confirm your love towards him. To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: Nay, I have already forgiven him, for your sakes, as in the presence of Christ.' (2 Cor. ii. 6—10.)

Great GOD! appoint over thy flock vigilant, charit. able, and courageous pastors, who may discern the sinner through all his deceitful appearances, and separate him from thy peaceful fold, whether he be an unclean goat, or a ravenous wolf. Permit not thy ministers to confound the just with the unjust, rendering contemptible the most sacred mysteries, by admitting to them persons, with whom virtuous Heathens would blush to converse. Touch the hearts of those pastors, who harden thy rebellious people, by holding out tokens of thy favour to those, who are the objects of thy wrath: And permit no longer the bread of life, which they carelessly distribute to all, who choose to profane it, to become in their unhallowed hands the bread of death. Discover to them the impiety of offering their holy things to the dogs: And awaken in them a holy fear of becoming accomplices with those hypocritical monsters, who press into thy temple to crucify thy Son afresh; and who, by a constant profanation of the symbols of our holy faith, add to their other abominations the execrable act of eating and drinking their own damnation, and that with as much composure, as some among them swallow down the intoxicating draught, or utter the most impious blasphemies.

AN OBJECTION ANSWERED.

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BEFORE we proceed to the consideration of another trait of the character of St. Paul, it will be necessary to refute an objection to which the preceding trait may appear liable." Dare you," it may be asked, propose to us as a model, a man, who could strike Elymas with blindness, and deliver up to Satan the body of a sinner ?"

ANSWER. The excellent motive, and the happy success of the apostle's conduct, in both these instances,

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entirely justify him. He considered affliction not only as the crucible, in which God is frequently pleased to purify the just, but as the last remedy to be employed for the restoration of obstinate sinners. Behold the reason, why the charity of the primitive church demanded, in behalf of GOD, that the rod should not be spared, when the impiety of men was no longer able to be restrained by gentler means; determining, that it was far better to be brought to repentance, even by the sharpest sufferings, than to live and die in a sinful state. To exercise this high degree of holy and charitable severity toward a sinner, was, in some mysterious manner, to deliver up his body to Satan,' who was looked upon as the executioner of God's righteous vengeance in criminal cases.-Thus Satan destroyed the first-born in Egypt, smote the subjects of David with the pestilence, and cut off the vast army of Sennacherib. St. John has thrown some light upon this profound mystery, by asserting, There is a sin unto death :' (1 John v. 16:) And the case of Ahab is fully in point; for when that king had committed this sin, a spirit of error received immediate orders to lead him forth to execution upon the plains of Ramoth-Gilead. (1 Kings xxii. 20, 22.) This awful doctrine is further confirmed by St. Luke, when he relates, that in the same instant, when the people, in honour of Herod, gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a God and not of a man; the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory And he was eaten up of worms, and gave up the ghost.' (Acts xii. 22, 23.) The punishment thus inflicted, by the immediate order of God, was always =proportioned to the nature of the offence. If the sin was not unto death,' it was followed by some temporary affliction, as in the cases of Elymas and the incestuous Corinthian. If the crime committed was of such a nature that the death of the sinner became necessary, either for the salvation of his soul, for the reparation of his crime, or to alarm those, who might probably be corrupted by his pernicious example, he was then either #smitten with some incurable disease, as in the case of

Herod; or struck with immediate death, as in the cast of Ananias and Sapphira, who sought to veil their hypocrisy with appearances of piety, and their doubledealing with a lie. Had M. Voltaire considered the Christian church, as a well-regulated species of thescracy, he would have seen the folly of his whole reason. ing with respect to the authority of that church in its primitive state. And convinced, that God has a much greater right to pronounce by his ministers a just ser tence of corporal punishment, and even death itself. than any temporal prince can claim to pronounce such sentence by his officers: That daring philosopher, instead of pointing his sarcasms against an institution so reasonable and holy, would have been constrained to tremble before the Judge of all the earth.

Finally. It is to be observed, that when this kind of jurisdiction was exercised in the church, the followers of Christ, not having any magistrates of their own reli. gion, lived under the government of those Heathenis rulers, who tolerated those very crimes, which were pe culiarly offensive to the pure spirit of the gospel. And on this account GOD was pleased to permit the most eminent among his people, on some extraordinary occa sions, to exercise that terrible power, which humbled the offending church of Corinth, and overthrew the sot. cerer Elymas in his wicked career. If it be inquired— What would become of mankind, were the clergy of this day possessed of the extraordinary power of St. Paul? We answer-The terrible manner, in which St. Paul sometimes exercised the authority he had received. with respect to impenitent sinners, is not left as an ex. ample to the ecclesiastics of the present day, unless they should come (which is almost impossible) into similar circumstances, and attain to equal degrees of discern. ment, faith, and charity, with this apostle himself.

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TRAIT XXVII.

His perfect Disinterestedness.

IF charity seeketh not her own;' and if it is re quired, that the conversation of the faithful should be without covetousness; it becomes the true minister, in an especial manner, to maintain an upright and disinterested conduct in the world.

Though it be true, that they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar;' yet nothing is so detestable to the faithful pastor, as the idea of enriching himself with the sacred spoils of that altar. Observe how St. Paul expresses himself upon this subject. We brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. Having, therefore, food and raiment, let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in perdition. For the love of money is the root of all Wevil: Which while some have coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God,' who art set apart as a minister of the everlasting gospel, 'flee these things: and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.' (1 Tim. vi. 7-11.) With regard to myself, I have learned, in whatever state I am, therewith to be content. Every where, and in all things, I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.' (Phil. iv. 11, 12.) Neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloak of covetousness; God is witness. For ye remember our labour and travail, because we would not be chargeable unto any of you. Ye are our witnesses, and God also, how

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holily, and justly, and unblamably, we behaved our. selves among you that believe. (1 Thess. ii. 5, 10.) Behold the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not be burdensome to you; for I seek not yours, but you: For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children. And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you.' (2 Cor. xii. 14, 15.) Behold the disinterestedness of the faithful shepherd who is ever less ready to receive food and clothing from the flock, than to labour for its protection and support! Behold the Spirit of Christ! And let the pastor, who is influenced by a different spirit, draw that alarming inference from his state, which he is taught to do by the following expression of St. Paul: If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.' (Rom. viii. 9.)

Happy would be the Christian church, were it blessed with disinterested pastors! Avaricious ministers, who are more taken up with the concerns of earth, than with the things of heaven, who are more disposed to enrich their families, than to supply the necessities of the poor, who are more eager to multiply their benefices, or to augment their salaries, than to improve their talents. and increase the number of the faithful-Such minis ters, instead of benefiting the church, harden the impenitent, aggravate their own condemnation, and force infidels to believe, that the holy ministry is used, by the generality of its professors, as a comfortable means of securing to themselves the perishable bread, if not the fading honours, of the present life.