In Baltimore, Hon. JOHN SCOTT, Chief Justice of the Court of Oyer and Terminer for Baltimore County. bears record to his gallantry, science, genius and humanity. In Halifax, 13th June, of the wounds received in the action with the Shannon, AUGUSTUS C. LUDLow, first Lieut. of the Chesapeake frigate, aged 21. On board the Chesapeake, during the action with the Shannon, WILLIAM A. WHITE, aged 26, Sailing Master-a native of Rutland, (Ms.) Also, in the same action, JAMES BROOME, 1st Lieutenant of Marines, three midshipmen, and fortythree officers and seamen beside those above named. At Richmond, (Vir.) Gen JAMES Wood, an officer of the revolutionecutive Council in that State. In Augusta, (Maine,) on the 9th ult. Mr. JOHN GILLEY, at the ad-ary war, and a member of the exvanced age of 124 years! On board the United States frigate Chesapeake, the 6th of June last, JAMES LAWRENCE, Esq. Captain of that frigate, aged about 30; leaving an amiable and bereaved widow, and three infant children to the protection of Heaven, and the gratitude of his Country.Every page of our Naval annals At Geneva, (N. Y.) the Rev. JEDIDIAH CHAPMAN, aged 72, in the fifty-second year of his ministry.At Wethersfield, July 23d, Rev. JOSHUA BELDEN, aged 89.-Some Memoirs of this venerable father in the Church will appear in our next number. 1813. Donations to the Missionary Society of Connecticut. July 12. From Rev. Nathan B. Derrow, collected in New $ 400 $ 81 do. do. $781 The Doctrine of Election. T HIS world plainly appears to be the workmanship of a perfectly wise, and powerful, and benevolent being. Such a being could not make such a world as this, without having some ultimate end in view; and that ultimate end must endear the world to him. God must set more by the whole world, than any of its inhabitants set by a part of it. God feels infinitely more interested in the world than the farmer does in his farm, or the mariner in his ship, or the master in his servants, or the parent in his children, or the prince in his subjects. God values the world in exact proportion to the ultimate end, which he has to answer by it. And he must have a vastly more important end to answer by all the world, through all its periods of existence than any created being can have to answer by any created object. Hence his heart must be engaged to attain his ultimate end in the creation VOL. VI. No. 9. [No. 9. of the world. But in order to attain any end, means are necessary. end in creation without the proper and necessary means to attain it. If, therefore, God had an ultimate end in the creation of the world, he must have ordained all events from eternity. We have precisely the same evidence of God's foreordaining all things, as we have of his making all things. If he made the world, he must have had an ultimate end in making it; that ultimate end must endear the world to him, and that endearment must have led him to ordain all events, necessary to obtain his ultimate end. We come to the knowledge of the divine decrees in general in the same way in which we come to the knowledge of the being and perfections of God. The light of nature, which teaches us that a wise, and powerful, and benevolent being made us, equally teaches us that he determined before the foundation of the world what he would do with us, and Rr God cannot attain his how he would dispose of us, so as to answer the ultimate end for which he brought us into being. But though the light of nature teaches us that God has foreordained whatsoever comes to pass, yet it does not teach us what he has ordained, until it does come to pass. Whatever God does, we may know that he intended to do; and whatever his creatures do, we may know that he intended they should do. So far the light of nature unfolds the divine counsels, and no further. It leaves all men in the dark, with respect to the doctrine of personal election to eternal life. It is out of the power of the heathens to determine whether God will save any, or all mankind. And it is equalJy out of the power of all other men to determine this point by reasoning upon the character, perfections and works of God.As no created beings can comprehend the wisdom, and power, and benevolence of the Deity; so they cannot possibly by any mode of reasoning, discover the purposes which he has formed. And from this it clearly follows, that there is no other way of knowing whether God has ordained only a part of mankind to eternal life, than by the medium of divine revelation. If God has formed his purposes respecting the eternal state of mankind, he is certainly able to reveal his purposes. And if he has revealed his purposes in his word, there we may certainly know what they are. Now there is no doctrine more clearly revealed in the Bible, than the doctrine of personal election to cternal life. God has expressly declared, that he has ordained a part, and only a part of mankind to future and eternal happiness. I will recite a few plain passages to this import. Christ says, " Many are called, but few are chosen."In the thirteenth of the Acts, it is written, "As many as were ordained to eternal life believed." Again it is written, "The election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded." And the apostle Peter says, "This is contained in Scripture; behold, I lay in Zion, a chief corner stone, elect, precious; and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you, therefore, who believe, he is precious: but unto them, who be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them that stumble at the word, being disobedient: where unto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people: that ye should show forth the praises of him, whocalled you out of darkness into his marvellous light." In each of these passages, the elect are set in direct contrast with the non-elect,and are represented as ordained to eternal life, in distinction from those who are appointed to eternal destruction. Thus God has told us, in the most plain and unequivocal manner, that he has ordained a part of mankind to eternal life.And this is the way, and the only way, by which we know, that the doctrine of personal election is certainly true. But it may be asked, even by those who adunit that the doc trine is true, Why God has ordained only a part of mankind to eternal life? The most easy and certain way of coming to the proper answer to this question, is to mention some things which could not be the reasons of God's ordaining only a part of mankind to eternal life. And it must be granted by all, that it was not owing to want of wisdom. God was perfectly wise from eternity. He knew himself; and he knew all things possible. He knew how many worlds it was best to make. He knew how many creatures it was best to create. He knew how many of mankind it was best to bring into existence.And he knew all the relations, connections and circumstances, that would attend them. And when their nature, number and circumstances were seen, he knew whether it was best, that the whole, or a part of them should be for ever happy. He could not, therefore, ordain a part rather than the whole of mankind to eternal life, for want of wisdom. It must be granted by all, that it was not owing to a want of benevolence that God elected only a part of the human race to salvation. The same benevolence which prompted him to bring them into existence, and to give his Son to die for them was great enough to save the whole. It is not conceivable that the kind Parent of the universe should be wanting in affection to his rational offspring. God was love from eternity. His affection towards mankind was infinitely strong. He viewed them in all their importance, through every period of their eternal existence, and valued their happiness according to its worth. He had no partial feelings towards the elect, more than towards the non-elect. He had as much benevolence towards the non-elect, as towards the elect. He did not, therefore, choose a particular part of mankind to salvation for want of love to the whole, nor because he was partially affected towards those when he set apart for himself. It must be granted by all, that it was not owing to want of power, that God determined to save only a part of mankind... It was as easy, or to human view much easier to have formed all the human race holy, and preserved them so for ever, than to suffer them to become sinners, and then to restore a part to holiness and happiness, through the death of Christ and the influences of the Holy Spirit.Yea, after they had all become sinners, it was easy to omnipotence to sanctify and save the whole as a part. For by saving only a part, God has to govern and restrain the rest, who are perfectly opposed to every step he takes to save the elect. Besides he has the hearts of all. men in his hand and can turn them withersoever he pleases, with infinite ease. Want of power, therefore was no reason why he did not ordain all to eternal life. In must be granted by all, that want of worthiness in men, was not the reason of his choosing some and rejecting others. He saw them all equally dead in trespasses and sins, and equally opposed to all good. He saw the elect as unworthy of eternal life as the non-elect. He did not choose the elect, because they were holy, but he chose | ish in their sins for ever. But them that they might be holy. Indeed, there was nothing in either the elect, or non-elect themselves, which was the ground or reason of his choosing the former, and rejecting the latter. For aught that appears to the contrary, the elect and the nonelect were perfectly equal in themselves considered. Both were capable of eternal happiness; both were capable of eternal misery; both were unworthy of eternal happiness; and both were deserving of eternal misery. The plain and important question now recurs, Why did God ordain only a part of mankind to eternal life? And it appears from what has been said, that there is but one plain and sufficient answer to be given to this question. The answer is this, the good of the universe requires God to ordain only a part of mankind to eternal life. An infinitely wise and benevolent being was under infinite obligations to promote the highest good of the universe; and to ordain all things in the best manner to reach this end. As God clearly saw from eternity what would promote the highest good of the universe, so he was perfectly disposed to promote this great and glorious design. And as he saw that this design could not be answered without giving up the eternal happiness of some of mankind; so he ordained that a part and not the whole of mankind should be saved. He prefered the good of the universe to the good of individuals. This was a sufficient reason, why he should choose some of mankind to eternal life, and leave others to per. here, perhaps, some may be ready to ask, what is meant by the good of the universe? The universe consists of God and his creatures collectively considered. And the good of these collectively considered, is of more importance, than the private, personal good of a few, or even of many individual creatures.But some may still ask, how is it possible to conceive, that the highest good of the universe should be promoted by God's ordaining part of mankind to eternal life, and leaving the rest to an eternal state of sin and misery? The highest good of the universe consists in the highest degree of holiness and happiness; and it is easy to see, that both these may be promoted by God's saving some and destroying others of the human race. For, 1. Ry saving only a part of mankind, he can give the highest display of his moral perfections; and especially of his justice and grace. This the apostle suggests as the very reason why God saves some and destroys others. "What if God willing to show his wrath and make his power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath, fitted to destruction: and that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory?" He gives the same reason for God's electing a part and not the whole of mankind, in his epistle to the Ephesians. "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestina |