Certainly none. It passages, AIONI and viz. this world, or and the Prince of this world? 66 Gal. I. 4. "That he might deliver us from this present AlONOS PONEROU, evil world." Compared with John XVII. 15. “I pray not, that thou shouldst take them out of, TOU KOSMOU, the world; but that thou shouldst keep them, EK TOU PONEROU, from the evil." That is the evil of the world. In these passages AIONOS and KOSMOU are used in the same sense, the evil of this present state. Let it be kept in mind that our opponents allow that KOSMOU means this world, and in this case it is conclusive, that AIONOS means the same thing. Eph. I. 21. "Above every name that is named, not only in this world, To AIONI, but also in that which is to come. Here I would only remark, that the Apostle was under the gospel dispensation, when he wrote this, and not properly speaking under the Jewish age, although Jerusalem might not at that time have been destroyed. See rèmarks on Mark X. 30. 2 Tim. IV. 10 "Demos hath forsaken me, having loved this present, AIONA, world." The things of this world, and not those of the future. Although the places are many, where AION necessarily signifies the world, or what is equivalent to it, I shall trouble the reader with but one or two more. 1 Cor. I. 20. "Where is the disputer, TOU AIONOS TOUTOU, of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom, TOU KOSMOU OUTOU of this world." And chap. II 6. "Not the wisdom of this world, TOU AIONOS TOUTOU, nor of the princes, TOU AIONOS TOUTOU, of this world, that come to nought." Here, by every thing in the connection, it is plain, that KOSMOS and AION are used exactly in the same sense; that is, this world. The wisdom of this world, KosMOU, &c. We are now prepared to express our full belief, that the end of the world in Matt. XIII. 39 and 49, means what is commonly understood by that phrase, the time when this world shall come to an end, as to its present order; and Christ shall come a second time to judge the righteous and the wicked. For 1. The use of the word AION in many places in the N. Testament, as I have endeavored to show, will warrant such a sense of the passages. 2. Christ and his apostles have declared, that such a time was coming, when he would judge the world, and a separation should be made between the righteous and the wicked. 3. Although these parables were spoken before the abolition of the Mosaic law or Jewish age; yet our Lord had respect to the effect of the gospel in times then future, when various characters bad and good would not only hear it, but profess to believe it, and to belong to his kingdom. 4. This separation of the precious from the vile could not take place, till after the Jewish age was ended, and the kingdom of Christ long established in the world; for the church was not for many years so loaded with chris. tians in mere name as it was afterwards, and is at the present time. Nor can it mean the casting off of the Jews, and refusing those, who do not give evidence of true piety; for the parables have respect to such as in some sense are already gathered into the "kingdom of heaven." I have only to add, that as almost every word in any language has various significations, so the only way to find its proper meaning, when it occurs, is by its situation and connection with other words and sentences. And if the sense of the discourse, or the part of the discourse, where the word is found, does not forbid it, the word must have its first or most general meaning. And my object in examining the sentences where AION and AIONIOS are used, is to show that the highest sense of these words is ever existing, eternity, or eternal. And that a secondary sense of AION is world, or the time of the world's existence. I therefore request, that my remarks may be read with care, and again and again, if it should be necessary; for much depends upon the sense of these. words. SECTION XI. The author of the Apology has adopted, perhaps from Mr. Balfour, the ideas that there is no devii but sin, and no hell but the state of the dead.* His notions of the resurrection destroy the doctrine as taught in the Scriptures. Also he denies a future judgment, and what we call the second coming of Christ.f My observations on these particulars will be short; and but little more than to transcribe a few passages of many that are in the Bible, which will sufficiently show the glaring inconsistency of his fancies with the words of truth. 1. The devil, who is designated by various names, is always considered in the Scriptures as a real being; and as the sacred writings have a great deal to say about holy angels, which have much concern with the affairs of the world; and as we know that there are fallen men, why not fallen angels? And no reason can be given, why there should not be different grades among angels, as well as among other creatures. And since the words of inspiration abundantly testify, that there are evil invisible beings, and a chief among them; our belief in their existence is * Mr. Hutchinson's words are," that the word Hell, which is from the Greek, Hades, signifies the state of the dead." He does not tell us directly, what he means by the state of the dead; but as he represents it as" a hidden, unknown, concealed and insensible state of non-existence," I am obliged to understand, that he means the grave. p. 62 † pp. 67, 78, 63, 64, 65, 70. not shaken by the bare assertion of Mr. Hutchinson, nor by the more labored production of Mr. Balfour. To the question, "What was it that deceived Eve?" Mr. B. answers, "Lust or desire in Eve."* Now could lust or desire tempt Christ and take him from the wilderness to the pinnacle of the temple, and from thence to a high mountain? With what propriety could Christ say, "Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for lust or desire and his angels ?" Our Lord said to the hypocritical Jews, Ye are of your father the devil," &c. Now will it do to understand it, you are of your father lust, and the lust of your father ye will do? And how would it do to read, "He that committeth sin is of lust, for lust sinneth from the beginning"? 1 John III. 8. Doubtless there are many things superstitiously imputed to the devil; yet the Scriptures will warrant us to believe, that he is a creature of higher grade than man, and can exert an influence on the human mind and by the agency of his legions can spread a poisonous and deadly effect through the world. If by devil we are to understand only lust or desire, then the Scriptures can be of but little use to us, and no confidence can be put in what they literally say, unless we have Mr. Balfour at hand, or some one equally skilled, to give us the meaning. If devil means nothing but lust, then Christ may mean nothing but the light of conscience in the human mind to counteract sinful propensities, and influence to holiness. It may be said in reply to this, that Christ actually appeared on earth, and was seen, heard, and felt. To this it may be answered, that a * Enquiry, p. 27. |