not a mark in his forehead to convince all tender christians that he is an enemy to revealed religion. SIXTH UNIVERSALIST ARGUMENT. Fatherly Chastisements. My opponent has quoted the following passages. Job. 5: 17. "Behold! happy is the man whom God correcteth, therefore despise not the chastening of the Almighty." Prov. 3: 12. "For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth, even as a father the son in whom he delighteth."* My opponent observes, "although the Father of all mercies has said [Ps. 89: 32, 33,] that he will visit the transgressions of his children with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes,' he adds, nevertheless, my loving kindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.' And again, Hebr. 12: 9-11, 'Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence; shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of our spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present, seemeth to be joyous but grievous; nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." The inference which my opponent would have us draw from these and similar passages is, that none can be punished forever, because this would be to their inexpressible injury; whereas in these texts, God is represented as viewing all mankind in the light of children, and as correcting them in loving kindness, that they may be profited by a growth in holiness, righteousness and happiness. But in each of the chapters from which the above texts are taken, there is evidence that these things are said of the pious and not of all mankind. In Job 5: 12-14, we find that he who corrects his children for their good, also "taketh the wise in their own craftiness; and the counsel of the froward is carried headlong.” In Prov. 3: 32-35, we find that “the froward is abomination to the Lord;" "the curse of the Lord is in the house of the wicked;" "he scorneth the scorners;""shame shall be the promotion of fools:" and in other passages of scripture, this shame is said to be "a perpetual shame," and an "everlasting confusion." In the 89th * Minutes, p. 140. Minutes, p. 180. Jer. 20; 11. 23; 40. Psalm* we are taught that God's children whom he corrects are those who know the joyful sound of justice and judgment, mercy and truth; who walk in the light of his countenance; who rejoice in his name all the day; and are exalted in his righteousness, and not their own: that is, they are persons who are justified, adopted and sanctified through grace. Concerning others he says in verse 10th," thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm." Hebrews 12: 8, tells us that these enemies are not children but bastards, and are therefore let alone, as Ephraim was when joined to his idols. Verses 5th and 7th imply, as many other scriptures plainly declare, that these bastards do not endure the chastening of the Lord either with reverence or fortitude, but first despise it and then faint under it; whereas his children are supported under it, and profited by it. SEVENTH UNIVERSALIST ARGUMENT. The will of God. As we are now entering upon the strong holds of Univers alism, in which time and labour must be spent to present their system in the most advantageous light, let it be remarked that when, in the name of the adversary, the orthodox are charged with denying scripture, it is not to be understood that the charge is admitted on our part: neither are the Universalists to be understood as making this confession, when, either now or hereafter, I lay such errors at their door. With this explanation, it may be said that the orthodox limit to a part of mankind, that "good will towards men" which the angels, at the birth of Christ, proclaimed to belong "to all people."+ Orthodoxy says that God wills the death of the sinner; but in Ez. 33: 11. 18: 23. 32, “I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God, wherefore turn yourselves and live ye." The scriptures say in 2 Pet. 39. "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness, but is long suffering to us ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance." Does not Orthodoxy say, that he is willing that many should be lost without repentance? The Bible assures us in 1 Tim. 2: 4, that God "will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth:" Whereas Orthodoxy says that he will have only some men to be saved, and the rest to perish without knowledge. In vain will they endeavour to escape the force of these declarations by distin See verses 14-16, 28-36, Lake 2: 10, 14. guishing between God's secret and revealed will, for he does not contradict himself and speak deceitfully: and as to their admission that it is his will of precept only, and not his will of purpose that all men should be saved, is not this in direct opposition to his own word, in Eph. 1: 9-11, where it is said that he hath made known unto us his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself, that in the dispensation of the fulness of times, he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in Heaven, and which are on Earth, even in him; in whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will." Here God is said to gather together in one all things in Christ. Does not this mean that he will save all men? But this is said to be according to his will; “according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself;" according to his purpose of predestination, and the counsel of his own will." On these grounds wet confidently argue that God's will of purpose is always accomplished ;-that it is his will of purpose that all men, universally shall be saved;—and that therefore, all men universally shall be saved. The texts already adduced are given in proof that it is God's will of purpose that all men universally shall be saved. The only difficulty therefore which can remain is, to prove that his will of purpose is always accomplished. But this is acknowledged by the standards of the Orthodox, and the above passage from Ephesians which says that God “worketh all things after the counsel of his own will" is produced by the Presbyterian Confession of Faith, Chapter S, Section 5, to prove it. To support the 1st Section of the same Chapter they have quoted Romans 9: 15, 18, also, which is much to our purpose. 66 "I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." "Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy." Speaking of God's creatures, the 2nd section of the 2nd chapter declares that he "hath most sovereign dominion over them, to do by them, for them, and upon them, whatsoever himself pleaseth." In support of this most certain truth, they quote Dan. 4: 25, 35. "The Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will; and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and he * For John 6: 39, see argument 9th, to which it belongs in common with the seventh. †The Universalists. doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, what doest thou ?" God says, in Isa. 46: 10, "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure." God's will of purpose is the desire of his heart, the determination of his divine mind. It is sovereign and immutable and cannot be thwarted. Job, 23: 13, "He is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth." In answering the above argument, the Orthodox need not oppose the sovereignty of God. Most conscientiously do I agree with the Bible and the Confession of Faith, that his will of purpose is always accomplished. But although my opponent at this moment, professes the same doctrine, to serve a turn, he has in other stages of the debate, filled up his wearisome minutes by holding it up to the derision of the audience. Neither shall I explain the above texts by saying, as Mr. Ballou has attributed to us,* that they are "expressive of God's revealed will, but not of his secret will; arguing that his revealed will is in direct opposition to a will which he has seen fit not to reveal." His revealed word, though not a full developement of his secret will, is nevertheless perfectly consistent with it. Yet as his commands are often broken, and thus his mandatory will not always fulfilled, it is called his will of precept to distinguish it from his will of purpose which is ever fulfilled. For this distinction we have plain authority in many scriptures where there is a certain will of God which is expressly declared not to be done. Luke 12: 47. “And that servant which knew his Lord's will and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will." Matt. 21: 31. "Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him the first." It is plainly implied that the second did not. Now that will of God which this second son did not perform, and which the above mentioned servant did not perform, cannot be the desire of his heart, or the determination of his soul, or his will of purpose, because this is always performed: but it must be his law, or his commandments of whatsoever description, which we therefore call his will of precept and which, though like their author, holy, just and good, are often disregarded. It is to this that our Saviour must have referred when, in weeping over Jerusalem, he said "how oft did I will," (as it is literally rendered,)" how oft did I will to * On Atonement p. 202. gather thy children together as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!" Because of their “would not,” his precepts were disregarded, while his divine purposes were accomplished in their just destruction. So it is with regard to most of the texts quoted concerning the will of God for the salvation of all. In Ez. 18: 32, God took no pleasure in the death of him that dieth; yet he did die, as every persevering unbeliever must forever. In the next au thority quoted, the Apostle Peter tells us that "the Lord is not willing that any should perish." If this were his will of purpose, none would ever perish: yet the same Apostle tells us in the same epistle that some, 66 as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not, and shall utterly perish in their own corruption." The Apostle Paul tells us that "the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness." But Peter tells us moreover that it is God's will" that all should come to repentence." If this be the desire of his heart, then all must and will repent; but if it be only his will of precept, some may violate this will, and remain impenitent. That this is the fact, Paul teaches; "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened" "if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance." Therefore this will of God that they should repent, must be his command. This is so evidently the meaning of such passages, that M'Knight, who is generally very cautious in admitting any important truth, manifests on this subject an unusual degree of candour and even gives the word command instead of will in his translation of 1 Tim. 2: 4. "Who commandeth all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth." If it were not his precept but the determination of his soul, all men would be saved, and all would come to the knowledge of the truth. But God says, in Hosea 4: 6, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge ;" and in John 5: 29, "they shall come forth, they that have done good unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of damnation." Since, therefore, some are damned and not saved; since some are destroyed for lack of knowledge instead of coming to the knowledge of the truth, God's will on this subject must be that of precept and not of purpose. The same doctrine is established by Rom. 9: 15, 18, 2 Peter 3: 9. +2 Pet. 2: 12. P |