and certainly amend.

That day also

comes, and finds him as much unrefolved and unprepared. Trained on thus by a fucceffion of delufions, he is in his first state perpetually refolving, and perpetually finning, until at laft habit rivets on its chains, and death comes like an armed man, and feizes him unprepared.

GOOD GOD! what a wretched creature is an habitual finner! What can be conceived more melancholy, than fuch a fight-a reasonable creature, defigned for the fellowship of angels, without one tafte or relish but for the clog of matter he carries about him in common with the beafts of the field! Attempting to leave his fins, but drawn by a fort of neceffity to commit what he abhors? Attempting to make his peace with Gop, but incapable of one feeling or fentiment towards him, but the mere fear of his vengeance! Burning in a fever, or ftupified with pains, which

P4

which deprive him of all memory, all reflection, and all his reafon! and going to meet that Being, to whom he owed the service of his whole life, in this unprepared corrupted state!

THIS is the tendency of all fin: to prevent it our refolution fhould be immediate. Begin in youth, and the way of virtue becomes fmooth, easy, and delightful. The impetuous impulfe of paffion may now and then drive you out of your course: yet reflection and Divine grace, which never deferts the well-difpofed, will bring you again into the right track. Or, if you have been fo unhappy as to have fallen into any bad habits, confider, that you have loft too much time already, your danger is encreafing; you may furvive the powers of repentance, and fin on till death conveys you unprepared before your Judge.

IV.

IV. BUT if the finner will still perfuade himself, in fpite of reason and experience which are fo much against him, that he is fufficiently fure of his moral powers; there is a further thing to be confidered by him: the neceffity of Divine grace in the work of repentance and regeneration.

IT were happy for the world, if, according to the doctrine which is revived of late, and fpreads with the ufual contagion

*ONE of the strongest texts of fcripture, urged for the doctrine of irresistible grace is that of St. John. Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit. Marvel not that I faid unto thee, ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it lifteth, and thou heareft the found thereof, but canft not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: fo is every one that is born of the Spirit. John, iii. 5-8.

1. To be born of water is a Jewish phrase, denoting baptifm by water, as Mr. Selden and Dr. Lightfoot, two of the greatest masters of Jewish learning, acquaint

contagion of enthusiasm,

among the ignorant and illiterate, the grace of GoD did act in strong and irresistible impulfes on the human mind. WERE

as. See Dr. Hammond and Whitby on the place. The antient commentators, as Dr. Lightfoot also informs us, univerfally understood the present paffage in this sense. The first person, who understood it otherwife, was Calvin, and he has been fince followed by fuch reformers, as knew not, how to deftroy the extravagant pretenfions of the church of Rome, without fubverting all church difcipline and order at the fame time. It is only to be lamented, that the excellent Grotius, though he acknowledges an allusion in the words to the inftitution of baptifm, yet should lend his authority to the new fangled unnatural interpretation.

I SHALL Content myself at present with saying, that what he alledges in support of it, really makes against it. He fays, it is an Hendyadis, like Mat. iii. 11. But as that expreffion, he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghoft and with fire, fignifies, he fhall baptize you with the spirit under the real appearance of fire, Acts, ii. 3. So, by parity of reason, being born of water and the Spirit, may at least imply an operation of the spirit by the element of water, as an instrument or vifible fign of conveyance. He fays further, that the Spirit is reprefented under the metaphor of water in fcripture. It is fo, John, vii. 37. But we muft obferve, that our Sa

WERE the cafe fo, he, who willeth' not the death of any finner, would certainly make us univerfally virtuous and happy

viour in all his parables, where he meant to be underftood by his hearers, borrowed the metaphor from fome obvious fact or immediate occurrence that led them to the fecret fenfe. It was fo here. It was the cuftom upon the day here mentioned to fetch water from Siloam as a drink-offering to GOD; and this furnished him with the happiest of allufions. But there is nothing to give water a figurative fenfe in the above place.-There are many pofitive arguments in favour of the ancient interpretation, if this were a proper place for them. But it is a fufficient defence of an established opinion, to refute the objections against it.

2. THE fimilitude of wind has not the leaft reference to the force, with which this agent operates.

FOR what purpose, pray, was the fimilitude introduced by our Saviour? It was to clear up fome point, which furprized Nicodemus. And what was that?—our Saviour himself tells us, marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again. It was not Nicodemus's doubt whether the spirit acted in an irresistible manner or not in this renovation: his doubt was, whether there were any Spiritual change at all.

NICODEMUS, ufed to the outward pomp of Jewish ceremonies, could not raife his mind to the apprehenfion of this fublime doctrine. The fimile is adapted to

his