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benevolence. This is one scheme of creation, and of providential and mediatorial government, of man.

In the other scheme I fhall make but very little variation, till I come to the commencement of the mediatorial plan.

The eternal Father, in the days of eternity, hav. ing determined to create the defectible creature man; and, looking, with divine pity and compaffion, both on the fins and miseries of the fallen race, determined to introduce into his providential government of mankind a mediatorial plan, the result of which should be the reftoration of all the fons and daughters of Adam to virtue, holiness and happiness.

He faw, with infinite delight, the bruifed ferpent's head, and all things in heaven, earth, and fea, paying voluntary and cheerful homage to his adored Son, whom he had fet, as king, on his holy hill of Zion.

He, the indulgent Father of creation, when He raised his beloved Son on the mediatorial throne, delivered the fceptre into his hand, and with afpect mild and full of mercy, gave him a divine command never to return it, nor redeliver the kingdom, till the laft enemy in the moral fyftem, death, fhould be deftroyed.

God determined to order and conduct every thing, by his divine Son, in the kingdoms of nature, providence, and grace, for the best interests of Zion and her king. And he faw, in glorious profpect, a numerous race of guilty immortals, redeemed, reftored,

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Aored, faved, made holy and happy; all, all, not an individual loft, all furrounding his eternal throne, all finging and fhouting forth the riches of redeeming love, in fongs of joy and praife, to Him that fitteth upon the throne, and to the Lamb, for ever and ev

er.

This reftored, virtuous, and happy universe, God beheld, confidered it as his greatest declarative glory and blessedness, loved it with fupreme affection; and this is his divine benevolence.

I have now, I think, fhown the falfehood and abfurdity of the fundamental principles of Mr. S.'s scheme. I have alfo prefented my readers with two schemes of creation, and of divine providential and mediatorial government. I profefs to be an examiner, not of Mr. S.'s piece only, but after truth; and shall, therefore, not quit the subject, till I fhall have farther confidered the two fchemes above exhibited, and endeavored to find which of them is countenanced by reason and scripture; fince they cannot both be true. But as I have begun to exam. ine Mr. S.'s 2d. part, I must proceed a little farther with this.

We will examine further the fubject of benevolence.

We have feen that Mr. S.'s idea of benevolence is falfe and unfounded. As one error leads on to another, and that again to another; we may expec to find more errors and abfurdities, in his application of his corrupt idea of benevolence. He fays in

P. 111,

p. 111, "A regard to the happinefs of the whole, is the very thing which diftinguishes benevolence from selfishness." On the fame page, he fays, "It appears therefore that thofe, who attempt to reconcile the present mifery of individuals with the goodness of God, by faying, he will make it the means of increafing their future happinefs, fo as to compensate for present sufferings; have entirely departed from the pature of benevolence, and are judging of the dispensations of God, on the principles of felfishness." Let us now examine thefe two pas

fages.

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In one we are taught, that a regard to the happinefs of the whole is true benevolence. In the other, that to regard the happiness of any one individual, though it be the happiness of one's self, is contrary to true benevolence.

In this way Mr. S. hath made void one principal command of the divine law; to love our neighbor. To love our neighbor, is to with him happy, and to take pleasure in his happiness. But this we may not do; because we may not regard the happiness of individual. God is an individual. any His happiness, though great, is but the happiness of an individual, and not the happiness of the whole.

I fee not, according to Mr. S.'s idea of benevolence, that we are permitted to love God. I will try to compose the mufcles of my face, so as to ask Mr. S. what his whole confifts of? and whether it be compofed of individuals? If of individuals; wheth

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er the whole can be happy, whilft the individuals are miserable?

It is extremely unfortunate for Mr. S. that he hath not only contradicted reason and common fenfe, in his notions of benevolence; but the fcriptures alfo. St. Paul fays, "Our light af fliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory." St. Paul, and the chriftians of that day, expected a very rich compenfation in heaven, for what they fuffered on earth. But, in this, they were perfectly wrong; they entirely departed from the nature of benevolence, and judged of the dispensations of God on the principles of selfishness; Abraham was as far out of the way, whilft he wandered about from place to place, and did, with fidelity, and endured, with patience, the will of God; because "he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." Mofes alfo extremely miffed the point of true benevolence, when he "had respect to the recompenfe of reward."

What shall we fay, my fellow-citizens, of opinions folemnly brought forward which fo openly contradict the plain sense of scripture ? We must not apply to Mr. S. what he plainly infinuates against the errorifts of the day; by whom he evidently means the Univerfalifts. "Truth", fays he, Introduction, p. 3. "is uniformly the fame, and appears in the fame plain and artless dress from generation to generation s

but

but error appears in every fhape and is continually changing its drefs. When beaten from the field of enquiry in one fhape, it foon affumes another, and attempts to do that infidiously, which never will be done by open and candid argument."

I will not charge Mr. S. with infidiousness, or want of candor. This I must say, that I pity my brother, and am surprized and fhocked at his reasoning on the fubject of the divine benevolence. Nor do I charge him with feeing the genuine confequences of his fcheme of doctrine.

I would ask Mr. S. how he conducts, in his parochial vifits, with fick, afflicted, diftreffed fouls, who appear to be patiently enduring the will of heaven? He cannot, according to his exprefs principles, fay to them, my dear brethren, hold out a little longer; let faith and patience have their perfect work. God will fupport you whilft here ;-his grace shall be sufficient for you ;-his ftrength fhall be made perfect in your weakness ;-and he will prefently take you home to glory; where "all tears fhall be wiped from your eyes, and all forrow banished from your hearts ;-where you fhall enter into reft, and receive the reward of faithful and patient fervants, in "the joy of your Lord."

According to Mr. S.'s notion of selfishness, St. Paul exhibited a very felfish temper, when he faid, "I have fought a good fight, I have finished my courfe, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is

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