BIBLE EXAMINER. NO IMMORTALITY, NOR ENDLESS LIFE, EXCEPT THROUGH JESUS CHRIST ALONE. VOL. VI. PHILADELPHIA, SEPTEMBER, 1861. ' NO. 9- GEORGE STORRS, Editor and Publisher. PUBLISHED MONTHLY, At 68 North Eighth Street, between Ardvand Cherry, PHILADELPHIA, Pa. TERMS.—Single copy, for one year, $1; six copies, $6; thirteen copies, $10; always in advance. ©HATTKI AM® B Y TH0MA8 READ, NEW YORK. [Continued from page 110.] Tho prophecy concerning Christ ifi the 16th psalm requires a thorough exposition. Verse 8: “I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand. 1 shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rqjoiceth. My flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in sheol, (the state of death,) neither wilt thou suffer thy Holy One to see corruption. Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence there is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.” Here is Peter’s comment translated from Griesbach: Acts 2: 22, “Men of Israel hear these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man from God, marked out among you by mighty works, and wonders, and signs, which God worked through him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know; him, being delivered up by the fixed counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands nailed up and slain. And God hath raised him up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it. For David saith of him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face; for he is on my right hand, that 1 may not be moved; therefore my heart rejoiced, and my tongue was glad, and moreover, my flesh will dwell in hope; because thou unit not leave my soul in hell, nor suffer thy Holy One to see corrup­tion. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou wilt make me full of joy with thy countenance. Men and brethren, let me speak with freedom to you of the patriarch David, for he is both dead and bu­rned, and his tomb is with us unto this day. There­fore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn to him with an oath, that of the fruit of his loins there should one sit upon his throne, he by fore­sight spake of the resurrection of Christ, that he was not left in hell, nor did his flesh see corruption. This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we are all wit­nesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he hath poured out the same, which ye see and hear. For David is not gone up to heaven; but he himself saith, The Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou on my right hand, until 1 make thine enemies a footstool for thy feet. There­fore let all the house of Israel assuredly know, that God hath made this Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.” Now attend to Paul’s commentary from Griesbach: Acts 13: 26, “Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whoever among you fear God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. ' For they that dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, not know­ing him, and condemning him, have fulfilled the voices of the prophets, which are read every sabbath. And finding no cause of death, they desired Pilate that he should be slain. And when they had ful­filled all that was written of him, they took Am down from the tree, and laid him in a tomb. But God raised him from.the dead. And he was seen many days by those ithat came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses unto the peo­ple. And we declare unto you good tidings, the pro­mise which was made to the fathers; that God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in raising up Jesus; as it is also written in the .first psalm: Thou art my son; this day have I begotten thee. And that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, he thus said, I will give unto you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou wilt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had in his own generation served the will of God, rested, and was laid with his fathers, and saw cor­ruption. But he whom God raised saw no corrup­tion. Be it known unto you, therefore, men and brethren, that through him is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins, and by him every one that be- lieveth is justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. Beware therefore lest that come upon you, whioh is spoken of in the prophets; Behold, ye despisers, and won­der, and hide yourselves; for I work a work in your days^a work which ye will not believe, though one explain it untp you.” Before remarking upon these important scrip­tures, we refer our readers to the definition of the Hebrew word sheol, translated into Greek by the word hades, which words mean primarily the grave, but generally the state of death. We first cull out those two important lines that are so often repeated: “For thou wilt not leave my soul in sheol, neither wilt thou suffer thy Holy One to see corruption.” This is one of those beautiful parallelisms that so frequently occur in the holy scriptures, the last line being a perfect echo of the sentiments of the former, and both lines expressing the same thing in different language. To exhibit the more plainly the simi­larity of meaning in two parts, Dr. Eadie, jn his Biblical Cyclopedia, translates thus: “For thou wilt not abandon me to sheol, “Nor permit thy Holy One to see corruption.” The words “my soul” are merely an emphatic mode to express myself, and each line most clearly represents the entire cessation of the life of Christ. The first line, “For theu wilt not leave my soul in hell,” Peter explains as referring to the resurrection' of Christ, that “he was not left in hell.” This is the true translation and is justified by Dr. Clark. If Christ had not been raised from death, his soul would have been left in the grave, in a state of death; yea, his soul would have seen corruption. As both these lines express exactly the same thing; to have left the soul of Christ in the grave was to suffer it to eee corruption; and to suffer the Holy One, the iden­tical Christ, to see corruption, was to leave the soul of Christ in the grave, in the state of death. A similar form of expression occurs in Psalm 30: 3, “O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave; thou hast kept me alive, that 1 should not go down to the pit.” And, “Let my soul die the death of the righteous.” “Let my soul die with the Philis­tines.” And in more than one hundred other places, as a concordance will show. “Thou wilt show to me the path of life.” The way to everlasting life is by a resurrection with an incor­ruptible body; therefore he says, God will not suffer his Holy One to see corruption; and by rising from the dead with an incorruptible body, Christ, “who has destroyed death, and hath illustrated life and incorruptibility.” 2 Tim. 1: 10. Paul’s remark, Acts 13: 34, “Now no more to return to corruption,” is equal to saying that Christ was mortal till his re­surrection, but now he has an immortal body. The ^careful and candid reader will readily per­ceive that the unity of person, both of David and of Christ, is consistently maintained by all the three speakers. That David, his soul, and his body, are one person; and that Christ, his soul, his body, and the Holy One, constitute but one person, and all these singly represent the Christ. The living and the dead body, and the living and the dead soul, are equally liable to corruption, and the pronouns de­noting identity are applied promiscuously and inter­changeably to all. If the soul of Christ had been left in sheol, Christ himself would have been left there; and there would be no living Christ, nor liv­ing soul of Christ in existence. His soul was not left in hell; he was not left in hell; the holy One saw no corruption; he saw no corruption. There is no difference in the meaning of these four expressions. “David has not ascended into the heavens.” Why? Because David is in the tomb corrupted. Jesus was “both dead and buried;” but as he has not seen cor­ruption, he has risen. Jesus is alive. Why? Be­cause he has “shown himself alive by many infalli­ble proofs” to many witnesses. Necessary infer­ence.—If Jesus had not shown himself in a visible and tangible manner, there would have been no proof that Jesus, or the soul of Jesus was alive. Because *‘David himself saw corruption,” he cannot have *‘ascended into the heavens.” David is therefore yet in the tomb; and if dust and corruption are con­scious, so may David be; but not without. But we will more closely follow the arguments of both the Apostles. They assert that David could not have spoken these words of himself, for he was both dead and buried, and therefore the soul of Da­vid, or David himself, had seen corruption, of the truth of which fa$t, the men of Israel might easily be convinced by examining the “tomb of the kings,” where they would find David in a state of corruption; and hence neither David, nor the soul of David, which they regarded as one, could by any possibility have “ascended into the heavens,” because he was dead in the tomb. It is evident therefore that David spake not these words of himself; but of some other person. And as God had sworn that he would raise up Christ to sit upon his (David’s) throne, which was “to endure to all generations;” and as Christ must be incorruptible to sit upon an everlasting throne, and as Christ must have a mortal and corruptible nature to be subject to death for our sins, therefore while in this nature, he could not inherit his ever­lasting throne, for these reasons David must have spoken these words of the “resurrection of Christ;” “that his soul was not left in hell, nor did he see corruption.” And we testify that God hath raised Christ from the dead, “now no more to return to corruption;” for his corruptible nature has put on incorruption. We moreover testify that God has fulfilled the promise made unto the fathers, ‘in raising up Jesus,’ not yet indeed to sit upon the throne of his Father David, which is now thrown down; but he is exalted to his Father’s throne until his enemies, that “would not that he should reig$. over them,” shall be made his footstool. For of the last incumbent of David’s throne, Ezekiel says, 21: 25, “Thou profane, wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end, thus saith the Lord God, Remove the diadem, and take off the crown; this shall not be the same; exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. I will overturn, overturn, overturn it; and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.” When Christ comes again, he will reign upon his own throne, the throne of his father David, for ever and ever. “To him that overcometh will I give to set with me on my throne, even as 1 also overcame, and am (now) setd own with my Father in his throne.” Rev. 3: 21. And we furthermore declare that David prophe­sied of the resurrection of Christ in these words: “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.” While Christ was in the tomb, God had no living Son, no ‘living Christ, in existence. But this day, the day of his resurrection, God begat him from the dead and declared him to be the Son of God with power. Rom. 1: 4. And he has now become the first horn, with an incorruptible body, “of many brethren.” Both the apostles have taken especial pains to convince us of certain facts. 1. That David, soul and body, is truly dead; but they refer to this as a clearly demonstrated fact, not merely to convince us of this, which, in these days, there was none to dis­pute; but to convince us that David spake of Christ. 2. That God had fulfilled these prophesies in raising up Christ. These were the facts that caused the conversion of “about three thousand souls.” If David, or the soul of David, was alive and con­scious; or if Christ, or the soul of Christ was alive and conscious, while his body remained in the tomb; then the arguments of the apostles are completely overturned. Their argument is, as David is not yet raised, he remains in the tomb, and therefore could not have ascended into heaven; but as Christ has been raised, the prophecy has been fulfilled that spake of his exaltation to the right hand of his Fa­ther. There would have been an entire end of the very being of Christ, if he were not raised, and there will be an entire end of David; yea, he has utterly perished, if he is not raised again from the dead. The apostles argue that if there should be no resur­rection, there would be no future life after death, which is the doctrine of these pages. And this same argument Paul uses with the Corin­thians, in his reasoning upon the death and resur­rection of Christ. We give the best translation of his reasoning we can find, which the reader can compare with the King’s translation, or with the original. 1 Cor. 15: 1. 1 Cor. 15. (1.) I publish again the joyful news which I once proclaimed among you, my Christian brethren, which you then received with transport, and in the firm belief of which you now continue. (2.) By your reception of which you are put into a state of salvation, if you are tenacious of the ani­mating doctrine I delivered to you—unless, indeed, as some would insinuate, your belief of these truths mentioned in the Bible—a day when all are to ap­pear for trial. It surely is not in harmony with the ordinary perceptions of what is wise and just, first to remove men to heaven and afterwards determine by public judgment if they ought to have been there; and first to send men to perdition and afterward sit in judgment to determine if they ought to have been consigned to that region. There must be trial first and then reward or punishment: the Bible speaks of the trial—the universal judgment-day, however, as still future. “God hath appointed a day, in which he will judge the would in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained,” &c. Acts 17: 31. '“We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ: that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. 2 Cor. 5: 10. From Heb. 9: 27, we learn that the judgment is after death. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” but, at what period it takes place poste­rior to death, whether immediately or at some time after dissolution, the passage does not inform us. On this point we are, however, fully instructed in 2 Tim. 4: 1, “I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead, at his appearing and his kingdom.” Consider, also, Rev. 20: 12, 13. V. Two passages in the Revelations have some­times been employed to support the popular notion regarding the consciousness of the dead: they are these—1st, Chap. 6: 9, 11, “And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God,” &c.; “And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, 0 Lord,” &c.; “And white robes were given unto everyone of them,” &c.; 2d, chap. 20: 4, “And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus * * * and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” 1. The reader will be kind enough to remark, that these two passages are drawn from one of the most highly figurative books in the Bible: a book of such a nature that it would be contrary to all the rules of sound interpretation were one to attempt to establish any doctrine or article of faith, like the common opinion about the state of the dead, by quotations from its pages; and, more especially, to establish a doctrine which, like the common notion referred to, is apparently denied in other and plainer portions of the divine word, as has already been shown in this treatise. 2. The phrase “the souls of them,” in both pas­sages is simply a Hebrew idiom expressing the men themselves, one common through the whole scrip­tures, and frequently illustrated in this work. For a moment suppose the three words “the souls of” removed from both passages, and the idea of John is left as perfect as when they are retained. In the first passage he says, “I saw under the altar them that were slain;” that is, he beheld in his vision of futurity a number of saints who had been slaught­ered for the truth. He saw them under “the altar,” not a representation of any altar in heaven, we ap­prehend, but under the Altar of burnt-offering in the Jewish Temple, to intimate that their death was a sacrifice well received, and acceptable in the sight of God. In the second passage he testifies, “1 saw them that were beheaded,” &c. In accordance with this view we read in the second passage that “they” “the souls of them,” that is, the men themselves, became alive, they “ lived and reigned with Christ,” &c. & But the slain souls, or the dead men spoken of in the first quotation, are represented as saying “How long, O Lord,” &c.; and as having “white robes given unto every one of them,” &c. What are we to make of this? The imagery is bold, but sim­ilar language about dead men is discovered in other parts of the Bible. For example, Gen. 4: 10, “The voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground.” When blood can be spoken of as crying, : is it to be Wondered at that slain souls should be rep­resented as uttering exclamations? In Isaiah, chap. 14, we find the mighty dead in Sheol, where there is “no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wis*- dom,” exhibited as stirred up, Averse 9,) to address “the King of Babylon,” (verse 4,) whose “pomp was brought down to the grave,” and over whom the worm was spread, (verBe 11,) in the most humiliat­ing and withering language, * ‘Art thou become weak as we, art thou become like unto us?” verse 10. If the reader will take the trouble to peruse the chap­ter from verse 9 to verBe 20, we feel considerable assurance that the apparent difficulty, found in the verses from the Revelation depicting dead souls as speaking, will speedily vanish from his mind. VI. A few remarks may perhaps be required on the verses at the commencement of the 12th chapter of 2 Cor. “I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord. I knew a man in Christ about fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God know- eth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body I cannot tell: God knoweth;) how that he was caught up into paradise, and heard un­speakable words, which it was not lawful (margin, possible) for a man to utter.” We solicit attention to the following thoughts. 1. It will be observed that the apostle is speak­ing of visions and revelations,” verses 1 and 7, so that there is no absolute necessity for supposing they were realities he saw and heard on this occa­sion. John in his vision saw heaven opened, and heard sounds like the voice of mighty waters, but he saw heaven opened and listened to the sounds when he was “in the spirit;” they were not realities he beheld, for even some of the agents who performed some of the parts, and uttered the exclamations and groans, or anthems, were not yet in existence. 2. Though there is no absolute need for suppos­ing that what Paul saw and heard were realities, but merely representations of them, the account of his revelations here given has such an air of reality about it, that any explanation which would admit reality seems to be most suited to the whole spirit and impression of the record. It seems to have been the third, or highest heaven, that he actually saw, and words spoken there that he actually heard. He was in some way caught up, or, more literally, carried away, and witnessed realities. 3. Be it also noted that Paul was uncertain as to the mode in which he was “caught up;” he says it was one of two ways, but in which of them God only knew. He seems to express, however, a certainty that he was caught up, and beheld realities. 4. The first of the two ways is this—“in the body.” By being caught up in the body he appears to understand a temporary personal translation to the scene of the revelations he obtained. Philip was by the Spirit miraculously “caught away” from the presence of the Eunuch, and there seems to be no reason to believe that he could not as easily have been wafted to paradise as to Azotus. Acts 8: 40. In this way Paul seems to suppose it possible he was exalted to the third heavens, and witnessed its reali- ties with his eyes, and heard its language with his ears. So far all is plain. 6. The other supposition is thus expressed, “or whether out of the body.” The Greek (ektos) here translated “out of” is, in 1 Cor. 6: 18, rendered 4 ‘without”—Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without (ektos) the body; but he that commits fornication sinneth against his body.” When Paul here speaks of “every sin,” he must be understood, as Barnes remarks, to be referring to sins in gen­eral; in other words, the apostle is here instituting a comparison between sins in general and the par­ticular sin, “fornication,” about which he is expos­tulating with the Corinthians. And whatever be the meaning of sin “without the body,” it must be ob­vious it does not mean sin committed by a man when disembodied. Let the reader reflect on the multi­tude of sins that are done mentally, that is, in thought, desire, and purpose; let him also reflect on its enfeebling and life-destroying tendency, about which the apostle is discoursing, and he will easily reach the truth popularly expressed in this text, about which the nature of the subject forbids us to enlarge. Well, then, if Paul could speak of man q}nning “without the body,” when they really sin­ned in the body, is it not possible for him to have meant, when he speaks of being caught up to hea­ven “without the body,” that he was mentally caught up, he being all the while in the body? 6. Language of a similar kind, when “visions and revelations” were being granted to other pro­phets, is found in holy scripture. For instance, Ezek. 11: 24, “Afterwards the spirit took me up, and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity.” Rev. 17: 3, “So be carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet colored beast,” &c. These were carrying away of the prophets, not “in the body,” or by personal translation, but “with­out the body,” that is, mentally, or in thought. Now, though all will admit that, however Paul was in Paradise, the Spirit caught him up there—the narrative under examination, perhaps, requires even more than such a lifting up as Ezekiel and John had on these occasions. We are inclined to think, as already mentioned, it was not a vision of realities he saw, but the realities themselves; at any rate such a view seems to be very like the import of what he writes. How then could he be caught up “out of,” or rather without “the body?” How could he wit­ness the realities without a corporeal translation to the locality specified? We are disposed to think that, without a translation of his person, his powers and faculties might be so wrought upon by Divine energy, that he really would behold paradise though not with his eyes, he really would hear, though not with his ears, words spoken there. This is surely not an impossibility with God. There seem to be some very wonderful powers in man, capable of being evolved by Mesmerism, for example, and if by a human influence, or by the exercise of the human will, a patient can be so mysteriously influenced; as some undeniably have been—as, for instance, to see unknown objects and persons at a considerable dis­tance, when all his outward senses were completely locked up by the overpowering influence brought to bear on him—how can any one assert that, were greater power brought to bear on a human being, he could not see far into the universe; and, to all intents and purposes, be in new regions, though not per­sonally translated to the unknown localities? If feeble man can do the one, may not God Almighty be able to effect the other? Paul does not tell us how he was “caught .up without the body,” if such was the manner of his exaltation; and, when re­search is now casting light on human capacities, and evolving most singular capabilities in man, we are surely taught that, through some supernatural energy, which, to some extent, may be illustrated (observe, we only say illustrated) by Mesmerio influ­ence, the thing we have supposed may be done; and, perhaps, was the very thing that, in Paul’s case, was performed. Should this be rejected—and one would require to know a great deal more than science has yet disclosed ere he could rationally declare our hy­pothesis inadmissable—there remains the language of the prophets to fall baek upon, such as that quoted above from Ezekiel and John. Amd if these prophets were “caught up” and “carried away” in the spirit, in the same way Paul may have been: without re­quiring us to adopt the popular, and extreme, and somewhat horrible supposition that God disembodied Paul’s spirit, even admitting that such a thing was possible, and so really for a while put his servant to death, that he might witness what was never in­tended for any person’s use but his own—which could surely have been declared to him in vision at least, by his being caught up in spirit like Ezekiel, and which method would have gained the end nearly as well. However, we prefer our own hypothesis, and will keep .our mind open to light, as we recom­mend our readers to do also. VII. The doctrine of the entire cessation of being at death till a resurrection, would relieve us from the disagreeable necessity of supposing that Jesus called back the spirit of Lazarus from heaven, to enter again into its clayey and mortal tabernacle. Every thinking person must have felt much difficulty in the narrative on such a supposition; but, if death ends for the time the whole man, if living being has entirely paused at death, the necessity of such a violent conjecture, to which the narrative assuredly gives no countenance, is removed and the sublimity of the miracle is heightened. Jesus spake, and the dead man, the dead soul Lazarus revived! It was an act of Divine power, and of unmingled benevo­lence. VIII. It may be mentioned, as a fact not un­worthy of notice, that even the phrase “the resur­rection of the body,” so common in the religious in­struction of our day, is not in all the Bible. The scriptures speak about the resurrection in this man­ner: “Thy dead men shall live,” “the resurrection of the dead”—“touching the resurrection of the dead”—“the hope and resurrection of the dead,” &c. Paul speaks, no doubt, of “the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body,” Rom. 8: 23, but it is questionable if here, and in similar instances, “body” is not used for self \ and, if such be the case, he means the redemption of ourselves, or simply our redemption from the grave to live immortally with Jesus. Examples can easily be found in which the term “body” expresses the whole of man, whatever view may be taken of him, whether a compound of soul and spirit or wholly soul. For instance—“a body (entire humanity) hast thou prepared me:” Heb. 10: 5. “My substance” or, according to the margin, ‘.‘my body (or I) was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret,” Ps. 139: 5. “Thatthy whole body (person—being) should be cast into hell,” (Gehenna,) Matt. 5: 29. “The light of the body (of the man) is the eye,” 6: 22. “Thy whole body (thou, or the whole man (shall be full of dark­ness.” .6: 23. “Through the offering of the body of Jesus,” that is, by the offering of Jesus, Heb. 10:10. “The tongue defileth the whole body,” [the whole man,] James 8: 6. “Present yonr bodies [your­selves] a living sacrifice,” Rom. 12: 1, &c. It is, then, clearly a scriptural mode of speech to import entire man by the word body, and we suggest that it is highly probable that such an expression as “the redemption of the body” just signifies our final and complete redemption by the glorious resurrection, about which the apostles and the early Christians delighted to speak so much. The salvation, re­demption, and adoption of believers is not completed at once; a part is effected now, a part at the resur­rection, when the great work of Divine love and power will be consummated. 1 Peter 1: 4-9. Even regeneration appears to be represented as progres­sive, or rather, as having two stages, a new birth now by the influence of gospel truth; and a new birth by the resurrection to immortality when the Lord comes. Hence we read “Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resur­rection.” Luke 20: 36. And “Verily I say unto you, that ye which have followed me, in the regen­eration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also [in the regeneration] shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Matt. 19: 28. IX. Should the reader see cause, from the Bible, to admit that the dead “sleep,” er are unconscious till the resurrection, he will discover very clearly that “Purgatory” and the intercession of saints in hea­ven, &c., maintained by the Romanists, are fabrica­tions and delusions. If the dead are conscious after death, it is difficult to see how a very satisfactory demonstration that these are errors and absurdities can be furnished. X. The reader should not be hindered from ad­mitting and humbly confessing, if he find scripture warrant, that death is a state of unconsciousness, by the bug-bear cry “Infidelity!” That death to all men, good and bad, is an “eternal sleep” is tlie opin­ion of, at least, many infidels, and, in maintaining this they contradict God, who says by his Son, “the hour is coming, in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.” John 5: 28, 29. Many Christians in America, and not a few in Great Britain, now be­lieve that the dead sleep, and “know not anything,” till the resurrection; and the only question for the reader to determine is this, does the Bible teach that doctrine or no? - It neither makes a man a Christian, to believe the dead are conscious nor unconscious, and this ought to be prominently kept in mind: but if our God declares they are unconscious, it is the duty of every follower of Jesus to believe it, and, by admitting the truth, to cease from holding what in­spiration denies. “To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is be­cause there is no light in them.” Isa. 8: 20. Such is the Divine rule to guide us in this and every re­ligious matter, and the reader is affectionately en­treated to follow it honestly and faithfully, as he shall answer to God at the great day of judgment. ------------o------------ The Tent Meeting, at Buffalo, N. Y., commencing 8ept. 2d, we design to attend. The Christian Truth-Seeker, fifth number, will be issued as soon after our return as circumstances will allow. “Life in Christ.”—Br. Blain has pledged tor fifty copies of this work on our proposal in the last Ex- ^niner. Who next will help? Let us know. BIBLE EXAMINER. PHILADELPHIA, SEPTEMBER, 1851. Elder Jacob Blain is the Baptist Minister whose letters we published in the Examiner some time since, withholding his name. He has long been a Minister of the Gospel of the Baptist denomination, and for some time past a city missionary for Buffalo, N. Y. He has now; come out fhlly and openly in de­fence of the doctrine of “Endless Life and Immor­tality only through Christ.” Br. Dobney, in Eng­land, will be glad to know that this is but a part of the fruit of the circulation of his work on “Future Punishment” in the United States. Br. Blain will not come out alone; and the work has but just begun in this countiy; although ten years have now passed since we publicly avowed our belief, and nine since we preached the “Six Sermons,” and many ministers and thousands of private Christians have come into these views, yet there seems to be dawning a new era in the work; and it is likely to spread in greater power than it has ever done before: the battle is waxing warmer, the truth constantly advancing, and the weakness of our opposers is daily more apparent as they attempt to ward off the impending fate of natural immortality. It is a doomed doctrine; though we have no expectation that it will die with­out a desperate struggle: yet, trusting in God and the power of His truth, as we do who have set our hands to overthrow this “Diana” of Christendom, and “Moloch” of Protestantism, we doubt not it will die to rise no more. May the God of truth and love speed on the work. “First Principles.”—Two brethren have written us saying that “some months since the Bible Exam­iner was put into” their hands, and that they “have read them some of late;” and though much disin­clined at first to consider the things therein pre­sented—regarding them as heresy—yet now are con­vinced that we “are correct on the higher principles,” but wish us to give a “Discourse in the Examiner upon first principles”—and ask if they are not “faith, repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins?” and conclude by saying, “give us the scripture upon this subject and then we can have a fair chance to try you to the bottom.” If these dear brethren expressed any doubt as to what are the first principles, and were fearful that ‘they might miss them, we should feel bound to re­spond to their call: but it seems they wish an ex­pression of our views not for the help of any who may be seeking to know what they must do to bo saved, but that they may “have a fair chance to try “the editor of the Examiner to the bottom.” It is to test us, it seems. We have no objections to being tested fully by any man or body of men to their sat- isfaction; but it is a small thing with us to be judged of any man’s judgment. He that judgeth us is the Lord. However, as one of these brethren has now subscribed for the Examiner, he will have a chance to learn what we regard as first principles; particu­larly if he will get the back volumes of the present series, i. e. for ’48, ’49 and ’60, which we will send him in sheets for two dollars. It would seem unne­cessary for us to go over the ground in a discourse simply for them to try us, as they can find, proba­bly, all the information we should give them by the past volumes of the Examiner. We will briefly state what we regard as first prin­ciples. By Adam all men are mortal, dying, cor­ruptible creatures, and have no immortality or end­less life in them; so that by generation, or birth, no man has any hope or prospect beyond this present life. Therefore, unless some other medium is pro­vided of God, all Adam’s race would perish and cease to be, or “be as though they had not been;” Obd. 16. While thus situated, God so loved the world, or race of Adam, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him might not perish, but have everlasting life. He gave him to be “the re­surrection and the life,” without which no soul of Adam’s race would ever have seen a future life. Here are first principles; and without understanding these distinctly and clearly, the vision of every man is beclouded, his mind more or less bewildered, and he will be very likely to substitute something else for Christ, and think more of it and talk more about it than of Him who came into the world that men might live through him. But men have personally sinned, therefore we call upon them in the language of Peter, Acts 8: 19, saying, “Repent”—change your opinions or mind concerning Christ and the work he is to accomplish for you—[for so the original signi­fies]—“and be converted”—or turned about—face the other way. They were following the first Adam, and going to death and corruption; but by turning about, following the second Adam, and being united to him bj faith, they became “partakers of the di­vine nature,” which is in Christ, and are thus in the way to incorruption, immortality, eternal life; and their sins are “blotted out,” to be remembered no more; thus will “times of refreshing come from the presence of the Lord:” literally, a breathing time— to recover one’s breath: in other words, the resurrec­tion, when all who have the Spirit that was in Christ, by which God raised him up from the dead, will be made alive—made to breathe again, and die no more* And this will be when “God shall send Jesus Christ * * * whom the heavens” will retain “un­ til the times of the restitution,” &c. But brethren may think we are on the higher principles again. Well, be it so. Paul was for for­getting or leaving the things behind, and reaching on to those before, “not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith towards God; of the doctrines of baptisms,” &c. We shall do well not always to remain babes, or children, but grow “up unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ,” that we may be of “full age.” ----------o---------- The Seoond Advent Watchman has come to hand, since our last issue, in a new dress, much en­larged. It is now edited by W. S. Campbell and J. Turner, and is published weekly, at Hartford, Conn., by Dr. David Crary, Publishing Agent, at $1 for 26 numbers. On the question of Life and Death, it is in general agreement with the Bible Examiner. On the Mil- lenial age and the Restoration of Israel, the junior editor differs entirely from us; holding that the “thousand years” are past; and that the advent, now at hand, brings the entire regeneration of the earth, with none to be left remaining but those made im­mortal. In this respect he acts consistently as car­rying out Mr. Miller’s theory. Mr. Miller main­tained this earth was all to be melted by fire, and every soul of man to be cut off except the saints— the new earth immediately appear, and the immor­tal saints with Christ alone inhabit the new earth during the thousand years to follow; at the end of which the wicked dead were to be raised—out of the new earth, of course—and be then cast into the lake of fire. Br. Turner seeing the absurdity of such a theory, and yet maintaining the entire re­newal of the earth at the time of the advent, took the ground that the resurreotion of the wicked would follow, immediately, that of the righteous, prior to the burning of the world and its renewal. To make this view a harmony it was necessary that the thou­sand years should be in the past, and so he dates that period from the overthrow of Pagan Rome and terminates it about the time of the reformation, if we understand him. His theory is much more consistent than Mr. Mil­ler’s; and those who still hold to Mr. Miller’s view of the world being burned and all renewed at the time of the advent, and no probation to any soul of man after, oppose Br. Turner with a poor grace, in our opinion. We respect his opinions, without being in the least moved by his arguments. In our own mind we have not a doubt he is in error; but not one for which he should be disfellowshipped or reviled. We cannot adopt his interpretations; but we can love him and treat him as a brother. Were we to believe none will be left in the flesh during a protracted period following the advent, in a state of trial under some constitution of Messiah’s personal reign, then we should at once adopt the spir- itual reign theory, and boldly assert it impossible that the advent can occur for many years to come* One of two things is true, to our mind, viz: either there is probation to some of the human family aftft the second advent of Christ and the change of his saints, or the advent is far off in the future. Here we are at present immovably fixed. Thereasou is sim­ply this: there are events in prophecy—and many of them too—which we are satisfied have never had a fulfillment, nor are they conditional, and which can only have their Accomplishment among men in the flesh; and no system of spiritualism nor professed literalism that we have ever seen, has caused our mind to waver for one moment in this matter since we became settled in it in 1844 and 1845; but we have not thought best to occupy much of the Ex­aminer with these points, as its primary object was, and is still, to illustrate and defend the great foun­dation truth of “Life and Immortality only by and through our Lord Jesus Christ.” And while we do not pledge ourself to silence on any subject, we shall not lose sight of the special'object of the Bible Ex­aminer. “ The Christian Truth-Seeker” has been Started by us as a free medium for all parties on any Bible topic; and if sustained will remain such. “The Tabernacle of David.”—If we understand Br. Turi^er. in the Advent Watchman of August 6th, he makes the Tabernacle of David “the gospel econ­omy.” His words are, “To look for the tabernacle of David yet to be set up, is to look for the gospel economy in a coming dispensation.” This is the conclusion of an argument in which he says some very true things; but his “conclusion” from the true things he wrote does not follow at all, in our judg­ment. The tabernacle of David to be set up, James expressly tells us, Acts 15: 16, is that which had previously “fallen down” and was in “ruins!” Now the tabernacle in heaven, of which Br. T. speaks very true things, never had fallen down, nor was it in rums, and therefore needed no restoring from its ruins, nor setting up; or if it had fallen down, it was never the tabernacle of David,. for he had not as­cended to heaven in Peter’s time: see Acts 2: 84. This then cannot be the tabernacle James speaks of. Neither can it be the “gospel economy,” for that had not fallen down nor fallen into ruins, either in the apostle’s day, nor at any previous period. What­ever the tabernacle of David is, it is clear to us Br. Turner has missed finding it in his argument. We teay not agree with those who think it is the literal house of David; though the term tabernacle is used In scripture, frequently, to signify a literal house; hut usually, in such cases, includes the family dwel­ling in it: see Jeb5: 24; 18: 6, 14, 15, and various other texts. The original words, in Hebrew, translated taber­nacle, are defined by Prof. Pick as follows, viz: “1st. Mishkon, the Tabernacle which God oom- toanded Moses to make. Ex. 25: 8, 9, as a pattern for the Temple. 2d. Ouhel, a tent, Tabernacle of the Congregation. It is also the tent attached to the Tabernacle, where Moses and the Elders trans­acted all public matters. It is the tent which was covered with the pillar of the cloud. Numb. 12: 5*, 10. 3d. Sikkoth, the name of an idol; literally, a protector. 4th. SokkotH, an awning, a shelter from the heat.”—Bible Student's Concordance. The most natural construction, it seems to us, to put upon the phrase, the tabernacle of David, is, the house of David, i. e. the royal house of David, in­cluding his throne and kingdom. This throne was Originally in Jerusalem, on Mount Zion, and em­braced the kingdom of Israel, east of the Mediterra­nean sea. That kingdom was overturned, [see Ezek. 21: 25-27,] and its throne cast down to the ground; compare Ezek 21: 27, with Psa. 89: 44, where, speak­ing of David’s throne, prophetically, it is said “Thou hast made his glory to cease, and cast his throne down to the ground.” Thus the throne was to “fall down” and be in “ruins,” and the kingdom to be “overturned,” and thus remain “till he come whose right it is,” then God said he would “give it to him:” of course to “build again the ruins thereof, and set it up” as James saith; and to this agree the words of Isa. 9: 7, where the prophet, speaking of Messiah, saith—“Of the increase of his government and peace —no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order [Heb. koon—to set firm, to estab­lish—Prof. Pick: to re-establish it—Septuagint] and to establish [Sep. support] it with judgment and jus­tice from henceforth even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.” Here then is a building again and a setting up the tabernacle of David that is fallen down; such a set­ting up and building as has never yet taken place; and is, we have no doubt, with present light, the thing that James speaks of, Acts 15, which was fu­ture when he spoke, though the time was unknown to the apostles; as Jesus had told them, Acts 1: 7, it was not for them to know the times and season^ which the Father had put in his own power for the restoring “the kingdom again to Israel;” which res­toration includes the setting up again the royal house—throne and kingdom—of David. Such we are confident is the true meaning of the phraseology under consideration. ----------o---------- Times of Restitution.—“Times,” Acts 8: 21, is chronon, marking a succession of events; and not kairos, a point of time, a fixed, definite period, as in the 19th verse. See Acts 17: 80. Chronon includes necessarily protracted time and often long time: see Matt. 25: 19, and Luke 8: 27, and 20: 9; John 5: 6. Sometimes chronos has the qualifying term mikron— little—connected with it: see John 7: 33, and 12: 35. This last expression shows that there is a long chro­nos: and when expressed as in Acts 8: 21, signifies a protracted period, without defining its length, but implying & long time: besides the term “achrif* translated “until” in the text, gives the plural form to chronos making it chronon, and hence utterly for­bidding a short period. The times of restitution there­fore is a protracted period. It commences with the heavens unveiling Christ on his return to earth, and terminates with making all things new; Rev. 21: 6-6; and it is done, -----------o----------- The Advent Harbinger.—We would once more call attention to the Advent Harbinger, published at Rochester, N. Y., by Joseph Marsh, It is in har­mony with the Examiner on the Life and Death question; and has, within the past two years, es­poused essentially the same view of the character of ffiffiRSiifo^ t^^advent. It had previously Maintained the same view as Mn Miller on the last Earned topic. Its change of views has given great offence to certain infalffbles, and the most untiring efforts have been made to crush it and its editor; but he has nobly stood his ground, and advanced in the conflict We hope those who have the means will help to sustain him, and become subscribers to his paper. It is a large quarto of eight pages, pub­lished weekly at $1 for 26 numbers. Br. Marsh has also published a pamphlet, of 128 pages, 12mo., set­ting forth his views of which we hope may have^^iJCacScuIaBSST^rice cents single copy, $1,12} per dozen, or $9 per hundred. Orders for it should be addressed to him at Rochester, New York. We have a few copies on hand. ------------o------------ Postage.—Let all keep in mind that if they order books, pamphlets, or any other printed matter— except regular papers, and those to bona fide sub­scribers—that the postage has to be pre-paid by us; and hence to secure works sent by mail, you must add to your remittance the amount to be pre-paid. None need expect their orders answered who do not comply in this matter. Also, when persons write us on their own business it would seem reasonable that they should pre-pay their postage. Is it right to make us pay five cents, besides our trouble, to change the direction of a subscriber’s paper, when it might have been done for threef ©©KOlFiriyJDSE SSSIf^SDTOKI. BY THE EDITOR. [Continued from page 127.] Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another: love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous. Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing; but contrariwise, blessing: knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.—i Peter hi. 8 and 9. “Finally”—telos—at length—“bo ye all of one mind”—omophrones—be united, unanimous, like minded: specially relating to that spirit of order and ----------------------------------=---------*-------j------------------------- subjection of which he had previously spoken: with­out that there can be no unity, but rather division— “having compassion one of another”—sumpatkeis— sympathising one with another. Here the sympathy of one member of the body for each and all the other members is hinted at as illustrating the state of mind each member of Christ should have for his fel­low member in all things, and graciously growing out of the one mind they were exhorted to. “Love as brethren’’—philadelphoi—exercise and exhibit that mutual affection to each other which your relation to Christ demands: hence—“be pitiful”—tender­hearted—“be courteous”—friendly-minded, affec­tionate—“not rendering evil for evil”—not giving back evil for evil—“nor railing for railing”—re­proaching, opprobrious and abusive language:—“but contrariwise blessing”—on the other hand bestow blessings—strive to make happy. The evil actor, who uses abusive language and reproaches others, does so because he is himself unhappy; do not add to his unhappiness by acting as he does, but by an op­posite course strive to lead him to repentance and reformation: * ‘knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing:”—by pursuing the course pointed out, whatever is the result on the offender you will find a blessing to yourselves: for so hath God appointed, that no effort to do good or be good shall go unrewarded. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile. Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.—10 and 11. “For he that will love life”—even an endless life— “and see”—enjoy, possess—“good days”—even the days of an eternity to come, full of goodness flow­ing from the inexhaustible fountain of goodness— “let him refrain”—prohibit, cause to cease, desist, leave off—“his tongue from evil”—malediction, cursing—“and his lips that they speak no guile”— deception, fraud, falsehood:—“let him eschew”—* shut out, exclude, keep back—“evil, and do good:” as he shuts out evil let him bring in good—that which is profitable, fertilizing—“let him seek peace”— ooncord, unity—“and ensue it”—pursue it, follow, adhere to it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.—12. “The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous”— the character previously described. The Lord has a special regard and care for such; so that he is repre­sented as constantly looking after their interest and welfare—-“and his ears open to their prayers”— supplications. The Lord is always mindful of their wants and necessities—“but the face of the Lord is against”—[an expression denoting opposition and resistance to]—“them that do evil.” So long as men persist in doing evil their professions and pray­ers will be disregarded of the Lord, and only increase their guilt.” “Cease to do evil” is the voice of Prophets, of Jesus Christ, and the Apostles; and he who heeds it not will pray in vain, and in vain seek admission into the incorruptible inheritance—the Lord’s face is against him. And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?—13. It might be objected, if we possess the meek, quiet, submissive, unrevengeful spirit enjoined, we shall be the subjects of injury from evil-minded, malicious persons who are disposed to do us hurt. To this the apostle replies by asking a question, which imports the strongest assurance of protection that could be given. As much as to say, it is impossible that any real harm or injury can befall you: you are in Ood’s hands, and he will see to it, if you follow his directions, that you receive no real or lasting injury, but he will cause all the malice of your enemies to be overruled for your greater good and advance­ment. The case of Joseph, sold in Egypt—the case of Daniel and the three Hebrews, may illustrate this truth: but, especially, the case of our once suf­fering Lord Jesus, now exalted, and soon to have the “kingdom of this world.” But, and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled.* But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; Having a good conscience: that whereas they speak evil of you, as of evil-doers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.— 14, 15 and 16. “If ye suffer for righteousness’ sake”—for pursu­ing the manner of life previously described—“happy” —blessed—“are ye:” because, if we suffer with Christ—for attachment to him and his manner of life—we shall be glorified and reign with him. “And be not afraid”—do not frighten yourselves, nor be frightened by—“their terror”—their fearful, terri­ble exhibitions of malice and wickedness towards you—“neither be troubled”—agitated, disturbed, disquieted, perplexed: commit all into the hands of God, and rest in him after the pattern of your once suffering Lord, and all will be well: blessed rest. “But sanctify”—set apart, consecrate—“the Lord God in your hearts”—minds: that is, honor God by reposing unshaken confidence and trust in him what­ever your circumstances or trials may be: “and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you, a reason”—an account, a cause—“of the hope”—the trust and confidence—“that is in you”—that you have in exercise: which, of course, relates to the incorruptible inheritance and that pre­paration needful to prepare us for it: do this when asked—“with meekness”—mildness, gentleness, kindness—“and fear,” lest you should say anything that might dishonor God and prove injurious to men. “Having a good conscience”—holding, or keeping a mind conscious of good—the clear conviction of well doing:—“that whereas they speak evil of you”— speak against you, calumniate, slander you—“as evil doers”—working harm, injury—“they may be ashamed”—confounded, disconcerted—“that falsely accuse your good conversation”—your good course of life, conduct, or deportment—“in Christ;” or for Christ. The Christian lives in Christ, and for Christ; and all his mode of life should evidence this; show­ing that to pattern after Christ, or to be Christ-like, is that for which he lives. For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well-doing, than for evil doing. For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. —17 and 18. The apostle here states that Christians, if they must suffer, had better suffer for faithful adherence to God and righteousness than for evil doing; and again reverts to the “example” of Christ, and says, “For”—oti—because—“Christ also hath once suf­fered”—that is, during his whole public life, even until death—“for”—peri—from, through, or by— “sins”—i. e. wickedness of men—“the just”—dika- ios—being perfect, blameless, innocent, one ap­proved of God—“for”—f/per—on account of, or by— “the unjust.” The apostle’s argument is this: If it is God’s pleasure that we should suffer by an asso­ciation with wicked men, it is better that we do so in consequence of right action than wrong; that we may honor God and his cause after the example of Jesus our Lord and head; “because Christ also suf­fered from the wickedness of men,- though he was blameless, and he suffered even unto death by their sins, or injustice, and he did this—“that he might” —by his example of patience, and manifestation of love to his enemies show the greatness of his Fa­ther’s love, and thereby—“bring us to God”—that we might be reconciled to God, and receive his mercy unto life everlasting: and, so great was the love of Christ, that he suffered even to the—“being put to death in the flesh;”—of course really died, having come in the flesh, he actually died in it—not merely escaped out of it, but died in it. But the glorious reward of his thus honoring God by patient suffering from sinners, that he might win them to God, he was—“quickened”—made alive—“by the Spirit” of God: for, God raised him up from the dead. From this example let Christians learn to suffer patiently, as Christ also—in like manner—has suffered, that they may lead men to glorify their Fa­ther in heaven. By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometimes were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was preparing, where­in few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water.— 19 and 20. “By which [spirit] also he [God, who raised up Christ from the dead] went and preached unto the spirits in prison”—phulake—in guard, watch, in custody: or as the Syriac version renders it, in se- pulchro, i. e. in the grave? Those to whom the spirit of God acted as a reprover in the days of Noah, [see Gen. 6: 3,] and who were “disobedient,” are now in prison, in guard, in the grave; and lay there with­out any principle of eternal life connected with them, because they quenched that spirit which had now raised up Christ from the dead, and which dwelling in men will quicken them to immortality and endless life as truly as it did Christ: so that if it is the will of God that we suffer even unto death, as Christ did, for well doing, we have nothing to fear; while those who injure us, dying without that Spirit in them, will as certainly perish as the sinners in the days of Noah. God’s spirit strove with them, while the ark was preparing, through Noah, a preacher of right­eousness; and did so with long-suffering; but they did not profit by it, and were swept away, and are shut up in the grave, where there is no hope, for, there is no work, nor knowledge, nor wisdom in the grave: see Eccles. 9: 10. Let all those who resist God’s spirit remember this. Noah and his family “were saved,” or preserved alive—“by”—dia— through, or during the time of the “water,” i. e. the flood—by obeying that Spirit, by means of the ark which bore them above the destroying waters. The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us, (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience to­ward God) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.—21 and 22. “The like figure”—or, in like manner, corres­ponding to this—“baptism” of the Spirit; for, that is the reference—the Spirit raised up Christ—the reception of that Spirit preserved Noah and his fam­ily—the rejection of that Spirit brought a flood of water on the spirits now in prison, by which they Were destroyed. That spirit received—baptised into the body of Christ by it; for, “by one Spirit we are all baptised into one body,” [1 Corth. 12: 13,] as Noah and his family by one Spirit were all brought into the ark—a type, or figure of Christ—thus bap­tised, we are now saved, or preserved to an eternal life, of which we have the assurance—“by the re­surrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” by that Spirit. “Who is gone into heaven”—as our fore-runner, and as the evidence and pledge of our partaking id his glory, if we are partakers of the same Spirit that raised him up from the dead, which glory is, that he “is on the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him”—even all power in heaven and earth given unto him, so that he, can accomplish whatsoever ho will for his church, his body. Or, we may understand the apostle as simply as­serting the fact, that the baptism of the Spirit, by which we are saved, i. e. preserved, was, and is the result of Jesus Christ’s resurrection from the dead, and ascension into heaven: and the last verses may be thus paraphrased: “The Spirit of God, by which Jesus was was raised from the dead, was that which strove with men prior to the flood, and which led Noah and his family into the ark, wherein they were preserved during the time of the water, or flood, being upon the earth; and in like manner the Spirit now poured out upon us, doth preserve us, by lead­ing us into Christ as Noah was led into the ark, which baptism of ths Spirit is by—dia—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ; who has gone into hea­ven and is on the right hand of God, as 1 told my hearers on the day of Penticost, when 1 said, This Jesus hath God raised up whereof we all are wit­nesses; and being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit he hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear.” Such, it appears to us, is the plain and unsophis­ticated meaning of the apostle. Noah was not saved, i. e. preserved, by water; but he was preserved through the time of the water, or flood, by heeding and being led by the Spirit into the ark; while the rest of the world by resisting that Spirit were des­troyed by water, being swept away by the flood. Our salvation or destruction, in like manner, turns on the reception or rejection of that Spirit. ----------o---------- Inquiries by a Hearer.—Sunday Afternoon.— Mr. Storrs:—Having listened to your discourse of this morning, in which you stated that man or Adam was created merely a natural man, earthly, animal, &c., it seemed to me that if that be a fact, how can we reconcile it with the statement in Gen. 1: 26, which reads thus, “And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness,” &o. and 27th verse, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he them,” &c.? Now, if man was made in the image of God, are we to conclude that God, who inhabits eternity, the omnipresent God, has such a form as the natural man? and that in that sense man is created in his image? This seems to me not to be the true mean­ing of the text. I rather incline to the belief that man was made in the image of God in relation to the purity and holiness of God, and that he did not be­come earthly, &c., until after his fall. I think you also stated in the early part of your discourse, that our Saviour was not immortal, else he could not have died; and afterwards I understood you to say that he was created spiritual, and not as other men. Reply to Hearer.—One of two things is true, in our opinion, man was created in the image of God relative to some one attribute, or else in relation to form. God has many attributes, such as omnipotence, omnipresent, omniscience, unchangeability, eternity, iro- mortality, independence, implying dominion, with all his moraZ perfections in absolute perfection. Now, if we cannot say that man was created in the image of God in all these respects, there must be a reason for selecting some one or more of them as that in which the image consisted; and the text must be the guide in our choice; only one thing is expressed, viz: do­minion, i. e. man was to be independent in ail his acts; not to be interfered with by any other creature. This Was necessary to bring out moral perfection, as there can be no moral perfection where independence of other creatures does not exist. All other creatures were therefore made subject to the creature man, and hence moral manifestations were not expected of them. Man was independent of all other creatures, and had dominion over them; herein consisted the likeness and image of God. In our mind there is only one other alternative, and that is, that God is possessed of a form; after the likeness and image of which the animal man was created. We do not find anything in the Bible ne­cessarily opposed to this view, but some things favor it. God’s Spirit fills heaven and earth; see Psa. 189: 7-9. But that God has a personal form, many texts of scripture clearly intimate. See Ex. 83: 23; 1 Eg. 22: 19; Isa. 6: 1; Dan. 7: 9; Acts 7: 66, 66; Heb. 1-8. On the second difficulty of a “Hearer,” a spiritual nature is not necessarily immortal; necessary immor­tality belongs to God alone. A spiritual nature may have also various degrees of perfection. Christ uni­ted the spiritual and animal natures in his person: see Heb. 2: 9-18; also, see John 1: 14. He did thus unite the two natures that he might raise man to a spiritual nature, which, when perfected, ends in im­mortality—endless life. When this is done, then has mortality put on immortality, or “mortality is swal­lowed up of life.” Elder Blain.—After our notice of this brother, in another column, was in type, he arrived in this city. He has shown us his letter of exclusion from the Washington street Baptist Church, Buffalo, N. Y., on account of holding the doctrine, and preaching it,* that the punishment of the wicked is extinction of being, and not endless torture. He asked of that church a letter of dismission and recommendation to sister churches, but in view of the fact that he had recently confessed himself a convert to the doctrine above named, a letter was refused. At a subsequent meeting, Br. Blain avowed his fixed determination to maintain and publish the doc­trine he had embraced. In consequence, the church resolved to withdraw the hand of fellowship from him. Elder Blain was a City Missionary in Buffalo, and held connection with the aforesaid church with an unblemished character, except his present faith on the end of the wicked. He still adheres to Baptist doctrines and usages, and wishes to be known as a Baptist; but is determined to enjoy his Christian liberty to read and publish the testimony of God, as he understands it. We are glad that he has been enabled, through the mercy of God, to make the choice “to obey God rather than man.” He will now devote himself entirely to the work of proclaiming “Life and Immortality through Jesus Christ alone;” and will travel and preach where the door shall be qpen for him. He is near sixty years old, has been many years a Baptist minister, and has an extensive acquaintance in various parts of the country. He designs removing his residence from Buffalo, but is not yet settled on any particular place. May the blessing of the great Head of the church attend his labors in this city and wherever he shall proclaim the truth. The following article from an English work was handed us by Br. Blain: “Extracts from ‘Essays in Ecclesiastical Bio­graphy.’ By the Right Hon. Sir James Stephens, K. C. 3.”—These essays originallyappeared as arti­cles in the Edinburgh Review, and the following ex­tract is made from the author’s ‘Epilogue,’ now first published, in which he avows, without reserve, ‘opinions,’ which had been ‘rather suggested or as­sumed, than explicitly stated, in the preceding pages.* “The doctrine of the eternity of the future retri­bution forms no necessary substratum of any other Christian doctrine. If it could be completely dis­proved, its disappearance would not dissolve, nor ap­parently impair, the strength of any other part of that mighty fabric. Every argument, every narra­tive, every expostulation, every Warning in the Bi­ble, would be as complete and intelligible, if not as emphatical, without it as with it. The same thing eannot be said of any other of the main truths re­vealed in the Holy Scriptures. Each of them is an integral part of the system to which it belongs. Is it then, probable, that a doctrine, which, if true, in­finitely outweighs, in importance all the rest of the articles of our creeds, should have been propounded as a mere isolated truth standing in no necessary connection with the rest? Is it not far more proba­ble, that there is an error in that construction of our Saviour’s words, which would render him the pro­mulgator of it? “The angel who descended from heaven and pro­claimed to the shepherds the incarnation of the Re­deemer, announced himself as the herald ‘of good tidings of great joy which should be to all people.’ But if it be indeed true, that He who was thus made incarnate, proclaimed an eternity of unutterable woe to the vast majority of those, who, from generation to generation, throng our streets, our marts and our churches, how shall we reconcile the angelic an­nouncement with this awful proclamation? The Gos­pel is, indeed, intelligence of blessedness, to *ths few who are chosen;’ but the same Gospel is, on the pop­ular hypothesis, not less intelligence of wretched­ness, surpassing imagination, to ‘the many who are called.’ Is not, therefore, the accuracy of that hy­pothesis involved in much improbability? “The Bible teaches us, that Christ came into the world to bruise the serpent’s head, to destroy the works of the devil, and to establish the kingdom of God; and Christ himself declared that (He saw Satan like lightning fall from Heaven.’ Is it reasonable to accept any construction of the other words of Christ* which would seem to ascribe to the Spirit of Evil an eternal triumph over the Spirit of Good, in the per­sons of the vast majority of the race whom he lived and died to redeem? “In our present life, trouble, pain, and sorrow, are indeed, thickly sown. But they exist among us as anomalies, not as laws—as the medicinal and re­medial provisions which the Creative wisdom has in­fused into this economy of things, not as the ultimate end contemplated by that wisdom. In this world,