Edmund Greenfield's New Series of Truthful Monthly One Penny Tracts. 12mo. London: Palmer and Son.

WE have received the three first numbers of these Tracts; in the first of which the author proposes to prove from the Scriptures, that Infant Baptism was and is a new covenant ordinance, instituted by God himself; being a refutation of the assertions made by the Editors of the "Bible Advocate," that Infant Baptism has neither Scripture precept nor precedent.

While we introduce works to the notice of our readers on the subject of Baptism, the restrictions selfimposed on us as Editors of the Spiritual Magazine, preclude us from giving any opinion on that long controverted subject, nor indeed should we feel disposed so to do, knowing as we do that many of the excellent of the earth, chosen of God and precious, are to be found among both Pedobaptists and Antipedobaptists, and yet both anxious to know their Lord's will and to follow the directions in his word and if the Lord the Spirit, who has promised to lead his people into all truth, does not see fit that they should all see eye to eye as to the subjects and the mode of Baptism, and which the history of the church from the advent of Christ to the present time fully proves; and as there will be found, we think, among the ministers of the sanctuary, including the giants of olden times and the worthies of later date, a nearly equal number on each side, surely these considerations should induce mutual

forbearance. And let it be borne in mind that Baptism is not salvation: the thief entered heaven without being baptized. Not that we would sanction for a moment those, who set aside the ordinance altogether: nay we cannot think how men, with the New Testament in their hands, and professing to follow the Lord's directions, can so act: there must be something wrong, for Water Baptism is unquestionably commanded, and the apostolic commission fully enjoins it.

In the tract No. 1, Mr. Greenfield takes an excursive view of the perfection of all God's works in creation, and considers, that before sin entered our world, God recorded a covenant of works for man, which we call the Adamic covenant; but that when sin self-conceived in the mind of Lucifer, and he by his subtlety, in the eighth length of eternity, succeeded in accomplishing the fall of our first parents, then, God the Father instituted "Infant, Spirit, and water of life baptism." Mr. G. then proceeds at much length to shew the way, time and manner of God the Father's Spirit and water of life baptizing our first parents in the infancy of their natural lives, and others of his elect, to the end of time; and that infant water baptism comes from heaven! God himself the Baptizer! But we forbear further remarks: the price is so cheap, and the subject so fully discussed, that we must refer our readers to read it for themselves.

In the tract No. 2, Mr Greenfield protests against immersion as the only Scripture baptism, and contends

strongly for infant baptism; in doing which he has brought forward numerous scriptures, with a great mass of argument deduced therefrom. But while our author strongly and warmly defends his own views, and his own practice, as the baptizer of infants, he appears quite disposed to give the right-hand of fellowship to those of his brethren who practice believers' baptism by immersion, provided they will abandon their secluded system of church communion. And certainly there is much reason in this. What, shall the followers of Jesus debar from the table of the Lord those whom they acknowledge as brethren, because they dare not conscientiously submit to be rebaptized! This ought not to be.

It is quite time this bar of bigotry be taken away. May the Lord hasten it in his own time.

On page 7, Mr. G. enters his protest against the Hon. and Rev. Baptist Noel, who has lately seceded from the national church, and joined the ranks of the Baptists; and with the utmost plainness of speech de nounces Mr. Noel's reasons for so doing, with his address delivered at his immersion, as unscriptural, and fully confirmatory of his having apostatized from the truth.

For

ourselves we do not think the alteration in Mr. Noel's views of much importance; his preaching when an Episcopalian was partly Canaan and partly Ashdod, and we should fear, now he is become a Baptist, it continues the same, if we are to judge of him by the company he keeps.

The third number of these tracts is on the doctrines of election and reprobation. In which Mr. G. first adverts to the election of Christ as the Head of the church, and then takes an extended view of the election of the angels and their certain fixation in Christ, and then the election of the church in the Lord Jesus Christ, and their certain perseverance and final glorification. Our author

then gives his views on the doctrine of reprobation, and repudiates the sentiment that God is the author of sin, or that the Almighty influences the sinner; but that the sinner, being left without restraint, is sure to run the downward road, until he sinks into eternal destruction.

The Song of Solomon paraphrased in spiritual songs for public worship, by Richard Luckin, 18mo. pp. 82. London: Palmer and Son.

"I am one of those," said a popular minister of the present time, a few days ago, to the writer of these lines, "who consider that Solomon's Song has nothing to do with real religion; that, in fact, it is a mere amatory effusion, addressed by Solomon to the daughter of the king of Egypt, and ought to be excluded from the Canon of Scripture altogether ;" and it must not be thought that this preacher is alone in his view of this mysterious but sublime book. Many who profess to be ministers of Jesus, have of late asserted the same; and it may be solemnly questioned how far they thereby place themselves under the awful denunciation pronounced in the closing page of scripture against those who add to, or take away from, the holy book of God, for although, primarily, it may be said. that those denunciations attach to the book of the Revelation, as all scripture is given by inspiration of God, so ought all to be regarded as equally fenced by the same mandate.

Totally differing, as we do, from those who thus, with sacrilegious hands, seek to deprive the church of a grand jewel in her treasury, we nevertheless consider the Book of Canticles of so sublime and mysterious a character, that we do not regard favourably too familiar a use of its figures or its imagery. To the pure all things are pure, and

to the regenerated soul under the influences of the Holy Spirit, this book will be a rich mine of spiritual consolation and devout ecstacy. But the gems, as he gathers them, will be hoarded for private solace, or exposed only in the family circle. Cowper quite understood this when he sang,

"Nor were it wise, nor would we choose,
Such secrets to declare,
Like precious wines their taste they lose
Expos'd to open air."

We rather differ, therefore, from our friend Mr. Luckin, in taking this book as the basis for Hymns to be used in a general congregation. We have read his little volume with pleasure; we shall often make it a pocket companion; we extract for the satisfaction of our readers, two of the Hymns as a specimen, but we cannot recommend it as suitable for congregational use.

CHAP. V. 7.

I SOUGHT the Lord within the place
Where souls delight to meet,
Amongst the subjects of his grace,
Who worship at his feet.

I longed to hear his charming voice,
To feed upon his word;
And in his pard'ning love rejoice,
And triumph in my Lord.

His faithful watchmen who proclaim
Salvation, full and free;

Who spread abroad a Saviour's name,
They soon detected me.

With sharp reproofs they did me chide,
Which pierced me through and through;
I knew not where my head to hide,

For what they said was true.

They took my veil from off my face.
I felt exposed to shame;
And then they spoke of "Jesus' grace,
Of trusting in his name.

No change could e'er attend his love,
Whatever may betide;

And though he frowns, his bowels move
For those for whom he died."

Though I am dark, and much cast down,
I'll seek my Saviour still;
My case to him is fully known,
He will his word fulfi

CHAP. VII. 5.

CHRIST is the cov'nant Head
Of his beloved bride;
He suffered in her stead,

And for her will provide:
Through Him our great salvation canie.
Ye saints, rejoice, and bless His name,

The church is one in Him,
On Him she does depend;
He is her sov'reign King,

And he's her loving friend :
She's ever comely in his sight,
And ever will be his delight.
Amongst his saints below,

King Jesus shows his face;
Bestows his favors too,

In all the means of grace:
Still, Lord, let us thy presence feel,
Dismiss our fears, our pardon seal.

We hope to see thy face

In heavenly bliss above, To triumph in thy grace,

And everlasting love.

O leave us not, but still lead on,
Until we see thee on thy throne.

The Disease and the Remedy: a Sermon occasioned by the prevailing epidemic, by Rev. Richard Luckin. 8vo. pp. 16.

WE feel much pleasure in introducing to the notice of our readers, and in recommending this very excellent discourse. A double motive ought to ensure for it a great sale. It is upon a topic lately all-engrossing, which is ably brought to illustrate the disease and the remedy of sin; its profits are to liquidate the remaining debt upon the chapel. As the best incitement in our hands to accomplish this, we take the following extract:

Listen! my brethren, while I attempt to say a word or two more upon the balm of Gilead, the blood of Christ; I will not detain you much longer on this head of the discourse; but notice briefly,—

Thirdly, That it is an infallible remedy, Many have died of the cholera, or pestilence, and the remedies employed by their medical attendants proved to be of no avail; but here we have a remedy that never fails to effect a cure in the guilty sinner's conscience, when it is applied by the Holy Spirit. The Psalmist David knew that no other remedy could purge

his guilty soul, and he believed that this would effect it; therefore he prayed thus in the penitential psalm: "Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin," Psalm li. 2; and in the 7th verse he says, "Purge me with hyssop, (referring to the blood of sprinkling) and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." Other remedies have been tried; the awakened sinner will be sure to have recourse to other remedies; I have tried them; no doubt many that are present this evening have tried them: but all have failed; but this, the balm of Gilead, the blood of Christ, this, my brethren, is a neverfailing remedy. The blood of Christ "cleanseth from all sin," and by his righteousness justifies us from all things. If our sins are pardoned by the bloodshedding of Christ, (and bless the Lord for giving some of us to know they are pardoned) I ask who can bring us in guilty? and, if the Lord hath justified us, who shall condemn us? Hence the apostle said, "Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died; yea, rather that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us:" Rom. viii. 33, 34. All the forms, creeds, and ceremonies of the Papists, and of their fraternity, the Puseyites, with all the traditions and inventions of man, are entirely useless. Such fooleries, quackery, and mountebank performances may please the fancies of carnal and ignorant persons, and no doubt they answer the end to some extent for which they were designed, and are practised, namely, to delude the people, to blind their eyes, and to make them dupes and slaves to such priest-craft; but they have never effected a cure-they have never healed, yet, one wounded, sensible sinner's conscience, and they never will. Therefore mark the words of the Holy Ghost by Paul, concerning these things: "Touch not, taste not, handle not, which all are to perish with the using, after the commandments and doctrines of men."

Town and Village Gospel Tracts. Nos. 1 to 5. 12mo. London: J. Palmer.

THIS Series of little Tracts is written by one who is occasionally a correspondent in our Magazine. The plan upon which they are generally written seems to be the seizing of some trifling incident in real life, and

imparting to it a spiritual tendency, to direct the reader's attention to spiritual things. This may often be done advantageously; and in the third tract, entitled, “The Golden Knot by which God has tied together the End and the Mean," it is followed out well. The series is very suitable for distribution.

The Instrument of Regeneration. 12mo. pp. 16. London: Green.

The Puseyite Bishop of Oxford, Dr. Wilberforce, in a recent Sermon publishes the wonderful fact, if it were a fact, that water is the instrument through which God works the marvels of his regenerating power. Really if a man can assert his belief of this, we cannot feel astonished when such advance a step further, and it is but a step, and embrace transubstantiation and all the other absurdities of Rome. This tract is an able exposure of the error. It is written in a style not well-pleasing to us, it is too ironical for so serious a subject; but it contains much powerful argument, and will no doubt be read with interest even by those who, like ourselves, disapprove of such a mode of handling solemn realities. It is especially suitable to be handed to such Clergymen as coincide with the idolatrous Bishop. We give the following brief extract as a specimen of the author's style.

• God enables water to hang in a single drop at the tip of a leaf, or to rest in sparkling globules upon flowers, or to roll in vast volumes from shore to shore, constituting seas, which harbour finny monsters, and float fleets; and when convulsed with tempests, water becomes a mirror of Almighty wrath. But though made to refrigerate plants, swim whales, and sink armadas, water cannot work into a soul the precious knowledge of Jesus Christ, whom to know is life eternal (John xvii. 3). As an instrument it quenches thirst, and keeps the body clean; but the whole cataract of Niagara employed as a baptismal stream, would not suffice to

beget a single babe to newness of life, or to a lively hope in Christ Jesus.