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ecurse with mankind, with more communications of his will; and a far more clear and explicit account of his designs respecting them. And what can be more interesting to man than his intercourse with his maker, the great being on whom we constantly depend, for life, breath, and all things, who is also our moral governor, and our final judge?

Since the time of David there has been a long succession of prophets, and especially the appearance of the greatest of all the prophets, Jesus Christ, who brought life and immortality to light, having not only given us certain information concerning a resurrection, and a future state, but exemplifying hiş doctrine in his own person, by actually dying and rising from the dead. There was also a most glorious display of divine interpositions in the time of the apostles, by which our faith in the gospel is abundantly confirmed, and our attention to a future state so much excited, that it might almost have been feared, that mankind would think of little else, and that the business of this life would have been too much neglected. For what is the interest we take in all other histories compared to our interest in this? Other histories are no doubt, instructive; but the books of scripture, besides being infinitely

finitely more curious, and interesting, as the transactions of God, compared with those of men, may be said to be a title to an estate, to which any man may become an heir. In the scripture we are informed of the certainty, and the value, of this great inheritance, and with the terms on which we may secure the possession of it. The books of scripture are also the most ancient writings in the world, and penned with a simplicity of which we have no other example so strikingly beautiful; and they exhibit the manners of the primitive ages of mankind; so that there is in them every thing that can interest curiosity, as well as impart the most important information.

If, however, notwithstanding these recommendations, the scriptures, and other works illustrative of their contents, have not engaged the attention, it behoves every person who really wishes to imbibe the spirit of christianity, to make himself well acquainted with them, and to persist in the reading and study of them, till he find himself interested in their cor. tents, and imbibe the pious and benevolent temper which is so conspicuous in the writers. And how irksome soever, through disuse, and other causes, the reading of the scriptures, and of other books which have the same tendency, may for some time

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be, perseverance will overcome it; and then, if I may speak from experience, no reading will be so interesting or pleasing; and the satisfaction will increase with every fresh perusal.

This circumstance enables us to account for the peculiar pleasure that David, and other pious Jews, appear to have derived from reading the scriptures. They had few other books; so that if they read at all, they must have read them perpetually in their own houses, as well as have heard them constantly read in the synagogues, from the time that they had such places of public worship, which they certainly had from the time of the Babylonish captivity.

At this day there are so many other books to engage the attention, that in too many cases they totally exclude the reading of that which is of infinitely more value than all the rest.

But whatever be the leisure that any person can command for reading, some portion of it should by all means be appropriated to that kind of reading the object of which is to increase the knowledge which relates to our profession as christians. And this will lead to a course of reading both curious and interesting, especially such as makes us acquainted with the progress of christianity in the world. No kind of reading tends so much to counteract the influence

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of the world, and its principles, as the lives of emi, nent christians, and most of all the martyrs, whose piety, patience, and fortitude, in chearfully abandoning life, and every thing in it, for the sake of conscience, cannot fail to inspire something of the same excellent spirit; and this once fully imbibed, will enable a man to behave as becomes a christian in every situation, of prosperity as well as of adversity, in life or in death.

Compared to the strong feelings with which such works as these are read by persons who have acquir ed a true relish for them, all other reading is perfectly insipid, and a truly pious christian, who has few books besides the Bible, has little cause to envy the man of letters, in whose ample library the bible is not to be found. What is there of pathetic address in all the writings of the admired antients compared to the book of Deuteronomy by Moses? And what is all their poetry compared to the psalms of David, and some parts of Isaiah? And yet such is the power of association and habit, that by persons of a different education, and turn of mind, those parts of scripture which are by some read with emotions of the most exalted. and pleasurable kind, will be perused with perfect indifference, and even disgust: and if such persons B 5.

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be advanced in life, so that their habits are confirm. ed, the endeavour to communicate to them a rẹlish for such writings will be altogether in vain. Of such persons we may say with Bacon's brazen statue, Time is past.

So strongly is my mind impressed with a sense of the importace of the habitual reading of the scriptures, both from considering the nature of the thing, and from the best attention that I have been able to give to particular characters and facts, that I do not see how those persons who neglect it, and who have no satisfaction in habitually meditating on the infinitely important subjects to which they relate, can be said to have any thing of christianity besides the name. They cannot feel the influence of its doctrines, its precepts, or its motives, when they give no attention to them; and therefore they cannot derive any advantage from christianity, except such as accrues to all the nominally christianized part of the world, in improving the general character, manners, and customs of it; but which, as it has not arisen from any attention that they have given to it, cannot entitle them to the character, or rewards of true christians, those who have lived as pilgrims and strangers here below, and as citizens of heaven, who, though living in

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