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in them, there was sin also in those who were chosen to salvation; we must, therefore, resolve their opposite allotment into the will of God. "He hath mercy upon whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth." Rom. ix. 18. As it would have been just in God to pass by the whole of our race, and to deal with them as he did with the angels who sinned, it must be manifest that, in electing some to life, he did no injustice to the non-elect, whose case would have been just as bad as it is, even supposing the others had not been chosen at all. But if the reason be inquired why God ordained to dishonour and wrath those whom he passed by, this must be resolved into their own sin. In this act God appears as a judge, fixing beforehand the punishment of the guilty; and his decree is only a purpose of acting towards them according to the natural course of justice. Their own sin is the procuring cause of their final ruin, and therefore God does them no wrong. The salvation of the elect is wholly "to the praise of his glorious grace," and the condemnation of the non-elect is "to the praise of his glorious justice."

SECTION VIII.-The doctrine of this high mystery of predestination is to be handled with special prudence and care,18 that men attending the will of God revealed in his word, and yielding obedience therenuto, may, from the certainty of their effectual vocation, be assured of their eternal election.19 So shall this doctrine afford matter of praise, reverence, and admiration of God,20 and of humility, diligence, and abundant consolation, to all that sincerely obey the gospel.21

18 Romans ix. 20; xi. 33. Deut. xxix.
29.
19 2 Pet. i. 10.

20 Eph. i. 6.

Rom. xi. 33.

21 Rom xi. 5, 6, 20. 2 Pet. i. 10. Rom. viii. 33. Luke x. 20.

EXPOSITION.

The doctrine of predestination is, indeed, a high mystery; one of the deep things of God, which our feeble intellects cannot fully comprehend. In our inquiries about it, we ought to repress a vain curiosity, and not attempt to be wise above what is written. But, since the doctrine is revealed by God in his word, it is a proper subject for sober investigation, and ought to be published from the pulpit and the

press. Calvin justly remarks, "That those things which the Lord hath laid up in secret, we may not search; those things which he hath brought openly abroad, we may not neglect; lest either on the one part we be condemned of vain curiosity, or on the other part, of unthankfulness." Were this doctrine either dangerous or useless, God would not have revealed it; and for men to attempt to suppress it, is to arraign the wisdom of God, as though he foresaw not the danger which they would arrogantly interpose to prevent. "Whosoever," adds Calvin, "laboureth to bring the doctrine of predestination into misliking, he openly saith evil of God; as though somewhat had unadvisedly slipped from him which is hurtful to the church."* This doctrine, however, ought to be handled with special judgment and prudence, avoiding human speculations, and adhering to what is plainly revealed in the Scriptures. When prudently discussed, it will neither lead to licentiousness nor to despair; but will eminently conduce to the knowledge, establishment, and comfort of Christians.

It ought ever to be remembered, that no man can know his election prior to his conversion. Wherefore, instead of prying into the secret purpose of God, he ought to attend to his revealed will, that by making sure his vocation, he may ascertain his election. The order and method in which this knowledge may be attained is pointed out by the apostle Peter, when he exhorts Christians to "give all diligence to make their calling and election sure." 2 Pet. i. 10. Their eternal election must remain a profound secret until it be discovered to them by their effectual calling in time; but when they have ascertained their calling, they may thence in. fallibly conclude that they were elected from eternity. Election, then, gives no discouragement to any man in reference to obeying the calls and embracing the offers of the gospel. The invitations of the gospel are not addressed to men as elect, but as sinners ready to perish; all are under the same obligation to comply with these invitations, and the encouragement from Christ is the same to all-"Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise cast out." And the doctrine of election must have a sanctifying and consoling influence on all who sincerely obey the gospel. It is calculated to inspire them with sentiments of reverence and gratitude to

* Calvin's Institutions, book iii., ch. 21, sec. 4.

wards God; to humble their souls in the dust before the eternal Sovereign; to excite them to diligence in the discharge of duty; to afford them strong consolation under the temptations and trials of life; and to animate them with a lively hope of eternal glory.

CHAPTER IV.

I.

OF CREATION.

SECTION I-It pleased God the Father, Son and Holy Ghost,' for the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom and goodness, in the beginning, to create, or make of nothing, the world, and all things therein, whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days, and all very good.3

1 Heb. i. 2. John i. 2, 3. Gen i. 2. Job 2 Rom. i. 20. Jer. x. 12. Ps. civ. 24; xxvi. 13; xxxiii. 4. xxxiii. 5, 6.

3 Gen. i. 1. to end. Heb. xi 3. Col. i. 16. Acts xvii. 24.

EXPOSITION.

By the word creation we are to understand the production and formation of all things. I use two words, because creation is two-fold, primary and secondary, or immediate and mediate. By the former is meant the production of something out of nothing; by the latter, the formation of things out of pre-existing matter, but matter naturally indisposed for such productions, and which never could by any power of second causes have been brought into such a form. This section teaches us:

1. That the world had a beginning. This will now be considered one of the most obvious truths that can be stated, but it is one that required to be confirmed by divine revelation. That the world existed from eternity was generally maintained by the ancient heathen philosophers. Some of them held, that not only the matter of which the world is framed existed from eternity, but that it subsisted in that beautiful form in which we behold it. Others admitted that

the heavens and the earth had a beginning in respect of their present form, but maintained the eternity of the matter of which they are composed. That the world had a beginning is the uniform doctrine of the Scriptures. Gen. i. 1; Ps. xc. 2. This is implied in the phrases, "before the foundation of the world," "before the world began." Eph. i. 4; 2 Tim. i. 9.

According to the generally received chronology, the Mosaic creation took place 4004 years before the birth of Christ. If, indeed, the accounts of the Egyptians, Hindoos, and Chinese were to be credited, we should believe that the universe has existed, in its present form, for many millions of years; but these accounts have been satisfactorily proved to be false. And as a strong presumption that the world has not yet existed 6000 years, it has been often remarked that the invention of arts, and the erection of the earliest empires, are of no great antiquity, and can be traced back to their origin.

2. That creation is the work of God. Often does God claim this work as one of the peculiar glories of his Deity, to the exclusion of all others. Isa. xliv. 24; xlv. 12. The work of creation, however, is common to all the three persons of the Trinity. It is ascribed to the Father, 1 Cor. viii. 6; to the Son, John i. 3; to the Holy Ghost, Gen. i. 2; Job xxvi. All the three persons are one God. We must not, therefore, suppose that in creation the Father is the principal agent, and the Son and the Holy Ghost inferior agents, or mere instruments. In all external works of Deity, all the persons of the Godhead equally concur.

13.

3. That creation extends to "the world, and all things therein, whether visible or invisible." This is expressly declared in many passages of Scripture: "God made the world, and all things therein." Acts xvii. 24. "By him were all things created that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible." Col. i. 16. This certainly includes angels. We have no reason to think that their creation preceded the period of the Mosaic creation; and they are generally supposed to have been created on the first day.

4. That the world, and all things therein, were created "in the space of six days." This, also, is the express language of Scripture: "For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is." Ex. xx. 11.

The modern discoveries of geologists have led them to assign an earlier origin to the materials of which our globe is composed than the period of the six days, commonly known by the name of the Mosaic creation; and various theories have been adopted in order to reconcile the geological and Mosaic records. Some have held that all the changes which have taken place in the materials of the earth, occurred either during the six days of the Mosaic creation, or since that period; but, it is urged, that the facts which geology establishes prove this view to be utterly untenable. Others have held that a day of creation was not a natural day, composed of twenty-four hours, but a period of an indefinite length. To this it has been objected, that the sacred historian, as if to guard against such a latitude of interpretation, distinctly and pointedly declares of all the days, that each of them had its "evening and morning;" thus, it should seem, expressly excluding any interpretation which does not imply a natural day. Others hold that the materials of our globe were in existence, and under the active operation of creative powers, for an indefinite period before the creation of man; and that the inspired record, while it gives us no information respecting the pre-existing condition of the earth, leaves ample room for a belief that it did pre-exist, if from any other source traces of this should be discovered by human research. The first verse of the 1st chapter of Genesis, in their opinion, merely asserts that the matter of which the universe is composed was produced out of nothing by the power of the Almighty, but leaves the time altogether indefinite. The subsequent verses of that chapter give an account of the successive process by which the Eternal, in the space of six days, reduced the pre-existing matter to its present form, and gave being to the plants and animals now in existence. This explanation, which leaves room for a long succession of geological events before the creation of the existing races, seems now to be the generally received mode of reconciling geological discoveries with the Mosaic account of the creation.*

5. That all things were created very good. Every thing was good; for it was agreeable to the model which the great Architect had formed in his infinite mind from everlasting;

*The geological opinions of M. Agassiz are consistent with this explanation. See also Candlish on Genesis i. 20, and Dr. Duncan's (of Ruthwell) Geological Lecture to Young Men. Glasgow, 1842.

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