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children of thefe wicked men, as a token of his awful difpleafure against their daring impiety, God vifited upon them the iniquity of their fathers. So the children of Achan, who took of the accurfed thing at Jericho, were, by the exprefs command of Jehovah, stoned to death with their father, and in confequence of his fin.-The children and infants, who perifhed in the deluge, and in the destruction of Sodom, were visited for the iniquity of their fathers. For they fuffered these awful judgments on account of the exceeding wickednefs of their parents.

and have ever fince been fcattered up and down in almost every nation upon earth. In very few countries have they been allowed the common rights of fubjects; but have been oppreffed, abufed, trampled upon, and even murdered with`impunity. And often have they as a people been banished from one country and another, and their property and children cruelly torn from them.

Thus God has, in a very remarkable manner, accomplifhed his awful threatenings against this nation, as delivered by Mofes, Deuteronomy 28th chapter, that he would scatter them among all people; that they should become a

proverb and by word among all nations; that among thefe nations they fhould find no eafe or rest; but the Lord would give them a trembling heart, failing of eyes, and forrow of mind; and that the Lord would make their plagues wonderful, and the plagues of their feed, even great plagues, and of long continuance. And during this long period, they appear, as a peo

God alfo permitted Abfalom to rife up in a moft unnatural and wicked rebellion against his father, and thus to bring himself to a wretched, untimely end, in confequence of the fin of his father in the matter of Uriah. To punish David for his wickedness in this affair, God fays, "Behold, I will raife up evil against thee out of thine own houfe." This denunciation was fulfilled in the wicked rebellion of Abfalom, which ended in his own ruin.-ple, to have been under the most Omitting many other inftances, recorded in fcripture, where children have fuffered peculiar evils in confequence of the fins of their fathers; the Jewish nation are a remarkable example of this kind.-For more than 1700 years, they have been vifited with the most awful judgments, temporal and fpiritual, as a token of God's displeasure against In the various inftances now the aggravated guilt of their ancef. mentioned, God vifited the initors; who rejected and murdered quity of the fathers upon the chilthe Lord of glory, impiously im-dren, by bringing upon them temprecated his blood upon themfelves poral and fpiritual evils in confeand pofterity, and cruelly perfecut-quence of the fins of their parents. ed and destroyed his faithful ferv-| ants. Soon after this the great body of that nation were deftroyed with unparalleled cruelty and flaughter. The remains of this wretched people were fold in throngs as aves,

awful fpiritual judgments-to have been given up to a peculiar hardnefs of heart and blindness of mind. According to the declaration of the apoftle, "God hath given them the fpirit of flumber; eyes that they should not fee, and ears that they should not hear, unto this day."

And children are always thus vifited, when they experience any evils or calamities on account of the wickedness of their parents or ancestors. When therefore the children of thieves, drunkards,

murderers, and other vile charac- | fpeaks of "vifiting the iniquities

ters are fubjected to poverty, difgrace, and other evils, through the vices of their parents, or are fuffered to run into these fame deftructive vicious courfes; or when the children of irreligious parents are left to follow their evil example, and thus to bring upon themfelves everlasting deftruction; God then vifits upon them the iniquity of their fathers. This is alfo the cafe, when children are deftroyed by earthquakes, peftilential fickneffes, and other judgments, which are fent upon particular places, on account of their wickedness and as a token of the divine difpleasure. In these various ways God, in his providence, is continually vifiting the iniquities of the fathers upon the children. He does it now, as really as he did it in paft ages; for be declares it to be a part of his character, and this is unchangeably the fame forever. It is alfo confirmed by facts which continually take place around us, in which we fee, that children do experience evils on account of the vices and misconduct of their parents.

But the declaration," For I the Lord thy God, am a jealous God, vifiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children" is not a pofi tive declaration, that he will in every instance visit the iniquity of the fathers upon their children. But the expreffion is general, implying, that he frequently does it, or that he may justly do it in all inftances, where he fees fit. Without any violation of his truth therefore he may in his fovereign mercy difpenfe with this mode of procedure, whenever he pleafes. But it is owing to his fovereign goodnefs, that he does not in every instance, execute this denunciation, by vifiting the iniquity of the fath ers upon the children. When God

of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation" he does not declare, that he will never vifit their iniquities upon their children beyond the fourth generation.-And it appears in fome inftances, that children do, for more than four generations, experience evils in confequence of the wickedness of their parents.Thus on account of the finful neglect of Eli, God fays, "There fhall not be an old man in thine houfe forever. I will judge or punish his houfe forever, for the iniquity which he knoweth ; becaufe his fons made themselves vile and he reftrained them not." So to punish Gehazi, for his covetoufnefs and falfehood, the prophet Elifha declared, that the leprofy of Naaman fhould cleave unto him, and unto his feed forever.-God alfo commanded Saul to deftroy the Amalekites on account of the injury which their ancestors did unto Ifrael, when they came out of Egypt, more than 400 years before.-The Jewish nation have been vifited, for the iniquity of their forefathers with peculiar judgments for upwards of 1700 years. All the pofterity of Adam, in confequence of his tranfgreffion, come into the world with depraved difpofitions; and fo on account of this their finfulness are exposed to all the evils and miferies of this life, and to everlasting deftruction in the future. Thus for almost 6000 years God has vifited upon mankind the iniquity of their first fathers.

It appears therefore, from facts, that the expreffion unto the third and fourth generation" muft not. be defigned to limit God's dealings in this way precifely or certainly to the fourth generation. Accordingly the expreffion feems to be of

a more general import, and may naturally imply, that God thus vifits the iniquity of parents upon their children for feveral or many generations.

tranfmitted to you, with a hope, that if it meets your approbation, you will diffuse the knowledge of it, by giving it a place in your Magazine. LEVI.

A plan for the more effectual religious inftruction of Children and Youth, with an addrefs to Minifters and Parents on the subject. By the Affociation of Minifters in the county of Berkshire, and the Northern Affociated Prefbytery in the State of New-York.

Or mentioning the third and fourth generation may be designed to teach, that God does not gene. rally, altho' he may in fome inftances, vifit children with evils down beyond the fourth generation, on account of the particular fins of their parents; if the children themselves are not guilty of the fame fins. And perhaps it is I. generally the cafe, that the children of thieves, drunkards, and other vicious characters, do not fuffer the evil confequences of their parents' mifconduct beyond the fourth generation; unless the children in the intermediate generations run into the fame vices. But if the children are permitted to follow the evil examples of their parents, and are given up to fimilar vices or wickedness; the iniquity of the fathers may be vifited upon their children, from generation to generation for hundreds of years, and even to the end of the world; unlefs the fovereign mercy of God fhould interpofe, and reclaim the children from the fins of their parents. This is ftrikingly exemplified in the Jewish nation. are also other inftances, where vice and irreligion appear to defcend in families for many generations. What folemn warning and motives do these confiderations afford parents to avoid vice and irreligion; left they should ruin both themfelves and their dear children? HE.

(To be continued.)

MESS'RS EDITORS,

There

THE following plan for the more effectual religious inftruction of Children and Youth, &c. is

minister in the Affociation and Presbytery is advised to ufe his influence, to collect the children and youth of his church and congregation, in a body or in divifions, as local circumftances may require, as often as he fhall judge expedient, with a defign to imprefs on their minds the serious and weighty things of eternity, by catechifing, inftructing and counselling them. And it is recommended that he begin and close his catechifing lectures, with prayer to God for his bleffing on his labors. It is thought moft proper to make use of the Shorter Catechifm of the Westminfter Affembly of Divines; becaufe it contains a compendium of all the leading and most important doctrines and duties of religion, expreffed in an eafy, and plain manner, fanctioned by long cuftom, and, by people in general, best known and underflood.

II. It is recommended to the churches within the circles of the Affociation and Prefbytery, that are destitute of Pastors, to appoint the Deacons, or fome other meet perfons, to go into the fame mode of religious inftruction, which is here propofed to Ministers.

III. It is recommended to Minifters and ferious people, to use their influence to have the cate

VI. That it may be known how far this religious attempt fucceeds, and whether it fhall be needful to take any further steps to give energy to this good work, the Minifters of the Affociation and Prefbytery, fhall, at their first meeting, after September 1, 1801, render an account to the body to which he belongs of the fteps he has taken to promote this religious attempt, and the fuccefs it has had, in his church and congregation, and in thofe in his vicinity, that are deftitute of Paftors.

chifm taught by inftructors of Minifters, and Deacons of churchfchools; a practice, which of late, es which have no fettled Minifters, has grown into great difufe: alfo call churches together to confult to have the Holy Scriptures read on the importance and duty of in schools, at least once every day. giving the rifing generation reliIV. It is the opinion of the gious inftruction, and agree to Affociation and Prefbytery, that come into the measures here prethe family concert of catechifing fcribed. and prayer, fuggefted by individual members of thefe bodies, and which has already been communicated to fome churches and congregations, ought to be warmly fupported, and all proper means taken to carry it into effect. To accomplish an event fo defirable, Minifters of the Gofpel, and heads of families, are advised to call together their children, and thofe under their care, every Lord's day, and spend an hour in catechifing them, and in folemn and fervent prayer to HIм who holds the hearts of all in his hands, and who difpenfes bleffings according to his own fovereign will. The local diftance of fome families from the houfe of public worship, and the fhortnefs of the days in the feafon of winter, it is thought, may render it inconvenient and even impracticable, to obferve a concert of this kind, without varying the time. It is, therefore, recommended, that from the 20th of March to the 20th of September, annually, the time of the family concert be the hour next preceding the fetting of the fun on the Lord's day and the remaining part of the year, to be the hour next fucceeding the fetting of the fan, on the evening preceding the Sabbath, for thofe who view that evening as holy time, and the fame hour of the evening following the Sabbath, for thofe who view that evening as holy time.

V. To accomplish thefe religious purpofes, it is conceived that it would be a wife ftep, fhould

VII. The Affociation and Pref bytery agree that this plan of inftruction, and the addrefs which follows, fhall be printed, and that copies of them fhall be distributed to minifters and churches, to be read in all the churches and congregations, in the circle of the Affociation and Prefbytery. A committee fhall be chofen to procure the printing, and to distribute the copies.

THE ADDRESS.

BRETHREN AND FRIENDS,

EVERY one, who believes in the Chriftian fyftem, will readily fay, it is important that instruction in the things of religion fhould be communicated to mankind. God fent the prophets to inftruct Ifrael. Chrift inftructed the Jews. He chofe feventy, and fent them forth, for the fame purpofe; and commanded his difciples to inftruct both Jew and Gentile. The ferious, the wife, and the difcerning of mankind are univerfally of opin

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neffes againft their parents, in the
day when they fhall meet them at
Chrift's tribunal.
Some youth,
now in the world of total and end-
lefs defpair, are probably curfing
their parents, who are yet living,
for ruining their fouls. What an
aching heart must a parent have,
when he reflects that he has been
inftrumental of fending his dear
child to fuffer the endless pains of
Hell!

ion, that religious inftruction is friendly to the interefts of men, in this world, and the world to come; and for the glory of Him, who has condefcended to reveal himself in the Holy Scriptures. Thousands have laid hold of the opportunity to teach the doctrines and precepts of God's word: Millions have rejoiced to hear them. If religious inftruction be important, it cannot be thought that children and youth are to be lected, and fuffered to grow up in ignorance of God, of their finful state, of the atonement, of their accountableness to God, and of their obligations to abftain from vices, ruinous to their prefent and future welfare. The early period of life is the best time to lead them to the knowledge of these things. In that period their minds are retentive, and more easily impreffed with the folemn and weighty things of eternity, than after they have hardened themselves more in fin, The precept of God to parents and imbibed deeper prejudices a- in Ifrael, which stands on facred gainst religion, and adopted erro-record, is applicable to you.neous principles. The twig is ea"Thefe words which I commandfily bent; but the matured oak is ed thee this day shall be in thine inflexible. heart and thou fhalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and fhalt talk of them when thou fitteft

Minifters and parents, awake from your flumbers, and attend to the folemn fubject. Teach your children and enforce your inftruction by an exemplary life; and let the God of all mercy hear daily prayers for a bleffing on your attempts to lead your children into the knowledge of the interefting truths of the word of God.

Religion will make them dutiful, wife and happy in this life: Religion, and nothing elfe, will prepare them for Heaven.

walkeft by the way, and when thou lieft down, and when thou rifeft up."

Many of the pious lament the growing neglect of catechifing and inftructing the rifing generation.-in thine house, and when thou Pious parents and godly minifters reflect with painful fenfations on their own finful neglect of this duty; and wish and pray that they It is now a time in which God themselves, and heads of fami- is pouring out his Spirit in plentilies, may open their eyes, and fee ful fhowers. Awake, and attend their fin-may repent, and fet a- to your children. There is a fhabout the duty they owe to the ri-king in the tops of the mulberry fing generation, with ferious earneftness.

The fouls of children are, in an important fenfe, committed to parents, and if they neglect their duty to them, and their dear children perish, and fuffer the endless pains of Hell, they will be terrible wit

trees. God is gone forth. Beftir yourselves.

Many people, fome old, fome young, have been brought into Chrift's Church. And, bleffed be God forever, fome in the congregations within the circles of the Prefbytery and Association,

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