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out qualification, the bond slave of sin, is under that grace whose sanctify ing power the apostle is endeavoring to recommend?

V. The intimations which Paul elsewhere gives, concerning his own moral character, are inconsistent with the interpretation which regards the passage in question as descriptive of his exercises as a Christian. In proof of this, we quote the following passages. 'Herein do I exercise myself to have always a conscience void of offense toward God, and toward man.' Acts 24: 16. In all things approving ourselves the ministers of God-by pureness -by the armor of righteousness, on the right hand, and on the left.' 2 Cor. 6: 4-7. I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God.' Gal. 2: 20. The world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.' Gal. 6: 14. For me to live is Christ.' Phil. 1: 21. 'Brethren, be followers together of me-for our conversation is in heaven.' Phil. 3: 17-20. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.' Phil. 4: 13; (comp. 7: 18, 'How to perform that which is good, I find not.') The Father hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light, who hath delivered us from the power of darkness.' Col. 1: 12, 13. Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily and justly and unblamably we behaved ourselves among you.' 1 Thess. 2: 19. "I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him.' 2 Tim. 1: 12. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.' 2 Tim. 4: 7, &c.

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If Paul could say these things of himself, and in the same breath declare, 'I am carnal, sold under sin-how to perform that which is good, I find not -I find a law, that when I would do good, evil is present with me,' &c. &c., we confess we see no method by which his consistency, or inspiration can be maintained.

REMARKS. 1. The interpretation which we have endeavored to present, and sustain, is by no means new. It is often alleged, in favor of the ordinary views of this, as of other passages, that they are the ancient and universal views of the Church. We will not dwell on the fallacy and wickedness of such attempts to chain the Bible to tradition. But we deny the truth of the allegation. The early Fathers, without exception, so far as is known, down till the 5th century, regarded Rom. 7: 7-25, as applicable, not to a Christian, but to an unregenerate man. Augustine first proposed the opposite interpretation, in the heat of a dispute with Pelagius, about natural depravity. He had himself accorded with the Fathers and church of the first ages of Christianity, in his views of the passage, and he changed his interpretation, obviously to avoid defeat in an argument. Pelagius pressed him with the expressions, I consent unto the law,' I delight in the law,' &c., as proof of the existence of something morally good in the unregenerate man. We have seen, on the contrary, that these very expressions, in the mouth of one, who, in every instance, acts in opposition to the conviction which they disclose, prove him to be unutterably depraved, a hyperbole of wickedness.' So that Augustine, needlessly, as well as wickedly, resorted to an interpretation, which the consent of the Fathers, and his own common

sense had before rejected. From him, this perversion of the word of God soon gained extensive authority, prevailed over Christendom during the darkness of the middle ages, and by tradition has come down to our day, with all its damnable influence, a time-honored suggestion of Satan. Since the dawn of the Reformation, many distinguished interpreters, from time to time, have returned to the original interpretation, and it is now the uniform testimony of competent biblical students, that Rom. 7: 7-25, describes the exercises of an unregenerate man. (For the authorities on which this remark is founded, we refer to Stuart's commentary on the Epistle to the Romans. Excursus 6.)

2. It is often alleged, in favor of the prevailing interpretation of Rom. 7: 7-25, that the passage actually describes the exercises of true Christians, whether the apostle designed such an application of it, or not. We deny again the truth of the allegation. We fully concede that the description is applicable to the exercises of those who are accounted, by themselves and others, true Christians: but it must be shown that they are so in fact, or the allegation cannot stand. How then shall we ascertain this point? By traditions of the church? By public opinion? By the feelings and hopes of the persons whose character is in question? Shall we, by any, or all of these tests, determine that they are true Christians, and then try the word of God by their exercises? Or shall we take the ground of the apostle'Let God be true and every man a liar'-and leaving traditions, public opinion, feelings and hopes, betake ourselves at once, and fearlessly, to the word and to the testimony,' certainly believing, that there and there only, we shall find a legitimate standard of Christian experience? In a word, shall we try the word of God by the exercises of supposed Christians, or their exercises by the word of God? For the benefit of those who regard the testimony of Jehovah as paramount to the traditions and opinions of all men, even of supposed saints, we cite the following passages, as presenting his standard of Christian character.

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"Whosoever shall break one of the least of these commandments, and teach men so, shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.' Matt. 5: 19. '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 in heaven.' 7: 21. Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that committeth sin, is the servant of sin.' John 8: 34. Not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law are justified.' Rom. 2: 13. 'Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: knowing that Christ, being raised from the dead, dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God.' Rom. 6: 8-11.When ye were the servants of sin, [comp. John 8: 34, 'He that committeth sin is the servant of sin,'] ye were free from righteousness: but now being made free from sin, ye have your fruit unto holiness,' &c. Rom. 6: 20-22. 'If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.' 1 John 1: 6. ‘He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar,

and the truth is not in him.' 1 John 2: 4. Whosoever abideth in him, sinneth not; whosoever sinneth, hath not seen him, neither known him. Little children, let no man deceive you; he that doeth righteousness, is righteous even as he is righteous. He that committeth sin is of the devil. Whosoever is born of God, doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness, is not of God.' 1 John 3: 6-10.

In view of the standard presented in these declarations of the Most High, we say, without hesitation, the man who can adopt the language of Rom. 7: 7-25, as descriptive of his own exercises, is not a Christian. If he that doeth not righteousness is not of God, and hereby the children of the devil are manifest, surely the man who can say, 'How to perform that which is good, I find not,' is a child of the devil.

Finally-We believe the common perversion of the passage we have endeavored to expound, has done more for the ruin of the church and the damnation of souls, than any other single device of the adversaries of God. The supposed exclamation of the holy apostle, 'O! wretched man that I am,' is the watch-word of wicked believers-the defensive talisman of all who roll sin as a sweet morsel under their tongues.

$26. A HINT TO TEMPERANCE MEN.

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So long as the rulers of public opinion in the religious world, hold up the 7th chapter of Romans as the standard of legitimate Christian experience, it cannot be expected that vigorous and permanent advances will be made in any department of moral reformation. The spiritual impotence there described, if tolerated in the sanctuary of the church, will surely manifest itself with irresistible power of corruption, in all those classes of society which surround the church, and depend on it for moralizing influences. If the Christian, quickened by the grace of God, still allows himself to say in regard to his religious obligations, The good that I would I do not, and the evil I would not, that I do,' why should he not expect that the worldlings. around him, dead as they are in trespasses and sins, will exhibit equal or greater laxity of principle, even in regard to their social and moral obligations? The thief, as well as the Christian sinner, may say, by way of accounting for his transgressions, I see a law in my members, warring against the law of my mind and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin' and if this is an admissible excuse for the one, so that he is justified before God, why should it not also shield the other from the judgment of man, and the vengeance of the law?

What avails it to preach against the various forms of external sin, while the great radical vice of the heart, moral imbecility, is openly tolerated, and

defended by the preachers themselves? Yet this is just what a large portion of our religious teachers are doing. They announce to the world that they are slaves to sin, (according to the supposed apostolic model, in Rom. 7: 7-25,) powerless against temptation, approving and desiring to keep, but invincibly prone to break the commandments of God; and with this groveling confession on their tongues, they turn upon poor sinners,' and require them to keep the Sabbath, to abstain from profanity, lewdness and intemperance, to forsake all their darling lusts, and lead a life of prayer and benevolence. Surely, these are they who 'lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and they themselves touch not the burdens with one of their fingers.'

Let us look for a moment at the bearing of this miserable mistake about the 7th chapter of Romans, on the cause of temperance. Suppose that a poor captive of alcohol, one who has broken all sorts of resolutions and pledges under the pressure of appetite, in the anguish of a sober hour takes up the Bible, and searches its pages for something applicable to his case. He reads Rom. 7: 7—25, and finds in its language the very echo of his daily experience. To accommodate it to his peculiar infirmity, he paraphrases it thus: I am carnal, sold under [the love of liquor.] That which I do [viz. tippling,] I allow not: for what I would, [viz. keep my pledge,] that do I not; but what I hate, [viz. drunkenness,] that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law [of the temperance society,] that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but [the love of liquor] that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me, that is in my [rum-ruined] flesh, dwelleth no good thing; for to will [total abstinence] is present with me; but how to perform I find not; for the good that I would, [viz. sober living,] that do I not; but the evil which I would not, [viz. tavern haunting,] that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but [the love of liquor] that dwelleth in me. I find then a law that when I would [keep sober, the rum bottle] is present with me. For I delight in the [doctrines of temperance] after the inward man; but I see another law in my [stomach] warring against the law of my mind and bringing me into captivity to the [enchantments of alcohol.] O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from [this brutal appetite?'] The commentators tell the poor wretch that Paul talked in this drivelling way all his days: his minister tells him so: all his Christian neighbors tell him so. He learns that this is the common language of the saints' of the present day- from the least of them even unto the greatest.' How naturally he may say to himself, "If Paul, the best example of Christian energy, was thus morally impotent; if all Christendom thus unblushingly avows its slavery to sin, why should I think of overcoming the lusts of the flesh? Why should I be ashamed of the beastly bondage in which I groan?' Under the influence of such teachings and reasonings, resolutions and pledges will be but chaff to the winds. We venture to predict that the temperance reformation will be nothing but a series of splendid failures, till, either the church changes its doctrine on Rom. 7: 7-25, or the world leaves the church in the rear, adopts a new standard of moral energy, and goes up to the battle against lust, in the strength of God and of common sense.

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27. PAUL'S VIEWS OF LAW.

THERE is reason to believe that Paul thoroughly understood the great doctrines of Christianity; and as his writings are chiefly doctrinal, and were evidently designed to exhibit his entire system of theology, we may reasona bly expect to find in them, if any where, a satisfactory decision of the great question, which has been so much agitated in modern times, respecting the legitimate office of the law. There are indeed, as Peter observes, many things in his epistles, hard to be understood;' and it is needful, in order that we may safely attempt to interpret him, that we prove ourselves by selfexamination, to be neither unlearned nor unstable.' That his doctrines have been wrested by persons of this character, even to the destruction of themselves and many others, is not to be doubted by any one who observes the opposite extremes, into which modern disputants about law have run. With some, Paul's whole doctrine on the subject seems to be crowded into that one saying-Ye are not under law, but under grace;' and all the limitations of that saying, which are found elsewhere in his writings and practice, are carefully kept out of view. With others, he is allowed to speak for himself only in that other saying-Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law;' and whatever else he has said that runs counter to the apparent meaning of this, is either wrested into agreement with it, or condemned as antinomianism. Bearing in mind that there are in all cases, at least two wrong ways, and only one right one, and that the right way generally lies between the two wrong ones, we propose to pass in review all the passages in the writings of Paul, which seem to have any direct bearing on the subject of law,-adding such remarks as, in our judgment, they demand.

I. THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS. It will be impossible in the compass to which we are limited, and indeed it is unneccessary, to quote the entire argument of the apostle in this epistle, extending as it does through eleven chapters. We shall simply give an abstract of the long and general passages referring to law, and connect them by quoting such as are shorter and more pointed.

In the second chapter, and a part of the third, to ver. 19, Paul proves that all men are condemned by law; the Jews by the law of Moses, and the Gentiles by the law of nature. Therefore,' says he, 'by the deeds of the law, shall no flesh be justified in his sight; for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God, without the law, is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets.' Chap. 3: 20, 21. We notice here two points: 1, that the office of the law is conviction, and not justification; 2, that the righteousness of God, revealed in the gospel, is independent of the law. After showing that this righteousness excludes boasting in the Jews, because it is independent of their law, and because it is the righteousness of God-who is God of the Gentiles as well as the Jews. -he asks, 'Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea,

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