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3. Circumcision was administered to infants who were already members of the covenant.-Baptism is administered to infants for the purpose of making them members: therefore, baptism did not come in the room of circumcision.

4. Circumcision entitled its subjects to an inheritance in the land of Canaan.-Baptism gives no such title: therefore, baptism does not fill the place of circumcision.

5. Circumcision showed an individual to be a Jew.-Baptism shows an individual to be neither Jew nor Gentile, but a Christian: therefore, baptism did not come in the room of circumcision.

position, I pass over all the laws and usages of our own commonwealth, which regulate all such matters, and commence searching the statutes of Old England, which contain nothing upon the subject but inference, and that most remote, would not every man of sense conclude that I went to the laws of England because I felt conscious that I had nothing to sustain me in our own? And upon the same principles of logic, is it not good evidence that pedo-baptists have nothing to support their views of infant church-membership in the New Testament; and being conscious of the fact, the first place you find them they are away back to the days of Moses and Abraham, trying 6. Baptism is administered in the to prove who are the proper subjects name of the Father, Son, and Holy of baptism, by laws enacted nineteen | Spirit.-Circumcision was not admihundred years before ever baptism nistered in those names: therefore, was instituted? If they had evidence baptism did not come in the room of in the laws and directions concerning circumcision. baptism to support their notions, we think that the irrational and unscriptural assumption of baptism coming in the room of circumcision would never have been resorted to. We shall now, for the sake of classification and consolidation, and also to aid such as may engage in controversy upon this subject, present a congeries of what we conceive to be unanswerable syllogisms in opposition to the above assumption.

Syllogistical reasoning, when the propositions cannot be controverted, and the conclusion therefrom is logically adduced, is the most satisfactory and conclusive mode of argumentation that can be adopted.

1. Circumcision was lawfully administered to males only.-Baptism is lawfully administered to males and females: therefore, baptism did not come in the room of circumcision.

7. He that was circumcised was a debtor to do the whole law.—He that is baptized is no longer under the schoolmaster: therefore, baptism does not fill the place of circumcision.

8. One thing coming in the room of another must fill the same office.Baptism, as we have seen, does not fill the office of circumcision: therefore, it does not come in the room of it.

9. One thing coming in the room of another must come in the same covenant.-The covenant of circumcision was done away or abolished: therefore, baptism did not come in the place of circumcision.

10. Baptism is administered to show forth the burial and resurrection of Christ.-Circumcision was administered for no such object: Therefore, baptism did not come in the room of circumcision.

11. Baptism was administered for "the remission of sins," (Acts ii. 38.)

2. Circumcision was lawfully administered to infants only on the eighth day.-Baptism is administered-Circumcision never had any such on any day by those who practise it: design: therefore, baptism did not therefore, themselves being judges, it come in the room of circumcision. did not take the place of circumcision.

12. A person, in order to be a

scriptural subject of baptism, must be first taught the gospel.-Individuals were scriptural subjects of circumcision before they were capable of receiving instruction: therefore, baptism did not come to fill the place of circumcision.

13. No person was considered a subject of baptism, in the days of the Apostles, who had not faith in Christ. -In administering circumcision, faith was never made a condition or prerequisite: therefore, baptism did not come in the room of circumcision.

14. Repentance was also required of the candidate before baptism.Repentance was never required as a pre-requisite to circumcision: therefore, baptism did not come in its room or stead.

15. Confession with the mouth was also made a pre-requisite to baptism.— Confession with the mouth was never required of infants eight days old, as a prerequisite to circumcision: therefore baptism does not fill its place.

16. Baptism is "the answer of a good conscience," (1 Pet. iii. 22.) Circumcision belonged wholly to the flesh, and consequently did not reach the conscience.-Therefore, baptism did not come in the place of circumcision.

17. The gift of the Holy Spirit was promised to all who were scripturally baptised (Acts ii. 38.)-No such promise was ever attached to circumcision. Therefore baptism does not fill its place.

least, of the yoke of bondage.-Baptism is part of the yoke of Christ, which is easy: therefore, baptism cannot be a substitute for circumcision.

20. Circumcision was for one particular nation.—Baptism was instituted for all nations: therefore, baptism did not come in the room of circumcision.

21. Christ and the Apostles have taught us every thing about baptism that is necessary for us to believe.They never taught that baptism came in the room of circumcision, either directly or indirectly: therefore, it is not necessary for us to believe it!!!

PROPHETIC DEPARTMENT.

NO. III.

THE destruction of the wicked, and the conflagration of the heavens and the earth, at the coming of the Lord. "For as in the days that were before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the son of man be,” Matt. xxiv. Likewise, also, as it was in the days of Lot, they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded. But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all; even thus shall it be when the son of man is revealed," Luke xvii. 28–30.

"And

18. Baptism caused all its subjects to rejoice (Acts viii. 39, xvi. 34.)—I will bring distress upon men, that Circumcision produced no rejoicing, but exactly the opposite.-Therefore, baptism does not fill the place of circumcision.*

19. Circumcision was part, at * Even now a large majority of the subjects of baptism, instead of going on their way rejoicing, as they did in former times, go on their way crying-angry as they can well be at the preacher, for putting cold water on their faces, and thus bringing them into the kingdom of heaven while asleep!!!

they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against the Lord; and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung. Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord's wrath; but the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy; for he shall make even a speedy riddance of all them that dwell in the land," Zeph. i. 17-18. "Therefore wait ye upon me, saith

the Lord, until the day that I rise up to the prey; for my determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms to pour upon them mine indignation, even all my fierce anger; for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of my jealousy," Zeph. iii. 8. "For behold the day cometh that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch," Mal. iv. 1. "Behold the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof," Isaiah xxiv. 1. "The land shall be utterly emptied and utterly spoiled; for the Lord hath spoken this word. The earth mourneth and fadeth away. The world languisheth and fadeth away. The haughty people of the earth do languish. The earth is also defiled under the inhabitants thereof, because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances, broken the everlasting covenant; therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate; therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left," ver. 3. The prophet assigns the reason for the awful destruction here predicted. It is this—the people have changed the ordinances, broken the everlasting covenant. It is, then, no trifling matter to change the ordinances of God, and thereby set at defiance his authority. No, indeed! He will one day plead his own cause, with pestilence, fire, and sword, until all his enemies are slain. Let men examine this matter with anxiety and care, lest they be found transgressors. "Come near, ye nations, to hear, and hearken, ye people. Let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world and all things that come forth of it; for the indignation of the Lord upon all nations, and his fury upon

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all their armies. He hath utterly destroyed them. He hath delivered them to the slaughter. Their slain also shall be cast out, and the stink shall come up out of their carcasses ; and the mountain shall be melted with their blood; and all the host of heaven shall be dissolved; and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll, and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree,” Isa. xxxiv. 1-4. “For behold the Lord will come with fire and with his chariots, like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke by flames of fire; for by fire and by his sword will the Lord plead with all flesh, and the slain of the Lord shall be many," Isa. lxvi. 15–16.

"For Moses truly said unto the fathers, a prophet shall the Lord God raise up unto you of your brethren like unto me. Him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you; and it shall come to pass, that every soul that will not hear that prophet shall be destroyed from among the people," Acts iii. 22–23.

"And to you who are troubled, rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power, when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe,” 2 Thess. i. 7-10.

"But the heavens and the earth, which are now by the same word, are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment, and perdition of ungodly men,” 2 Pet. iii. 7.

"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat.

The

earth also, and the works that are therein, shall be burnt up. Seeing, then, that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat," v. 10-12. Here we close our fifth proposition, leaving it to those who read to judge whether we have proved it. We now offer a sixth, which is the following:

there will neither be men, beasts, or birds to be seen. Isa. li. 6, "Lift op your eyes to the heavens and look upon the earth beneath, for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old as a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner; but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished." Jer. iv. 23-25, “I beheld the earth, and lo it was without form and void, and the heavens they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and lo they trembled; and all the hills, and they moved lightly. I beheld, and lo there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld and lo the fruitful place was a wilder

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broken down, at the presence of the Lord, and by his fierce anger.”

There will be new heavens and a new earth in the Millennium. “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteous-ness, and all the cities thereof were ness," 2 Pet. iii. 13. Here Peter refers to a promise which the Lord had given to one, at least, of his prophets in the former dispensation. It is found in Isa. lxv. 17, “ For behold I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind." "For as the new heavens and the new earth. which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain," Isa. lxvi. 22. "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away, and there was no more sea," Rev. xxi. 1.

If the above passages of scripture do not prove that there will be new heavens and a new earth, they prove nothing in my estimation. If they prove anything else, I should like to know what it is. Will some person be good enough to tell us? If all shall decline to do so, we shall continue to believe that, for one thousand years, there will be a literal new earth and heavens, to be enjoyed by those who shall be accounted worthy to obtain that blessed abode. There will be a time previous to the new heavens and the new earth, while the old ones are being destroyed, that

The repeopling of the earth, and by whom.-I believe it is the general, if not universal opinion, of those who have spoken or written on the Millennium, that the living saints will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the coming of the Lord, when all the wicked will be destroyed, as we have abundantly proved in this essay. This being so, no people can be found to dwell in flesh on the new earth, which will be the case if several passages found in Isaiah and other places are to be interpreted literally. If they are not to be literally fulfilled, I cannot see any sense in them. I, for one, do question the living saints being changed at the coming of the Lord. I know it is a fearful thing to question what great and good men have said on this subject; but I must be allowed to examine God's word for myself, and I hope to do so without giving offence to any one, as I intend nothing of the kind.

The change of the living saints in a moment is mentioned but once in the New Testament, and that not in connection with the coming of the Lord. It is found 1 Cor. xv. 51-52,

"Behold, I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." It appears evident to me that this is in connection with the general, or the last resurrection, and final judgment, which will not take place until the close of the thousand years. Now for my reasons for thinking as I do.

First reason is, that Paul, when writing to the Thessalonians on the coming of the Lord, does not say the last trump, but the trump of God. "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God," 1 Thess. iv. 16. The trumpets do not appear to be one and the same thing. One is "the trump of God;" the other is "the last trump." Second reason. What is said in connection with the change of the living saints will not apply to the coming of the Lord. "O death! where is thy sting? O grave! where is thy victory ?" ver. 55. The grave will hold its victory over millions of the wicked dead for a thousand years after the Lord comes. John says the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished, Rev. xx. 5.

There will be both death and sin in the new earth, as we shall shortly prove. A third reason is, that Paul does not mention the change of the living saints in the first letter to the Thessalonians, where he speaks of the coming of the Lord, and the resurrection of the dead saints. He says the living saints shall be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air. Not a word is said about their change. It appears to me that, if Paul had believed the doctrine, he would have said, then we which are alive and remain shall be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and caught up

together with them; but as he did not say it, it is not my opinion that he believed it. If the living saints are not changed at the coming of the Lord, which I believe will not be the case, it is easy to see by whom the new earth is to be peopled. Some will ask how they are to be preserved from the deluge of fire. Answer: Do you doubt the power of God to preserve them? Will it not be as easy to save them as it was to save Noah, and for the same purpose? We have already seen that they are to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air; they will then be above the fire, and out of the reach of destruction, as much so as the resurrected immortal saints. But if these reasons will not satisfy, let Isaiah tell the secret, if, indeed, it is yet a secret to you. "And I have put my words in thy mouth, and have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, thou art my people," Isa. li. 16. It appears, from some passages of scripture, that but few Gentiles will be saved at the coming of the Lord. Our Lord asks the following question: "When the son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?"

Again: "The earth is burned, and few men left," Isa. xxiv. Instead of the world getting better, it is getting worse every day, and will continue to do so until the king will come. But here we must make room for the Jews, the natural descendants of Abraham. They have been driven away from their land and city, and suffering the punishment due to them for their sins, for almost two thousand years. But they must return again, for the mouth of the Lord hath said it. But when are they to return? When the Lord comes, and not before.

The Gentiles are to tread down their city until their fulness be come in (which will not be completed until the Master comes.) "For

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