Agreeably to the proposed plan, we will first proceed to explain the particulars of the duty of REPENTANCE, as given forth from the Lord in the first part of our quotation: "Wash ye; make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil." Which divine precepts we will briefly illustrate in the order they lay; that order being, as in every other part of the sacred Scriptures, one of the inimitable characteristics which distinguish the word of God from every human composition.

Wash ye. Hereby is meant that it becomes us to be found using the means to become purified from our evils and falses. What these means are, we may determine from the element used to wash with-namely, water; which, in the spiritual sense of the holy Word, corresponds to truths, more especially those exhibited to our view in the literal sense of the Word: for here is the fountain opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse from sin and from uncleanness; here are the waters wherein whoever steps, after the angel has been down and troubled them, becomes clean and healed from every spiritual malady. Blessed be our Lord, in a spiritual point of view, Himself, whom the angel VOL. I.

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represents, continually thus operates, and all who possess faith from love unto him, from him continually experience its sanative virtue.

The Lord, in the gift of his holy Word, has put the means of purification into every man's hand; which if he does not use, his condemnation is of himself. Washing has particular allusion to the purification of our external man-to the putting away of outward evils which respect our words and works; this, man ought to do as of himself, that the act may be imputed unto him and become inscribed upon the book of his life, which will be opened in the other world, when he will be faithfully judged according to the things found written therein.

This first precept quoted, therefore, holds forth to us, the absolute necessity of putting the truths we know into practice; for this is not only the first step to reformation, but also whereby alone the Lord can flow forth from the centre of our souls, where he holds his more immediate seat, and animate, thus regenerate our whole frame from head to foot. But nothing can be done to the opening of heaven in the soul, except this duty of washing; the purification of our external man, is entered upon as of ourselves, which in the book of the Revelation is called, opening of the door to the Lord, Rev. iii. 20. Behold (says the Lord) I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with me.

essence.

Make you clean. After man has put away his outward evils, as sins against God, the next step he takes (provided he suffers himself to be led by the Lord's operations upon his heart, in the influence of his holy spirit, and upon his understanding, from the holy Word) is, to become cleansed of the false notions and ideas which appertained to his natural man, but which now cannot be entertained longer by him, because deprived of their life and their The numerous false ideas which appertain to the natural man, would be too much even for us to name, but the character and quality of them one and all, are to degrade the only God of heaven and earth, in the divine human person of Jehovah Jesus; and to lead those who embrace them to think lightly of evil, placing their chief dependance on faith alone. The cleansing herefrom can only be effected by using the means we have before noticed: To read the Word; to attend diligently the public worship of the Lord's house, where truth is faithfully dispensetl and opened to our view, more especially in its spiritual ground; as well as to have a special

regard to the ordinances which he has instituted, to be observed in his church in all ages: Baptism and the Holy Supper. The spiritual cleansing of the soul is not, nor can it be, an instantaneous work, and so we shall assuredly be convinced when we have a genuine sight of the depths of hell into which we have fallen, and the unclean state of our spiritual man.

Put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes. As the former declaration related to the cleansing of the understanding from false ideas and notions, more especially concerning divine and spiritual things, so this latter has evident allusion to the will; for the will in man's natural state, is the recipient vessel of evil,

To fulfil this divine precept, it is necessary to examine into our hearts, searching out the ends and intentions of our will in what we do. Man may purify his outward part from many motives far from genuine; for instance, he may abstain from evils for worldly and selfish reasons, as the loss of wealth, health, reputation and life and perhaps in our first setting out in religious ways, something of this sort was our chief inducement to enter into the road; for our ever merciful Lord leads us all, not only by our own fallacies, but also by our own sensualities, endeavoring if possible to bend us to himself. But when the understanding has become cleansed; when the genuine truths of heaven have been, in some measure at least, received, then the Lord leads on, to examine into the end and motive for which evils were put away, and to put away the evil of our doings; for if evil actions are not put away from good motives, our apparent good works are evil, because we are only whited walls and painted sepulchres, full of rottenness within, and dead men's bones.

We put away the evil of our doings from before the eyes of the Lord, when we consider, that evil in affection is the same, before the Omniscient and Omnipresent God, as evil in act; and that evils ought not to be done, because they are not only contrary to the love and light of heaven, but contrary to the mind of that pure Being whose eyes cannot behold iniquity or sin. Joseph thus put away evil from before the eyes of the Lord, when tempted by his mistress to commit the foul crime of adultery. How, says he, shall I do this great wickedness and sin against God? He does not in his reasoning with himself say, how shall I do this and dishonor my good name? Injure and become ungrateful to my master, who has exalted me to high dignity in his house? He docs

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not reason concerning the sad consequences which may follow with respect to himself. These things all appear beneath his elevated mind; his thoughts at once centre in his God, and he abstains from the evil from this motive, because it was sin against him. The manifestation of the love of his heart towards the Lord, was apparent by his fear to offend him; a fear which accompanies all true love.

Cease to do evil. Having once attained, by the strength of the Lord, the mastery over evil, we ought to continue therein to the end of our life; for whilst we are permitted to tarry here below, it is all the way through a state of probation: we are brought through this wilderness to try and prove the genuine nature of our love and faith. Better never begin to walk in religion's ways than at last to go back, returning like a dog to his vomit, and like a sow that is washed, to her wallowing in the mire.

It is needful that the Christian be ever on his watch-tower, for the enemies of his soul are always going about like roaring lions, sceking whom they may devour; that he continually watch and pray, that he enter, that is, fall not, into the temptation. The promises are, He that endureth to the end shall be saved; and be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. Infernals are endeavoring to prejudice our spiritual life, in all manner of forms their cunning and malice can devise; but if we steadily keep our eyes fixed on the Lord at all times, prefer the substantial things of an eternal state, to the fleeting things of time and sense, the Lord will give strength equal to the day; we shall not be ignorant of Satan's devices; we shall in our hearts and minds impute all evil to hell, whenever the risings thereof manifest themselves to our mind; thus as the Lord's sheep shall never perish, neither shall any be able to pluck us out of his hands: he will most surely guide us by his counsel, that afterwards his glory may receive us.

From these observations, on this part of the word of our Lord, it may evidently appear wherein the duty of repentance genuinely consists; that it is of a more interior nature than many suppose; or as explained by those ministers who preach up the delusive doctrine of salvation by faith alone. Nowithstanding what unskilful watchmen may declare, there is more required rightly to perform this duty, than professing or feeling a sorrow for sin; for this may be done by the vilest characters whilst under the dread of the pu nishment attendant. All of repentance arising from terror is of no avail, because done in a state of compulsion; hence we know, not

withstanding the profession of sorrow for their past lives, and the promise of amendment, which evil doers may make whilst the fear of punishment for their crimes hangs over their heads, let them be released, they are generally found to return to their old course of living; all their solemn vows made in their trouble, forgotten by them. Hence the danger of deferring the duty of repentance till we come to lay on a sick bed, for thereof can be little hope: Repentance, to become available, must be performed in a state of liberty, as to our spiritual man, no external fears of any kind operating upon our mind; a duty, therefore, which ought not to be neglected by us a moment, and when performed thus in a state of spiritual freedom, it is done as of ourselves, though not absolutely of ourselves, but of the Lord; and what is done as of ourselves, becomes of our inner man ; of our love, and of our life, hence abideth through time into eternity: whilst all things done under compulsion, pass off from us, as if we had never known them, when the restraint is taken off: as in the case of death-bed repentance; the repentance then performed, the sorrow then expressed for past transactions, is under the fear of death, and the dread of meeting the Judge of quick and dead, in that world where all the secrets of the heart are exposed; but when the person has actually psssed through death, the fear of death necessarily subsides, the loves of the life then manifest themselves whence the affections of his will proceeded. And in those loves he remains for ever; the loves of the life within, make the heaven or hell without.

To become renewed, or regenerated, with respect to the loves of our life, a mere sorrowing for sin, which is the most that can take place on a death-bed, is in no wise sufficient; the evils of our natural man must actually be put away whilst we enjoy liberty of spirit. May we, therefore, my dear readers, determine, humbly supplicating the divine aid, to make the word of counsel and command our daily practice, remembering, that the Lord now speaks unto us, from the love and compassion of his heart towards our feeble frame. Wash ye, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes, cease to do evil.

Having thus entered upon, and by divine assistance completed. the work of REPENTANCE, the next step which we are required to take is to begin that of CONVERSION; or, having ceased to do evil, we must now learn to do well. But this important subject will be deferred till our next number.

(To be continued.)