1. The Paradisaic contains the period from the creation of our first parents to the expulsion from Paradise, introducing the covenant of works, and, by distinction, a probationary dispensation of rewards and punishments dependent upon obedience-" Do this, and live." 2. The Patriarchal, or Sethite, extended from the fall of man to the deluge, and covenanted pardoning mercy and sanctifying grace to all who (like the family of Seth) called upon the name of the Lord, believing in the promised Seed and the typical atonement of sin by sacrifice. 3. The Noachic, from Noah's times, after the flood, to the call of Abraham, in which there was a direct renewal of the covenant of grace, by reliance on the vicarious sacrifice, supported by a fresh sign, the "bow in the cloud," and a new promise of acceptance to the family of faith, and preservation to the world at large from destruction by water. 4. The Abrahamic, from the Call of Abraham to the Exodus of Israel from Egypt. In the former event, the covenant of grace was greatly confirmed and extended-the descent of the Redeemer distinctly pointed out in Abraham's seed, a possession of an earthly inheritance given to the chosen family of faith, typical of the heavenly inheritance and deliverance from bondage effected for this people, figurative of the spiritual rescue of the chosen from the thraldom of sin and sorrow. 5. The Mosaic, or Levitical, is coincident with the prospective establishment of the Lord's people in their own land, under monarchic rule, with a sublime code of moral and ceremonial laws, with great and precious promises, with signs and wonders, with tokens and prophecies-all bearing upon the fuller development of the Divine mercy, grace, and love in the redemption from sin and death, and the establishment of righteousness and peace. 6. The Gospel, or Christian Dispensation of Grace, seen in the first advent of Christ, in the flesh, the bringing in of the bright home of the Church, the preaching of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, the announcement of the spiritual nature of faith, love, and worship, more fully than ever declared, the actual atoning blood of the Lamb, sealing the covenant, shed, the Holy Spirit given visibly according to promise, the kingdom of Christ announced to be coming in, the regeneration of the fallen world, and restoration of the groaning creation. 7. The Millennial, or final Dispensation of the kingdom and glory of Christ and His Church, shewn in the second advent, the subdual of Antichristian enemies, the binding of Satan, the resurrection and enlargement of the true family of faith, the Sabbatical rest, the triumphant manifestation of Christ, as monarch of the world, and the unity of His people, as reigning with Him over saved nations; and that manifestation made most complete in the consummated complete dethronement of Satan, and all that render feigned allegiance, at the close of this period. This view may be thought interesting in one point, from the harmony it discloses between the six days of creation, and the seventh day's Sabbath, or day of the Lord-also between the six millennary divisions of time, six thousand years of woe and toil, and the seventh millennary, the grand windingup of the scenes of transgression, and bringing everlasting righteousness to be more firmly than ever established under the sovereign rule of our great Head and Lord and King.-I am, Sir, yours faithfully, HACKNEY, April 30, 1858. W. STONE. Poetry. SEEK THE THINGS ABOVE. SIGH not for palm and vine, Nor for the sun-loved land which palm and vine are shading; Nor its bright air delicious and divine! That chiller land of thine, Where spring the oak and pine, Without or palm or vine, Is worthier of thy love. Sigh not for cloudless skies, Nor for the magic vales o'er which these skies are bending; On the fair Paradise That underneath it lies; Pouring o'er earth and sea Filling the summer air Love thine own happier land, The greenest land which earth's clear streams are washing, Covet no sunnier strand, Gleaming with golden sand. If thou wilt still be sighing Sigh for the land of the undying, On which no blight nor curse is lying; Where all is holiness And everlasting peace; Where God upon His throne Gives joy for aye; The Lamb, the light and sun, NOTICE. All readers of this Journal are most earnestly besought to give it room in their prayers; that by means of it God may be honoured and His truth advanced; also, that it may be conducted in faith and love, with sobriety of judgment and discernment of the truth, in nothing carried away into error, or hasty speech, or sharp unbrotherly disputation. BALLANTYNE AND COMPANY, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH. THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF PROPHECY. OCTOBER 1858. ART. I.-PROFESSOR FAIRBAIRN AND CONDITIONAL THIS new work from the pen of Professor Fairbairn claims our attention, not so much from its subject, important as it is, as because the author has in the preface attempted a reply to a review of his former work on Prophecy, which appeared in the number of this Journal for July 1857. Our readers will recollect that in that review we pointed out the Arminian tendency of certain speculations put forth by Dr Fairbairn regarding the interpretation of prophecy. It does not surprise us that he should have found it necessary to notice these statements, but the peculiar mode in which he has thought fit to deal with them, demands from us a few preliminary observations, before we enter upon a discussion of the points at issue. What right has Dr Fairbairn to assume that the reviewer "set himself to damage the credit of his book, and of the author along with it"? Or what reason has he to complain of "palpable misrepresentations and uncourteous treatment employed respecting him by parties belonging to the same prophetical school as the reviewer above referred to"? We have on several * "Hermeneutical Manual; or, Introduction to the Exegetical Study of the Scriptures of the New Testament." By PATRICK FAIRBAIRN, D.D. Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark. occasions reviewed works from Dr Fairbairn's pen: we have often pointed out what we believed to be erroneous in them; but we are not aware of a single instance of misrepresentation, or want of courtesy. If such can be pointed out, we shall be ready, as is our duty, to make what reparation we can; but we cannot permit Dr Fairbairn, under cloud of a general charge of unfairness, to conceal the momentous character of the points now at issue between us. A man of Dr Fairbairn's position ought not to have condescended to an artifice so entirely unbecoming. As to the review of which he complains, we hold it to have been a fair and moderate treatment of the points in debate. Dr Fairbairn's attempt to excite a prejudice against us on the ground of the prophetical views advocated in this Journal, will not avail him; for premillennialism did not enter into the discussion at all, nor did our sentiments on this point in the slightest degree influence our reasonings, except, indeed, to this extent, that we were not sorry to have opportunity of shewing that premillennialism is not so commonly leagued with heresy as its opponents are inclined to maintain. And we can assure Dr Fairbairn that we have the best possible reason for knowing that not a few of his own Church, who have no sympathy with our peculiar views on this subject, entirely agree with the opinions we have expressed regarding the tendency of his doctrines. Nor do we feel as much depressed as perhaps we ought to be by Dr Fairbairn's allusions to the obscurity of the source from which the attack on his work on Prophecy has proceeded, and the improbability that "he will refer to anything of the same sort in future;" for we are perverse enough to believe, that had this been his real estimate of the weight and value of our critical remarks, he would have abstained from noticing them at all. So much we have thought it necessary to premise, and in now approaching the main subject, we have nothing to explain and nothing to retract. We do not doubt, on the other hand, that we shall be able to make good every statement which we put forth in our former review. Dr Fairbairn seems to be displeased with our former remarks upon his treatment of the "Calvinistic writers of a former age." He made, he says, only "a very brief and general allusion" to them, in which it was his intention merely" to intimate in the shortest manner possible," that a certain distinction made, or supposed to be made by them, did not " in his view, satisfactorily explicate the matter at issue." We quoted Dr Fairbairn's own words in our former article. His allusion to the older Calvinistic writers is certainly sufficiently brief, but it shews perfectly distinctly that Dr Fairbairn had entirely mistaken their views. He divided the writers on the subject into two classes; the one represented by Olshausen, and the other by Hengstenberg. He included the older Calvinistic writers in the first of these classes, the one which maintains the conditional character of the prophetic announcements. We asserted, and we now repeat the assertion, that the older Calvinistic writers belong to the other class, and that they hold in the main the opinions expressed by Hengstenberg in a passage quoted by Dr Fairbairn, and transferred to our pages. Will Dr Fairbairn lay aside all ambiguity of language, and tell us plainly whether he still holds that the Calvinists of a former age belong to the class represented by Köster and Olshausen? Will he say whether he still maintains that they held prophecy to be conditional? This mistake is one into which no one could have fallen who was at all familiar with the literature of Calvinism. Still, however suspicious it may be, it does not prove that Dr Fairbairn's own views are unsound. Nor, indeed, do we intend to affirm that they are. What we accuse him of is ignoranceignorance so great, that he has unwittingly put forth sentiments which lead to Arminianism by the shortest possible inference. But before we enter upon this portion of the subject, we must set before our readers the precise point at issue. The most cursory examination of the prophetic word reveals to us an important fact with reference to one portion at least of God's communications to man. We discover that there are warnings and threatenings communicated by Him through the prophets which are never carried into execution; and we observe also, that these communications are not in every case at once capable of being distinguished from such revelations of His will as might be supposed to be irrevocable. As examples of what we mean, we may quote Isaiah's warning to Hezekiah"Thus saith the Lord, Set thine house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live:" whereas the king did after all recover of his disease. A similar instance we find in the commission given to the prophet Jonah with regard to Nineveh. He was directed to proclaim to the inhabitants of that city, "Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown." And yet, when they fasted and cried unto the Lord, He repented of the evil that He had said He would do unto them, and He did it not. In these cases, there is unquestionably an element of conditionality. God did not intend to announce absolutely and irrevocably that Hezekiah should die, or that Nineveh should fall. There was a provision implied, if not expressed, and a provision understood by those to whom the warning came, for Hezekiah at once turned his face to the wall, and prayed for a prolongation of |