sions moved, and his judgment informed, whilst conscience sleeps, and the heart is unsanctified.

No fact is more evident, than that hearers imbibe the spirit of their ministers; if our spirits are cold, merely speculative and disputatious, trifling and vain,-the effect will resemble the cause. If we would "preach liberty to the captive,-the opening of the prison to them that are bound,"-instrumentally, "bind up the broken hearted, comfort them that mourn in Zion,-give the oil of joy for mourning, the garments of praise for the spirit of heaviness,"-we must be able to say," The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, cause he hath anointed me to preach glad tidings." We must therefore pray as well as preach,-" pray without ceasing" for the spirit, that we and our hearers may not only read, study, preach, and hear, but "hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches." Then our ministry will be "the ministry of the Spirit," and we shall not "labour in vain."

I remain truly your's,

be

JOHN COOKE.

LETTER XIX.-TO THE SAME.

My Dear Kinsman,

In the early part of my Christian profession, I eagerly seized every human author in divinity; preferring them to the Bible itself, because I thought I understood them better than the prophets, apostles, and Jesus Christ. This I lamented, and felt the reproofs of conscience for it. I often suspected my sincerity on this account. I resolved to make trial of the sacred Scriptures, by reading one part of the day a few chapters in the Old Testament, and at another, some chapters in the New Testament. This method with a blessing, soon opened my eyes, corrected my error in practice, and endeared the sacred volume. Reading one morning that part of Abraham's history, where he feared the inhabitants of the land would kill him, to possess his wife; and in the afternoon, reading a few chapters in Proverbs, I paused at Solomon's words, "The fear of man bringeth a snare ;" and was so struck with the illustration of it, by the snare which entangled Abraham, as to think Solomon had it in

his eye. I began to see, that Scripture is the best interpreter of Scripture; and from that trial "compared Spiritual things with Spiritual."

On another occasion, I read the Jewish law respecting a bird, which might be killed when wandering in the field or flying in the air; but not on her nest. After this I read Solomon's words, alluding to it," as a bird that wanders from her nest, so is the man that wanders from his place;"-his danger begins with his wandering for safety! Ever after, ny mind was determined on keeping my eyes on the Sacred Scriptures night and day: and, by the divine blessing, this has furnished me for thirty years, with three sermons on the Lord's day, and twice on week evenings. And the more I read, preach, converse, and expound, the more amply I am filled with divine truth. All my fears of wanting a text or a subject, vanished, when I adopted this plan. Yet such was my folly and disposition to "cleave to the dust," that the first funeral sermon I was called to preach, I flew to Dr. Bates' Sermon on Death. I read it with attention and anxiety; but on my finishing it, felt myself weary, unhappy, disappointed. The thought occurred-why not read the book of Job, the Psalms, the writings of Solomon on the subject of death? I did so, and was soon supplied with a text and a sermoa. This cured my folly, and convinced me, that the word of God s "able to make the man of God perfect," or completely furnish him for his work.

Your's faithfully,

JOHN COOKE.

Dear Guyse,

LETTER XX.-TO THE SAME.

(On Commentators.)

I RECOMMENDED you to read the pure word of God, without comment; and this, I would advise you to do daily. I have found my account in this plan; and especially, in reading a book of prophecies, or an Epistle from beginning to end, at one time. By this means, the writer explains himself: as by perusing the whole letter from a friend, one part throws light upon another. This will guard

you against the bias which Commentators will otherwise give your mind.

I would for the same reason, read a good Commentator through one book, that I might discern his complete views of Divine truth. One writer on the Sacred Scriptures, communicates his exposition under a strong sense of the dangerous tendency of the Arminian scheme. Perhaps he has in his eye, some preacher or preachers, whose sermons are merely doctrinal, and their tempers and lives immoral, This occasions him to write little on the distinguishing doctrines of Grace, and to enlarge on the practical parts of Scripture. He is afraid to write fully on doctrines which Antinomians abuse, and so obscures the glory of the Gospel. That he may not " give the children's bread to dogs," he will starve the children themselves. Forgetting that a man's danger is from the corrupt principle that governs his soul, which will abuse any truths that stands in his way;-and not from a statement of the Gospel in all its fullness and Grace.

A second class of Commentators lean to the opposite extreme, and ring changes on a few favourite doctrines; insisting that to enforce the commands of God, is legal, unnecessary, and even dangerous. They despise the words duty and obligation; assuring us, that if their favourite doctrines be believed, duty will follow, as a thing of course.

Does not this impeach the wisdom of God in giving us such numerous and various precepts? Would "The only wise God," present us with exhortations, cautions and directions if they were needless? Does not the experince of good men prove the necessity and advantage of precepts and threatenings, as well as doctines and promises? And do not the negligence and slothfulness, the tempers and lives of these boasters demonstrate the propriety of detailing the duties of believers? Let us then receive the whole truth," the whole counsel of God;" and not be "wise above what is written." One writer gives you his spiritual sense of a text, and passes over the literal meaning of it, as carnal. He finds types where the Apostle Paul could not discern them. Every time the words righteous or righteousness occurs, instead of explaining the disposition or action to which it obviously refers, he drags in the doctrine of imputed righteousness, and renders half the Scriptures useless.

Noclass of writers are more calculated to mislead the judgment and form a vicious taste, than those who expound the Sacred Scriptures

by a narrow system. This is remarkable in Dr. Gill. He has written nine folio volumes of comment on the Sacred Scriptures. I think all be has written in them, might be well compressed into four volumes. His repetitions of quotations froin the Jewish commentators are endless. He finds as much of Christ and the doctrines of Grace in the book of Proverbs, as in the Epistles of the Apostle Paul. The Millennium, or Christ's personal reign, though of" doubtful disputation," be finds almost every where in the sacred volume. He gives you half a dozen meanings to a verse, and then rejects five of them, or selects one which suits his favourite theme. You are often occupied in reading what God decreed to do, millions of ages past, and what he will do in ages to come, when you should be considering, what God is now doing. An aged Baptist minister once remarked, that Dr. Gill's comments had done more to give a partial view of the word of God, and corrupt the taste of ministers and hearers, than all the Calvinistic writers in the world. And another minister of universal reading remarked, " a man should understand the Scripture well, before he reads Dr. Gill." I like Dr. Gill, said a third person, because he is always consistent with himself." This, however, I do not consider as an excellence, all things considered.

Consistency may be cold and forced. A man may cut his way through the Scriptures, to be consistent with himself, and not be consistent with the Scriptures. This I think is the fact, with the pious and learned, Dr. Gill.

Yet I can read Dr. Gill with profit; am charmed with Henry and Doddridge, though they often contradict themselves; admire the impartiality of Mr. Scott, in his doctrinal, experimental and practical comments; love the critical and evangelical volumes of Poole; and I am edified and delighted with the judicious and comprehensive views of Dr. Guyse. Assisted by them all,-by sound experience and a vigilant attention to the divine conduct, towards the church and the world,-with your eyes day and night in your Bible, and your heart directed through the Mediator to "the Father of of Lights," may "the Spirit of the Truth," lead you into all the truth.

Your's faithfully,
JOHN COOKE.

My Dear Friend,

LETTER XXI.-TO A STUDENT.

Maidenhead,

No one thing is more important to a minister of the gospel, than to be furnished with suitable subjects for the pulpit. This, in a diligent use of means, must be sought in a spirit of dependence on God. The omission of this duty, occasions many ministers to "suffer loss," and preach the sermons of others, without "a savour of the knowledge of Christ," in their own souls, and with little success in their work. Finding themselves poor in materials for their work, they preach but seldom, and fear a bankruptcy. Frequent preaching, they imagine, will exhaust their little stock. I will lay before you the plan on which I have acted, which has supplied me with three sermons on the Lord's day, and two or three in week days as occasion required; and also afforded me two hundred subjects, which I have never yet preached. And remember, that my wants have been thus supplied for thirty years. Whenever a text of scripture has opened to my mind, at home or abroad, I have immediately taken pen and paper, divided the text, and pursued the subject as far as I could on that occasion. I then placed the paper in an old book, in its proper place, which I divided with a few leaves between Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, and the other books of scripture. If the text was in Genesis, I put the skeleton among those in that book, and so arranged the rest. If the text was in Matthew, I placed it in that parcel, which contained subjects on Matthew. If at any other time the subject occurred again, I took out the skeleton, and clothed it as new ideas presented themselves on the subject, and returned it to its place. When a subject in John, for instauce, was presented to me, I turned to my old book, which contained subjects on John's gospel, to see if I had any paper on the text, which very frequently happened. Finding materials ready, I was greatly assisted;-my subject was half or three parts studied, perhaps ten years before. This is a branch of wisdom; for Solomon remarks, that "wise men lay up knowledge."

Some time since the words of David impressed my mind, "Lord, open thou my eyes, that I may behold the wondrous things in thy law." After I had suffered my thoughts to run out on paper, as