As,-1 Vegetable life. This is found in all vegetables, plants, flowers and trees. 2. Animal life. This abounds in the fishes of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, and in tho mortal body of man. 3. Rational life This faculty exists in man; that is, in the unregenerated of mankind, and this gives man the preeminence over all other things, in this lower creation. 4. Spiritual life. This priuciple is communicated to the heart of the believer by the Spirit of God, 2 Cor. iii. 6, and is to be found in none but those who believe in Christ, with a hearl unto righteousness. It is called the life of God, Eph. iv. 18, because it is a principle which came from God, producing holiness of heart and uprightness of deportment, in those who possess it, and shall ultimately return to God. This is sometimes called "a treasure in an earthen vessel." 2. Cor. iv. 7. It is nothing short of the Redeemer himself, dwelling in the human heart by faith. This is manifest, from the phraseology of scripture, where it is said, "Christ in you the hope of glory," Col. i. 24, and where he is called "our life," &c. Col. iii. 4. Those metaphors, generally, which exhibit the union of Christ with his people, convey, very clearly, the idea of life. If you give him the appellation of Prince, Acts iii. 15, you must allow, he is the Prince of life. If Bread, John vi. 48, he is the bread of life. If Water, Rev. xxii. 17, he is the water of life. If a Stone, 1 Pet. ii. 4, he is a living stone. If you liken him to a Tree, Rev. ii. 7, he is the tree of life. The life of the re' deemed seems to be both connected with the life of Christ, and to be depending on it, and of equal

duration with it. This is evident from the words of our blessed Saviour himself, "because I live ye. shall live also." John xiv, 19. Furthermore, the apostle John declares that, "he who hath the Son hath life, and he who hath not the Son hath not life. 1 John v. 12. Now this spiritual life, in the redeemed, is, in forty four places called (zoen aionion) eternal life. It is strange to me, that any Universalist would cast the slightest shade over the doctrine of endless happiness. A man may have a treasure in his possession, and afterwards lose it; but, this is no argument to prove, that, the treasure is not still of the same value and excellence. A diamond is a diamond, as well when it is in the bottom of the sea, as when it is in a lady's breast.Christ is the same yesterday, to-day and forever. This spiritual life was intended to exist to interminable ages, by Him, who is able to sustain it against all opposition. Either, the saints have endless life, or they have not. Take which side of the question you please. If you say they have not, this controversy is at an end; for then they must be annihilated, or go into an endless hell. If you say they have endless life, you cannot deny but the phrase zoen aionion means eternal life, or endless life, as you will have some considerable difficulty in proving their hap-piness to be endless by any other word.

I lea ve it with the reader to judge whether the attempt to deny that endless life was intended in those forty-four cases, was a mere quibble, in order to get quit of the word when employed to express the duration of future misery.

That the everlasting life, and everlasting

shame and contempt mentioned in Dan. xii. 2. were to take place upon the Jews, in this life, is extremely doubtful, to say the least. It a t appears that the transactions mentioned in the text, shall not take place till the day of judgment. It is said many (all) of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (See parellel passage in John v. 28, 29). A man that can torture this text, so as to explain it of a temporal transaction, previous to the day of judgment, may use every text in the Bible like a nose ef wax that will bend every way. It is worthy of remark, that the duration, both of happiness of the righteous, and the cont mpt of the wicked, is expressed by the word olam in the Hebrew, aionion in the Greek, and everlasting in the English. This text is point blank against the doctrine of Universalism.

This text in Acts xiii. 48, has nothing to do with foreordination of predestination to eternal life. As many as were (tetagenoi) disposed, adapted, or prepared for eternal life, believed. There is not one word concerning predestination in the text, but merely a present disposition to embrace eternal life, such as were so disposed, believed the report of the gospel.

As to your question, "if everlasting life means endless happiness, why did Jesus, after saying, he gave his sheep eternal life, add, and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand," it may be said, he used this form of speech, not because each particular did not mean endless life, but to make a deeper im

pression on the mind of his audience. And for the same reason, we have often, in scripture, two or more words or phrases of the same signification, coupled together; as, "prayer and supplication," &c. &c.

In relation to the use of the word aionios, in Rom. xvi. 25, 2 Tim. i. 8; Tit. i. 2; it may be remarked that there is no inconsistency in understanding the word in the endless sense. The phrase, musteriou kronois aioniois sesigemenou, may, with as much truth and propriety be rendered, "mystery kept secret during the eternal or unlimited past ages, or from eternity," as "mystery kept secret since the world began." The phrase "before the world began," or "before eternity." I think, is no more absurd than the English phrase, from eternity' or 'to eternity. Both seem to refer to some point when eternity began, or when it will end. If a point of time be admitted to justify the phrase 'from eternity,' certainly it is not absurd to say before eternity, as all points of time presuppose a previous time. The fact is, neither the phrase, 'from eternity' nor the phrase 'before eternity,' will bear a critical investigation, though we are sometimes obliged to use them, owing to the poverty of language.

The phrase 'everlasting gospel,' not only means, that it shall be preached to the end of the world, and that none other shall succeed it; but it signifies that its effects shall be endless, in all them that hear it. Those who believe and obey shall have endless happiness, and those who reject it shall have endless misery. This far, I think, is intended by the phrase, "everlasting gospel."

You ask me, "how can Christ's kingdom be endless when he says, he shall deliver it up to his Father,” (he said no such thing) See 1 Cor. xv. 24. This is a strange question! If you say his kingdom is not endless, the discussion is at an end, for his kingdom is composed of men and they must either be annihilated or cast into endless perdition, if they do not continue to compose that kingdom. I hold that Christ's kingdom is endless, because it is said, "of the increase of his government and peace, there shall be no end." Isa. ix. 17. Again, "his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." Dan. vii. 12. Again, "he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." Luke i. 33. The transfer of an object from one agent to another, certainly does not imply the destruction of the object thus transferred. Therefore, Christ's kingdom may be endless, in its nature and constitution, though in some sense delivered up to the Father. This is poor shuffling to do away the force of the adjective aionios.—Nothing but a bad cause could set a man at war with his own principles.

In regard to the meaning of the phrase, "enter into life maimed,” Matt. xviii. 8, I would observe, that the word "maimed," is employed to comport with the metaphorical language of the preceding part of the verse, where the "hand" and "foot" are intended to designate our beloved sins, which we must lay aside, or cut off; before we can possess eternal life.

It does not appear to me that the paragraph in Matt. xxv. from verse 31 to the end of the