desirous of giving you all proper instruction, yet I, who love you so
tenderly, cannot help fondly wishing to contribute something, if
possible, to your improvement and welfare: and, as I am so far separated
from you, that it is only by pen and ink I can offer you my sentiments,
I will hope that your attention may be engaged, by seeing on paper, from
the hand of one of your warmest friends, Truths of the highest
importance, which, though you may not find new, can never be too deeply
engraven on your mind. Some of them perhaps may make no great
impression at present, and yet may so far gain a place in your memory as
readily to return to your thoughts when occasion recalls them. And, if
you pay me the compliment of preserving my letters, you may possibly
re-peruse them at some future period, when concurring circumstances may
give them additional weight:--and thus they may prove more effectual
than the same things spoken in conversation. But, however this may
prove, I cannot resist the desire of trying in some degree to be useful
to you on your setting out in a life of trial and difficulty; your
success in which must determine your fate for ever.
Hitherto you have "thought as a child, and understood as a child; but it
is time to put away childish things." You are now in your fifteenth
year, and must soon act for yourself; therefore it is high time to store
your mind with those principles, which must direct your conduct, and fix
your character. If you desire to live in peace and honour, in favour
with God and man, and to die in the glorious hope of rising from the
grave to a life of endless happiness--if these things appear worthy your
ambition, you must set out in earnest in the pursuit of them. Virtue
and happiness are not attained by chance, nor by a cold and languid
approbation: they must be sought with ardour, attended to with
diligence, and every assistance must be eagerly embraced that may enable
you to obtain them. Consider, that good and evil are now before you;
that, if you do not heartily choose and love the one, you must
undoubtedly be the wretched victim of the other. Your trial is now
begun; you must either become one of the glorious _children_ of _God_,
who are to rejoice in his love for ever, or a _child_ of
_destruction_--miserable in this life, and punished with eternal death
hereafter. Surely, you will be impressed by so awful a situation! you
will earnestly pray to be directed into that road of life, which leads
to excellence and happiness; and you will be thankful to every kind hand
that is held out, to set you forward in your journey.
The first step must be to awaken your mind to a sense of the importance
of the task before you, which is no less than to bring your frail nature
to that degree of Christian perfection, which is to qualify it for
immortality, and without which, it is necessarily incapable of
happiness; for it is a truth never to be forgotten, that God has annexed
happiness to virtue, and misery to vice, by the unchangeable nature of
things; and that a wicked being (while he continues such) is in a
natural incapacity of enjoying happiness, even with the concurrence of
all those outward circumstances, which in a virtuous mind would produce
it.
As there are degrees of virtue and vice, so are there of reward and
punishment, both here and hereafter: But, let not my dearest Niece aim
only at escaping the dreadful doom of the wicked--let your desires take
a nobler flight, and aspire after those transcendent honours, and that
brighter crown of glory, which await those who have excelled in virtue;
and, let the animating thought, that every secret effort to gain his
favour is noted by your all-seeing Judge, who will, with infinite
goodness, proportion your reward to your labours, excite every faculty
of your soul to please and serve him. To this end you must _inform your
understanding_ what you ought to _believe_ and to _do_.--You must
_correct_ and _purify_ your _heart_; cherish and improve all its good
affections, and continually mortify and subdue those that are evil.--You
must _form_ and _govern_ your _temper_ and _manners_, according to the
laws of benevolence and justice; and qualify yourself, by all means in
your power, for an _useful_ and _agreeable_ member of society. All this
you see is no light business, nor can it be performed without a sincere
and earnest application of the mind, as to its great and constant
object. When once you consider life, and the duties of life, in this
manner, you will listen eagerly to the voice of instruction and
admonition, and seize every opportunity of improvement; every useful
hint will be laid up in your heart, and your chief delight will be in
those persons, and those books, from which you can learn true wisdom.
The only sure foundation of human virtue is Religion, and the foundation
and first principle of religion is in the belief of the one only God,
and a just sense of his attributes. This you will think you have learned
long since, and possess in common with almost every human creature in
this enlightened age and nation; but, believe me, it is less common than
you imagine, to believe in the true God--that is, to form such a notion
of the Deity as is agreeable to truth, and consistent with those
infinite perfections, which all profess to ascribe to him. To form
worthy notions of the Supreme Being, as far as we are capable, is
essential to true religion and morality; for as it is our duty to
imitate those qualities of the Divinity, which are imitable by us, so is
it necessary we should know what they are, and fatal to mistake them.
Can those who think of God with servile dread and terror, as of a gloomy
tyrant, armed with almighty power to torment and destroy them, be said
to believe in the true God?--in that God, who, the scriptures say, is
love?--the kindest and best of Beings, who made all creatures in
bountiful goodness, that he might communicate to them some portion of
his own unalterable happiness!--who condescends to style himself our
Father; and who pitieth us, as a father pitieth his own children! Can
those, who expect to please God by cruelty to themselves or to their
fellow-creatures--by horrid punishments of their own bodies for the sin
of their souls--or, by more horrid persecution of others for difference
of opinion, be called true believers? Have they not set up another God
in their own minds, who rather resembles the worst of beings than the
best? Nor do those act on surer principles who think to gain the favour
of God by senseless enthusiasm and frantic raptures, more like the wild
excesses of the most depraved human love, than that reasonable
adoration, that holy reverential love, which is due to the pure and holy
Father of the universe. Those likewise, who murmur against his
providence, and repine under the restraint of his commands, cannot
firmly believe him infinitely wise and good. If we are not disposed to
trust him for future events, to banish fruitless anxiety, and to believe
that all things work together for good to those that love him, surely we
do not really believe in the God of mercy and truth. If we wish to avoid
all remembrance of him, all communion with him, as much as we dare,
surely we do not believe him to be the source of joy and comfort, the
dispenser of all good.
How lamentable it is, that so few hearts should feel the pleasures of
real piety; that prayer and thanksgiving should be performed, as they
too often are, not with joy, and love, and gratitude; but, with cold
indifference, melancholy dejection, or secret horror! It is true, we
are all such frail and sinful creatures, that we justly fear to have
offended our gracious Father: but let us remember the condition of his
forgiveness: If you have sinned, "sin no more." He is ready to receive
you whenever you sincerely turn to him--and he is ready to assist you,
when you do but desire to obey him. Let your devotion then be the
language of filial love and gratitude; confide to this kindest of
fathers every want and every wish of your heart; but submit them all
to his will, and freely offer him the disposal of yourself, and of all
your affairs. Thank him for his benefits, and even for his
punishments--convinced that these also are benefits, and mercifully
designed for your good. Implore his direction in all difficulties; his
assistance in all trials; his comfort and support in sickness or
affliction; his restraining grace in time of prosperity and joy. Do not
persist in desiring what his providence denies you; but be assured it
is not good for you. Refuse not any thing he allots you, but embrace it
as the best and properest for you. Can you do less to your heavenly
Father than what your duty to an earthly one requires? If you were to
ask permission of your father to do or to have any thing you desire,
and he should refuse it to you, would you obstinately persist in
setting your heart upon it notwithstanding his prohibition? Would you
not rather say, My father is wiser than I am; he loves me, and would
not deny my request, if it was fit to be granted; I will therefore
banish the thought, and cheerfully acquiesce in his will? How much
rather should this be said of our heavenly Father, whose wisdom cannot
be mistaken, and whose bountiful kindness is infinite! Love him,
therefore, in the same manner you love your earthly parents, but in a
much higher degree--in the highest your nature is capable of. Forget
not to dedicate yourself to his service every day; to implore his
forgiveness of your faults, and his protection from evil, every night:
and this not merely in formal words, unaccompanied by any act of the
mind, but "in spirit and in truth;" in grateful love and humble
adoration. Nor let these stated periods of worship be your only
communication with him; accustom yourself to think often of him, in all
your waking hours,--to contemplate his wisdom and power, in the works
of his hands,--to acknowledge his goodness in every object of use or of
pleasure,--to delight in giving him praise in your inmost heart in the
midst of every innocent gratification--in the liveliest hour of social
enjoyment. You cannot conceive, if you have not experienced, how much
such silent acts of gratitude and love will enhance every pleasure; nor
what sweet serenity and cheerfulness such reflections will diffuse over
your mind. On the other hand, when you are suffering pain or sorrow,
when you are confined to an unpleasant situation, or engaged in a
painful duty, how will it support and animate you, to refer yourself to
your Almighty Father!--to be assured that he knows your state and your
intentions; that no effort of virtue is lost in his sight, nor the
least of your actions or sufferings disregarded or forgotten!--that his
hand is ever over you, to ward off every real evil, which is not the
effect of your own ill-conduct, and to relieve every suffering that is
not useful to your future well-being.
You see, my dear, that true devotion is not a melancholy sentiment, that
depresses the spirits, and excludes the ideas of pleasure, which youth
is fond of: on the contrary, there is nothing so friendly to joy, so
productive of true pleasure, so peculiarly suited to the warmth and
innocence of a youthful heart. Do not therefore think it too soon to
turn your mind to God; but offer him the first fruits of your
understanding and affections: and be assured, that the more you increase
in love to him, and delight in his laws, the more you will increase in
happiness, in excellence, and honour:--that in proportion as you improve
in true piety, you will become dear and amiable to your
fellow-creatures; contented and peaceful in yourself; and qualified to
enjoy the best blessings of this life, as well as to inherit the
glorious promise of immortality.
Thus far I have spoken of the first principles of all religion; namely,
belief in God, worthy notions of his attributes, and suitable
affections towards him--which will naturally excite a sincere desire of
obedience. But before you can obey his will, you must know what that
will is; you must enquire in what manner he has declared it, and where
you may find those laws which must be the rule of your actions.
The great laws of morality are indeed written in our hearts, and may be
discovered by reason: but our reason is of slow growth, very unequally
dispensed to different persons, liable to error, and confined within
very narrow limits in all. If, therefore, God vouchsafed to grant a
particular revelation of his will--if he has been so unspeakably
gracious, as to send his Son into the world to reclaim mankind from
error and wickedness--to die for our sins--and to teach us the way to
eternal life--surely it becomes us to receive his precepts with the
deepest reverence; to love and prize them above all things; and to study
them constantly, with an earnest desire to conform our thoughts, our
words, and actions to them.
As you advance in years and understanding, I hope you will be able to
examine for yourself the evidences of the Christian religion, and be
convinced, on rational grounds, of its divine authority. At present,
such inquiries would demand more study, and greater powers of reasoning,
than your age admits of. It is your part, therefore, till you are
capable of understanding the proofs, to believe your parents and
teachers, that the holy scriptures are writings inspired by God,
containing a true history of facts, in which we are deeply concerned--a
true recital of the laws given by God to Moses, and of the precepts of
our blessed Lord and Saviour, delivered from his own mouth to his
disciples, and repeated and enlarged upon in the edifying epistles of
his apostles--who were men chosen from amongst those who had the
advantage of conversing with our Lord, to bear witness of his miracles
and resurrection--and who, after his ascension, were assisted and
inspired by the Holy Ghost. This sacred volume must be the rule of your
life. In it you will find all truths necessary to be believed; and plain
and easy directions for the practice of every duty. Your Bible then must
be your chief study and delight: but as it contains many various kinds
of writing--some parts obscure and difficult of interpretation, others
plain and intelligible to the meanest capacity--I would chiefly
recommend to your frequent perusal such parts of the sacred writings as
are most adapted to your understanding, and most necessary for your
instruction. Our Saviour's precepts were spoken to the common people
amongst the Jews; and were therefore given in a manner easy to be
understood, and equally striking and instructive to the learned and
unlearned; for the most ignorant may comprehend them, whilst the wisest
must be charmed and awed, by the beautiful and majestic simplicity with
which they are expressed. Of the same kind are the Ten Commandments,
delivered by God to Moses; which, as they were designed for universal
laws, are worded in the most concise and simple manner, yet with a
majesty which commands our utmost reverence.
I think you will receive great pleasure, as well as improvement, from
the Historical Books of the Old Testament--provided you read them as an
history, in a regular course, and keep the thread of it in your mind, as
you go on. I know of none, true or fictitious, that is equally
wonderful, interesting, and affecting; or that is told in so short and
simple a manner as this, which is, of all histories, the most authentic.
In my next letter, I will give you some brief directions, concerning the
method and course I wish you to pursue, in reading the Holy Scriptures.
May you be enabled to make the best use of this most precious gift of
God--this sacred treasury of knowledge! May you read the Bible, not as a
task, nor as the dull employment of that day only in which you are
forbidden more lively entertainments--but with a sincere and ardent
desire of instruction; with that love and delight in God's word which
the holy psalmist so pathetically felt, and described, and which is the
natural consequence of loving God and virtue! Though I speak this of the
Bible in general, I would not be understood to mean that every part of
the volume is equally interesting. I have already said, that it consists
of various matter, and various kinds of books, which must be read with
different views and sentiments. The having some general notion of what
you are to expect from each book may possibly help you to understand
them, and heighten your relish of them. I shall treat you as if you were
perfectly new to the whole; for so I wish you to consider yourself;
because the time and manner, in which children usually read the Bible,
are very ill-calculated to make them really acquainted with it; and too
many people who have read it thus, without understanding it in their
youth, satisfy themselves that they know enough of it, and never
afterwards study it with attention, when they come to a maturer age.
Adieu, my beloved Niece! If the feelings of your heart, whilst you read
my letters, correspond with those of mine, whilst I write them, I shall
not be without the advantage of your partial affection, to give weight
to my advice; for, believe me, my own dear girl, my heart and eyes
overflow with tenderness while I tell you, with how warm and earnest
prayers for your happiness here, and hereafter, I subscribe myself
Your faithful friend
and most affectionate AUNT.
LETTER II.
ON THE STUDY OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
I NOW proceed to give my dear Niece some short sketches of the matter
contained in the different books of the Bible, and of the course in
which they ought to be read.
The first Book, GENESIS, contains the most grand, and, to us, the most
interesting, events that ever happened in the universe: The creation of
the world, and of man:--The deplorable fall of man, from his first state
of excellence and bliss, to the distressed condition in which we see all
his descendants continue:--The sentence of death pronounced on Adam, and
on all his race, with the reviving promise of that deliverance which has
since been wrought for us by our blessed Saviour:--The account of the
early state of the world:--Of the universal deluge:--The division of
mankind into different nations and languages:--The story of Abraham, the
founder of the Jewish people, whose unshaken faith and obedience, under
the severest trial human nature could sustain, obtained such favour in
the sight of God, that he vouchsafed to style him his friend, and
promised to make his posterity a great nation; and that in his
seed--that is, in one of his descendants--all the kingdoms of the earth
should be blessed: this, you will easily see, refers to the Messiah, who
was to be the blessing and deliverance of all nations. It is amazing
that the Jews, possessing this prophecy among many others, should have
been so blinded by prejudice, as to have expected from this great
personage only a temporal deliverance of their own nation from the
subjection to which they were reduced under the Romans: it is equally
amazing, that some Christians should, even now, confine the blessed
effects of his appearance upon earth to this or that particular sect or
profession, when he is so clearly and emphatically described as the
Saviour of the whole world! The story of Abraham's proceeding to
sacrifice his only son at the command of God, is affecting in the
highest degree, and sets forth a pattern of unlimited resignation, that
every one ought to imitate, in those trials of obedience under
temptation, or of acquiescence under afflicting dispensations, which
fall to their lot: of this we may be assured, that our trials will be
always proportioned to the powers afforded us: if we have not Abraham's
strength of mind, neither shall we be called upon to lift the bloody
knife against the bosom of an only child: but, if the almighty arm
should be lifted up against him, we must be ready to resign him, and all
we hold dear, to the Divine will. This action of Abraham has been
censured by some, who do not attend to the distinction between obedience
to a special command, and the detestably cruel sacrifices of the
heathens, who sometimes voluntarily, and without any Divine injunctions,
offered up their own children, under the notion of appeasing the anger
of their gods. An absolute command from God himself--as in the case of
Abraham--entirely alters the moral nature of the action; since he, and
he only, has a perfect right over the lives of his creatures, and may
appoint whom he will, either angel or man, to be his instrument of
destruction. That it was really the voice of God which pronounced the
command, and not a delusion, might be made certain to Abraham's mind, by
means we do not comprehend, but which we know to be within the power of
_him_ who made our souls as well as bodies, and who can control and
direct every faculty of the human mind: and we may be assured, that, if
he was pleased to reveal himself so miraculously, he would not leave a
possibility of doubting whether it was a real or an imaginary
revelation: thus the sacrifice of Abraham appears to be clear of all
superstition, and remains the noblest instance of religious faith and
submission that was ever given by a mere man: we cannot wonder that the
blessings bestowed on him for it should have been extended to his
posterity. This book proceeds with the history of Isaac, which becomes
very interesting to us, from the touching scene I have mentioned; and
still more so, if we consider him as the type of our Saviour: it
recounts his marriage with Rebecca--the birth and history of his two
sons, Jacob, the father of the twelve tribes, and Esau, the father of
the Edomites or Idumeans--the exquisitely affecting story of Joseph and
his brethren--and of his transplanting the Israelites into Egypt, who
there multiplied to a great nation.
In EXODUS you read of a series of wonders wrought by the Almighty, to
rescue the oppressed Israelites from the cruel tyranny of the Egyptians,
who, having first received them as guests, by degrees reduced them to a
state of slavery. By the most peculiar mercies and exertions in their
favour, God prepared his chosen people to receive, with reverent and
obedient hearts, the solemn restitution of those primitive laws, which
probably he had revealed to Adam and his immediate descendants, or
which, at least, he had made known by the dictates of conscience, but
which, time, and the degeneracy of mankind, had much obscured. This
important revelation was made to them in the wilderness of Sinah: there,
assembled before the burning mountain, surrounded "with blackness, and
darkness, and tempest," they heard the awful voice of God pronounce the
eternal law, impressing it on their hearts with circumstances of terror,
but without those encouragements and those excellent promises, which
were afterwards offered to mankind by Jesus Christ. Thus were the great
laws of morality restored to the Jews, and through them transmitted to
other nations; and by that means a great restraint was opposed to the
torrent of vice and impiety, which began to prevail over the world.
To those moral precepts, which are of perpetual and universal
obligation, were superadded, by the ministration of Moses, many peculiar
institutions, wisely adapted to different ends--either to fix the memory
of those past deliverances, which were figurative of a future and far
greater salvation--to place inviolable barriers between the Jews and the
idolatrous nations, by whom they were surrounded--or, to be the civil
law, by which the community was to be governed.
To conduct this series of events, and to establish these laws with his
people, God raised up that great prophet Moses, whose faith and piety
enabled him to undertake and execute the most arduous enterprises, and
to pursue, with unabated zeal, the welfare of his countrymen: even in
the hour of death, this generous ardour still prevailed: his last
moments were employed in fervent prayers for their prosperity, and in
rapturous gratitude for the glimpse vouchsafed him of a Saviour, far
greater than himself, whom God would one day raise up to his people.
Thus did Moses, by the excellency of his faith, obtain a glorious
pre-eminence among the saints and prophets in heaven; while, on earth,
he will be ever revered, as the first of those benefactors to mankind,
whose labours for the public good have endeared their memory to all
ages.