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ALLEINE

ON

THE PROMISES;

CONTAINING THE

Voice of the Herald, before the great King;

THE

VOICE OF GOD SPEAKING FROM MOUNT GERIZIM;

BEING

A short View of the great and precious
PROMISES OF THE GOSPEL, &C.

BY THE REV. JOSEPH ALLEINE,
Author of "An Alarm to the Unconverted," &c.

WITH A SKETCH OF HIS LIFE AND WRITINGS,
BY JAMES NICHOLS.

According to this Time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel,
"What hath God wrought!" Numb. xxiii. 23.

First American Edition.

Corrected and Amended, with a Preface, by a Friend.

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DISTRICT OF MARYLAND, ss.

BE IT REMEMBERED, That on the twenty-second day of February, (1828,) in the fifty-second year of the Independence of the United States of America, Armstrong and Plaskitt, of the said district hath deposited in this office the title of a book, the right whereof they claim as proprietors, in the words following, to wit:

"Alleine on the Promises; containing the voice of the herald, before the great king; the voice of God speaking from Mount Gerizim; being a short view of the great and precious promises of the gospel, &c. By the Rev Joseph Alleine, Author of an alarm to the unconverted, &c. With a sketch of his life and writings, by James Nichols. According to this time it shall be said of Jacob and of Israel, What hath God wrought! Numb. xxiii 23. First American edition, corrected and amended, with a preface, by a Friend.

In conformity to the act of the Congress of the United States, entitled "An act for the encouragement of learning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned." And also to an act, entitled "an act, supplementary to an act. entitled an act for the encouragement of lea: ning, by securing the copies of maps, charts, and books, to the authors and proprietors of such copies, during the times therein mentioned, and extending the benefits thereof to the arts of designing, engraving, and etching historical and other prints." PHILIP MOORE,

Clerk of the District of Maryland. 4-24-39 J.A.

Joseph's allen
910-22-37

PREFACE

FOR THIS EDITION.

"ALL Scripture," we are informed, "is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." In correspondence with this declaration, we find in the holy volume, the evils of the life as well as of the heart of man, specifically designated, against which wholesome admonition and alarming threatenings are directed. And whilst its plain precepts point to amendment, its important doctrines disclose the only way by which the salutary and indispensable reformation can be effected. Every candid individual may be confirmed in the authenticity of the sacred word, by studying its descriptions of human nature, and comparing them with what he discovers daily transpiring in his own bosom. Thus, without recourse to laboured treatises upon the evidences of Christianity, he may, by a short and safe route, arrive at the conclusion, that "in old time, holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." Indeed, so ac curate are the delineations of the heart, so distinctly is the mystery of iniquity it contains, traced through all its subtle windings, and into its most secret recesses, that however sceptical the man may be, he can hardly resist the conviction, that the truths he reads must have been dictated by that spirit, "who knoweth what is in man." But the process of conviction stops not here. Throughout all the gradations of moral renovation, the sacred word is a "light to the feet, and a lantern to the path" of the humble inquirer. In it he finds the Holy Spirit has made provision for him at ⚫ every step. His doubts, his fears, his trials, his temptations, his doings and his sufferings, are all foreseen by that eye which looks through the long and devious road he has to travel, and in the blessed Book he is put in possession of an accurate and intelligible map, in which his way is clearly marked out for him. The author of this little volume had long been a traveller in this holy way; and, no doubt, his mind was deeply impressed by the foregoing considerations. He had realized in his own experience, "the terrors of the Lord," and found that the "reproofs of instruction are the way of life." Arrived at a stage of his pilgrimage in which, in retrospection, he was prepared to behold how he had been guided, supported, comforted and defended, his confidence in the faithfulness and truth of God and his holy word, was completely established, independently of abstract reasoning or evidence. He had followed the direction of the Saviour, contained in the following declaration, "if any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God," and had been completely and experimentally satisfied of its validity. Remembering the temptations, and conflicts, and trials he had himself passed through, and the liability to discouragement and consequent danger, which those especially who are just beginning a christian course, are exposed to from these causes, he could not but revert to that passage of the Apostle, there are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these ye might be made partakers of the divine nature; having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." Our pious author, influenced by such reflections, en deavours to turn away the attention of the penitent mourner and timid believer, from the threatenings of the sacred word to its consoling promis

es.

This little Book, we are informed, was composed while the author was confined in the jail at Taunton, and suffering the persecutions of his enemies on account of his religious principles. No doubt his own mind derived unspeakable consolation in the execution of a work intended to strengthen the faith and promote the happiness of his beloved flock, to whom it was sent whilst he still remained in prison. Mr. Alleine is better known as the author of the "Alarm to the Unconverted," a book, than which, excepting the Pilgrim's Progress, no treatise, perhaps in our language, has had a more extensive circulation: and it may be doubted, whether its usefulness has been exceeded even by that deservedly popular production.

The little work now presented to the public, was highly prized by individuals of literary taste and eminent piety. "Mr. Hervey, before he died, saw this book in the original, and said it was the richest piece he ever read in his life." It was enriched with many new and appropriate scriptural references by the late Rev. David Simpson, of Macclesfield, who evinced the high estimation in which he held it by causing it to be reprinted, and circulated in that populous town and neighbourhood. In this edition, these references have been corrected and verified, and greatly augmented by several additional passages. The "Address to Communicants," is inserted in this edition, and the "Sketch of his life and writings."

"It is mentioned by his friend Mr. Baxter, as one of his greatest excellences, that 'As in all his ministry, he was extraordinarily addicted to open to

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