rious societies; but we will offer a few remarks upon the influence of religion, upon social and private life. Christianity tends not to dissolve and to destroy social or domestic life, but to establish it on the foundation of the Gospel; to bind it faster by the strongest and holiest ties, and to render it the abode of true happiness, through that which is the only fountain of happiness, genuine godliness. By this principle, the bulk of true Christians in England are now in a great measure led. Private and social meetings, for prayer and mutual edification, are common, both in London, and wherever besides the power of the Gospel is to be traced. These are not limited to the lower orders, nor, altogether, to any one class of society. It is usual for many persons, male and female, among the higher classes, to assemble, and to pass the evening, not in vain, dissipated amusements, but in edifying, Christian conversation; and not to separate without prayer, singing of psalms and hymns, and if, as it frequently happens, there is a minister present, exposition of Scripture. The Bible, as the fountain of all revealed truth and of all saving knowledge, is usually opened, as soon as the company has partaken of the usual refreshments; a portion of its sacred contents is read, and becomes the subject of conversation. Much that is instructive and wholesome is brought forward, vain and empty conversation is banished. It forms a great part of the business of London pastors, to visit the pious members of their congregations on such occasions; when they can converse with them in a more confidential and particular manner, than from the pulpit. Thus is maintained that union with the flock committed to them, which is so difficult for a minister in a city like London, and they learn to know and love one another. Many ministers hold such assemblies more particularly before the celebration of the holy communion, when the pious members of their congregations unite, for instruction and exhortation suited to this solemn procedure. These, accordingly, are often seasons of especial blessing ..... Meanwhile the social intercourse of Christians, as here described, has also this advantage, that there arise from it many undertakings, for relieving the necessities of the poor and distressed for such matters, also, are brought forward in these assemblies, and plans are formed and put into execution, which have already dried many tears, and gladdened many a sorrowful heart. Indeed, many of those, who attend such meetings, go forth as the dispensers of the Divine benevolence to their brethren.

It is also a very pleasing fact, that every year presents an increase of believers in the British capital, from the number of those, who belong to its highest circles, or have hitherto moved in its fashionable society. Peers of England are not ashamed to acknowledge themselves servants of the Lord Jesus Christ; nor their wives and daughters to render speedy aid, in various ways, to the wants, spiritual and temporal, of their fellow-mortals.

Family worship is not uncommon among the higher ranks in England. Many of this class have regular morning and evening service in their houses; and suffer nothing to prevent these domestic assemblages, which they "egard as a privilege and as a duty of Christians. At the same time it is not to be denied, that there arise some inconveniences and dangers, to the religion both of individuals and of the public, considerably opposed to the above gratifying particulars. An extensive profession of Christianity brings with it the danger, of weakening the inward life, and the spiritual strength, of Christians. The participation of the great and rich easily leads to deceit and hypocrisy. The more the cross decreases, the sooner can the taking of it up be the work of natural strength, without Divine grace. Consequently it is much to be lamented, that many display a certain degree of zeal in supporting societies for Christian objects, in associating with believers, and in observing the exteriors of religion; in order to substitute this for sincere conversion, and the true surrender of their heart to the Saviour. This might here afford us occasion for many weighty reflections, which for the present we pursue not further. Col. 15, 16.

It is a highly favourable picture, which is given above, of the state of religion in London. But, supposing a German to land at the custom-house, and to take his course westward, in hopes of discovering the tokens of such a promising condition, how little, alas! would meet his view, to realize his expectation. Truly, religion, amongst us, has its seat in the heart, and is not to be seen in our places of concourse. Proceeding on his way, his eyes would behold that abomination of desolationwhich, through the hypocritical tolerance of the legislature, and the culpable quiescence of the country, still continues to call down the Divine vengeance, upon our king, upon our metropolis, upon our church, and upon our nation-in Fleet Street; and, if he went still further west, his eyes might chance to be shocked with the disgusting lie, which obtrudes itself in that brazen, infamous, and filthy libel upon the whole female population of Ireland, near Hyde Park Corner.

We commenced our present article, by speaking of the state of religion on the Continent; and we wish to conclude by adverting once more to the same interesting topic. To satisfy us that all is right there, amongst our religious friends, there are certain requisite indications. These we shall always be glad to see, and now proceed to mention. We say again, that if any foreign friend should think fit to point out what he sees wanting amongst us, we are willing to receive his admonitions.

The first thing which British Christians are looking for, amongst foreign believers, is strict orthodoxy. Rigid or not rigid, sour or not sour, is not now the question. To command our confidence, it must be strict, decided, and unattainted. The idea prevails in this country, as we have said before, that, upon the continent, there is not only much of unbelief, among the enemies of religion; but much that is unsound, amongst its professed friends. If, amongst those who range themselves, abroad, on the side of the Gospel, there be found the least shadow of an uncertainty, as to their holding such points as the personality of the Holy Ghost, the bondage of the will, eternal punishment, or other cardinal doctrines of the Gospel, then farewell, at once, to all cordiality between us and them. We certainly observed one thing in the Evangelical Church-Gazette, which, though many persons would treat it as trifling, we saw with pain. In a quotation from Bengel, containing the expression "Spiritus Sancti verbis" (the words of the Holy Ghost), both Spiritus and Sanctus appear with a small s: while theologiam and grammaticam, standing in the same short sentence, have each a capital. We turned to our edition of Bengel (the third), and there found Spiritus with a large letter; so that the alteration seems to have taken place, in passing from Bengel, into

the Evangelical Church-Gazette.-We hope this was an accident. If it were intentional, and if the sentiment thus expressed were the sentiment of the conductors of this periodical, we are sure it would be far better for us that our right hand should be cut off, than that we should have extended it to them in fellowship for one moment, or have employed it to write a single word in their favour *.

A friend of ours is disposed to think, that Satanic agency has much to do with errata in printing; and since he suggested the idea to us, we have noticed several things which seem to confirm it. We have a badly printed Bible, in which, by an erratum, the mark of interrogation occasionally stands, where there should be a period or full stop. Thus Scriptural assertions are questioned, in the very letter of the Scriptures themselves: and the immutable Truth of God stands, as it were, queried in his own Book. This is the more observable, because the first time Satan appears before us in the Bible, he appears as a questioner. God says, "Thou shalt not eat of it." Satan says, "Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?" This offensive intrusion of the mark of interrogation, instead of the full stop, after sentences containing weighty and saving truths, is occasionally observable in other books, besides the Bible.--Not very long after the friend, above referred to, had communicated his remark to us, he wrote for publication, speaking of the present times, the words, "these fastidious and degenerate days." The substitution, in printing, of an o for an e, turned the expression into "those fastidious and degenerate days," shielded the present times from their just designation, and made the sentence nonsense.--In fact, the sort of errata, as they are called, in which the strong expressions of religious writers are softened off, are of a very pernicious kind. A minister writes, confessing, “ we have joined in rebellion with thine accursed foes." But this is too strong, and "accursed " is softened to "accused." "We have joined in rebellion with thine accused foes."-Again; a writer of hymns calls himself "a forward fool." This also is too strong, and "fool" is made "food."

A forward food, a willing drudge,

I acted for the prince of hell.

The forward d might, perhaps, apply the original lines with some justice to itself, for thrusting out the l.-On one occasion, when a speaker in the House denounced, in just terms of reprobation, the corruption and depravity of the daily press, the word "press," often repeated in his speech, was, in one of the newspapers, altered over and over, in reporting the speech, to "prop."-For our own part, our persuasion is, that Satan is far more busy on all sides of us, than many of us are aware; and that the only true safeguard against him, is the name and cross of Jesus, in our mouths and hearts, before which he quails. "The cross of Christ," it has been said, "affords us the best defence against Satan. In crucifying Christ, the devil gave himself a deadly wound, from which, though it be healed over for a time, he shall never recover. By the same act, also, he puts a sword into our hands, with which we may at any time when he assails us pierce him through, and force him to retire. The very mention of the death of Christ reminds the devil, that he carries his own death within him. He is stunned and sickened, baffled and confounded, cut to the heart and paralysed, and must needs depart.' We speak to the wise.-Nevertheless, every one will do well, to observe for himself, whether he does not perceive some such tokens of Satanic agency, as our friend suggests, in the introduction of errors of the press. The disparagement of the divinity and personality of the Holy Spirit, in the way that we have already pointed out, by the substitution of a small s for a large one, requires to be particularly watched against in this country; where the evil is spreading to an alarming extent, in many editions of the English Bible, in religious tracts, and in other books. It is one of the artifices of deceivers. An open infidel will deny the divinity and personality of the Holy Ghost. A concealed one will profess to believe these truths; but will print the word Spirit, when it stands for the Holy Ghost, without a capital. But why speak of deceivers? An edition of one of

The next thing which we earnestly look for, in the friends of religion on the continent, is uncompromising courage, promptitude, and decision, in meeting and opposing their adversaries. In the press, in the pulpit, in every way, the enemies of the truth ought to be met, exposed, defeated, and denounced. From the extracts which we have given, our readers will not apprehend, probably, that a disposition to do this is wanting, in the Evangelical Church-Gazette. On parts of the continent, however, it has been wanting, it has been looked for in vain. The people of the Lord have appeared afraid to lift up their voices, against the agents of darkness; or to shew themselves in any way their opponents. One great cause of this dereliction of duty, is to be found in that idolatrous respect, of which there is far too much in Germany, for learning in infidels. It is a poor, timid, compromising, worthless, pernicious, unprincipled, mock-liberal feeling; and, wherever it prevails, is sure to paralyse the defenders of the truth; and all hope of good is at an

end.

The last thing which we wish to mention-and it is such a dirty thing that we are almost ashamed to speak of it-is money. People are continually saying, on this western side of the German Ocean, how is it that the friends of religion on the continent, uniting with us as they do in sentiment, and co-operating with us in so many religious undertakings, raise, after all, so little money? Must we subsidize them to fight, in their own land, against the prince of darkness, as we did to fight against the French? Now, if large sums are raised for religious objects in our own country, we are by no means disposed to boast of this. We know what is the comparative abundance of money, in this commercial land. We know also how many evil tokens prevail amongst us, to set off against the good. Yet still, the thing is one, concerning which, in looking to the continent, we naturally ask a question: and while Christian charity suggests many explanations which might be offered, we are by no means singular in making the inquiry; and it will continue to be made, till a satisfactory answer is returned.

We now say farewell to our dear brethren, fellow-labourers, and fellow-soldiers, at Berlin, the esteemed editor and contributors of the Evangelical Church-Gazette. And if we may the best volumes of family prayers in our language, by a Dissenter of eminent talents and piety, which we are in the very frequent habit of using, is, we grieve to say, perfectly disfigured by this foul blot; which, with a worse than leprous taint, pervades its pages. And, with regard to such errors appearing in our own writings, let us ever remember, that we must not lay too much of the blame on the printers. We authors ought to keep the sharpest watch; and the correction of the press should ever be made by us, as far as possible, a matter of vigilance, a matter of duty; lest Satan should, at this point, get any advantage over us.

be permitted to give them one word of brotherly encouragement, and respectful exhortation, on parting, we will give it in the words of Moses to the Israelites.

VEX THE MIDIANITES, AND SMITE THEM.

Yes. "Vex the Midianites, and SMITE them; for THEY vex YOU with their WILES." They vex you with secret arts; with opposition under the shape of proffered co-operation; with articles sent to be inserted in your work, questioning or denying the truths which your work maintains; with smiles to your face, and calumny behind your backs; with verbal criticisms, meant to make void the whole Word of God; with historical disquisitions upon facts, designed to bring into question the facts of the Bible; with a form of Christian doctrine, subversive of the doctrine of Christ. They vex you, beloved brethren, with their wILES. But be not you betrayed into the same mode of warfare. Meet them, as Israel met the enemies of the Lord. Vex the Midianites, and SMITE them. With no scourge but the pen; with no sword but the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; with no banner but the banner of the cross, the blood-stained banner of our dear Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us, and whose soldiers we are; go forth against the enemies of the truth. And now, in all Christian esteem and honour, we solemnly, before all the servants of God, both here and elsewhere, yea, before the whole family in heaven and earth, and before God, the universal Judge, charge our brethren in the Lord at Berlin,

To assail, put to the rout, vex, smite, beat down, scatter, and destroy, all the powers of evil, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of Christ, whensoever and wheresoever to them occurrent; and,

At the same time, to build up, establish, enlarge, comfort, encourage, and nourish with all sound doctrine, reproof, exhortation, and consolation, out of the word of life, the church of God which is among them, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

Feeble as we ourselves are, we would ask the prayers of our Christian friends and readers, again and again. We ask them now. And if we ask them for those, also, who are labouring in the same cause at Berlin, and for every religious periodical and publication, and for every good work and word, and for the whole church of Christ, we are only asking that more may be sought from HIM, who would rather bestow more than less; who is as able to give a twofold, or a manifold, as a single blessing; and who is more honoured by our seeking much, than by our seeking little, at His hands.