character; for they drank of that Rock which followed them g and that Rock was Christ. Others provoked Christ, and were destroyed by serpents. The prophets understood that they were inspired by the Spirit, and him who was the subject of their pro phecy; for they searched diligently what the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified of the suffering of Christ and the glory that should follow." The Redeemer is mentioned in the Old Testament by various descriptive names; but perhaps none is more significant of the divinity of his person, the nature of his office, and the importance of his work, than that by which he is frequently described The Angel of the Lord, or, as the late Bishop Horsely translates it, the Angel Jehovah. The English reader should ob serve, that in the Old Testament the word Lord, in our translation, is sometimes printed in capital letters, as LoRD; and at other times, with only the first capital and the other three small letters, as Lord. This difference may be seen by referring to the eighth Psalm, or the first verse of the 110th Psalm. When the word is all in capital letters, it usually, though not always, denotes that it is in the original the word Jehovah; which word is sometimes retained by the translators. When Lord is printed in small letters, it denotes another word, which signifies a Ruler, a Governor, or a Judge, and which, when applied to God, means the office and character of our Redeemer; but the word LORD or JEHOVAH is expressive of the divine essence; that the person whom it describes is the self existent, underived, independent, and eternal Being, the Author and Supporter of all other beings. Bishop Pearson says, "Jehovah is the Being necessarily existing of and from himself, with all active perfections originat ing in his essence." That this term Jehovah, which describes what God is in himself, as being infinitely above all, and as the First Cause and Last End of all, is frequently applied to him who appeared in human nature, and is called Christ, is undeniable. A comparison of many places of the Old and New Testament with each other, will afford ample evidence to any one who owns the Scriptures as a rule of faith, and who considers the term Jehovah applicable only to the one living and true God, that the name is applied to him; and is, therefore, a proof of his essential Deity. A comparison of the following pas sages with each other, will give a scriptural demonstration that Jesus is Jehovah:- Isa. vi. 1-5 with John xii. 41; Isa. xl. 3 with Mat. iii. 1-3; Mal. iii. 1 with Mark i. 2, 3; Isa. xliv. 6 with Rev. i. 8, 17, 18; Joel ii. 32 with Rom. x. 15, 14. This Jehovah-Jesus is the Angel or Messenger of the Covenant, the Angel of the Divine Presence, who frequently made his appearance in a human form, probably surrounded with light and glory. Jehovah employed this method to make himself visible and approachable by his creatures; and probably to typify his one day assuming, not in appearance only, but in reality, the human nature in which the fulness of the Godhead should dwell corporally. Let the believer in Christ then rejoice in him as his all in all; for " he is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by him, secing he ever liveth to make intercession for them." My soul, if thou art possessed of his gra cious influence, if his law has been written on thy heart, - if thou art made to bear his image, thou art interested in the love of him who is eternal and immutable, and whose favour is allsufficient to render thee perfectly happy. The Father has given into the hands of the Jehovah-Angel all the affairs of his church, the government of men, the direction of the Universe, and unlimited authority over the world of invisible spirits; "for all power is given unto him in Heaven and in Earth." How safely then, my soul, mayest thou commit thyself, with all thy concerns, to Him in whose hands the universe is safe! If Infinite Purity, who puts no trust in his servants, the created angels, has confided all his vessels of mercy and universal nature to this uncreated Angel, with what perfect confidence mayest thou trust them all with him! How secure is thy spiritual and ever lasting life, seeing He who is the Author and Fountain of it, is self-existent and eternal! Thy life is hid with Christ in God !— What an inexhaustible source of felicity hast thou flowing to thee, seeing He who is the source of his own felicity, and the cause of it to all the unnumbered millions of pure spirits in the realms of bliss, is thy eternal portion! With what comparative indifference mayest thou look upon this vain and transi tory world! Thou hast powers too capacious, and too noble, to be satisfied with any portion it can afford thee; and thou hast a fountain of happiness too rich and suitable to need it. If he who is Jehovah in covenant be thy inheritance, how canst thou be poor, or what after this can be said to make thee rich? Remember, it is thy supreme felicity" to enjoy God in all, or all in God.' How great then must be thy folly and thy guilt, to seck that from broken cisterns which is only to be derived from this Fountain of living waters! But the mention of guilt excites ten thousand painful reflections. Ah! in all things I offend; and in all I come short. The law which condemns me is "holy, and just, and good;" but I am carnal, sold under sin." With all my powers I say, "O wretched being that I am, who shall deliver me! Weep, mine eyes, there is just cause for it! Grieve, my soul, thou hast suffcient reason for it; but still, do not despair, but rejoice and be exceeding glad, for the AngelJehovah is Jehovah thy righteousness." The perfect obedience and all-suflicient atonement which he, uniting his nature with mine, rendered unto God in my stead and on my behalf, have secured the eternal honour of the law under which I was righteously condemned, and fully displayed the justice of him against whose authority I had wickedly offended. If thon, my soul, art found in Christ, not having thy own righte ousness, which is of the law, but that which is the righteousness of Ged, through faith," thou art "justified from all things, from which thou couldest not be justified by the law of Moses." If this be thy state, the law has no curses to denounce against thee; Death can have no dominion over thee, and judgment need not alarm thee! It is thy privilege" to joy in God, thro' Jesus Christ, by whom thou hast received the atonement." But, O my soul, examine thyself, -prove thyself, whether thou be in the faith or not! Many have been awfully deceived and miserably disappointed! A mistake then may be fatal, and for ever. What will it avail thee to have the friendship of man, or to pos sess the good things of this world, if thou be not interested in the favour of him that created thee? But if he be thy friend, who can be thine enemy? If he be thy portion, what should make thee unhappy, discontented, or unduly anxious! If thou be right in the sight of God, all is right; and the Angel-Jeho vah will be thy Guide through life,thy perpetual Guard from all evil; and will finally present thee before the presence of his glory with exceeding great joy! G. As there is much said in the present day respecting the propriety of a ministerial address to the consciences of unconverted sinners, the insertion of the following Extracts in your valuable work, may tend, by the divine blessing, to settle the minds of many as to this important point. I am, Rev. Sir, yours, NEREUS. "Some pious men, who believe Predestination, cannot reconcile the preaching of Jesus Christ to all men indiscriminately with it; much less can they address to them those convincing arguments, those powerful demonstrations, those tender expostulations, those authoritative calls: in a word, that moral suasion with which the Scripture abounds. They can only preach the gospel to the elect, in the hearing of the reprobate; and some have even scrupled to pray for the conversion of infidels, lest they should pray for the non-elect; others have ventured to affirm, that all the Scriptures are addressed to good men, and not a word to the unregenerate. The last seem incorrigible; but, to the former, we will beg leave to propose four questions : 1st, Can an unknown decree be a rule of action to us? Deut. xxix. 29. 2d, Is not the Christian minister's commission to preach the gospel to every creature? Mark xvi. 15. 3d, Did not the inspired writers persuade men? 2 Cor. v. 11. Acts xiv, 13-15, xxvi. 28, 29, and xxviii. 23. And, 4thly, Has not a general address to men's consciences been greatly successful in the conversion of sinners? Acts ii. 23. 36–38. 40, 41. Robinson's Notes on Claude. "Let us (says the venerable author of Omicron's Letters) consult the Scriptures, which, as they furnish us with the whole subject matter of XV. 3 N our ministry, so they afford us perfect precepts and patterns for its due and orderly dispensation. With respect to the subject of our enquiry (i. e. the propriety of a ministerial address to the unconverted) the examples of our Lord Jesus Christ, and of his authorized ministers, the apostles, are both our rule and our warrant. The Lord Jesus was the great preacher of free grace, "who spake as never man spake ;" and his ministry, while it provided relief for the weary and heavy-laden, was eminently designed to stain the pride of all human glory. He knew what was in man, and declared, "that none could cone unto him, unless drawn and taught of God." John vi. 44-46. And yet he often speaks to sinners in terms which, if they were not known to be his, might perhaps be considered as legal and inconsistent. John vi. 27. Luke xiii. 24-27. John xii. 35. It appears, both from the context and the tenor of those passages, that they were immediately spoken, not to his disciples, but to the multitude. The apostles copied from their Lord; they taught that we have no sufficiency of ourselves even to think a good thought; and, that it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God, who sheweth mercy; yet, they plainly called upon sinners (and that before they had given evident signs that they were pricked to the heart, as in Acts xiv. 15.) to “ repent, and to turn from their vanities to the living God." Acts iii. 19, and xvii. 30. Peter's advice to Simon Magus is very full and express to this point; for, though he perceived him to be in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity, he exhorted him to repent and to pray, if perhaps the thought of his heart might be forgiven him.” It may be presumed, that we cannot have stronger evidence that any of our hearers are in a carnal and unconverted state, than Peter had in the case of Simon Magus; and, therefore, there seems no sufficient reason why we should hesitate to follow the apostle's example." Copy of a Letter of the late Rev. John Brown, of Haddington, "Dear Friend, I AM the old man still sinning, notwithstanding troubles, convictions, and every thing else. God alone can tell how inconsistent my sermons and my life, in his sight, are. Yet, after all, I dare not say He is a barren wilderness, or land of darkness. Even, yesterday he seemed to smile on me, and to enable my soul to say Amen to the last clause of Zech. xiii. 9, "They shall say, The Lord is my God." In short, my life is, and has been, a kind of almost perpetual strife between God and my soul. He strives to overcome my enmity and wickedness with his mercy; and I strive to overpower his merey with my enmity and wickedness. O how astonishingly kind on his side! -how much more than diabolically wicked on mine! After all, i hope and trust that Hle, not I, shall obtain the victory at last. I earnestly request an interest in your prayers for me, my congregation, and students. Alas! that they have such a pastor and instructor as God knows me to be! Yours affectionately, ANECDOTE. J. BROWN. Recommended to the attention of those who live in the neglect of their Bibles. A PERSON in Birmingham, who lived in the neglect of the worship of God, and of reading his word, was, on a Lord's Day, sitting at the fire with his family. He said, he thought he would read a chapter in the Bible, having net read one for a long time; but, alas! he was disappointed, — it was too late; for, in the very act of reaching it from the shelf, he sunk down, and immediately expired! Reader, while it is called To-day," resolutely begin to read the Holy Scriptures. By inserting in your valuable Magazine the following Portraiture of a Christian, drawn by, that able writer, the Author of the Hora Solitariæ, vol. I. p. 227, last edit. you will doubtless oblige many of your pious readers, who may not have opportunity of reading the work itself. Coventry. - ד. Ir one were to draw the Portraiture of a Christian, this probably would come near to his description: · He is one who, in doctrine, believes that the Three Persons in Jehovah are equally engaged in the accomplishment of his salvation; - that the love of the Father, Son, and Spirit is but one love, directed to the three objects of their respective offices for him ; 1 namely, creation, redemption, and regeneration, terminating in his eternal glorification; that he was chosen freely to this mercy, when it was lost by Adam to his nature; that he is freely called by the effectual application of divine power; - that he is justified wholly and entirely, and at once, by the obedience of Jehovah, in human flesh, to that perfect law which man was created to obey, but had broken; that he is sanctified in Jesus Christ through the Spirit, and by him shall persevere to the end, and be everlastingly saved.- The Christian is one who, in experience, looks into himself only for humiliation; and, out of himself, to God in Christ, for all his happiness. He perceives, and often very wofully, that he has not the power of thinking, saying, or doing one good thing; and that, however specious many inoral acts may appear to the world, there is nothing intrinsically holy but what is brought into him, and maintaiued in him by the agency of the Holy One. Body, soul, and spirit, therefore, he meekly surrenders to his God, for time and for eternity. He distrusts his own wisdom and will in all cases, from a just persuasion that what is perverse in its own nature can only lead him astray. His whole security from fatling he founds upon his God; and, accordingly, he flies to him in all his templations and distresses, great or small. He feels himself a poor, weak creature, that cannot stand a moment, and is, therefore, never easy but when he leans upon his beloved. He is well acquainted with this trath, uttered by a good man, that "with God, the most of mosts (in opposition to himself) is less than nothing; but, without him, the least of leasts is too great a burden;" and he hath that joy and peace in his saviour, which he knows the world can neither give nor take away. Advert to his manners and conversation. He attends the ordinances of the gospel, because in them he finds refreshment and strength to his soul. Be hears the word with solemnity, comes to hear it with seriousness, and departs with gravity. Not glad, when service is performed, to commence busy body in others men's matters, or to enter into the frothy discourse of idie tongues. Like Mary, he wishes to treasure up the gospel in his heart, without evaporating its sweet savour by the impertinence and dissipation of, worldly things. Collected and retired in himself, he aims to be inoffensive to others. Without parade, be is religious; and serious without either gloom or severity. Never wishing to be forward in disputes, he is ever desirous of supporting the truths of God in a way that may please God. He seeks not to obtrude upon or assume over others; but, with modest cheerfulness, wishes to elevate religion in the eyes of men; bearing with their inurmities, from the deepest conviction of his own. Above all things, he delights in the company of Him who speaks as none other can speak; and, when he obtained this happiness (to use an old paradox) "is never less alone than when he is alone." He is never satisfied "to part with his private duty, tili he has found communion with God in it; and, when he has found that, he perceives such a sweetness and savour in it, as to make it not easy for him to go forth again into the world.” Against such an experience as this, which sees, and handles, and tastes of the word of life, there is no arguing. If a man should attempt to controvert this |