s, an obvious excuse suggests itself to
us for the employment, by the author, of these, and such like familiar
expressions, which are besides of singularly rare occurrence in his
writings. The great object which a Christian minister, like Binning, will
constantly propose to himself, when addressing his people, will be, to
make himself useful to them. But he knows he cannot be useful, without
being intelligible to his audience. He is thus led sometimes to lower his
style, as well as to simplify his ideas, that he may reach the
understandings and hearts of the youngest and the most illiterate among
his hearers. This was evidently Binning's case. To the least intelligent
of those whom he addressed, he sometimes spoke in their own dialect, or,
to adopt his own comparison, "like nurses with their children." In so far
as he did this, he followed the maxim of the great German Reformer. _Hi
sunt optimi ad populum concionatores_, said Luther, _qui pueriliter,
populariter, et quam simplicis sime docent_. "They are the best preachers
to the people, who teach them in a plain, familiar, and perfectly simple
way."

A preacher, however, who is desirous to make his instructions exceedingly
simple, is in danger of bringing his language too low, or of expressing
himself in a manner which may not please persons of refined taste. His own
good sense will teach him to avoid this if possible. But in the hurry of
writing or speaking, he may not always succeed. When this happens, the
fault into which he has been betrayed ought to be overlooked by those who
are aware, that the business of a minister of Christ is not to interest
merely, but to convince, not to afford pleasure, but to enlighten,
reclaim, and admonish, "rightly dividing the word of truth."

It is right that the reader should know what changes have in the present
edition been made upon the text of the author. To make the work as perfect
as possible, it has been carefully collated with the earliest editions
which could be procured of his different writings. From his style being so
much in advance of that of his countrymen in general, at the time he
lived, it may be supposed that his language has been modernised to a
considerable extent. But such is not the fact. The orthography has been
altered. Greater attention than formerly has been paid to the punctuation.
This was so defective in many places, as completely to obscure and pervert
the meaning of the author. The references to scrip