house nor his man servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbour's." The plea by which this presumptuous interference with the order and arrangement of the ten commandments is justified is in fact this:-The ninth precept, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife," is the counterpart of the sixth, "Thou shalt not commit adultery;" and the tenth precept, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, nor his man servant," &c., is the counterpart of the seventh, "Thou shalt not steal;" the sins being in the one instance forbidden in deed, and in the other in desire,-hence the propriety of the division.

Now to this we object

Because it is an ingenious invention of the Romish church, as is very evident from the simple fact that on the table of stone, the words "thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife" FOLLOW the command "thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house," (see Exodus, xx. 17.) whereas in the Romish catechism the order is inverted. By what authority are the words, which Jehovah wrote with his own finger upon the second table of stone, hewn out of their place, and made to stand in an order different from that which he had assigned them? Do not the connexion and the very unity of the precept require that they should be left just as he placed them? The true reason of this violent defacing of the decalogue we have already stated. The second commandment is either entirely omitted or else mutilated in almost every catechism of the Romish church published throughout the world! Now as we must have ten commandments in the decalogue, the last precept is hewn into two, in order that the complement may be furnished, and that the fraudulent omission of the precept relative to " graven images," and the "likenesses of any thing, whether in heaven above or in the earth beneath, or in the waters under the earth," may be covered up, and thus the faithful be enabled without

conscientious scruple to bow down to all the idols, which the Babylonish woman sets up for them to worship.

This "dead fly" makes our apothecary's box of ointment stink again. Whilst we commend the practical duties, which are enforced in these sections, to our own observance and to the regard of our brethren of every persuasion, we must condemn the presumptuous attempt to amend the handiwork of Jehovah.

CHAPTER IX.

Treatise concerning Grace.

THIS treatise contains much that would very generally be considered as sound theology, not a little that involves vexed' questions, together with some theories that are peculiar to the church of Rome.

Grace is defined to be "a supernatural divine benefit, given gratuitously to an intellectual creature in order to eternal happiness." Grace thus defined is distinguished from natural endowments, such as, intellect, will, free agency, life, or being, feeling, &c.

It is distinct also from spiritual gifts, such as the gift of tongues, discerning of spirits, healing diseases, prophecy, &c.—all which may be possessed by an individual and he still remain unacceptable to God, as Paul teaches, 1 Cor. xiii. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not charity, I am become as a sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal," &c.

Grace is divided into external and internal. External grace is that which affects a man only outwardly, as the preaching of the Gospel, &c. Internal grace affects a man inwardly.

Internal grace is divided into grace conferred gratuitously, and grace which places its subject in a gracious or acceptable state before God; and this latter species of internal grace is divided into habitual and actual grace.

"Habitual grace is divided into primary, which makes the unrighteous righteous, and secondary, which is an increase of grace and makes the righteous more righteous.

"Actual grace is divided into, 1. operating and co-operating; 2. into preventing and subsequent; 3. into exciting and assisting; 4. into sufficient and efficacious; 5. into grace of the understanding, and grace of the will; 6. also into grace of the first state, or state of innocence, and into grace of the second state, or state of lapsed nature."

My readers would probably not wish to follow me through the elaborate treatises on these various subdivisions, and I shall therefore merely note a few of the most striking sections, after giving an outline of the general doctrine.

"Habitual grace is a supernatural gift imparted by God, which, permanently cleaving to the soul by way of habit, renders it formally acceptable to God; and by this a man is said to become a partaker of the Divine nature.'

"Actual grace is a certain divine, supernatural, transient assistance, exciting (us) to learn, will or do things conducing to salvation.

"Actual grace is absolutely necessary to the performance of every work conducing to salvation. This truth is opposed to Pelagius, who denied the necessity of grace, &c.

"It is proved by 2 Cor. iii. 5.- We are not sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves: but our sufficiency is of God.' And again, Philip. ii. 13.- It is God, who worketh in you both to will and to do;' and John, xv. 5., Christ says-Without me ye can do nothing.'

"It is proved by reason: supernatural order exceeds natural power; therefore for a work of supernatural order, powers exceeding natural strength are required, that is, proportionate, supernatural aid, or grace.

"Besides it is impossible for a human being to do a good natural work without the natural concurrence of God: therefore, a man cannot do a supernatural work without supernatural help, or actual grace; as no act may exceed the proportion of its active principle.

"What works are called salutary? (i. e. conducing to salvation.)

"Three kinds of works are to be noted here, viz., works deserving of eternal life, of which, hereafter; works only morally good, of which, in the following No., and salutary works.

"But those works are called salutary, which in some mode conduce to eternal happiness or justification; v. g., works of faith, of hope, and of charity, fasting, alms, &c., if they be ordained to a supernatural end; and these are things, which ought to proceed from actual grace, in order that they may be called salutary, &c.

"Whence observe, a sinner before habitual grace may on the whole possess actual graces, and thus be able v. g. to elicit acts of faith, of hope, of imperfect contrition, &c." (No. 4.)

We cannot lay too much stress upon the absolute necessity of the grace of God to qualify us for the performance of any action that shall be good in his sight. No man in a state of nature can be subject to the law of God, because the carnal mind is enmity against God, and this repugnance can be overcome only by grace, working in us effectually to will and to do the good pleasure of God. Grace effects this not by giving them new faculties but by rectifying those which we already possess. It changes the bias of the will, enlightens the understanding, quickens the conscience, and enlivens the affections, drawing them out after God and holiness. As for works which in any way conduce meritoriously to our acceptance, we do not believe that grace has anything to do with them.

"What works are called morally good?

"Ans. Those which are done according to the dictate of right reason through the natural powers only, with the general concurrence of God, without the aid of supernatural grace.

"These works are intermediate between such as conduce to salvation and sinful works: to say that they are such as conduce to salvation, is Pelagian; and to say that they are sinful, is Bajus' error;-of this kind are, to give alms from the natural affection of pity, to love parents and friends, to

restore that which belongs to another, &c., merely on account of the natural honesty and rectitude of reason. “Can a man do a good work without grace?

"1. It has been said in the preceding No. that without actual grace a man can not do a work conducing to his salvation.

"2. Man, even in this state of lapsed nature, may without grace do some works (which are) only morally good: the reason is, because man though he be injured through sin, is still not deprived of all natural good: besides, as these works are of a natural order, they do not exceed the powers of nature.

"3. This conclusion is contrary to Bajus, Jansenius, Quesnel, &c.

“4. Jansenius has followed Bajus, Bk. 3. concerning the state of lapsed nature; also Quesnel, whose 38th proposition, which was condemned, is this: Without the grace of him who makes free, the sinner is free only to commit evil.' “Obj. I. John, xv. 5., Christ says: Without me ye can do nothing; therefore, not even a work morally good with

out grace.

"Ans. I deny the inference: for the sense is, that without the grace of Christ, we can not do any work conducing to salvation for Christ is speaking of those works, through which we abide in him and bring forth fruit; that is, concerning meritorious works, not such as are only morally good.

"Other passages which are objected are understood generally, so that without Christ as God, that is, without the general concurrence of God, we can do nothing, not even works morally good," &c. (No. 5.)

The objections which follow are quotations from an œcumenical council and from Augustine: these we shall not notice.

A mind that is imbued with Scriptural truth will perceive the workings of the Mystery of iniquity in the doctrines stated in the above extracts. We are far removed from the Pelagian view, that works "only morally good" can conduce to salvation; and just as far do we pray ever to be kept from the Popish doctrine that any works are of themselves me