ing from regular laws, and not by any special or personal agency, except what is included in law: thus making providence identical with existence and preservation; which does not differ much from nature; differing in nothing except in the recognition of a Deity who is spiritual, who is Love, Wisdom, and Power, instead of mere material nature. Others have contended for a Divine agency and interference as special and distinct as man's; which puts forth the right act at the right time; which exercises a watchfulness, and comes in at the crisis, and is, in fact, a special, personal, constant superintendence over all the affairs of individuals and nations.

It is not too much to say that this latter hypothesis, at its very first presentation, makes a stronger appeal to man's spiritual mind, and has altogether a higher theological element in it. And for that reason it undoubtedly contains the most truth. There is truth, however, in both hypotheses, and the latter is more worthy of the name of a theory. It is a grand point to reconcile these views of the Divine operation, and so to put reason and faith, philosophy and theology, at one. And the truth is, it is only owing to our limited and imperfect conceptions of the Divine Being, that there is any difference of opinion on the subject. It is supposed to be contrary to the most exalted and divine conceptions of the Deity, to suppose Him to be interfering with his works and operations as man does: and it undoubtedly is so, in respect to not foreseeing the future, and not knowing how to act till the crisis comes: but in respect to special and timely agency, and personal interference at the right moment, impressing an individual mind, or a thousand or million minds, to one end, or many ends, here is a vast truth not to be lost sight of. It would be strange indeed, if God had not as much special action and application as man! But in the first place, in all discussions of this nature, it is of immense importance to settle well the use of terms. What do we mean by special providences? These of course must all be included in the orderly operation of laws, or consistent with

them, and yet we must not lose the idea of a distinct personality, and personal, timely agency, on the part of the Divine Being. That God is personal, there can be no doubt, for man is created in his image and likeness, and Jesus Christ was God manifest in the flesh. That He is infinite and universal, acting at once in all and through all, is also a truth. What, then, is a special act of his? We answer, it is not a departure from the regular round of things, but it is just so much of the universal as is more prominent to our perceptions, or more important, as affecting an individual, or many individuals, and also, as taking place by a higher law than the merely natural, and likewise involving more spiritual agencies. Every thing that transpires is of Providence, because, as before shown, it is some ultimate from the Divine Essence, either orderly or disorderly; and by the very necessity and correctness of the infinite procedure, it is either provided or arranged for, designed or permitted, by the Infinite Being. But some things are more manifestly so to our perceptions, as we see the wonderful divine means which have led to them. There is, therefore, no speciality at all, in respect to their taking place without law, or contrary to law; but when we come to see, in many particular and more prominent instances, how very wonderful the providence is, and how it has manifestly occurred by the operation of some higher laws than pertain merely to earth or nature, even the agency of spiritual beings being used for the production of it, then it becomes what we call special: but it is special, not as taken out of the universal, but as included in it; yet as projecting out of it to our view, so as to convince us of more than mere laws, and of personal and divine agencies working with those laws.

Laws, indeed, as has been observed before, are sometimes suspended in their operation in a particular locality, for the time being, and with reference to a particular performance there, and new laws brought to bear in their place, as in the case of miracles; but they are never violated.

One great reason why we have no clearer views of this subject, is that we confuse ourselves with contemplations of the infinite. We are not at all fitted to contemplate clearly the abstract infinite, simply because we are finite. And indeed, in reference to the Divine Providence connected with so vast an infinity, we are situated similarly as a fly would be, who should undertake to speculate upon the machinery and extent of the steam-ship that he alights upon in the Atlantic. Says the fly"This is certainly a matter of no special, personal agency at all; it is all a stupendous natural operation." And yet he could not see even the main-wheel of such a structure; much less the chief engineer, and the intelligent will that put it all in motion. And how much like the fly is man, wheeling through infinity on a little planet like this!

Another reason for obscurity on this subject, is our views of eternity. We find it difficult to conceive of any timely providence on the part of God, because, connected with a false idea of special, we cannot imagine God to come or act at one time more than another. And He does not, strictly speaking. God is not as man. Man does not know how to act frequently till the crisis comes, and does not act till then; he has not foresight in the case. God has even better than infinite foresight. All things are in a distinct sense ever present to his omniscient eye. The Infinite embraces from first to last, and from centre to circumference, all the finite, which are only so many possibilities and complications of existence, all included in the original Substance, and their breaking forth in time is only their occurrence in the extremes or ultimates of nature. The Omniscient Eye must have seen these, and the infinite wisdom provided for them. The same as God's own appearance in the incarnate form of the Humanity. This was no new thing to Him, only in act and in ultimation. So with every individual soul's existence, which must, from eternity, have been embraced in germal distinctiveness separate from every other soul. When born into the natural world, it was

but the ultimation of an eternal divine conception, and, as it were, birth from Him. And so of all the experience which each soul is called to undergo, through time and eternity. It is all, as it were, previsioned and pre-enacted-all but the evil, and even that is presubstantiated, (not as evil) in the Divine Mind from eternity. How else could they be foretold, if not seen, and in a certain sense existing, from eternity? And how are many things in human experience previsioned even to the eye of man, with such wonderful accuracy and particularity, sometimes months and years before they have happened, -things impossible to be imagined, and most unlikely to occur, if the very tissues and substances of them, in the natural and spiritual worlds, were not woven into a fatal pre-existence? There can be no sight without substantial connection, or a fine medium like the light and atmosphere, through which to convey the impressions to the optic nerve and the retina. And this substantial connection, we may be assured exists, from eternity with the omniscient God. And all, as before explained, not contrary to, but accordant with, the entire practical free-will of man.

Such is the sense, then, and even more than we can possibly comprehend, in which all things are ever present to the eye and mind of God. Therefore, what He does in his providence, is done in the Divine Mind from eternity. Although things transpire in the most orderly manner, and at the moment when needed, and never a moment before, and this is called a coming in at the crisis, and is in fact so, yet it is not that God at that moment does a new act to meet the exigency. The act was ordered and done from eternity in the Divine Mind, but not yet ultimated into nature; and it was seen that just at that moment, that day or year, it would most infallibly transpire. Now this is timely providence. And it may be, must be, very particular. It must involve certain persons, where no others would answer, and certain moments, and what appear to us as accidents. Indeed, providence must be particular,

to the smallest iota, because the universal is made up of nothing but all the particulars. And if one single particular, ever so small, were left out, there could be no universal providence. But here it is, timely, particular, exact, wonderful.

But now for all these difficulties, there is one most happy and philosophical relief. The truth is, the infinite and the eternal, so far as we can conceive of them, which is but faintly, afford us a lesson of the greatness and majesty of God, but no distinctive lesson of his providence. For a proper conception of his providence and personal agency, we must shrink up into certain limited spheres accommodated to our capacity. Thus it will be observed, we may preserve all the proportions of truth, and in our inferences concerning the infinite and the eternal, lose none of its correctness and fitness. And within these spheres, there is proof enough, and illustration enough, of this most interesting subject.

First, we have the grand and infinite truth of God himself accommodated to us, in the personal manifestation of the Lord Jesus Christ. For however much we may speculate on the nature and origin of Christ, the simple truth will be found to be, that He was "God manifest in the flesh,”—that the Divine Essence took form and humanity, above all the operations of human generation, yet not without law, showing us how much of God, how much of personality, is comprehended in that infinite Essence which prevades all nature, but which is only clearly revealed to us in Jesus Christ. And can any one who admits this truth doubt the personal agency and providence of God now? - now that He has revealed Himself - stood out to us as one of us—unveiled the infinite glory, and without the violation of a single law, made known to us that God is personal, and can assume that Form of the Only Begotten, to teach us what could not be taught by all the blazing suns of the firmament. In the simple language of the Scriptures"No man hath seen God at any time: ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape: the only begotten