the kingdom of God as a little child, ye shall not enter therein; and his apostle add, to the speculating Corinthians, If any man among you seem to be wise, let him become a fool that he may be wise: for the Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise that they are vain; and he taketh the wise in their own craftiness. Be not wise in your own conceits. These things render me more cautious than I used to be. The first temptation was, Ye shall be as Gods, knowing good and evil; and the tree of knowledge bore the forbidden fruit. Vain man would be wise; and thirst after knowledge is liable to excess, and needs restraining, as well as others of our natural propensities. When I am disposed to ask a question to which the scriptures have not given an answer, I seem to hear Christ say to me, What is that to thee? follow thou me. The silence of scripture is instructive, and teaches us that the subject concerning which nothing is said is not suited to our present condition: as I tell my children when they ask an improper question, You are not capable of understanding that matter at present: you may be so in due time.I cannot but think that many of the modern American divines have greatly lost sight of these scriptures, and are very deficient in that kind of modesty and humility, which relates to consciousness of incompetency to know the deep things of God. They seem little to feel as David did when he said, Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it: or as Paul did when his discussions on the divine decrees terminated in the exclamation, O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!

How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!....

"I remain, dear sir,

"Your affectionate friend and brother,

"THOMAS SCOTT."

In the preceding letters, allusion has been made to observations, communicated to Dr. Ryland, on certain works of Dr. Hopkins, a New England divine. From a fragment of these observations on Hopkins's Sermons, I transcribe a few sentences which may not be without their use.

"The argument excluding absolutely, and in all senses, the intervention of means in regeneration seems to me expressly to contradict the scripture. I Peter i. 23. James i. 18......I apprehend no sinner ever heard and read the scripture, and prayed for a new heart, under a conviction (which millions of unconverted men have had,) that without this change he must perish everlastingly, and persisted in this way, however selfishly and legally it were done, provided any thing were meant; but regeneration certainly took place.....I think the general invitations of scripture, to which promises are annexed, (such as Matt. vii, 8, 9; James i. 5;) encourage even such prayers. When I was a Socinian I credited these promises, and acted upon them: I leave it to others to determine whether I was regenerate or not; but I know that the Lord heard and answered my prayers, and, in the use of means, a mighty change was effected. I have therefore always encouraged the use of means,

without restriction, in others; except as distinguishing the sham beggar from the real onewhich I think is the only scriptural distinction; and consequently have disapproved of nice distinctions in addressing sinners, and calling them to seek the Lord: though I would distinguish as much as possible in helping professors to examine whether they be in the faith."

"I am decidedly of opinion that there was spirituality in both Brainerd and Edwards, in that [early] part of their experience which they totally condemn. It was, in part, above nature, and contrary to nature, though vastly alloyed. The day had broken, though darkness still prevailed. Here I think they all differ from scripture; for their statements uniformly discourage the diligence of newly awakened persons, (as I have had many opportunities of observing,) by setting them to inquire whether they were seeking spiritually: but the scripture always encourages every one to ask, seek, and knock; and says, Then shall ye know if ye follow on to know the Lord. It is not necessary for us to answer such questions in order to accept the invitation, where all that will are welcome. But, if we would [subsequently] determine whether our faith be living and our hope genuine, we must assay it by the standard. If [even then] we cannot come upon the ground of the promises, [made to certain characters,] we must come upon the warrant of the invitation, which requires no qualification, and admits of no hesitation, provided we apply in order to receive, and do not take it for granted that we have received, and then call that faith. Here I have many years rather differed

from even admired Edwards and Brainerd, rather more from Bellamy, and still more from Hopkins. It is not necessary to distinguish the seeds till they have grown awhile, and then they are easily distinguishable."

"When men are taught to judge of their feelings by certain rules, and to expect things to occur in a certain order, they will often imagine that things go on in that order, and call their feelings by peculiar names. Thus different classes of men naturally relate experiences of their own sort. There is a sameness in the relations of Arminian Methodists; another in that of Calvinistic Methodists. Huntington's disciples all experience in the same manner: so do Mr.'s people; and so do those of the New England divines. I own I vastly prefer the latter for substance: but the exact order I view in the same light [in all]; because the scripture does not lay it down. The thing wrought is all, not the order: the former is the same in all [true Christians], the latter almost infinitely varied. Men of lively imaginations, watching their feelings, will, when in earnest about religion, commonly think they experience as they suppose they should do, and will infer their conversion from the regularity and order of their experience, rather than from its effects on their future lives: while more cool and diffident persons will be perpetually harassed with apprehensions that they are unconverted, however evident the change, because their alarms, comforts, &c. did not come in regular course, and they cannot speak of such experience as others do. This is worst when the experience itself is enthusiastic; but it leads to delusion or discouragement at all times."

It may not be superfluous here to caution the reader against supposing, that the above observations on religious experience tend to throw a suspicion over the whole subject, and to impeach what has been often alleged concerning the coincidence of experience in Christians of all ages and countries. By religious experience we understand, that series of effects produced upon the mind, in its varying circumstances, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, by means of revealed truth. This will, of course, be in a measure affected by the peculiar modification of truth presented to the mind: but such modification no more destroys the reality and consistency of Christian experience in all the great outlines, than the variations, national or individual, of the human countenance, prevent there being a certain configuration and combination of features, which characterize the family of man.

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