lieve, have no fears, no, not the least thought of fear, (i. e. as to our final state,) no more than children, who have a good, kind and tender father, are afraid that he will hurt them. "Fear hath torment, but perfect love casteth out fear;" and we cannot help but love our heavenly Father, who we believe to be so good, as we describe him to be, and at the same time believing we fall infinitely short of giving a full description of his mercy, love, and goodness. And according to the apostle, "we which have believed do enter into rest;" (Heb. iv. 3.) and have "joy and peace in believing." (Rom. xv. 13.)That is, those who are Universalists indeed and in truth. We know there are too many who profess to be Universalists, who live in sin, and under condemnation. Such cannot have joy and peace in believing, for "there is no peace to the wicked," let them profess what they may, and they cannot love God, "for this is the love of God," saith the apostle, "that ye keep my commandments." But not to digress too far, I return. According to our ideas of the love and goodness of God, the salvation of his creatures is not confined to any time, age, nation, place, or part of the world in which they live; and all who have ever lived since the beginning of the world, will be as kindly dealt by, and as completely saved, as those who live at the time of the millennium; for "his tender mercies are over all his works," from first to last, and forever, without the least "variableness, neither shadow of turning," (James i. 17.) He is the "same yesterday, and to-day, and forever." (Heb. xiii. 8.) Thus, according to this blessed doctrine, all the promises of God will be completely fulfilled, all the nations, or people on earth, will be blessed in Christ with an everlasting salvation. This exactly agrees with the declaration that follows next in succession, from the book of Daniel. "And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, shall serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." Chap. vii. 14. Is it possible that there will then be any kingdom, or power, in competition with this? Will Satan at the same time hold millions and billions of souls under his power and dominion? No, it cannot be, for God has said "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself, but in me is thine help." "I will ransom thee from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plague ; O grave," (or hell,) "I will be thy destruction; repentance shall be hid from mine eyes." Hoz. xiii. 9, 14. "Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, "He retaineth not his and passeth by transgression," &c. anger forever, because he delighteth in mercy." Mic. vii. 18. If God pardoneth iniquity, passeth by transgression, and is not only merciful, but is of tender mercy, and that over all his works, and this his mercy endureth forever, and he delighteth in mercy, how contradictory it is to all these so often repeated declarations, that a great part of the human family should be left by their Creator to groan eternally in misery. How can it be possible that any being can delight in mercy, and see creatures in misery, and can as easily relieve them, as to speak a word. If a king, who made a great profession of delighting in mercy, and lieve, have no fears, no, not the least thought of fear, (i. e. as to our final state,) no more than children, who have a good, kind and tender father, are afraid that he will hurt them. "Fear hath torment, but perfect love casteth out fear;" and we cannot help but love our heavenly Father, who we believe to be so good, as we describe him to be, and at the same time believing we fall infinitely short of giving a full description of his mercy, love, and goodness. And according to the apostle, "we which have believed do enter into rest;" (Heb. iv. 3.) and have "joy and peace in believing." (Rom. xv. 13.)That is, those who are Universalists indeed and in truth. We know there are too many who profess to be Universalists, who live in sin, and under condemnation. Such cannot have joy and peace in believing, for "there is no peace to the wicked," let them profess what they may, and they cannot love God, "for this is the love of God," saith the apostle, "that ye keep my commandments." But not to digress too far, I return. According to our ideas of the love and goodness of God, the salvation of his creatures is not confined to any time, age, nation, place, or part of the world in which they live; and all who have ever lived since the beginning of the world, will be as kindly dealt by, and as completely saved, as those who live at the time of the millennium; for "his tender mercies are over all his works," from first to last, and forever, without the least "variableness, neither shadow of turning," (James i. 17.) He is the "same yesterday, and to-day, and forever." (Heb. xiii. 8.) Thus, according to this blessed doctrine, all the promises of God will be completely fulfilled, all the nations, or people on earth, will be blessed in Christ with an everlasting salvation. This exactly agrees with the declaration that follows next in succession, from the book of Daniel. "And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, shall serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." Chap. vii. 14. Is it possible that there will then be any kingdom, or power, in competition with this? Will Satan at the same time hold millions and billions of souls under his power and dominion? No, it cannot be, for God has said "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself, but in me is thine help.""I will ransom thee from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plague; O grave," (or hell,) "I will be thy destruction; repentance shall be hid from mine eyes." Hoz. xiii. 9, 14. "Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by transgression," &c. He retaineth not his anger forever, because he delighteth in mercy." Mic. vii. 18. If God pardoneth iniquity, passeth by transgression, and is not only merciful, but is of tender mercy, and that over all his works, and this his mercy endureth forever, and he delighteth in mercy, how contradictory it is to all these so often repeated declarations, that a great part of the human family should be left by their Creator to groan eternally in misery. How can it be possible that any being can delight in mercy, and see creatures in misery, and can as easily relieve them, as to speak a word. If a king, who made a great profession of delighting in mercy, and kept great numbers of his subjects in misery. for their disobedience, when they would be obedient if he was kind to them, who would believe what he said about mercy? "Thou wilt perform the truth to Jacob, and thy mercy to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old." Mic. vii. 20. That is, that all nations should be blessed. The following, though in the Apocrypha, is well worthy of notice. "The whole world before thee is as a little grain of the balance, yea, as a drop of the morning dew that falleth down upon the earth." Is it at all likely that so good and so merciful a being, as God is represented to be, will exert his omnipotent power to punish forever these poor, little grains and drops? Ans. "Thou hast mercy upon all; for thou canst do all things, and winkest at the sins of men, because they should amend.” Sins appear to us mountains, (and so they should, that we may shun them, because they greatly injure us, and make us miserable in this life. "There is no peace to the wicked, they are like the troubled sea, whose waters cast up mire and dirt." But, as says one, and almost as wise a man as ever lived,* "All the errors and sins of men are, in the sight of the Omnipotent Parent, but as those of little children in our sight." And in his sight we are children. a little grain of the balance, yea, as a drop of the morning dew that falleth upon the earth." "Behold they are all vanity, their works are nothing." (Isa. iv. 29.) "And all the inhabit * Dr. Priestley. "As |