Ar this press was thrown off the first sheet that ever Malacca produced of the Malayan Scriptures; how rejoiced was I to witness it! it was followed with many prayers. Formerly all Malay books were *Thomas Biddulph, Dav. Bogue, Claudius Buchanan, George Burder, John Calvin, Philip Doddridge, Mat. Henry, Rowland Hill, John Hunt, John Knox, Martin Luther, John. Munro, Samuel Rooker, Thomas Scott, James Small, Marmaduke Thompson, Isaac Watts, John Wesley, George Whitfield, Noel Welman, W. Wilberforce, Matt. Wilks, &c. &c. &c. transcribed an endless labour, the source of numerous mistakes, and raising their price so high, that the people in general lived and died in ignorance. I consider this as a memorable era; and hope it augurs the future improvement of the Malayan, Chinese, and European inhabitants of the Peninsula.' BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY. From the Rev. J. S. Wyttenbach, President of the Bible Society at Bern, dated Nov. 4. 1818. WE had the heartfelt pleasure of seeing Messrs Owen and Ronneberg among us, and on this occasion, hastily summoned a small number of friends of the Bible, to a meeting at which your colleagues assisted, and spoke many blessed words of encouragement, instruction, and comfort: their addresses had so be neficial an influence, particularly upon females, that, in three days after, eighteen matrons in this town formed themselves into a filial Committee, (Association.) Yesterday I had the pleasure of being present at their First General Meeting, when I laid before them the plan for the establishment of such Associations, which I had lately received from our friend Ronneberg, then at Geneva. I was at the same time a joy. ful witness of the voluntary contributions of 200 francs, and the benefaction of an unknown person of 2000 francs. We immediately furnished this sisterly Union with 50 German, 50 French Bibles, and 50 New Testaments, for distribution in n any way they may think proper. I received also, yesterday, ac. counts of the establishment of two similar Associations: one consists of young married Ladies, and the daughters of our first families; the second is composed of Females of the middle class; besides a third, which is composed of young Ladies. Whenever all these shall have been properly organized, I intend to visit and encourage them. In this man. ner the All-merciful God spreads his blessings among us; of which we have a remarkable proof in the instance of an anonymous person having offered to our central Committee the interest of 10,000 francs, for the sole purpose of assisting us in distributing the Holy Scriptures; and even the capital itself, if we find ourselves in a condition to undertake the highly necessary work of printing a new edition of the authorized Bible of Piscator, which is used in our churches. When all this becomes known in the country, we may entertain well-grounded hopes that Bible Associations will increase; and that those already established, will receive fresh vigour, and be animated with renewed zeal. "Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name alone belongs all the honour and glory!" We have already, in some degree, acted conformably to Mr Ronne berg's friendly letter from Geneva, by our having distributed Bibles and New Testaments in the military hospital, and in that for the sick in town. Government has long since itself taken care in this respect of the prisons, and of those confined in the houses of correction. We find ourselves, in fact, the further we ad. vance, the more able to enlarge the sphere of our activity, from the rich support afforded us by the interest which the more opulent classes of Berneans, of both sexes, take in our concern. I therefore look with pleasure towards the ensuing winter, when I shall frequently visit those already established, and still to be formed Bible Associations, or cause them to be visited by my assistants; for which we pray to the All-merciful, that he would bestow upon us his blessing, and grant us wisdom and zeal. BAPTIST MISSION. Chittagong. we announced the lamented death of Mr De Bruyn. It is pleasing to find that the residents at this bereaved station have not been left altogether destitute of religious instruction. The following note was addressed to Mr Ward, in February, from Domingo Reveiro, a young man who had been baptized by Mr De Bruyn, soon after his settlemeut there... Since the death of Mr De Bruyn, pitying the destitute condition of the Mugs and Bengalees in this place, I have frequently conversed with the natives, and distributed about one hundred and eighty Burman, and two hundred Bengalee and Hindoost'hanee books. If you would be kind enough to send more books and tracts in these three languages, you will much oblige me.' State of the Jews at Jerusalem. THE following extract from the correspondence of the late Mr Burck. hardt will be read with considerable interest. "The Jews at Jerusalem are under seven chiefs, called procurators or deputies, who are nominated by the Jews themselves. These persons settle causes at law among their countrymen. A Jew, desirous of purchasing a Hebrew Testament, did not venture to do so, till he had shown it to one of the procurators. Their religious affairs in general are under the government of the Rabbis, who had formerly the right of nominating the Rabbis of the neighbouring towns; but for about twenty years past, this practice has ceased. It is said, that the total number of Jews in the city amounts to 12,000; but this varies, as many of them come to Jerusalem only for a limited time. There are among them many old men, who come from all parts of the world to die there, hoping to escape certain pains after death, which they suppose to be the privi lege of those who end their days in In our Number for February, p. 77. the holy land. THE CHRISTIAN HERALD. JUNE 14. 1819. MR EDITOR, TO THE EDITOR OF THE CHRISTIAN HERALD. I have no doubt the former extract from Mr MILLER'S pamphlet was acceptable to your readers. I now request your insertion of another-the author's views on the important subject of Justification-which is concise, and in my opinion very scriptural. J. JUSTIFICATION. IF that law which requires doing justice,—justice to God and to man, the love of mercy, and humble walking with our God, -has been violated by us; if we are given to understand that it is our reasonable service, and that any failure subjects us to punishment; if God has declared that he hates all the workers of iniquity, that his wrath burns like an oven, and nothing can quench it, that he will pour out his fury, and take vengeance on his enemies; if there shall not enter into his presence any thing that defileth; in short, if we are told that the wrath, even of the Lamb, will be terrible,-how shall guilty man come before God? Shall it be with thousands of rams, or ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall he give his firstborn for his transgression, the fruit of his body for the sin of his soul? What is it that makes up the breach, that wipes out the guilt of sin? What is it by which the truth of God can be reconciled with mercy to the guilty? In order to keep distinctly to this one point, we shall not inquire how this is applied ? What is the state of mind in which it is received? or, VOL. VI. Сс What are its effects on the man? Let the single point be, What is it by which guilt is removed, when contracted? Under the law, all offences were expiated, or in other words, the guilt of them was wiped out, by shedding the blood of some animal. This was called the blood of atonement; but the apostle says, that "it was not possible that the blood of bulls, and of goats, could take away sin;" but "Christ being come, a high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls, and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh; How much more shall the blood of Christ, who, through the Eternal Spirit, offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God." "It "Without shedding of blood there is no remission." was necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens (the tabernacle and its furniture) should be purged with these, (the blood of animals) but the heavenly things themselves, (the consciences of men) with better things than these." It was not necessary he should offer himself often; but "now once in the end of the world, he hath appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself." So "Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many.' ." "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree." "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish, and without spot." "Christ, our passover, is sacrificed for us." "Christ hath loved us, and given himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God, for a sweet-smelling savour." "While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." "His death was in the stead of men. It was just the infliction, or execution, of that sentence of death which was due to the violators of the law of righteousness. "If one died for all, then were all dead.” He tasted death for every man. His death was a purchase. The church of God which he hath purchased with his own blood. He loved the church, and gave himself for it. Salvation through Christ, is represented as a new covenant, a covenant of mercy to the guilty, in which Christ should shed his blood as the condition of the pardon of sin. "Sacrifice and offering thou wouldst not: lo! I come." "As for thee, by the blood of the covenant, I have brought thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water." It is needless to produce any more proof, of which the Scriptures are full, that forgiveness of sins is alone through that satisfaction which Christ made for sin, and that its guilt is removed, solely on the ground that he hath borne the punishment due to it. As the nature of sin, and its guilt, continue for ever the same, so, I conclude, that all the sins that ever were, or ever shall be pardoned, whether committed before or after accepting the terms of salvation, have been, or shall be forgiven, solely on account of the satisfaction made for sin by Christ, in his sufferings and death; and that, as any goodness or holiness we may acquire through sanctification, never can go further than to acquit us in the mean time, so every sin, either of omission or commission, must have forgiveness on this ground, and on this ground alone. After we have received the knowledge of the truth, our duty becomes much more extensive, and our obligations far greater, and sin becomes more exceeding sinful. We are then required, in all things, whether we eat or drink, or whatsoever we do, to do all to the glory of God, and to devote body, soul, and spirit to him. Whether any one ever was, or ever shall be brought to that perfect obedience which the gospel requires, I shall not decide; but every failure, every degree of guilt, must have forgiveness through the atoning blood, which was shed by Christ at Jerusalem, for the remission of sins. The divine mercy flows now through this satisfaction, and it never flowed through any other. And it is this, above all things, which ought to make sin appear to us exceeding sinful. This proves sin to be of such a nature as God could not, or, at least, would not pass by. His well beloved Son, his fellow, and his equal, must pay, to the uttermost, the penalty of it. Every sin we commit, we may well consider as the cause of the sufferings he bore on our account; and, in a certain sense, by bringing that which crucified him into being, we may be said to crucify him afresh, and increase that open shame he bore for us. I think then, it is proved, that those only who continue in the law of righteousness, without any deviation, are justified thereby; that the first deviation finishes their probation in that law, and produces guilt; that guilt cannot be removed by future obedience; that all the world are thus guilty, and that, therefore, by the law of righteousness no flesh fiving can be justified; that God will not pardon sin without satisfaction; and that the only satisfaction through which sin is ever pardoned, is the blood of Christ, or those sufferings which he endured for us, as the punishment of our sins. |