fervent heat; and yet after that dreadful for your iniquities, and for your abominations

scene is past, the earth itself shall be renewed, and become the habitation of righteousness; I can hardly have any doubts, but all the rational part of the creation, "shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the children of God." See Rom. viii. 19, 20, 21, 22.

Not for your sakes do I this, saith Adonia JEHOVAH, be it known unto you; be ashamed and confounded, O house of Israel."-Ezek. xxxvi. 31, 32.

But the lake of fire shall go out, when all the purposes for which it shall be kindled are accomplished; and if so, then it follows of course, that intelligences shall be no longer tormented therein.

Friend. But when God says; that a fire shall not be quenched, does it not necessarily imply, that it shall never cease burning?

Thus, if the lake of fire, or second death itself, shall be destroyed, shall cease, and be no more; there is an end to tormenting pain; though, perhaps, such inward reflections, shall continue for some time longer, (if not to eternity) which, though they shall tend exceedingly to increase the love of God in the souls thus delivered, shall fill them with shame similar, or perhaps more pungent than we feel here on earth, when we are melted under a deep sense of our manifold transgressions, and of the pardoning love of God at the“The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; same time. This seems to me to be the meaning of such passages as these:

Minister. By no means; for we read in several places of Scripture of fires that have ceased, ages ago, that were spoken of in as strong terms as are used by Christ, respecting the fire of hell.

As for instance: in Lev. vi. 13, we read,

it shall never go out." This is a much stronger expression than if it had been said, "It "O my God, make them like a wheel; as shall not be quenched;" for it is said, “It the stubble before the wind. As the fire burn- shall never go out." But surely, it must be eth the wood, and as the flame setteth the used with some limitation; for we know that mountains on fire; so persecute them with it hath ceased ages ago. And we read, that thy tempest, and make them afraid with thy Daniel prophesied of the Messiah, that he storm. Fill their faces with shame, that they should "cause the sacrifice and oblation to may seek thy name, O JEHOVAH. Let them cease." Dan. ix. 27; but it would certainly be confounded and troubled for ever; yea, let have been a weak argument against Daniel's them be put to shame, and perish: that-(our prophecy, that as Moses had said, the fire translators have added the word men, but the should never go out upon the altar, therefore sense determines that the addition should be) the Messiah could never cause the sacrifice --they may know that thou whose name and oblation to cease; but it would be just as alone is JEHOVAH, art the Most High over all good an argument against Daniel's prophecy, the earth." Psal. lxxxiii. 13, 18. as the words of Christ are against Isaiah's : "The wise shall inherit glory, but shame" For I will not contend forever, neither will shall be the promotion of fools." Prov. iii. 35. "They shall be greatly ashamed, for they shall not prosper; their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten." Jer. xx. 11, xxxiii. 40.

"They shall be ashamed, and also confounded, all of them; they shall go to confusion together, that are makers of idols." Isa. xlv. 16. "And all that are incensed against him, (JEHOVAH) shall be ashamed."-verse 24.

For thus saith the Adonia JEHOVAH; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant. Nevertheless, I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. Then thou shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger (viz., Samaria and Sodom ;)-and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by the Covenant. And I will establish my covenant with thee, and thou shalt know that I am JEHOVAH: That thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more, because of thy shame, when I am pacified towards thee, for all that thou hast done, saith Adonia JEHOVAH." Ezek. xvi. 59, 63.

"Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good,

I be always wroth; for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made. I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness, and shall not return. That unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.-Surely shall say, in JEHOVAH have I righteousness and strength; to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed." Isaiah lvii. 16, xlv. 23, 24.

In Jer. xvii. 27, we read: "But if you will not hearken unto me, &c., then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched." See also chap. iv. 4, xxi. 12, Ámos v. 6, 2 Kings xxii. 17.

Similar threatenings we find positively pronounced by Ezekiel, at the command of God. Moreover the word of JEHOVAH came unto me saying, Son of man, set thy face towards the south, and drop thy words towards the south, and prophesy against the forest of the south field, and say to the forest of the south, hear the word of JEHOVAH; thus saith Adonia JɛHOVAH, behold I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree; the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north, shall be burnt therein; and all flesh shall see that I JEHOVAH have kindled it; it shall not be quenched." Ezek. xx. 42, 46, 47,

Now these threatenings were surely execated; for the people did not hearken to God, he did certainly kindle a fire, and it burnt, and was not quenched, but consumed Jerusalem and all her palaces; and the beautiful forests that were so much esteemed, shared the same fate. But what person will argue, that the whole city and country must be now in fames; and must have been consuming, from the days of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, because of these expressions, “The flaming flames shall not be quenched," &c., since we know that Jerusalem, and the country round about, have been since inhabited, and will be again in a more glorious manner than ever?

nest, and lay and hatch, and gather under her shadow; there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with his mate.-Seek ye out of the book of JEHOVAH, and read; no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate; for my mouth it hath commanded, and his Spirit it hath gathered them. And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it unto them by line; they shall possess it forever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein." Isaiah xxxiv. 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17.

Now, in this passage, there are such things spoken of as are impossible to be fulfilled at once, without as great a miracle as was wrought for the three children in the furnace ; and which there is no reason to expect will be wrought in favour of cormorants, bitterns, owls, ravens, dragons, satyrs, wild beasts, thorns, nettles and brambles. In the 10th verse we read of a period called for ever; wherein this land is to be on fire and is not to

Neither will it help the matter to say, that we must understand the fire figuratively, for the angel of God, &c., for he declares by Zechariah, after the seventy years captivity, that he was "returned to Jerusalem with mercies." See Zach. i. 16. And though the present desolation of that land is compared to the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Ad-be quenched, night nor day: and the smoke mah and Zeboim. Deut. xxix. 23, 28. And Ezekiel not only speaks of it as desolate and waste, but as having been always so; though we know that it was formerly filled with inhabitants. (See Ezek. xxxvi. 34, 35, xxxviii. 8) Yet all the Prophets speak of a time to come, when it shall be much more flourishing than it hath ever been: and Isaiah says, • Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee; I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations. Thou shalt no more be termed forsaken; neither shall thy land be termed desolate; but thou shalt be called Hephzibah (my delight is in her) and thy land Balah (married) for JEHOVAH delighteth in hee, and thy land shall be married." Isaiah K. 15, lxii. 4.

Thus we may see, by these and many other passages that predictions apparently directly contrary the one to the other, may all be fulfilled upon the same land, people and persons, only allowing a proper time to each, without which we can never make sense of many prophesies.

Isaiah, speaking of the land of Bozrah, says, "And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch and the dust thereof into brimstone; and the land thereof shall become burning pitch. It shall not be quenched, night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever; from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it, for ever and ever. But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it;" (birds that cannot live in fire, pitch, and brimstone, any better than men.) "And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof; and it shall be an habitation for dragons and a court for owls. The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest.—There shall the great owl make her

of it is to ascend up for ever: but in the 17th verse it is said, that the before mentioned birds and beasts shall possess it for ever, even from generation to generation shall they dwell therein. But one of these periods must end before the other can begin; the fire must cease to burn, and the smoke to ascend, before beasts can take up their constant dwelling there, and birds can lay and hatch, and gather their young ones under their shadow, and enjoy the society of their mates. And thus the whole prophecy may be fulfilled; not in the same, but in different periods, and thus also, may all the threatenings and all the promises in the sacred book be accomplished; not at once, but each in their season.

It appears evident that our Lord, by alluding to a fire that shall burn on earth, and to worms that shall devour the flesh of the slain, could not mean to prove the torments of men to be absolutely endless; at least, the expressions of the worm that dieth not, and the fire that is not quenched, do not necessarily imply it; which has been sufficiently proved, by the passages where the same or similar expressions are used, where yet the subject cannot intend endless duration; and this is all that can be necessary to prove at present.

As to the expression of being salted with fire, as every sacrifice was salted with salt; I am not so clear, what might have been our Saviour's intent in this expression; but I think, in the first place, he intended to teach us, that they should not be annihilated by the fire, but preserved therein, to be tormented day and night, in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb, during the ages of ages. I would also propose, whether our Lord did not mean to intimate, that even the fire itself shall be of use under his direction, to humble, subdue, and penetrate the stubborn and disobedient rebels that shall be cast into it. Fire, as well as salt, is a great purifier; and preserves and cleanses those things which are able to endure it; and is the great agent by which all metals are separated

sacrifice for sin remaineth; judgment and fiery indignation are his certain portion, he is an adversary, and must be devoured; a sorer punishment than death without mercy awaits him, of which he is worthy, for that he hath trodden under foot the Son of God, the only Saviour, and hath counted the precious blood, of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, and which alone is able to cleanse from sin, an unholy thing; and hath done despite to the Spirit of grace, which is alone able to renew the heart, and therefore the case of such must be desperate; for if such an one like Esau, should wish to repent and gain what he had lost, it could not be, for he would find no place for repentance, though he might seek it carefully with tears; for having committed the sin unto death, for which no prayer is to be made, no intercession offered up, he is bound over to the second death, the lake of fire and brimstone, and must bear the punishment of his sins for ever and ever!!! What say you to this?

Minister. As when Nebuchadnezzar told Daniel his dream, he was astonished for one hour at the greatness of the punishment which he saw would inevitably come upon the King: much more must all those be, who read and consider these dreadful threatenings which must surely come upon all those who have sinned in the manner described! I shall make a few observations upon these most terrible passages of Scripture; partly to prevent feeble minds from falling into dispair, that may see them collected into one striking view; partly to cure proud minds of presumption; and partly to shew that the doctrine of the Restoration may be defended, notwithstanding. 1. We are sure that the Scribes and Pharisees of our Saviour's time, who blasphemously ascribed his miracles to the power of the devil, did, in the most direct and undeniable manner, commit that sin, and some are doubtful whether it can be committed by any in these days.

that absolutely subjects the person guilty of it to the second death; yet many other sins are threatened with the same punishment conditionally, but they may be forgiven, and not punished at all; but this one must as certainly be punished with the second death, as murder or any other crime, was by the law of Moses punished with the death of the body without mercy or forgiveness. Forgery is the unpardonable sin of England: people frequently suffer death for other crimes than this; but other offences are sometimes forgiven, but this never; it is always punished with death. This circumstance may illustrate my meaning. The sin against the Holy Ghost is an offence of that kind, that, either owing to its uncommon malignity (as is most likely) or some other cause, exposes the guilty persons to the age of judgment, from which he cannot escape by repentance, pardon, and sprinkling of the blood of Christ as other sinners may neither can he be at present born of the Spirit, to which he hath done despite; nor can he be reclaimed by any possible means, in this age, or in the age that is to succeed this, but is inevitably bound over to suffer the inconceivable torments of the second death, or lake of fire and brimstone after the day of judgment.

5. There is no kind of dispute between us respecting the certainty of the punishment of such; in this we both agree: He that sinneth against the Holy Ghost, is in danger of eternal damnation, or judgment, or the second death. The question is, shall there ever come a time when the second death, or lake of fire shall no more exist? If this can be proved, the conclusion will be evident, viz.: That no one shall remain under the power thereof to all eternity: Upon this, and this alone, depends the solution of this awful, interesting, and most important question; and I consider all other answers as mere quibbles, compared with this. And if it cannot be proved that a time will come when all that bears the name of death 2. It is generally aknowledged that the shall be destroyed, those who commit the sin Hebrews were in danger of committing that unto death, must at least be allowed to stand sin, by openly and wilfully apostatizing from as exceptions to the general rule; and I am Christianity, and publicly renouncing Christ apt to think, the rule itself will be overthrown. and his salvation, and blaspheming against I shall therefore labour this point a little; and the Holy Ghost after having been partakers of its extraordinary gifts.

if I should be so happy as to prove to your satisfaction the total destruction of death, it will answer many other objections as well as this. My only refuge is scripture; if this fails me, I shall not presume to pursue the subject farther.

3. It cannot be committed by ignorant persens, nor without a considerable degree of malice propense; light in the understanding, and malice in the heart, are necessary ingredients of this dreadful crime; and it appears Isa. xxv. 8. "He will swallow up Death to me, it must be committed openly, and that in victory; and Adonai JEHOVAH will wipe it cannot be committed in thought only. away tears from off all faces." Hos. xiii. 14. 4. Under the Levitical dispensation there I will ransom them from the power of the were many unpardonable sins-crimes that grave; I will redeem them from death. O could not be overlooked, and for which no death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, (or atonement could be made, and which were hell) I will be thy destruction. Repentence punished with death, without mercy; other shall be hid from mine eyes." 1 Cor. xv. 26. crimes, unless sacrifice were offered, and re- "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is pentance took place, subjected the parties to Death"-or rather, as the words may more death also: but under the gospel, there is but properly be arranged, "Death," the last enemy, one crime that is properly unpardonable, and shall be destroyed." The second death is in