of light and love into our souls that can | lasting year, where sin, sorrow, and death make us willing and pleased to drop this are never known. vile mortal flesh to be with Christ in open vision. A proof of this you may see in the last number of the Vessel, by the Obituaries from Wolverhampton and Hull. and Well, beloved, the old year, 1847, is gone, gone for ever! and 1848 salutes our eyes. Thanks be unto God for the many mercies in the past; the Lord multiply his mercies in this which has Beloved, this is that precious faith appeared; and give us grateful hearts, wrought in us by the power of the Holy praying spirits, and a new year's song of Ghost, that can only fortify our trembling praise. Yes; the old man has lost ansouls against the fears of death, that other old year; but the new man's new terrible death now stalking round the year's day and year began on the day of world in various forms-sword, pesti- his new birth; and is eternal life, grace, lence, and famine. And now, ye dear and glory begun in the soul. He that rosy-faced youth, whose youthful blood sitteth upon the throne saith, and behold runs warm and swift through your veins, I make all things new;' a new birth, a and you dear brethren, who have arrived new heart, a new man, a new creature, at sober and refreshing manhood, should a new name, a new heaven, a new earth. you, by God's preserving mercy, escape When a woman marries she looses her old these things, death, in old resistless time, name; that is cut off; she takes a new brings on hoary headed winter and gal-name, the name of her husband; lerous old age winds up her tale' on the name of the church's husband is earth. Therefore, we would not attempt called Wonderful, the Mighty God; to charm your souls with politics, vain and the bride, the Lamb's wife, is wonderphilosophy, worldly glory, and a fancied fully beloved, redeemed, and provided for; perfection, in this dying corruptible state, she is heiress of all things, and joint heirbut endeavour to point you to the dying, ess with the God-man. The Son is the rising, reigning glory of the Son of God. Father's delight; and the bride is the Brethren, though we have much here to Father's delight in the Man; and the cause thankfulness to God, there is no. woman is the delight of the Man for ever thing in this life worth soul-glory. This and ever, Amen. O, glorious bride! life is but a lingering sickness, termi-Thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and nating only in death. Disease and death thy land Beulah, for the Lord delighteth are in all things around us, and in our in thee, and thy land shall be married.' poor mortal flesh. If we look to the east, on the old continent, in Russia, there is pestilence, and thousands dying of the cholera-in Switzerland, insurrection, blood-shed, and death by the sword-and if we look to the west, to the American continent, in Mexico, there we hear of bloodshed, and wholesale death-and near home, in that poor, neglected, priest ridden, sister country, Ireland, there murder, pestilence, and partial famine have been seen-and at home, dis- ITS PRECIOUSNESS, PERFECTION AND PERPETUITY, tress, oppression, and crippled commerce. So that like Ezekiel's roll, lamentation, mourning, and woe,' is on both sides written. Still, amidst all this, no natural Iman, in the world with all his woes, saith, 'Where is God, my Maker, that giveth How truly blessed is it when the Holy songs in the night?" But, O, dear saints Ghost, the testifier and glorifier of Jesus, of the Most High, who know your God, is graciously pleased to cause us to reamidst all the death without, and heart-member the rock whence we plague of the old man felt within, Christ's hewn, and the hole of the pit whence we presence will give you a song in the were digged,' and is also pleased to enable night of affliction, and cause you to sing us to review the land through which we in the last night of death; and the new have travelled-to regard the hand by year's song of glory begins in the ever-which we have been conducted-to re And as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.' O holy church of God, rejoice in the Lord; and again, I say rejoice. Sing hosannah, hallelujah! to God in the highest. Amen and amen. WILLIAM Garrard. Leicester, Dec. 3rd. 1847. The Divine Faithfulness; "Thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in the very heavens."—Psalm lxxxix. 2. To all the loved and learned of the Father, were hearse the mighty and righteous acts of divine faithfulness then implies, that the Lord, in saving us from Satan's certain engagements have been entered snares, preserving our steps while pass- into, which are, that Jehovah, Father, ing through perilous places, and deliver- Son, and Spirit, will be the God of his ing our souls out of dangers, difficulties people Israel, even their God for ever and and distresses innumerable, and to re- ever; and they, his people, shall be his count the manifold proofs and matchless portion, even his eternal inheritance; gifts of love bestowed upon us, in order answerable to the inspired statements of that we may record his faithfulness who the prophets, Hosea, Moses, and David. has followed us with favour day by day, (see Hosea ii. 19, 20; Deut. xxxii. 9; thereby fulfilling that sweet and sacred Ps. xxxiii. 12.) Again, that certain propromise, penned by Isaiah (58 chapter, mises arising out of the solemn engage8 verse), Thy righteousness shall go be- ments previously mentioned, have been fore thee: the glory of the LORD shall be made, viz., to bless with all spiritual thy rereward!' blessings, to comfort with all heavenly consolations, to save and strengthen, to sustain, supply, to pardon and pacify, to direct and protect, yea, to satisfy and glorify the objects of Love's eternal choice, with the glory given to them in Christ Jesus before the world began. Also, that certain offices have been created for Him who is our surety, substitute and sacrifice, viz., the offices of Prophet, Priest, King, Shepherd, Advocate, and Judge, in all of which he is found faithful, not as a servant only, but as a son over his own house, (see Heb. iii. 1-6.) Moreover, he is the Mediator of the New Testament, the Messenger of the covenant, the Messiah promised, and the Minister of the true circumcision, making manifest in the fulfilling of these sacred offices his eternal power and godhead. And, finally, that certain relative characters have been and are sustained by him, he being our master, friend, brother, father, husband, and head, in all of which his goodness shines, his greatness stands confessed, his love abounds, his tenderness appears, his constant care is felt, And his faithfulness both strong and sure, Abides the same for evermore. The divine faithfulness is abundantly declared in the revelation Jehovah has been mercifully pleased to give of his mind and will concerning his church. It is brightly displayed in the redemption wrought by Jesus, even a complete redemption from sin and Satan, law and justice, death and hell. It is also blessedly discovered in the regeneration of sinners, in renewing their souls, and raising them up from the horrible pit, or pit of horrors, and revealing in them the Christ of God.' And it is gloriously developed in the ultimate reception of all such renewed and redeemed sinners into the blissful presence of the Three-one Jehovah, there to abide, and therein to rejoice for ever and ever. In attempting a glance at the divine faithfulness as spoken of in the abovenamed text, let us notice:-1st, The preciousness of the doctrine; 2nd, Its perfection; and 3rd, Its perpetuity. First-Thy faithfulness.' There is a peculiar preciousness realized in the soul of the believer when contemplating the fact, that whatever the Lord in his infinite wisdom may suffer, permit, or allow, we are assured he will not suffer his faithfulness to fail, verse 33; from age to age the righteous seed have found (amidst all the treachery, trickery, twistings, and turnings of ungodly and unfaithful men, from which they have sadly suffered, and sorely smarted) the faithful God,' (Deut. vii. 9,) has been their alone rock, refuge, and resting place. In order that we may better understand the subject, let us first observe what is involved in, or implied by the term faithfulness, viz., 1st, that certain engagements have been entered into; 2nd, that certain promises have been made; 3rd, that certain offices have been created; and 4th, that certain relationships have been and are sustained. The faithfulness, let us observe these four tolled in their songs of pure affection, and true adoration; while they sing, His name proclaims the mourner's peace, It makes the righteous bold;. It gives the wounded spirit ease, Though faith be tried as gold. It is our refuge in distress, Our plea before the throne; While his dear name is known. things:-1st, he will establish his covenant, or make good all his engagements as he assured our father Abraham of old; see Gen, xvii. 7. 2nd, he will establish his word, according to the desire of Elkanah, see 1 Sam. i. 23; or make good all his promises which are blessedly declared by the Holy Ghost, and as blessedly found by all the saints, to be yea and amen in Christ Jesus the Lord. 3rd, he will establish his work, by fulfilling every In the third place, let us notice the office he sustains to the utmost satisfac- perpetuity of the divine faithfulness :tion of all interested therein; hence our thy faithfulness shalt thou establish in deeply and divinely taught brother Paul the very heavens.' This implies four was confident that the good work which things with reference to the sons of God, God had begun in the hearts of the be- the servants of Christ, the subjects of the lieving Philippians, he would perform or Spirit's work, who are the seed of Jacob, perfect until the day of Jesus Christ, and sought out and separated by him that most blessedly did our adorable Lord in sanctifieth all that sanctified are. 1st, it the days of his flesh, appeal to the autho- implies, their entire preservation as the rity of this infallible and indubitable mystic body of Christ; 2nd, their comwitness his work-saying, 'the works plete purification as the manifested bride that I do in my Father's name, they bear of Jesus; 3rd, their ultimate presentation witness of me. If I do not the works of in heaven as the mighty body of the great my Father, believe me not. But if I do, I AM; and 4th, their eternal participathough ye believe not me, believe the works.' tion of glory as the married bride of the John x. 25, 37, 38; surely, then, we who glorious Lamb; hence their preservation can say with David, 'thou, Lord, hast is of love, their purification by blood, their made me glad through thy work,' Psalm presentation in righteousness, and their xcii. 4; can also say with him, his work participation according to truth; and thus is honourable and glorious,' Psalm cxi. 3. the purity of love divine, the preciousness And hence, as he is the rock, and his work of blood divine, the perfection of rightis perfect, (Deut. xxxii. 4,) we may cheer-eousness divine, and the power of truth fully sing, The work that wisdom undertakes, and also, divine, are proved and established in the very heavens, eternally unfolding, exhibiting, and illustrating the glory of the divine faithfulness. I close these remarks by observing, that salvation is so evidently alone of God, that it requires the love, blood, righteousness, and power of the Lord God omnipotent to effect it, and be it solemnly written, and as solemnly remembered, that as the most powerfully formed arm would become motionless and inactive without blood, so even the arm of omnipotence, without blood, would prove inefficient to save one sinner from death deserved. Herein, then, is the righteousness of God revealed to the eye of faith, that love has decreed and determined that the merit of the blood of Jesus, and the might of the arm of Jehovah in Jesus should meet in the salvation of the church. And thus mercy and truth have met together, and pardon and peace from thence proceed. Concerning truth, consider three things in its reference to Christ,1st, truth is the garment of his soul! 2nd, truth is the girdle of his loins; and, 3rd, truth is the glory of his life; also | he was almost left solitary. He said, 'broconsider these three in its reference to ther Combe is gone; brother Stevens is gone, and now brother James is gone. I was allittle longer, that we might all go home tomost ready to ask the Lord to spare them a gether.' the saints: 1st, truth is the ground on which they stand; 2nd, truth is the guide by which they walk, and 3rd, truth is the goal to which they run. He spoke at some length on the body being dead because of sin, but the spirit Maythe God of grace and peace, whose being alive because of righteousness; shewtestimonies are sure, and whose faithful-ing that it was but of little importance as to ness and mercy for ever endure, grant unto his dear children such blessed discoveries of his love, blood, righteousness, and truth, that they may feelingly adopt the language of David, I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me Psalm cxix. 75; and of Jeremiah, It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not; they are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. Lam. iii. 22, 23; and of Isaiah,' O LORD, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old (or thine ancient counsels) are faithfulness and truth.' Isa. xxv. 1. Even so, Amen. JOHN STENSON. Chelsea, Dec. 9, 1847. when, or where a man died, whether his was a laying affliction, or a walking affliction ; but the grand thing to be considered was, whether he had the Spirit of Christ? for, 'If a man have not the Spirit of Christ he is none of his.' Now, (said Mr. Foreman) I the spirit of Christ, and although the body is am well persuaded that brother James had dead because of sin, he is not lost, but is gone a little before us into the mansions of bliss; for Christ gave body for body, and soul for soul, and there was a divine certainty of both being in heaven, for there was now no condemnation to them that are in Christ; no, nor any separation from him. He believed his dear departed brother was an honest man; one who loved and preached the TRUTH. Some did not think him experimental; or just in that line of things which pleased them; yet he never attempted to please man ; but went on to preach CHRIST; and if he was here to speak, he would say, 'do not men Death and Burial of the late Mr. James, tion anything about me, but Christ, who is OF HARTLEY ROW. FOR Some time past the Lord's dealings with Mr. James have been very mysterious; his usefulness in the vineyard of the Lord appeared to be at a stand; but few perhaps anticipated that his end was so near, or that his departure to another and a better world, should be so sudden, although the nature of his complaint was such as must necessarily lead to this; it being a disease of the heart. Nov. 28, 1847, was the last Sabbath that he spent in the wilderness. It appears on that day he was engaged to preach, but was too ill to go, being in bed the best part of the day; but on the following day he was a little better; about nine or ten o'clock at night he complained of violent pains in his inside and went into his garden, where staying longer than usual, Mrs. J. went after him; and, poor thing, was just in time to hear his last groan, for he had fallen down, and, breathing his last, entered, we trust, into his eternal rest. The funeral took place the following Friday, December 3rd. Mr. John Foreman, of London, and Mr. Curtis, of Homerton, officiating. The chapel was quite full. Mr. Curtis opened the service by giving out that well known hymn, Why do we mourn departed friends?' after which, Mr. Foreman read the 9th, 19th, & 11th verses of the 8th chapter of the Romans, and gave a very suitable and solemn address. He began by stating that all in all,' with whom he now is, and of whom he knows more than all of us put together; Mr. F. so that he has outstepped us now.' concluded with prayer, after which the body was placed in a vault under the vestry. WHAT IS THE SOUL? THE soul is the breath of God, the beauty of man, the wonder of angels, and the envy of devils; 'tis of an angelical nature, 'tis an heavenly spark, a celestial plant, and of a divine offspring; 'tis capable of the knowledge of God, of union with God, of communion with God, and of an eternal fruition of God; there is nothing that can suit the soul below God, there is nothing that can satisfy the soul without God; the soul is so high and so noble a piece that it scorns all the world; what are all the riches of the East or West Indies? what are rocks of diamonds, or mountains of gold? or the price of Cleopatra's draught, to the price that Christ laid down for souls? 'Tis only the blood of him that is God-man that is an equivalent price for the redemption of souls. Silver and gold hath redeemed many thousands out of Turkish bondage, but all the silver and gold in the world could never redeem one poor soul from hellish bondage, from hellish torments. Souls are a dear commodity, he that bought them found them so; and yet at how cheap a rate do some sinners sell their immortal souls.-Brooks. A Few Words to our Readers on the Opening of the New Year. made? Nor does it matter, beloved, to those who are with our glorious Christ, seeing all things must and shall work together for their good; and that though the earth be removed, and the mountains be carried into the depths of the sea, they have a river of peace, the streams whereof shall make glad the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High. In this we exult-in this we triumph! But we wish to speak to a few points that concern the Earthen Vessel; and these are, the work itself-its correspondents,-its readers, and its Editorship. THROUGH winds, waves, and difficulties, of sovereign care and power shall be with our life often in apparent jeopardy, have we struggled thus far to work our way; and by the good hand of our God upon us, have reached the solemn point, 1848! Here we pause; we thank God; and take courage. We bless his holy name for the past, the present, and the future; for, in reviewing the retrospect, our life and standing seems a miracle-a trophy of mercy, and all-conquering grace! And under their benign smiles we would unfurl the banner of love, and display its crimson colours because of Truth. We would plant it on the top of our sweet Ebenezer, and joyfully reiterate the ancient inscription, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us! And then as our eye falls on the future-the darkthe gloomy future, with all its vast displays of divine and satanic skill brought into fearful contact, our souls rejoice to find themselves with Jehovah Jesus in the ark of covenant protection; so that however great or terrible the stroke by which the heavens and the earth shall be shaken, we are on safe ground! We ride secure! The little sanctuary of invincible truth will shield us from the judgments that will make the unfaithful to quake, the wicked to howl, and devils to rage; so that only with our eyes shall we behold, and see the reward of the wicked. Nor are we at liberty to put far from us the evil day, nor say, 'Our Lord delayeth his coming,' seeing the word of truth bids us to watch and be ready; the signs of the times exhibited in the past year, especially that shock of the commercial system-(the very backbone of political power)-which has spread, and is still spreading distress around, seems to say 'Behold, the Judge is at the door! Another, and growing them with a heaven-constructed comsign is the progress of Puseyism as linked with the changing policy of the crafty and insidiously working Pope of Rome. And surely, the ambition of the rival vicegerent will by no means allow him to stop in his measures, till they have fairly placed him on the top of the mountain of our Zion! Towards this terminus the events of the past year have hurried us along. Who can tell the velocity of FORTY-EIGHT? Who can say what events shall transpire; or, what displays The Work itself. It purports not to be an iron vessel, of steam power, collecting and accommodating the wise, the mighty, and the noble of this world: nor a golden vessel, possessing nothing but what will stand the test of fire; but an Earthen one only, which may soon be broken and perish; and which, therefore, may be found at times like the kingdom of heaven itself, catching and carrying fish both good and bad. The Earthen Vessel contends not for perfection either in her contents or management; nor does she aim to rival other vessels of superior show and quality now plying on the face of the mighty waters. Her grand object is to convey to virgin souls that unspeakable gift THE TRUTH-in all its vastness, richness, and variety. The glory of Jehovah's great name, is her sole,-her noblest ambition. Nor has she cause to fear his frown, seeing that the Lord himself has often made choice of earthen vessels to carry the tidings of his rich grace, unto his own elect who are scattered up and down on the face of the earth, and has endowed pass, at once so true and faithful, that its guidance may be termed infallible provided the eye and judgment of its captain make no mistake: by the aid of this compass, we wish to steer betwixt the miry waters of lifeless Calvinism on the one hand; and the gaping whirlpools of Arminianism on the other. We desire that all whom this work may concern may be found contending for a lively faith, as the Spirit's work, and also for the fruits of that faith, by showing that |