fon, the holy use of the crofs and images with the rest of their idolatrous and fuperftitious worship; all which they commend ed to the affembly of the Jews, for the doctrine and rules of the apoftles. But fo foon as the affembly had heard these things from them, they were generally and exceedingly troubled thereat, and fell into high clamours against them and their religion, crying out, "No Chrift, no woman-god, no interceffion of faints, no worshiping of images, no praying to the virgin Mary," &c. Truly their troubles hearat was fo great, that it troubled me to see their impatience: they rent their cloathes, and caft duft upon their heads, and cried aloud," Bla phemy, blafphemy!" and upon this the council broke up. Yet they affembled again the eighth day; and all that was done then, was to agree upon another meeting of their nation three years after; which was concluded upon before their final diffolution.

I do believe there were many Jews there that would have been perfuaded to own the Lord Jefus; and this I affure you for a truth, and it is for the honour of our religion, and the encouragement of our divines; one eminent rabbi there did deliver me his opinion in conference with me, that he at first feared that those which were fent from Rome, would cause an unhappy period to their council; and profefled to me that he much defired the prefence of fome proteftant divines, and especially of our English divines, of whom he had a better opinion, than of any other divines in the world: for he did believe that we have a great love to their nation; and this reafon he gave me for the good opinion of our divines, because he understood that they did ordinarily pray for the converfion of their nation; which he did acknowledge to be a great token of our love towards them and especially he commended the minifters of London for excellent preachers, and for their charity towards their nation; of whom he had heard a great fame. As for the church of Rome, they account it an idolatrous church, and therefore will not own their religion: and by converfing with the Jews, I found that they generally think, that there is no other Chriftian religion in the world, but that of the church of Rome! and for Rome's idolatry they take offence at all Chriftian religion. By which it appeareth that Rome is the greatest enemy of the Jews converfion.

For the place of the Jews next meeting, it is probable it will be in Syria, in which country I also was, and did there converse with the fect of the Rechabites, living in Syria. They still obferve their old customs and rules; they neither fow nor plant, nor build houses; but live in tents, and often remove from one

place to another, with their whole family, bag and baggage. And feeing I find, that by the Italian tongue I can converfe with the Jews, or any other nation, in all parts of the world where I have been, if God give me an opportunity, I shall willingly attend their next council. The good Lord profper it. Amen.

To the Editor of the UNIVERSALIST'S MISCELLANY.

DEAR SIR,

IF F the following remarks be thought worthy of a place in your valuable Mifcellany, they are at your fervice. I am, yours, &c.

CANDIDUS.

REMARKS ON THE PERSON OF CHRIST.

"I alfo will fhew mine opinion."

ELIHU.

T does not appear that the profeffors of the gospel have been more divided in their opinions upon any fubject, than they have been refpecting the perfon of Chrift. Controverfies upon this point began foon after the days of the apostles; and though fo many centuries have elapfed fince the difputes commenced, they are not yet brought to an amicable conclufion. To what is this to be afcribed? Are not the Scriptures fufficiently plain and decifive in what they affert upon this, as well as upon a variety of other fubjects? If human fyftems, creeds, and traditions, party spirit and prejudice, technical terms, unfcriptural phrafes, and the jargon of the schools, were all totally laid afide---if all ftriving for mastery, all the pride of displaying fhrewdness in argument, and all defire of being wife above what is written, were banished from among good men---if they would content themselves with knowing and maintaining a few plain and important facts, as much as pouffible in the language of Scripture---might not all controverfy upon this fubject be brought to a happy termination? Conceiving that this might be the cafe, I will attempt to ftate the facts to which I allude, and submit them to the confideration of the reader.

1. GOD is invifible.

We are told that "no man hath feen GOD at any time." John, i. 18. It is as expressly declared, that the only wife GOD is invifible, as it is that he is eternal and immortal. 1 Tim. i. 17. "He dwelleth in the light which no man can approach unto; VOL. III.

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whom no man hath feen nor can fee." Chap. vi. 16. It follows that the mere abftract being of the great Eternal, the mode of his existence, &c. no creature can behold, or have the least idea of. For,

2. We can know nothing of GOD but what he hath been pleafed to reveal concerning himself.

What daring prefumption it would be for a child of the duft, 2 finful worm, to attempt to scale the "topless throne" of the great Invifible! Boldly to approach the impenetrable darkness which covers the unfathomable abyss of infinite perfection, to aim at rushing through, to explore all the wonders of that nature which is ineffable, that mind which is infcrutable, would difcover the greatest degree of pride and madness. To pretend to defcribe the mode of that existence, which is inconceivable and in defcribable, would be the height of folly.

"Oh, 'tis beyond a creature's mind,

To ftretch a thought half-way to God!"

Yet I fear affuming mortals have fometimes been guilty of fuch prefumptuous daring vanity and folly: forgetting that fecret things belong unto the Lord, they have indulged their vain imaginations, upon what is infinitely beyond the ken of creatures, and distracted the mind of the fimple, with fpecious fophifms and unintelligible difquifitions: as if one fober reflection, founded upon the exprefs declarations of God, were not worth a world of aerial dreams, and metaphyfical niceties!

Whenever we ftep beyond the bounds of revelation, and seek to know any thing more of God than what he hath been pleased to make known, we quickly find ourselves in a wilderness where there is no way; and, unless we return to the unerring teftimony, must be foon loft in a labyrinth of conjectures: if, in this ftate, we happen to come in contact with others who have wandered like ourselves, but whofe conjectures have not been exactly the fame, unedifying contefts will arife; nor fhall we be able to extricate ourselves by the best clue the art of logic can furnish us with. This was the cafe with the ancient world, even with those boasted children of wisdom the ancient Greeks: they loved not to retain the knowledge of what God had manifested of himself to them; but became yain in their imagination, and fo their foolifh hearts were darkened. (See Rom. chap i.) Like infects on the wing, they foared on the pinions of "fcience falfely fo called," but they could not reach the fkies; no, they loft themselves in clouds and darkness. The cafe was fimilar with the profeffors of Christianity for a series of ages, leaving the plain declarations

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of Scripture, not willing to admit the literal meaning of what God had spoken, and fatisfy themselves therewith, they loft themselves in mysticism, darkness, and superstition. These things ought to deter us from ever feeking to know that concerning God which he hath not revealed, and to teach us the neceffity there is for us to abide by the plain declarations of Scripture upon every fubject. It is a maxim which should never be loft fight of, that we can receive the true knowlege of God, no further than we give implieit credit to the language of the divine oracles, according to their plain and fimple import.

3. God hath revealed nothing concerning himself but what is intended to promote the happiness of his creatures.

Had God told us any thing concerning his abftract effence, the mode of his exiftence, the impenetrable fecrets of his pure nature, what ideas could we have formed thereof, feeing the fubject is infinitely fuperior to our moft exalted conceptions? Being abftract, or having no relation to us, fuppofing we could have formed ideas thereof, wherein would fuch ideas have contributed to our happiness? What we want to know of God is what relates to his creatures---what is calculated to make them all happy---and this is what God hath been pleafed to make known. Every thing that the Most High hath revealed of his own character, every manifeftation of the divine glory, and every difplay of his infinite perfections, hath the happiness of his creatures for its object. The things which are revealed belong unto us. Jehovah hath made himself known by fuch names and titles as have a relation to creatures, as Creator, Father, &c. and manifefted fuch perfections as are calculated to excite them to confidence and obedience, as wifdom, power, juftice, goodness, truth, love, mercy, grace, &c. Every thing the Scriptures contain is calculated to make us wife, holy, happy, and useful.

4. The invifible God is become visible to us in the person of Chrift, who is God with us.

We cannot behold God but as we view him in fome medium which renders him vifible to us. The eternal power and godhead are made vifible by the works of creation, all which imply fuch a cause of their existence. "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament fheweth his handy work: day unto day uttereth fpeech, and night unto night fheweth knowledge.' Rain and fruitful feafons are witneffes of the exiftence and government of the Moft High. Acts, xiv 17. But though the whole vifible univerfe, the grand fpectacle of nature, is a stupendous exhibition of the great Firft Cause, in the effects which he hath produced, and is intended to bring to our

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view the Creator and Governor of all things, this medium is not fufficient to reveal God to us, in all the amazing glories of his name, in all his aftonishing relative perfections, in all his boundless goodness to his creatures; to reveal him in a way fuited to our ftate as finners, to make him known to us as the God of falvation, as our Father in an evangelical sense. Heayen, and the heaven of heavens cannot contain his unbounded glories, all his abfolute infinite perfections; (2 Chron. vi. 18.) and what they cannot contain it is impoffible they fhould fully fet forth.

There is but one medium, and I know of but one, in which the great Invisible is rendered vifible in the utmost perfection, it is the man whom he hath made ftrong for himself, the true tabernacle which God hath pitched, and not man, the temple in which he displays all his glory-OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST: for he is the brightnefs of the Divine Glory, and the express delineation of what the Father is: (Heb. i. 3.) fo perfectly fo, that he could fay, "He who hath feen me hath seen the Father. I and the Father are one." He is the way in which the Father is come down to us; to our capacities and feelings manifefting himself by all the tender feelings and sympathies of our own nature; to us, in our present situation as finful creatures, adapting the manifeftations of himself to all our circumftances, as wretched miferable creatures: the way in which we may rise from all the deeps of ignorance, fin, and mifery, and be brought nigh to God, fo as to have access to his bofom, and fellowship with him. He is the truth of all the Divine fulnefs; for "in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily;" the manifestation of the true God; "God was manifeft in the flesh.----This is the true God and eternal life." He is the life." As the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the fon to have life in himself.----This is the record which God hath given us, eternal life, and this life is in his fon.I am (faith Chrift) the refurrection and the life." He is like the ladder which Jacob faw, ftanding upon the earth, and reaching up to heaven. (Gen. xxviii. 12. John, i.. 51.) He poffeffeth all the conftituent parts of our nature, and all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. He came down to us in our lowest state of mifery, and he is with the Father in the midft of the throne. All the distance between God and us, as creatures, and as finners, is, or will be, completely removed in the perfon and by the mediation of Jefus Chrift; fo that we may fay, in him earth and heaven, human and divine, God and creatures, are all united together.