blessings, a peculiar submission to the will of God becomes us, which is not required in the other. If we pray, with Jabez, to have our coast enlarged in temporal things, we ought to feel a contented mind, and submit to God, though our prayers should be unanswered; but if we are praying for an interest in Christ as our spiritual and everlasting portion, contentment of mind is not there required. God does not require us to be willing to be lost forever; for that would be the same thing as to be forever employed in cursing and blaspheming, instead of blessing his holy name. Again, if we adopt the latter part of the prayer of Jabez, O that thou wouldst keep me from evil, that it may not grieve me! if by evil we understand the evil of affliction, a resignation to the will of God becomes us; but if by evil we understand the evil of sin, resignation would then become criminal." REMARKS. Submission to the will of God, in prayer, is a willingness to be denied the particular favour asked, if God shall see fit to deny it. This clearly appears to be Mr. Fuller's idea of submission in prayer, and is undoubtedly correct. Mr. Fuller concedes, that when we pray for mercies, which God has not bound himself to bestow upon us, in answer to prayer, it becomes us to submit to his will; but he maintains, that when we pray for mer cies, which God has bound himself to bestow upon us in answer to prayer, we are not required to exercise such submission. Of the first class, i. e. of mercies not promised, he says, "are all our earthly comforts, and some things in the religious life" of the second class, i. e. of mercies promised, "are all those spiritual blessings essential to salvation." Here, we apprehend, the good man has fallen into two mistakes, each of which consists in making a distinction, where there is little or no difference. 1. The first mistake is, in making a distinction between "earthly comforts" and "spiritual blessings," in respect to their being promised or not, in answer to prayer. Mr. Fuller admits, that "some things in the religious life," are in the class of those not promised. It is unquestionably so. God has not promised his people any particular de gree of sanctification. or any par ticular degree of spiritual light, or any particular measure of holy joy. There might, no doubt, be many other things pertaining to the relig ious life, mentioned, which God has not promised to bestow in answer to prayer. But, is it true, on the other hand, that earthly comforts" are not promised? Do we not read, "trust in the Lord and do good; and so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Honour the Lord with thy substance and with the first-fruits of all thine increase. So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine." If it should be said, that these promises, and other similar ones that might be quoted, are in the Old Testament, and were peculiar to the legal dispensation; it is easy to reply, that promises of the same nature are found in the New Testament; such as the fol lowing, "Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you-Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is,and of that which is to come--Ye have not, because ye ask nok, ve ask and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts." The truth appears to be, that "earthly comforts" are promised in scripture, as expressly, and almost as frequently, as "spiritual blessings;" and that hoth are promised conditionally. "Earthly comforts" are promised on the condition of trusting in the Lord and doing good-honouring the Lord with one's substanceasking for them in faith, without wavering, &c." "Spiritual blessings" are promised on the condition of repentance, faith in Christ, and such prayer, as includes repentance and faith.' And as earthir, and spiritual favours are both promised conditionally; so they are both promised indefinitely, i. e. God has not specified the time when, the manner how, nor the degree in which he will bestow these favours. A single exception only, to this observation, is now recollected; which is, that God seems to have promised pardon and salvation to every sinner, immediately upon his asking or praying for it but even this promise is conditional; the asking must be holy, the praying must be with faith in Christ. There does not appear, therefore, to be that difference between "earthly comforts" and "spiritual blessings," in regard to their being promised or not, in answer to prayer, which many have imagined, and which Mr. Fuller too easily took for granted. But, 2. The second and greatest mistake in the above extract, is, making a difference, as to the duty of submission in prayer, between merces promised, and mercies not promised. It is admitted, by Mr. Fuller, that in praying for things not promised," submission to the will of God becomes us." And why, it may be asked, does not sub mission equally become us, when we pray for things promised? As to things promised indefinitely, there is clearly as much room for submission as to the time, manner, and degree of bestowing them, as if they were not promised at all.— And as to those things promised conditionally, as all spiritual, as well as temporal blessings are, the very condition on which they are promised, includes submission to the will of God. Let us take the instance of a spiritual blessing promised, mentioned in the extract, viz. that of "praying for an interest in Christ, as our spiritual and everlasting portion." This blessing is promised only on the condition of repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ, or such an asking for it, as includes repentance and faith. This, it is presumed, will not be denied. But, as repentance proceeds from godly sor-' row, and faith worketh by love, do not these holy exercises imply or include submission to the will of God? Most certainly. Well, then, when we are "praying for an interest in Christ," there is no promise that we shall have it, until we have prayed in the exercise of repentance, faith and holy submission.No one has any ground to expect, that he shall have "an interest in Christ, till he has prayed thus, and is able, by self-examination, to look back and see that he has thus prayed. So far, therefore, from there being no room for submission in praying for the promised blessing of an interest in Christ, it is impossible to pray acceptably for this blessing, without submission. But, adds Mr. Fuller, "God does not require us to be willing to be lost forever." What, not upon supposition we die in our sins? And no one knows that he shall not die in his sins, who does not know, perish in his sins and be punished forever as his iniquities deserve. On the whole, the conclusion is, that prayer never can be made, for any blessing or favour, whatever, without unreserved submission to the infinitely wise, holy, and sovereign will of God', that no one can pray with hope of acceptance, while he feels unwilling, all things considered, to be denied the favour he asks, if God shall so please; and that all asking of God for either earthly or heavenly blessings, which deserves the name of prayer, is made in the very spirit of the petition of our great Pattern, the MAN CHRIST JESUS, in the garden of Gethsemane, when his soul was exceeding sorrowful even unto death, "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.” AGNOSTES. 66 that he has prayed with such re- QUESTIONS. MR. EDITOR-An Answer to the fol A SUBSCRIBER. Why is it, that apostates are always more virulent opposers of the true system of doctrines, than those who never professed to embrace it? MR. EDITOR-It has been usual for professing Christians to adopt a mode of ecclesiastical government, similar to that of the civil government of the country, in which they happened to live. Thus, under a monarchy, the government of the Church has commonly been Episcopal; under an aristocracy, the government of the Church has commonly been Presbyterian; while, in republics, the Congregational form of government and discipline, has generally been adopted. Each of those, who have practised these 4. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children unto them; the same became mighty men, which were of old, men of renown. 5. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. different modes of ecclesiastical 3. And the Lord said, My Spirit government, has usually maintained shall not always strive with man, that his own was the only mode, for that he also is flesh; yet his days prescribed and allowed in sacred shall be an hundred and twenty seripture. In this recently settled years. country, to which professing Christians have emigrated from all parts of the Christian world, and in which religious freedom is perfectly enjoyed, the various modes of eccle siastical government have been observed, according to the practice of the various countries, from which the emigrants happened to come. This has, of course, brought the different modes into contact (not to say collision) which has some times occasioned controversy. From this controversy, it had been hoped, that the truth, on this important subject, would ultimately ly be elicited. But of late, I have been told, that some have under taken to quash all further controversy, by advancing the novel sentiment, that the mode of ecclesiastical government is not prescribed in scripture, but is left, as a mere matter of expediency, to the discretion of the Churches. Is it, indeed, so? Is there, or is there not, some one mode of ecclesiastical got ernment enjoined by Christ and his Apostles? And if so, what is it ?This is a question, an answer to which, in your pages, would be very gratifying to A PROFESSOR Of Religion. For the Hopkinsian Magazine. EXPOSITORY NOtes, upon geneSIS, vi. 1-6. [BY REV. ANDREW FULLER.] 1. And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 2. That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which They chose. he had made man on the earth, and 6. And it repented the Lord that it grieved him at his heart. This chapter gives an account of the corruption which preceded the flood, and which moved an infinitely good and merciful Being to bring it upon the earth. We may notice, 1. The occasion of this corruption, viz. the increase of popula tion: it was when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, that they began to corrupt one another. Population is itself a good: but it often becomes the occasion of evil; because men, when numbers of them assemble together, excite and provoke one another to sin. Hence it is, that sin commonly grows rankest in populous places. We are originally made to be helpers of one another: but sin petverts the course of things, and renders us tempters of one another. We draw and are drawn into innumerable evils. Oh, draw me not with the workers of iniquity ! 2. The first step towards this corrupt state of things was, the mixing of the church and the world in marriages. The sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all whom they chose. The sons of God were those of the family of Seth, of whom we read lately, that they called upon the name of the Lord. (iv. 16.) The daughters of men were of the race of Cain, whose parents having gone forth from the presence of the Lord, or turned their back on religion, were a kind of atheists. This was a conjunction between the seed of the woman, and the seed of the serpent; which must needs be unnatural and mischievous. The object of a good man's choice should be, a helpmeet. We need to be helped in our way to heaven, and not hindered and corrupted. Hence God for bade all such alliances with idolaters (Deut. vii. 3, 4.): and hence also Christian marriages were limited to those only in the Lord. (1. Cor. vii. 39.) The examples which we have seen of the contrary, have fully justified these restrictions by their lamentable effects. They corrupt and ruin many a promising character; and we see by this his tory, that they were the first cause of the ruin of the world! 3. The great offence which God took at this conduct, and what grew out of it. The Lord said, my Spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh; yet his days shall be a hundred and twenty years. Had the sons of God kept themselves to themselves, and preserved their purity, God, it may be supposed, would have spared the world for their sakes: but they mingled together and became ouc people. This He considered as a heinous crime. The name by which they are called is worthy of noticeman. Seeing the sons of God have become one people with the daughters of men, they have lost their honourable distinction, and are called by the common name of the species. The special notice taken of the conduct of professors, rather than of others, is likewise observable. He also, or they also, as some read it, namely, the sons of God, are flesh, i. e. they, as well as the others, are become corrupt. By the Spirit of God is meant, the Holy Spirit in the prophets, by which He preached and contended with the wicked. See Neh. ix. 30.-1. Pet. iii. 19, 20. But now, seeing the professedly righteous, who should have stood firm, had, as it were, joined the standard of the enemy, God resolved to give them all up together, or to decline any further strivings with them. Yet amidst all this displeasure, there is great longsuffering. His days shall be a hundred and twenty years. God would wait that time, ere He brought the flood upon them. 4. Observe the fruits of these unlawful mixtures, a sort of monstrous beings, whose figures were but emblems of their minds. They seem to have been fierce and cruel men. The word giants signifies fellows, or men who caused others to fall before them, like trees before an axe. So far as respects character, this was the natural effect of such intermarriages; familyreligion is subverted; and the fear of God has a greater connexion with a proper regard to man, than many are willing to allow. 5. Observe the estimate which God nakes of things. God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart reas only evil continually. Such is the case, when the church is gone and lost in the world. There were some hopeful appearances, when the sons of God began to call upon the name of the Lord: but now, a very few excepted, they are all gone. What a picture is here given of what the |