It has been shewn before, that the mode of computing the seventh day is left to human decision; and there are many other circumstances indispensable to the holy solemnization of it, for which we have no divine or apostolical prescription. Being mutable in their nature, and requiring to be modified according to the various habits of various regions, they are to be ordained by each national church; and a compliance with whatever ceremonial regulations are enjoined for the sake of public decency and order, is a duty, because their appointment is strictly within the province of an ecclesiastical establishment.

In the performance of moral and religious obligations, much is also unavoidably left to the discretion of individuals. While the duty is peremptorily enjoined by the inspired writers, the limitations to which it is subject, the means of fulfilling it, the choice of opportunities, and other circumstances connected with its discharge, are to be regulated by the prudence of each believer. So with respect to the sabbath. The duty of consecrating it in a holy and devout manner, is declared by the great Sovereign Lord, while the mode is partly submitted to human determination. In this and all other cases where the sacred Scriptures give no express directions, much, after all the prescribed rites and ordinances of the church, must be left to the guidance of every man's con

science; and he who with sincerity of purpose wishes to comply with the commandment, may rely that, through the assistance and illumination of the Holy Spirit, he will not err very far from the truth. An honest intention will rarely fail, through the divine blessing, to arrive at right conclusions on all points connected with practical religion; at any rate, beings responsible for their conduct are bound to follow the light of that internal monitor, which the Deity has implanted to be the arbiter of our actions. Nor is there room for apprehension, that those who obey the dictates of conscience will perform an unacceptable service. The votive offering of a heart actuated by pure faith, and bounding with a humble piety, will be graciously received by a God of mercy, as the offering of sincerity and truth. In all cases, however, where the inspired writings have not descended to particulars, something must be left to individual conscience and discretion, as well as to the authority of ecclesiastical power.

On these accounts it will occur, that, amid a general agreement as to the duty of religiously solemnizing the Lord's day, there will be some shades of difference in practice. All sincere bélievers are aiming, though by courses somewhat various, to one common end; and this correspondency of motive should teach us to look with liberality and candour on such as do not accord with

us in those doctrines and practices which are not expressly enforced by the pen of inspiration. It must not, however, be understood as if holy Scripture supplied us with no directions whatever for the discharge of so momentous a duty as the sanctification of the sabbath. There are general rules propounded for our guidance, which may be applied to particular cases; and though the precise manner of consecrating the seventh day is not stated in the Christian Scriptures, as it would have led to a minuteness at once tedious and unprofitable, we are not wholly destitute of Scriptural authority on the subject. Something relative to its observance may be inferred from the law itself; something from the practice of the apostles; something from the incidental remarks of Revelation; something from its prevailing tenour; and something from the general principles of morality. By the combination of what may be collected from these sources, minds well exercised by the reverential study of the Book of Life, will chalk out for themselves a mode of keeping the sabbath day holy, consistently with the divine will; and though they may not be entirely agreed, they will not separate to an irreconcileable distance. For this result, however, it is indispensable to be well disciplined in the word of God; for if we bring to the examination minds warped by prejudice, inflamed by enthusiasm, or

blindly attached to a previously formed system, discordant and multifarious opinions must be the consequence. Those who, with meek reverence, strive to collect the hallowed truths of Scripture by the cool exercise of interpretive criticism, will not differ as to the nature of the sabbatical duties, more than may well be forgiven to each other in the spirit of Christian charity.

Be it our endeavour, then, to gather into a focus the disseminated beams of Revelation which illustrate this branch of the inquiry. It were easy, after the example of some writers, by pursuing this subject through its various ramifications, to accumulate a multiplicity of precepts. But to descend to particulars, and to discuss every minute point connected with the practical duties of the sabbath, would not only occupy too large a space, but would, moreover, lead us to dwell upon matters, many of which must, after all, be left to the decision of individuals. It is not uncommon for those who agree in the rule to differ in its application, especially in questions relating to the lesser points of moral conduct, which, admitting some variety, according to the diversified situations and characters of men, must be referred, ultimately, to every one's own conscience. Without attempting an enumeration of specific instances, which would not be of much practical utility, my sole aim is, to deduce those

general principles by which private persons ought to be guided in preserving, and ecclesiastical governors in enforcing, the sanctity of the weekly festival. This shall be attempted, not from any confidence in the Author's own competency, still less through the presumption of dictating to the consciences of others; but in the humble hope that the aid of the Spirit of Truth will not be wanting in a cause so sacred. In pursuance of this object, the inquiry naturally divides itself into two parts; the first respecting the negative, and the second respecting the positive duties of the Lord's day; or, in other words, it may be considered as a day of rest, and a day of holiness.