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No. XIX.

MAN'S SPIRITUAL INSENSIBILITY.

66 THIS PEOPLE'S HEART IS WAXED GROSS, AND THEIR EARS ARE DULL OF HEARING, AND THEIR EYES THEY HAVE CLOSED; LEST AT ANY TIME THEY SHOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES, AND HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND SHOULD UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEARTS, AND SHOULD BE CONVERTED, AND I SHOULD HEAL THEM. Matt. xiii. 15.

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THIS is a striking picture of the human heart, as well as an explicit declaration of the cause of man's final destruction. "Light is come into the world, but men love darkness rather than light, because their deeds are evil.” The spirit of God goes before them, and restrains their rebel will from a thousand acts of desperation, and draws, and urges them to a thousand rational and godly performances; but, alas! they fight against these suggestions; they turn away their eyes from those beams of light, which occasionally dart full on them from beaven. Nor is this all; they rush, voluntarily rush, into the thick darkness of sin, until their

hearts and understandings are so hardened and obscured, that they are more stupid and ungrateful, with respect to their Maker, than the brute creation is to those who attend and feed them. 66 The ox," saith the Lord, "knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people do not consider." Isaiah, i. 3. It is really surprising, how extensively this Scripture is verified in the conduct of many, who live under the highest advantages of knowing "the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he hath sent." They see his wisdom in the heavens above, and behold his providence and mercy in the earth beneath. Yet seeing, they, as it were, see not; and hearing, they do not understand. And why are these things so? Is there an irreversible decree which has either rendered them incapable of seeing, or forbidden them to acknowledge God in his works to the salvation of their souls? No: there is no such barrier between fallen man and heaven. Well aware are we, that "by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation;" but, blessed be a God of mercy, we also know, that by the righteousness of one (even of Christ) the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life." Rom. v. 18. Nay, "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament

sheweth his handy work." The voice of these mighty preachers has gone forth through all the earth, and their words unto the end of the world. There is not a people or nation, of whatever colour or language, where they have not been heard," for day unto day uttereth the solemn speech, and night unto night still sheweth proofs of heavenly wisdom." Psalm xix. 1-4. But men harden their hearts, and turn away their eyes, and stop their ears against the effects of these instructions. Not, indeed, that every peculiar doctrine of the gospel can be distinctly learnt from these preachers; but, that in them is discernible the great outline of the existence of a God of infinite wisdom, providence, and grace, is beyond a doubt, since the heathens themselves are pronounced to be without excuse, who did not thus acknowledge the eternal power and Godhead. Rom. i. 19, 20. › O! how different a race of creatures would men be, did they but attend to the still small voice within them, and keep their minds in attentive watchfulness to learn wisdom from those objects of creation and events of providence, which, in all countries and at all seasons, are about their path, and surrounding them in all their ways! And if the heathens of past and darker ages were pronounced inexcusable for not doing so, Oh! what will the end of those

nations and individuals be, who, enjoying the vast, the incalculable treasure of a Bible, do not know and honour God as he is displayed in the volume of his works, and in the pages of his written word? It were better for such had they never been born!

With reference to myself, every retrospective view crowds additional circumstances on the mind, wherein I can now perceive I had the most favourable and striking opportunities afforded of viewing the glorious operations and transcendant mercies of Him who created and sustained me. But these opportunities and means of grace my rebel heart either wholly overlooked, or considered as the mere common place occurrences in a life like mine. One event in particular I now recollect, as being well calculated to bring the mind to see and acknowledge the Lord, but which was altogether lost upon me at the time.

Having in the early part of the year taken five hundred troops on board, (part of the army under the command of Sir Ralph Abercrombie, destined for the re-conquest of Egypt) we left Malta harbour in company with three other ships, and, for some days, proceeded to the eastward, generally accompanied by the stormy uncomfortable weather prevalent at that season. After coasting along the south side of Candia,

and the south and east shores of the Isle of Rhodes, we entered the gulph of Macri,* in one of whose harbours our fleet and army were collecting, previous to their grand descent on the coast of Egypt. The whole day had been boisterous, but as we approached the bottom of the gulph, the sky gathered up all the dismal frowns of a winter storm. The evening was within a little of setting in, and we were fast closing with a rocky shore to which all were strangers, except the vessel that acted as our pilot. The high mountains, lost in drifting clouds, seemed, as we drew nearer, to present to our prow nothing but one unbroken chain of stupendous rocks: and behind us was as dreary a sky as I had ever seen. Piles of dark black clouds rolled on each other, and followed us with increasing rapidity. The sea rose with uncommon haste, and reflected all that gloomy blackness which winter thunder-clouds cast on its surface. In short, every symptom indicated a furious elemental war. Thus our attention was engaged by alternately looking back at the

* See Dr. Clarke's Travels through Greece, &c. part the second and section the first, p. 231, &c. where this part of Asia Minor is described with that graphical vivacity which eminently distinguishes his very interesting travels.

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