His Works." I. A funeral Sermon for the Reverend Mr. William Gurnall, on Heb. xiii. 7. II. An Argumentative and Practical Discourse on Infant Baptism. III. The Poor Man's Help, and the Young Man's Guide. IV. Family Instruction, a Catechism, explaining by short Questions and Answers the great and necessary Doctrines of Faith and Holiness. V. His celebrated large work, entitled, Expository Notes, with practical Observations on the New Testament, folio."

PHILIP JAMES SPENER, D. D.

PHILIP JAMES SPENER, was born the 13th of January 1635, at Rappolsweiler in the Upper Elsasz in Germany, of very pious parents, as he himself testifies, in his own account of his life. They devoted him to the service of God from his birth. With respect to his natural parts; he was endued with uncommon ingenuity, a very retentive memory, and a most penetrating judgment. To these three gifts, which are seldom to be met with in one person, we may add, that of an uncommon thirst for knowledge: So that he very early began to seek and taste the sweetness of all useful learning. He had great advantages, both from his parents and others, for spiritual and moral improvements; and he was very happily diligent in prosecuting and embracing them. All his leisure hours were employed in the study of history, geography, and poetry. His acquirements, previous to his going to the university in the year 1651, being considerable, he was promoted to the degree of master of arts by the university of Strasburg in the eighteenth year of his age; after disputing De confirmatione naturæ rationalis ad Creatorem, in which he particularly treated De Theologià naturali, and observed some things against Hobbes and his notions. Having before applied himself to the study of Greek and Hebrew, (in the former of which he accustomed himself to read, next to the New Testament, the best writers; in the latter, he applied himself chiefly to the study of the Scriptures;) he was able, in three quarters of a-year, to dispute privately in the Hebrew tongue. In order to have a right understanding

understanding of the Rabbins and Talmuds, he not only made use of the instructions of a Jew, but also, in the year 1659, went to Basil, to embrace an opportunity of improving his knowledge in this way under the celebrated Buxtorf. He much applied himself to history, particularly the German history, from the most ancient authors; he was also well instructed in the Arabic. On the 14th day of June 1654, he began his Studium Theologicum. Thus Divine Providence directed his studies to answer the end for which he was designed.

In the year 1654 he was appointed preceptor to the two princely brothers, Duke Christian and Duke Ernest John Charles, Counts Palatine upon the Rhine, with whom he returned to Strasburg, and there instructed them a year and a half: In which time he had but little leisure to apply himself to his own particular studies. Therefore, in the year 1656, when the two counts were to travel to France, he, by the advice of the divines, took his leave of them; apprehending the journey might have proved hurtful to him in his study of divinity. Upon this he applied himself again to his studies, as far as his attendance on the lectures would permit; for having settled an intimacy with most of the principal men of the university, by means of the princes, he attended their lectures with great diligence, namely, of logic, metaphysics, &c. As his mind, during his residence at the university, was under very gracious impressions, he was preserved from the great dangers which an university life exposed him to. He accustomed himself, on the Lord's day, to have nothing to do with worldly matters; nor even to engage himself in those theological studies by which he was only to be made more learned, and not more holy and heavenly minded. GOD having impressed this pious man, in his infinite mercy, with great concern for his own soul, he was the more considerate for the souls of others.

In the year 1662, during the time he was at Tubingen, a call was sent from Strasburg, in which was not only a great charge, but many peculiar difficulties. This occasioned a great struggle in his mind. However, this affair, for that time, fell to the ground. But, in the next year, the magistracy at Strasburg, through the instrumentality of Dr. Dannhaur, sent him a solemn call to the second place in the ministry, which he accepted with great pleasure; because, during his whole stay at Strasburg, he continued to read lectures on divinity, history, geography,

and

and politics. At this time he took the degree in doctor of divinity.

In the year 1666, he accepted a call to Frankfort, which was attended with the care of many sculs. On the 3d of July he took an affectionate farewell of the congregation, in the cathedral of Strasburg, preaching from Psalm cxix. 52. And on the twentieth of the same month he arrived with his family in Frankfort. He remained at Frankfort twenty years, namely, to the year 1686, when he was called to Dresden. It may not be unacceptable to the reader, to be informed what passed in this time in the church there; and will be best understood by his own words: "It always proved a weighty concern with me, after justification, to press forward towards greater degrees of sanctification. The first strong exciting thereto I experienced, by the grace of GoD, on the sixth Sunday after Trinity, 1669, when I embraced an opportunity of reproving the false unsatisfactory righteousness of the Pharisees. Concerning this sermon, which was afterwards printed, I have reason to extol the power of GOD, which was at that time so manifested, that the word pierced the heart almost of every one, according to Acts ii. 37. Some the word had such an effect upon, that, because they were disturbed in their security, they resolved never to come to the church again. Others were brought to experience a reverential awe at the majesty of GOD, confessed their hypocrisy, and, by the grace of GoD, turned to him with all their hearts. From this time, I continued preaching the pure word of justification by faith, without any respect at all to the merit of works, and pointed out the absolute necessity of having a lively faith in Jesus Christ in order to be real Christians. The work of GOD being thus carried on, not only by preaching, but also by catechizing the children, and other religious societies; it is not to be wondered at, that the devil, who saw his kingdom tottering and exposed to ruin, exerted all his power to put an end to the good work begun. To effect this, he made use of his customary arts of lying and slander, perverting the truths of the gospel which were confessed by all professing Christians to be true; inasmuch, through his subtilty, the good beginning made in Frankfort was by too many despised." In May 1684, this pious minister was by the privy coun sellor Seckendorff removed from Frankfort to Dresden, where he did not continue long. The reason of his dismission from Dresden is thus represented: On the 22d of February 1689, after the example of his predecessors, Dr.

Wellers

Wellers and Dr. Geyers, he sent a letter to the elector John George III. in which, with the most profound respect, he laid before him the state of his soul. Some of the nobles represented this faithful dealing as an insult; and their arguments so far prevailed, that the elector resolved never to hear him again: And he returned him his own letter, together with another, in which God so governed hand and pen, that no hard words were made use of. From this time, the elector neither saw nor heard him. In 1690, a person having asserted in private conversation, that he had seen a copy of the letters, (which was not true,) it was from this time determined to dismiss him. This affair, however, paved his way for a call, which he received about this time from Berlin, which he accepted. On Whitsunday 1691, he preached his farewell sermon at the chapel royal at Dresden, on the gospel of John iii. 16, -21. And on the second Sunday after Trinity he preached his introductory sermon in St. Nicholas church in Berlin, on Luke xiv. 24. He always prayed that Gon would grant his latter years to be his best; and, in that, he was graciously heard and answered.

In

At the command of the elector, he prepared a treatise entitled, "The deliverance of the gospel church from false accusations of division and communication with all heretics." And, not long before his death, he finished, in manuscript, "A defence of the testimony of the Godhead of our Lord Jesus Christ." From which writings the situation of the church at that time may be clearly seen. the particular duties of his office in Berlin he published sixty-six sermons on the important article "of regeneration:" And he paraphrased and explained the epistle to the Galatians, and the first epistle of St. John. At this period also, he wrote his famous treatise " upon true and saving faith."

We come now to speak of his death, which, according to the wise direction of the Lord of life and death, happened on the fifth of February, 1705. His whole life being exemplary, there could be no room to doubt but his death would be edifying; and that the promise of Psalm xxxii. 8. would he fulfilled in him. As soon as he was seized with his last illness, he sent for Baron Hilderbrand van Canstein, and said to him in private, The Lord being about to call him hence, he begged that the celebrated Riveti hora novissima, i. e. Dr. Rivet's last hours,' which he had read in his younger days with much pleasure, might be brought

brought him. Among the rest, the following was very pleasant to him: Thou art the teacher of souls: I have learned more true divinity within these ten days, than I have been able to do in the space of fifty years before." About a fortnight before his death, when he entered upon his seventy-first year, he supposed the Lord would be pleased to make the day he was born into this world, the day of his departure into the other. When the clock struck five in the afternoon, being the hour of his birth, with a loud voice he praised Gop for all the favours conferred on him; at the same time shedding abundance of tears, and making a most tender confession of all his sins, the pardon whereof he most earnestly implored. That which most affected me, says his biographer, was to hear him express how unprofitable a servant he had been, and how small a part of his life he had consecrated to the service of God. This made by so much a deeper impression upon my heart, by how much the better I knew how willingly he offered up himself as a daily sacrifice to be spent in doing the will of God. Some days before his death, he gave order that nothing (not so much as one thread) of black should be in his coffin; " For, said he, I have been a sorrowful man these many years, lamenting the deplorable state of Christ's church militant here on earth; but now, being upon the point of retiring into the church triumphant in heaven, I will not have the least mark of sorrow left upon me; but my body shall be wrapped up all over in white, for a testimony that I die in expectation of a better and more glorious state to come." The day before he died, he caused the seventeenth chapter of St. John's gospel to be read to him, three times successively. It was one of his favourite chapters, yet he could never be prevailed on to preach upon it: He always said, he did not understand it. On the same day he spoke much of Simeon's departure; and, though weak and low, he did not forbear to bless all those that came to see him. Towards evening he fell into a slumber, which continued for the most part till the next morning. When he awoke, he saluted those that were about him; after which, at his own request, he was set up in a chair; but in a little while, as they were endeavouring to put him into his bed again, the thread of his life failed, and he suddenly expired in the arms of his wife, in the seventy-first year of his age.

His Works. He published several Tracts and Sermons; but his last and greatest work was that which he finished not long before his death "On the Divinity of Christ."