present scattered condition of the Jewish nation over all the world, and yet never mixed with other nations fo as to be loft among them. This ftrange prefervation of them these 1700 years as a diftinct people, amidst their many direful calamities, fufferings and fcatterings, is a wonderful instance of the interpofition of divine Providence, that keeps them as a standing memorial every where to the world, of the certainty of fcripture prophecies and miracles, and particularly of the New Teftament hiftory of the incarnation, life and death of Jefus Chrift, and of the truth of his predictions concerning that people.Likewife, the long continuance of the Jewish nation, in fuch a difmal diftinguished fituation, doth point them out to the world as a lafting monument of the divine anger for their woful rejecting and crucifying of the bleffed Meffiah and Saviour of the world. Now, all these outward vifible things God in his wifdom and mercy hath placed before our eyes, to confirm us the more in the belief of the facts and doctrines contained in the books of the New Teftament.

Queft. How do we know that the books of the New Testament are written by the apostles and evangelists, and that they are still the fame as they wrote them, without alteration?

Anfw. We are well affured these books are written by thefe whose names they bear, and that they are still the fame they were at first, not only because of God's watchful providence over them, but in regard of these clear evidences; 1: The writers of the first and fecond centuries, as Juftine, Iraeneus, Clemens, &c. do cite these books under the names they ftill bear: they quote texts from them as they ftand in our Bibles, and make ufe of them in the fame fenfe that we do; yea, Tertullian fometimes appeals to the original manufcripts of these books, which were preferved to his time (being then about the two hundredth year of Chrift) and long after, as other writers atteft. 2. These books could not be altered, because of the vast number of copies that were transcribed, and that in different languages, and foon difperfed with chriftianity itself through all parts of the known world; and yet still we find all these copies, however diftant in place, or different in language, exactly agreeing together in fenfe. 3. Soon after the apostles death, there arose many different fects of christians of oppofite fentiments, who yet all appealed to thefe writings for the fupport of their opinions: and to be fure thefe would

never agree together to falfify them; neither did one fide ever accufe the other of doing it.

And for the books of the Old Testament, which greatly fupport the facts and doctrines of the New, and were themfelves alfo confirmed by miracles; the Jews were careful, even to fuperftition, to preferve thefe pure and uncorrupted, placing much of their religion in numbering how oft fuch and fuch words and letters recurred in the particular books. And tho' Chrift reproved that people for many things wrong among them, yet he never accused them of falfifying any thing in thefe writings.

Moreover, we have such visible marks of the divine original of the whole Bible, in the antiquity of its hiftories, the accomplishment of its prophecies, the purity of its precepts, the harmony of its different parts, and the excellency of its defign, as cannot but be very convincing and fatisfying to all thinking perfons. Whence could we have had fuch a book as the Bible, written by fo many different hands, and yet all aiming at the fame defign, namely, To glorify God, to lead fouls to Chrift, to promote holiness, and to root out all fin and vice? Who elfe but God could be its author? A båd man or angel it could not be, feeing all the books and parts of it declare moft warmly for truth and virtue, and against all manner of vice, and particularly against all lying and diffimulation: a good man or angel it could not be, feeing it could never confift with their grace and goodness to diffemble, and counterfeit God's name in fuch a way, by putting, Thus faith the Lord to a book of their own devifing.

Laftly, Befides thefe convincing external evidences, there are many thousands in the world who have fatisfying inward evidence, and experimental demonftration of the truth and excellency of the Gospel-revelation, from the effects of it in their fouls, thro' the concurrence of the Spirit of God: for thereby their proud minds have been humbled, their revengeful fpirits made meek and forgiving, their carnal hearts made to love God and mind heaven above all things, their loofe and uncircumfpect lives have become juft, holy, pious and devout; and, in attending upon Chrift's inftitutions, they have attained to great peace and joy in believing on him. And, for my own part, I would not exchange the inward fatisfaction and complacency I have fometimes had in going in with the gofpel-method of falvation, and refting my foul upon a cru

B

cified Jefus, with any king's crown in the world. And what can be more confirming than feeling or taste? It will not be easy to perfuade a man that honey is not fweet, who hath tasted it once and again. If the holy Spirit would please to come and concur with the gofpel-revelation by his gracious operations on the foul, it would be the most effectual way to establish us in the belief of the truth of the chriftian religion, and to fortify us against all temptations to infidelity. Wherefore, that truth may prevail and error evanish, may the Spirit be poured out from on high, as in former times! Amen.

A WORD to CHRISTIAN PARENTS, and all who have the Charge of Children or Servants, efpecially thefe in Dundee.

My dear Friends,

T

HE care of precious fouls is a great truft committed to you by God, and to him you are accountable for it. The inftruction of youth is not to be left wholly to ministers, to school-masters, or mistreffes. No, parents ought to be inftilling good principles into children, and masters into fervants, as they have occafion, which might ferve to leave abiding impreffions on them many years thereafter; and fo ye would become fellow-helpers of the truth, as in 3 John 8. Pray, don't think this is left to your option, to do it or not as you please: No, you are under an express divine command, O parents, to bring up your children in the admonition of the Lord, that is, in teaching them the knowledge of the Lord Jefus Chrift, Eph. vi. 4. The word, tranflated admonition, properly fignifies catechifing. Likewife the word which is rendered train up, Prov. xxii. 6. fignifies to catechife a child when he is young. The command which God gave to the Ifraelites, to teach his will and ftatutes to their children, is ftill binding on you, Deut. vi. 7. Thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou fitte in thine houfe, and when thou lieft down, and when thou rifeft up. Abraham had a strong sense of his duty in this refpect: and therefore he not only taught, but commanded, both his children and fervants to keep the ways of the Lord, Gen.

xviii. 19. And can we expect to land in Abraham's bofom, if we tread not in Abraham's footsteps?

your

O fellow-chriftians! Your lifting yourselves and your children at baptifm under Chrift's banner, obligeth you to use best endeavours to enlarge the borders of his kingdom, and to ruin the empire of darkness. You pray that his kingdom may come; and this binds you to choose the best means to obtain what you pray for, namely, To inftruct the rifing generation in the knowledge of Chrift. This would make your piety extend to ages to come; for your example herein may be a motive to them to tread in the fame fteps, and fo one generation will thus teach another. Do you yourselves know the joyful found of falvation through our glorious Surety, and will ye not defire to make others know it too? You ought to fay with the four lepers, when they found plenty in the Syrian camp, It is a day of good tidings, we do not well to hold our peace, 2 Kings vii. 9. This is a godlike difpofition,. and would make you refemble God himself; for, when he faw the world perifhing in darkness, he pitied them, and came himfelf in our nature to teach them the way of falvation.

For your help in this work, you have the Shorter Catechifm of this church, which contains an excellent scheme, both of the principles of religion which you are to believe, and of the duties of religion which you are to practife. And though fmaller ones, fuch as the Mother's Catechifm, may be ufeful as introductory to it; yet, when children and fervants are capable, it is neceffary that they get our Shorter Catechifm by heart; which you may cause them do, by prefcribing fo much of it to them every week, until they come to have it throughout. And, because it is fhort and most comprehenfive, I have framed the following Explanatory Catechifm upon it, for your affiftance in catechifing these under your charge, whereby you may be helped to open up to them at large the precious truths of our holy religion, and fo prepare them the better for the public catechifing, which would make the work of minifters pleasant and delightful to them.

And, because the answers in the following Catechism are generally fhort, it will not be a very hard task for young perfons of good memories to get the most of them by heart, and to repeat them. And for thefe whofe memories are weaker, it would be very inftructing to them frequently to read over this book; for thereby they might foon be capable to answer

fatisfyingly most of the questions in it, though in other words than thefe in the book. It would alfo make children better acquainted with the fcriptures, if their teachers would require them to give account of fome of these texts cited therein, which have not the words fet down.

If heads of families would convene their children and fervants every Sabbath-evening, and make use of this book or the like explication, going over at one time two questions of the Shorter Catechifm or thereby, with the explanatory catechifing thereupon, you would go over the whole book thus once every year: and the following method may be observed. Let the mafter or miftrefs of the family afk the question of the Shorter Catechifm, and let the answer be returned without book by one of the family; and then let that perfon take the book, and afk the first explanatory queftion upon it at his next neighbour, who may read the answer from the book if he can't repeat it; and then let him who answered afk the second explanatory queftion at his neighbour, who is to answer it as before; and then afk the next question at his neighbour, and fo on; the rest in the mean time attending and going alongst with the perfon reading or repeating, with their feveral books if they have them, or elfe making use of their neighbour's, by which means their thoughts, which are apt to wander, will be the more fixed and intent upon what they are about.

And, to conclude, let me likewife humbly intreat young perfons diligently to improve all fuch helps and means of inftruction in the feafon of youth, and carefully to prepare for and attend all diets of catechifing whether in private or public, and hearken with delight to parents, mafters, or minifters, who would teach them the things which concern their everlafting peace. O confider how many young people are hurried into eternity before they know and lay these things to heart! Believe it, dear Sirs, there is no heaven without Chrift, no intereft in Chrift without faith, and no faith without knowledge. May therefore the earth be filled with the knowledge of Chrift, as the waters cover the fea! Amen.

Dundee, 12th April, 1737.