture and reason, is the design of this chapter.
In searching the records of scripture we find that, on many ex-
traordinary occasions, in past ages, there were females, as well as
males, raised up and qualified to do the will of God and to accom-
plish his work. There were prophetesses, as well as prophets, in
those days; which evidently shows that women, as well as men,
were not only designed to enjoy the special favor of God; but also
that they were originally designed to have a correspondent share
in teaching and guiding the human race, in directing the destinies
of nations and governing the world, which is composed of females
as well as of males, who certainly stand in need of instruction, di-
rection and government.
It appears evident that Miriam the prophetess had a share with
Moses and Aaron, in delivering the children of Israel from the
bondage of Egypt, and in leading them through the wilderness:
for thus saith the Lord; “I brought thee up out of the land of
“Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I
“sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.”* Esther was also
raised up, as an instrument in the hands of God, to deliver the
Jews from destruction, when no man was found able to do it.
Deborah the prophetess was also raised up, in the days of the
Judges, and set over Israel; and, through her instrumentality, a
very great deliverance was wrought for that nation. This ap-
pears the more extraordinary, as being a deliverance from their
bondage to the original inhabitants of the land of Canaan, whom
they had been commanded to cast out and destroy ; and it appears
to be the only time that they, as a nation, were ever brought into
bondage to these natives of the land. “And the hand of the chil-
dren of Israel prospered and prevailed,” under the ministration of
Deborah, until they destroyed the power of the Canaanites, so that
they never obtained any dominion over Israel afterwards. Thus
the work which had been begun by Joshua, (who was a type of
Jesus,) was at length completed by a female.
Herein was typified the work of God in Christ's first and
* Micah vi. 4. f See Judges, chap, iv.
P
214 THE MANIFESTATION OF [PART W,
second appearance, as it respected the warfare of christians against
their spiritual enemies. The Canaanites prefigured the carnal
passions of human nature, which God had commanded his people
to cast out, and against which Jesus Christ began the warfare.
But by leaguing with them, as the Israelites did with the Canaan-
ites, the primitive Christians, in process of time, lost their power
and their order, and were overcome and held in bondage by these
carnal passions, until the way was opened for a final deliverance,
through the instrumentality of a female.
The song of Deborah, after this extraordinary victory, is worthy
of remark. “They ceased in Israel, until that I Deborah arose,
that I arose a mother in Israel.” If then a mother was raised up
in Israel to deliver that nation from their bondage to the Canaan-
ites, and to destroy their power and dominion over Israel, why
should it be thought inconsistent for God to raise up a mother in
the spiritual Israel, to deliver them from their bondage to the spir-
itual Canaanites, and to destroy their power and dominion, and
thus to complete the work which Jesus began P
The many instances recorded in the sacred writings, prove be-
yond dispute, that in past ages, God did condescend to reveal
his mind and will to females, who were then commissioned, by
Divine Authority, to bear testimony thereof to man. And the
two signal instances of deliverance eſſected through the instrumen-
tality of Deborah and Esther, are sufficient to show that God did,
on each of these extraordinary occasions, raise up and empower
a female to accomplish an extraordinary deliverance, which was
beyond the power of man to effect without their assistance.
If then, God has, in these last days, raised up a female to reveal
the true testimony and Spirit of Christ, and endowed her with
power to effect the deliverance of lost man from the bondage of
sin, and to usher in the latter day of glory, shall man reject the
work on that account? Is it too debasing to the pride and haughti-
mess of ſalien man 2 If so, let it be remembered that, “The Lord
“ of hosts hath purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to
“bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth. And the
“loſtiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of
“men shall be made low; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in
“ that day.” -
It is well known that when souls come to be awakened to a
feeling sense of their need of salvation, their general cry is, “What
“shall we do to be saved 2–Lord, send by whom thou wilt send--
“Work by means of thy own chusing; only show us thy will—
“bring us salvation from the bondage of sin.” It is on these con-
ditions we are willing to receive Christ, tho revealed in a manner
contrary to every feeling of a fallen nature. We are determined
* Isa, ii. 17. and xxiii. 9.
CHAP. Iv.] CFIRIST IN THE FEMALE. 2] 5
to exalt the Lord alone—to know none but Christ, wherever man-
ifested and in whomsoever found, and to bear the cross, tho it cru-
cify us to the world, and the world to us.
Altho it was necessary that the Spirit of Christ should be mani-
fested in both male and female; yet no man nor woman that ever
appeared on earth, could ever be a proper object of divine worship.
“God is Spirit; and they that worship him, must worship in spirit
“ and in truth.” God is therefore the only proper object of divine
worship; and no one can ever worship in the spiritual work of
God, unless called and directed by the Spirit of Christ: for accord-
ing to his own testimony, “No man cometh unto the Father but
by me.” Therefore no man can worship God, but through
Christ; and the only true worship that we can render to God, is
to honor and glorify him by yielding obedience to his will. And
tho a portion of the Spirit of Christ must be in every soul, in order
to unite them to his body; yet the manifestation of the will of God
for the guide and direction of souls, in his true spiritual work, must
be revealed in the order of God’s appointment, through those wit-
nesses whom he sends for that purpose.
As the Divine Spirit and Will of God, in these last days, has
been manifested in Christ, through the two first messengers of
salvation; so the same Spirit continues to manifest his will, through
the same line and order, in the church of Christ, and will ever
continue so to do, as long as Christ shall continue to have a true
church on earth. Therefore, as the ancients worshipped the God of
their fathers; so worship we that God who has been revealed to us
by our spiritual parents in the gospel, whom God hath raised up,
and sent to open the way of salvation to us. We worship neither
man nor woman ; but we honor and obey the Spirit of Christ,
whether revealed in man, woman or child.
The natural creation, and the things therein contained, are figu-
rative representations of the spiritual creation which is to supersede
it, as we have already shown. The first parents of the natural
world were created male and female. The man was first in his
creation, and the woman was afterwards taken from his substance,
and placed in her proper order to be the second in the government.
and dominion of the natural world; and the order of man’s crea-
tion was not complete till this was done. For it must be acknow-
kedged by all, that without male and female, the perfection of man,
in his natural creation, must have been less complete than that of
the inferior part of the creation, which was evidently created male
and female. Iſence it must appear obvious, that in the spiritual
creation, man and woman, when raised from a natural to a spiritual
state, must still be male and female: for the spiritual state of man,
which is substantial and eternal, cannot be less perfect in its order,
* John iv. 24. † John xiv. 6. i See Part iii, chap iii. p. 116.
216 THE MAN IFESTATION OF [PART V.
than his natural state, which is but temporal, and figurative of the
spiritual.
As the true church of Christ, which is his body, is composed of
male and female, as its members; and as there must be a corre-
spondent spiritual union between the male and female, to render
the church complete, as a spiritual body; so it is essentially ne-
cessary that such a spiritual union should exist in the head of that
body, which is Christ; otherwise there could be no source from
which such a correspondent, spiritual union could flow to the body.
It must be admitted by every reasonable person, that the order of
man cannot be complete without the woman. If so, then the
church cannot exist, in its proper order, without male and female
members: for, “neither is the man without the woman, nor the
woman without the man, in the Lord.” And it would be very
unreasonai)le to suppose that the body of Christ should be more
complete and perfect, in its order, than the head. This would
give the body a superiority over the head.
This spiritual union between the male and female, in the body
and in the head of the church, is that which the apostle calls a great
mystery. And indeed it is a great mystery to the lost children
of men, who seem to have no conception of any other union be-
tween the male and female, than that which is natural, according
to the order of the flesh. Nor do they seem to know any other
design in the creation of the female, nor any other essential use
for her than that of carnal enjoyment in a sexual union, and the
production of offspring through that medium. But the work of
Christ, being a spiritual work, the union must therefore be spiritu-
al; and it is impossible for souls to come into this work, and enjoy
this-union, unless the Spirit of Christ become their life.
Since then, Christ must appear in every female, as well as in
every male, before they can be saved; and since that Divine Spirit
has appeared in one man, whom God has chosen as the Captain
of our salvation, and an example of righteousness to all men; is it
not 1easonable and consistent that the same anointing power
(which is Christ) should also appear in a woman, and distinguish
her as a leader, and an example of righteousness to all women :
It may be asked, How can Christ appear in a woman? With
the same propriety we might ask, how can Christ appear in a man?
Christ is a Spirit: “The Lord is that Spirit.” In that Spirit is
contained the only power of salvation. If Christ could not appear
in a man, then no man could be saved; so also, if Christ could not
appear in a woman, then no woman could be saved. Christ first
appeared in Jesus of Nazareth, by which he was constituted the
head of the new and spiritual creation of God. The Spirit of Christ
was in the primitive church; and the Spirit of Christ is also in
*"I Cor. xi. 11. - * Eph. v. f.º. * Q Cor. i. i. 17.
cHAP. Iv.] to HRIST IN THE FEMALE. 217
every one of his true and faithful followers. The Spirit of Christ
is the same, whether revealed in man, woman or child.
It may perhaps be urged, by way of objection, that if a female
was to be raised up, to stand in a correspondent connection with
the first-born Son of God, in order to usher in the latter day of
glory, and bring about the regeneration of a lost world, it would
appear reasonable that she also, as well as he, should have been
brought forth by a miraculous birth. But a little reflection will
show the impropriety of this. Such a birth would not have cor-
responded with the figure given in the creation of the first man and
woman. Adam was called “the figure of him that was to come.”
He had a miraculous creation, being formed out of the dust of the
earth. Jesus had also a miraculous birth, being born of a virgin
without the co-operation of man. But this virgin, being a natural
woman, a daughter of Adam, her body was of the earth; and in
this sense, she was as the dust of the earth, tho in its highest state
of natural perfection under the fall, as was needſul it should be,
when designed for such an extraordinary purpose.
Eve, who was “the figure of her that was to come,” was not
created out of the dust of the earth, as Adam was, but was formed
of his substance, and taken from his body; therefore she was de-
pendent on him, and it was her duty to be subject to him as her
head and lord. Had the woman been created in the same manner
that the man was, there would have been two separate heads of the
creation; and as neither of them could have had the pre-eminence;
so neither of them could have been placed in a state of subordina-
tion to the other. So also, agreeable to this figure, the second
Eve was not brought forth in the same manner that the second
Adam was ; but, as to her person, she came into the world as all
other women do. . But as the substance of the first woman was
taken from the body of the first man; so that Divine Spirit with
which the second woman was endowed, and which constituted her
the second Eve, was taken from the Spirit of the second Adam,
the Lord Jesus Christ; therefore she was necessarily dependent
on him, was subject to him, and always acknowledged him, as her
head and lord.
It was absolutely necessary that the human tabernacle of Jesus
should not only be created in a supernatural manner, by the im-
mediate operation of the Eternal FATHER and Mother; but also
in a state superior to that of the first Adam; otherwise he could
never have had the pre-eminence, as to the superiority of his origin.
As no stream can rise higher than its fountain; so no being could
proceed from the loins of Adam with a life superior to that which
he possessed: for he was formed of the elements of temporal life,
* Rom. v., 14.
U
218 A. THE MANIFESTATION OF ſPART W.,
and not of the elements of eternal life.” Therefore, had Jesus been
begotten of the seed of Adam, his life could not have been superior
to the life of Adam ; nor could he have had superior power: hence
he could not have been the first to possess eternal life; and there-
fore the source of eternal life could not have been in him; conse-
quently it could not have been brought to light by him.
But Jesus being created in a state superior to that of the first
Adam, he was the first who received the elements of eternal life
from his Eternal Parents. His heavenly descent was announced
by the message of the angel to Mary: “The Holy Ghost shall
“come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow
“ thee.”f Here was plainly manifested the operation of the
ETERNAL Two, the HIGHEST and the Holy Ghost, by whom the
Son of God was created.; And as the human race, in their fallen
and lost state, are composed of male and female; so it is necessary
that the Spirit of Christ, in which is the only power of salvation,
should be manifested in both male and female, in order to complete
the work of regeneration and salvation.
But it may still be urged, that if it was necessary for God to
endow a female with the spirit of eternal life, to make her a par-
taker with Jesus Christ, in the power of salvation, and to co-ope-
rate with him in the work of regeneration, it would at least have
- appeared more reasonable and consistent, had she been a virgin
character. But it ought to be considered that mankind are lost in the
works of generation; and that it was therefore necessary that one
who was actually under that loss, should first set the example and
take the lead in coming out of it. Therefore, had a virgin char-
acter been chosen, tho she might have been a pattern of righteous-
ness; yet she could not have set the example of coming out of a
state into which she had never entered. Jesus Christ himself
never went into the work ºf generation; therefore he could not
set the example of coming out of it; but he could, and did set the
example of abstaining from it, as well as from all manner of evil.
As the first Eve, through the deceitful influence of the power of
evil, was the first to violate the temple of chastity, and to lead man-
kind into the work of generation, in actual disobedience to the
positive command of God, and by this means corrupted the work
at the very fountain; so a female, who was the natural offspring of
the first Eve, and under the same loss, was the proper character
* Had Adam been formed of the elements of eternal life, he could not have died: for that
which is eternal can never die. But when God spake to Adam concerning the tree of
the knowledge of good and evil, he said, “In the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely
die.” This was fulfilled.
f Luke i. 35. -
# It is proper to remark here, that in all languages, the term Holy-Ghost is the same as
Hály Spirit, and is generally expressed by a substantive in the neuter gender, which, of
itself, implies reither made nor female The application of nasculine or feminine terms to
the Holy Spirit, must depend on its relative manifestations, and its operation in the line ºf
male or female.
cHAP. Iv.] CHRIST IN THE FEMALE. 219
to be empowered to break the charm which binds mankind under
that loss, and to take the lead in coming out of it.
Ann Lee was the distinguished female who was chosen for that
purpose; and being wrought upon by the power of God, she actu-
ally took up a final cross against that nature, and against all those
propensities which lead to the gratification of it. And having re-
ceived the Spirit of Christ, by the operation of which her soul was
purified from the fallen nature of the flesh, she rose superior to it,
and by her example and testimony, she actually led the way out of
that nature and all its works, and was prepared to stand in a
proper order to manifest the Spirit of Christ in the female line.
Hence the image and likeness of the Eternal Mother was formed
in her, as the firstborn Daughter, as really as the image and like-
ness of the Eternal Father was formed in the Lord Jesus, the first-
born Son. Thus was slie constituted the second heir in the cov-
enant of promise, and was placed in a correspondent connection
with Jesus Christ, as the second pillar of the church of God in the
new creation.
We would by no means be understood to apply this character
to the human tabernacle of Amn Lee; that tabernacle was but flesh
and blood, like those of all other women; but it was a chosen
vessel, occupied as an instrument, by the Spirit of Christ, the Lord
from Heaven, in which the second appearance of that Divine
Spirit was ushered into the world. It is this Spirit which has con-
stituted her immortal part the second pillar in the new and spirit-
ual creation; it is this Spirit which is the image and likeness of
the Eternal Mother, and which is, in reality, the true Bride of the
Lamb, and the first Mother of all the children of Christ. The
apostle saith, “We preach Christ the Power of God and the Wis-
dom of God.” But the Spirit of Wisdom in Christ, could not be
manifested in her true character on earth, as the Mother Spirit in
the work of regeneration, until she was revealed in the female, as a
Mother in Christ.
It may perhaps be further objected that, according to the testi-
mony of the apostle, Jesus is “the author and finisher of faith;”
that his mission into the world was to “save his people from their
sins”—to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself;” and that “there
is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must
be saved;” and therefore we must be saved by his power alone, if
saved at all. But, as we have already said, Christ is a Spirit; and
it is by this Spirit only that salvation is wrought. It is this Spirit
in the male and female, by which souls are begotten and born in
the regeneration. And as this Spirit is Christ, and whether it be
revealed in male or female for salvation, it can never be separated
from Christ; therefore it is by this Spirit of Christ only, that sal-
vation and final redemption can be wrought in any soul.
220 THE MANIFESTATION OF - [PART W.
Tho the day of redemption was predicted in early ages, and the
period alluded to, when a new order of things was to take place;
and tho the nature of these things was often pointed out by types
and shadows, and the certainty of the event declared by the spirit
of prophecy, under the law, and afterwards more fully illustrated
and confirmed by Jesus Christ and his apostles; yet a full revela-
tion of the fallen nature of the flesh, and of that power which was
to accomplish its destruction, and usher in the real work of the
latter day of glory, could not take place until the time arrived for
the manifestation of Christ in the female, in whom the second ap-
pearance of Christ commenced. This is the reason why even those
who have been most highly favored of God, under former dispen-
sations, have never been able to discover the nature of man’s loss,
and the real foundation of iniquity. Consequently a true spiritual
union between the sexes, could never be fully maintained : for a
union between the sexes naturally inclines to the flesh. There-
fore, until the female was brought into her proper order, in the
spiritual work of God, a union between the sexes, tho begun in the
spirit, generally ended in the flesh. And this has been the effec-
tual cause of a declension from the spiritual work of God, in all
religious revivals, from the falling away of the primitive church
even to this day.
Tho thousands in past ages, who conscientiously lived up to the
best light they were able to obtain, were so far enlightened by the
Spirit of God, as to see the natural tendency of indulging those inor-
dinate desires which led to these baleful corruptions, and honestly
took up their crosses, and, for a season, maintained a principle of
continency; yet the fountain of iniquity was not discovered; the vail
of the flesh, which is the covering that darkened the sight, was not
yet removed. So great indeed has been the darkness which has
covered the carth, and so benighted were the minds of the great
mass of the professors of christianity, that those souls who were
thus partially enlightened, have generally been stigmatized as
heretics, and have suffered great persecutions on account of their
faith. And tho such souls, like stars in the night, might shine in
the midst of surrounding darkness; yet they could not dispel the
darkness, nor enlighten the carth. This remained to be accom-
plished by the Spirit of Christ in the female. The dawning of the
millennial day, and the rising of the Sun of Righteousness, having
now commenced, will gradually disperse these clouds of darkness,
and ope, the eyes of a benighted world; and then will the lost
state of man be fully displayed in its true colors.
In those parts of the sacred scriptures which relate to the work
of the latter day, we find many figurative and prophetic allusions
to two correspondent powers which are united to accomplish the
same purpose; and the number two is represented in various figures
CHAP. Iv.] CHRIST IN THE FEMALE. 221
which evidently point to the two first pillars of the church of Christ,
and to the united influence of the male and female in the work
of redemption. Such are the two cherubims, whose wings covered
the mercy-seat above the ark;" the two tables of the covenant;f
the two silver trumpets;f the two olive-trees; the two olive-branch-
es; the two golden pipes through which the two olive-branches
emptied the golden oil out of themselves, and “the two Anointed
Ones which stand by the Lord of the whole earth;” and many
others which might be mentioned.
The two cherubims placed over the ark that contained the two
tables of the covenant, were very remarkable types of “the two
Anointed Ones,” the male and the female, who were both united
in the work of redemption; “and the council of peace is between
them both.” Over the ark was placed the mercy-seat of pure gold;
and the two cherubims of gold, of beaten work, were placed on
the ends of the mercy-seat; and their wings were extended on
high, so that they covered the mercy-seat with their wings; and
their faces looked towards each other, and towards the mercy-seat.
These figures are so plain and obvious that it seems as tho they
could not be misunderstood. And the Lord said unto Moses,
“Thou shalt put the mercy-seat above upon the ark; and in the
“ark thou shalt, put the testimony that I shall give thee. And
“ there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from
“ above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which
“are upon the ark of the testimony, of all things which I will give
“ thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.”[[
Here God manifested his mind and will to the people of Israel,
from above the mercy-seat, and from between the two cherubims;
and here they were to look for the word of God in that dipensa-
tion; and hence their addresses to that God who dwelt between
the cherubims.” A striking figure of the true order of the work
of God through the male and female in Christ! Between the two
cherubims, was the mercy-seat from whence the law of God was
declared; which not only pointed out two gospel dispensations,
but also showed, in a figure, that the merciful displays of God’s
grace, in the last dispensation, would proceed from between the
two. And here also was the ark of the testimony, showing that
between the two would be found the everlasting testimony of
truth, in the day of Christ's second appearing. The pure gold
evidently pointed to the purity of the gospel; and the beaten tººk
alluded to the mortification and sufferings, by which the two An-
ointed Ones were to be prepared for that important work which
was to redeem and regenerate a lost world. The two silver trun-
pets were typical of the heralds of Christ, in the male and female,
* Exod. xxv. 18 & xxxvii. 7. i Deut is 15 † Numb x 2.
| Zech. iv. 11, 12 & 14. T Exod. xxv 21, 22. ** 2 Kings. xix. $5. & Isa. xxxvii. 66:
U 2
222 THE MANIFESTATION OF [PART v.
who were to be sent forth to preach the everlasting gospel, which
proceeds from the two Anointed Ones, and which will yet be pro-
claimed to all nations.
The golden candlestick, in the vision of the prophet Zechariah,
represented the revelation of God, in Christ, upon which his church
or spiritual house is built. The golden bowl upon the top of the
candlestick, with its seven lamps, was an emblem of the true church
of Christ, which was to be formed of purified souls, who were pu-
rified by the reſining work of the gospel, as gold is purified in the
furnace. Its being represented by a golden bowl, signified that
its formation was to be according to the perfect order of God’s
workmanship ; and it also prefigured the compact and pure
union of its members. The two olive-trees, one on each side of
it, which supplied the golden bowl with oil, represented the same
work and order of God as did the two cherubims, and were declar-
ed by the angel to be “the two Anointed Ones, that stand by the
Hlord of the whole earth.”
As the golden bowl received the golden oil from the two olive-
trees; so the church of Christ receives the pure oil of light and life
ſrom the trees of life, which are “the two Anointed Ones.” These
are the male and female in Christ, who are anointed with the Di-
wine Spirit of God, and between whom the gifts and graces of the
Spirit flow to the church. And the seven pipes to the seven lamps,
by which they were supplied with the oil of light from the two
olive-trees, represented the manifestations of the seven Spirits of
God, through Christ, to the church. The seven lamps signified
the operations of these seven Spirits in the church, by which the
church is enlightened with the true light, and by which it becomes
the light of the world. These types and figures are plain and sig-
nificant, and the objects to which they allude are so evident, that
they cannot, with any consistency, be any otherwise applied, nor
be ſulfilled in any other manner than according to the preceding
}llustration.* -
As a further evidence in favor of the manifestation of Christ in
the female, we find in the prophet Jeremiah, this testimony: “The
* Lord hath created a new thing in the earth, A woman shall com-
“pass a man.” Many suppose that this alluded to the virgin
Mary, as encompassing the man Jesus, who was born of her. But
in this sense, every woman who conceives and brings forth a man
child, may be said to compass a man; and therefore that is not
“ a new thing in the earth;” of course it cannot be the meaning of
ſhe prophecy. This prophecy evidently alluded to the female in
whom the second appearance of Christ was to commence: for
* These types and figures certainly represent the order of the spiritual work of Gºd, and
st any are disposed to dispute the preceding illustration, it will be incumbent on them &
furnish a more rational explanation,
* Jer. xxxi. 22.
CHAP. lv.] CHRIST IN THE FEMALE. 223
being endowed with such an extraordinary measure of the Spirit of
Christ, she was able to compass and surpass the natural man, with
all his wisdom, and all his knowledge and understanding of di-
vine things, and did, in truth, effectually do it.
We have also further evidence from the parables and testimony
of Jesus Christ himself, that his second coming would be manifest-
ed by the female. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto a cer-
“tain king, who made a marriage for his son.” This parable is
so plain and pointed that it cannot be mistaken, nor misapplied
without the grossest perversion of language. There can be no
marriage without a bridegroom and a bride. In this parable it is
generally admitted that Jesus Christ alluded to himself as the Bride-
groom; but who is the Bride? It has generally been supposed that
the church was alluded to as the Bride; indeed this seems to be
the general opinion of expositors. But if the church is to be con-
sidered as the Bride, then who are the guests: They must certainly
be an assembly of people, male and female, who are invited to
the marriage, and have the honor of sitting down to the marriage
supper with the Bridegroom and Bride. These evidently consti-
tute the church, which is made up of the faithful, who are called
to attend the marriage of the Lamb and Bride. It would be a
very singular sort of marriage for the bridegroom, instead of taking
a chosen female for his bride, to take all his guests, both male and
female, and call them the bride. If this be the true meaning of
the parable, then the figure, by which Jesus Christ chose to repre-
sent his marriage, does not agree with the substance, and was there-
fore very improperly chosen. The figure, in this sense, would
be much more complete in its order, than the substance which it
was chosen to represent.
The parable of the wise and foolish virgins, which also alludes to
the same subject, is very plain and pointed. No one can reason-
ably dispute that these virgins were designed to represent the wise
and foolish professors of christianity. Nor will any one be at a
loss to know who is meant by the Bridegroom. But where is the
Bride? She must evidently be a distinct character from the ten
virgins. Who then is she? A bridegroom necessarily supposes a
bride also, whether she be mentioned or not; it would therefore
be very inconsistent to call the Lord Jesus a Bridegroom, without
admitting him to have a Bride: “For the marriage of the Lamb is
come, and his wife hath made herself ready.” But if the church
is to be considered as the Bride, then who are the great multitude
that rejoice because the marriage of the Lamb is come? Again:
“Blessed are they who are called to the marriage supper of the
Lamb.” These are they that rejoice; and these are evidently
the church, distinct from the Bride.
* Matt. xxii. 2. f See Matt, Kxv. 1, # Rev, xix. 7 & 9,
224 SPIRITUAL REGENERATION [PART v.
It is not to be denied that the prophets and apostles often spoke
of the church in the feminine gender, and they sometimes spoke of
the church as being married to Christ. Thus saith the apostle Paul
to the Corinthians; “I have espoused you to one husband, that I
may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.” But the time for the
Bride to be revealed had not then arrived; and therefore she was
often spoken of in a figurative sense. The church was the body
of Christ: and as Adam had a body containing the substance of
male and female, before Eve was taken from it; so had Christ.
Therefore as Christ had then been manifested in the male only,
and not in the female, the apostles were under the necessity of
speaking as they did, and they could not in truth speak otherwise,
till the female was taken from his body, and placed in her proper
order, as a distinct character. But the time is now arrived, and
the female is made manifest; therefore it is no longer necessary to
use figurative language in speaking of these things: for we can
now plainly declare the Spirit and the Bride.
“The Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let him that hear-
“eth say, Come. And let him that is athirst, come; and whoso-
“ever will, let him take of the water of life freely.”f Here the
Spirit and the Bride are first distinctly mentioned as inviting souls
to come to the fountain of life, and partake of its waters. Should
it still be contended that by the Bride, is here meant the church,
we would ask, who then are those that hear? “Let him that hear-
eth say, Come.” This alludes to a character of people already
called, expressly distinct from the Spirit and the Bride, and who
are called upon to invite souls to come, and evidently applies to
the church. The voice of the Spirit and the Bride is to the church.
The church heareth, and having received the Spirit of the “two
Anointed Ones,” is therefore ready to declare the same call of the
gospel to other souls, who are hungering and thirsting after righ-
teousness. “Let him that is athirst, come; and whosoever will;”
let all the lost children of men, who feel their loss, and are willing
to accept the offers of the gospel, come and “take the water of life
freely.”
*º lºº
CHAPTER V.
Spiritual Regeneration and the New Birth.
REGENERAtion, in its general sense, signifies a renovation or
forming anew that which had been previously formed. Sometimes
it is used merely to imply the restoration of any thing to a state
from which it had fallen by corruption, decay or some other means;
sometimes it signifies a renewing of the original principles of the
* 2 Cor, xi, 2% 7 Rev. xxii, 17.
CHAP. v.] AND THE NEW BIRTH. 225
old, and establishing them upon a different foundation. And it is
generally expected that the new, being built upon the improvements
of time and experience, will be superior to the old. But when we
speak of spiritual regeneration, as applied to mankind, we mean,
not merely a restoration to the state of innocence in which man
was first created;” but a renovation of the whole soul and life of
the man, in such a manner as to raise him, not only from the state
into which he is fallen, but into a life of righteousness and true ho-
liness, far superior to his primitive state, even into a state of eternal
life, from which he never can fall.
As the act of generation, and the bringing forth of a natural
offspring, are two different and distinct operations, and the former
necessarily precedes the latter; so it is in spiritual regeneration
and the new birth. The child of God must be begotten in the
spirit, by the word of life, and travel in the spiritual regeneration,
till he comes to the new birth, before he can be born into the real
nature and life of Christ. This work first began in Jesus Christ;
and no one was ever born out of the flesh, into the Kingdom of
Heaven before him.
The patriarchs and prophets, previous to the coming of Christ,
were moved by the Holy Spirit, as a spirit of prophecy, which tes-
tified of the coming of Christ in the flesh, in a future day, to raise
man out of the nature of the flesh, into the nature of the Spirit.
But this Spirit did not take up its abode in any ; so as to become
the divine life of the soul, and direct all its faculties; therefore none
of them were raised out of the nature of the flesh, but they all still
remained natural people. Nevertheless, they were accepted of
God, according to the work of that day, in living up to their best
light; and when they had done with time, they slept with their
fathers, were gathered to their own people, and rested in peace.
Thus they were “taken away from the evil to come.”f Or as the
apostle expresses it, “These all died in faith, not having received
“the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuad-
“ed of them.” And again: “These all, having obtained a good
“report through faith, received not the promise: God having pro-
“vided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be
“made perfect.”f
It appears to be a prevailing opinion, that those who died in
faith, before the coming of Christ, were immediately received into
Heaven. If this be so, they must have received the promise,
which is contrary to the express declaration of the apostle, just
quoted. And Jesus himself hath also declared that, “No man
“hath ascended up to Heaven, but he that came down from Hea-
* If this were all that man could gain by regeneration, he would be equally liable to fall
again, and of course would never be out of danger.
f See Isa. lvii. 1. f Heb. xi. 13, 39, 40.
226 SPIRITUAL REGENERATION [PART W.
“ven, even the Son of man which is in Heaven.”* Whatever
doctrines may be taught to the contrary, it appears evident from
the preceding testimonies, that all who lived before the coming
of Christ, were waiting for the fulfilment of the promises, and ex-
pected the way into Heaven to be opened by Christ, and that none
of all the human race could enter there, until he had first opened
the way. The apostle understood this: speaking of the entrance
of the high priest, once a year, into the most holy place, he saith;
“The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of
“ all, was not yet made manifest.”f If, therefore, the way into
the holy place was not then made manifest, it is certain that no one
could have entered into it.
Here the question will probably be asked, What then became
of those who died in faith, if they did not go to Heaven? Surely
you will not say, they went to hell ? By no means. As before
observed, they were gathered to their people, and rested in peace;
“each one walking in his uprightness.”f But where was their
resting place P and where did they walk in their uprightness? If
they neither went to heaven nor hell, and yet walked in their up-
rightness, they must have been some where.
The opinion which generally prevails, concerning the spiritual
world, even among those who call themselves christians, seems to
be confined to a heaven and a hell, both of which they imagine to
be materiate places, fixed at an immense distance from this world,
and from each other. They also suppose that when a soul leaves
the body, it goes immediately to heaven or hell; and that there is
no other place for the habitation of souls: consequently, that im-
mense space between them must be a perfect void. These erro-
neous ideas evidently proceed from the want of spiritual light, and
the prejudice of education. “Thus saith the Lord, Heaven is my
throne, and the earth is my footstool.”|| Hence the place between
them cannot be a void. -
The connexion between the temporal and spiritual world, is
like that of soul and body. Man, being composed of the natural
elements, is the offspring of the world in its highest degree of per-
fection ; the spiritual and temporal parts being united in him, he
comes forth with a soul and body, and thereby shows the order
from whence he proceeded. When a soul leaves the body, being
still a living and conscious being, it moves in the elements of the
spiritual world, while the body, being dead, soon dissolves and
mingles again with the elements of the temporal world.
The distance between God and man, and between heaven and
hell, is not measured by space, as we measure distances on earth.
The fulness of Heaven itself, is a state of perfect separation from
all evil, and contains the highest perfection of order, glory and
* John iii, 13. f Heb. ix. 8. * Isa, lvii. 2, | Isa. lxvi. 1,
CHAP. v.] AND THE NEW BIRTH. 227
happiness. Hell, in its fulness, is a state of entire separation from
all good, and the source of all evil, disorder and confusion; and
hence it forms a situation of the most awful and excessive horror
and misery. Between these two, there is an infinity of different
states and situations of souls, both in the body and out of it, each
containing different degrees of good or evil, according to their
good or evil works. And hence it is, that, as the soul is the real
acting principle in man; so when souls leave the body, and are
waked up to see and feel their real situation in the world of spirits,
they find their reward to be according as their works have been
in this world. Man, in his natural state, is under the vail of the
flesh, which shuts him from a real view of either heaven or hell.
His nearness to hell is measured by the proportion of evil which
exists and reigns in him; his nearness to heaven, by the propor-
tion of good which he has attained, and which has become a ruling
principle in his soul.
Hence those who were faithful to the light of God before Christ
appeared, in whatever degree that light was given them, were
accounted righteous, and were so far governed by heavenly influ-
ences; and hence they felt peace; and when they left this world,
they rested in that peace which they had obtained by their obedi-
ence. But they could not enter into the heavenly state; because
the way was not then opened by which they could travel out of
the life of nature, by regeneration, and be born into a heavenly
and eternal life. And the way could not be opened until sufficient
power was manifested in fallen nature, to raise souls out of the life
of that nature, into a heavenly life. This never took place until it
was manifested in the person of Jesus.
A man must be born into this natural world, of the substance of
natural life, before he can become a living being in this world;
and being so born, he becomes a natural man, soul and body, and
must forever remain in a state of nature, unless he can be born
again: for unless his soul can be born into the heavenly world, of
the substance of eternal life, he never can become a living being in
that world. Mankind being in a natural state, and being lost from
God, it is evident that they had not etermal life in them. Christ
was therefore sent as a Redeemer, to redeem them from their lost
state, and fit them for the “new heavens and new earth, wherein
dwelleth righteousness,” which God had promised by the mouth
of the prophet Isaiah.” This work is to be effected by regenera-
tion, and by this means eternal life is administered to man; and
it is impossible that the work should ever be effected, or that eter-
mal life should ever be obtained in any other way. -
Tho Jesus Christ had a mirac.lous birth, yet “he took not on
“ him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abra-
* See Isa. lxv. 17. and lzvi. 22, also 2 Pet. iii. 13,
228 f SPIRITUAL REGENERATION [PART W
“ham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like
“unto his brethren.” Hence it appears that nothing was except
ed, not even the death of the fall. It is therefore evident that he
was born into a fallen nature, with all its propensities. This na.
ture he received, through the medium of his natural birth, of the
Virgin Mary; therefore he necessarily had a progressive travel out
of it. And by yielding obedience to the will of his heavenly Pa.
rents, he overcame the power of that death which reigned in the
fallen nature of man, and rose triumphant out of it; and was thus
formed into the very nature of eternal life, the elements of which
he had received from his Eternal Parents. Thus he was “the
“first begotten from the dead, and the firstborn among many
“ brethren.”f
Hence it is evident that the work of regencration first commenc-
ed in him : for if any one had ever been born into eternal life be-
fore Jesus Christ came into the world, and passed through the new
birth, he could not have been the firstborn. Therefore he was
evidently the beginning of the new and eternal creation of God.
Having gained eternal life in himself, he could, through a proper
medium, transmit that life to Adam's posterity. “For as the
“Father hath life in himself, so he hath given to the Son to have
“life in himself.”f
The new birth was not even taught before Christ was manifest-
ed in the flesh, in the person of Jesus; and Jesus having been the
first who travelled in the regeneration and received the spiritual
birth, he was the first to teach it to others. He was the first who
said, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of
God.” This was a matter of great wonder to Nicodemus; and
this spiritual birth has always been a mystèry to the natural man,
and must always remain so, until he becomes enlightened, by the
true light, to see the operations of the Spirit of God: for as his
sense is natural, he may hear of such a work as being born again;
but it is to him like the sound of the wind, “he cannot tell whence
it cometh nor whither it goeth.” And tho modern christians pro-
fess full faith in it; yet it appears that even their most learned di-
vines, so called, are as insensible of the nature of it, and the man-
ner in which it is to be effected as Nicodemus was. Hence it is
that they consider the work of generation and regeneration as by
no means inconsistent with each other; or in other words, that a
man may be regenerated and born of God, and yet be as actively
concerned in the work of natural generation afterwards as before.
They seem to be ignorant that those who are born by the Spirit
of Christ, through the process of regeneration, are born out of the
nature of the flesh, and therefore become entirely dead to genera-
tion; and hence also it is, that they blend the regeneration and
* Heb. ii. 16, 17. Rev. i. 5i & Rom. viii. 28. John v. 20. John hi. S.
CHAP. V.] AND THE NEW BIRTH, 229
t
the new birth into one and the same thing, and call it an instanta-
neous work. But we would ask, Where them, is the resemblance
between this kind of spiritual conception and birth, and that which
is natural, and which is a figure of it? We might, with equal pro-
priety, suppose the natural conception, travail and birth to be one
and the same thing, and call that an instantaneous work, while all
the productions of the natural world teach us the contrary. But
as the natural conception, or planting the seed of natural life, and
the birth of natural offspring, are operations entirely distinct from
each other; and as the travail of generation commences with the
former, and is completed in the latter; so is the planting of the
seed of eternal life in the soul; and so is the travail of the regene-
ration and the spiritual birth, which are truly prefigured by the
natural.
According to the testimony of St. John, “Whosoever is born of
“God, sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God, keepeth him-
“self, and that wicked one toucheth him not.” Hence it appears
evident that, in the regeneration, a man must be both begotten and
born ; of course there must necessarily be a spiritual father and
mother in the work of regeneration, as really as a natural father
and mother in the work of generation. And as it is by natural
generation that the kingdoms of this world have been peopled by
a race of natural men and women; so it is by spiritual regenera-
tion that the Kingdom of Heaven must be peopled by a race of
spiritual men and women. And as the natural offspring of the
first Adam and Eve have received the nature of the wicked one,
through the corporeal union of their earthly parents, in the work
of generation; so the spiritual offspring of the second Adam and
Eve must receive the nature of the Holy One, through the spirit-
ual union of their heavenly parents, in the work of regeneration.
But the work of generation, being corrupted by the fall, must
be put away, and cease in man, before the work of regeneration
can have any salutary effect upon the soul : for souls must be born
out of the nature of the flesh, in order to be born into the nature
of the Spirit. “That which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and that
which is born of the Spirit, is spirit.”f That which is born of the
flesh, is subject to death and all the deplorable effects of the fall;
but that which is born of the Spirit, is born into eternal life, and
can neither die nor fall. Therefore, when souls are really born of
God, they become the offspring of eternal life; and it is then im-
possible that they should ever beget a natural posterity: for being
in eternal life, and having the power of eternal life in themselves,
their offspring, if they ever have any, must also be born into eter-
nal life, and therefore can never die nor fall. If therefore, those
who profess to be born of God, do beget a natural offspring, sub-
* I John v. 18. f John iii. 6.
230 SPIRITUAT, REGENERATION [PART W’,
ject to death and the fall, it is a decisive proof that they are not
born of God, but are still a natural people, still in the flesh, and
under the fall, notwithstanding all their professions.
It is a truth generally acknowledged, that the secret influence of
the serpent, which first occasioned man’s fall, found its entrance
into human nature, through the female. And it is equally true,
that the very foundation of man’s loss centers in the work of car-
mal coition. Hence all mankind are brought into the world in a
fallen state, by the female, through the agency of this work. It
was therefore indispensibly necessary, for the final restoration of
man to eternal life, that the Spirit of Christ should be revealed in
that sex where sin first began; and there destroy that enchanting
influence which the woman received from the serpent, that alluring
power by which the matural man is led, and through which the
fall of man was first produced.
By thus raising the female from the lowest state of the fall, and
purifying her from all its baleful corruptions, she is made a fit tem-
ple for the Holy Spirit to dwell in. And being divested of that
emchanting power, so alluring to the carnal lover, she becomes an
amiable pattern of Divine love, unmixed with the deceitful blam-
dishments of sensual desire, and is able to bring forth the true spir-
itual seed of the new and spiritual creation. Thus a foundation is
laid to undermine the power and influence of the serpent in the
human race; and thereby the true seed is brought forth which
raises man from the union and relation of a carnal nature, into the
very nature and spiritual union of Christ.
By this means the root of human depravity is destroyed and
rooted out of the very soil where it was first planted; and this
could never have been done without the manifestation of Christ in
the female, where the evil seed was first sown. For if the Spirit
of Christ could not have descended to the lowest depth of man's
loss, even to the depth of Sataa's power and influence in mankind,
then the evil seed must still have been below the reach of Christ;
and therefore it could never be eradicated, and consequently the
redemption of mankind could never be accomplished.
Again; it must appear obvious, that if Divine Wisdom had de-
signed that Christ should ever be manifested in the female sex,
for the purpose of raising them to their proper order in the work
of redemption, (which none can reasonably dispute,) there must be
a beginning; and this manifestation must first commence in one
woman, and from her be extended to others; and it must necessa-
rily appear and be confirmed to others, by the fruits and works
brought forth by her. As the true character of Christ in the male,
was first manifested in Jesus; so the true character of Christ in the
female, must first be manifested in that female who first received
the fulness of the same Spirit. And as this correspondent charac-
QHAP. V.] AND THE NEW BIRTH. 231
ter was never displayed in any woman, until it was manifested in
Ann Lee; therefore she must be that distinguished female who
was selected by Divine Wisdom for that very purpose.
The true foundation being thus laid, in both the male and the
female, the work of God proceeds by a corresponding spiritual
union and relation between them, through which souls are regene-
rated, and born into the everlasting Kingdom of Christ. And
without this correspondence, the work of the new creation could
not proceed, any more than the work of the old creation could go
on without a natural correspondence between the male and female.
Hence it appears evident, that the work of regeneration and the
new birth could not be accomplished until the second appearing of
Christ. -
But so far as the apostles and primitive christians, who received
the testimony of Christ, were separated from the course of the
world, they were gathered, by his Spirit, into a work of renovation,
and were formed into a united body, in which the Holy Spirit
dwelt, as “the Comforter,” to lead and guide them in the truth,
agreeable to the promise of Christ to his disciples.” Yet no mem-
ber of that body was really born into the elements of eternal life,
so as to become a being with eternal life in himself. The primi-
tive christians were therefore moved by the Holy Spirit, as an
abiding Spirit of promise, and an earnest of the new birtin, to be
accomplished in a future day. If this were not the case, why did
the apostle say, “The earnest expectation of the creature, waiteth
“for the manifestation of the sons of God : and not only they, but
“ourselves also, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we
“ourselves, groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to
“ wit, the redemption of our body.”f
By the expression, our body, he alluded to the body of the
faithful, of which the apostles were members. Again he saith,
“We are saved by hope. But hope that is seen is not hope: for
“what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for P But if we hope
“for that we see not, them do we with patience wait for it.”f Thus
it appears that none, in that day, had attained to the fulness of re-
demption and the new birth; but they were waiting with patience
for its accomplishment. For had they received it, they would not
have been waiting in hope, for that which they did not see. Hence
it is evident that the apostle did not expect the accomplishment of
it in that day.
The work of Christ’s first appearing, was to establish the prin-
ciples of the new and spiritual creation; to separate between the
true spiritual light, and spiritual darkness; and between the spir-
itual and natural elements ; to form the ground or soil, for the
growth of the spiritual seed. By this he laid the foundation of the
* 3ee John xvi, 7 & 83. t Rom, viii. 19 & 23, # See verse 24 & 25,
232 SPIRITUAL REGENERATION [PART V.
“new heavens and the new earth,” which are the principles of
righteousness, and in which is the seed of eternal life, by which
souls are to be created anew, through Christ, into an eternal and
immortal state. Thus he prepared, and set in order, eternal man-
sions, where souls could be gathered and placed in their proper
order, in his everlasting Kingdom. For he saith, “I go to prepare
“a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I
“will come again, and receive you to myself; that where I am,
“there ye may be also.” Here he evidently alluded to the time
of his second coming. - -
The operation produced by seed sown in the earth, and the
change effected, before ripe fruit can be brought forth, is a figure
of the work of regeneration. Seed sown in the earth, must die
before it can bring forth fruit; but being quickened, and properly
mourished by the natural elements, it springs up, grows and pro-
duces fruit, f which, when ripe, is gathered; but the stalk that bore
it is left in the earth: hence it is only the life of the seed which is
brought forth in the fruit.
So the natural man, when sown in the gospel field, must die to
that which is natural and earthly, before he can rise into the life of
Christ. This death is effected by the operation of the seed of
eternal life, by which his soul is begotten in the work of the regen-
eration. And this sced of eternal life, being properly mourished
by the spiritual elements, springs up and grows, and gathers the
spiritual part of the man, which is the life of his soul, into its own
nature, and changes the life of the soul from that which is natural
and earthly, to that which is spiritual and heavenly. Thus it raises
the soul out of the elements of an earthly nature, and leaves them
behind, like the withered and dead stalk and root. And thus ripe
fruit is brought forth, which is not natural and earthly, but spiritual,
heavenly and eternal. And herein are Christ's words fulfilled;
“Whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the
“same shall save it.”f
Tho the primitive christians received the faith of Christ, and
were gathered into the principles of the spiritual work of God;
yet they were not brought forth as ripe fruit in that day. They
were figuratively like seed sown in autumn, which, tho it springs
up, and gives an earnest of ſuture fruit; yet it cannot bring forth
ripe grain in that season; but during the winter, it lies hid in the
earth, and appears as tho it were dead. But when returning
spring appears, the living plant, being quickened by the enlivening
rays of the sun, and properly nourished by the natural elements,
and the refreshing showers and dews of the natural heavens, it
springs up again and grows; and after passing through the various
operations of vegetation, it brings forth ripe grain.
* Yºhn xiv. 2, .’s i See John xii. 24. ; Mark viii. 35.
CHAP. V.] AND THE NEW BIRTH, 233.
Thus it was with those who were planted in the gospel field, in
the first appearing of Christ. A long and dreary spiritual winter
ensued, and according to the prediction of Jesus Christ, “iniquity
abounded, and the love of many waxed cold.” This was the
effect of the long, gloomy and deplorable reign of Antichrist, which
naturally produced a spiritual winter. In consequence of this, the
spiritual seed, which had sprung up in the primitive church, was
hid in the earth and could not grow. But when the second ap-
pearing of Christ commenced, it was like returning spring. The
spiritual seed, being quickened by the divine influences of the Sun
of righteousness, and nourished by the refreshing showers and
dews of the “new heavens,” began to spring up and grow, and
bring forth fruit.
It appears evident from the uniform tenor of the discourses of
Jesus and his apostles on this subject, that they did not expect the
work of full redemption to be accomplished until Christ’s second
appearing: for they frequently exhorted the people to look and
wait for the coming of the Lord. Jesus himself, when speaking to
his disciples of the signs that should precede the coming of the Son
of man, said, “When these things begin to come to pass, then look
“up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.”f
This is not only a proof that their redemption had not been before
obtained, but that all those extraordinary signs, of which he had
spoken, must appear before they could even look for its near ap-
proach.
It is not disputed that the apostles sometimes spoke of the new
birth, and of being born of God, and described the character of
such as receive this birth. But it ought to be considered, in the
first place, that it is usual in the language of revelation, to speak
of future events as tho they were present. And secondly, that the
apostles spake and wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit,
which they had received as a spirit of promise, and which bore
witness, in them, of its future work, of bringing forth souls to God,
in the very essence of eternal life. And it is evident from the tes-
timony of St. John, who spake more concerning the new birth
than the other apostles, that they did not receive the accomplish-
ment of it in that day; but considered it a work to be fulfilled, in
them, in a future day. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God;
“ and it doth not yet appear what we shall be; but we know that
“when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see
“ him as he is.”f But if they had been born of God, this matter
would have appeared very plain to them. Hence it also appears
that he did not expect the full manifestation of this work, until the
second appearing of Christ. But he evidently shows, as did St.
* See Matt. xxiv, 12, # Luke xxi 28 # 1 John iii, 2.
234 spikiTUAL REGENERATION, &c. [PART v.
Paul also, that they “knew in part, and prophesied in part.”
Consequently they could but in part see the work of regeneration.
But it may be asked, How then were they the sons of God?
We answer; By adoption. “Ye have received the Spirit of adop-
tion.” And again: “That we might receive the adoption of sons.”f
But if they were the real sons of God, where was the necessity of
adoption? The reality was evidently designed to take place in a
future day, when the manifestation of Christ should appear in the
order of the female, as the Mother Spirit, to bear souls to God;
and being already the sons of God by adoption, they would then
be brought forth as the real children of God. And this was the
work for which they were waiting.
It may be proper to remark here, that if souls can be regenera-
ted and born of God, agreeable to the common opinion of modern
shristians, without a complete renovation of the whole soul, from
the life of Adam to the life of Christ, and without the united influ-
ence of spiritual parents, in the order of male and female; then the
laws of regeneration must not only be at variance with all the rest
of God’s works, but they must also be very deficient and imperfect
in their order, having no relative connexion with the order of the
natural creation in any of its productions. In this case, the pro-
ductions of the natural creation, and the birth of natural offspring,
which are but merely temporal, must be more perfect, in their order,
than those of heavenly birth, which are spiritual and etermal. This
is making the figure more perfect than the substance: for natural
generation, which is but a figure of spiritual regeneration, is effect-
ed by the united operations of male and female.
But if spiritual regeneration and the new birth, is the work of a
father only, then the female is entirely excluded from any part in
it; consequently no woman can ever enter the Kingdom of Hea-
ven. How then is the regeneration to be perfected P and how are
souls to be brought to the birth P According to this doctrine, the
natural birth, as a figure of the spiritual, is very improperly cho-
sen; in truth it can be no figure at all. Therefore, admitting the
common opinion of the new birth, it must be a mere speculative
and imaginary thing, and can have no foundation in the established
order of God’s works.
But we admit that there is this difference between the work of
generation and regeneration: as the former is natural in all its
operations; so the latter, in all its operations, is spiritual. By the
former, a conscious being is brought into ºatural existence, who
had no agency or will in the work; by the latter, this conscious
being is brought into a spiritual and eternal existence. And as
the work is wrought upon the soul of a conscious being, it cannot
be accomplished without the free agency and willing obedience of
that soul. w
* See 1 Cor xiii. 9. t Sce Rom. viii 15. and Gal. iv. º.
CHAP. vi.] BAPTISM AND THE LORD's suppER, 233
The primitive christians, who were faithful according to the
work of their day, and gave up their lives for their testimony,
“rested in peace, and walked in their uprightness,” and were
sheltered from the corruptions, storms and distresses which pre-
vailed in Antichrist's kingdom. But they were placed “under the
altar;” which showed that they had a further work to do, and a
further sacrifice to make; otherwise they would not have been
seen under the altar.” And tho “white robes were given them;”
yet they had still to rest until the time of that dispensation was
ended. But when the time arrived for the Bride to be declared,
and the marriage of the Lamb took place, then they rose with that
great multitude, that rejoiced and praised God; because the day
of redemption had fully arrived, and that spiritual union, by which
the new birth could be fully effected, was now made manifest.
Therefore they could now be brought forth, each one, as it were,
a ripe grain, endowed with the very life of Christ. And now they
were able to come into their proper lot and order, in the everlasting
Kingdom of Christ.
This great spiritual work has now commenced. And as grain
that is sown in the spring, if properly nourished by the natural
elements, springs up, grows and brings forth fruit in the same sea-
son, without passing through the chilling blasts of winter; so all
souls, who are partakers of the work of this great day, will be nour-
ished by the spiritual elements of eternal life, and will grow into
the very nature of Christ, and bring forth the precious fruits of the
gospel, without being exposed to those chilling blasts of ecclesias-
tical tyranny which once bound the heavens and earth in a spiritu-
al winter. Those gloomy clouds of religious intolerance, and pelt-
ing storms of persecution, which once deformed the heavenly
atmosphere, and deluged the earth with blood, are now blown
away; and the cheering spring of Christ’s second appearance is
now made manifest, and will extend from clime to clime, and from
shore to shore, until “all the ends of the earth shall see the salva-
tion of the Lord;” and all shall have an opportunity to come into
its work, and enjoy its blessings, to their etermal glory; or to re-
ject it to their everlasting destruction.
—---
CHAPTER VI.
Concerning Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
BAPTISM and the Lord's supper have, for many ages, been con-
sidered by the great body of professing christians, as institutions
of Divine appointment, and necessary to be observed as distinguish-
ing ceremonies of the christian religion. They are denominated
* See 13-ey, vi, 9,
236 BAPTISM. [PART W.
“christian sacraments,” and are esteemed by many as essential to
salvation. We have therefore thought proper to treat of them in
a separate chapter, and to make such remarks upon them as we
trust will lead the candid and unbiassed mind to view them in their
true light.
The many different opinions and jarring contentions that have
long existed among the professors of christianity, concerning these
two ceremonies, are so many evidences that their most strenuous
votaries have fixed their views on mere shadows and signs, instead
of embracing the real spirit and substance of Divine life to which
they alluded. The great importance which has long been attach-
ed to the external performance of these ceremonies, and the ages
of contention which have darkened and bewildered the world on
these subjects, first originated in antichristian darkness, aſier the
church had lost the real knowledge of the true spiritual work of
God. We shall therefore proceed to speak of these two subjects
separately.
FIRST, Concerning Baptism. That the true principle of bap-
tism is a divine institution, and essentially necessary to salvation,
is indisputable: for, according to the express declaration of Jesus
Christ, “IHe that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” Yet
a man may believe that Jesus Christ came into the world, and was
crucified and died on Mount Calvary for sinners, and may also
be baptized with water, and still be utterly destitute of the true
faith and principles of the gospel; and therefore be as far from
following Christ in a life of righteousness, as those who never heard
his name. And as such a one gives no evidence of his having re-
ceived the promise of salvation, it must appear obvious that, not-
withstanding his water-baptism, he has not received the true bap-
tism of Christ.
It is worthy of remark, that in all the instructions of Jesus to
his disciples, he never once directed them to baptize with water:
hence it is evident that he did not require it of them. The baptism
of Christ is not the baptism of water, but of the Holy Spirit. . And
does it appear reasonable to suppose that he would send his disci-
ples to baptize with John's baptism, and not with his own P “Ye
“shall indeed drink of my cup,” said he, “and be baptized with
“ the baptism that I am baptized with.”f Surely he could have no
reference to water-baptism; for these disciples had doubtless been
baptized with water already. Again he said, “John indeed bap-
“tized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the IIoly Ghost.”f
* Mark X vi 16 t \ia it xx 23.
# Acts i. 5, and xi, I6. Many indeed admit a differince between the baptism of John, and
that of Christ; but seem to suppose that the only essential difference consists in the different
character and calling of each, and suppose that the common element of water was inade use
of in both cases; but that the baptism of Christ was administered “In the uame of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.” As to the controversies which have long
existed, with respect to the mode of administration, whether it should be done by dipping or
sprinkling, they are contentions about names and figures, just like all other contentions i
Antichrist's kingdom; while they quarrel about the shadow, they overlook the substance.
CHAP. VI.] BAPTISM. 237
Thus it appears evident that the true baptism of Christ, is a spir-
itual work, of which John's baptism was but a figure. As water
washes and cleanses the body from outward pollutions; so the
true baptism of the water of life washes and cleanses the soul from
all the pollutions of sin. It is a purifying operation of the elements
of the Holy Spirit, which must run through the whole travel of
the believer, unto perfect sanctification, cleansing the soul from an
evil conscience, and from all corrupt propensities: “Having our
“hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed
“with pure water;” even the water of life.”
By this washing and cleansing, faithful believers are gradually
baptized into the one body of Christ, where the Spirit of Christ
becomes their life, and rules and reigns in them: for there is
“One Lord, one faith, and one baptism.” If there is but one
baptism pertaining to the true christian faith, there certainly can-
not be two. Which then is it? Is it the baptism of natural water,
or of the water of life from the Holy Spirit P. The apostle has clear-
ly decided this question: “For by one Spirit are we all baptized
“into one body, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether bond or free,
“ and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.—Now the Lord
“is that Spirit.”f The testimony of John the Baptist is also plain
and decisive: “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance;
“but he that cometh after me, is mightier than 1, whose shoes I
“ am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy
“Ghost and fire.” Thus it appears that the baptism of Christ is
the baptism of the Spirit, and not of water.
But it may be urged, that Jesus himself went down into the
water and was baptized of John. This is true; and it is equally
true that he was circumcised, that he offered sacrifices and kept
the law. John came under the law, and the baptism of water was
instituted under the law; and as the law was a shadow of good
things to come, and not the substance; so John's baptism was a
shadow of that baptism which was to be manifested through Christ.
Therefore Jesus Christ, previous to the commencement of his min-
istry, kept the law, and passed through John's baptism; and thereby
acknowledged and fulfilled the work of God in the preceding dis-
pensations. This is agreeable to his own testimony: “For verily
“I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle
“shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” He
was indeed the first that ever perfectly kept the law of God. When
therefore he had perfectly fulfilled the law, he put an end to all its
figurative ceremonies. “For Christ is the end of the law for righ-
teousness to every one that believeth.”
* Heb. x 22 The apostle evidently alluded to the water of life; for, strictly speaking,
nojnatural water can be called pure; nor can the heart of a living man be sprinkled with it,
f Eph. iv. 5. # 1 Cor, xii. 13. & 2 Cor. iii. 17 | Matt ili lis
*í Mait. W 13. ** Roſa. x, 4.
238 |BAPTISM.I. [PART v.
As John's baptism was under the dispensation of the law, and
was, at most, but a figure or shadow of the true baptism of Christ;
therefore, when the baptism of the Holy Ghost was introduced,
which was the real baptism of Christ, there could be no further
need of the shadow; nor could it be of any possible use to those
who understood the substance.
It is not to be denied that the apostles and primitive christians
did, in some instances, use water baptism; but it is equally true that
they also used circumcision and other Jewish ceremonies.* Paul
circumcised Timothy; yet he declared that circumcision was
nothing: may more; “I, Paul, say unto you, that if ye be circum-
“cised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify to every
“man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.”f
That is; if he chuse to depend on the law, he must keep every
part of it; but even then, he cannot be benefitted by the privileges
of the gospel of Christ; because he has chosen the law and placed
his trust in that, and not in the gospel of Christ.
Paul circumcised Timothy to prevent occasion of reproach from
the Jews, that his doctrine might thereby be accessible to them.
For the same cause he was counselled by the elders at Jerusalem,
to purify himself after the manner of the law, and make an offering
in the temple. He also baptized a few at Corinth, and thanked
God that he had baptized no more, declaring at the same time,
that Christ sent him not to baptize, but to preach the gospel.j But
if water-baptism was really an institution of the gospel, it must
have been connected with the preaching of the gospel; why then
was he not sent to administer it P But it is clearly evident that he
performed these ceremonies to accommodate himself to the state
of the people; to become all things to all men, that he might save
SO]]] 6.
We are however, very far from condemning water-baptism, or
any other religious ceremony which is conscientiously performed,
as a religious duty; especially if attended with any beneficial effects
in reforming the lives of the persons concerned, and keeping them
from the snares of sin. But it often happens that people, under
the conviction of sin, will resort to water-baptism and other reli-
gious ceremonies, to ease the reproaches of conscience, and then
settle down under the cover of some established religious denomi-
nation, and soon leaven into the same lifeless state, with a full per-
suasion that they are now become christians, while the real princi-
ples and practice of their lives continue the same as before. Thus
they grasp at the shadow, but lose the substance. In such cases,
their water-baptism serves only to extinguish the fire of the Spirit,
which had been burning in their consciences and produced con-
viction of sin, and which ought to burn till sin is consumed out of
* See Acts xv. 1, 3, and xxi. 20 to 26. f Gal. v. 2, 3. : $ce 1 Cor. i. 14 to 17.
CHAP. VI.] THE LoRD’s SUPPER. - 239
the soul. But water-baptism never can wash away sin, nor justify
the soul. -
But the only true baptism which can profit the soul, is that of
“ the Holy Ghost and fire.” This baptism will burn up and de-
stroy the base and unclean passions and propensities of man’s fal-
len nature, and thus effectually consume all the dross of the soul;
and in this operation it will prepare the soul for the refreshing
streams of the waters of life, which will cleanse, purify and invigo-
rate every faculty, and eventually raise the soul into the very na-
ture and heavenly life of Christ. This is the true baptism of Christ;
and this baptism renders all shadows and figures entirely useless.
When souls partake of this baptism, then they know in truth, what
is meant by “the Holy Ghost and fire;” because they experience
its salutary and blessed effects.
SEcoRD, Concerning the Lord's supper. As baptism, or the
washing with water, was a figure of the true baptism of the Holy
Ghost; so that institution which is commonly called, The Lord’s
supper, was also designed as a figure. But what was the import
of this figure ? As water is used to cleanse and refresh the body;
so the water of life will cleanse and refresh the soul : and as bread
is used to nourish and strengthen the body; so the bread of life will
nourish and strengthen the soul. Those outward ceremonies call-
ed baptism and the Lord’s supper, which were sometimes used in
the days of thºapostles, were in substance, practised under the law.”
Hence they must be considered as figures or symbols of spiritual
substances, which were to take place in a future day.
When Jesus Christ kept the Jewish passover for the last time,
he is supposed to have instituted what is called, “the Lord’s supper.”
But it ought to be considered that, in the performance of this cere-
mony, he officiated in a manner similar to that practised by the
head of a Jewish family; and the only alteration that he introduc-
ed and directed his disciples to observe, with regard to this feast of
the passover, was, that they should do it in remembrance of him.
That is ; instead of doing it as they had done, in remembrance of
their deliverance from their Eyptian bondage; they should do it in
remembrance of him who came to deliver them from the bondage
of sin, of which their deliverance from Egypt was but a figure.
But it appears very evident in each place where this transaction of
our Savior is recorded, that it was designed as a figure of a spiritu-
al work to come. The circumstances are particularly stated by
Luke.” “And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to
“eat this passover with you before I suffer; for I say unto you, I
* The wash g with water was a common ceremony which was strictly enjoined under
the law, for tº purpºse of cleansing the body from various kinds of pollution And the
passover was n inst; tırtion kept by the Jews in commemoration of the Lord’s passing over
their heuses when be slew the first-boro of Egypt, and delivered them from their Egyptiao
bondage, T Luke xxii, 7 to 20,
240 THE LORD's suppER. [PART V.
“will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the King-
“dom of God.” & -
The church, or assembly of the faithful, established by the apos-
tles at Jerusalem, “were of one heart and one soul;” and we have
no account that they ever kept any external sacrament, as the
Lord's supper, in any other manner than by eating and drinking
together, daily, as Jesus Christ set them the example while he was
with them. “And all that believed were together, and had all
“things common —and breaking bread from house to house, did
“eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.” It is true
that when the gospel was preached to the Gentiles, those who be-
lieved did not generally come into a united interest; and therefore
could not eat and drink together, daily; hence they came together
at appointed times, and held their love feasts, and eat and drank
together, in remembrance of the last supper of the Lord Jesus
with his disciples. But as they soon fell into disorder in these
things, the apostle Paul interfered, and set proper regulations among
them, and said, “As often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup,
ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.”f
Hence it appears that, tho it might be done to commemorate
the Lord’s death; yet after the second coming of Christ, it could
no longer be necessary; because the reality must then be made
manifest. But where can we find any evidence to show, that the
apostles and primitive christians ever pretended to a ceremonious
consecration of a little bread and wine, and to make a formal dis-
tribution of it among the members of the church, and call it the
sacrament of the Lord's supper? This practice was first introduc-
ed into the church by Gentile philosophers, who professed the
christian faith, and whose object was, (as Dr. Mosheim says,)
“to give their religion a mystic air, in order to put it upon an equal
“footing, in point of dignity, with that of the pagans.” This
was undoubtedly the origin of all those ideas of the mysterious
virtues which have ever been attached to that ceremony.
It is however certain, that if the bread and wine in this ceremo-
ny, are to be considered as symbols of the body and blood of a
dying Savior, they must be symbols of an absent Savior: for there
can be no kind of use in representing the Savior by signs and sym-
bols, when he is really present. Wherever Christ has a true
church, there he abides, and there is his body and blood. The
church of Christ is fed with the bread of life, and refreshed with
the water of life; and this is the body and blood of Christ, and
these united, become the life of his true followers, and of which
they all partake by their union to the body. “If we walk in the
“light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another;
“and the blood of Jesus Christ (that is, his Spirit and life) cleans-
“eth us from all sin.”
* Acts ii. 44 & 46. f I Cor. xi. 26. # Sec Eccl. Hist vol. i. p. 199. 1 John i. 7.
chAP. VI.] THE LORD's suppER. 24 i
Thus the true sacrament of the Lord’s supper is found in the
spiritual union of the saints, who have fellowship one with another,
by walking in the true light which is in Christ; and thus they par-
take of his Spirit and life, according to his own testimony: “I am
“ the bread of life—I am the living bread which came down from
“Heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever.—
“Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood,
“ye have no life in you. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my
“blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh
“my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” This is partaking
of the Lord’s supper in very deed; and they who truly do this,
have the promise of eternal life; and none can ever possess eternal
life, unless they enjoy this holy communion, and really partake
of this food, in its true spiritual sense.
No person can reasonably suppose that Jesus meant that we
must literally eat his flesh and drink his blood, in order to obtain
eternal life. His language on this occasion, as on many others,
was used figuratively, to imply his life and his Spirit. His mean-
ing was, that those who partake of his life and Spirit, will live as
he lived, and walk as he walked; that is, in perfect obedience to
the will of God. “My meat is to do the will of him that sent me,”
said he ; and that which was his meat, became also the meat of
his true followers, who thereby became the members of his body,
and were made partakers with him, of the bread of life which was
manifested in him. This is the food of heavenly minded souls,
and this is the true sacrament, and there is no other. “To him
“ that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna.” And
again; “I will not drink henceforth of the fruit of the vine, until
“that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's King-
dom.”f This remained to be accomplished at the period of his
second coming.
Hence we may see what the true supper of the Lord is; and
what his supper with his disciples was designed to typify : and
when souls really come to partake of this bread, and drink this
wine, they will no longer contend about shadows and signs.
Jesus Christ did not say, “Except ye eat that bread and drink
that wine,” which is called the Lord's supper, “ye have no life in
you.” Yet the professors of christianity, who have been so soli-
citous about the performance of this outward ceremony, instead of
commemorating the dying love of the Divine Redeemer, by par-
taking of his Divine Spirit, and exercising it in love one to another,
have manifested the most bitter animosities towards each other.
The violent contentions among christian professors of former
ages, upon this subject, instead of promoting brotherly kindness,
christian charity and heavenly lové, often led to cruel hatred, blood
* John vi, 42 to 56. f Matt. xxvi. 29, and Rev. ii. 17.
242 THE LORD’s SUPPER. [PART V.
and slaughter. No rational christian can suppose that Christ would
establish an institution calculated to produce wrath and strife, and
that too among christians. And yet the great body of christian
professors of the present day, differ very little, in their views of the
subject, from their antichristian fathers, who contended with such
violence about the shadow, while the real substance was wholly
out of their sight. Thus, while those who call themselves chris-
tians, still continue to contend about the signs of the body and
blood of a Savior, who was crucified on Mount Calvary nearly
eighteen hundred years ago, they are witnesses against themselves,
that the body and blood of a present Savior is not with them.
But we would ask those who are so tenacious of the ceremony
of the bread and wine, why they have neglected another, which
was far more positively enjoined, both by the precept and example
of our Savior P While a pompous display is made of the ceremo-
my of the bread and wine, the command to wash one another's
feet seems to be wholly disregarded. “Supper being ended, Jesus
“rose from the table, and laid aside his garments, and took a tow-
“el and girded himself. Aſter that he poureth water into a bason,
“ and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the
“towel wherewith he was girded.—So after he had washed their
“feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he
“ said unto them, Know ye what I have done unto you? Ye call
“me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then,
“your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, ye also ought to
“wash one another’s feet: for I have given you an evenple, that
“ye should do as I have done to you.”
What rule of action was ever more positively enjoined upon
christians? No exception was firãde to its literal requirement; and
Jesus was evidently the first who introduced it as a Divine com-
mand. Nothing was ever so positively enjoined by him, in favor
of partaking bread and wine as a sacrament. Jesus said to Peter,
“If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.” But he never said,
If ye do not partake of this bread and wine, ye have no part with
me; nor was he the first who introduced it; but as it had been
practiced among the Jews, at the feast of the passover, in commem-
oration of their deliverance from Egypt, he directed his disciples
to do it for a different purpose: “This do in remembrance of me.”
But his command to wash one another’s feet, was a new and more
particular injunction. Why then is the practice neglected by those
who so earnestly contend for the ceremony of the bread and wine?
The answer is obvious: The former is too humiliating an exercise,
and one in which they cannot display so much pomp and parade,
as in eating bread and drinking wine.
The requirements of our Savior were just and reasonable. Ile
* John Xiii. 2 to 15.
CHAP. VI.] THE LORD's suppER. 243
did not come to teach mere lessons of theory; but to inculcate the
principles and practice of virtue. His washing the feet of his dis-
ciples, was an example of his humility, kindness and love; and
where is the real christian who could follow this example, without
possessing a measure of the same virtues 2
But we are told by some great and learned expositors, that our
Savior did not mean to enjoin a literal performance of this ceremo-
ny; and that the disciples knew better than to practice it literally:
that is, according to the opinion of these expositors, they knew
better than to obey the positive command, or to follow the example
of their Lord and Master. But they evidently did practice it;
and it was one of those essential virtuous practices which the
apostle Paul required of widows, to entitle them to admittance into
the joint communion of the church; “If she have washed the saints'
feet;” not, if she have partaken of the bread and wine ; this was
not essential: for this might be done without giving the least proof
of virtuous sincerity. But if the former is not to be literally prac-
ticed, why should the latter? It is certain that the washing of one
another’s feet was literally practiced among the primitive chris-
tians; and it was evidently designed, not only as an outward token
of the inward principle of humility, kindness and charity, but as a
figure of the washing of regeneration, which cleanses the soul from
the pollutions of an earthly nature, in which the feet of all natural
men walk, before they receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
“A new commandment I give unto you,” said Jesus, “That ye
“love one another, as I have loved, you.-By this shall all men
“know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”
Here is a plain and positive command given; and those who faith-
fully obey this command, cannot live in contention and strife; but
will love one another, not in profession and word; but in practical
deeds of kindness and charity. This is a plain and visible criterion
by which all men may see and know who are the true disciples of
Christ. But a great profession of religious love, with all the cere-
monies of consecrated bread and wine added to it, without a cor-
responding practice, is no evidence of discipleship : for such are
often as full of contention and strife, as those who make no pro-
fession at all.
But the greatest practical evidence of genuine love and disinter-
ested benevolence that can be manifested on earth, is found where
all are of one heart and one soul ; where the rich and the poor can,
meet together, and eat and drink at one table, and cheerfully par-
take of one common blessing and interest, and mutually share in
each others comforts and afflictions, both in things spiritual and
temporal. Here souls, by eating and drinking together, in chris-
tian love and harmony, may daily, partake of the Lord's supper,
* John Eiji, 34, 35.
2 #4 THE LORD's SUPPER. [PART W.
according to the manner in which the primitive church partook of
it. Here they may show forth the Lord’s death, in very deed, by
their own example, in showing that he died to a selfish, partial na-
ture; and that they have become partakers of that death, and have
consequently risen with him, into that life which the world, with
all its professions of religion, have never obtained.
Herein they plainly show to all men, that they are partakers of
that real body and blood which is the true life of Christ; and are
fed and nourished by the true bread and wine of his spiritual King-
dom. And in them is truly fulfilled the prayer of the Lord Jesus
to his heavenly Father; “that they may be one, even as we are
one.”
PART VI.
THE FAITH AND PRINCIPLEs of THE New CREATION,
•=sº 4 cºmmºn
CHAPTER I.
The twelve Foundations of the law of Christ, exemplified in the
twelve christian virtues.
THE great principles of the gospel, revived and brought to fight
by Mother Ann, and the succeeding Witnesses, comprise the whole
law of Christ, manifested in this day of his second appearing. The
true nature and character of God can be known only in his Divine
Attributes, which are the seven Spirits of God, represented to
John by the “seven lamps of fire burning before the throne.”
These seven Spirits are the only true source of all divine light,
knowledge and truth, and the only real foundation of all the works
of God revealed to man; and these are manifested in Christ the
Lamb of God. By the operation of these seven Spirits, through
Christ, the foundation, increase, order, beauty and glory of the
new creation is formed, brought forth, and manifested to and in
man. This brings to light the holy city, New-Jerusalem.
“And I John saw the holy city, New-Jerusalem, coming down
“from God out of Heaven, having the glory of God: and her light
“was like unto a stone most precious.” Herein is represented
the true work and glory of God, proceeding from those divine
lamps, or seven Spirits of God: and by these the glory of God is
brought to light, and his spiritual work made manifest to man.
“And he that sat upon the throne, said, Behold, I make all
“things new.”f It is by the operation of his Divine Attributes,
through Christ, that he creates all things new, and establishes the
church of the latter day in all its order and glory. The order of
the church on earth, proceeds immediately from that which is in
Heaven. Indeed the true church of God on earth, is one with
that which is in Heaven; and all who are, in truth, united to that
which is on earth, are also united to that which is in Heaven. This
is agreeable to the declaration of the apostle to the Ilebrews; “Ye
“are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God,
“ the Heavenly Jerusalem.”
And of the holy city it is said, “The glory of God did lighten
it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.” The seven Spirits of God
were the only lights seen before his throne, and the only sight,
power and strength of the Lamb. Nothing therefor, existed in
this holy city, except what proceeded from these seven Spirits.
“And the city lieth four-square; the length and the breath and
the height of it are equal.” That is, it is equally perfect on ali
* Rev. xxi, 2 & 11. Wº: xxi. 5,
W 2
246 THE LAw of cHRIST EXEMPLIFIED [PART v1.
sides. And here it is worthy of particular remark, that all its
measures, all its works, fruits, beauty, order and glory have their
foundation in the number twelve. These represent the twelve
heavenly virtues manifested in Christ; and these are the pillars,
protection and substance of the new and eternal creation of God,
“wherein dwelleth righteousness.” They may be denominated
and arranged in the following order: Faith, Hope, Honesty, Con-
finence, Innocence, Simplicity, Meekness, Humility, Prudence,
Patience, Thankfulness, and Charity.
These twelve virtues, established in the soul, and operating in
perfect harmony, form the internal and everlasting law of Christ.
All other virtues, gifts and graces are the genuine fruits of these
twelve, which are the primary principles of virtue proeeeding from
the Divine Attributes. And altho there may be different names
which imply nearly the same principles; yet names, in themselves
considered, are but mere sounds; it is the real spirit and substance
of these virtues which constitute the principle. These all proceed
directly from the Attributes of God; yet each particular virtue
has a certain relative connection with its correspondent attributes,
from which it more immediately proceeds.
I. FAITH. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”
Divine faith is that pure influence proceeding from the eternal
source of all good, which plants the seed of God in the soul. And
the obedience of faith produces all the virtues of the gospel, “which
is the power of God unto salvation.” True faith proceeds from
the power and light of God, and stands in connection with all his
attributes: “For God who hath commanded the light to shine out
of darkness, hath shined into our hearts.” True faith views every
Divine manifestation to the soul in its true light; and believes
every promise of God, and every display of his power and good-
ness to mankind, to be what they really are.
But those who profess faith in the gospel, and who profess to be
the followers of Christ; and yet do not believe in all the promises
of God, nor in all his declarations through his true witnesses; who
do not believe that every work will be brought into judgment, with
every secret thing, and that every one will be rewarded according
to his works ; who do not believe that Christ is come to open a
way by which souls can be saved from all sin, and that this salva-
tion is really attainable in this life; who do not believe that the
gospel is free for all souls without distinction, and will effectually
save all who believe and obey it; in short, those who do not be-
lieve all these things, are certainly lacking in the true faith of the
gospel of Christ, let their professions be what they may. Or if
they really possess faith, and yet indulge themselves in any thing
which is contrary to their faith; or knowingly neglect any duty
* @ Cor i y 6,
cHAP. .] IN THE Twelve christiAN VIRTUEs. 247
which the gospel requires of them, they are disobedient to faith;
they are not the faithful followers of Christ; they do not keep the
law of Christ, and therefore are not true christians.
II. Hope. Tho souls may receive the true faith of the gospel;
yet without hope, no one would be able to set out in the cross-bear-
ing work which faith unfolds: “For we are saved by hope.”
Divine hope is a display of the power and wisdom of God in the
soul. Hope “hath respect to the recompense of reward.”f It
inspires the soul with confidence in the promises of God, that his
reward is sure. “And every man that hath this hope in him puri-
“fieth himself, even as he is pure.”f Hope is styled in scripture,
“an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast.—Happy is he
“whose hope is in the Lord.”
All doubting in the work of God, is contrary to this hope; and
therefore contrary to genuine christianity. Those who make a
profession of christianity, and, at the same time, distrust the love
and goodness of God, or doubt his mercy or his justice, and have
not full confidence that the power of God, contained in the gospel,
is sufficient to enable them to obey all its requirements, and save
them from all sin, and in the end reward them with a crown of
everlasting life, without any hinderance of the decrees or foreknow-
ledge of God, or any thing inconsistent with their own free-agency,
are without true gospel hope, and therefore are not true christians.
If they are ashamed of the testimony of the gospel, or of the works
of godliness, in any respect, or do any thing whatever, of which
they are ashamed, they act contrary to the divine virtue of hope :
for “hope maketh not ashamed.”
III. HoNESTY. Neither faith nor hope can bring forth good
fruit, unless they are received “in an honest and good heart.”
Agreeable to the testimony of Jesus Christ, those who receive the
word of God, which is the seed of faith, “in an honest and good
heart, bring forth fruit.” So important then is the virtue of hon-
esty or sincerity, (which is essentially the same,) that no one can
be benefitted by the gospel, or by any gift of God without it. The
virtue of honesty is the operation of the righteousness of God, in
man, and plants the principle of uprightness in the soul. “The
tabernacle of the upright shall flourish.”
The professor of christianity who is not homest and sincere, in
all his conduct and conversation, who uses any dissimulation, or
seeks to cover any of his conduct, in word or deed, under the cloke
of deception, who designedly deviates from the truth, in any re-
spect, and does not honestly do good and shun evil, and conduct
himself, in all things, according to his best light and understanding,
transgresses the divine principle of honesty, and sins against God;
and therefore cannot bring forth the fruits of the gospel. The giſt
* Rom, viii. 24. f See Heb. xi. 26. # 1 John iii. 3.
248 THE LAW OF CHRIST EXEMPLIFIED [PART W f.
of God can find no abiding place in such a soul: for God is a God
of truth, and no hypocrisy can find acceptance in his presence.
“The hope of the hypocrite shall perish.”
IV. Continence. This is the fruit of that seed sown by faith,
and nourished by hope, in the good and honest heart. It is the
principle of self-denial and abstinence from all evil; the source of
seclusion or separation from the principles and practices of the
world; and the spring from whence proceeds the virgin life. It is
a chaste and pure principle, and flows from the holiness of God.
“Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.”
He who, under a profession of christianity, indulges a lascivious
propensity, in actions, words or feelings; he who does not take up
his cross against all impurity, according to the requirements of the
gospel; but who indulges himself in any thing whatever, that has
a tendency to lead the mind from the pure work of God, and to
attach it to the impure things of this world, violates the virtue of
continence, defiles his soul and dishonors his christian profession;
and therefore he is not a true self-denying christian.
W. INNocence. This is the handmaid of Continence, and, like
that, proceeds from holiness. The operation of continence de-
stroys all fleshly lust, and implants in the soul the virtue of inno-
cence. Thus the soul is fitted for the Kingdom of Heaven, and
for the acceptable worship of God. “I will wash my hands in
“innocency; so will I compass thine altar, O Lord!” said the
Psalmist.” And, “Except ye be converted and become as little
“ children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven;” said
Jesus.f Little children are innocent; their souls are not defiled
with any known sin; they know nothing of the nature of pride,
lust or any evil; they feel dependent on their parents for protec-
tion and support.
Hence it must appear plain and obvious, that professors of the
christian religion, who do not become as little children, by living
lives of innocence, and feel their daily dependence on the gift of
God, for spiritual nourishment, strength and support, and for con-
tinual direction in the line of their duty, can have no just title to
the Kingdom of Heaven, and need not expect to enter therein.
Those who indulge, in themselves, any feelings of lust, pride, envy,
covetousness, malice, hatred or revenge, are not innocent before
God; they can bring no acceptable sacrifice to his altar; they are
not the humble followers of the innocent, meek and lowly Savior;
therefore they are not true christians; and their profession will
only increase their condemnation in the day of trial.
VI. SIMPLICITY. True gospºl simplicity implies a godly sin-
cgrity, and a real singleness of heart, in all our conversation and
º This virtue is the operation of holiness and goodness,
P42. xxvi. 6. i Matt, xviii. 3.
* .
CHAP. l.] IN THE TWELVE CHRISTIAN VIRTUEs. 249
and produces in the soul a perfect oneness of character, in all
things; its thoughts, words and works are plain and simple, and
wholly directed to the honor and glory of God. It is harmless
and undefiled, and wholly unmixed with any evil. It is without
ostentation, parade or any vain show, and naturally leads to plain-
ness in all things. In all the objects of its pursuit, in all the exer-
cise of its powers, in all its communications of good to others, it is
governed solely by the will of God, and shows forth its peculiar
singleness of heart and mind in all things. “If thine eye be sin-
gle, thy whole body shall be full of light.”
Hence it will readily appear, that a professor of christianity
must be greatly deficient in true gospel simplicity, however great
his profession, whose heart is not single towards God, whose
faith is corrupted with a mixture of pride and vain glory, whose
conversation is mixed with duplicity, and his conduct with crafti-
ness, whose mind is filled with jarring passions, and continually
exercised with vain imaginations. Such professors do not live
simply according to the faith of the pure gospel of Christ; they do
not seek to do the will of God, and live to his honor and glory in
all things; they do not honor their profession; they do not follow
Christ, nor bear his cross; they do not walk in christian simplici-
ty. How then can they, with any propriety, be called christians ?
VII. MEEKNEss. This is that mild, gentle and unassuming
virtue which is the very opposite of pride and haughtiness. Pride
separates the soul from obedience to God; but meekness readily
leads to obedience. Meekness fits the soul for that gospel soil in
which it may bring forth fruit unto godliness. “Blessed are the
meek: for they shall inherit the earth.” This alludes to the
“new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness,” and which is com-
posed of that spiritual soil in which souls can “take root down-
ward, and bear fruit upward.” True meekness is the fear of God,
the beginning of wisdom and gospel understanding. It implants
in the soul a lively sense of the greatness of God’s power, and the
dependence of the soul upon him for every good gift.
Many make great professions of religion who are, at the same
time, utterly destitute of the virtue of meekness: hence their reli-
gion is but a name without the substance. He who is not mild,
“gentle, and easy to be entreated,” is lacking in meekness. He
who pursues projects of ambition, or seeks after worldly greatness,
in any manner, transgresses against the virtue of meekness. He
can therefore have no just claim to christianity; he cannot inherit
the new earth, nor bring forth fruit unto God.
VIII. HUMILITY. This virtue goes hand in hand with Meek-
ness,” and, like that, flows essentially from Wisdom. Humility
* The essential difference between m, kness an' hat, ility, seeins to be just this: : it mility
brings down the haughtiness of man; meekness binds this laughtiness and prevents it frosa
rizing
250 THE LAW OF CHRIST EXEMPLIFIED [PART VI.
is that principle of virtue, exercised in modesty, which produces a
wise, sober, cautious, discreet and amiable deportment, in conduct
and conversation, through all the members of the body of Christ,
and in each one and all, according to their respective lots and
callings, and according to the measure of their acquirements, gifts
and graces in the house of God. This virtue is indispensably me-
cessary to promote and maintain the union and harmony of the
church of God, which is the body of Christ, and greatly promotes
the union of the spirit in all the members. It is one of the bright-
est ornaments of the inner man, and the church cannot be support-
ed without it. W
The virtue of humility leads to a modest conversation and de-
portment towards God and man. It teaches us to speak with rev-
erence and godly fear concerning God and all his works; it leads
us to a humble and willing submission to the will of God, in all
things, and under all circumstances. Humility is regardless of
worldly honor, it seeks no preferment, and looks with indifference
on all those allurements which feed the pride and vanity, and cap-
tivate the feelings of a vain world. This is that lowly virtue to
which Jesus Christ had a particular reference when he said, “Bles-
sed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the Kingdom cf Heaven.”
Therefore, “Be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud,
and giveth grace to the humble.”f From this virtue proceeds re-
pentance and godly sorrow for sin: to this Jesus Christ alluded in
saying, “Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comfort-
ed.”
How great is the contrast between the exalted feelings of pride,
and the modest sensations of humility How excessively foolish
and vain it is for fallen man to pursue schemes of self-exaltation,
and vain glory, which must and will finally end in debasement and
degradation of soul | Let all who profess the christian name, re-
member the testimony of Jesus Christ; “Whosoever exalteth him-
“self, shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself, shall be ex-
“alted.”f *. &
IX. PRUDENCE. The virtue of prudence is of inestimable value.
True christian prudence is that virtue which leads to a discreet,
judicious and wise improvement of every natural and moral faculty,
and of all the powers, gifts and graces given of God to unan. Tem-
perance is one of the distinguishing graces of prudence: for all gifts
and graces are bestowed in vain, unless a discreet and temperate
improvement be made of them. “ The wisdom of the prudent is
to understand his way;” and “the prudent man looketh well to
his going.” Prudence proceeds from Wisdom, and the house of
prudence is the habitation of wisdom. “I Wisdom dwell with
Prudence.”
* Matt, v. 3. i. 1 Peter v. 5, Luke xiv. 11. Il Prov. xiv. 8 & 15. 7 Prov, viii. 12-
CHAP. I.] IN THE Twelve chrisTIAN VIRTUES. 251
He who is blessed with the virtue of prudence, is not hasty in
his words, nor rash in any of his conduct; but is watchful over all
his words and actions; he is careful and discreet in all things. He
is industrious and faithful in his duty, both in things spiritual and
temporal; but does not go beyond his strength, in soul nor body.
He does not carelessly scatter and lose the gifts and graces of God;
he does not waste nor misimprove any blessing, spiritual nor tem-
poral; but makes a wise and temperate use and improvement of
all things committed to his charge, according to the best of his un-
derstanding and abilities. He who transgresses against the virtue
of prudence, is deficient of the spirit of Wisdom from whence it
proceeds. This virtue can be maintained by watchfulness only.
“What I say unto you, I say unto all, Watch.”
X. PATIENCE. This is a very powerful virtue, and flows es-
sentially from Power and Love. It is of essential importance to
every christian, especially when under trials and afflictions. For-
bearance and long suffering are its distinguishing graces. It fills
the soul with constancy, and enables it to bear up under the sever-
est trials, and to persevere through the greatest difficulties. It is
always subject to the will of God, and always ready and willing to
wait God’s appointed time. It never faints under any trials; and
therefore reaps the reward of its constancy and perseverance in
due season. Without patience, there is no perseverance; there-
fore, “let patience have her perfect work.”
He who fully possesses the virtue of patience, is never unrecon-
ciled to any duty, however severe and trying. He never murmurs
nor repines at his lot; nor does he complain that his way is hard,
and that of others easy. He is never fretful and peevish ; but
always exercises such a degree of love to the work of God, that he
can constantly persevere in the performance of every known duty,
whatever difficulties may attend it. He is willing to endure all
things for Christ’s sake and the gospel’s, and to bear any cross
rather than lose his justification before Go!.
But he who indulges feelings of discouragement, suffers loss,
and is always in danger of falling away, because he is lacking in
patience. He who faints under trials, is destitute of patience, and
must fall, unless supported by others. He who gives way to feel-
ings of impatience, dishonors himself and his holy calling. “Ye
“ have need of patience,” saith the apostle, “that after ye have
“ done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.”f
XI. THANKFULNESS. This virtue proceeds from the free ope-
ration of the love and goodness of God in the soul. A soul in the
possession of the genuine love of God, feels a sense of his unbound-
ed goodness; and is thereby feelingly excited to a holy fervor of
heavenly joy and gratitude. He is thus enabled to bless God for
* Mark Xiii. 37. t * IIcb. x, 36,
252 THE LAW OF CHRIST EXEMPLIFIED [PART W. H.
his goodness, to praise him for his love, and cheerfully serve him
with all the faculties of soul and body. This is the virtue of thank-
fulness, and it is the most acceptable worship of God. Cheerful-
ness and good-will are the attendant graces of this heavenly virtue.
True gospel thankfulness is not the transient excitement of a
moment, produced by an occasional manifestation of love and
goodness, and which has no abiding residence in the soul. Such
temporary excitements are often experienced by many warm and
zealous professors of religion; and tho they may proceed from the
occasional effusions of the Divine Spirit; yet they are soon scatter-
ed and destroyed by the inveterate corruptions of the human heart
which, like a cage of unclean birds, will soon waste and consume
all the good seed that comes within their reach, and leave the poor
soul as destitute as ever.
But when the seed of Divine love and goodness is sown in a
good and honest heart, which has been cleansed from all unright-
eousness, and made a fit temple for the Holy Ghost to dwell in,
then it becomes an abiding treasure; and this produces true thank-
fulness. By the operation of this virtue, the soul is constantly
prevented from the indulgence of any ungrateful and unthankful
feelings; and is at all times ready to render thanks to God, for
every appearance of his love and goodness, and for all the kind
favors of his Providence, both spiritual and temporal.
He who is unthankful, is unholy; and “without holiness, no
man shall see the Lord.” He who indulges any feelings that the
way of God is hard, or that the cross of Christ is unreasonable, or
that any duty which the gospel requires is unnecessary, is devoid
of thankfulness. He who, after having been called by the gospel,
hankers after the carnal gratifications of nature, and regrets that
he cannot longer enjoy the alluring pleasures of this world, is insen-
sible of the mercy and goodness of God, in calling him from these
vain and transitory enjoyments, to the way of life and salvation
from all sin: he is unthankful and ungrateful, and is in danger of
falling away and losing the way of God.
XII. CHARITY. This is the last and the greatest of all the
christian virtues. It is the genuine operation of goodness and love
in the soul, and is exercised in righteousness. It is “full of mercy
and good fruits.” It is that benevolent principle which kindly
administers whatever is truly needful for the benefit, support and
happiness of soul and body, each in its proper order. It adminis-
ters, indeed the treasures brought forth by all the other virtues;
and thus is produced the perfection of happiness in the holy City.
The apostle Paul considered charity as the greatest of all the vir-
tues: and why P Because, without charity, there can be no abiding
administration of the gifts of God; and therefore all others must
fail, unless they are supported by it. :
CHAP, 1.] IN THE TWELVE CHRISTIAN VIRTUEs. 253
Let a man possess never so much of that religious fervor which
he calls the love of God, it will avail him nothing without charity.
True charity will influence him to love the children of God, and
to administer freely to their necessities; to love all the creatures of
God, and be ready to promote the comfort and happiness of all,
both of soul and body, according to his capacity and their necessi-
ties. He who is destitute of this kind of charity, is equally desti-
tute of the love of God. He who bears any grudge or hardness
against any person, or is unjust or cruel in any case, even towards
his domestic animals, acts in direct opposition to the divine prin-
ciple of charity; and whatever his proſession may be, he can have
no just claim to the love of God; he does not possess it.
Finally: All false judging, jealousies, evil surmisings, evil speak-
ing, railing, backbiting, slander, and the like, are violations of the
virtue of charity; and so far as the christian professor is faulty in
any of these respects, he is deficient in christian charity, however
exalted his profession; and hence, in proportion as he is deficient
in this virtue, all other gifts and graces will profit him nothing.
Thus far have we attempted to show the nature of the twelve
virtues, which constitute the etermal law of Christ, in the new
creation of God. The substance of these virtues is everlasting,
and can never be changed. They are the operating springs of all
the works of God, in the true order of Heaven and earth. They
are the foundation of the number twelve, so often used by the in-
spired writers, in describing the order of the work of God, both
typical and spiritual. The twelve tribes of Israel, according to
the order of the flesh, were but shadows of this spiritual order of
the work of God. The twelve apostles of Jesus Christ also repre-
sented these twelve virtues, which constitute the substance of that
gospel which they were commissioned to preach.
But the most striking representation of these virtues may be
seen in John's vision of the Holy City.” “And he carried me
“away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me
“ that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of Heaven
“ from God.” The following remarks will illustrate this subject.
1. This IIoly City had twelve gates; and tho, according to the
testimony of Jesus Christ, “Strait is the gate, and narrow is the
way that leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it;” and
again; “I am the way, and the truth, and the life;” and also “I
am the door;” yet the holy city had twelve gates; and these gates
were the entrances into the city. The true meaning is, the twelve
gates which John saw in his vision, were the figurative represen-
tations of the twelve heavenly virtues, manifested in Christ, who
is the only way; and it is through the power and influence of all
* See Rev chap. xxi.
X -
254 THE LAw of CHRIST EXEMPLIFIED [PART VI,
these virtues, that the soul must find an entrance into the Holy
City. That is; he must come into the possession of all these
virtues, in a greater or less degree, according to the measure of his
capacity, before he can become a fit inhabitant of the Holy City,
and actually possess it. For it is declared by the testimony of
eternal truth, that, “There shall in no wise enter into it any thing
that defileth, or worketh abomination, or maketh a lie.” The
operation of these virtues will effectually exclude every evil from
all souls that possess them, and walk in them.
2. “And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several
“gate was of one pearl; and the street of the city was pure gold,
“as it were transparent glass.” Thus these gates were of the
one gospel pearl, which is the “pearl of great price.” For they
are the one only way of entrance into the Holy City, or Kingdom
of Heaven. The pure gold, like transparent glass, which formed
the street of the city, shows not only the perfect purity of the way,
but also its perfect clearness. No impurity nor imperfection, no
shade of darkness, doubt or uncertainty, can possibly exist in this
pure way; but all is clear and perfect, and will truly be found so,
by every faithful soul who shall continue to walk therein. This pure
and clear street, therefore, is the one only way of God, in which
all souls must walk, in order to possess the Holy City, and dwell
in it; for it is situated in the midst of those twelve virtues, sur-
rounded and measured on all sides by them.
3. “And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day; for there
“shall be no night there: for the glory of God did lighten it, and
“ the Lamb is the light thereof.” All darkness and doubts are
done away by the light and glory of God, revealed in and through
the Lamb, and made manifest in these christian virtues; and the
way of entrance is free for all souls. And these same virtues,
through which is found the only entrance into the holy city, are
also its defence and protection: for while souls walk in these vir-
tues, they are safe from all evil; no evil can possibly enter through
them. Hence it is said, “There shall in no wise enter into it any
“thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or
“ maketh a lie.”
4. “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may
“ have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates
“ into the city.” Some suppose this to imply that there are many
ways of entrance into the Holy City, or Kingdom of Heaven.
But let no one deceive himself with this supposition. Christ is
the only way, and this one way contains all these gates: for who-
soever is obedient to the operation of all the preceding virtues, will
keep all the commands of God; and thus he finds an entrance
* Rev. xxii, 14.
CHAP. I.] IN THE TWELVE CHRISTIAN VIRTUEs. 255
through all these gates. Such therefore, and such only, have a
right to the tree of life, and to an inheritance in the Holy City.
5. “And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in
“ them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.-And the
“foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all man-
“ner of precious stones.” The twelve apostles were the first
whom Christ sent to preach the gospel of the Kingdom, which is
founded on these twelve virtues. And the precious stones with
which they were garnished, are all the gifts and graces of the Spirit,
given through Christ, which proceed from these twelve virtues,
which are the foundations on which the wall of the city is built.
6. It is worthy of remark that, tho the wall had twelve founda-
tions, which were each of different kinds of precious stones; yet
the building of the wall was Jasper; and also that “her light was
like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as
chrystal.” Jasper is here represented as the most precious of all
stones; and therefore the most proper representation of HIM who
is the Eternal Foundation of all goodness and virtue; and it also
clearly shows the work to be all of God. “He that sat upon the
throne was to look upon like Jasper.” Again; the first founda-
tion of the wall was jasper. This evidently represents faith, which
is the seed of God, the first virtue, and the medium through which
all the others proceed from God to man.
7. And the wall was “great and high.” This was measured
by the same number, twelve times twelve, equal to one hundred
and forty-four. “And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred
“ and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man,
“ that is, of the angel.” Thus the foundations, height and mea-
surements of the wall, were according to the same number with the
gates. This shows that the Iloly City, as respects both its de-
fence and entrances, is protected by the same twelve virtues. But
why is it called the measure of a man and of the angel? This
shows that, tho it is all of the angelic or heavenly order; yet it
must be manifested in man; that is, man must be measured by the
same rule, and be found in the same heavenly and angelic virtues,
in order to become a fit inhabitant of this IIoly City, and be pro-
tected in it.
8. As the natural man cannot conceive of a building, without
associating with it the idea of materiate substances, as the constitu-
ent parts thereof, he will perhaps infer from thence, that the Holy
City cannot be composed of these virtues; because they are not
materiate substances. But we would ask, Of what can the spirit-
ual building of God be formed, if not of spiritual virtues? As the
material world is composed of materiate substances; so the spirit-
ual world must necessarily be composed of spiritual substances:
for there is a real substance in spiritual things, as well as in natu-
- ºf
256 THE LAW OF CHREST EXEMPLHFIED [PATT vi.
ral; yea, and a substance too, which is infinitely more substantial
and durable. Thus saith the apostly; “Ye took joyfully the spoil-
“ing of your goods, knowing that ye have in Heaven a better and
“more enduring substance.” And again; “Faith is the sub-
“stance of things hoped for.” It must therefore be admitted,
that the spiritual creation is substantial and eternally durable, in
its order of existence. And certainly these virtues are spiritual
and eternal, and therefore more substantial and durable in their
spiritual and eternal order, than any materiate substance whatever.
And tho the natural man is unable to discern spiritual substances;
yet when the Holy City is represented and revealed to him, by
these twelve virtues, he may, as by a figure, form some idea of
what the substance consists. --.
9. All things in the natural world, and all the works and deal-
ings of God with man, on earth, are but shadows and figurative
representations of spiritual things, and of the works and dealings
of God with his people, in the new creation. As the sons of Jacob,
who composed the house of their father, and were the primary
foundations of the chosen tribes of Israel, were twelve in number;
and as the apostles who were the pillars, or primary foundations
of the church of Christ on earth, in the days of his first appearing,
were also twelve in number; so these numbers represent the pri-
mary foundations of the spiritual work of God in man, as manifes-
ted in this day of Christ’s second appearing. The measure of the
UHoly City is according to the same number, being twelve thousand
firlongs every way.
10. Thus we see that the Holy City, New-Jerusalem, in its
foundations, entrances, adornings, productions and measurements,
is established, furnished and regulated by the same number. The
servants of God were also sealed according to the same number;
twelve thousand of each tribe of Israel, being the Israel of God.
Those also, who were seen standing with the Lamb on Mount
Zion, were of the same number, twelve times twelve thousand, or
one hundred and forty-four thousand. Mount Zion is the same
holy city herein described. This clearly shows that the servants
of God, in the work of the new creation, that is, those “who fol-
Jow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth,” are all prepared and
brought forth, numbered and sealed by these twelve virtues; and
hence it is, that “they are without fault before the throne of God.”
And none but such can enter and dwell in “Mount Zion, the City
of the living God.”
11. “And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as
“ chrystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.”
This is the source of eternal life, and is brought to light by the
seven Spirits of God. “In the midst of the street of it, and on
* either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bare twelve
chap. 1.] IN THE Twelve christiAN virtues. 257
manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month.” These are
the fruits of the twelve virtues, which are produced in twelve regu-
lar orders, one after another.” “And the leaves of the tree were
for the healing of the nations.” These leaves are the gifts and
graces of the twelve virtues; and are to be administered by those
who possess them, and which must heal the lost children of men,
and give them eternal life, if they ever obtain it. The tree of life,
which stands in the midst of the street, is Christ, who stands in the
midst of the way of life, yielding the fruits of these twelve virtues
for all who walk therein. The tree is represented in the vision,
as standing on either side, that is, on each side of the river. This
was designed to represent the manifestation of Christ, both in the
male and the female, between whom the waters of life flow in the
church, producing the fruits of Christ in the members.
12. John’s vision of the “Woman clothed with the Sun, and
having upon her head a crown of twelve stars,” represents, in a
striking manner, the same twelve virtues. These are placed as a
crown of glory upon the head of the divine Spirit of Wisdom,
who is the Mother or bearing Spirit of all the works of God to
man; and from whom they flow, as heavenly lights to the righ-
teous, in the new creation of God.
Many among the world of mankind have been engaged, for
thousands of years, in searching after religion of some kind or
other; but with all their searches and researches, aided by all the
hurian wisdom they could obtain, they have never been able to
find the real substance of true religion. The reason is, true religion
cannot be known without the revelation of God, and instead of
looking to God for direction, and seeking to do his will, with pure
hearts and clean hands, they have pursued their own imaginations,
and sought religion in their own devices, and blended it with the
indulgence of their own corrupt propensities. Hence they have
generally placed religion in speculative tenets, and ceremonial
forms: so that among the great bulk of mankind, in every age,
human creeds and human ceremonies have ever constituted the
summum bonum, or essential virtues of their religion.
But it is through the revelation of God only, that true religion is
made known to man. And it is through this revelation alone,
that the twelve christian virtues, and their attendant graces, have
* The number twelve represents the different orders and states of souls in the spiritual
work of God; and thºse different orders and states have their foundation in the twelve pri-
mary virtues which constitute the foundations of the holy city The order, state and class
of all souls are determined and fixed by their relative connection to these respective vir–
tues; and tho true christians must possess a measure of all these virtues; yet their gifts, and
the fluits which they bring forth, will partake mostly of the nature of that particular virtue
with which they stand in the nearest relative connection, and for which they are the best
qualified, according to the order of their creation. “ There are diversities of gifts, but the
same spirit ‘’ This may be clearly seen among all the human race; all have their peculiar
gifts and talents, “one after this Inanner, and another after that:” tho the giſts of many
are often abused, misimproved or perverted to a wrong use. These are the talents they
have received, and for the improvement of yhich they are accountable to God.
258 THE SEVEN MoRAL PRINCIPLEs [PART vſ.
been brought to light, and made manifest in the true children of
God. These virtues, proceeding from the seven Attributes, or
Spirits of God, form the everlasting and unchangeable law of Christ;
and this is the only true religion which ever will, or ever can save
any soul, and fit it for the everlasting habitation and enjoyment of
God. Wherever the true gospel is preached, it shows forth the
very essence of these virtues; and they are all thereby opened to
receive souls. Thus they represent the very gates of the New-Je-
rusalem, into all of which the soul must finally enter, and possess
their substance, according to his measure, or he can never dwell
in this holy habitation. w
By walking in this law of eternal life, souls find a progressive
increase in the very nature and substance of these virtues; and be-
come as lively stones, fitted and built up into a spiritual house, a
holy temple and habitation of God. And none can enter this holy
temple, but by and through this eternal and unchangeable law,
the law of the Holy City, New-Jerusalem, which is revealed in and
through Christ. The operation of these virtues effectually shuts
out every unholy thing, and forms the law of Christ, for the gov-
ernment of his church, which is the house of God, and “the hab-
itation of his throne;” as it is written: “This is the law of the
“house; Upon the top of the mountain, the whole limit thereof
“round about shall be most holy. Behold this is the law of the
£4 house.”%
This is the patterm of the eternal law, the only rule for chris-
tians to walk by. Therefore, let all judge by this, who amon
professors, really possess the character of true christians. Let .#
professors of religion examine themselves, and seriously consider
how near they come to this pattern, shown by the Lamb, in the
holy mount of God: for none can enter and dwell in the Holy
City, the spiritual house of the new creation, unless they walk by
this rule, and keep this law. - -
CHAPTER II.
The seven moral Principles of the Church of Christ, as reduced
to practice in the United Society.
THE illustration of the twelve christian virtues, contained in
the preceding chapter, brings to view seven moral principles, which
form the practical and external law of life for the direction and
government of Christ's followers in his everlasting Kingdom, which
is now begun on earth. These seven principles were established
by the precepts and confirmed by the example of Jesus Christ
while on earth, and may be stated in the following order:
* Ezek. xliii. H.2.
cHAP. II.] of THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 259
1. Duty to God; 2. Duty to man; 3. Separation from the
world; 4. Practical peace; 5. Simplicity of language; 6. Right
use of property; and 7. A virgin life.
I. DUTY TO GOD.
This principle flows from the attributes of love and righteous-
incss in God, and is inspired by faith and hope. . It is displayed in
our thankfulness to God for all his goodness, and in our perfect
obedience to his Divine will. It directs all those feelings of prayer,
praise and adoration, which are due to God, as the Great Author
of all good, and the only source of all our happiness here and here-
after. “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
“ and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy
“strength: This is the first and great commandment.” This
duty is paramount to all others, and is the foundation of every
moral principle. All our moral and religious duties; all our de-
votions of heart and soul; all our exercises of mind and body, in
the service of God, comprehending all our strength, must be foun-
ded on our love to God; otherwise we fail in our duty to him.
“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.—
“If a man love me,” said Jesus, “he will keep my words.”f
Genuine love to God, naturally produces obedience to his com-
mands; and whoever, in honesty and meekness, performs any of
those duties which are comprehended in our duty to God, proves
thereby his love to God. But a thousand professions of love to
God, will avail nothing, without obedience to his commands. That
servant who makes great professions of love to his master; yet
instead of obeying his commands, or doing his service, spends his
time in pursuing his own gain, and seeking his own pleasure, can
neither be considered as a faithful servant, nor an honest man.
What then shall we think of that professed servant of God, who
talks largely of his love to God, and yet, instead of obeying his
commands, or doing his duty to God, is continually pursuing his
own schemes, seeking his own pleasures, and indulging his own
carnal propensities? Surely he can neither be considered as a faith-
ful servant of God, nor a good christian.
It ought also to be remarked and seriously considered, by every
professor of religion, that whoever is influenced to attempt the
performance of his duty to God, from any cause which is contrary
to the love of God; or is influenced by any motives which do not
proceed from honesty and meekness, will find his attempts to
prove barren and unfruitful; and let all such beware that they are
not guilty of sacrilegious mockery, instead of performing their duty
to God.
* Matt. xxii. 37, 38. & Mark zii 30. ? John xiv. 23. & John v. 3,
260 THE SEVEN MoRAL PRINCIPLEs [PART vi.
II. DUTY TO MAN. -
“Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” This duty is
second only to the preceding one, and, like that, flows from the
attributes of love and righteousness. “All things whatsoever
ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.”f
This rule, laid down by Jesus Christ, is so plain and comprehensive,
that it not only shows our duty to man, in the clearest light, but
it includes every obligation of man to his fellow creatures, under
every circumstance. Let every person endowed with rational un-
derstanding, conform strictly to this rule, and exercise it in wisdom
and prudence, and with respect to his duty to man, his justification
is sure, and his reward certain.
Every violation of this rule shows a deficiency of the virtues of
honesty, humility and charity, and is a transgression of the law of
Christ. As mankind are rational and social beings, the field for
the exercise of this duty, is very extensive, as well as very impor-
tant. There are but few situations in life, in which a man cannot
be more or less useful to his fellow creatures, in some way or other,
which comes within this golden rule, as it is called; yet how few
there are, in the present day, who call themselves christians, that
really live up to this rule!
III. SEP TION FROM THE WORLD.
This prin God’s attributes of light and holiness,
It is sown “hed by hope and continence. It is
an impo new creation, without which the
children J. G. 'alended with the children of this
world, and lose then re. ..he Kingdom of Christ. “My
“Kingdom is not of this world,” said Jesus.; And tho the King-
dom of Christ is now established on earth, in his chosen people;
yet it is a spiritual Kingdom; and therefore cannot be blended
with the kingdoms of this world. Nor can his real subjects take
part in the affairs of these kingdoms, without blending themselves,
in some manner, with the world, and thereby hazarding their in-
terest in the Kingdom of Christ, “Know ye not,” saith the apos-
tle, “that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Who-
“soever therefore, will be a friend of the world, is the enemy of
46 God.”
Hence every faithful member of Christ's Kingdom, feels the ab-
solute necessity of abstaining from all those things which are con-
nected with the honor and glory of this fallen world; from civil
and political offices and emoluments; from party contentions and
political striſes; from the vain pursuits of ambition and popular
applause; and from all those transitory enjoyments which feed
* Matt. xxii. 39. f Matt, vii. 12. # John xviii. 36. | Jas. iv. 4.
cHAP. II.] of THE CHURCH or CHRIST. 26]
the pride and vanity, and constitute the very life of the natural
II] &lth.
These things belong not to the Kingdom of Christ; nor has
Christ any part in them; nor can those who live in these things,
with any propriety, be called the subjects of his Kingdom. The
imperative testimony of eternal truth is, “Come out from among
“ them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the un-
“clean thing, and I will receive you.” Neither Jesus Christ, nor
any of his apostles, nor any members of the primitive church, had
any thing to do with the government of this world. “When Jesus
“perceived that they would come and take him by force, to make
“him a king, he departed out of their way.”f And when reques-
ted to judge between two brothers, concerning the division of an
inheritance, he replied, “Man, who made me a judge, or a divider
over you?”f By these things he evidently proved, agreeable to
his own testimony, that his Kingdom was not of this world, and
that it did not belong to him to meddle with any of its concerns.
It would appear very inconsistent for the subjects of any earthly
government, or kingdom, to hold offices, and officiate in the con-
cerns of a rival government, or enemies kingdom. None but those
who are real citizens or subjects, either by birth or adoption and
maturalization, can take an active part in the concerns of an earth-
ly government. He therefore, who would share in the concerns
of a foreign government, must first renounce the government of
his native country, and become a subject of that foreign govern-
ment. How then can the subjects of Christ's Kingdom, which is
spiritual, and not of this world, have any share in the government
of this world, without first renouncing their allegiance to the King-
dom of Christ, and becoming the willing subjects of this earthly
government P For as it is an umdeniable truth, that the order, pow-
ers, manners and customs of the governments of this world, are
corrêpted by the influences of the spirit of evil, they, of course,
stand in direct opposition to the Spirit and government of Christ,
and his Kingdom.
Christ’s Kingdºm and government can never be established on
earth, among any people whatever, without a separation from the
world; not indeed a separation from the natural creation, which is
good in its order, nor from any thing in it which is virtuous, com-
mendable, or useful to his true followers; but a separation from
the follies, vanities, contaminating principles, and wicked practi-
ces of fallen man, under the reigning influence of a depraved hu-
man nature; and from all those things in which the great bulk
of mankind seek their own honor and glory, instead of the honov
and glory of God. -
* 2 Cor. vi. 17. £ ºn t John vi. 15. t Luke xii. 14.
262 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART VI,
IV. PRACTICAL PEACE.
This principle ſlows from the attributes of love and goodness
in God, and is the fruit of meekness, patience and charity. In-
deed this heavenly principle so clearly characterizes the Spirit and
Kingdom of Christ, that the violation of it seems evidently a viola-
tion of every Divine attribute, and of every christian virtue.
Christ's Kingdom is a kingdom of peace; hence his subjects
must be a peaceable and harmless people. “My Kingdom is not
“of this world,” said Jesus: “If my Kingdom were of this world,
“ then would my servants fight.” And because his Kingdom is
not of this world, those who are truly his servants will not fight.
When Peter in his zeal to defend his Master, drew a sword and
struck a servant of the high-priest, “Jesus said unto him, Put up
“thy sword into its place: for all they that take the sword, shall
“ perish with the sword.”f Here is a plain and pointed testimo-
ny of Christ against the use of the sword. Indeed it is impossible,
from the very nature of Christ’s Kingdom, that he should ever
authorize warlike passions, jarring contentions and strife, upon any
occasion whatever.
All the predictions of the ancient prophets concerning the nature
of Christ’s Kingdom, have represented it to be a kingdom of peace;
and he himself was emphatically stiled, The Prince of Peace,
many hundred years before he made his appearance on earth.
His people are also represented as a peaceable people, dwelling in
peaceable habitations; and his government is described as a gov-
ernment of peace. “For thus saith the Lord, Behold I will ex-
“tend peace like a river;-I will make thy officers peace and thy
“exactors righteousness. Violence shall no more be heard in thy
“ land.—All thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great
“shall be the peace of thy children.—The work of righteousness
“shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and as-
“surance forever.”:
Thus it appears that his coming, his Kingdom and his people,
were described, in early ages, by the tongue of inspiration, in pro-
phetic strains of peace. And when the time came, his birth was
announced by the angels of Heaven, in glorious songs of peace.
“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, and good-will
“towards men.” And all these predictions, as far as they related
to his personal ministration, in that day, were fully confirmed: for
he was evidently The Prince of Peace; and his ministration was
a ministration of peace and good-will towards men; and all who
were willing to receive him, were made partakers of his peace.
“Blessed are the peace-makers: for they shall be called the chil-
“dren of God;” said he. He taught them the way of peace and
* John R. viii. 36. i Matt. xxvi 52. * *
# Isa is 6.-xxxii. 17 -hy. 13–lx 17, 18. & lxvi. 12. | Luke ii, 14.
CHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 263
righteousness, bore their infirmities, healed their maladies, com-
forted them in their affletions, encouraged and strengthened them
in their faith, and at last, when about to leave them, he commend-
ed them to his Father, prayed for them, blessed them, and said,
“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you; not as the
“world giveth, give I unto you.-Hereafter I will not talk much
“with you; for the prince of this world cometh, and hath noth-
“ing in me.”
Before the preceding predictions could be fully realized, in the
final establishment of Christ’s peaceable Kingdom on earth, there
was a time in which the spirit of Antichrist prevailed to root out
and destroy that good seed of peace which Christ had sown. Then
succeeded “the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel
the prophet, standing where it ought not,”f of which Jesus had
forewarned his disciples. Then every species of abomination was
'committed, under the sacred name of christianity, and blood and
carnage deluged the earth, under the professed banners of The
Prince of Peace. Abomination of desolation, sure enough ' This
was the work of that spirit to which Jesus alluded in saying, “The
prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.” The prince
of this world, is a prince of war, and not of peace.
Ever since that celebrated heathen warrior, called Constantine
the Great, assumed the christian name, to sanctify his bloody
deeds, and obtained the title of the first christian emperor, the
prince of this world has reigned among a people who have called
themselves christians. Hence the origin of that incongruous title,
christian warriors, which has been so often applied to those mur-
dering Cains, who have imbrued their hands in the blood of their
brethren, under a profession of christianity. But it is in vain for
the advocates of war to call themselves christians, or to claim any
relation to Christ: for they have no part in him. They are the
subjects of the prince of war, and not of the Prince of peace.
Kings, princes, nations and people, who make war upon each other,
and shed the blood of their fellow men, and still claim the name of
christians, are the deluded subjects of Antichrist’s kingdom—the
children of the prince of this world, who, under the assumed name
of Christ, are violating the best principles of christianity, the prin-
ciples of peace and good-will to men.
All the precepts delivered by our Savior, breathed “peace and
good will to man :” and they were all confirmed by his works. And
it was doubtless the peaceable tendency of his ministration and
doctrines, which so alarmed the jealous and envious Jews; else
why this argument * “If we let him thus alone,” said they, “all
“men will believe on him, and the Romans will come and take
“away both our place and nation.”f But notwithstanding all
* John xiv. 27 & 80. f Mask xiii. 14. f John xi, 48,
* --
264 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART VI,
their warlike principles, aided by their cruel policy in putting him
to death, in order to stop the prevalence of his doctrines, and
secure the safety of the nation, they were at length overtaken by
the very calamities which their barbarous policy was intended to
avert. And it ought to be remembered, as a warning to persecu-
tors, that the persecuting cruelty of the Jews, towards Jesus Christ
and his followers, was evidently the very cause of the calamities
which befel their “place and nation.”
It is evident that Jesus Christ, and his apostles after him, inva-
riably maintained the principles of peace, both by precept and
example; and these principles were continued in the primitive
church, so long as that church stood in its purity. This fact is
confirmed by the most authentic accounts of those times. Celsus,
a heathen philosopher, who wrote against the christians in the
latter part of the second century, brings this charge against them;
“That they refused to bear arms, even in case of necessity;” and
complains, “that if the rest of the enpire were of their opinion,
it would soon be overrun by the barbarians.” But notwithstand-
ing this objection of Celsus, the Romans, with all their warring
powers and principles, even after professed christians began to
bear arms, were unable to save the empire from being “overrun
by the barbarians.”f -
It is not a little surprising that there should be so many, at the
present day, who openly profess the peaceable religion of Jesus
Christ, and yet are, in principle, the advocates of war, and will
make the same objections against the principles of peace which
this heathen made. What then is the difference between a warring
christian and a warring heathen P The objection of both against
the principles of peace is, in substance, that if the whole nation
were of this opinion, we should soon be conquered by other na-
tions, who maintain the principles of war. But the objections of
the warring christian evidently appear much more glaringly incon-
sistent: for the heathen warrior talks of no enemy but the barba-
rians, while the christian warrior wishes to be armed against those
who by profession are his brethren and fellow christians !
But we believe, without the least shadow of doubt, that the
principles of peace are the best means of preserving peace that a
nation can possess. As like causes produce like effects; so the
principles of peace have a natural tendency to produce peace;
while the principles of war will invariably produce war. And we
feel full confidence in the opinion, that if the principles of peace
were faithfully cultivated at home, and carefully maintained in all
our intercourse abroad, they would prove a more sure protection
* Lardner, vol. viii. - -
t But it appears very evident, that one principal cause of this calamity was, their cruel
persecutions against the true christians; for the records of history attest, that almost every
persecution was followed by an irruption of the barbarians.
CHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 265
to any nation, than the principles of war, with all its expensive
preparations; and that they would also have a much greater ten-
dency to preserve the honor and increase the glory of a nation, all
the fears and apprehensions of warriors to the contrary notwith-
standing. An impartial examination of the history of all ages
would doubtless confirm the truth of this remark.
As before observed, the principles of peace flow ſtom the attri-
butes of goodness and love, in God; consequently the spirit of war
is opposed to these attributes. Goodness to a nation is the result
of peace; but great evils result from war. “Love worketh no ill
to his neighbor;” but hatred, which is the source of all wars, leads
mankind to “bite and devour one another.” The spirit of war
leads its advocates to revenge real or supposed injuries, and always
involves the innocent with the guilty. It produces no goodwill to
man; but is the ruin of many for the aggrandizement of a few.
Where is the nation among all the warring powers of Europe, that
has not received more injury than benefit from the wars in which
it has been engaged P
War is opposed to God's attributes of righteousness and justice:
for altho it is often waged under pretence of obtaining or defending
certain real or supposed rights, or of avenging real or supposed
wrongs; yet, in reality, it pays no regard to right; its great object
is wrong; it seeks revenge; it praduces injury ; and its greatest
injury often, if not most generally, falls upon those for whose rights
the war was professedly undertaken—the rights of the nation—the
rights of the people. And in the end, it generally injures their
rights and increases their wrongs; and is therefore, throughout, pro-
ductive of great injustice.
The spirit of war is opposed to God's attribute of holiness. It
2ngenders and promotes in man, the most unholy passions. Am-
bition, pride and lust, wrath, envy and strife, revenge and cruelty,
and the most heaven-daring impiety, are the notorious concomi-
tants of war. In short, an army in a state of warfare, is the great-
est school of vice and iniquity of any on earth. And if any are so
fortunate as to pass through it without the ruin of their moral char-
acters; yet it must be acknowledged, that very few escape the
general contamination of morals which it is calculated to produce.
The spirit of war is contrary to the attributes of light and truth.
It darkens the light of truth in the soul, and makes men blind to
their own best interests—to their best good, both in this world and
that which is to come. It seeks, through false pretexts, to injure
the innocent, as well as the guilty. It obscures every virtuous
sentiment of the heart, and falsely exalts heroic pride and daring
ambition as the highest standard of merit, and the most honorable
principles of man.
Finally: The spirit of war is * to the attributes of power
* ~ * * . .
• . . .” -- *,
266 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART WF,
and wisdom. Certainly no human power can be so foolishly ex-
erted, nor any human policy so unwisely employed. The power
and wisdom of God can never be exercised to favor the spirit of
war, in fallen man, without operating directly against his other
revealed attributes, which cannot be done: for the attributes of God
can never clash with each other. Tho God may suffer one nation
to contend with another, and leave both to bear the judgment of
their own folly; yet he never can confer his power for the purpose
of exalting the pride of fallen man, nor bestow his wisdom on such
demonian policy. “This wisdom descendeth not from above, but
“is earthly, sensual and devilish. But the wisdom that is from
“above, is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be en-
“treated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and
“without hypocrisy. And the fruit of righteousness is sown in
“peace of them that make peace.”
V. SIMPLHCITY OF LANGUAGE.
This principle flows from God’s attribute of holiness, and is en-
joined by the declarative voice of truth. “Speak ye every man
the truth to his neighbor.”f It is the practical operation of the
virtues of honesty and simplicity, in all our communications.
As language is the medium through which we convey our ideas,
it is a matter of the first importance that our language should pro-
ceed from an honest heart. Honesty of heart and simplicity of
language, will always insure us a good conscience towards God,
and proper respect towards our ſellow men; and safely conduct us
through all the scenes of this mortal life. “Swear not at all,” said
Jesus, “but let your communication be, yea, yea, and nay, nay:
“for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.” It has been
objected that this alludes to profane oaths; but these were con-
demned by the law of Moses; and it is evident from the express
testimony of Jesus Christ, that he had reference to the oaths allow-
ed by the law, as well as all others. “Ye have heard that it hath
“ been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself,
“but shall perform unto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you,
“Swear not at all.” What can be more plain and pointed.|
* Jas iii. 15, 17, 13, f Ze, h viii. 16 ; Matt v 34 & 37.
|| The form of what is considered a lawful christian oath, is such a solemn profanation of
words that we could hardly believe that a man who could deliberately make use of it,
would be honest enough to speak the truth, even under its pretended sanctity, were it not
that the force of education and the sanction of human laws have o far blinded the minds of
mankind that they do not discover its profanity: hence they use it inconsiderately, without
being conscious of its real import. But let us examine its glaring profanity. The swearing
christian witness, laying his hand upon the Bible or New Testament. must repeat or cive his
asseſ, to the following form of words: “I solemnly swear upon the holy evangelists of Al.
mighty God. that what I am about to say in this cause, shall be the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth: so help me God.” What is this but calling upon the holy evan-
gelists to witness the solemn breach of a Divine commar d which they have recorded, ex-
ressly forbidding to swear; and at the same time profanely calling upon the Almighty to
}. them in the sacrilegious violation of a solemn precept of Jesus Christ, given for the
express purpose of teaching christians to rivear not at all
CHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 267
Jesus Christ having thus pointedly excluded all swearing, it is
therefore evident that oaths do not belong to his Kingdom; conse-
quently true christians can have nothing to do with them. Hence
the practice of swearing must belong exclusively to those kingdoms,
nations and people, who are under the government of the prince of
this world. Its professed object is to prevent false testimony in
judicial causes, and maintain confidence in civil society, and in the
reciprocal transactions between man and man. But the numerous
frauds continually practiced, under the sanction of oaths, to the
great perversion of truth and righteousness, are so many proofs of
their insufficiency to maintain justice and equity in civil govern-
ments. We believe that a man who has not a principle of honesty
in himself, will never be made honest by the formality of an oath.
And there is doubtless much propriety in the vulgar maxim, “He
that will swear, will lie.”
All swearing and taking the name of God in vain; all profane
language, foolish talking, vain jesting, and using sacred words and
sacred names, in foolish exclamations; all low and profane vul-
garisms; all filthy and obscene language, calculated to defile the
Sense and exclude the fear and love of God from the soul, and
whatever else is contrary to the spirit of honesty, simplicity and
truth, are violations of this principle, they manifest a vain, empty,
wicked mind, and mark a soul destitute of the fear of God. “Keep
thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from speaking guile.” All lying
and deceit, all quibbling, cavilling and double-dealing, and in short,
every kind of communication, and every manner of expression,
and all use of language which does not proceed from an honest
heart, and is not consistent with plain and simple truth, are viola-
tions of this principle. “Be what you seem to be, and seem to be
what you really are,” is a maxim enjoined by our first elders, and
is held as a sacred principle by every faithful believer,
We are not required to communicate all we know, or all that
we have heard and seen, whenever it is demanded of us, without
any respect to persons, place or circumstances; this would be the
height of folly and weakness, and would do more harm than good.
“The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright.”f We ought
to guard carefully against all unnecessary and disorderly communi-
cations, and especially against communications to those who are
liable to make a bad use of them, or to an enemy who is seeking to
take undue advantage of us. Tale-bearing does not belong to the
followers of Christ; it is of the wicked one; it is an enemy that
* Soweth discord.”
But in all our intercourse, with all people, where a reciprocal
communication is required for mutual understanding; or where
reasonable intelligence is required, from just and reasonable motives,
* Psa, xxxiv, 13. # Proy. xv. 2.,
268 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART WF,
a fair, open and free communication will not, and cannot be justly
withheld, by any truly honest and upright soul. And in all our
communications, nothing but the plain and simple truth can justify
us: for altho we may be justified in withholding the truth, where
its communication is unnecessary, and can do no good; yet we
cannot be justified in uttering a falsehood, on any occasion what-
6Ver.
All flattering titles, and vain appellations of distinction, calcula-
ted to exalt the pride and ſeed the vanity of man, being in direct
opposition to simplicity of language, are therefore excluded from
among the bumble followers of Christ. Titles of honor and terms
of adulation, designed to flatter fallen man, and reverence him
above his Maker, find no place here. Hence the vain addresses
of Sºr and Madam, Mister and Miss, and the like, are excluded
from the language of the United Society, as contrary to the law of
Christ and the simplicity of his gospel. “Be ye not called Rabbi:
for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.”
Our Savior here alluded to the haughty, high-minded Scribes and
Pharisees, who were fond of worldly honors and titles of distinc-
tion, and warned his disciples against following their example.
Thus he condemned the love of worldly honors, and flattering
titles of distinction, as unbecoming the children of God and ser-
vants of Christ. Yet how often do we see, at this day, those who
profess to be the servants of Christ, seeking and obtaining titles of
honor and distinction which he never assumed, and never author-
ized his followers to assume; such as Doctor of Divinity ; Rev-
erend Sir ; Right Reverend Father in God, and the like. These
high-sounding titles, so fascinating to antichristian vanity, are con-
ferred, like that of Ambassadors of Christ, by human authority,
and not by the authority of God. And thus these aspiring digni-
taries, while they profess to be the humble followers of the meek
and lowly Savior, instead of following his self-denying and humili-
ating example, must be dignified, and almost deified, with ecclesi-
astical titles, far above any thing ever assumed by the Lord Jesus
Christ.
How clearly do such professors show that they are under the
influence of that spirit, “Who opposeth and exalteth himself above
all that is called God?”f But the day is fast approaching when,
“God will lay judgment to the line, and righteousness to the plum-
met;” and all these profane and sacrilegious honors will be swept
away with “the refuge of lies.”f
VI. RIGHT USE OF PROPERTY.
This principle flows from the attributes of righteousness and
love ; and in it is fully displayed the virtues of simplicity, humility
* *ſatt, xxii. 8. i ? Thess ii. 4. : See Isa. xxv ii. 17
CHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 269
and charity. It is an important duty, and a distinguishing privi-
lege of the gospel. The true followers of Christ are one with him,
as he is one with the Father. This oneness includes all they pos-
sess: for he who has devoted himself to Christ, soul, body and
spirit, can by no means withhold his property. As Christ, by his
oneness with the Father, is made a partaker, in his lot and office,
of all the attributes of God; so the true followers of Christ are,
according to their measure, made partakers of all that he posses-
ses; agreeable to his prayer to the Father: “The glory which
“ thou gavest me, I have given to them; that they may be one,
“even as we are one.”*
This oneness is the fruit of the gospel, and it can be obtained in
no other way than by obedience to the gospel. The very nature
and design of the gospel of Christ it to lead souls into this omeness;
that they may possess one faith, enjoy one hope, and be able “to
keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.”f This unity
of the spirit leads to a oneness in all things, both spiritual and tem-
poral; while the nature of selfishness tends only to scatter and
divide. Hence mankind, under the influence of selfishness, are
led to support and build up a separate interest, in all things. Dear
self is the great object of all their concern and all their pursuits.
The selfish man acts from selfish motives, in all his undertakings;
even in his professed acts of charity, he bestows his alms with a
view to trumpet forth his own praise, and obtain honor of men.
But it is impossible for souls who really enjoy the unity of the
spirit, to feel satisfied with a separate enjoyment which their breth-
ren and sisters might, with equal propriety, partake with them.
Their comfort, their peace, their happiness, their enjoyments of
every kind, are greatly augmegted by sharing them in union with
their brethren and sisters. Nör can they feel unwilling to suffer
with them in their afflictions. Hence after having experienced
the blessed enjoyments of this unity, their temporal property would
feel like an intolerable burden to them, were they condemned to
share it alone.
“The carth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.” But selfish
man has long claimed it as his, and long appropriated it to his own
use. Forgetting that he owes all to God, he is continually grasp-
ing after more to gratify his own selfish propensities. But man
was created to serve God; and he is required to serve him with
all his faculties, which were given him for that very purpose. He
is also required to serve God with his property, which was com-
mitted to his charge for the same purpose.
Our time in this world is but short: but a little while and we
must appear before God, to give an account of the improvement
we have made of our time and talents, and the temporal property
* John xvii, 22, t Eph iv. 3,
Y 2
270 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART Wł.
intrusted to our care. If God has endowed us with talents to do
good to our fellow mortals, we cannot be justified unless weim-
prove those talents to that very purpose. And if he has also made
us heirs of temporal property, or furnished us with the means and
faculties to acquire it, as faithful stewards of God’s heritage, we are
so much the more accountable for the improvement we make of
these privileges. Then let us improve them wisely.
There are many, very many of our fellow beings, as good by
nature as ourselves, and doubtless as precious in the sight of God,
who, through misfortune, are suffering for the want of the good
things which we enjoy; and shall we be justified before God, if
we do not extend the hand of charity according to our ability? By
no means. The parable of the rich man and Lazarus is an in-
structive lesson to those who possess property. While many a
poor, suffering, but honest Lazarus lies pining in misery and want,
shall we withhold the crumbs of charity ? Shall we suffer the dogs
to outdo us in acts of kindness? If so, we must expect the scale
shortly to be turned.
How many are the favorites of fortune, who share largely in
the things of this world, and yet expend the property entrusted to
their charge, in gratifying their own selfish propensities, in living
in luxurious splendor, in faring sumptuously every day; while
many of their poor neighbors are pining in poverty, and suffering
under the hard hand of misfortune, and would gladly share in the
fragments wasted by extravagance, or thrown to the dogs! Could
these wealthy sons of pleasure draw aside the veil of futurity, and
behold the day in which those who thus abuse their riches, will be
constrained to cry to the suffering poor, from whom they now with-
hold the hand of charity, and beg for a drop of water to cool their
tongues, they might then see the awful responsibility which lies
upon the rich, and feel the vast importance of making a right use
of their property.
The advice of Jesus Christ to the rich man, who desired to know
what he should do to inherit eternal life, is an instructive lesson.
to the rich.* Origen, who lived in the latter part of the second
century, has related this circumstance, as recorded in a book (now
lost) entitled, The gospel according to the Hebrews. It is given
by Origen in the Greek language, and quoted by Lardner, who
gives the following translation:
“A certain rich man said to him, Master, what good thing shall
“I do, that I may live? He said unto him, Man, keep the law and
“ the prophets. He answered him, That I have done. He said
“unto him, Go sell all that thou hast, and distribute among the
“poor, and come follow me. But the rich man began to scratch
* his head, and it did not please him. And the Lord said unto.
* Se Matt, xix. 21. Mark 1. 21. & Luke xviii. 22.
cHAP. II.j of THE CHURCH of CHRIST. 27]
“ him, How sayest thou, I have kept the law and the prophets?
“seeing it is written in the law, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as
“thyself; and behold, many of thy brethren, sons of Abraham,
“are clothed with rags, ready to perish for hunger, whilst thy
“house is filled with all sorts of good things, and nothing goes
“out of it to them. And turning about, he said to his disciple
“Simon, who was sitting by him, Simon, son of Joanna, it is easier
“for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich
“man to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.”
“The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof, the worki and
they that dwell therein.”f And as there are many in the world
who, by the favor of Divine Providence, enjoy much more than a
competency, it is doubtless with a view to prove them, and see
what use they will make of their property, that God has thus no-
ticed and distinguished them above the suffering poor whom he has
placed in their neighborhood for the same wise purpose. How
then can so many of these probationary sons of wealth assume the
christian name, and professedly devote themselves to the service of
God, while they withhold their property and essential services for
their own selfish purposes : And what is a professed devotion of
the soul, while all that a man sets his heart and affections upon, in
this world, is withheld P So he may profess love and charity for
his poor neighbor, and yet give him nothing. Where then is the
evidence of his love and charity P and how is his neighbor benefit-
ted by either P
What reward has that servant to expect, who professes to de-
vote himself to his master’s service, to do his will, while at the
same time he actually devotes his time and talents, with all he
possesses, in serving himself, and doing his own will P Will his
master accept of empty professions and promises for real service P
Will he, or ought he to reward him as a faithful servant? In jus-
tice he cannot : righteousness would forbid it.
Let every professor of christianity, and especially those who
possess property, apply the case to himself, and then ask his own
soul, what reward he has a right to expect hereafter, for his pro-
fession, without a real and actual devotion of substantial service,
with all he posseses to God. Can he expect a substantial reward
for professed services, empty prayers and formal ceremonies, which
cost him little or nothing, and which afford his poor neighbors, and
even his fellow christians, no real benefit, temporal nor spiritual,
to soul nor body ?
Tho many of the rich are able, in their individual capacities, to
do much good with their interest, were they so disposed, without
impairing the principle; yet experience has proved, in the United
Society, that, under the blessing of God, the right use of property,
* See Lardner's works, vol 2 p. 505. f Psa, xxiv. 1. & 1 Cor. x 26 & 28.
272 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART WY.
in conformity to the law of Christ, is best promoted, among his
followers, by uniting it in a common stock, where all belonging to
the Society, can unite to make it an increasing interest, for benevo-
lent purposes, and at the same time, enjoy a competency out of it,
upon terms of equality. Thus used, it affords a competent support
to its former possessors, and is still increasing in usefulness, to an-
swer the demands of benevolence and charity. The same experi-
ence also proves, that a little, with union and harmony, and under
judicious management, suffices to supply many wants.
It is doubtless generally understood, that Jesus Christ and his
little family of disciples, all fared alike, being chiefly dependent on
the contents of the same scrip, for their temporal support. The
primitive church at Jerusalem, was also founded on a united inter-
est. “And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart
“ and one soul : neither said any of them, that aught of the things
“which he possessed was his own; but they had all things com-
48 mon.”% - 4.
Thus they divested themselves of all selfishness, and like a band
of disinterested brethren and sisters, lived in love and harmony,
and all fared alike. These amiable examples were designed as a
pattern for christians; and had all who have since professed that
name, been led by the true spirit of the gospel, and carefully con-
formed to this pattern, what an amiable and harmonious band of
christian nations might, longere this day, have existed upon earth !
VII. A VIRGIN LIFE.
The term virgin implies purity, and when used literally to ex-
press the quality of any thing, it signifies pure, unmixed, undefiled,
unadulterated. Hence the terms virgin gold, virgin copper, vir-
gin snow, and the like, are used to represent those substances in a
pure, unadulterated state. A virgin life, therefore, means a life
of purity, a life undefiled with sinful indulgences, unmixed with
corrupt practices, unadulterated with carnal gratifications and im-
pure desires and pursuits. But the sense to which we more imme-
diately confine it, and which is indeed the most obvious, is to ex-
press a life of continency, or a life of abstinence from the carnal
gratifications of the flesh, from sexual coition, and from all lascivi-
ous indulgences.
This pure principle flows from the attribute of holiness, and is
the genuine offspring of continence and innocence. “God hath
“ not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness, without which
“no man shall see the Lord. Blessed are the pure in heart: for
“ they shall see God.”f Hence it is evident that, without purity
and holiness, we cannot find acceptance in the sight of God. And
it is an immutable truth, that the heavenly sensations of purity
* Acts iv. 32. # 1 Thess, iv. 7, Heb. xii. 14 & Matt v. 9.
CHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST, 273
and holiness, and the unclean passion of lechery can never abide
together in any soul: for where the former are in operation the
latter is effectually excluded; and where the latter is in operation
it equally excludes the former. Hence a virgin life is that which
approaches the nearest to God, and partakes most of the Divine
mature. This appears evident from the following well authentica-
ted facts.
1. Among the ancient heathens, whatever was esteemed sacred
and pure, was committed to the care of virgins. Their sacred fire
was entrusted to virgins; their sacred oracles, prophetic warnings,
and other divine manifestations were given to virgins. So that,
notwithstanding their false religion, and the shameful and fraudu-
lent superstitions of their priesthood, it is evident that 9p many
important occasions, their virgins were honored with the prophetic
gifts of the Spirit of God.
2. The devout Jews esteemed the virgin life the most pure; and
virgins were often honored with prophetic oracles and gifts of the
Spirit, when such manifestations of Divine favor were almost en-
tirely withdrawn from all other classes of people among them.
Josephus informs us that the Essenes, who maintained the virtue of
continence, were many of them favored with Divine revelations.”
3. In the days of the apostles, virgins were particularly honor-
ed with the Spirit of God. The daughters of Philip the evangelist
were virgins, and were blest with prophetic gifts. It is stated by
Dr. Horneck, that in the days of the primitive christians, “Thou-
“sands of their virgins freely dedicated themselves to God, and
“would be married to none but him; and tho many times they
1% were tempted by rich fortunes, yet nothing could alter their reso-
“lutions.”f
4. From the most authentic accounts we have of the christian
religion, in different ages, since the days of primitive christianity,
it appears evident that those people, under whatever name or sect
they have been classed, who, from a principle of devotion to God,
have maintained a life of continency, notwithstanding they have
been generally stigmatized as heretics, and have had their names
cast out as evil, have been more highly favored, as a people, with
the effusions of the Holy Spirit, and more particularly blessed, as
individuals, with the heavenly gifts of God, than any other class of
people whatever. These things prove the purity of the virgin
character in the sight of God.
The term virgin is often used, in the language of the prophets,
to represent the Church of Christ, and to signify purity of charac-
ter; and to that character the promises of God were given. The
prophet Jeremiah, in his predictions concerning the latter day of
* It is worthy of remark, that these Essenes were the only sect among the Jews whom
Jesus did not reprove,
| See Acts xxi. 9. : See Wesley's Christian Library, vol. 29. p. 136,
274 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART W1.
glory, three times in one chapter, applies the appellation of virgin
to the millennial church, by which he evidently points out its pu-
rity. “Again I will build thee, and thou shalt be built, O virgin
“ of Israel ! thou shalt again be adorned with thy tabrets, and shalt
“go forth in the dances of them that make merry.—Then shall
“the virgin rejoice in the dance, both young men and old togeth-
“er.—Turn again, O virgin of Israel! turn again to these thy
<< cities.”%
It will probably be contended by some, that the prophet has
here used the term virgin merely as a figure, to represent the church
in its pure and happy state; not with any particular allusion to
the character of continency, but in allusion to its general purity.
This is;&t least, admitting the purity of the virgin character. But
it is necessary to observe in the first place, that a figure must bear
a true analogy to the substance; otherwise it cannot be a proper
figure. We would then ask, whether the selection of this term, as
a figure of purity, does not clearly show that the character itself is
more pure, in the sight of God, than any other ? If so, then is not
its opposite the most impure? Again : If God has chosen to repre-
sent his people by a figure which implies the most pure character,
does he not therefore require that they should support that charac-
ter by the most pure life? And if the virgin life is the most pure,
did he not intend that they should live such a life P If not, then
where is the consistency of representing them by a figure which
implies a pure character P
When all this is duly considered, we must conclude that the
term virgin was designed, not only as a standing memorial of that
life which is the most pure in the sight of God; but also as a most
powerful evidence that God did design that a people of that char-
acter should build and inherit the church of the latter day. This
truth may be more fully confirmed and illustrated by the following
remarks and observations.
1. Jesus Christ was born of a virgin. Thus a pure virgin char-
acter was chosen to receive the first seed of the New Creation ;
an incontestible evidence of the pure nature of that work which
he was sent to introduce into the world, for the salvation and re-
demption of mankind from that impure nature in which they were
begotten. And as his conception was without sexual impurity, it
teaches us that, at the first entrance of souls into the life of Christ,
they must reject that very impurity which was first rejected in his
conception.
The miraculous birth of Jesus Christ by a virgin, also shows
that, in him, the work of natural generation ceased, and a new and
spiritual creation commenced. Hence in the regeneration, all who
are begotten of Christ, must necessarily cease from that work, or
* Jer. xxxi. 4, 13, 21. te
cHAP. II.] of THE CHURCH of CHRIST. 275
lose that spiritual life which they receive from him. Tho he was
born into the world, yet he was not of the world. The same re-
mark will apply to all his true followers, according to his own tes-
timony: “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the
world.” It is readily admitted by all that it was not the work of
Jesus Christ to propagate an earthly offspring; and the same is
equally true of his followers also: for “iſ they are not of the world,
even as he is not of the world,” they can have no more to do with
its works of generation than he had; because that work belongs
solely to the children of the world, and not to the followers of
Christ : they have a very different work to do.
2. The cross of Christ necessarily includes a virgin jſe, or a
life of continency; because the carnal nature of man must die, be-
fore the soul can ever rise to God; and that nature, having its
source and foundation in sexual coition, is fed and nourished by
lascivious indulgences; therefore its death cannot be effected with-
out this cross; and there is nothing in nature—nothing within the
comprehension of the natural man, which can be more crossing to
that carnal propensity than a life of continency. The follower of
Christ is indeed required to deny himself, and take up his cross
against every evil propensity that pertains to man’s fallen nature;
but he finds none so powerful, in mature, as that which is directly
opposed to a life of virgin purity; because that is the source of all
others; and therefore a cross against that propensity, is necessarily
included in the general, self-denying cross which, according to the
testimony of Christ, must be taken up in order to become his
disciples; and indeed it is much the most weighty and important
part of the cross of self-denial.
“If any man come to me, and hate not his father and mother,
“ and wife and children, and brethren and sisters, yea, and his own
“life also, he cannot be my disciple.”f Here we have the plain
and positive declaration of Jesus Christ, that not only these natural
relatives which stand in connexion with the man, according to the
order of natural generation, but even his own life also must be
hated, or he cannot be a disciple of Christ.;
* John xvii. 16. f Luke xiv. 26
# It is not a little surprising to see how the sense of this and other
similar passages is perverted by the blindness of expositors. The word
hate in this text, they say, is used in a comparative sense ; that is, they
are not in reality to hate these relations, but only to love theon less, when
they stand in competition with their love to Christ. The forsaking
spoken of in the 33d verse of the same chapter, they also qualify in
such a manner, as entirely to remove a free and voluntary cross, by call-
ing it a comparative forsaking, or a Ruillingness to forsake, in case they
should be called of God to do it; that is, when necessity requires it,
This is like their willingness to die, when death is at the door, and
they see there is no escape, but they must die. But Christ did not say,
276 THE SEVEN MORAL PRINCIPLES [PART VI,
But mankind are so prone to the indulgence of that fallen nature
which binds them to the flesh, that they will exert every faculty to
evade the force of truth and abolish the cross. They are willing
to apply any other meaning to Christ’s words, and to acknowledge
faith in any other cross, except that which strikes at the very
source of their carnal enjoyments—the very choicest of all their
pleasures—the very life of the natural man. Such a cross is too
painful for a fallen and corrupted nature to endure; it is killing—-
it is death to such a nature.
But the painful excitement, the distressing opposition which
man's carnal mature feels against such a cross, is a most powerful
evidengº of its necessity. And were there no other argument in
favor of it, this alone is sufficient to convince us that it is the very
cross to which Christ had a particular reference: for that nature
must be destroyed out of the soul of man before he can find his re-
demption; and this cross of Christ is purposely designed to effect
its destruction, without which it never will be destroyed.*
3. The nature of fallen man is selfish, being wholly bent on
selfish gratifications. His desires are selfish; because they are
directed solely to objects which tend to gratify his selfishness.
His love is selfish; because it is confined to those who indulge
and please his selfishness. In short, the gratification of self is the
great object of all his pursuits. This selfish nature is doomed to
destruction, and it is this which Christ requires his followers to
hate. They are not required to hate the souls nor the bodies of
their natural kindred, nor of any other creature: for this would be
inconsistent with the whole tenor of Christ’s precepts and examples.
But the real object of hatred is that fallen, selfish nature, which is
the very life and support of this carnal relation, which binds the
soul of man to the earth, and which produces and strengthens all
his carnal and earthly connections.
Carnal affections must die, that spiritual affections may live:
for it is impossible for both to have an abiding residence in the
soul. Carmal affections are selfish; they cleave to matural kin-
love less, nor forsake comparatively; his expressions are used without
any qualification whatever; and they are positive and decisive, and
plainly declare the only conditions on which they can be his disciples.
“If any man come to me, and hate not his father and mother, and wife
“ and children, and brethren and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he
“cannot be my disciple —So likewise, whosoever he be of you. that for-
“saketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” What can be
more plain and positive 2 and whence do such interpreters derive their
authority to reverse the express declaration of Jesus Christ Surely it
can be from no other source than from the corrupt nature of the flesh,
which always seeks to rival God’s claim in man.
* Some talk much about sanctifying their carnal natures; but they might as well talk of
sanctifying the devil; for that nature is the devil in man, and it never can be sanctified; it
£must be crucified, or the soul uever can be saved.
CHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. 277
dred; they are chiefly confined to those narrow limits which cir-
cumscribe the connective ties of flesh and blood, and seldom, if
ever, extend further than to those who are excited by interest, or
some other selfish motive, to indulge, flatter and exalt their selfish-
ness. And even here they are liable to be turned from one flatter-
ing object to another more flattering, and which can afford a high-
er gratification to self. So contracted, selfish and fleeting are
carnal affections. -
But spiritual affections are not circumscribed within so small a
compass. They cannot be conſimed to such narrow limits; they
embrace the whole creation of God; they shed abroad their be-
nign love to all the human race; they extend the hand of kindness
and charity according to the spirit of that Divine precept, “Thou
shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” The most powerful operations
and the most extensive stretch of natural affections are very feeble
and limited, when compared with the wide-spread effusions and
divine operations of spiritual and heavenly affections. These
heavenly affections are the rich and abiding treasure of every faith-
ful believer; they are the treasures of a life of continence, the
fruits of the cross of Christ, the genuine offspring of a virgin life.
As carnal affections have a natural tendency to produce selfishness,
with all its consequences; so spiritual affections will bring forth
the genuine fruits of peace, love and disinterested benevolence.
4. Man is required to love God with all his heart, soul, mind
and strength, and to place his highest affections there. He is at
the same time, required to deny himself of all those carnal and
earthly propensities, affections and lusts which bind him to the
flesh, and which constitute the life of the natural man, in his fallen
and depraved state; and in this sense, he is required to hate his
own life. It is the same fallen and depraved nature which he is
required to hate in all his earthly kindred. And when this nature
is overcome and destroyed in himself, and in them, by the power
of the gospel and a daily cross, then there is room for Christ to
dwell in the soul, and the man can then love God in every such
soul, whether they have been connected with him by the kindred
ties of the flesh or not. God is no respecter of persons; and those
who have the Spirit of God dwelling in them, will love those best
who possess the most of that spirit.
When therefore, this important work is effected in the soul, by
subjection and obedience to the cross of Christ; when the soul has
gained a complete victory over that carnal, selfish nature, which
first led to a wife, and, in its effects, produced all those carnal con-
nexions which bound his affections to a carnal life; then he has
obeyed the precept of Christ, and fully proved his hatred of that
life, with all its connexions, by renouncing it and travelling out of
it; and then also, is fulfilled to him, and in him, the promise of
278 THE SEVEN MORAL PRIN; CHPLES [PART W .
Christ: “There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or
“sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for
“my sake and the gospel’s, but he shall receive an hundred-fold
“now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers,
“ and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to
“ come eternal life.”* .
IHere them is the substance of the true virgin life; and this is
its promised reward. Here is the hatred which constitutes a true
christian disciple, and the blessing which follows it. A full and
final cross against the carnal nature of the flesh, and a hatred of
that life, with all those affections and lusts which have a natural
tendency to indulge and gratify it. In the reward, the wife is not
found; but persecutions supply her place. Nothing will sooner
kindle the fire of persecution than a cross against this carnal life;
especially where a wife is unreconciled to bear a part in the cross
which her husband has conscientiously taken up for Christ's sake
and the gospel’s.
But, replies the objector, it cannot be that wives are to be hated
and forsaken; for the apostle Paul says, “Husbands, love your
wives.” A very weak objection truly, after what has already been .
said on the subject. But objectors generally omit the most impor-
tant part of this passage, which shows in what manner the apostle
taught the married christians, of that day, to love their wives; we
will therefore take the liberty to transcribe the passage in connection,
and let modern christians see whether they live up to the apostle's
instructions. “Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved
“ the church and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and
“cleanse it;-that he might present it to himself a glorious church,
“not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should
“ be holy, and without blemish: So ought men to love their wives
“ as their own bodies.”f Christ’s love to the church, according
to this testimony, does not lead him to defile it, but to sanctify and
cleanse it, that it may be holy, and without blemish. “So ought
men to love their wives;” not with a carnal love, but with the same
pure virgin love; not defiling themselves and their wives with the
impure gratifications of lust; but in living lives of continency—in
maintaining a virgin life.
5. The same apostle also says, in another place, “I am jeal-
“ous over you with a godly jealousy : for I have espoused you to
“one husband, that 1 may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.”f
It was as a chaste virgin that they were to be presented to Christ;
and he would accept them in no other character. Knowing this,
the holy zeal of the apostle was stirred up to admonish these Co-
rinthian christians; lest their minds should be led away from the
purity and simplicty of the gospel, so that they would not preserve
* Mark x. 29, 30. # Fph. v. 25 to 28. £2 Cor. xi. 2.
J’
cHAP. II.] of THE CHURCH of CHRIST. 279
their bodies “in sanctification and honor,” by following the prin-
ciples of purity and holiness, by living as Christ lived, and walk-
ing as he walked, which was evidently in a life of continence and
chastity, in a virgin life. If then, this principle of a virgin life
were of the world, the world would undoubtedly love its own. But
the very nature of man's wholly opposed to it, which is a sufficient
evidence that it is not of the world, but of a superior origin.
6. But the most plain and pointed testimony of the apostle, in fa-
vor of a virgin life, is given in the seventh chapter of his first epistle
to the Corinthians, by which he clearly shows the wide difference
between virgin purity, and sexual indulgence; and in which he
prophetically points to a day of more perfect purity, when all such
indulgences must come to an end. And all the attempts of mod-
era christians to draw from the apostle’s doctrine any licence to
indulge their lascivious propensities, are but so many evidences of
the depraved state of their own minds, and their ignorance of the
true nature of that gospel purity which the apostle is so careful to
impress upon the minds of the Corinthian christians.
“Now concerning the things whereof ye wrote unto me,” saith
the apostle; “It is good for a man not to touch a woman.”
Having laid down this principle at the beginning of the chapter, he
could not reverse it without involving himself in a contradiction.
“For,” as he said on another occasion, “if I build again the things
“which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.” Nor is
there the least evidence to be found, in any of his writings, that
he ever ceased to give the preference to a virgin life; altho the
time was not then come for a full manifestation of the truth on this
subject.
“It is good for a man not to touch a wife. But because of the
“fornications, let every man have his own wife, and let every
“woman have her own husband.”f This is the extent of the
apostle’s toleration; and he affirms that he spoke this by permis-
sion, and not of commandment. And why this permission ? Ev-
idently because of the uncontrollable passions of many among these
Corinthians, whom the apostle calls carnal, and who, previous to
their conversion to christianity, had been accustomed to a plurality
of wives, and whose licentious habits, even after their conversion,
could hardly be controlled within the bounds of moral decency,
* Gal ii. 18.
† The reader will perceive that the Italic words in this quotation, do
not agree with our common translation; but they accord with the literal
meaning of the original Greek, in which the apostle wrote. I'vyatizos,
the word translated woman in the 1st verse, means wife, and is the same
as that translated wife in the 2d, 3d and 4th verses. The 2d verse in
the Greek begins with these words ; Aix 3e tag zropveu ag, which are
literally rendered thus ; But because of the fornications. The word to
&oid is not in the Greek, but was inserted by the translators.
280 THE SEVEN MoRAL PRINeiPLEs [PART vi,
notwithstanding all the apostle's permissions and indulgences. But
all these indulgences, which modern christians so readily arrogate
to themselves, to justify their lascivious practices, cannot alter the
nature of holiness, nor lessen our obligations to follow Christ's
example.
It is contended by many, that the apostle gave his instructions
in favor of a virgin life by permission only ; but the fact is directly
the reverse; nor is there any deviation, in all his writings, from
the principle laid down in the first verse of this chapter; and every
indulgence permitted to the Corinthians, was evidently on account
of their weakness. It would have been very extraordinary indeed,
for the apostle to recommend continence and virgin purity by per-
mission, or grant it as an indulgence, when every feeling of the car-
nal mature of man was wholly opposed to it. Nor would ten thousand
such permissions ever induce one carnaily minded soul to take up
such a gross; nor would he ever take it up so long as he could find
the least hope of salvation without it. The apostle's permission
therefore, was not in behalf of those who were willing to take up
their crosses; but in behalf of those who chose rather to indulge the
flesh than to cross it. And the plain reason why these permissions
and indulgences were suffered in that day, was, that the day of full
redemption was not then come; and therefore a full and final cross
against those indulgences, could not then be absolutely required.
But the apostle told them plainly what was the best way; and
those who had spiritual discernment enough to prize a life of purity,
followed the apostle's advice.
Again it is said that, “the present distress,” mentioned by the
apostle, alluded to outward afflictions, occasioned by persecution.
But this is not true; nor can any evidence be produced, either
from sacred or profane history, to warrant such a conclusion; but
on the contrary, the time when the apostle wrote this epistle, ap-
pears to have been a time of the greatest tranquillity the primitive
church ever enjoyed; nor has the apostle given the least hint that
persecution was the cause of that precept. The real cause was
the uncontrollable passions of these carnal professors, which the
apostle strove to keep within some bounds, by certain permissions
and indulgences, in a lawful way; otherwise they would have been
ensnared by the devil and their own lusts, and led into fornication
and adultery. That this was the real state of many among these
Corinthians, will appear very evident on examining the third, fifth
and sixth chapters of this same epistle. Yet that there were some
among them who were spiritually minded, appears evident by their
writing to the apostle on this subject; and his answer is a clear
proof that many evils had got in among them.
We do not disagree with the apostle, that those who cannot, or
will not abstain from fornication, would do better to marry and
CHAP, II.J OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST. Zö 1.
confine themselves to one wife, and become orderly members of
civil society, than to continue in the practice of promiscuous de-
bauchery. But a thousand indulgences to carnal men and women,
can never purify the nature of lust, nor purge it out of the soul.
The marriage of the world still belongs to the first Adam, and not
to the second; to the kängdoms of this world, and not to the King-
dom of Christ. This appears evident from the apostle's own tes-
timony in this same discourse, from which carnal christians draw
so much indulgence to please the flesh. Why do they not see the
distinction P : r
“He that is married, careth for the things that are of the world,
“how he may please his wife.” Also, “she that is married, car-
“eth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband.”
But the unmarried, or those who live a virgin life,” “care for the
“things of the Lord, how they may be holy, both in body and in
“spirit.” Here we see §. principle of a holy life directly pointed
out; therefore let those who desire holiness, follow it. “I would
that all men were even as I myself,” says the apostle, who himself
was not married. “I say therefore to the unmarried and widows,
It is good for them if they abide even as I.”
7. But after all the apostle's permissions and indulgences to the
Corinthians, whom he declares to be “carnal,” he points them to
a future day in which all these indulgences must cease; when
carnal gratifications, separate possessions, and whatever else among
chrisitans pertained to the customs and manners of a selfish world,
must be done away in the church of Christ; and a more inward
and spiritual work be wrought in the soul, and a new order of things
succeed in the church.
“But this I say, brethren, The time is short. It remaineth,
“that both they that have wives, be as tho they had none ; and
“they that weep, as tho they wept not; and they that rejoice, as
“tho they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as tho they possessed
“not; and they that use this world as not abusing it; for the
“fashion of this world passeth away.”
Some have supposed that the apostle alluded to a state beyond
the grave; but a little reflection will show the inconsistency of this
supposition. To make it consistent, they must also suppose that
the practice of buying and using this world is likewise to be car-
ried beyond the grave. But this they themselves would hardly
believe. The truth is, that passage points directly to the second
coming of Christ, and the established order of his Kingdom on
earth, in which the apostle evidently foresaw that a final cross
against the carnal indulgence of the flesh, would put an end to that
use which had hitherto been made of wives: That those who had
* It is evident that the apostle here alluded to those who realiy lived a virgin life for
Christ's sake nd the gospel's, and not to those who were merely tuitmarried, and yet lived
in carnal indulgences, l
382. THE seveN MoRAL PRINCIPLEs [PART vi.
them, would enjoy them as sisters in Christ, and not as wives in
Adam: That the church of Christ, by being separated from the
world, and united in spirit, would possess a united interest, which
would preclude all buying and selling for individual and selfish
purposes; and that thereby a right use of property would take
place in the church, where the things of this world would be used
without abuse: And that, in this period, believers, under the ope-
ration of an inward, spiritual work of God upon the soul, would
both weep and rejoice in spirit, without discovering the feelings
and exercises of their souls to the view of an unbelieving world.
Having seen, felt and experienced all these things, we are able
to testify that no other meaning can, with any consistency, be ap-
plied to the apostle's prediction. So clearly indeed has he pointed
out the millennial Church, in that short passage, that its faith and
order could not be more completely described, in so few words,
notwithstanding the work has actually taken place. And we bless
God that we have lived to see the day in which it is so clearly and
amply ſulfilled; that the true virgin life is made manifest in this
our day, and we are called to be partakers of it; that we can
“ possess this world as tho we possessed it not ;” for we know that
* the fashion of this world is passed away,” as it respects the lives
which we live in it.
8. “And I looked, and lo! a Lamb stood on the mount Sion,
“ and with him a hundred forty and four thousand, having his
“Father's name written in their foreheads.” This is not a mere
*xternal name, consisting of significant letters or characters; but
the pure nature of God being formed in them, the very image of
purity and holiness shines forth in their countenances, and displays
itself in all their words and actions. But who are these hundred
and forty-four thousand P “These are they which were not defiled
with women; for they are virgins.”
Some suppose this to include that particular number only, who
will attain to that honor. Be this as it may, it is a striking evidence
that none but those who live a virgin life can obtain so great a
privilege; and therefore such a life must not only be the most ac-
ceptable in the sight of God and the Lamb, but is that alone which
can stand with the Lamb on Mount Tion.
“These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth.”
That is, they walk in perfect obedience to the law of Christ, and
follow his example in all purity and holiness; not defiling them-
selves with women, nor living in any uncleanness, or in any selfish
gratification whatever.
“These were redeemed frem among men, being the first-fruits
into God, and to the Lamb.” Having followed Christ in the re-
generation; that is, having lived a life of virgin purity, after his
* Rev. xiv. K.
cHAP. II.] OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST, 283
example, by taking up their crosses against all those carnal indul-
gences of the flesh which pertain to the works of generation, they
were redeemed from that mature by the regenerating power of the
Holy Spirit.
“And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without
fault before the throne of God.” They have taken up their crosses
against all sin, and overy evil word and work; and by their obedi-
ence to the law of Christ, have obtained a victory over the very
nature of evil: for how could they otherwise be without fault?
Such, and such only, are with the Lamb.” And the song which
they sing, is a song of praise and thanksgiving to God for their
redemption, and which cannot be sung except by those who,
through a life of virgin purity, have obtained complete redemption
from the lost nature of the ſlesh. -
in this vision of John, is a prophetic display of the true charac-
ter' of the work of God on earth, in the great millennial day of
Christ, which is, as it were, but just commenced. And these
virgin characters above described, are the subjects of it: and none
will finally be able to stand the test of this great day, without be-
coming the subjects of this work, and attaining to this character.
Thus we have John’s vision of the appearance of the Lamb on
Mount Zion and the character of those with him; then follows his
vision of the everlasting gospel.
“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of Heaven, having
“the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the
“earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.”
Here we find that the gospel is preached, after the appearance
of the Lamb on Mount Zion. This is an evidence, not only that
the gospel is to be preached after the second coming of Christ,
but also that those to whom it is to be preached had no previous
knowledge of his having made his appearance; but are yet to be
informed of it by the testimony of the preacher. After this suc-
ceeds the fall of Babylon, and the judgment of God upon those
who worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark.
These things show that, after the second coming of Christ, the
gospel will be preached to all nations, kindreds and tongues; and
that those who refuse to obey it, and still continue in the course
and practice of the world, will inevitably fall under the judgment
of God, both in this world and that which is to come. For the
loud voice of the angel alludes to the preaching of the gospel to a
sinful world, by ministers sent of God, with angelic or heavenly
power and authority. After this follows the harvest of the world.
* Those who live in sin, the they may call themselves christians, they cannot be “without
fault before the throne of God,” and therefore cannot belong to this class: And tho they
may “maine the name of Christ;" yet if they do not “ depart from all iniquity,” all their
religious professions, forins and ceremonies are but mere hypocrisy; their mouths are ful;
of guile, ſull of lies and hypocrisy,
284 CONCERNING OBEDIENCE. [PA RT V1,
“And I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and upon the cloud
“one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden
“crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came
“out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on
“the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap; for the time is come
“for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.”
It will be proper to remark here, that the work of harvest, which
is a progressive work, is a striking figure of the work of Christ’s
second appearing, which is called The harvest of the world. As
a field of wheat is not cut down with one stroke of the sickle; but
that which is the ripest is first cut down and gathered, and the
reaping continued, as the grain becomes ripe, till all is cut down,
separated and gathered into the barn; so is the harvest of the
world, in the day of Christ's second appearing.
The white cloud represents a cloud or multitude of pure witnes-
ses, those who stand on Mount Zion with the Lamb. The Spirit
of Christ in these witnesses, is the sharp sickle, which goes forth
by the word of their testimony, through the preaching of the ever-
lasting gospel, which cuts off and separates souls from the life of
the world; and thus they are harvested out of the world; so that
their life is no longer of the world, but of Christ. Thus the prin-
ciple of a virgin life is implanted in them: “for they are virgins.”
Therefore they can, henceforth, no more propagate a matural off-
spring than the grain that is gathered into the barn, and devoted
to be made into bread, for the use of the owner, can be again sown
in the earth and bring forth fruit.
The progress of the work here described will fulfil the pre-
diction of Christ; “This gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached
“in all the world, for a witness unto all nations: and then shall
“ the end come.” -
CHAPTER III.
Concerning Obedience.
THE first duty which God requires of man, and in which is
comprehended all other duties, is obedience. This is essentially
necessary for the fulfilment of the whole law of Christ, and indeed
of every manifestation of God to man, “ Behold, to obey is bet-
ter than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.”f This is
the whole end and design of the law of nature, the law of Moses,
and the law of Christ. Thus said Moses; “Keep therefore the
“words of this covenant, and do them, that ye may prosper in all
“ that ye do.”f And thus said Jesus; “Not every one that saith
“ unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven;
“ but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in Heaven.”||
* Matt xxiv, 1.f. ºf 1 Sam, xv. 22. f Deut. xxix. 9. | Matt, yº. 24,
cHAP. III.] conceRNING OBEDIENCE. 285
Hence it is evident that obedience is the only line of promise.
A man may believe all the law and the prophets; he may also be-
Fieve the truth of the gospel, he may assent to all its doctrines, and
to every principle of the law of Christ; and he may not only have
full faith in the divine mission of Christ, and call him Lord and
Master, and acknowledge him as the only Savior; but he may also
openly profess the name of Christ, and declare his full belief in all
his divine precepts, and acknowledge his life and example to be
the only rule of a christian; and yet after all, if he does not truly
and sincerely obey the revealed will of God, given to him, all his
faith and all his professions will profit him nothing. Obedience
therefore comprehends the whole duty of man.
But it may be asked, Where is the true object of obedience to be
found P to whom, and to what shall we yield obedience P and by
what rule shall it be regulated P To which we answer: The Spirit
of Christ is the true and real object of obedience: and its visible
manifestation is found in his body, which is his true Church.
There he has placed his name, and there is found the only power
of salvation; because therein his Spirit operates and governs the
whole body: hence the only true source and object of obedience
is in the Church of Christ; and the obedience of every faithful soul
will center there.
Christ said to his disciples, “I am the vine, ye are the branch-
es.” It is well known that the branches of the vine, or of a tree,
are subject, in all their operations and productions, to the direc-
tions of that life which proceeds from the body. This supports
and regulates them: and no branch can bear fruit, nor even receive
any support from the life of the tree, when it is separated from it,
or has by any means lost its connection with the life of the body.
For tho a branch that is withered may continue to hang on the
tree for a time; yet if it cannot receive the sap, which is the life of
the tree, it must finally fall off; because it is no longer subject to
the life of the body, and therefore that life can no longer circulate
in it. So it is also with the members of the human body, which
are supported by its life, and regulated and governed by the head,
as the leading influence of the whole body. No member, when
cut off from the body, can retain its life, nor its subjection to the
head; but having lost its union and subjection to the life of the
body, it must die. .
Here then, is the most perfect figure of visible obedience, tho
proceeding from an invisible source. And shall we suppose that
the body of Christ can be less perfect, in its system of obedience,
than the vine or the tree, or even the members of the human body?
Jesus Christ, when on earth, taught the will of his Father; this
constituted the pure principles of the gospel: and he confirmed
# John xv, 5.
286 CONCERNING OBEDIENCE, [PART Ví.
these principles by his living example. But these principles were
not obeyed by those who did not belong to his visible body; nor
had he any leading influence any where but in his body, and in
those members who composed his body. “Now ye are the body
of Christ, and members in particular,” saith the apostle.*
Thus the body of Christ is made up of visible members, and
his invisible Spirit is their life. This Spirit cannot direct the
members to disagree one with another, or to be separated from
their union to each other. Hence it is evident that clashing opin-
ions, jarring systems, and opposite conduct do not belong to the
one body of Christ, nor have they any part in it. If Christ has a
true church on earth, then that church must be his visible body;
therefore his invisible Spirit must be the life of that body, and of
course, must regulate and govern it. Hence we may see the great
mistake of those who suppose that they can belong to the body of
Christ, or that they can partake of his Spirit, which is its life, and
yet have no union with his church, his only visible body. It is
utterly impossible for any one, in such a state, to partake of the
life of Christ. As well might the branches of the vine or tree, or
even the members of the human body, when cut off and separated,
still partake of the life of the body.
Many objections have been raised against the system of obedi-
ence taught and practised in the United Society; but to the candid
mind, a little reflection will show those objections to be very un-
reasonable. It will doubtless be readily acknowledged, that in
every well regulated society or institution, there must be a visible
head, or leading influence, by which the society or institution is
governed and directed, and to which each member must yield
obedience; otherwise there could be no order nor regulation in
such a society; for a body without a head, can have neither life
nor power, but must soon fall and be dissolved. But where there
is a leading influence, which stands as a center of union, the order,
union and harmony of the institution is easily preserved, by the
obedience of the members to that head or leading influence.
In a regular army of soldiers, perfect obedience is found essen-
tially necessary for the preservation of order, and the protection of
the army. And as order and discipline is the strength of the army;
so obedience is the very life of order and discipline. Every soldier
is required to yield implicit obedience to his immediate command-
er, and every officer must be subject to the command of his superior
officer. This order of subjection extends, in regular gradation,
from the common soldier to the highest officer in an army; and
thus the whole army is led and governed by the commander in
chief. Without this subjection, the largest army would soon lose
all its strength and power, and become an easy conquest to the
enemy. -
+ 1 Cor. xii. 27.
CHAP. III.] CONCERNING OBEDIENCE. 287
There is, however, this essential difference between the dessola-
ting armies of blood-shedding warriors, and the harmless followers
of the Prince of Peace. The former are governed by the compul-
sion of arbitrary power, and the severity of military laws; while
the latter are led and governed by the law of Christ, under the
mild and gentle, yet powerful influence of the spirit of peace and
love; and by the infusion of that divine spirit into all the members,
it becomes the delight of all to be united in their obedience to that
divine law, which is implanted in the heart of every honest and
faithful leader, and by which the whole body is led and governed
in the most perfect harmony.
It is for the want of this united spirit, this oneness of heart and
mind, to govern and direct an army of contending warriors, that its
strength and power must be supported, and its order and discipline
maintained by the severity of arbitrary power. Consequently the
soldier whose heart is not devoted to the cause in which he is en-
gaged, who can feel no delight in the life of a soldier, so as to ren-
der a willing obedience to his commanding officer, becomes the
slave of arbitrary power under a tyrannical leader, and is under
the dire necessity of living a life of wretchedness in the army,
where he is liable to be compelled to acts which he abhors, or
hazard his life by his disobedience; and yet even his obedience
cannot secure him from a violent and untimely death. But not so
in the Church of Christ, where every faithful member is of one
heart and one soul, and where one spirit leads and governs the
whole body. Here no compulsion, no arbitrary power is found
necessary.
Again: The order of nature requires that children should be
obedient to their parents; that the younger children should respect
and conform to the elder.” Without this, there can be no well
regulated family; confusion must necessarily ensue, and “a house
divided against itself cannot stand.” The Church of Christ is a
spiritual family; and as it is composed of visible members, there
* Thousands of children run the road to ruin in consequence of being
brought up in disobedience to their parents. This fault generally lies
with the parents, or with those who have the charge of their earliest
years; either because they are not governed by the principles of moral-
ity, in their instructions, or because they do not iniplant the principle
of obedience in the minds of their children. Children who are not
taught chedience to their parents, from their infancy, according to the
order of nature, and do not practice it, are generally found to be more
unwilling than others, to yield obedience to the calls of the gospel, and
the spiritual work of God in riper years, even tho they should be fully
convinced of the necessity of it. Such children, being left to follow their
own corrupt inclinations, are apt to become regardless of all law and
all government, except the government of their perverse wills ; and
therefore will neither be subject to the laws of God nor man, without
absolute compulsion. :
288 CONCERNING OBEDIENCE. - [PART V1,
must be a visible head, to stand as the center of influence or lead-
ing power in that family. As the leading power of the visible
church is vested in the Ministry, as the visible head; so in each
separate family of the Society, which is considered as a branch of
the church, the leading power is vested in the elders who are con-
sidered as the heads of their respective families. And so long as
the visible head or leaders of any family conduct themselves in a
manner worthy of this trust, it is necessary that they should be
obeyed by all the members of the family. Without this obedience
there can be no regulation, order nor harmony in the family.
But no one is required to yield obedience to any thing contrary
to the established principles of the gospel, as revealed by the pre-
cepts and example of Jesus Christ; but obedience is required in
conformity to those principles only. This is agreeable to the doc-
trine taught by Mother Ann. “You ought to have your faith
“grounded in the power of God;” said she “ for that abideth
“forever. But if your faith is only in creatures, and they should
“fail, you are liable to come under loss.” True faith leads to obe-
dience. -
Many will profess great union and submission to the Spirit of
Christ, and yet object to a visible leader in the church. They are
looking for Christ to reveal himself, as an invisible guide and
teacher, to every individual, in a separate capacity, without any
dependence upon the union of the body; and expect to be guided
by the invisible spirit of Christ, in their own souls, separately, and
independent of any visible leader. But this doctrine is contrary
to every manifestation of the dealings of God with man, and is cal-
culated to destroy the union and harmony of the church, by ren-
dering every individual independent of the body.
But no person can be united to Christ, and yet be at variance
with the members of his body. And while the true members of
Christ's church are governed by his Spirit, they can have no ob-
jections against visible leaders: “For God is not the author of
confusion, but of peace.” Therefore, if the Spirit of Christ rules
in his church, (which cannot reasonably be denied,) that Spirit
will bring forward those who are the most suitable for leaders, and
remove them when they can be no longer useful, and supply their
places with others better qualified for that duty. Obedience is
therefore always safe as well as necessary.
But the great and common objection against visible spiritual
leaders in the church of Christ, to whom all the members must be
subject, appears to be this; “That the scriptures of the Old and
New Testament contain all the necessary instructions for the chris-
tian's conduct through life, and are the only rule of faith and
practice.” If this be so, we would ask why are spiritual teachers
appointed in almost every religious society F. We are told that this
is necessary in order to open and explain the scriptures, and give
Chap. III.] CONCERNîNG oped IENCE. 289
the people a right understanding of them, and to exhort them to
obedience, not to the teachers, but to the scriptures. But why
then do these scripture expositors differ so much from each other
in their sentiments P and why have their discordant opinions pro-
duced so many jarring systems of religion throughout the world P
In order to be able expositors of the scriptures, they ought to pos-
sess a goodly portion of that Spirit which dictated the scriptures;
otherwise they explain to no good purpose.
If these expositors were in real possession of the Spirit of Christ,
they would not disagree about the meaning of the scriptures, nor
concerning the duty of christians; but they would be of one heart
and one mind, and would, of course, minister the same oneness of
spirit to all those members of their church who faithfully adhered
to their instructions. And hence there could be but one faith and
one baptism among them, namely, the faith of Christ, and the bap-
tism of the Holy Spirit; and this would unite them together, as
one body, led and governed by one spirit. Then every faithful
member of their church would feel the necessity of obedience, and
would readily practice it from a principle of love and duty to that
Divine Spirit which would then appear visible in the lives of their
teachers. And these teachers, being the true ministers of Christ,
would then teach them that one faith, and baptize them with that
one baptism, which is the very life of the body of Christ.
But the truth is, while they profess to teach others, they them-
selves have need to be taught the first principles of the law of Christ,
which necessarily includes obedience. Hence it is, that in their
attempts to explain the scriptures, they have no spiritual guide;
but are led by the dictates of human reason and human wisdom,
which they themselves will acknowledge to be fallible; of course,
all their instructions must be fallible. And hence also, they are
at all times liable to put wrong interpretations upon the scriptures;
and that this has long been practiced among them, their numerous
systems of religion afford a very striking proof.
Many will plead, that the obedience of Christ is sufficient for
all; and will quote the apostle’s words: “For as by one man’s
“ disobedience, many were made sinners; so, by the obedience of
“one, shall many be made righteous.” But if they rightly under-
stood this passage, they would find it to be no argument in favor of
their plea. It is by following Adam’s example of disobedience,
that many are made sinners; and so also, by following Christ’s
example of obedience, many are made righteous. By the disobe-
dience of the first Adam, he received a corrupt seed, and this
corrupt seed, which contained the evil influence of the wicked one,
has been communicated to his posterity by natural generation; and
they, by obeying this evil influence, become simmers. So, by the
obedience of Jesus Christ, the second Adam, he received the seed
Aa
290 THE CONFESSION OF SIN. [PART W H.
of eternal life from God; and this seed, which contains the power
of salvation, is communicated by spiritual regeneration, to all who
are willing to receive it; and they, by obeying the influence of that
power, received through faith, become righteous. Thus the apos-
tle’s expression is verified; and thus we may see that, in order to
be made righteous, we must be obedient, even as he was.
As man first fell from a state of rectitude, and lost his union and
relation to God, by disobedience; so he must rise from his lost
state, and find his union and relation to Christ, by obedience.
Short of this, no soul will ever find salvation, and secure an inher-
itance in the Kingdom of Heaven.
•-º $º s
CHAPTER IV.
The Confession of Sin.
As man, in his fallen state, is in the kingdom of darkness, and
under the government of the prince of this world, who is a prince
of darkness; so his introduction into the Kingdom of Christ, which
is a kingdom of light, must depend on his coming to the light, and
renouncing all the works of darkness. And as all sin, and all
manner of wickedness, are the works or deeds of darkness; so the
first step towards walking in the light, is to bring these deeds to
the light.” And the only manner in which these evil deeds can
be brought to the light and truly made manifest, is by confession.
The open confession of sin to the witnesses of Christ, was prac-
ticed in the primitive church, and was considered as the first me-
cessary step for the admission of the sinner to the privileges of the
gospel, and the only door of entrance into the church of Christ.
But the subsequent innovations and scandalous abuses of this doc-
trine, in the church of Rome, have rendered it obnoxious in the
eyes of all the protestant sectaries. And when these innovations
and abuses are duly considered, it cannot be a matter of surprise
that the doctrine was rejected; for who could reasonably suppose
that Jesus Christ or his apostles could ever authorize or sanction
such abominations P Besides, the money exacted by the papal
clergy, for the pretended pardon of sins, was a heavy tax upon the
people, who found it much cheaper, as well as much more agreea-
ble to their feelings, to conceal their iniquities, than to confess them
at so great an expense. g
Hence the rejection of this doctrine by the protestant reformers,
met the popular feeling; and a general belief soon prevailed, that
the doctrine itself was the invention of the Romish church, and
was purposely designed to draw meney from the people. This
belief still prevails; and so strong is the prejudice against the doc-
* See John iii. 19, 20, 21.
CHAP. iv.] THE CONFESSION OF SIN. 291
trine, that among all classes of protestant professors, wherever it
is mentioned, the general cry is, This is rank popery—I don’t
believe in confessing sins to man—We must confess our sins to
God alone, and not to man. And indeed, such scandalous abuses
of a divine principle, given in tender mercy to lost man, were suffi-
cient to destroy the faith of the multitude, and create unbelief in
the principle, wherever these abuses were known. -
ut the abuse of a divine institution proves nothing against the
institution itself. In this case, it ought to be considered as an
evidence of its divine origin: for it was evidently a knowledge
that this was an institution maintained in the primitive church,
that enabled the catholic clergy to support its authority, after they
had so basely corrupted it. For no man, in his rational senses,
could be brought to believe that his sins could be pardoned for
money, if he were not first led into a full belief, founded on
something more than human authority, that the practice of confess-
ing sin before the witnesses of God, was an institution of Divine
appointment; and therefore supposed he must do it, even if he was
obliged, on account of clerical avarice, to pay out his money for
...the privilege.*
But this gracious principle, tho it had been so much and so long
abused in the church of Antichrist, was renewed in all its purity,
in the very commencement of the work of God which gave rise to
the United Society. And it was followed by such evident displays
of Divine Power, as to carry the most powerful conviction in favor
of its divine origin. And all who received faith in the testimony,
and honestly confessed their sins, were blessed, in their obedience,
with an overcoming power over all sin, and felt a living witness in
their own souls, that this testimony was, in very deed, the testimo-
ny of God. They did not feel as tho they were confessing their
sins to man, but to God, in the presence of his witnesses; and they
were fully convinced that they could not find access to God in any
other way. And this testimony has been maintained to this day.
as the first principle of obedience to the law of Christ. It was a
doctrine continually enjoined by our first parents in the gospel;
and often, when people came to confess their sins, they were re-
minded of the sense they ought to have of it, in the following words :
“Remember, if you confess your sins, you must confess them to
“God: we are but his witnesses.” -
That sinners are required to confess their sins in the presence
of God’s witnesses, in order to find the forgiveness of God; and
that this is both scriptural and rational, and the only true order of
confession, will appéar evident from the following considerations.
* Just so many, at the present day, feel it their duty to attend the assemblies of those
who profess to worship God on the sabbath, because it was an institution of the primitive
church, even tho, in its present corrupted state, they are obliged to purchase this privil ege,
and pay out their money to a hireling preacher, who prºfesses to preach a free gospel writº-
£it rºomey and without furice •
292 THE CONFESSION OF SIN. [PART Wºź
2 *-*
§
1. We presume it will not be denied that all mankind are born
into the world with a sinful nature. And it is equally true that all
who arrive at the age of maturity, and are capable of discerning
between good and evil, find that this nature brings forth, in them,
the fruits of actual sin. Hence it is generally admitted by all pro-
ſessors of religion, that a confession of sin, of some sort, is neces-
sary, in order to find forgiveness and acceptance with God. But
there is a wide difference of opinion respecting the manner in which
this confession ought to be made. Many contend for a secret
confession to God alone. But we would ask, where is the sinner’s
assurance that he can find God in the secret chamber, and make
confession to his acceptance? We read that “The sacrifice of the
“wicked is an abomination to the Lord; but the prayer of the
“upright is his delight.” Again : “The Lord is far from the
“wicked; but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.” And again;
“If I regard iniquity in my heart,” saith David, “the Lord will
not hear me.”f
We find that, in all ages of the world, the established order of
God’s intercourse with man, has been through the agency of man.
And altho, in many instances, there have been occasional manifes-
tations of the Divine Spirit to individuals, revealed in various man-
ners; yet none could ever be brought into covenant relation with
God’s chosen people, without living agents, selected for that pur-
pose. Witness the case of Saul of Tarsus, Cornelius the centurion,
and others, who, tho they were called by a manifestation of Divine
light, could not be brought into fellowship with the body of God’s
chosen people, without the agency of living witnesses belonging to
that body.
Nor do we find that God ever held any immediate intercourse
with mankind, at large, or with any body of people, as such ; but
he has always revealed himself through the agency of certain indi-
viduals, whom he had chosen as messengers of his will to others;
and the people were always required to learn the will of God from
these individuals, as agents or witnesses of God, and to find access
to God through them. And it is worthy of particular remark,
that God has always chosen his agents from among the most hon-
rst and upright, or those who have come the nearest to him in the
works of righteousness. Witness Noah, Abraham, Moses, Samuel
and the prophets, who were all chosen as the agents of God, to do
his work and reveal his will, and to stand between him and the
people.
We find also, that wherever God has had a covenant people,
who have walked in his statutes, and have kept themselves from
those pollutions in which the rest of mankind have lived, there he
has placed his name, and there he has been ſound, and there he
* Prov, Iw 8 & 29. f Psa. lx wº, 18.
thap. iv.] THE confession of SIN. 293
must always be found, if any where; because there is his true and
only habitation on earth; and there he has placed the only trea-
sures of Heaven that ever were, or ever can be found on earth by
fallen man. And all souls who ever find access to God, and obtain
an inheritance in the Kingdom of Heaven, must obtain it through
such a medium.
The power of salvation and eternal life is too precious to be
scattered promiscuously, in every direction, and among all sorts of
people, without regard to their state and situation, and other cir-
cumstances. It was purchased by Jesus Christ, at a great price;
and he never could have purchased it, with all the sufferings he
passed through, had he not lived a perfectly sinless life in the mean
time. Therefore it is a treasure infinitely precious in the sight of
God; and altho, as the apostle saith, “we have this treasure in
earthen vessels;” yet these vessels must be pure and clean; nor
can it ever be conveyed to mankind in any other. Nor indeed
can any one ever obtain this treasure, without first casting out all
the Devil's treasure out of his soul, (that is, all his sins,) by an hon-
est and free confession, and thereby purifying himself from all un-
cleanness, that he may become a fit vessel to receive this treasure.
2. As all the secret actions of men are open and known to God;
therefore a confession made in secret, tho professedly made to
God, can bring nothing to the light; and the sinner may, perhaps,
have as little fear of God, in confessing his sins in this manner, as
he had in committing them. And as mothing is brought to the
light by confessing his sins in this manner, he feels no cross in it;
nor does he thereby find any mortification to that carnal nature
which first led him into sin; and is therefore as liable to run again
into the same acts of sin, as he was before his confession.
But let the sinner appear in the presence of a faithful servant of
Christ, and there confess, honestly, his every secret sin, one by
one, of whatever nature or name, and faithfully lay open his whole
life, without any covering or disguise; and he will then feel a hu-
miliating sense of himself, in the presence of God, in a manner
which he never experienced before. He will then, in very deed,
find a mortifying cross to his carnal nature, and feel the crucifixion
of his lust and pride where he never did before. He will then
perceive the essential difference between confessing his sins in the
dark, where no mortal ear can hear him, and actually bringing his
evil deeds to the light of one individual child of God; and he will
then be convinced that a confession made before the light of God,
in one of his true witnesses, can bring upon him a more awful
sense of his accountability, both to God and man, than all his con-
fessions in darkness had ever done.
3. It must appear obvious to every reflecting mind, that the
spirit which leads the sinner to sº sin, and keep it concealed,
Aa 2
294 THE CONFESSION OF SIN. [PART V1,
is directly contrary to that which leads him to confess it. And it
is equally obvious that the sinner, if he must confess his sins, would
much rather confess them in secret, to an unknown God, whom he
cannot fear, because he does not know him, than to confess them
to a fellow being, whom he believes to be a true and faithful ser-
vant of God. Thus the sinner can easily unite with the spirit of
darkness, which conceals his sins, while he feels a conscious dread
of the spirit of light which exposes them. And herein we find a
powerful evidence, that the spirit of wickedness in man, hates an
open confession of sin, while it is willing to submit to a secret one.
It must also be admitted, that no person could ever be induced
to appear before a real child of God, and there make an honest and
open confession of all his sins, but from a principle of uprightness
and sincerity. And under the influence of such a principle, he
could not conceal any, not even those which were the most infa-
móus and debasing to his character; for such a principle is totally
opposite to that which would induce him to keep his sins conceal-
ed. And as it is theenature and disposition of all wicked people,
even of the most abandoned characters, to keep their wickedness
concealed from the righteous; so we may judge from thence, which
principle is the most consistent with the pure light of God, and
most agreeable to righteousness and truth, that which leads to an
honest confession, or that which leads to concealment, and en-
deavors to plead justification in making secret confessions to God
alone.
4. It is well known that many people, when under a deep con-
viction of sin, in consequence of the intolerable burden of their sins,
are anxious to find some kind and conſidential friend, who is a
godly person, to whom they can freely unburthen their minds.
At such times, a secret confession cannot satisfy them; they are
desirous to make an honest and full confession of their sins to some
one whom they believe to be a faithful servant of God. And the
more confidence they can feel that such a one is a true witness of
God, the greater will be their hope of relief. -
Many persons on their deathbeds, feeling sensible that they
must die, and knowing that they have lived without hope and with-
out God in the world, have been greatly alarmed at their situation,
and with an awful sense of their sins staring them in the face, they
have been constrained to pour ont their wicked lives, by confessing
their sins to any one that would hear them. Many criminals also,
whose crimes have brought them to the end of their wicked career,
seeing that they were just about to enter the eternal world, without
any hope of pardon, have been suddenly awakened to a feeling sense
of the just judgment and condemnation before them; and under an
intolerable load of guilt, have been ready to cry out and confess their
sins, without the least restraint, before the surrounding multitude.
CHAP. vi.] THE CONFESSION OF SiN. 29
5
These things are the evident effects of the spirit of judgment
from God, operating upon the soul. And while they present to
mankind a figurative display of the awful situation of souls in des-
pair, under the guilt and condemnation of their sins, they at the
same time, point out the only means of deliverance from sin.
And would mankind but seriously attend to such awful monitions
as these, they might thence learn what sort of a confession God re-
quires of sinners, and be thereby induced to confess their sins to
his witnesses, while the day of grace endures.
5. The law of Moses contains a clear testimony of the true
order of confession which God required of sinners in that day. By
that law they were required to confess their particular sins before
the priest or elders of the people. “If a soul sin, and commit any
“of these things which are forbidden to be done by the command-
“ments of the Lord, he is guilty, and shall bear his iniquity.—And
“it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he
“shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing. And he shall
“bring his trespass-offering unto the Lord, for his sin which he hath
“sinned; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning
“his sin.” These offerings were so particularly specified that, in
many cases, the offering itself pointed out the particular sin which
had been committed.
Hence it appears that, according to the law, every sin was to be
made manifest to the elders of the people. And can it be consis-
tent for christians, under the light of the gospel, to keep their sins
more covered in the dark than the Jews were allowed to do under
the law P If so, how can they “walk in the light as Christ is in
the light?” Or how can they “ have fellowship one with another?”f
6. The order of confession which God requires of sinners, under
the light of the gospel, was clearly pointed out by the case of
Achan, in the time of Joshua. When Achan had transgressed in
“the accursed thing,” and was taken by lot, Joshua said to him,
“My son, give I pray thee, glory to the Lord God of Israel, and
“make confession unto him, and tell me now what thou hast done;
“hide it not from me.”f
Joshua was a type of Jesus Christ, and then stood as the visible
elder of Israel; he was therefore the proper person to hear Achan’s
confession. By the means of this confession the sin was put away
from the camp, and the favor of God was restored to Israel.
The place of this transaction was ever after called “The valley of
Achor ;” that is, The valley of trouble.|| The promise afterwards
given by the prophet Hosea, that “the valley of Achor” should be
“ a door of hope,” had a direct allusion to this transaction, which
was a figure designed to show the true order of the eonfession of
* Ley, v. 17. and 5, 6. f See 1 John i, 7, : Josh. vii. 19.
# Achor in Iſebrew signifies trouble,
296 THE CONFESSION OF SIN. [PART Wi.
sin under the gospel dispensation, and teaches us that when souls,
by the conviction of their sins, are brought into the valley of
trouble, a door of hope is there opened to them, by an honest con-
fession of their sins; and the manner of this confession was, in the
valley of Achor, plainly pointed out. -
Achan’s transgression was brought to light by his confession,
and the sin was purged out of the camp of Israel. But as the dis-
pensation of the law was not the dispensation of mercy, but of
judgment, it required the immediate execution of the offender, or
an equivalent sacrifice, as the only means of atonement for sin.
And as Achan's transgression was of an extraordinary nature, no
equivalent sacrifice could be found ; therefore judgment was exe-
cuted upon him, and his body was destroyed.* This was a figu-
rative representation of the body of sin, which, under the gospel
dispensation, is to be brought to light by confession, and destroyed
by the operation of the law of Christ.
The lot by which Achan was taken and convicted, was figura-
tive of the power of conviction, which awakens souls, and casts
the lot of condemnation upon them, and as it were, arraigns them
before the har of judgment, where they must feel the just judgment
and condemnation of their own consciences, until they are willing
to conſess their sins before the witnesses of God, as Achan did.
Tho Achan was discovered as a transgressor by the lot; yet the
sin which he had committed was brought to light, with all its cir-
jº his own confession. This was a figurative display
of that sin-searching work in the gospel, which will continue until
the final cleansing and separation of all sin from the camp of the
saints, the true Israel of God, accoruing to his promise; “I will
search Jerusalem with candles.”
7. Among other striking figures which had reference to the con-
fession of sin, or to that work of judgment which was to purify
souls from sin, and cleanse them from evil, we shall notice the
River Jordan, and some remarkable circumstances connected with
it. The name Jordan signifies Biver of Judgment, or Descending
River, as some have interpreted it.; And it is worthy of particu-
lar remark, that the situation of this river, and the peculiar work
of God that took place in it, at different times, typified the manner
in which man must descend into the work of judgment, and the
absolute necessity of such a work; as will appear from the follow-
ing circumstances. r
i. The River Jordan was the boundary of the land of Canaan,
on the side towards the wilderness, through which the Israelites
* As this dispensation was figurative, it could not decide Achan's future state; that was
º * gospel in a future day.
# It was doubtless used in both senses: for in the Hebrew, as in other languages, the
same word is often used to express different ideas. -
[CHAP Iv. THE CONFESSION OF SIN. 297
travelled to the promised land; and they could not enter into the
promised land, without descending into this river and passing
through it. By this it was clearly typified, that man must descend
into the work of judgment, and pass through that work, before he
can enter and take possession of the promised inheritance of the
Saints. -
* When John the Baptist was sent to prepare the way for the
ushering in of the work of the Messiah, “to make ready a people
prepared for the Lord,” the people who received his mission, came,
“ and were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.” This
evidently pointed out the manner in which souls must be brought
to judgment, in order to prepare them to enter into the work of
Christ’s Kingdom; that is, by honestly confessing their sins, and
passing through the baptism of repentance. This work is the
river of judgment through which souls must pass, and without
which they can no more enter the true spiritual Canaan, the pro-
mised inheritance of the saints, than the Israelites could enter the
land of Canaan without descending and passing through the River
Jordan. * 4.
* The case of Naaman the Syrian, who was cleansed from his
leprosy by washing in the River Jordan, was a striking figure of
the manner in which souls were to be cleansed from the guilt of
sin. The plague of leprosy was considered, under the law, as the
most unclean disease of any that could come upon any person; and
was therefore a particular figure of the polluted and unclean state
of a soul spotted with sin. When Naaman came to the prophet
Elisha to be cleansed from his leprosy, the prophet sent a messen-
ger to him, saying, “Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy
flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.” But this
message was offensive to Naaman’s proud and exalted feelings: he
had rather wash in the rivers of his own country. Yet he could
not be cleansed till he was obedient; and therefore, when he had
humbled himself, and washed as he was directed, “his flesh came
again like unto the flesh of a little child.” Thus he received the
promise and was cleansed.
Herein was plainly prefigured the message which God sends to
sinners : Go wash in the river of judgment; that is, confess your
sins and be baptized with repentance, and ye shall become as little
children, and be clean. But how contrary is this message to the
exalted nature of man He had much rather seek religion among
the formal professors of his own land, where this duty is not re-
quired; where they confess their sins in the dark, and wash in
their own rivers, or in other words, chuse their own ways of mak-
ing themselves christians. But debasing as it may feel to high-
minded and self-sufficient souls to become as little children, and
* 2 Kings v. 16. --- it
f
298 THE CONFESSION OF SIN. [PART VI.
come down to the real work of judgment, by confessing their sins
to the true witnesses of God; yet they can no more be cleansed
from sin without passing through this work, than Naaman could
be cleansed from his leprosy without washing in Jordan.
8. We find the open confession of sin evidently enjoined and
plainly supported by many passages of scripture. “He that cov-
“ereth his sins shall not prosper; but whoso confesseth and for-
“saketh them shall have mercy.” No one will pretend that he
can cover his sins from the All-seeing eye of God; yet here is a
covering spoken of, which evidently alludes to concealing them
from the witnesses of God, whom he hath sent to proclaim the
Hight of the glorious gospel, “and preach the baptism of repentance
for the remission of sins.”f
Agreeable to the testimony of Christ, “There is nothing cover-
“ed that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be
“known.”f It is certain that nothing can be revealed without
being brought to the light. But where is the light, and what is it?
This was plainly revealed by Christ, when he said to his disciples,
“Ye are the light of the world.” If the followers of Christ are
the light of the world, then those who walk in darkness must come
to those whom Christ has declared to be the light of the world,
if they ever expect to find the light of truth, or be benefitted by it.
“Whatsoever doth make manifest, is light.” All sin is the
work of darkness, and while it remains in darkness, it is concealed;
but when it is brought to the light, it then appears as it is. And
the only way for sinners to bring their evil deeds to the light, is to
reveal them, by confession, to those who are declared to be the
light of the world. Here they must be uncovered and brought to
the light: for a thousand confessions made in secret, (in the dark,)
will never bring one sin to the light; and if the evil deeds of sin-
ners are not brought to the light, they never can be put away.
Therefore he who is not willing to confess his sins to the followers
of Christ, who are the light of the world, need never expect to get
rid of them, nor find the forgiveness of God. In this manner they
came to the light in Christ's first appearing. In the beginning
they came to John, “ confessing their sins.” In the apostle's
days, “Many that believed came, and confessed, and showed their
deeds.”ff -
Again: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to for-
give us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”ff If
man is required of God to confess his sins in secret only, or to
acknowledge himself a sinner, without bringing his evil deeds to
the light, we would ask, why are not those who practice this man-
mer of confession, cleansed from all unrighteousness? Is God unfaith-
* Prov. xxviii. 13, f Mark i. 4. & Luke iii 3 ! Luke xii. 2, | Matt v. 14,
* + IYIa tt, iž;. 6.
* F-h. v. [8. fi Acts xix. 18. # 1 John i. 2.
2 Wor. -
CHAP, IV.] THE CONFESSION OF SIN. - 299
ful to his promise P or did the apostle declare a lie? No one will
pretend to answer these questions in the affirmative. What then is
the matter P “All unrighteousness is sin,” as the same apostle de-
clares.” But they go on, continually confessing in the same man-
ner, and are as continually committing sin, according to their con-
fessions. Hence they are witnesses against themselves, that they
are still unrighteous; therefore it is evident that they do not con-
fess their sins to God’s acceptance; and this is the true and only
reason why they do not receive the promise. • *
9. No truth is more clearly established in the sacred writings
than this; that God always had his witnesses, who acted as agents
between God and man; sometimes to plead the cause of man be-
fore God, as mediators; and sometimes to communicate the will
of God to man, as messengers. And it is equally true that God
always required man to receive these witnesses in his name, and
to render implicit obedience to them ; nor could mankind ever find
acceptance with God in any other way. The testimonies of Jesus
Christ are very plain on this subject: “Verily, verily, I say unto
“ you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me; and he
“ that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me.”f And again:
“Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my
“brethren, ye have done it unto me.”f Since them, we are re-
quired to receive Christ through his witnesses, or those whom he
sends, and since what we do to them, we do to him, it necessarily
follows that, if we confess our sins to them, or in their presence,
as his witnesses, we really do it to Christ; nor can we be accepted
short of this.
We readily admit that no man, of himself, hath power to forgive
sin; that power must proceed from God. The forgiveness ofsin,
after confession, must be wrought by the operation of the Spirit of
God. But the promise of God is sure; and, “the Son of man hath
power on earth to forgive sins.” Therefore, if the sinner, on his
part, is honest and faithful in his confession, he can have no cause
to distrust the mercy of God, and he soon finds the proof of it in
his own soul, by a sensible manifestation of that invisible power
which removes every feeling of condemnation which he before felt,
and fills his sour with comfort and peace. And this power is an
evident proof to him that his confession is acceptable to God.
But it is proper to remark here, that this power must necessarily
come through some medium, either through the witness to whom
the confession was made, or some other person who had before re-
ceived it, and who, by his spiritual travel, stands in a nearer rela-
tion to God than the sinner can do in that situation. Besides, as
before observed, God always dispenses the power of salvation to
man through the agency of man; and therefore the power of for-
* 1 John v. 17. John xiii. 20. & Matt, x. 40, 4 Matt, xxv. 40. Mark ii, 10.
3:00 THE CONFESSION OF SIN. [PART WJ,
giveness which souls receive from God, must come through the
witnesses or servants of God, who stand in that lot, as agents or
mediators between God and man. The sinner may indeed receive
a reflection of divine light, which may give him some view of his
situation, and produce conviction of sin; and it may point him to
the true light, and thus enable him to come to it. But as certainly
as he comes to the true light, he must make manifest his evil deeds;
and he never can receive the abiding treasures of salvation in any
other way.
Certain it is that man, in his fallen state, can never come im-
mediately to God; but whatever he receives from God, of a spirit-
ual nature, must either come to him through ministering spirits, or
be communicated through living witnesses on earth. Therefore,
tho a person under the powerful conviction of sin, not knowing
the true order of God for the confession and forgiveness of sin,
may cry to God for deliverance, and may have his burden of con-
demnation removed or suspended, for a time, by the operation of
some ministering spirit, and feel his soul comforted for a season;
yet, as the treasures of the gospel, for fallen man, are committed
to “earthen vessels,” and as “the Son of man hath placed power
on earth to forgivesins;” therefore sin cannot finally be taken away
from any soul, without a confession in the order of God’s appoint-
ment, to his living witnesses. This doctrine may appear new and
strange to many of our readers; but it is agreeable to the testimony
of ETERNAL TRUTH.
Jesus Christ, after his resurrection, appeared to his disciples,
and said, “Peace be unto you; as my Father hath sent me, even
“so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on
“ them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Who-
“soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whoso-
“ever sins ye retain, they are retained.” Thus he commissioned
them to preach the gospel of peace, and gave them power to remit
and retain sins. But this power was contained in the IHoly Spirit
which they received. And thus the apostles and elders of the
church all had that power committed to them; and so it is in this
day.
without this Divine power, neither the apostles nor any others
could ever remit or retain the sins of those who came to make con-
fession : hence they were dependent upon the will of God, mani-
fested in this Holy Spirit which they had received; and therefore,
in all their ministrations, they were directed by the gift of God.
This is agreeable to the testimony of Jesus; “I do nothing of my-
“self; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.--
“He that believeth on me, the works that I do, shall he do also.--
* John Ex. 21, 22, 23.
CHAP. Iv.] THE confession of SiN. 30|
“And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that
“ the Father may be glorified in the Son.” -
So it is in the present day: every leader and elder in the church
of Christ, is as much dependent on the gift of God, in all his spiri-
tual ministrations, as a child is dependent on its parents; nor do
they ever pretend otherwise. Therefore, tho they are the agents,
or earthen vessels, (as the apostle expresses it,) to whom this trea-
sure is committed; yet should they attempt to act of themselves,
in this holy vocation, without looking to God, and feeling their de-
pendence on his holy Spirit, they would soon lose all their spiritual
power, and be as destitute as Sampson was of natural power after
his head was shorn.
It appears by the preceding observations, that the law of Moses
enjoined the confession of sin to the priests and elders of the peo-
ple; that the manner and order of confession was plainly pointed
out under the law; and that the figures of the law, on this point,
evidently alluded to the manner in which it was to be practiced
under the gospel. It also appears that the operations of the Spirit
of God, in the work of conviction, clearly teaches that confessions
ought to be made before the witnesses of God; that reason teaches
the propriety and consistency of it; that Jesus Christ taught it; and
that it was practiced under the ministration of John the Baptist, and
in the primitive church until the falling away. And this doctrine of
auricular confession (as it is called) was well known to the catholic
fathers, and was practiced by them; and that it was then, or shortly
after, wickedly corrupted in the Catholic church; so that its bles-
sed effects were entirely lost many hundreds of years before the
reformation from popery took place. -
But man is not required to confess his sins before the wicked;
for this would be like bringing darkness to darkness, which would
naturally produce an increase of darkness upon the soul. Yet if
any one have wronged any of his fellow creatures, he is bound
to confess the wrong, and make restitution to the injured person,
as far as possible, according to the strict demands of justice; other-
wise he can never find a just relation to the work of God. But
the true order of confession requires the sinner to come before one
or more of the real witnesses of truth, who possess the Spirit of
Christ, and there honestly confess, as in the presence of God, the
particulars of all his transgressions.
As light makes manifest, and truth reveals the real state of souls,
so this doctrine proceeds from the attribute of light in God, and is
supported by Divine Truth; and in it is displayed the virtues of
humility and honesty. And thus a true principle of light is plant-
ed in man, by which souls find forgiveness of their sins and accep-
tance with God; and this is the only means of introduction into.
* Jobn yiii, 28 and xiv. 2, 13
Bh
302 THE RESURRECTION. [PART WF,
the kingdom of light. Hence this doctrine is revived, and fully
established in this day of Christ's second appearing, as the only
door of hope for the fallen race of man, and the only entrance into
the Kingdom of Christ. -
CHAPTER V.
The Resurrection.
THE Resurrection is a doctrine generally believed by all who
profess a belief in the christian religion. But what constitutes the
real nature and substance of the resurrection, seems to be a subject
of dispute among many. The most general and popular belief is,
that the natural body of man, consisting of flesh and blood and
bones, after being divested of the spirit or living soul, and consign-
ed to the grave, will, at a certain future period of time, be raised
from the dust of the earth, with which it had been blended by dis-
solution, and be reanimated with the same living spirit, and ar-
raigned before the judgment seat of Christ, there to be judged and
consigned to a state of everlasting happiness or misery. This doc-
trine is generally believed to accord strictly with the testimony of
the scriptures, and therefore supposed to be well founded. To
eradicate these long established impressions, and convince man-
kind that they are erroneous and antichristian, and not taught by
divine revelation, is a task of no small magnitude.
“That there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just
and unjust,” is a truth which all must acknowledge; for Jesus
Christ himself plainly testified it, and also his apostles after him:
and without it, the hope of the christian is vain, and his faith vain.
Jesus Christ testified, saying, “The hour is coming, and now is,
“when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they
“ that hear shall live.” And again; “Marvel not at this: for the
“ hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves,t shall
* Acts xxiv. 15
+ Mynaceiots i. e. monuments or places of remembrance. Much stress
is laid uport the word graves, as evidence that Christ alluded particular-
ly to the natural body; but the original word which is translated graves,
was used by the ancient Greeks to signify places of remembrance, called
by the Romans monumenta, in English monuments, which is a more cor-
réct translation than graves. But if those only who have monuments
erected to their memory are to be raised, the number must be very small
in proportion to the whole human race ; for a vast portion have never
even had the honor of being put into graves. Jesus evidently used the
expression in a figurative sense, to show that the time was approaching
in which all the fallen race, in their various places and orders, would be
brought to a remembrance or consideration of their lost state, and of what
they had done; and that their past lives, with all their sins would come
into remembrance and be clearly laid open to their view; and being
CHAP. v.] THE RESURRECTION. 303
“hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good,
“unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil, unto
“the resurrection of damnation.” Many other passages might
be added in proof of the resurrection of the soul; but all this has
no reference to the natural body, except as a figure. This will
appear evident from the following considerations.
1. Jesus Christ, when on earth, declared himself to be the resur-
rection : “I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in
“me, tho he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth,
“ and believeth in me, shall never die.”f If then, Christ is the
resurrection and the life, it necessarily follows, that all who are in
Christ, are in the resurrection, whether their bodies be dead or
living. And also, if he that believeth in Christ, shall live, tho his
body be dead; then it must be the soul to which Christ had refer-
ence: for the dead body of a man cannot believe, any more than
the dead carcass of any other animal. And again: If by the ex-
pression, “Whosoever liveth, and believeth in me, shall never die,”
Christ alluded to the animal body, his promise has certainly fail-
ed: for the bodies of all christians do die. Therefore Christ must
have had particular reference to the soul, and not to the body.
Hence it is clearly evident that the reanimation of the natural
body, after its return to the dust, is not necessary to constitute that
kind of resurrection to which Christ alluded. He evidently meant
that in him was that spiritual life which constitutes the true resur-
rection; and that those who believe in him, and receive his life,
are made partakers of his resurrection: for it is the power of eter-
nal life, dwelling in him, which in truth constitutes the resurrec-
fiOI).
2. The apostle Paul plainly testifies that, “Flesh and blood
“cannot inherit the Kingdom of God; neither doth corruption
“inherit incorruption.” Therefore the natural body, which is
composed of flesh and blood, and returns to corruption, can never
be admitted into Heaven, even upon the supposition that it could
be raised from the dust and be reanimated. Of course it must
either remain upon the earth or go to hell; and therefore its resur-
rection can be of no benefit to the believer, seeing that, according
to the apostle's doctrine, it must necessarily be excluded from the
Kingdom of Heaven. “Neither doth corruption inherit incorrup-
tion.” The natural body of man is corruptible. If then, as some
say, it is to be so transformed as to become incorruptible, then cor-
waked up to a sense of feeling, by the sound of the everlasting gospel,
which is the voice of the Son of God, they would either come to the
resurrection of life, by honestly confessing their sins, and obeying the
gospel; or to the resurrection of damnation, by obstimately refusing to
comply with the calls of the gospel ; as many are now doing, contrary
to their own light and conviction.
* John v. 25, 28, 28. # John Xi. 25, 26. + 1 Cor. xv. 30.
304 THE RESURRECTION. [PART W is
ruption must inherit incorruption; which is contrary to the apos-
tle's express declaration.
But (says the objector) the same apostle testifies, in the same
chapter that, “The dead shall be raised incorruptible.” Very true;
but what dead? Surely the apostle could not mean the dead bodies
of men and women: for these are made up of flesh and blood, and
have returned to corruption; and certainly he would not contradict
himself, and that in the same chapter too. The apostle here allu-
ded to dead souls, those who were dead in trespasses and sins.
“As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”
The sound of the gospel trumpet wakes up souls who are dead in
the works of Adam, and raises them to the life of Christ; and thus
they come into the resurrection, according to the testimony of
Christ to Martha; “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that
believeth in me, tho he were dead, yet shall he live.”
But the apostle says, “This corruptible must put on incorrup-
tion, and this mortal must put on immortality.” This is also true;
but in what sense? It is impossible for corruption itself to put on
incorruption; and it is equally impossible for mortality to put on
immortality. Such a transformation can no more take place than
sin can be transformed into holiness. Yet a soul lost in a corrupt
nature, and clothed with a corruptible body, may put on incorrup-
tion. But then all that corruptible stuff which it possesses, wheth-
er of body or spirit, must be put off: for corruption and incorrup-
tion can never dwell together. So also a soul who possesses a
mortal body, may put on immortality; but that immortality can
never render the body immortal. Nor can any soul be completely
happy in its immortality, until it is divested of its mortal body,
and of every thing else which is either mortal or corruptible.
When this takes place, then “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
Some have attempted to support the absurd notion, that the
natural body is to be transformed into a spiritual body. But no
transformation whatever can ever change matter into spirit. “That
“ which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and that whiclf"is born of the
“spirit, is spirit.” And tho the living spirit may be enclosed in a
body of flesh; yet they cannot be so blended together as to be-
come one in essence. The one is natural, temporal and mortal,
and must perish, like all other material substances; and the other,
being of a spiritual and eternal substance, must exist forever, . But
even admitting the supposition, that the natural body could be
transformed into a spiritual body, its original materials, being com-
posed of flesh and blood, must necessarily be excluded from the
Kingdom of Heaven.
3. It is universally acknowledged that, “God is a Spirit;” that
the Almighty Creator and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, does
not possess a natural body of flesh and blood, like mortal man;
CHAP. v.] THE RESURRECTION. 303,
and it is also admitted that he is infinitely more great and glorious
in all his Divine perfections than any created being whatever; con-
sequently he needs no natural body to complete his glory. It
then follows, that the natural body is not necessary to complete
the happiness of man: for if man really needs a natural body to
complete his happiness, then he must need something more than
his Creator possesses, in order to be completely happy, which is a
complete absurdity.
But if the natural body of man is not necessary to complete his
happiness, then why should it be raised again P In its present state,
it is considered as a clog to the soul; and if the soul of man is to
be clogged with a natural body to the endless ages of eternity,
while the angels and ministering spirits have no such clog, how
can he ever be made equal to the angels P. He must, upon this
principle, forever remain inferior, without the most distant hope
of ever becoming equal; yet according to the testimony of Jesus
Christ, “they are equal unto the angels;” and, “Know ye not,”
saith the apostle Paul, “that we shall judge angels P” Thus the
doctrine of a natural resurrection appears altogether inconsistent
and unreasonable.
4. Every discerning person will doubtless acknowledge that the
flesh is a clog to the spirit, or in other words, that the body is a
clog to the soul. And tho the body is given as a temporal taber-
nacle for the soul to act in, and prove its obedience and subjection
to the will of God, in a state of humiliation; yet it was intended
from the beginning, that the soul should, in due time, be released
from it, and enjoy a state of greater freedom than it was capable
of enjoying in it. And as the righteous are capable of enjoying
more happiness when released from the body, than they can possi-
bly enjoy in it; so the wicked are capable of suffering more mise-
ry in a separate state, than they can possibly suffer in the body
without destroying the life of the body. Hence a separate state is
indispensibly necessary for both the righteous and the wicked
that both may be able to feel and sensibly realize the due reward of
their deeds. But they never can return again to their earthly
tabernacles.
5. The resurrection, in its fulness, is the highest state of glory
ever expected by the saints. But according to the doctrine of a
carnal resurrection, the highest state of glory to be obtained by the
righteous, cannot be realized short of raising up that dead and dis-
organized matter which once constituted the soul’s earthly taberna-
cle. And if the soul must again be confined in this, and clogged
with it, in order to be made perfect in glory, it must be because
this dead matter, which was originally composed of the elements
of the natural world, is of a nature superior to the soul, which is
* Luke xx, 36, and 1 Cor. vi. 3,
Bb 2
306 THE RESURRECTION. [PART W. I.
composed of the elements of the spiritual world; how else could
it possibly increase the glory of the soul by being reunited with it?
For it is obvious that in this case, the body must be first in view,
and therefore must forever eclipse the glory of the soul. But this
absurd doctrine would, if true, wholly reverse the established order
of God’s creation, in which the earthly part was formed as a mere
temporary shadow, to represent that spiritual and eternal substance,
which was to succeed.
6. The work of God in the new creation, is a spiritual work,
and not natural. “That was not first which is spiritual, but that
which is natural, and aſterward that which is spiritual.” The
present world with all that pertains to it, is natural and temporal,
being created for time; and as before stated, it is but a shadow or
figure of the spiritual world. And tho the shadow or figure of a
thing may represent the substance; yet every one knows that it
can never be transformed into the substance "which it is designed
to represent. The picture of a tree can never be transformed into
a real tree, nor can the shadow of a man, ever become a living
III & Ił.
The great object and design of the resurrection is to raise souls
out of their natural, fallen and depraved state, into a spiritual and
heavenly state; it must therefore be a spiritual, and not a natural
work. To suppose it a natural work, designed to operate upon
natural bodies, so as to transform them from sordid dust to a heav-
enly and etermal state of existence, is to render the spiritual crea- .
tion of God subservient to natural and material substances, and
dependent on such for its accomplishment; or else it must suppose
the natural to be superior to the spiritual. In either case, it must
also suppose the natural bodies of men to be eternal, as well as
their souls, since they are to be raised up and eternally reunited
to the soul. Such absurdities are too glaring to obtain the credit
of any enlightened soul.
But (replies the objector) it is to be raised a spiritual body, as
saith the apostle; “It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiri-
tual body.” Very good; this is agreeable to our faith; this point
once granted, and the dispute is at an end. But if it is to be raised
a spiritual body, it cannot be made up of the materials which com-
pose the natural body; for it would then be a natural body still,
and must be seen by the natural eye; whereas a spiritual body
cannot be discerned by the natural eye. “The natural man re-
“ ceiveth not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness
“ unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
“ discerned.”f Yet when the natural man hears of the resurrection,
he readily applies it to the reanimation of the animal body, fully be-
lieving that to be its true meaning. But if his ideas of it are correct,
* } & Jr. Y. W. 48. * I Cor. ii. 14.
CHAP. V.] 'THE RESURRECTION. 367
then he receives and understands the highest spiritual work of God
that will ever be revealed on earth, by the gospel. If this be so,
it entirely falsifies the apostle's declaration. As the new creation
of God, in the spiritual world, with all that pertains to it, is spiri-
tual, and not natural ; so nothing which is natural can be admitted
into it. Therefore the natural body of man, with all those mate-
rials of which it is composed, must be forever excluded from it.
7. The apostle Paul, in his speech before king Agrippa, ex-
presses himself as follows: “Having therefore obtained help of
“God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great,
“saying none other things than those which the prophets and Mo-
“ses did say should come; that Christ should suffer, and that he
“should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew
“light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.”
If then, by the rising from the dead, we are to understand the
reanimation of the natural body, Christ was not the first who rose:
for, according to the testimony of the scriptures, there had been no
less than six dead bodies reanimated and raised up, before Christ
arose, three of which he himself had raised. Perhaps it will be said,
that he was the first who rose in that extraordinary manner.f Let
this be granted; but if it be still contended that his natural body
was reanimated, and that this was his real resurrection to which the
apostle had reference, let the manner be never so extraordinary,
this does not alter the case; it was not the first dead body that had
been raised, and of course, not consistent with the testimony of the
apostle. Hence the apostle must have had reference to a spiritual
resurrection, or Christ could not have been the first that rose from
the dead. e
The resurrection of the natural body of man, is strongly argued
from the supposed resurrection of the natural body of Jesus Christ,
which is thought to be established beyond dispute, by the fact that
it was not found in the sepulcher where it was laid, and by several
particular circumstances connected with his appearance to his dis-
* Acts xxvi 22, 23. See also i Cor xy. 20. Col. i. 13 & Rev. i 5
† The resurrection of Jesus Christ was indeed more extraordinary than the natural man
can have any conception of ; because it was a spiritual resurrection, the first and the great-
est that ever did or ever can take place on earth. But if it had been nothing more than the
reanimation or rising of his earthly tabernacle or natural body, it could not have been so
extraordinary as that of Lazarus, who rose in open sight of many of the Jews, after he had
been in the grave four days, and was seen personally alive, probably by thousands who were
open enemies; whereas Jesus could not have been dead much over thirty six hours, having
expired about the ninth hour, which, according to our computation, was 3 o'clock in the
afternoon, on the 6th. day of the week, and rose very early on the morning of the first,
(which was the 3d day after his crucifixion,) probabiy, before 4 o'clock; for the women
were at the sepulcher very early, “when it was yet dark,” and the sun, at that season of
the year, must have risen before six, (it being in April,) and the day must then have dawned
soon after 4 o’clock. Besides, no one saw him rise, nor do we fearn that any one saw him
after he had risen, except his own disciples, and those that believed on him. But even if
he had been seen to roll away the stone himself, and come out alive, in the open view of as
many people as saw Lazarus rise, taking all circumstances into consideration, it could not
have been so wonderful to the natural man as the resurrection of Lazarus, who had been in
the grave four days.
308 THE RESURRECTION, [PARt v1.
ciples after his resurrection; such as the following; “And they
“came and held him by the feet and worshipped him.—Behold
“my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me and see;
“for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And
“when he had thus spoken, he showed them his hands and his
“feet.—And after eight days, again his disciples were within, and
* Thomas with them : then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and
“stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he
“to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and
* reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side, and be not
“faithless, but believing.”
These passages have been carefully examined and fully answer-
ed by Br. John Dunlavy, of Kentucky, and therefore it is less ne-
cessary to enlarge upon the subject here. But it may not be im-
proper to make a few remarks for the reader's consideration.
1. It is readily granted that the natural body ºf Jesus was raised
from the sepulcher and taken away. This was necessary, not
only for the conviction of his disciples who, before they received
the Holy Ghost, were but natural men, and had not themselves
received any understanding of the true nature of the resurrection,
but also for the conviction of others who might afterwards receive
their testimony; that the disciples, after being convinced themselves,
might be able to convince a lost world, whose carnal sense and
understandings rendered it very difficult for them to believe spiri-
tual truths, unless they were confirmed by circumstantial evidences
which they could not overthrow. For, as their ideas of a resurrec-
tion were natural, it would have been very difficult to persuade
them that Christ had risen from the dead, in any manner, so long
as they could see his dead body still lying in the sepulcher.
2. His appearing to his disciples in the manner he did, and
showing his hands and his feet, and his wounded side, his eating
before them, and speaking to them as he did, were circumstances
evidently designed to calm their fears and make them conversible,
that he might be able, in a free and familiar manner, to gain their
faith and confidence, and enlighten their understandings, by de-
grees, concerning the nature of that spiritual work into which they
were soon to enter, and which they were not able to understand in
their then present situation. Hence it was necessary that the ideas
of a natural resurrection should first be represented to their minds,
as a figure of the spiritual, before the real nature of the spiritual
could be received. It was doubtless for the same cause that Laza-
rus, and others were raised again to matural life; namely, to show
forth by these natural figures, the certainty of a future resurrection;
* Matt. xxviii. 9. Luke xxiv. 39, 40. John xx 26, 27. -
t Sce Dunlavy's Manifesto, printed at Pleasant Hitl, in Kentucky, 1919.
CHAP. v.] THE RESURRECTION. 309
but that it was to be a spiritual resurrection, could be revealed only
by the Spirit.
It may be objected that, if it was not the natural body of Jesus
Christ which appeared, he must have deceived his disciples, by
persuading them that it was in reality his natural body, and not
his Spirit, while in fact there was no natural body there. This
does not follow: his appearing to them in different characters, as
that of a gardner, a stranger, and the like, is liable to the same ob-
jections. He could not deceive them by talking with them con-
cerning his natural body, which was but the figure of himself, and
the only medium by which he could represent to them the reality
of his resurrection, while they were altogether unable to compre-
hend the substance. Had he endeavored to persuade them that
there was no substance in the case, that it was all a figure, he would
have deceived them; but this he did not do. He gave them as
much light as they, at that time, were able to receive, and convey-
ed it in a manner the best adapted to their understandings; and
what could he do more?
His expression, “A spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see me
have,” is no evidence that he then really possessed a body of flesh
and bones, any Inore than his appearing to John as a “Lamb, hav-
ing seven horns and seven eyes,” was a proof that he was in reality
such a creature. The truth is, he appeared to his disciples in the
natural form and figure which he had when with them, as a man
having flesh and bones, and not as a glorified spirit; and this is
the true import of his words in the original.
3. Jesus testified to Nicodemus, saying, “No man hath ascend.
“ed up to Heaven, but he that came down from Heaven, even
“ the Son of man who is in Heaven.” Hence it is evident that,
as the natural body of Jesus never came down from Heaven, but
was “made of a woman,” it could not be that which ascended up
to Heaven. “That which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and that
which is born of the Spirit, is spirit.” And according to the tes-
timony of the apostle Paul, before cited, “Flesh and blood cannot.
inherit the Kingdom of God.” None will pretend to deny that
the natural body of Jesus was made of flesh and blood, like that of
any other man; therefore his natural body could not enter and
inherit the Kingdom of God in Heaven. -
But even admitting that it was indeed the natural body of Jesus,
the same that was crucified and pierced with a spear, which ap-
peared to his disciples, we would ask, Why were the wounds still
left in the body? Was not God who raised him from the dead, able
to heal his wounds P Or was it necessary that he should forever
bear in his body the marks of Jewish barbarity P If so, how can it
ever be a glorious body, as it is called P Besides, if Christ's body
* John iii, 13.
310 THE RESURRECTION. [PART VI.
is to be forever disfigured with the cruel wounds inflicted on it by.
his persecutors, then the bodies of his faithful martyrs, who have
suffered all manner of abuse on their bodies, for his sake, must re-
main in the same condition, or they cannot be like their master:
and if this is to be the case, what a grotesque figure must they make
in Heaven -
4. It must appear quite inconsistent with the established laws
of living animal bodies to be capable of transformation, so as to:
appear, at will, in different forms, and to pass through material
substances without making any breach, and to vanish instantly
from the natural sight. This power is generally believed to be
peculiar to spiritual bodies only. Yet it is evident that Jesus Christ
not only appeared to his disciples in a variety of characters, such
as a gardner, a travelling stranger, an unbodied spirit, in his natu-
ral appearance when with them, and with his wounded side and
other marks of his crucifixion; but he also appeared suddenly in
the midst of them, while the doors were shut, and as suddenly van-
ished from their sight. He also appeared to John as “a Lamb
having seven horns and seven eyes.” All these different appear-
ances are evidently far more consistent with the doctrine of a spiri-
tual body, than with that of a natural one, and afford a conclusive
evidence that there was no natural body there. -
5. The declaration of the Almighty to Adam, concerning the
forbidden fruit, was positive: “In the day that thou eatest thereof
thou shalt surely die.” All must admit that this death was spiritual,
and not natural; for, according to the record, Adam lived to the
advanced age of nine hundred and thirty years. And it will doubt-
less be admitted also, that Christ is the resurrection, according to
his own testimony; and that he came to redeem man from the
death of the fall, from that death which he suffered by transgres-
sion; to raise him from a death of sin to a life of righteousness;
hence this resurrection must of necessity be spiritual, and not natu-
ral. What authority then have we to believe that the natural
body of man will ever have any share in this resurrection ?
We have the authority of Job, replies an objector. Job says,
“Tho after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh
“shall I see God.”f But it is well known that this translation is
disputed by those who are acquainted with the Hebrew original.
They say the particle there translated in is more properly rendered.
out of or from. And we find in the margin of some of our large
Bibles, that the whole verse is thus translated; “After I shall
“awake, tho this body be destroyed, yet out of my flesh shall I
“ see God.” The translators of the Bible doubtless had the same
ideas of a carnal resurrection which so generally prevail at the pre-
sent day; and therefore it was natural for them to translate this
* Rev. v. 6, - t Job xix. 26,
CHAP. v.] THE RESURRECTION. 3II
passage according to their own belief and understanding, in prefer-
ence to giving it a different sense, especially as the words were
susceptible of different constructions, and the real meaning might
have appeared dubious to them.
6. The established order and progressive growth, maturity,
decay and dissolution of all things in the natural creation, is a con-
tinual and striking proof that nothing which becomes old and de-
cays or dies, can ever revive and be renewed again. Altho the
old creation, with all its established order, is to be superseded by
the new ; yet God never designed that the order of the new should
be established on principles contrary to the established order of
the old; because this would at once defeat the object and design
of the old, which was to be a figurative representation of the new,
and from the spiritual substance of the old, the new was to rise.
But if the old natural body is to be raised up again from the dust,
and established in its original form, in the new creation, it must
be on principles directly contrary to the established order of the
old creation, and must therefore defeat its original design. This
would render God’s plans inconsistent with each other, which
cannot be; because God is a consistent Being, and all his plans
are perfectly consistent with each other.
Let us suppose, for instance, that instead of raising up a new
oak from an acorn, which is the natural seed of the old, God should
raise up the old oak, which had fallen down and rotted, and min-
gled with the dust of the earth, and should establish it again a liv-
ing tree; would not such a resurrection of the old be directly con-
trary to the original order and laws of nature ? And would such a
manner of operation bear the least shadow of comparison with any
of the works of God? Yet a new and beautiful oak may be raised
from the seed or acorn, which is the only living remains of the old;
and it may also be formed, by the hand of cultivation, into a far
more beautiful tree than the old; and be fitted and prepared for a
more exalted station than the old tree ever had, or ever could have,
without the same care and operation. The same observations
will apply to any other tree or plant whatever, as well as to many
other things: for the whole of the old creation, in its natural state,
is filled with figurative representations of things in the new and
spiritual creation of God.
Altho the language of the apostle Paul is very clear and explicit
on this subject, yet it seems that the generality of professing chris-
tians are so far prepossessed in favor of a reanimation of the same
material body, that they really suppose the apostle is supporting
that principle, when in truth he is arguing against it. “Thou
sowest not that body that shall be.” It is generally, but errone-
ously supposed that the apostle here had reference to the burial of
a dead corpse in the grave; but even admitting that to be his mean-
312 2 THE RESURRECTION. [PART VI.
ing, it seems strange that any one should imagine that the apostle
meant to say the same body should rise again, when his words so
plainly imply the contrary. “Thou sowest not that body that shall
be.” Had he omitted the negative adverb not, and said, “Thou
sowest that body that shall be,” we might then suppose that, in this
expression, he advocated the resurrection of the same body; but
then he must have contradicted himself; because in other parts of
the chapter he talks very differently.
But the truth is, the apostle, in this expression, had particular
reference to the act of depositing seed in the earth, as a figure to
show the nature of the resurrection. For as it is with seed which
is put into the ground, having a principle of life in itself, and being
quickened by the power of vegetation, the body of it dies and rots
in the earth, before a new body of the same species can rise from
it, and come to maturity; so it is with the natural man when sown
in the gospel field, his spirit must be quickened by the renovating
power of Christ, and all that belongs to that earthly nature in which
he was born and brought up, must die in him; and the soul must
be renewed and grow up into the heavenly nature of Christ, who
is the resurrection and the life. When it is thus raised, it is fit for
the Kingdom of Heaven, but not before. -
Again: “Some will say, How are the dead raised up, and with
“what body do they come? Thou fool, that which thou sowest is
“not quickened except it die.” If we are to understand by this
sowing, the act of putting the dead body into the grave, as some
suppose, then we must also understand that the dead body dies
after it is put into the grave, which is a most glaring absurdity.
But if this be not granted, then the dead body can have no part in
the resurrection: “for that which thou sowest is not quickened
except it die.”
“It is sown a natural body.” The apostle, in this expression,
evidently alluded to the sowing of the seed of man, which produces
a mortal being, in which is a spiritual substance clothed with a
mortal body, composed of the elements of this world, and in a
fallen, depraved, corrupted and feeble state, subject to death and
exposed to sin and misery. And this spiritual substance is that
which constitutes the real man, which, as the apostle says, “is sown
“in corruption and raised in incorruption—is sown in dishonor,
“ and raised in glory—is sown in weakness, and raised in power—
“is sown a natural body (that is, in a natural body) and raised a
“spiritual body:” for it is evident, and well understood, that while
the soul is in a fallen state, it is considered and accounted natural.
Its life is natural; and this life must die before it can be raised to
a heavenly life. Thus it is plain that, “there is a natural body,
and there is a spiritual body.”
“It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” As
cHAP. VI.] THE DAY OF JUDGMENT, 313
the sowing alludes to the introduction of the natural man into the
natural world by generation; so the raising alludes to the rising of
the soul into the heavenly world by regeneration, and thus it be-
comes a spiritual body. Hence it is not the natural, but the spir-
itual body which is the subject of the resurrection. This may be
clearly seen and understood in the close of the apostle's discourse
on this subject, where he respectively points out the descent and
order of the natural man from the first Adam, who was “of the
earth, earthy;” and the descent and order of the spiritual man
from the second Adam, who was “the Lord from Heaven, a quick-
ening spirit.”
“There are celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial,” saith the
apostle; “but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the
terrestrial is another.” The terrestrial bodies of men and women,
like the terrestrial bodies of other animals, are composed of the
temporal elements, and are created for time. But the celestial or
spiritual bodies of mankind are composed of spiritual elements,
and are created for eternity. The true glory of the former con-
sists in their operating in their proper places and order, in doing the .
work required of them in this terrestrial world; while the true
glory of the latter consists in their operating in their proper places
and order, in doing the work required of them in the heavenly
world.
Thus we may see that the true resurrection consists in the rising
of the spiritual part of man from the terrestrial elements, into which
it has been sown by generation, to the celestial. By the operation
of the Spirit of Christ, in the work of the regeneration, it is formed
into a celestial and heavenly body, endowed with immortality and
eternal life, and thus it becomes an everlasting inhabitant of the
celestial world; and thus it is that, “this corruptible puts on in-
corruption, and this mortal puts on immortality.” This glorious
work of the resurrection has commenced, and will continue with
increasing power and progress, until all souls shall have experien-
ced its effects, either by coming forth to the resurrection of life, or
to the resurrection of damnation.
CHAPTER VI.
The Day of Judgment.
THE Day of Judgment is inseparably connected with the Resur-
rection; and tho the belief in both is probably as extensive and
universal as the profession of the christian religion; yet mankind
appear to be as much in the dark with respect to the former as the
latter. But that “God hath appointed a day in which he will
* See 1 Cor. xv. 45. &c.,
("r
314 THE DAY OF JUDGMENT, [PART W. H.,
judge the world in righteousness,” and render impartial justice to
every rational soul, is a truth which cannot reasonably be disputed.
Such a judgment was frequently alluded to, by the patriarchs and
prophets, from the earliest ages of the world; and was afterwards
more fully declared and confirmed by our Lord Jesus Christ and
his apostles. Indeed such a judgment is indispensably necessary
from the very nature of righteousness and justice in God. -
But what is this day of judgment? and in what manner is it to
be brought about? These are questions of no small concern to
mankind, and especially to those who profess the christian religion.
Many who call themselves christians, are firm and confident in the
belief, that the day of judgment is a certain appointed day, yet
future, in which the whole creation will be put in the most terrible
commotion; when the Lord Jesus Christ will suddenly descend
from beyond the starry regions, and personally appear in the natu-
ral elements of clouds and flaming fire, surrounded with myriads
of Saints and angels, and with a voice surpassing ten thousand
thunders, will call up all the dead bodies of Adam’s race from their
graves, and their souls from the eternal world, and cause them to
appear, soul and body, in full form and stature, and in all their for-
mer life and sensation, before his awful throne in the skies, there
to receive their final and irrevocable sentence of salvation or dam-
nation.
But we would ask, how these ideas of the day of judgment can
be reconciled with the opinion generally entertained, by these same
sort of christians, that the final and everlasting fate of the soul is
decided at the hour of death P. If the soul of a man or woman who
falls a victim to the grim messenger of death, is thenceforth imme-
diately adjudged and consigned to eternal happiness or misery,
without the possibility of a reversal, why should it be called up
again to receive a second sentence, which, upon these principles,
must necessarily be the same as the former ? If the day of proba-
tion ends at death, and the fate of the soul is then unalterably fixed,
according to the opinion of these christians, what can be the object
of a day of judgment of the preceding description P Such a resur-
rection would undoubtedly afford a miraculous display of power to
the view of the natural man; but if those who were thus raised
from the dead had already received their final sentence, what ad-
vantage is to be derived from such a day of judgment P The resur-
rection may be needful to answer their plan; but of what use is
the judgment, since their fate is already decided?
But we view the day of judgment in a very different light from
all this. We view it as a work which has already commenced; a
work which we ourselves have seen and felt, and can therefore
testify from our own experience, that it is a work which, thoun:
seen by the natural man, is real and substantial; and tho gradual
CHAP. vi.] 'THE DAY OF JUDG MEN'ſ". 315
and progressive in its operations, it is certain and effectual; and
will continue to increase in power, till a full and final separation
shall be made between good and evil. This work will be accom-
plished, both by the order and course of God’s providence, and by
the operations of the Spirit of Christ in his chosen witnesses, agree-
able to ancient prediction: “Behold, the Lord cometh in ten thou-
“sands of his saints,” to execute judgment upon all, and to con-
“vince all that are ungodly among them, of all their ungodly deeds
“which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard
“speeches, which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”f
Here is a true description of the work of the judgment day.
First, to separate between the principles of good and evil, and to
convince souls of their ungodliness; and secondly, to render im-
partial justice to all souls, according to their works, after giving
them a free and fair choice between good and evil. The same
work is also alluded to, in the visions of the prophet Daniel. “The
“kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under
“the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of
“the Most High;” and “the judgment was set, and the books
“were opened.”f
That the saints are to judge the world, is a doctrine which was
taught in the primitive church. Thus saith Paul to the Corinthi-
ans; “Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world P’ſ
And again; “Some men's sins are opened beforehand, going be-
fore to judgment; and some men they follow after.” Hence it is
evident that all sin must be brought to judgment; and this work of
judgment commences by bringing souls to an honest confession of
their sins. Here a door is set open, and a free offer is made for
all souls to enter in, and bring their sins to judgment by confession.
And those who honestly do this, will have their sins separated
from them by the spirit of judgment, and the purifying fire of the
gospel: and thus the soul will be justified. But those who refuse
to come to this equitable and righteous judgment of Christ, their
sins will follow after them to the judgment of condemnation. “For
if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.”" That is;
if we try ourselves by the righteous judgment of God, and condemn
all evil, and separate ourselves from it, and cleave only to that
which is good, we shall not be judged to condemnation. But if
we do not judge ourselves in this manner, we shall be judged un-
worthy of any portion with the righteous.
This Day of Judgment has now commenced, and God has be-
gun to judge the nations of the earth, who have long been erring
in judgment, and straying from the paths of justice and truth; and
* “In myriads of his saints,” according to the original : the Greek proposition êu
signifies in, and ought to be so translated. º *
# Jude 14, 15. ; Dan, vii. 10 & 27. || 1 Cor. vi. ?. ºf 1 Cor, xi, 37,
316 THE DAY OF JUDGMENT. [PART W is
this righteous judgment will never cease until the work of God
shall be fully accomplished. It will prove efficacious in its opera-
tions, and will be made manifest in the conviction of evil of every
description, and in the full developement of error of every kind,
whether in judgment, opinion or practice. It will produce in the
willing and obedient, the effectual destruction of all kinds of vice
and immorality, and every principle of evil. It will enlighten
mankind in the knowledge of the truth, and widely extend the be-
nign principles of peace and good-will to man. It will greatly
increase the practical duties of humanity, benevolence and charity,
and produce a universal diffusion of divine light, and the knowl-
edge of salvation; and in the end, it will effect the final decision
and termination of the probationary state of all souls.
This Day of Judgment will be gradual and progressive, but cer-
tain and effectual; and it will continue till a full and final separa-
tion shall be made between good and evil. Then shall the righ-
teous no longer suffer under the oppressive hands of the wicked;
nor shall the wicked any more shelter himself under the banners
of the righteous; but each shall reap the reward of his own doings,
whether they be good or evil: for God will search the heart and
try the reins of every creature. Then shall the covering be taken
off from all people, and the veil be removed from all faces. Then
shall Antichrist no longer beguile mankind with the mere name of
religion in which there is no reality; nor his ministers any more
deceive souls with the hope of salvation in their sins. Fraud
and violence, theft and robbery, pride and ambition, malice and
envy, falsehood and deception, and every species of wickedness
will be completely uncovered, and appear in all their naked de-
formity; nor will it be in the power of man to conceal the smallest
crime: for every secret sin will be brought fully to view. Then
shall be accomplished the testimony of the Lord Jesus; “There
is nothing covered that shall not be revealed; neither hid that shall
not be known.”
All these things will be effectually accomplished by the unerring
Judgment of God. The judgment is already set, and the books
are opening, and all flesh shall be judged according to the deeds
done in the body. The book of life will be displayed, in due
time, before the face of every human being, and every secret ac-
tion will be brought to light, and it will be seen and known what
l;ind of lives all have lived. Good and evil will then be made
manifest to all, and in all ; and that which was long ago spoken by
the prophet Malachi, will then be clearly known and understood:
“But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand
“when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's
“soap. And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he
* Ltike xi. C.
CHAP. v1.j THE DAY OF JUDGMENT, 317
“shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver,
“ that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.”
Then shall righteousness reign triumphant over iniquity, “ and all
shall know the Lord, from the least to the greatest.” :
This work having already commenced, will continue its pro-
gressive influence till all souls shall have seen and felt its purifying
effects; or, through wilful disobedience shall have rejected their
day of trial, because of the cross, and numbered themselves with
the impenitent and rebellious, as vessels of wrath fitted for destruc-
tion. But this day of judgment is yet in its beginning; it is yet
like the little stone, spoken of by the prophet Daniel, and which
pointed to this very work. It will yet grow and increase till it
shall break in pieces the mighty image; the pride of human nature,
and the power of Antichrist shall fall before it, and become “like
the chaff of the summer threshing-floors,” and be driven away with
the wind; while the little unseen, tho powerful agent, shall increase
and grow, till, like a mountain of righteousness, it shall fill the
whole earth.i.
This work, tho powerful and effective in its operations, will at
the same time, be so apparently slow in its progress, and so much
out of sight of the natural man, that those who, through impenitence
and hardness of heart, chuse to put far away the evil day, will be
so blinded by wilful unbelief, that they will not be aware of the
danger to which they are exposed, until, like the inhabitants of the
old world, they shall be finally overwhelmed in the deluge of de-
struction which it will occasion. “Then shall no man be able to
save him that is destroyed, nor to oppress him that hath gotten the
victory.” The final and everlasting state of all souls will then be
decided, not by the stroke of death, but by the unerring judgment
of God. “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun, in the
Kingdom of their Father.” They shall increase from glory to
glory, and from one degree of perfection to another, through eter-
nal ages.
But alas! what will become of the wicked P. The Judge of the
living and the dead hath decided the question: “These shall go
away into everlasting punishment, prepared for the devil and his
angels; where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”
A solemn and awful consideration
How vain and inconsiderate are the pursuits of the great mass
of mankind How little do the generality of people consider their
awful responsibility to their Creator | Regardless of eternal reali-
ties, their whole attention seems to be engrossed with the things
that belong to the short span of human life, as tho they were to
live forever in this world. The Day of Judgment they put far
away from their thoughts, as a matter of no concern, little consid-
* Mal. iii, 2, 3. t Dan. ii. 34.85.
3.18 THE DAY OF JUDGMENT. [PART. vi,
ering that they are continually increasing the black catalogue of
their sins, for which they must finally be brought into judgment.
Many flatter themselves that repentance and conversion, ac-
cording to the general understanding of the terms, will some time
or other, release them from any further trouble or responsibility
for their sins, and then all will be well. Relying on this vain hope,
this delusive snare of the devil, they willingly deceive themselves
till death unexpectedly closes the scene upon them. Such people
ought to consider that the infinite difference between Heaven and
hell, does not depend on the small change generally occasioned by
what is commonly called conviction and conversion, where there
is no radical change of life and pursuit in the creature. The all
important decision between eternal happiness and endless misery,
is not weighed in such a slender balance; nor is it settled on such
easy conditions.
Souls who are thus deceiving themselves, ought to remember
and consider well this unalterable decree of the Almighty; “The
soul that sinneth, it shall die.” And let them know of a certainty,
that this death the sinner cannot escape; and remember that every
repeated act of sin is still increasing the power of this death upon
them; still separating them at a greater distance from God, and
plunging them still deeper into the gulf of spiritual darkness and
loss. And every soul that ever rises from that death, must rise
through sufferings, and in perfect subjection and obedience to the
cross. If mankind would but seriously reflect that the more sin
they commit, the deeper they sink from God, and the heavier must
be their judgment, and the greater their sufferings to rise from their
lost state and gain their redemption, they would dread sin as the
greatest plague that could possibly come upon them. Therefore,
let no one who knowingly and willingly commits sin, ever flatter
himself with the vain hope that he can escape the righteous judg-
ment of God against sin, and let all be assured “that the unright-
eous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God.”
Let all lay aside the false doctrines of Antichrist, and consider
and rightly appreciate this important truth; That man is a free
agent, capable of thinking, believing and acting for himself; and
therefore he is accountable to God for the use and improvement he
makes of his free agency, and must be judged and rewarded ac-
cording to his works. The important period is fast approaching
when the dividing line must be fully drawn, when the decisive sen-
tence must be pronounced; “He that is unjust, let him be unjust
“still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still ; and he that is
“righteous, let him be righteous still ; and he that is holy, let him
“ be holy still. And behold I come quickly; and my reward is
“with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.”
chAP. VII.] conceRNING PERFECTION. 319
CHAPTER VII.
A few Remarks concerning the true nature of Perfection.
MANY controversies have been excited and maintained among
the professors of christianity, concerning the doctrine of christian
perfection; and modern professors of religion have most generally
rejected the doctrine as unreasonable and unscriptural. Hence
nothing seems to excite contempt and opposition sooner than to
talk of attaining to a state of perfection in this life. This opposi-
tion evidently proceeds from two causes; first, a wrong conception
of the true nature of perfection; and second, the impossibility of
attaining to it while living in any known sin, as has been fully
proved by the general experience of professed christians. And
indeed, if it be impossible to live without sin, as many suppose,
then surely it must be impossible to be perfect christians. -
But those who profess to believe the Bible to be the word of
God, ought to acknowledge the testimony of Jesus Christ which is
contained in the Bible; for surely that cannot be unscriptural.
“Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in Heaven
is perfect.” Would Christ require any thing impossible or un-
reasonable of his people P Certainly not. Then perfection must
be attainable; for Christ does positively require it.
The doctrine so frequently taught, and so extensively believed
among mankind; “That no one can be perfect in this life,” origi-
nated in the dark kingdom of Antichrist, and is admirably calcula-
ted to ease the conscience, and encourage slothfulness and indiffer-
ence in the duties of religion : for who will seek after that which
he believes to be unattainable P But a little attention to this subject
will show the inconsistency of such a belief.
I. God who is infinite in righteousness and goodness, can never
require impossibilities of any of his creatures. If then, perfection
were not attainable in this life, God never would require it. Yet
he does require it. He required it of Abraham : “Walk before
me, and be thou perfect.”f He required it of the 1sraelites under
the law : “Ye shall be holy; for I am holy.”f Perſection is
therefore attainable.
2. It has been attained. God declared Job to be “a perfect
and upright man.” Noah was also declared to be “a just man,
and perfect in his generations.” The apostle Paul saith, “We
speak wisdom to thern titat are perfect.” And again; “Let as
many as be perfect, he thus minded.” Hence it is evident that
there were those in his day, who were perfect, according to the
work of that day. Perfection has therefore been attained in this
life. *
* Matt v 48 f Gen. xvii. 1, f Lev. xi. 44, and xix. 1.
!; Job. i. 3. and ii. 8. *T Gen. vi. 9. ** 1 Cor. ii. 6. und Phil. iii. 13.
320 CONCERNING PERFECTION, [PART WI,
3. Anything may, with strict propriety, be called perfect, which
• perfectly answers the purpose for which it was designed. A circle
may be called a perfect circle, when it is perfectly round; an
apple may be called perfect, when it is perfectly sound, having no
defect in it; and so of a thousand other things. A child who is
perfectly obedient to all the requirements of its parents, is, in that
respect, a truly perfect child: for what more can justly be required
of it? Yet that same child, when grown to manhood, would be
capable of doing much more than he could do in his childhood;
and of course, more would be required of him. So when a man
comes up to all the requirements of God, he then stands perfectly
justified in the sight of God, and is, in that sense, a perfect man,
and walks before God with a perfect heart. Hence we may see
that perfection, in this sense, (which is all that can be required,)
instead of being unattainable, is perfectly easy.
The idea which most people have of perfection, is a state in which
there can be no increase for the better. This is a mistaken idea;
such a state never will be attained, neither in time nor eternity:
for the very life of all things which have life, whether vegetable,
animal or spiritual, consists in an increasing growth of some kind
or other. Stop that increase or growth in any thing, and its life
will immediately begin to decay, and it must at length die. So it
is with the soul of every true christian; if the increase and growth
of the soul in the knowledge and nature of Godliness, ceases, its
spiritual life must begin to decrease and die. Therefore, tho a
soul in the progress of faithful obedience to the increasing light
and work of God, may become divested of all sinful desires and
propensities; yet his life and happiness must and will consist in
a further and progressive growth in the knowledge and nature of
God, to the endless ages of etermity. And yet a soul who is per-
fectly obedient to the revealed will of God, is equally perfect be-
fore God, in every step of his travel, according to his capacity and
God’s requirement.
Thus the real nature of perfection, when applied to a christian
life, consists in nothing more nor less than in doing what God re-
quires of us, which is to improve all our faculties in doing good,
according to the best of our understanding and capacity: and
in so doing every person who sincerely desires and rightly pursues
it, may attain to perfection.
THE END.


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